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The '''Aichi D3A''' (Allied codename: “Val”) was a two-seat dive [[bomber]] flown by the Japanese Navy in [[World War II]], and for the first half of the war, [[Japan]]’s main carrier-borne dive bomber.  It could carry a 550 lb [[bomb]] under the centerline and two 110 lb bombs under the wings.  Defensive armament consisted of two forward-firing [[machine gun]]s in the wings and one flexible machine gun operated by the back seat gunner.  Vals were active in every major naval battle of the first year of the war, including [[Attack on Pearl Harbor|Pearl Harbor]], the [[Battle of the Coral Sea|Coral Sea]], [[Battle of Midway|Midway]], and the carrier actions at [[Guadalcanal]].  In addition, in April 1942, carrier-borne Vals sank the [[British]] aircraft carrier ''Hermes'' and two British heavy [[cruisers]] during a foray into the [[Indian Ocean]].  The Val was a rugged and maneuverable aircraft, and in the first year of the war, had a bombing accuracy of 80%.  Like most Japanese aircraft, however, it lacked armor and self-sealing fuel tanks, leading to heavy pilot losses.  Like its [[German]] counterpart, the Stuka, the Val had fixed landing gear, greatly aiding recognition by Allied pilots.

The '''Aichi D3A''' (Allied codename: “Val”) was a two-seat dive [[bomber]] flown by the Japanese Navy in [[World War II]], and for the first half of the war, [[Japan]]’s main carrier-borne dive bomber.  It could carry a 550 lb [[bomb]] under the centerline and two 110 lb bombs under the wings.  Defensive armament consisted of two forward-firing [[machine gun]]s in the wings and one flexible machine gun operated by the back seat gunner.  Vals were active in every major naval battle of the first year of the war, including [[Attack on Pearl Harbor|Pearl Harbor]], the [[Battle of the Coral Sea|Coral Sea]], [[Battle of Midway|Midway]], and the carrier actions at [[Guadalcanal]].  In addition, in April 1942, carrier-borne Vals sank the [[British]] aircraft carrier ''Hermes'' and two British heavy [[cruisers]] during a foray into the [[Indian Ocean]].  The Val was a rugged and maneuverable aircraft, and in the first year of the war, had a bombing accuracy of 80%.  Like most Japanese aircraft, however, it lacked armor and self-sealing fuel tanks, leading to heavy pilot losses.  Like its [[German]] counterpart, the [[Junkers Ju 87|Stuka]], the Val had fixed landing gear, greatly aiding recognition by Allied pilots.

==Sources==

==Sources==

*The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Combat Aircraft of World War II, by Bill Gunston, Salamander Military Press, 1990

*''The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Combat Aircraft of World War II'', by Bill Gunston, Salamander Military Press, 1990

==Links==

==Links==