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 Posted: Sun Jun 24, 2007 10:00 pm
The plane for this week is the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk.
This plane should be remembered because it was the first american aircraft to battle Japanese planes air to air, and it served with all the countries of the Allies.
SSpecifications (P-40E)
Jackie Cochran in the cockpit of a P-40 fighter plane, she was head of the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP).General characteristicsCrew: 1
Length: 31 ft 8 in (9.66 m)
Wingspan: 37 ft 4 in (11.38 m)
Height: 12 ft 4 in (3.76 m)
Wing area: 235.94 ft² (21.92 m²)
Empty weight: 6,350 lb (2,880 kg)
Loaded weight: 8,280 lb (3,760 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 8,810 lb (4,000 kg)
Powerplant: 1× Allison V-1710-39 liquid-cooled V12 engine, 1,150 hp (860 kW)
Performance
Maximum speed: 360 mph (310 knots, 580 km/h)
Cruise speed: 270 mph (235 knots, 435 km/h)
Range: 650 mi (560 nm, 1,100 km)
Service ceiling: 29,000 ft (8,800 m)
Rate of climb: 2,100 ft/min (11 m/s)
Wing loading: 35.1 lb/ft² (171.5 kg/m²)
Power/mass: 0.14 hp/lb (230 W/kg)
Armament
Guns: 6× .50 in (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns, 281 rounds per gun
Bombs: 1,500 lb (680 kg) on three hardpoints
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Posted: Mon Jun 25, 2007 1:51 pm
I'm currently reading "Dumb But Lucky" by Richard K. Curtis. He was a P-51 pilot but flew the P-40 during his training. While he found the plane a bit sluggish and slow, he did find it durable.
Robert Scott Jr. was an unofficial Flying Tiger pilot and managed to shoot down 12 Japanese planes. He loved the plane and preferred it to anything else. He said never turn with the Japanese planes and to never lose speed or energy.
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