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Description
Another aircraft here today because mechanical issues (oil system) forced the pilot to perform an emergency water landing sending the plane to the bottom to be pulled out at a later time.

Built by Nakajima, this Zero was assigned to the 210 Naval Air Squadron flying out of Meiji Naval Air Station in Aichi Prefecture. It's pilot, Lt. Tsuneo Azuma, made an emergency landing in Lake Biwa on Aug. 6, 1945. It was pulled from the lake in 1978 and restored with the help of Azuma. The aft-end of the fuselage had to be recreated based on documents and Tazio Nakamura, who also worked on Tachiarai's Zero, reconstructed part of the instrument panel.

This aircraft is on display in the Yamato Museum in Kure, in the 'large artifacts room.' It contains a suicide sub, suicide torpedo and this Zero as it's biggest artifacts. I thought the Zero made the room slightly less depressing for not being a purpose built suicide craft. Then I learned the A7, with it's center-line bomb rack, was great for using as a kamikaze! Yamato was on a kamikaze mission of it's own when it was sunk so it all fits.

Yamato Museum
Kure, Hiroshima Prefecture

Description
Another aircraft here today because mechanical issues (oil system) forced the pilot to perform an emergency water landing sending the plane to the bottom to be pulled out at a later time.

Built by Nakajima, this Zero was assigned to the 210 Naval Air Squadron flying out of Meiji Naval Air Station in Aichi Prefecture. It's pilot, Lt. Tsuneo Azuma, made an emergency landing in Lake Biwa on Aug. 6, 1945. It was pulled from the lake in 1978 and restored with the help of Azuma. The aft-end of the fuselage had to be recreated based on documents and Tazio Nakamura, who also worked on Tachiarai's Zero, reconstructed part of the instrument panel.

This aircraft is on display in the Yamato Museum in Kure, in the 'large artifacts room.' It contains a suicide sub, suicide torpedo and this Zero as it's biggest artifacts. I thought the Zero made the room slightly less depressing for not being a purpose built suicide craft. Then I learned the A7, with it's center-line bomb rack, was great for using as a kamikaze! Yamato was on a kamikaze mission of it's own when it was sunk so it all fits.

Yamato Museum
Kure, Hiroshima Prefecture