The two types of aircraft responsible for sinking the Prince Of Wales and Repulse represented the best of Japanese aviation in 1941. The older, more numerous type consisted of Mitsubishi G3M twin-engine aircraft, known simply as “Nells” to Allied pilots. (The Allies gave boys’ names to Japanese fighters and float planes, girls’ names to Japanese bombers and recon planes.) Manned by a crew of five, the Nell first flew in July 1935 and went into widespread production the following year.
Defensive armament consisted of three 7.7mm machine guns. Early versions were able to obtain a maximum speed of 188 knots and had an exceptional range of over 2,200 miles—improvements later in the war considerably extending both. Although chiefly a high-level bomber, the G3M was adapted to carry an 800-kg torpedo in an antishipping role. G3Ms were little known in the West, being used chiefly by the Japanese against the Chinese, although they achieved a notable distinction on August 14, 1937, when a force of them based in Formosa attacked targets in mainland China 1,250 miles away, thus realizing the first transoceanic air attack in history.
G3Ms remained in service throughout the war, though by 1943 they were mostly employed in second-line duties or used as transports. In all, 1,048 were eventually produced, 636 by Mitsubishi and an additional 412 under license by Nakajima.
