By the time the Americans began their aerial bombardment of Japan in
1944, both the JAAF and IJNAF were spent forces. What the Japanese did
have though was the Ki-44 Tojo. Armed with two 40 mm cannon, it was the
most heavily armed and feared single-seat fighter to see action against
the new American bomber, the B-29 Superfortress. For the bomber crews,
they had what they believed was their ace in hole: a fully armed B-29
carried four remotely operated gun turrets and a tail gunner's position,
making it the world's most advanced self-defending bomber.
In every respect the Ki-44 pilots were fighting a desperate battle. Many
who made their mark did so using suicidal ramming attacks or Taiatari.
Illustrated with full color artwork, this volume examines why the Ki-44
was unable to break up bomber formations conventionally during the
Pacific War, and how its ramming tactics, while terrifying, graphically
revealed Japan's inability to stop the B-29.