The Narahara Aeroplane

[blackkite]

Hi! The Narahara 2 Aeroplane.
Source : ENCYCLOPEDIA OF JAPANESE AIRCRAFT VOL.8.
Narahara type No. 2 airplane

At the beginning of 1911, pilot Narahara imported the French Gnome 50hp engine and built a newly designed No. 2 airplane at Tokyo Airplane Manufacturing. This airplane, with reference to the new aircrafts of Britain and France, gave dihedral to the main wing, attached auxiliary wings to both trailing edges of both upper and lower wings, and had two front wheels with a tail sled.

On May 5, 1911, this plane made its first flight at the Tokorozawa Flight Test Site, the first airfield in Japan. Also this was the first flight of the domestic aircraft. Pilot Narahara was in charge of the operation, and the flight distance was 60 m and the flight altitude was 4 m. This aircraft recorded a maximum flight distance of 600 m and a maximum flight altitude of 60 m in subsequent flight tests.

Span : 10. 00m (Upper wing), 9. 20m (lower wing), Length : 10. 00m, Height : 2. 80m, Empty Weight : 430kg, Gross Weight : 550kg, Engine : Gnome air cooling radial rotary 7 cylinders 50hp engine

 

[blackkite]

The No. 2 Narahara type airplane was designed by Narahara Sanji. In 1911 this plane flew some 60 meters at an altitude of 4 meters, becoming the first Japanese craft to take to the air.

https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Narahara_Sanji
"Narahara Sanji (1876- ). Early aviator.
Born in 1876, was an aviation pioneer in Japan who designed and attempted to fly an aircraft in 1910, but, the machine, known as the Narahara No.1 was not sufficiently powered, utilizing a 25hp Anzani engine, and only achieved an altitude of 30cm ... The second aircraft designed, the Narahara No.2 Aeroplane made use of a 50hp Gnome engine and on the 5th of May, 1911, flew about 60m at 4m altitude ... thus being the first Japanese built aeroplane to fly. A third design, yes, the Narahara No.3 Aeroplane was successful as was the Narahara No.4 Aeroplane, the Ohtori-go.

 

[blackkite]

Hi!
Narahara type No. 1 airplane
Mr. Sanji Narahara was born in 1877 as a son of Baron Shigeo Narahara, who was a governor of the Satsuma domain and was the governor of Okinawa. After graduating from the Department of Military Engineering, Tokyo Imperial University, he worked at the Yokosuka Navy Arsenal of the Japanese Imperial Navy in 1908, and as a Navy engineer, he became a member of the Extraordinary Military Balloon Research Group established in 1909. In December 1910, Captain Yoshitoshi Tokugawa (flying with Farman III) and Captain Hino Kumazo (flying with Grade II Libelle), who flew for the first time in Japan in December 1910, were also members of this study group.

Sanji Narahara engineer designed a biplane with a bamboo frame in May 1910, more than half a year before Captain Tokugawa and Captain Hino succeeded in the first flight, and established a workshop at his home in Yotsuya Shiocho, Tokyo. Production has started. This airplane was equipped with Anzani 25hp on the nose as a towed engine that was novel at the time. The upper wing was larger than the lower wing and was installed in front of the lower wing. The elevator was installed on the front edge of the upper wing so that it could be divided into left and right parts and project forward. The elevator was equipped with a triangular vertical stabilizer to prevent skidding. The landing gear was initially a front four-wheel type and a rear single-wheel type, but was later changed to a front two-wheel type and a rear single-wheel type. This plane tried to fly on October 24, 30, and 31 October 1910, but could not take off. In the end, this plane was used for ground run studies.

Span : 11. 30m (Upper wing), 9. 30m (lower wing), Wing chord : 1. 50m, Length : 7. 20m,
Empty Weight : 310kg, Engine : Anzani 3W air cooling 25hp engine

 

[blackkite]

Hi! Narahara type No.3 aircraft.
The Narahara Type 3 Aircraft was reassembled using parts of the Narahara Type 2 Aircraft that were damaged during practice. This Narahara Type 3 airplane became a twin seat type for instructors to ride in practice flight, and the landing gear was also a sturdy four-wheel type. The engine used was brought from Narahara type 2 airplane, and the main wings were straight wings without dihedral. After the modification, it became a covered fuselage. The airplane was destroyed by a gust of wind during a training flight.

 

[Airborne2001]

Very cool! I have never heard of these aircraft until now.

 

[blackkite]

Thanks! Next one is the Narahara(奈良原) type No.4 aircraft Otori-Go.(鳳号).
(1)Otori means an imaginary bird that appears as a happy sign when a saint enters the world.
(2)or Chinese phoenix.
(3)or Words that represent the car or palace of Emperor.

 

[blackkite]

Hi! Restored aircraft flying.

 

[blackkite]

Hi!
In 1912, a new Narahara type No.4 airplane was manufactured by the Toyo Aircraft Company and assembled in Tokorozawa. At the request of the sponsor, this airplane was named "Otori" based on the name of Sumo's Yokozuna "Otori” at that time. It showed excellent performance in flight tests and held touring flights in major cities nationwide.
Crew: 2 people, engine: Gnome air-cooled rotary radial type 7 cylinder 50hp, width : 11. 4m (upper wing), 9. 3m (lower wing), total length : 7. 0m, total height : 2. 8m, main wing area: 39m2, empty weight : 470kg, maximum speed : 70km/h