The Kawasaki C-4 is a heavy military transport aircraft utilized by the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force to deploy the ARL-99 "Helldiver" paratroop labor. It was practically tailor-made for this purpose, and features many unique features to fulfill this role.
Design[]
The C-4 was designed as a specialized transport for the deployment of airborne labors. Compared to the American Boeing C-17 Globemaster III, it is smaller and has a lighter payload, but features good STOL characteristics and is more agile at low speeds and altitudes. Against the American Lockheed C-130 Hercules, it is slightly larger, heavier, and faster, but with a reduced payload.
Its wings are equipped with large, high-lift flaps, which are effective at keeping the aircraft airborne at low speed and facilitating short take-offs and landings. A novel feature of the C-4 is its engine layout. Its four turbofan engines are grouped in pairs and installed onto the leading edges of the wings. Their exhaust is passed through variable control surfaces on the trailing edges, effectively giving them two-dimensional thrust vectoring capabilities. By deflecting thrust downward, the C-4 can artificially create even more lift than if it was equipped with flaps alone. In flight, this thrust vectoring can be used to facilitate high agility in low-speed flight, when the traditional control surfaces aren't as effective.
The tailplane is of twin-tail configuration, granting high rudder authority, and is itself mounted on a slightly raised portion of the fuselage so that it is clear of the path of any airdropped cargo. Mounted at the aftmost point of the fuselage, in between the tails, is an observer's position, likely for the aircraft's loadmaster, where a crewmember can watch over airdrop operations.
The C-4's internal cargo bay is large enough to carry three Helldiver labors, in a "tucked" position, which can be dropped over an area of operations. On such missions, the maximum payload of the aircraft is not utilized, but it can be used to deploy regular paratroopers, heavy equipment, or to act as a regular cargo transport.
The aircraft's smaller size and lighter weight than comparable transports make it easier to operate domestically in Japan, as well as make it more agile as previously mentioned. However, these do present some limitations. As stated, the C-4 does not make use of its full payload when carrying and deploying airborne labors, making it comparatively inefficient. However, a larger aircraft would present difficulties in handling, both on the ground and in the air. Perhaps the most glaring weakness of its optimized design is its service ceiling. When fully loaded, the C-4 can reach a maximum altitude of just under 3,000 meters (just over 9,800 ft), an admittedly poor metric (Compare to the 45,000 ft service ceiling of the C-17, or the 23,000 ft of a fully-loaded C-130). This greatly reduces the aircraft's efficiency, speed, and range, negatively impacting its overall versatility and utility. Essentially, the C-4 is an inefficient aircraft on two fronts; the mission it was designed for leaves it with unused (and unusable) payload capacity, while loading it to capacity makes it very impractical for most missions.
Specifications[]
General Characteristics[]
- Crew: At least 4 (2 Pilots, 1 Navigator/Radio Operator, 1 Loadmaster)
- Length: 35.60m (116.80ft)
- Wingspan: 38.62m (126.71ft)
- Empty Weight: 53mt (58.42t)
Performance[]
- Maximum Payload: 26,020kg (57,364.28lb)
- Maximum Speed: 920km/h (571.66 mph, 496.76kn)
- Service Ceiling (Fully Loaded): 2,990m (9,809.71ft)
Gallery[]
References[]
