World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseThe E8N seaplanes were Nakajima's replacements for the E4N predecessors. The prototype took flight in Mar 1934, and the design entered production in Oct 1935 as Navy Type 95 Reconnaissance Seaplane Model 1. During the Second Sino-Japanese War, they were used as reconnaissance aircraft, artillery spotters, and occasionally as dive bombers. Between 1935 and 1940, a total of 755 aircraft were built, including 7 prototype aircraft; of the 748 production units, 700 were built by Nakajima and 48 were built by Kawanishi. In early 1941, German naval attaché Vice Admiral Paul Wenneker purchased one E8N aircraft from Japan; this aircraft was eventually delivered to the auxiliary cruiser Orion, making her the only German ship in WW2 to be equipped with a Japanese seaplane. By the time the Pacific War began in Dec 1941, E8N seaplanes were considered obsolete, replaced by the modern E13A design by Aichi and the F1M design by Mitsubishi. Nevertheless, they remained in service, albeit largely in rear areas only.

ww2dbaseThe Allied code name for this aircraft model is "Dave".

SPECIFICATIONS

E8N1

Machinery	One Nakajima Kotobuki 2 KAI 1 9-cylinder radial engine rated at 580hp
Armament	2x7.7mm machine guns, 2x30kb bombs
Crew	2
Span	10.98 m
Length	8.81 m
Height	3.84 m
Wing Area	26.50 m²
Weight, Empty	1,320 kg
Weight, Maximum	1,900 kg
Speed, Maximum	301 km/h
Speed, Cruising	186 km/h
Service Ceiling	7,270 m
Range, Normal	904 km

E8N2

Machinery	One Nakajima Kotobuki 2 KAI 2 9-cylinder radial engine rated at 630hp
Armament	2x7.7mm machine guns, 2x30kb bombs
Crew	2
Span	10.98 m
Length	8.81 m
Height	3.84 m
Wing Area	26.50 m²
Weight, Empty	1,320 kg
Weight, Maximum	1,900 kg
Speed, Maximum	301 km/h
Speed, Cruising	186 km/h
Service Ceiling	7,270 m
Range, Normal	904 km

Photographs