Aircraft Reviews | Aviation Center

P-39 Airacobra Fighter

Introduction

The Bell P-39 Airacobra was an early American fighter aircraft at the out break of World War II. In the “Lend-Lease” plan with eh Soviet Union, the P-39 was one of their favorite fighters as it had more victories than any other American aircraft that was sold to the USSR.

The British RAF and the Italian Air Force (after the fall of Fascist Italy) were also users of this aircraft. It was the first American Fighter to have tricycle landing gear. The unique feature was the engine was in the center of the fuselage behind the pilot.

Due to a lack of a turbo-supercharger, it was not a good high altitude aircraft. The Soviets liked it because they used it for medium to low altitude combat every effectively. It was a deadly ground attack fighter with a deadly nose cannon.

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The Story of the Vought F4U Corsair

Introduction

The Vought F4U Corsair fighter aircraft is best remembered for its service in World War II and Korean War. Although Vought Aircraft was the designer and developer, Goodyear Tire and Brewster Aircraft were licensed to build the Corsair.

During the production period from 1940 to 1953 (the French Air Force purchased the last one) 12,571 F4U were built between the 3 plants. The reason for the other two plants besides Vought was because once the War started, the demand for F4Us was overwhelming beyond, Vought’s capability.

The Corsair was used by the United States Navy (USN) and United States Marines (USMC) during World War II. It originally designed tso be a carrier-based fighter.

Because of carrier landing problems in the early days of its use, it was redirected to USMC as a land based fighter although it still had the carrier abilities. The Corsair entered the War in 1944 with USN , after the carrier landing difficulties were straighten out.

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P-47 Thunderbolt Fighter by Republic

Introduction

The P-47 Thunderbolt was a World War II fighter built in the United States by Republic Aircraft between 1941-1945. There were 15,636 P-47s built during this time.

It’s roles were fighter-bomber, ground attack, and high altitude escort for the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). France, Britain, Russia, Mexico and Brazil also used the Thunderbolt during the War. The modern-day Fairchild-Republic A-10 is also called the Thunderbolt.

Design and Development

The P-47 was initially designed by Alexander Kartveli, a Russian immigrant who had escaped the Russian Bolsheviks, along with Alexander P. de Seversky another Russian immigrant went to work for Republic to help in designing the AP-4 demonstrator for United States Army Air Corp (USAAC)

The AP-4 was redesigned the P=43 Lancer to be used for bidding for a contract with USAAC. As with early models, improvement was always being sought and thus the P-44 Rocket came forth. At the same time a lighter version of the P-44 named the AP-10 were brought forth for USAAC.

Both aircraft were powered by the Allison liquid-cooled, in-line V-12 engine and armed with 50 cal M2 Browning machine guns. The USAAC liked both the P-44 and AP-10 and gave them the designation of XP-44 and XP-47. Thus, the start of the P-47 family.

As the war in Europe escalated in the Spring of 1940, both the USAAC and Republic concluded that both of the models were inferior to the Luftwaffe. Republic looked to improving the design of the XP-74A as the lighter model was designated, but Alexander Kartveli designed a much larger and heavier XP-47B.

The XP-47B was all-metal (exception was, the fabric covered tail control surfaces), new elliptical wings that had straight leading edge that was slightly swept back.

Some other features were a roomy, air-conditioned cockpit and self-sealing fuel tanks. The XP-47B was powered by Pratt and Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp two-row 18 cylinder radial engines producing 2,00 hp that turned a Curtis Electric constant-speed 4 bladed propeller, with each blade 146 in diameter.

It was designed for air cooling of the engine oil coolers and the turbocharger intercooler system. It’s armament were 8 Browning An/M2 machine guns with 4 in each wing. In 1942 the newly reorganized USAAC now called the United States Army Air Force (USAAFF) ordered 171

P-47Bs from Republic despite some “teething” problems. The P-47D was the most widely produced of all the P-47 models and versions, with over 12,500 built at the Long Island, New York and Evansville, Indiana plants. The “D” model looked the same as the “C” model, just some engine and fuselage changes, mostly interior not noticeable at sight except for some drop tank capabilities to increase the range of the aircraft.

Later versions received the “Bubble-top” canopy similar to the P-51D-Mustang added dive recovery flaps, modified the vertical stabilizer to counter yawing problems. Other models that were used for various were: XP-47H, XP-47J, P47M, P-47N.

The P-47N was the last model produced and was an escort for the B-29 Superfortress.bombers flying raids on the Japanese Islands in the Pacific. A total of 1,816 P-47N rolled of the assembly line that ended in October 1945.

Operational History

In 1942,the 56th Fighter Group consisting of P-47Cs was sent to England as the first contingency of American P-47s. The first mission wasn’t until 1943 as the first “jugs” had radio problem not being compatible with British communications. Thus the delay.

The term Jug was in reference to the “milk jugs” of the day as the aircraft looked a lot life one. The first air combat involving the Thunderbolt was 15 April 43, as Don Blakeslee scored a victory over a FW-190. Later in 1943, the 12th Air Force was supplied with P-47s.

The 348th Fighter Group in Port Modesty, New Guinea in the Pacific theater also was flying P-47s against the Japanese. Although the P-51 Mustang replaced the P-47 as the long bomber escort in Europe, the P-47 ended the war with 3,752 victories in over 746,00 missions.

When the “Jug” stated with the C model in Europe, the escort range was limited. As the war progressed, differed modifications served to lengthened the range of the P-47.

Then a typical mission with P-47 escort would consist of the Thunderbolts escorting the bombers to target and some P-47s would break away from the bomber group that they had escorted to target and search for ground targets of opportune.

First ejecting drop tanks, than diving towards their target with the “Holy Moses” M8 High Velocity rockets and sometimes 500 lb bombs or just plain strafing with 50 cal machine guns, the Thunderbolt pilots destroyed an estimated 86,00 rail cars, 9,000 locomotives, 6,000 armed fighting vehicles, and 68,000 trucks The P-47 became the USAAF’s best fighter/bomber of the war.

When World War II ended in 1945, the P-47 continued on with USAAF and than with the USAF (United States Air Force). They were not used in the Korean War as the Jet Age had come about.

The P-51 Mustang was selected by the military leaders to be used for close ground support. Many former Jug pilots felt the P-47 was more rugged and could sustain more damage than the Mustang, but the P-51 was more plentiful int USAF and USAF ANG unites during that time.

The P-47 was used by the British as a Ground Attack Fighter named the Thunderbolt Mark I and Mark II. At the time the British had enough long ranged escort (longer ranged than the P-47) but had a need for ground attack fighter both in Europe but also in the Pacific in the India-China-Burma theater. There they were used to strafe airfields , convoys (usually ground types) and concentrations of enemy troops.

Other P-47 models were purchased by Mexico, France* Italy*, China, Iran, Turkey in small numbers. *(after the war). The Soviets also purchased several hundred Thunderbolts but were used mostly for testing and reverse engineering.

All in all the Thunderbolt was a good performer, better at higher altitudes, had a good roll rate, climb was poor, and maneuverability was poor at low altitudes. It certainly contributed in a positive way to the Allies war effort.

Where you can see the Thunderbolt

Airworthy-P47D

Dottie Mae – Carswell Industrial Airport, Caldwell, Idaho

Balls Out – Lewis Air Legends, San Antonio Texas

Tarheel Hal –Lone Star Flight Museum, Galveston, Texas

Wickett Wabbitt –Aviation Management Resources–Wilmington Delaware

On Display

Big Stud-Museum of Flight, Seattle, Washington

Five by Five-National Museum of the Air Force at Wright-Patterson, Dayton Ohio

Checky Baby-Cardio of Aviation Museum, Garden City New York

Norma-New England Air Museum, Windsor Locks, Connectiut

There is an abundance of P-47s of all models on display. Check with your local Air Museum for more details

Tech Specs for the P-47 Thunderbolt

Wing Span: 40 ft 9 in

Length: 36 ft 1 in

Height: 14 ft 8 in

Weight: 10,000 lbs (empty) 12,731 lbs (MTOW)

Max Speed: 433 mph

Ceiling: 43,000 ft

Range: 800sm (combat); 1,800mi (ferry)

Engine: 1/Pratt & Whitney R-2800-59B twin row radial engine

Crew: 1

THANKS FOR READING! I HOPE THIS WAS INFORMATIVE!

Consolidated B-24 Bomber

Introduction

The B-24 Liberator bomber was designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego. In World War II it was used by the United States Army Air Corp (USAAC), United States Navy (USN), the Royal Air Force (RAF), and other allies.

The first flight was on 29 December 1939 and the Indian Air Force retired the last B-24 operating in a military capacity in 1968.

Almost 19,000 B-24s were built during World War II, the Ford Motor company produced over 8,000 B-24s alone at their Ypsilanti Michigan plant.

The B-24 long with the B-17 Flying Fortress were the mainstays of the USAAC during the War. The B-24 was used in all theaters of WWII. The USN used the B-24 named PB4Y-2 for its operation in the Pacific Ocean. It was a great submarine and small convoy patroller due to its long range loiter time.

Design and Deveopment

The USAAC issued a request in 1938 to the Consolidated Aircraft Company to build the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress in San Diego. Consolidated executives went to Boeing in Seattle Washington to discuss the request with USAAC representatives .

They offered the military instead, a new design with a new high-efficiency airfoil design. The some of the features came from the Consolidated Model 31 flying boat.

Most notably was the twin tails rudders. But with the new wing design as well as a new fuselage it was a totally different aircraft, the big difference it was a land base 4-engined bomber.

The new “Davis” wing design. enabled the aircraft to fly at higher speeds and carry a little higher payload than the B-17. But the design had one draw back, it had handling difficulties at high altitudes and with a heavy load. It was not a favorite with crews who preferred the B-17 due to flying difficulties.

In 1942, Consolidated began testing a single fin/rudder system that greatly improved handling of the aircraft. By the time the tests were over, the order for the 5,000 single tail B-24s was cancelled because the War was over.

The original B-24 was unstable at various configurations. So most of the crews had to fight the handling problems throughout the war, especially in Europe.

The B-24 was the first American bomber to use tricycle landing gear. it has differential braking differential thrust making ground handling a little tricky.

Operational History

Besides the USAAC’s need for B-24, the RAF and Franc put in orders for the B-24. The British and French needed them earlier than the U.S. did because the War had started in Europe in 1940.

France had ordered about $40M of the B-24s and had received some of the order when France fell. The French B-24 fleet was transferred to England and used throughout the War.

The first use of the B-24 by the RAF was in 1941 anti-submarine patrols in the Atlantic which could cover the “Mid-Atlantic Gap”. The Mid-Atlantic Gap was an area of the Atlantic where the shorter ranged Allied parol anti-submarine could not operate.

In the “Gap”, the German U-boats could operate with no fear of ariel attack. The B-24 helped end the U-Boats freedom in the “Gap”.

Many of the early B-24s were converted into cargo/troop haulers at the outset of the War because none of the Allies had an long-rang transports.

The Liberator as a non-combat freighter flew the Atlantic from London-Canada/USA, London-Egypt and help evacuate the Dutch West Indies later in the early days of WWII.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, the USAAC was the biggest user of the B-24. The B-24 was used in the European , African, China-Burma, Anti-Submarine, Pacific Theaters by the Americans.

In 1942, B-24s flew from Egypt and bombed the Romanian Oil fields at Ploiesti, Romania in a series of raids. Later in August 1943, One large raid of 177 B-24s were assigned to bomb Ploiesti. The raid was very costly as 54 B-24s were lost. Tactics were changed to low level bombing which proved very successful against that target.

The majority of B-24 use waere bombing runs by the B-24 out of England over Germany. The B-24 was also useful flying out of North Africa bombing targets in Italy.

After Italy had fallen to the Allies, the B-24 weas then used to bomb Germany from bases in the former Axis country.

A cargo/troop hauler version of the B-24 was the C-109. The C-109 was a conversion of the B-24 to cargo. It was to be used in support of the B-29 Superfortress. It could carry any type of cargo, but most of the time it was used to to haul fuel to remote area of the Pacific. There were 219 B-24 s were converted to C-109.

The USN used the B-24 (called the PB4y-1) to hunt for Japanese submarines and small convoys that usually were not escorted by Japanese warships.

My neighbor was a waist gunner in the Navy on the PB4y-1. He recalls the story of one mission, they spotted a small convoy of 3 Japanese freighters . They began their strafing run with the 50 cal machines from the nose of the aircraft.

Before they had reached the ship they were strafing, it blew up as it was it carry ammunition. In fact, when it blew up in begin to send shrapnel in all directions. The PB4y-1 was hi in the tail section of the aircraft severely damaging the elevators and partially damaging the rudders.

The aircraft became almost impossible to control, but the pilot and co-pilot mad a superhuman effort to stabilize it somehow .

They diverted into Okinawa. The problem there was there was an intense fight going on there, called the “Battle of Okinawa”. Fortunately for my neighbor, the airstrip was in American hands and they were able to land safely. The PB4y-1 was written off because of severe battle damage.

He tells of another story where they were assigned to straff the harbor at Truk Island in the Marshall Islands. Their aircraft was based at Saipan Island in the Marianas in the Pacific. It was a day before my neighbor turned 21 years old. At the time Turk Island was in Japanese hands and a major harbor/base.

They started their strafing run at just above the waves. As they flew into the harbor, my neighbor could see anti-aircraft fire coming from both sides of the aircraft. The miracle was that although they were hit, the aircraft received no serious damage. My friend received a flesh wound in which in he received a purple heart.

In all, 18,482 B-24s were built by September 1945. The USN received 977 PB4ys and 739 Privateers (single tail instead of twin tails); RAF 2,100; Royal Canadian Air Force, 1,200; the Royal Australian Air Force 287. There were over 60 variants, models and sub-models of the B-24.

Although it may not have been a crew favorit it was a reliable heavy bomber workhorse of World War II

Here are a few places to see this wonderful old aircraft:

Diamond Lil Commemorative Air Force , Arlington Texas

41-23908 (No Nickname) (being restored at Hill Aerospace Museum, Roy Utah)

Strawberry Bitch -National Museum of USAF, Dayton Ohio

Flying Wolf (being restored at Werribee, Victoria Australia).

Shady Lady – Castle Air Museum, Atwater, California.

Bungay Buckaroo Pima Air and Space Museum, Tucson Arizona

All American Collings Foundation, Stow Massachusetts.

Joe Fantasy t of Flight, Polk City Florida.

Louisiana Belle II Bossier City Louisiana.

44-50154 (No Nickname) Ottawa, Ontario

Flying Bee RAF Museum, London England

Dugan Imperial War Museum, Cambridgeshire England

Check with your local air museum in your area to visit this fine venerable Warrior.

Tech Specs for the B-24 Liberator

Wing Span: 110 ft 0 in

Length: 67 ft 8 in

Height: 18 ft 0 in

Weight: 36,000(Empty) 55,000 lbs (MTOW)

Max Speed: 290 mph; Cruise: 215

Ceiling: 28,000 ft

Range: 2,100 sm (mission) 3,700 (ferry)

Engine: 4/Pratt & Whitney R-1830-35 Turbocharged Radial Engines Rated at 1,200 H

Crew: 11 (Pilot, Co-Pilot, Navigator, Bombardier, Radio Operator, Nose Turret, Top Turret, 2 Waist Gunners, Ball Turret, Tail Gunner)

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B-25 Mitchell Bomber

Introduction

The B-25 twin engined bomber was built by North American Aviation in Los Angeles. The name “B-25 Mitchell” was in honor of Major General Billy Mitchell, a pioneer in military aviation.

There were 9,816 B-25s produced by NAA in various configurations. They saw action in every theater of World War II by several Allied Air Forces.

The B-25 was a safe and forgiving aircraft. With one engine feathered, banking turns even up to 60 degrees toward the “dead” engine was easily maintained.

The tricycle made for excellent visibility while taxiing. The only complaint was the excessive noise from the engine. This was of course, in the days before pilot hearing protection.

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Curtis P-40 Warhawk

Introduction

The Curtis P-40 Warhawk that was the mainstay of the United States Army Air Corp (USAAC) in pre-World War II days.

It is a single engine, single pilot, all metal fighter, ground attack aircraft and fighter-bomber.

It was primarily used by USAAC, RAF Royal Australian Air Force and Royal Canadian Air Force. The USSR used this type of aircraft as the “Tomahawk” which was an equivalent to the P-40.

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Lockheed P-38 Lightning

Introduction

The Lockheed P-38J was one of the great American warplanes of WWII. It employs a radically new design with a center fuselage while the two outer booms carried twin engines, turbo superchargers, radiators, and tricycle landing gear.

The P-38 was used as a Interceptor, Dive Bomber ,Level Bomber, Night Fighter, Recon, Pathfinder for Bombers and Evacuation Missions and Long Range Escort Fighter.

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North American P-51 Mustang

Introduction

The North American P-51 Mustang was a single engined, long rage fighter/escort that was used also as a single engine bomber during World War II.

In the early days of the Korean conflict, the P-51 Mustang was the primary fighter in the United Nations arsenal. Then came the jet fighter age and the P-51 was used in a utility role such as recon aircraft, night fighter and other specialty roles.

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North American F-86 Sabrejet

Introduction

The North American F-86 Sabre Jet was America’s first swept wing fighter and used in combat during the Korean War (1949-1953). The F-86-E was pitted against the high performing USSR MIG 15.

Initially it was said that at outbreak of the war, the pilots were Soviets due to the inexperience of the North Korean and Chinese pilots. Before long however, the MiGs were piloted with Chinese and North Koreans.

Much of the dog fighting took place in what was called “MiG Alley” over the Yalu River near the North Korean and Chinese border.

Early estimates (right after the war) showed the Sabre held a 10:1 kill ratio. In later years the ratio was said to be closer to 2:1.

However the numbers seem to favor the first ratio as 792 MiGs were counted as shot down and U.S. losses of Sabres were 78.

There were 41 American pilots that were honored as “ACE” status (5 shoot downs).

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Grumman F-4F Wildcat

Introduction

The Grumman F-4 Wildcat was an carrier based fighter first used by the Royal Navy (called the Martlet) and the United States Navy in 1940.

The Wildcat was the only effective fighter in the Pacific Theater used by USN and USMC (United Marine Corp) in 1941 and 1942. It replaced the Brewster Buffalo which was considered obsolete.

Although the F-4F was outperformed by the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, in speed (318 F-4F vs 331 kts – Zero) and maneuverability , the Wildcat pilots developed superior tactics such as the “Thatch Weave”.

The F-4F had a kill ratio of 5.9 to 1 in the early stage of the war (1941-42) and an overall kill ratio of 6.9 to 1 for the remainder of the war.

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