Accountability (tiers approx):
Tier | Fighters | Fighters | Fighters | Attack | Indigenous | Captured |
I |
Armstrong Whitworth A.W.16 Blackburn Lincock III |
Junkers K 47 |
Douglas O-2 Vought O2U Corsair |
Fu-hsing (05/1936) Liuchow Kwangsi Type 3 (07/1937) |
||
II |
Gladiator Mk.I Fiat CR.32
|
Curtiss A-12 Shrike Northrop Gamma |
Fu-hsing (05/1936) Yenchu XP-1 (1943) |
Mitsubishi Ki-30 |
||
III |
Dewoitine D.510 |
I-153 |
Neman R-10 Vultee V-11 |
Yenchu XP-0 (1943) | ||
IV |
Curtiss Hawk 75A-5 |
Curtiss CW-21 Demon Vultee P-66 Vanguard |
Bellanca 28-90B Vultee V-12C |
Mitsubishi Ki-51 |
||
V |
Curtiss P-40E |
Vultee V-12D |
Mitsubishi A6M2 (Zero 3372) Nakajima Ki-44-I |
|||
VI |
Curtiss P-40N |
IL-2m3 |
Nakajima Ki-44-II |
|||
VII |
|
Yak-9P |
||||
VIII |
Northrop P-61
|
Yak-17 |
||||
IX | Gloster CXP-1001 | |||||
X |
Republic F-84G North American F-86F |
Ilyushin IL-28 |
strikethrough = used
orange highlight = used as premiums
links to definitive in-game aircraft provided where able
For a look at how captured Japanese aircraft might fit into the Japanese tech tree see here.
Sources
China tech tree (Wargaming)
China
A History of Chinese Aviation, by Lennart Andersson (2008) -- the most comprehensive and detailed account of any book in English
Communist Chinese Air Power, by Richard M. Bueschel (1968) -- small volume, good overview, light on detailed specifications
Flight in China Air Space 1910-1950, by Malcolm Rosholt (1984) -- many pictures and historical accounts, light on detailed specifications
Chinese Aircraft: China's Aviation Industry Since 1951, by Yefim Gordon and Dmitriy Komissarov (2008) -- covers MiG-15, IL-28, facilities; very thin on 1951-1956 details
The Complete Book of Fighters, by William Green and Gordon Swanborough (2001) -- very good import coverage, also mentions the Chu X-PO and Type 3
Chinese Warlord Armies 1911-1930, by Philip Jowett (2010) -- only very early aircraft are covered; none applicable to Tier 1
China's Air Power Enters the 21st Century, RAND report for U.S. Air Force (1995)
American influence
McDonnell Douglas Aircraft Since 1920: Volume 1, by Rene J Francillon (1988)
Curtiss Hawks in the Chinese Air Force, by Hakan Gustavsson
Before the Tigers: China's Air Forces in the Struggle Against Japan
Lockheed P-38 Lightning in USAAF, French, Italian, Chinese Nationalist Service (Arco-Aircam Aviation Series No. 10), by Ernest McDowell (1969)
The Flying Tigers: Chennault's American Volunteer Group in China, by Braxton Eisel (2009) -- concise AVG history, P-40 minor details
Curtiss P-40: Long-nosed Tomahawks, by Carl Molesworth (2013 Osprey) -- Hawk 75M export specs
Bellanca's Golden Age, by Alan Abel and Drina Welch Abel (2004 Wind Canyon Books)
Boeing P-12, F4B, by Edward T. Maloney (1966 Aero Publishers) -- Boeing model 218 details
Boeing P-26 Peashooter, by Edward T. Maloney (1973 Aero Publishers) -- Boeing model 281 details
Boeing: Images of America, by Martin Bowman (1998 Tempus) -- Boeing 218 and Boeing 281 details
Russian influence
Soviet Aircraft 1917-1941, by Lennart Andersson (1995) -- excellent counterpart to Andersson's book on Chinese aviation above
Soviet Fighters in the Sky of China, by George Mellinger (2000)
Jet Bombers: From the Messerchmitt Me262 to the Stealth B-2, by Bill Gunston with Peter Gilchrist (1993) -- IL-28 details
China's Approach to Technology Acquisition: Part 1--The Aircraft Industry, by Hans Heymann, Jr. (1975)
British Influence
Armstrong-Whitworth Aircraft Since 1913, by Oliver Tapper (1973 Putnam) -- A.W.XVI details
Gloster Aircraft Since 1917, by Derek N. James (1971 Putnam) -- ROCAF's CXP-102 and CXP-1001 projects
Japanese influence
For specific sources on captured Japanese aircraft see here
Mitsubishi A5M Claude, by Tadeusz Januszewski (2003 Stratus) -- an account of the air battle over Hankow April 25 1938; "largest air battle of the Chinese-Japanese conflict" (p.30)
War Prizes, by Phil Butler (1994 Midland) -- overview of aircraft captured/surrendered aircraft
Old notes
Old Versions
-- 2.01 -- updated with premiums beyond Hawk III
Timeline
Color codes: American / Soviet / Japanese / Indigenous Chinese developments
01 Aug 1927 Chinese Civil War (part 1) start
18 Sep 1931 Second Sino-Japanese War skirmishing begins
23 Feb 1932 Robert Short, flying a Boeing Model 218 (P-12 prototype), engages Japanese forces over Suzhou (Soochow)
__ ___ ____ Chennault's aerobatic team flying P-12's observed by ____ ... later asked to be advisor to Nationalist Chinese Air Force
__ ___ 1933 CAMCO assembly of Curtiss Hawk II/III's
__ Oct 1933 Polikarpov I-15 prototype first flight in Russia
__ Dec 1933 Polikarpov I-16 prototype first flight in Russia
19 Feb 1934 Northrop Gamma deliveries start ... assembled by CAMCO, their first assembled aircraft
21 Sep 1934 Northrop Gamma deliveries stop
20 May 1936 Constantine Zakhartchenko's Fu-hsing two-seat biplane makes its first flight
22 Dec 1936 Chinese Civil War (part 1) end
__ ___ 1937 Soviet Volunteer Group start
__ ___ 1937 Vultee V-11/12's delivered 1937-1938
__ Jun 1937 Chennault arrives in China as an advisor to Nationalist Chinese Air Force
07 Jul 1937 Second Sino-Japanese War major fighting begins
__ Jul 1937 Liuchow Kwangsi Type 3 single-seat biplane first flight ... "performance proved insufficient to justify further development"
13 Aug 1937 Battle of Shanghai starts ... Curtiss Hawk II's, Hawk III's, Boeing P-26C's
26 Nov 1937 Battle of Shanghair ends
__ __ 1938 Chennault organizes training for Chinese pilots
05 Feb 1939 Vultee V-11's and 12's used to bomb Japanese-held airfield
21 May 1939 contract for Curtiss Hawk 75A-5's to be assembled by CAMCO
__ May 1939 contract for Curtiss Demon CW-21's to be assembled by CAMCO
__ ___ 1940 Vultee V-11's and 12's withdrawn from bombing duty to training/liaison duty
23 Dec 1940 Agreement made to divert Curtiss P-40B's to China
__ ___ 1941 Soviet Volunteer Group end
13 Apr 1941 Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact start
15 Apr 1941 1st American Volunteer Group pilot recruitment begins in United States
25 Apr 1941 China and United States sign formal agreement
__ Nov 1941 1st American Volunteer Group assembles for training in Burma; employer of record = CAMCO
26 Nov 1941 "Tiger Zero" (Zero 3372) recovered in China; restored by summer 1942
20 Dec 1941 1st American Volunteer Group (Flying Tigers) start
__ Jun 1942 "Akutan Zero" crash lands on Akutan Island near Alaska
04 Jul 1942 1st American Volunteer Group (Flying Tigers) end; becomes 23rd Fighter Group as part of China Air Task Force under command of Brigadier General Claire Chennault; subordinate to Tenth Air Force in India
__ Nov 1942 Technical Air Intelligence Unit formed; others formed 1943-1944
__ ___ 1943 Yenchu XP-0 prototype first flight ... design based broadly on Curtiss Hawk 75
__ ___ 1943 Yenchu XP-1 prototype first flight ... crashed during test flight ... design by Constantine Zakhartchenko
19 Mar 1943 China Air Task Force replaced by Fourteenth Air Force, Chennault in command
__ Nov 1943 23rd Fighter Group converts from Curtiss P-40's to North American P-51's.
__ late 1944 Republic P-47 arrives in China
05 Apr 1945 Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact end
08 Aug 1945 Soviets declare war on Japan
09 Aug 1945 Soviets invade Manchuria ("Operation August Storm") ... using lend-lease aircraft ... P-63, Douglas A-20G ...
20 Aug 1945 Soviet invasion of Manchuria complete; industrial equipment removed or destroyed; land given back to China; Shenyang and Harbin future aircraft industry for China; captured Japanese aircraft given to Chinese Communist movement
02 Sep 1945 Japan officially surrenders
09 Sep 1945 Second Sino-Japanese War end
__ Dec 1945 23rd Fighter Group returns to United States
05 Jan 1946 23rd Fighter Group deactivated
31 Mar 1946 Chinese Civil War (part 2) start
24 Apr 1946 MiG-9 first flight in Russia
20 May 1947 De Havilland Mosquitos for sale in Canada; Chinese Nationalists are interested and buy ~300; pilot training continues into 1948 ... poor pilots, currency collapse, deteriorating situation
18 Sep 1947 United States Air Force becomes a separate service
30 Dec 1947 MiG-15 first flight in Russia
08 Jan 1948 Lavochkin La-15 first flight in Russia
09 Mar 1948 Gloster E.1/44 first flight ... this is the Nationalist jet development with Gloster ....English + Chinese design team in England
10 Dec 1948 Peking (Beijing) claimed by Communists
01 Oct 1949 People's Republic of China declared with Beijing as capital
01 May 1950 Chinese Civil War (part 2) end
25 Jun 1950 Korean War start
27 Jul 1953 Korean War end
End of the IJA/IJN -- Japanese aircraft in Manchuria turned over to China
Fighter Aircraft used in China 1932-1956 by country of origin:
Tier | USA | Russia | Japan | Italy | Germany | Britain | France | China |
I | Model 218 | Type 91-1* | Junkers K 47 | Lincock III / A.W.16* | Type 3 | |||
II | P-26C / |
I-15 / I-15bis / I-153 | CR.32 | Gladiator Mk-I | Dewoitine D.510 | |||
III | Hawk 75M / CW-21 | I-16 | Ki-27* / A5M | |||||
IV | P-66 / P-43 | Chu X-PO | ||||||
V | A6M2 / Ki-61* | |||||||
VI | P-38 (F-5E, F-5G) | Ki-44* | Mosquito* | |||||
VII | P-47D* / P-51C / P-51D* / P-51K | YAK-9P / La-7 | Ki-84* | |||||
VIII | La-9 / La-11 / Yak-17 | |||||||
IX | MiG-9 | |||||||
X | F-84G / F-86F | La-15 / MiG-15 | Shenyang J-2 |
Key:
Nationalists / Communists
* Kwangsi Air Force, later incorporated by Nationalists
* later captured by Communists (Japanese late 1945; late American aircraft and Mosquito 1949)
Non-fighter Aircraft used in China 1932-1956 (Attack, General Purpose, Observation, etc.) by country of origin:
Tier | USA | Russia | Japan | Italy | Germany | Britain | France | China |
I | V-65C* / O-2* | R-5 / PO-2 | Type 92* | B.R.3 | Avro 637 / Wapiti / Atlas* | |||
II | Gamma 2E | E13A* / Ki-30* | Hs123 | |||||
III | A-17 / A-12 / 28-90B / V-11 | R-10 | Ki-51* | |||||
IV | Hudson / V-12 | |||||||
V | P-61 | Pe-2 | ||||||
VI | IL-2m3 | |||||||
VII | IL-10 | |||||||
VIII | ||||||||
IX | ||||||||
X | IL-28 |
Maximum model rough
Old notes
These are older notes that were helpful when I began the project.
-- distinctions between imported, license-built, and captured aircraft will be made later
-- distinctions between volunteer groups (Flying Tigers, etc.) will be added later
Pilots:
-- Chinese Nationalists and Communists
-- Soviet Volunteer Group (early aircraft)
-- American Volunteer Group ("Flying Tigers")
-- Japanese mercenaries (late 1945+ to fly Japanese aircraft)
Insignia used:
-- Nationalists: Kuomintang (KMT) white 12-pointed star on blue field
-- aircraft captured by the Communists in late 1946 sometimes had no insignia (in the case of captured Japanese aircraft), or just painted the red star hastily over the blue/white star.
-- Communists: red star with red band + characters for "8" and "1" inside the star (late 1946 onward, until official in 1949)
Notes:
-- The 1st Red China aircraft was a single Douglas O-2 captured from the Nationalists; Communists rebuilt it and named it "Marx" but couldn't get it off the ground.
-- The 2nd Red China aircraft was a Vought V-65-C1 captured from a Nationalist defector; Communists named it "Lenin"; shot down by Nationalists October 5 1936.
Implications:
1) A Chinese tech tree would have to use both Nationalist and Communist aircraft to attempt completion.
2) Considering the limited opportunities for actual "progression" and the number of each type of aircraft used, the existence of the Hawk III as a premium strongly suggests that the I-15, I-15bis, I-153, and I-16 are to be used for the low-tier fighter progression. This is the Soviet Volunteer group that helped to train Chinese pilots and fought together against the Japanese. This could further imply that the American Volunteer group aircraft is to be utilized (P-43, P-40). More details on this later.
3) Given the challenges of actual "progression" that have been identified (non-native production, non-chronological development, non-Chinese volunteer groups, etc.), there is a strong indication that the usual precedents will need to be violated. This could mean the inclusion of trainers (of which there are many), or alternating between fighter and attack aircraft as you progress forward, or alternating Nationalist/Communist insignia as you progress upward, etc.
4) There are examples of aircraft "created by the Chinese" that are nothing more than utilization of remaining equipment. For example the "Jung 28B" was supposedly an adaptation of the I-15bis to use a Hawk III engine. Authoritative sources (such as Lennart Andersson's "A History of Chinese Aviation") are needed to see how these kinds of modifications can be accounted for in a workable tech tree. I expect to have the sources soon.
5) There are 2 essential ways to proceed with the creation of a Chinese tech tree. The "easy way" is to simply copy the progression of existing aircraft of other countries, though there are obvious problems with this and it wouldn't make for a very interesting tree anyway. The "hard way" is muddier to work through (much like early Chinese aviation) and involves looking closely at the limited equipment that they had on hand, and then trying to make a reasonable case for progression through it. Again, authoritative sources are needed for this kind of undertaking.
Chinese "meta" tech tree idea
I have been thinking about how a Chinese tech tree could be implemented, and the problem is that they relied very heavily on imports and volunteers. I went ahead and started a messy tree anyway with imports, and it occurred to me that a good solution might be to make it a "meta" tree, like this:
Chinese pilot sitting in hangar waiting for imports....
Tier I: American pilot completes P-12 from U.S. tree, sends it to China --> now China has access to Tier I P-12
Tier II: Russian pilot unlocks I-15 from Russian tree, sends it to China --> now China can progress to Tier II I-15
Tier III: Russian pilot unlocks I-16 from Russian tree, sends it to China --> now China can progress to Tier III I-16 (or U.S. pilot unlocks Hawk 75M, sends it to China)
Tier IV: U.S pilot unlocks P-36 from U.S. tree, sends it to China --> now China has can progress to Tier IV P-36
...and so on and so forth, until missing tiers are complete and China can fill in with their own manufactured aircraft (Chu X-PO, etc.). Then further imports (unlocked and donated from abroad) to fill missing tiers as needed (P-51 D and any others that have a historical basis).
This would dodge a very messy tree and add an interesting meta-game that encourages pilots to advance across multiple countries.
There are some minor points associated with the above such as,
1) Would the Russian/American/etc. pilots be able to fly the Chinese craft as volunteers (like Flying Tigers)? or
2) Would the Chinese pilots be required to complete module progression on the imported craft in order to have access to the next tier?
Probably the latter, though a combination of the two is possible.
It would be probably be easier/faster to implement than designing a tech tree from scratch because it would use many existing models/mechanics.
It would require primarily skins for the Chinese and volunteer units (community event/contest?), and GUI export/import mechanics.
Minimal model
For details on the aircraft above, start here or just scroll down.
If the above is correct, then these are the alternates, premiums, and/or gift planes:
Tier | American | Russian | others (imports, captured, etc.)* |
I | O-2 / O2U / 218 | A.W.16 / K 47 / Type 91 / more | |
II |
281 / A-12 |
XP-1 / Gladiator Mk.1 / CR.32 Hs123 / Ki-30 / E13A |
|
III |
CW-21 / 28-90B |
R-10 |
Ki-27b / A5M / Ki-51 / D.510
|
IV | P-43 |
Ki-43 / Ki-51 |
|
V | Pe-2 | Ki-45 / Ki-61 / A6M2 | |
VI | P-38 / DH 98 | Ki-44 | |
VII | P-47 | La-7 | Ki-84 |
VIII | La-9 / La-11 | ||
IX | |||
X | F-84G / F-86F | La-15 / MiG-15 |
For details on captured Japanese aircraft see here.
Edited by J311yfish, 26 June 2021 - 06:49 PM.