The primary weakness of the G4M, a weakness common to many of the Japanese aircraft of the Second World War, was armor protection of crew spaces and fuel stores. Lacking these qualities, the aircraft proved highly susceptible to small bursts of gunfire. Any sort of dominance that the G4M exhibited in the early phases of the conflict were soon reversed as newer and better Allied fighters became available in quantity. The days of the G4M as a frontline attack system were numbered though the series saw action into the war's final weeks (August 1945
Variants included the G4M1 (encompassing prototypes and the first production model), the G4M2 (various sub-marks produced for Navy service), the G4M3 (self-sealing fuel tanks and armor protection added) and the G6M1 (improved defensive armament, 30 built).
With its pair of Mitsubishi MK4A-11 "Kasei" 14-cylinder radial engines of 1,530 horsepower each, the G4M1 (Model 11) managed a maximum speed of 265 miles per hour (cruising at 195mph), a range out to 1,770 miles and a service ceiling up to 28,000 feet. Rate-of-climb was 1,800 feet-per-minute.
The Betty stocked some 37 Japanese bomber groups during the war. Post-war operators became China and Indonesia. Both the United States and United Kingdom tested the aircraft extensively.
Production totaled 2,435 units. This included 1,172 of the definitive G4M1 mark, 429 examples of the G4M2, 713 additional aircraft in the G4M2a guise and 91 examples of the G4M3. The G6M1 numbered thirty aircraft.
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