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The NAMC YS-11 is a
turboprop A turboprop is a Gas turbine, gas turbine engine that drives an aircraft Propeller (aeronautics), propeller. A turboprop consists of an intake, reduction drive, reduction gearbox, gas compressor, compressor, combustor, turbine, and a propellin ...
airliner An airliner is a type of airplane for transporting passengers and air cargo. Such aircraft are most often operated by airlines. The modern and most common variant of the airliner is a long, tube shaped, and jet powered aircraft. The largest ...
designed and built by the Nihon Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation (NAMC), a Japanese consortium. It was the only
post-war A post-war or postwar period is the interval immediately following the end of a war. The term usually refers to a varying period of time after World War II, which ended in 1945. A post-war period can become an interwar period or interbellum, ...
airliner to be wholly designed and manufactured in Japan until the development of the Mitsubishi SpaceJet during the 2010s, roughly 50 years later. Development of the YS-11 can be largely attributed to Japan's
Ministry of International Trade and Industry The was a Ministry (government department), ministry of the Government of Japan from 1949 to 2001. The MITI was one of the most powerful government agencies in Japan and, at the height of its influence, effectively ran much of Japanese industri ...
(MITI), which had encouraged Japanese aircraft companies to collaborate on the development of a short-haul airliner as early as 1954. In 1959, NAMC was formed to design and produce an aircraft to satisfy MITI's requirements, dubbed the YS-11. On 30 August 1962, the first prototype performed its
maiden flight The maiden flight, also known as first flight, of an aircraft is the first occasion on which it leaves the ground under its own power. The same term is also used for the first launch of rockets. In the early days of aviation it could be dange ...
. Deliveries commenced on 30 March 1965, and commercial operations began the following month. The majority of orders for the type were issued from various Japanese airlines. While sales to such customers were swift in the YS-11's initial years of availability, this limited market soon became saturated, leading to a slump in demand. Production of the type came to an end in 1974 as a result of efforts to increase sales to international clients, including the creation of the better YS-11A variation. In the end, the YS-11 had shown that Japan was capable of building an airliner, but NAMC had racked up a huge debt, and the type is generally regarded as a commercial failure. Large numbers of the type continued to be in service until 2006, at which point tighter Japanese aircraft regulations imposed by the
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism The , abbreviated MLIT, is a ministry of the Japanese government.国土交通省設置法
necessitated either the withdrawal or refitting of all YS-11s. By 2018, only a single example reportedly remained in commercial service.


Development and design


Origins

During the mid-to-late 1950s, the Japanese
Ministry of International Trade and Industry The was a Ministry (government department), ministry of the Government of Japan from 1949 to 2001. The MITI was one of the most powerful government agencies in Japan and, at the height of its influence, effectively ran much of Japanese industri ...
(MITI) identified a requirement for a short-haul airliner to replace
Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper ...
s flying on Japan's domestic routes, and encouraged companies in Japan's aircraft industry to collaborate to develop and produce a domestic airliner to meet this need. Towards this purpose, in May 1957, the ''Commercial Transport Design Research Association'' was established and the availability of government
subsidies A subsidy, subvention or government incentive is a type of government expenditure for individuals and households, as well as businesses with the aim of stabilizing the economy. It ensures that individuals and households are viable by having acce ...
guaranteed. From the government's viewpoint, the development of such an airliner was viewed as a key initiative towards the post-war revival of the nation's aircraft companies, which came in addition to the serious ambition to become a major international competitor in the global airliner business. Furthermore, while this requirement had been conceived primarily in a commercial context, there was an early recognition of the value for multiple branches of the Japanese Defense Agency (JDA) to be readily able to adopt the type as well; as a philosophy, this not only extended to the prospective airliner itself, but the various technologies involved in its development and manufacture. In response to this encouragement, during 1957, a
joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acce ...
between
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational engineering, electrical equipment and electronics corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. MHI is one of the core companies of the Mitsubishi Group and its automobile division is the prede ...
,
Kawasaki Heavy Industries is a Japanese Public company, public multinational corporation manufacturer of motorcycles, engines, Heavy equipment (construction), heavy equipment, aerospace and Military, defense equipment, rolling stock and ships, headquartered in Minato, To ...
,
Fuji Heavy Industries , formerly , is a Japanese multinational corporation and conglomerate primarily involved in both terrestrial and aerospace transportation manufacturing. It is best known for its line of Subaru automobiles. Founded in 1953, the company was named ...
, Shin Meiwa, Showa Aircraft Industry Company and Japan Aircraft Industry Company was established for the purpose of developing and manufacturing the envisioned airliner. Two years later, this partnership was formalised as the ''Nihon Aeroplane Manufacturing Company'' (NAMC).Endres 1996, p. 22.Taylor 1966, p. 107. The ownership of NAMC was initially divided between the Japanese government, which held 54% of the shares, while the constituent aircraft manufacturers held an 18% stake and several components/materials suppliers owned 11%; the remaining shares were small stakes belonging to various banks, insurance companies, and stock firms who chose to invest in the programme. However, NAMC was essentially a "paper company", being reliant upon both personnel and infrastructure provided by its constituent manufacturers.Odagiri, Odagiri and Akira 1996, pp. 224-225. NAMC designed a low-winged twin-
turboprop A turboprop is a Gas turbine, gas turbine engine that drives an aircraft Propeller (aeronautics), propeller. A turboprop consists of an intake, reduction drive, reduction gearbox, gas compressor, compressor, combustor, turbine, and a propellin ...
-engined
monoplane A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple wings. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing con ...
, capable of seating up to 60 passengers, dubbed the ''YS-11''.Odagiri, Odagiri and Akira 1996, p. 224. Amongst the design team was
Jiro Horikoshi was a Japanese aeronautical engineer. He was the chief engineer of several Empire of Japan, Japanese Fighter aircraft, fighter aircraft designs used during World War II, most notably the Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter, as well as the NAMC YS-11. E ...
, who had previously been the designer of the famed wartime
Mitsubishi A6M Zero The Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" is a long-range carrier-capable fighter aircraft formerly manufactured by Mitsubishi Aircraft Company, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. It was operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) from 1940 to 1945. The ...
fighter. Another prominent engineer on the project was Teruo Tojo, the second son of Prime Minister
Hideki Tojo was a Japanese general and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1941 to 1944 during the Second World War. His leadership was marked by widespread state violence and mass killings perpetrated in the name of Japanese nationalis ...
, who later became chairman of
Mitsubishi Motors is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan.
. The twin-engined YS-11 was projected as delivering similar operational performance to the four-engined British-built
Vickers Viscount The Vickers Viscount is a retired British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs. A design requirement from the Brabazon Committee, it entered service in 1953 and was the first turboprop-powered airliner. T ...
, while possessing 50% greater capacity than the similarly configured Dutch-built Fokker F27 Friendship. MITI supervised the pricing of the aircraft in order to ensure that it was competitive with the American-built Martin 4-0-4. Although the tentative aircraft was mainly designed and manufactured in Japan, the engine selected to power the airliner was the 2,275 kW (3,050 ehp) Rolls-Royce Dart RDa.10/1 powerplant, which was both developed and produced by British-based company
Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...
.Endres 1996, p. 23. Furthermore, according to author Stephen C Mercado, due to the lack of available domestic technology at the time, several of the key aircraft systems, such as
cabin pressurization Cabin pressurization is a process in which conditioned air is pumped into the aircraft cabin, cabin of an aircraft or spacecraft in order to create a safe and comfortable environment for humans flying at high altitudes. For aircraft, this air i ...
, were copied from foreign sources; such information was gleaned from a combination of Japanese airlines, trading companies and diplomats. Throughout the YS-11's production lifetime, its electronic equipment, avionics, mechanical and fuselage components were supplied by a combination of Japanese companies and foreign suppliers.


Name

The “YS” of the YS-11 comes from a combination of the first letter sounds of the two Japanese words yusō (transport) and sekkei (design), which refer to the Association for Research on Transport Aircraft Design (Yusōki sekkei kenkyū kyōkai). Meanwhile, the first “1” of the “11” refers to the various engine candidates considered for the YS-11; the Rolls-Royce Dart RDa.10/1, which was the engine selected, had been designated “number 1.” The second “1” refers to the aircraft specification plan selected for the YS-11, which had been one among many plans that differed by wing placement and size. There had also been a “plan 0” at one point. A catchphrase developed around the public reveal of the YS-11 mockup, which was “Let’s meet on the 11th at Sugita in Yokohama.” Here, Yokohama represented the “Y,” the Sugita neighborhood stood for the “S,” and the 11th referred both to the plane and to the date of the public reveal (December 11, 1958). Because of this, it became common to read the “11” in “YS-11” as “eleven” (jūichi in Japanese). For those involved in designing the plane, meanwhile, the designation had originally been pronounced “YS-one-one” (or YS ichi ichi).


Into flight

On 30 August 1962, the first prototype performed its
maiden flight The maiden flight, also known as first flight, of an aircraft is the first occasion on which it leaves the ground under its own power. The same term is also used for the first launch of rockets. In the early days of aviation it could be dange ...
from Nagoya Airport; it was soon followed by the second prototype, flying on 28 December 1962. Early flight testing revealed several issues to troubleshoot, including poor steering, excessive vibration and noise.Odagiri, Odagiri and Akira 1996, p. 225. There was also an acute lack of safety during sideways maneuvers; the wake of the propeller produced abnormal forces that inclined the aircraft to the right; all of the rudders were ineffective; and the maneuverability was worst of all. These problems produced a tailspin during the flight test, and were the direct cause of a crash. This was known as the “three rudder problem.” In one prestigious early flight of the type,
All Nippon Airways (ANA) is a Japanese airline headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. ANA operates services to both domestic and international destinations and is Japan's largest airline, ahead of its main rival flag carrier Japan Airlines. the airline has approximate ...
used a YS-11 to carry the
Olympic torch The Olympic flame is a Olympic symbols, symbol used in the Olympic movement. It is also a symbol of continuity between ancient and modern games. The Olympic flame is lit at Olympia, Greece, several months before the Olympic Games. This ceremony s ...
in the run-up to the
1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subseq ...
in Tokyo. It received its Japanese
Type certificate A type certificate signifies the airworthiness of a particular category of aircraft, according to its manufacturing design (''type design''). Certification confirms that the aircraft of a new type intended for serial production is in compliance w ...
on 25 August 1964, while American
Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is a Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government agency within the United States Department of Transportation, U.S. Department of Transportation that regulates civil aviation in t ...
(FAA) certification followed on 9 September 1965. Prior to applying for certification, the FAA had been involved in the programme at NAMC's invitation, performing informal project reviews so that defects could be identified and eliminated early on. During the late 1960s, a lack of significant international sales led to the programme incurring persistent losses, the outstanding debt eventually growing to $600 million.Anselmo, Joe
"Milestone for the MRJ."
'' Aviation Week & Space Technology'', 24 October 2014. Accessed: 25 October 2014.
Due to the organisation of the programme, the aircraft manufacturers themselves did not have any of this debt apportioned to themselves, NAMC being held solely responsible; Mercado criticised this approach as it meant there was no incentive for the individual companies to make cost savings while simultaneously guarantee profit to them on every plane produced. Furthermore, it had been alleged that some participants saw the YS-11 as only a training programme to develop their employees' skills, rather than a serious commercial initiative; some participants chose to rotate large numbers of staff in and out of the project for brief periods before re-tasking them to work on internal projects. Mercado claims that the programme's operational mindset was closer to that of a military project than a commercial one, while a preoccupation with government-issued performance criteria obstructed considerations towards the actual desires of the commercial operators, such as operating costs and cabin configuration, that the YS-11 was marketed towards. As this was Japan's first, and for a long time only, post-war airliner, NAMC lacked any staff with experience in marketing towards airlines, a disadvantage against the salesmen of rival airframers. This failure to address a crucial factor in acquiring new customers has been attributed as a major contributing cause of the programme's poor commercial reception.Odagiri, Odagiri and Akira 1996, pp. 225-226. The end of the YS-11 programme was precipitated by the 1971
Smithsonian Agreement The Smithsonian Agreement, announced in December 1971, created a new dollar standard, whereby the currencies of a number of industrialized states were pegged to the US dollar. These currencies were allowed to fluctuate by 2.25% against the doll ...
, which led to an appreciation in the value of the
Japanese yen The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third-most traded currency in the foreign exchange market, after the United States dollar and the euro. It is also widely used as a third reserve currency after the US dollar and the euro. Th ...
and the resulting impact upon the nation's economy. By this point, it was clear that there was little chance that the YS-11 could ever come close to breaking even. These myriad factors contributed to the decision for production to be terminated after the completion of 182 aircraft. On 11 May 1973, the last YS-11 was delivered to the Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force (JMSDF).Endres 1996, pp. 26–27.


Operational history

On 23 October 1964, the first production YS-11 conducted its first flight; it was delivered to its customer on 30 March 1965. During April 1965, initial airline operations commenced with launch customer Toa Airways. By 1968, the YS-11 programme accounted for about half of all aircraft production taking place in Japan that year. Early deliveries were mainly made to Japanese airlines, but orders for the type slowed drastically after the satisfaction of the outstanding needs of the Japanese commuter airlines for which the aircraft had been designed. Initial attempts were made to market the airliner towards various countries across
Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...
; at one point, the Japanese government was allegedly encouraging such sales as a form of war reparations. Seeking to make the aircraft more attractive to the highly active North American market, NAMC decided to develop the ''YS-11A'', a new variant which possessed a higher gross weight. During 1966, a
lease A lease is a contractual arrangement calling for the user (referred to as the ''lessee'') to pay the owner (referred to as the ''lessor'') for the use of an asset. Property, buildings and vehicles are common assets that are leased. Industrial ...
agreement was signed between NAMC and Hawaiian Air Lines, a move which was hailed as the "first step" in the programme's new America-focused campaign. While a number of aircraft would be sold internationally, these were often at a loss as the sales price had been set so low, deliberately as to undercut competing airliners, but paid little heed to production costs; this deficit led to losses mounting more rapidly than anticipated. A major customer for the YS-11 was the American operator Piedmont Airlines, who had been seeking the optimal modern airliner to serve their existing routes, which mostly comprised a number of small, mountainous airports. After evaluating numerous aircraft around the world, the company determined that the Japanese airliner was the most suitable; according to Piedmont's president, Thomas H Davis: "The YS‐11 was the only one we could find which would do it on an economical basis"."The YS‐11 Solves a Problem for Piedmont."
''New York Times'', 31 May 1970.
During October 1967, Piedmont Airlines ordered a batch of ten YS-11A-200s along with an option for an additional ten aircraft for $22.5 million.Endres 1996, p. 24. The company was so impressed by its performance, it both exercised the option for ten aircraft and purchased an additional YS-11, operating a combined fleet of 21 YS-11s by mid-1970. Piedmont would be the type's largest international operator; ultimately, no other airline would place another order of this scale.


End of production

Commercial sales of the YS-11 began to stall without a stable structure in place for sales. Especially outside of Japan, the YS-11 was forced to compete with other country's models with long-term low deferred interest payments. Nor was it rare for NAMC to have to sell the YS-11 at a discount, as this was Japan's first commercial airliner since the end of World War II, and had no proven track record. Additionally, it was also said that there was mismanagement of the program's cost management, as initial estimates had neglected to include the cost advertising or company administration. Moreover, because multiple companies were involved with the aircraft manufacturing, it was unclear who held ultimate responsibility, nor could the price of delivered parts be reduced. An increase in former government employees appointed to the company began to spread a culture of bureaucracy, making necessary drastic management reforms impossible and further increasing the program's deficit. In particular, there was deficit in sales activities outside of Japan that were a result of fundamental problems in NAMC's administrative activities in the United States, as indicated by the Japanese government Board of Audit; this is to say nothing of the unforeseen loss due to a less favorable currency exchange that resulted after the American government switched to a
floating exchange rate In macroeconomics and economic policy, a floating exchange rate (also known as a fluctuating or flexible exchange rate) is a type of exchange rate regime in which a currency's value is allowed to fluctuate in response to foreign exchange market ...
in 1971. When Jenks Caldwell of Charlotte Aircraft Corporation, a sales dealer of used aircraft and aviation parts headquartered in
North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
, expressed a strong desire to become a sales agent in the United States through a modification of YS-11A, NAMC signed an exclusive agency contract with his company to manage sales for North America, Latin America and Spain. However, Charlotte Aircraft did not actually carry out the promised activities, and when a sales agreement with Piedmont Airlines was concluded with
Mitsui is a Japanese corporate group and '' keiretsu'' that traces its roots to the ''zaibatsu'' groups that were dissolved after World War II. Unlike the ''zaibatsu'' of the pre-war period, there is no controlling company with regulatory power. Ins ...
, Charlotte Aircraft demanded damages under their status as exclusive dealer, and Piedmont Airlines and Cruzeiro do Sul handed over 33 used aircraft traded in for YS-11 to Charlotte Aircraft; Japan's Board of Audit complained these actions were unfair. This event became a problem in the Diet, and the managing director of NAMC resigned. NAMC had no experience of selling passenger planes, and so it concluded a contract with Charlotte Aircraft without conducting an investigation into the company's trustworthiness or business practices, nor without creating a clause in the event Charlotte Aircraft refused to conduct sales. When the contract with Charlotte Aircraft was terminated, NAMC was forced to pay 23,000,000 yen and turn over used aircraft. In addition, any requests for a reduction in sales price or delayed payments by airlines had to be reviewed by governmental organizations like the Ministry of Finance or the
Ministry of International Trade and Industry The was a Ministry (government department), ministry of the Government of Japan from 1949 to 2001. The MITI was one of the most powerful government agencies in Japan and, at the height of its influence, effectively ran much of Japanese industri ...
. It was said that there were many instances of contracts that could not be concluded due to the absence of the various ministry's approval. By 1994, 112 YS-11s remained in service; the lengthy service life of the type, despite the short manufacturing lifespan, has been hailed by some officials as evidence of the type being successful in some respect. The YS-11 was slowly phased out by Japanese airlines up until the early 2000s, at which point the withdrawal rate spiked in response to new directives issued by the
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism The , abbreviated MLIT, is a ministry of the Japanese government.国土交通省設置法
that required all commercial aircraft in Japan to be fitted with a
Traffic Collision Avoidance System A traffic alert and collision avoidance system (TCAS), pronounced ), also known as an Airborne Collision Avoidance System (ACAS), is an aircraft collision avoidance system designed to reduce the incidence of mid-air collision (MAC) between aircraf ...
(TCAS); any aircraft lacking TCAS were forced to cease operations at the end of 2006. Reportedly, equipping a YS-11 with TCAS had been estimated as costing around ¥100 million (about
US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...
1 million), such a refit was deemed economically unsound. Those aircraft that remained in a flight-worthy condition were typically sold to foreign companies. On 30 September 2006, Japan Air Commuter Flight 3806 marked the final flight of a YS-11 within Japan's commercial aviation industry. In 2007, the YS-11 was added to the Mechanical Engineering Heritage of Japan as item number 13. , fifteen were operated by the Japanese military, and two in Mexico. , only eight remained in service with the
Japan Air Self-Defense Force The , , also referred to as the Japanese Air Force, is the Aerial warfare, air and space warfare, space branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, responsible for the defense of Japanese airspace, other air and space operations, cyberwarfare and ...
, which were being used for flight checks and other ancillary purposes. , two aircraft remain in commercial service in South America and Africa. , the Japan Air Self-Defense Force retired the YS-11 after 57 years of service.


Variants

; YS-11 ; YS-11-100 :Initial production variant. 23,500 kg (51,810 lb) gross weight. 48 built. ; YS-11A-200 :Increased gross weight (24,500 kg (54,010 lb) passenger airliner. ; YS-11A-300 : Combi version of YS-11-200, fitted with large cargo door and capable of carrying both passengers and freight. ; YS-11A-400 :Pure cargo version of -200, used only by Japanese defence forces. ; YS-11A-500 :Passenger airliner with further increased (25,000 kg (55,110 lb)) gross weight produced from 1970.Endres 1996, pp. 24, 26. ; YS-11A-600 :Combi version of -500.Endres 1996, p. 26. ; YS-11E :JASDF "Super YS" powered by T64-IHI-10J.


Customer variants

* YS-11-101: TOA Domestic Airlines * YS-11-102: All Nippon Airways * YS-11-103: Japan Air Self Defense Force * YS-11-104: Japan Civil Aviation Bureau * YS-11-105: Japan Air Self Defense Force * YS-11-106: Japan Domestic Airlines * YS-11-107: Filipinas Orient Airways * YS-11-108: Japan Domestic Airlines * YS-11-109: Japan Domestic Airlines * YS-11-110: Japan Civil Aviation Bureau * YS-11-111: All Nippon Airways * YS-11-113: Japan Maritime Self Defense Force * YS-11-114: TOA Airways * YS-11-115: Aeronautic College * YS-11-116: Filipinas Orient Airways * YS-11-117: Hawaiian Airlines * YS-11-118: Japan Civil Aviation Bureau * YS-11-120: LANSA * YS-11-121: Filipinas Orient Airways * YS-11-124: Japan Domestic Airlines * YS-11-125: Cruzeiro do Sul * YS-11-128: Austral (later Austral Líneas Aéreas) * YS-11-129: TOA Airways * YS-11A-201: NAMC * YS-11A-202: Cruzeiro do Sul * YS-11A-205: Piedmont Airlines * YS-11A-206: Japan Maritime Self Defense Force * YS-11A-207: Japan Maritime Safety Agency * YS-11A-208: All Nippon Airways * YS-11A-209: Southwest Air Lines * YS-11A-211: VASP * YS-11A-212: VASP * YS-11A-213: All Nippon Airways * YS-11A-214: Southwest Air Lines * YS-11A-217: Japan Domestic Airlines * YS-11A-218: Japan Air Self Defense Force * YS-11A-219: China Airlines * YS-11A-220: Olympic Airways * YS-11A-222: TOA Airways * YS-11A-223: All Nippon Airways * YS-11A-227: Japan Domestic Airlines / TOA Airways * YS-11A-301: Korean Air Lines * YS-11A-305: Japan Air Self Defense Force * YS-11A-306: Transair * YS-11A-307: Japan Domestic Airlines * YS-11A-309: Aerotransportes Litoral Argentino (later Austral Líneas Aéreas) * YS-11A-310: Korean Air Lines * YS-11A-313: TOA Airways * YS-11A-314: Air Afrique * YS-11A-321: Air Gabon * YS-11A-402: Japan Air Self Defense Force * YS-11A-404: Japan Maritime Self Defense Force * YS-11A-500: Piedmont Airlines * YS-11A-523: Philippine Civil Aeronautics Administration * YS-11A-621: Trans Gabon * YS-11A-623: Pelita Air Service * YS-11A-624: Japan Maritime Self Defense Force * YS-11A-626: Reeve Aleutian Airways


Operators


Civil operators

Former and present operators of the NAMC YS-11 include: * Aerolíneas Argentinas * Aerotransportes Litoral Argentino *
Austral Líneas Aéreas Cielos del Sur S.A., operating as Austral Líneas Aéreas, was a domestic airline of Argentina, the sister company of Aerolíneas Argentinas. It was the second-largest domestic scheduled airline in the country, after Aerolíneas Argentinas. As ...
* Air Aruba * Cruzeiro do Sul * VASP * BIMP - EAGA Air Alliance * Norcanair * Transair Ltd * Societe Generale d'Alimentation * Pyramid Airlines * Trans Gabon Airlines * Gabon Express * Gabon Express Cargo * Gambia AW * Olympic Airways * Bouraq Indonesia Airlines * Pelita Air Service * Mandala Airlines * Merpati Nusantara Airlines * Air Afrique *
Air Nippon was a regional airline based in the Shiodome City Center complex in Minato, Tokyo, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of All Nippon Airways (ANA). Its main base was Haneda Airport, Tokyo International Airport. Code dat ...
*
All Nippon Airways (ANA) is a Japanese airline headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. ANA operates services to both domestic and international destinations and is Japan's largest airline, ahead of its main rival flag carrier Japan Airlines. the airline has approximate ...
* Japan Air Lines * Japan Air System * Japan Domestic Airlines * Japan TransOcean Air * Toa Airways * Toa Domestic Airlines * Nihon Kinkyori Airlines * Southwest Air Lines Japan * Aerolitoral * Aerodan Cargo * Gacela Air Cargo * AeroSierra * ALCON Servicios Aereos * Líneas Aéreas Nacionales S.A. *
Philippine Airlines Philippine Airlines (PAL) is the flag carrier of the Philippines. Headquartered at the Philippine National Bank, PNB Financial Center in Pasay, the airline was founded in 1941 and is the oldest operating commercial airline in Asia. Philippine ...
* Air Philippines * Air Link International Airways * Airlink International Aviation College * 2GO * Aboitiz Air * Asian Spirit * Aero Majestic Airways * South Phoenix Airways *
Korean Air Korean Air Lines Co., Ltd. (KAL; ) is the flag carrier of South Korea and its largest airline based on fleet size, international destinations, and international flights. It is owned by the Hanjin, Hanjin Group. The present-day Korean Air tra ...
* Korean Air Cargo *
China Airlines China Airlines (CAL; zh, t=中華航空, poj=Tiong-hôa Hâng-khong, p=Zhōnghuá Hángkōng, first=t, c=, s=) is the state-owned flag carrier of the Taiwan, Republic of China (Taiwan). It is one of Taiwan's two major airlines, along with E ...
* Air Star Zanzibar * Air Caribbean * Phuket Air * Air Phoenix * Global Air Cargo * American Eagle * Continental Express * Piedmont Airlines * Simmons Airlines * Reeve Aleutian Airways * Provincetown-Boston Airlines * Pinehurst Airlines * MPAC * Midwest Air Charter/Airborne Express * Far West Airlines * Fort Worth Airlines *
Hawaiian Airlines Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. ( ) is a commercial U.S. airline headquartered in Honolulu, and a subsidiary of the Alaska Air Group. It is the largest operator of commercial flights to and from the island state of Hawaiʻi, and the tenth largest ...
* Pacific Southwest Airlines * Mid Pacific Air * Tauk Tours *
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Former military operators

; * Greek Air Force – 6 ex-Olympic Airways YS-11A aircraft were supplied in 1981. ; * Philippine Air Force - One YS-11 used as presidential transport. ; *
Japan Air Self-Defense Force The , , also referred to as the Japanese Air Force, is the Aerial warfare, air and space warfare, space branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, responsible for the defense of Japanese airspace, other air and space operations, cyberwarfare and ...
** 401st Tactical Airlift Squadron (1969–1989) ** 402nd Tactical Airlift Squadron (1968–2001) ** 403rd Tactical Airlift Squadron YS-11P (1978–2017) ** Flight Check Squadron YS-11FC (–2021) ** Electronic Warfare Squadron YS-11EA ** Electronic Intelligence Squadron YS-11EB * Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ** Air Transport Squadron 61 YS-11M/M-A (1971–2014) *
Japan Coast Guard The is the coast guard responsible for the protection of the Geography of Japan#Composition, topography and geography, coastline of Japan under the oversight of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. It consists of about ...
(1969–2011) JSDF delivery breakdown: JASDF
2 YS-11EA for Electronic Warfare
4 YS-11EB for ELINT
3 YS-11FC for Flight Checker
1 YS-11NT for Navigation Trainer
3 YS-11P for Passenger/VIP Transport JMSDF
2 YS-11M for Freighter
2 YS-11M-A for Freighter
6 YS-11T-A for MPA trainerKawasaki XP-1 As YS-11 Replacement
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Accidents and incidents

There have been over twenty hull loss accidents involving YS-11 aircraft. * 13 November 1966, All Nippon Airways Flight 533 crashed into the sea near
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, Japan with the loss of all five crew and 45 passengers. * 20 October 1969, All Nippon Airways Flight 104 overran the runway at Miyazaki Airport, Japan. All four crew and 49 passengers survived. * 11 December 1969, a Korean Air flight from
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to
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was hijacked and flown to Sǒndǒk Airfield near
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. The aircraft was damaged on landing and written off. The aircraft, its crew, and seven passengers are still held in North Korean territory. * 12 August 1970, China Airlines Flight 206 crashed into Yuan Mountain on approach to
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,
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. Two crew and 12 passengers were killed. * 1 April 1971, a Merpati Nusantara Airlines YS-11 made a wheels-up landing at Kemayoran Airport,
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,
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while on a training flight. * 3 July 1971, Toa Domestic Airlines Flight 63 flew into Yokotsu Mountain while on approach to Hakodate Airport, Japan. All four crew and 64 passengers were killed, the worst loss of life in an accident involving the YS-11. * 7 November 1971, A VASP YS-11 was destroyed by fire after a candle was lit inside when the aircraft was being guarded overnight after being bogged down at Aragarças Airport in Aragarças,
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. Both guards were killed. * 12 April 1972, a VASP flight between
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and
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crashed north of Rio de Janeiro. All four crew and 21 passengers were killed. * 18 October 1972, a Cruzeiro do Sul YS-11 overshot the runway at Congonhas Airport, São Paulo and was damaged beyond repair. * 21 October 1972, Olympic Airways Flight 506 en route from Corfu (Kerkyra) to Athens crashed into the sea in Voula whilst attempting an approach to Ellinikon International Airport,
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, in a heavy storm. One crew member (the co-pilot) and 36 passengers were killed, while the captain, the two stewardesses and 16 passengers survived. * 23 October 1973, a VASP YS-11 overran the runway at Santos Dumont Airport, Rio de Janeiro after a rejected take-off and ended up in Guanabara Bay. Eight passengers were killed. * 5 March 1974, a Pacific Southwest Airlines YS-11 crash landed in the desert east of Borrego Springs, California, Borrego Springs, California while on a training flight. Aircraft was written off. * 6 November 1974, a Reeve Aleutian Airways YS-11 was written off in a hangar fire at Anchorage International Airport, Anchorage, Alaska. * 28 May 1975, TOA Domestic Airlines Flight 621 was damaged beyond repair in a landing accident at Osaka International Airport when a tyre burst and the aircraft departed the runway. * 23 November 1976, Olympic Airways Flight 830 flew into Mount Metaxas near the village of Servia in Kozani, Greece, in low clouds and almost zero visibility. All four crew and 46 passengers were killed. * 29 April 1977, a Cruzeiro YS-11 departed the runway on landing at Ministro Victor Konder International Airport, Navegantes, Brazil. * 17 July 1977, a
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YS-11 ditched on approach to Mactan–Cebu International Airport after an engine failure. * 11 March 1983, Nihon Kinkyori Airlines Flight 497 undershot the runway at Nakashibetsu Airport, Japan. * 13 January 1987, a Mid Pacific Air YS-11 force landed in a field at Remington, Indiana, Remington, Indiana after both engines were mismanaged. * 10 January 1988, TOA Domestic Airlines Flight 670 overran the runway at Miho-Yonago Airport, Yonago, Japan after a rejected take-off and ended up in the sea. Aircraft had not been de-iced prior to take-off. * 15 March 1989, a Mid Pacific Air YS-11 undershot the runway at Purdue University Airport, Lafayette, Indiana due to loss of pitch control caused by icing on the tail. The aircraft was on a positioning flight, both crew members were killed. * 6 March 1992, an Airborne Express YS-11 made a wheels-up landing at Airborne Airpark, Wilmington, Ohio while on a training flight due to pilot error. * 24 June 1996, an Air Philippines YS-11 struck a ground power unit while taxiing at Naga Airport, Naga, Camarines Sur, Naga City. Aircraft was destroyed in the subsequent fire. * 16 February 2000,
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Flight 354 departed the runway at Okadama Airport, Sapporo, Japan and collided with a bank of snow. * 3 November 2001, a YS-11 being prepared for delivery to an airline in Burundi was destroyed by a fire caused by a stray firework at London Southend Airport. * 11 September 2005, Phuket Airlines Flight 326 skids off the runway at Mae Sot Airport, Thailand. * 2 January 2008, Asian Spirit Flight 321 suffered an undercarriage collapse on landing at Masbate Airport, Philippines. * 28 September 2009, Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force YS-11M-A serial number ''9044'' overran the runway upon landing at Ozuki Air Field and was substantially damaged.


Aircraft on display

;Brazil * 2080 – YS-11A-200 on static display as a restaurant in Tijucas, Tijucas, Santa Catarina. ;Greece *2137 (Hellenic Air Force) - YS-11A-220 at the Elefsis Heritage Park ;Japan * JA8611 – YS-11 prototype at the Museum of Aeronautical Science in Narita, Chiba. * JA8731 - YS-11A-213 at the Kakamigahara Aerospace Museum. * JA8732 – YS-11A-213 at the Tokorozawa Aviation Memorial Park in Tokorozawa, Saitama. *JA8733 - YS-11A-213 at Saga Airport *JA8734 – YS-11A-500R at Tajima Airport in Toyooka, Hyogo, Toyooka, Hyogo Prefecture. *JA8743 - YS-11A-213 at Sanuki Kodomono Kuni amusement park near Takamatsu Airport. *JA8766 - YS-11A-227 at Misawa Aviation & Science Museum *JA8809 - YS-11A-202 at the Michinoku Traditional Wooden Boat Museum. * 52-1152 (JASDF) at the Aichi Museum of Flight in Komaki, Aichi Prefecture. * JA8160 The first mass-produced YS-11 has been in storage at Haneda Airport since 1999, where it has been maintained and kept airworthy by the National Museum of Nature and Science and is occasionally available for public viewing. ;Philippines * RP-77 – YS-11A-523 at the Philippine Air Force Aerospace Museum in Manila, Manila, National Capital. ;Thailand * HS-APA YS-11A-227 at Jesada Technik Museum * HS-KCU YS-11A-213 at Nong Khor ;United States * P4-KFD – YS-11-120 on static display at the Grissom Air Museum near Peru, Indiana.


Specifications (YS-11A-200)


In popular culture

In railroad journals, YS-11 was linked to the 0 Series Shinkansen, another Japanese-made form of transportation that debuted around the time of the 1964 Olympics. Additionally, the Shinkansen and the YS-11 were both developed by individuals who were involved with the creation of military aircraft (this was to be expected with an airplane like the YS-11, but men like Migi Tadanao and Matsudaira Tadashi were also involved with the Shinkansen)., magazine=Shinkansen 0 kei densha tokushū zasshi , date=1999


See also


References


Citations


Bibliography

* * Lehman, William
"US Airways."
''Arcadia Publishing'', 2013. * Odagiri, Hiroyuki., Goto Odagiri and Akira Gotō
"Technology and Industrial Development in Japan."
''Clarendon Press'', 1996. *


External links



* {{DEFAULTSORT:Namc Ys-11 1960s Japanese airliners MITI projects NAMC aircraft, YS-11 Twin-turboprop tractor aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1962 Low-wing aircraft Aircraft with retractable tricycle landing gear