Editing Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet (section)

==Japanese versions==
{{Main|Mitsubishi J8M}}

As part of their alliance, Germany provided the Japanese Empire with plans and an example of the Me 163.<ref>Ethell 1978, pp. 155–157.</ref> One of the two submarines carrying Me 163 parts did not arrive in Japan, so at the time, the Japanese lacked all of the major parts and construction blueprints, including the turbopump, which they could not make themselves, forcing them to reverse-engineer their own design from information obtained in the Me 163 Erection & Maintenance manual obtained from Germany. The prototype J8M crashed on its first powered flight and was completely destroyed,<ref>Späte 1989, p. 243.</ref> but several variants were built and flown, including: [[trainer (aircraft)|trainers]], [[fighter aircraft|fighters]], and [[interceptor aircraft|interceptors]], with only minor differences between the versions.

The Navy version, the [[Mitsubishi J8M]]1 ''Shūsui'', replaced the Ho 155 cannon with the Navy's 30&nbsp;mm (1.18&nbsp;in) [[Type 5 cannon]]. Mitsubishi also planned on producing a version of the 163C for the Navy, known as the J8M2 ''Shūsui'' Model 21. A version of the 163 D/263 was known as the J8M3 ''Shusui'' for the Navy with the Type 5 cannon, and a [[Rikugun Ki-202|Ki-202]] {{Nihongo|''Shūsui-kai''|秋水改||extra="Autumn Water, modified"}} with the Ho 155-II for the Army. Trainers were planned, roughly the equivalent of the Me 163 A-0/S; these were known as the [[Yokosuka MXY8|Kugisho/Yokosuka MXY8 (Yokoi Ki-13)]] {{Nihongo|''Akigusa''|秋草|extra="Autumn Grass"}} (an unpowered glider trainer) and [[Yokosuka MXY9|Kugisho/Yokosuka MXY9]] {{Nihongo|''Shūka''|秋花|extra="Autumn Flower"}} (a [[Ishikawajima Tsu-11|Tsu-11]]-powered [[motorjet]] trainer).

One complete example of the Japanese aircraft survives at the [[Planes of Fame Air Museum]] in the US. The fuselage of a second aircraft is displayed at the Mitsubishi company's Komaki Plant Museum, at [[Komaki, Aichi]] in Japan.<ref>[http://www.j-aircraft.com/misc/SURVIVE.HTM "List of surviving Japanese aircraft"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100125075927/http://www.j-aircraft.com/misc/SURVIVE.HTM |date=25 January 2010 }}. j-aircraft.com. Retrieved; 27 October 2010.</ref>