was a Japanese aerospace manufacturer which produced several designs for the Imperial Japanese Navy. After the war, the company was reorganized as Aichi Machine Industry Co., Ltd (愛知機械工業) where they made small kei cars until 1966 when they were integrated into Nissan and developed the Nissan Sunny and Nissan Vanette.

History Aichi Watch and Electric Manufacturing The company was established in 1898 in Nagoya as Aichi Tokei Denki Seizo Kabushiki Kaisha (Aichi Watch and Electric Manufacturing Co., Ltd.). Aircraft production started in 1920,Mikesh and Abe 1990, p. 61. and the company relied initially on technical assistance from Heinkel, which influenced some of their designs. Later, with the prodding and support of the Imperial Japanese Navy, the company started making seaplanes using technology imported from Short Brothers in the UK.Odagiri 1996, p. 216.

During the inter-war period, Aichi was the beneficiary of technology transferred from Heinkel of Germany. At the time, a team from the League of Nations occasionally visited German aircraft manufacturers to monitor the ban on military aircraft research and production. A Japanese military attache who was a member of the monitoring team, let Heinkel know, confidentially and in advance, of the planned visits. Heinkel thus succeeded in continuing its design on the aircraft ordered by Aichi Aircraft without being spotted.Odagiri 1996, p. 217.

In 1943 the aircraft division was spun off as Aichi Kokuki Kabushiki Kaisha (Aichi Aircraft Co., Ltd.).Mikesh and Abe 1990, p. 79.

Aichi Machine Industry After the war, the company was reorganized, manufacturing kei cars under the Cony brand name in Japan. Its current descendant, Aichi Kikai Kōgyō Kabushiki Kaisha (Aichi Machine Industry Co., Ltd.), is integrated with the Nissan corporate structure.

Products Aircraft Model name First flight Number built Type Aichi AB-1 1928 1 Single engine biplane airliner Aichi AB-2 1930 2 Single engine biplane reconnaissance floatplane Aichi AB-3 1932 1 Single engine biplane reconnaissance floatplane Aichi AB-4 1932 6 Single engine biplane reconnaissance flying boat Aichi AB-5 1 License built single engine biplane floatplane Aichi AB-6 1933 1 Single engine biplane reconnaissance floatplane Aichi AB-7 2 Single engine biplane reconnaissance floatplane 1 Single engine biplane dive bomber Aichi AB-9 1 Single engine biplane dive bomber Aichi AB-10 Single engine biplane dive bomber Aichi AB-11 N/A 0 Single engine biplane dive bomber Aichi AB-12 1934 15 Single engine biplane reconnaissance flying boat Aichi AB-13 1936 2 Single engine biplane reconnaissance floatplane Aichi AB-14 1937 17 Single engine biplane reconnaissance flying boat Aichi AM-7 N/A 0 Unbuilt single engine monoplane reconnaissance floatplane Aichi AM-10 N/A 0 Unbuilt single engine monoplane reconnaissance floatplane N/A 0 Unbuilt single engine monoplane fighter or unbuilt single engine monoplane sports plane N/A 0 Twin engine monoplane reconnaissance flying boat Aichi AM-17 1938 1,495 Single engine monoplane dive bomber 2 Single engine monoplane reconnaissance floatplane Aichi AM-19 133 Single engine monoplane reconnaissance floatplane Aichi AM-20 N/A 0 Unbuilt single engine monoplane reconnaissance airplane Aichi AM-21 1940 31 Twin engine monoplane trainer flying boat Aichi AM-22 1942 256 Single engine monoplane reconnaissance floatplane Aichi AM-23 1942 114 Single engine monoplane torpedo bomber Aichi AM-24 1943 28 Single engine monoplane dive bomber floatplane Aichi AM-25 N/A 2 Twin engine monoplane night fighter Aichi AM-26 N/A 0 Unbuilt single engine monoplane torpedo bomber Aichi Type H 2 License built single engine biplane carrier fighter Aichi Type 2 Single-seat Reconnaissance Seaplane 1 License built single engine biplane reconnaissance floatplane Aichi Type 15-Ko Reconnaissance Seaplane 1925 4 Single engine monoplane reconnaissance floatplane Aichi Type 2 Two-seat Reconnaissance Seaplane 16 License built single engine biplane reconnaissance floatplane

Engines Aichi AC-1 - 1929 experimental nine-cylinder radial engine Aichi Atsuta (アツタ or 熱田) - licensed copy of the Daimler-Benz DB 601A inverted V12 Aichi Ha-70 - two Atsuta engines coupled together

Automotive Nissan engines Nissan A engine HR15DE / HR16DE CR12DE / CR14DE QG13DE / QG15DE / QG16DE / QG18DE

Transmissions FS6R31 - with synchronous control. F30A / F50A / F70A MFA60 / MFA80 W60A FS5R30A MRA70 GR6

Vehicles manufactured Nissan Cherry Nissan Sunny Nissan Vanette Nissan Serena (Largo) Cony Guppy, a two-seat microcar Cony 360 Wide, a cabover keitora/Microvan/minitruck , predecessor to Cony 360 Cony 360 a passenger kei car

References Footnotes

Notes

Bibliography

Mikesh, Robert C. and Shorzoe Abe. Japanese Aircraft, 1910-1941. London: Putnam Aeronautical, 1990. . Odagiri, Hiroyuki. Technology and Industrial Development in Japan. Oxford, UK: Clarendon Press, 1996. .

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