Nakajima Ki-43 Hayabusa Indonesia 1946

Tony May
Do you know if the Indonesians used these during their bid for independence? I gave serious consideration to adding that to my assembly-line build of Hayabusas. I'm curious though; Do you plan to use the Thai markings from this decal sheet too? I'm planning to pick up the Kora set but if I can work out a deal with you it'd be just as well. 😉

Ben M
The Indonesians seem to think so: airliners.net/photo/..-II-Hayabusa/1169366

Tony May
Oh, that is wicked, I couldn't find any documentation on the topic. I wonder if Japanese hold outs were those flying them or if they were Indonesian pilots? Either way I applaud your project selection!

Ben M
If you look around on the internet, you will find the history. They were Indonesian pilots. The first raid on the Dutch forces was done with a K5Y, as the Hayabusa had engine troubles.

Tony May
I used to be much better at online research. At some point web browsers cut off their searches at something like 20-odd pages & by that point it isn't remotely about what you were searching for. The older search engines, before they trimmed them down, could go for hundreds of pages & at least be relevant to a degree. I sometimes wonder if there are vast portions of the internet that are cut off from users in different parts of the world. I mean, we always hear about censorship resulting in one site or another being cut so that people in that nation cannot access it. I wouldn't think that were so for the USA; Then again as of late freedom of speech seems more like a suggestion rather than a rule.

A Willow was used for their first strike against the Dutch forces? That's really something! Those old string bags didn't look like they could carry much of anything. What were the Dutch using, in theater, to try to counter the Indonesian aerial attack elements?

Jan Peters
The Dutch used P40's and P51's as fighters at the time.

Tony May
Oh, that's right! I remember now that I had a Dutch P-40N planned. Unfortunately the decal sheet I was planning to pick up for it is sold out; Do you know if Dutch Decal ever repeats production runs? It looks like Dutch Decal DD72090 Camouflage and Markings RNEIAAF has quite the array of markings but I can't tell if it includes one or more P-40Ns & what operational time frame the aircraft might've served. I see that you have that set, would you happen to know off hand?