DocWard Posted February 9, 2020 Share Posted February 9, 2020 1 hour ago, Capt. James H. Callahan said: My dad fought in the So. Pacific in WWII. According to him the Japanese were very very frightened of the Lightening. Watched a few airshows. JHC They had a right to be. They took down Yamamoto, our top aces, Bong and McGuire flew them, along with plenty of others, and it took out more Japanese aircraft than any other allied fighter. 1 hour ago, Cypress Sun said: If I remember right, they called it the fork tailed devil. 1 hour ago, Capt. James H. Callahan said: I think that's what the Germans called it, but I'm not a learned historian. JHC "Der Gabelschwanz Teufel." There is some question as to whether they actually called it that, but I like the thought of it, personally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt. James H. Callahan Posted February 9, 2020 Share Posted February 9, 2020 Then the P51 came along. I was driving to work one day by our little airport (they were having a warbird fly in), saw this this plane taking off and I was like "D@mn, that looks like a Mustang!" It was. Only one I've ever seen in the air. JHC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Still hand Bill Posted February 9, 2020 Share Posted February 9, 2020 Photo was probably taken in Colorado Springs. The air museum has both planes. One of a dozen or so flying p-38’s. They restored it after it sat in a pit for 60 years or so. Used to have a distillery right across a creek from the museum and could hear the planes start up. Best sounding was the F-7, they have two of them. Jack Rouchs p-51 was there for a while. Didn’t sound impressive on the ground, almost like an old tractor, but amazing on climb out. Pure music. One day they must have been showing it off as a Lear was chasing it on takeoff. One of the few planes that could keep up. they also have a b-25, had it do a high speed run right over me and banked back around. Could see the pilots through the side windows. Truly amazing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocWard Posted February 9, 2020 Share Posted February 9, 2020 9 hours ago, Capt. James H. Callahan said: Then the P51 came along. I was driving to work one day by our little airport (they were having a warbird fly in), saw this this plane taking off and I was like "D@mn, that looks like a Mustang!" It was. Only one I've ever seen in the air. JHC I try not to take away from the P-51, because it truly was an amazing aircraft. However, it seems far too many people are willing to dismiss the P-38 in favor of the P-51, or are unaware of how much it actually did because it was overshadowed by the Mustang. Here's a technical article that I've posted before, that makes for very good reading about the P-38. It argues the Lightning was the most significant fighter in the U.S. inventory in WWII: http://www.ausairpower.net/P-38-Analysis.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MizPete Posted February 10, 2020 Share Posted February 10, 2020 On 2/7/2020 at 9:26 PM, DocWard said: If you mean Freddie (born Farrokh Bulsara), he was of Parsi ancestry, and his parents practiced Zoroastrianism. Right you are. But he still knew, didn't he? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocWard Posted February 10, 2020 Share Posted February 10, 2020 5 hours ago, MizPete said: Right you are. But he still knew, didn't he? So it seems! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dutch Wheeler Posted February 10, 2020 Share Posted February 10, 2020 On 2/8/2020 at 3:21 PM, Arizona Gunfighter said: Golly all you cowboys and cowgirls, I saw the picture by Lawman Mark and immediately new what he was conveying! Well, some folks are just quicker than others! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sixgun Sheridan Posted February 10, 2020 Share Posted February 10, 2020 On 2/8/2020 at 4:41 PM, Four-Eyed Buck,SASS #14795 said: They did call the Corsair "Whistling Death". Japanese ground troops apparently did, since the Corsair was used to very good effect in the ground-attack role and made a shrieking noise through its oil coolers in a shallow dive. I seriously doubt Japanese pilots called it that, since they wouldn't be able to hear it. The most appropriate name for it though was "Ensign Eliminator", since more were destroyed in landing accidents than by enemy planes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocWard Posted February 10, 2020 Share Posted February 10, 2020 47 minutes ago, Sixgun Sheridan said: Japanese ground troops apparently did, since the Corsair was used to very good effect in the ground-attack role and made a shrieking noise through its oil coolers in a shallow dive. I seriously doubt Japanese pilots called it that, since they wouldn't be able to hear it. The most appropriate name for it though was "Ensign Eliminator", since more were destroyed in landing accidents than by enemy planes. Every source I saw said the sound was due to the air going through the inlets. I wonder if it was due to air blowing through the barrels of their guns, though. Sort of like blowing in a pop bottle, just a lot faster. The P-51 and even the Spitfire would do the same thing, although the Spitfire's sound was less pronounced, it seemed. Corsair: Mustang: I once found a video comparing Mustangs with guns still in place with those with the ports covered. The ones with the covered ports don't make the whistling sound. If I can find it again, I'll post it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sixgun Sheridan Posted February 10, 2020 Share Posted February 10, 2020 50 minutes ago, DocWard said: Every source I saw said the sound was due to the air going through the inlets. Maybe my F4U-fu is weak, but I thought those inlets on the inboard section of the wings were the oil coolers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocWard Posted February 10, 2020 Share Posted February 10, 2020 22 minutes ago, Sixgun Sheridan said: Maybe my F4U-fu is weak, but I thought those inlets on the inboard section of the wings were the oil coolers? No, you're mostly right! I double checked. Initially, the inlets were for the superchargers, the supercharger intercoolers and oil coolers. Later variants moved the air inlet for the supercharger itself to under the cowling area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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