Aircraft of World War II - Warbird Forums
 



Go Back   Aircraft of World War II - Warbird Forums > World War II - Aviation > Polls

Polls Polls and discussion on their results.

View Poll Results: Best Allied Nightfighter?
Northrop P-61B Black Widow 13 30.95%
DeHavilland Mosquito NF-XIII 25 59.52%
Grumman F6F-5N Hellcat 4 9.52%
Voters: 42. You may not vote on this poll

Reply
 
LinkBack (1) Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 09-09-2007, 10:17 AM   #31
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Montrose, Colorado
Posts: 3,271
The first deployment in combat of the F4U type by the US Navy in WW2 was aboard the Enterprise and they were F4U2s, a night fighter and armed with 4-20mm cannon. The F6F night fighter version was armed with 2-20mm cannon and 4-50 cal mgs, a formidable throw weight.
renrich is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 09-09-2007, 02:21 PM   #32
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: London
Posts: 3,655
I admit I thought that the F4U2 had 4 x 0.5HMG's not 4 x 20mm. The number of guns being reduced to save weight.
Glider is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 09-09-2007, 04:27 PM   #33
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Montrose, Colorado
Posts: 3,271
Glider, I checked my references and you are mostly right as the F4U2 deleted one gun and had 5 50 cal mgs. The F4U1C had the 4-20mm cannon
renrich is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 09-09-2007, 06:32 PM   #34
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: London
Posts: 3,655
Thanks for the info, I will update my records.
It sounds more like a space saving issue rather than weight. The Corsair isn't a lightweight and I find it hard to believe that the weight of one HMG would make a blind bit of difference to its performance or handling
Glider is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 09-10-2007, 06:12 PM   #35
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Montrose, Colorado
Posts: 3,271
Maybe a weight and balance issue. The F4U5N did have the aforementioned 4-20 mms and the only US Navy ace of the Korean war flew it. His name was Bordeleon and he was obviously from Louisiana.
renrich is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 09-10-2007, 06:27 PM   #36
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Montrose, Colorado
Posts: 3,271
Just finished a book about a SF A-team in Iraq and a fight against Iraqui T55s, APCs and assorted trucks where the US guys were outnumbered greatly. The SF guys had special Humvees with MaDeuces and the automatic 40mm grenade launchers. They were shooting up moving trucks at 800 yards with the M2s and killing ground troops in the open at over a thousnd yards with the M2s. I fired an M2 on the range at Fort Hood one time and am familiar with the ballistics of the 50 BMG round. When I see debates about the effectiveness of the 50 cals in WW2 against enemy AC I wonder whether we are not shortchanging the M2. Their were no aircraft in WW2 on any side any more robust than a deuce and a half and one 50 cal MG will tear up a deuce and a half with a few bursts. Imagine what happens to a WW2 AC if hit with say 100 rds of 50 BMGs at a range of 200 yards from 6-50s. Anyway, the M2 is a heavy hitter in combat on the ground.
renrich is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 09-10-2007, 09:20 PM   #37
Banned
 
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Pine Mountain Lake, California
Posts: 981
Well, I was going to protest the fact that the P-38M wasn't included, but I did some homework first and found out that it did, indeed, participate in several late-War (very late-War!) missions, but never saw any combat. So it did do some flying around, but never engaged any enemy aircraft. Too bad; it would've been nice to find out how effective it was.
SoD Stitch is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 09-10-2007, 09:40 PM   #38
the old Sage
 
Erich's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Platonic Sphere
Posts: 10,775
P-38M in what US night fighter units Sod ? In my data the P-38 in the standard day fighter fit was used , painted black then over to the Mossie/P-61, there was never a P-38 specialized nf ever used during the war.

4 P-61M's were sent to the 418th nfs in Jan./Feb. 1946 and then they were sent to the 421stnfs which flew a couple of sorties and then scrapped
__________________
Rip it up !

Last edited by Erich; 09-10-2007 at 10:18 PM.
Erich is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 01-14-2008, 03:39 AM   #39
Senior Member
 
kool kitty89's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 2,412
I don't know about the P-38M, but I did hear that about the F7F. (flew a hand-full of noncombat recon opps as well as some unevenful nightfighter sorties in the last couple months of the war) Similar to the 2 YP-80As stationed in the MTO.
kool kitty89 is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 03-04-2008, 07:36 AM   #40
Junior Member
 
LaLongeCarabine's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 1
Wasn't there a night fighter of the P38?
I found this in a quick search.

Type: Single Seat Long Range Fighter
Origin: Lockheed
Models: XP-38 to P-38M, F-4 and F-5
First Flight: January 27 1939 (XP-3
Service Delivery: June 8, 1941 (USAAC)
Combat Debut: August 1942
Final Delivery: September 1945
Total Produced: 9,942

NIGHT FIGHTER (P-38M)


The P-38M, known as the "Night Fighter," was equipped with a state-of-the-art radar system, (an AN/APS-4 AI radar pod mounted under the nose on a modified bomb pylon) which was operated by a guy crammed in behind the pilot under the bubble canopy. Learn all about the Night Fighters here. To see a "Night Fighter" model, click here.


DROOP SNOOT


The P-38J (so-called "Droop Snoot"), was typically the lead plane on level bombing missions. The Droop Snoot was equipped with a Plexiglas nose and (replacing the more well-known P-38 fire power of machine guns and cannon) an ultra-secret Norden bomb sight. The bombardier was in the nose. The original color scheme was olive-drab-over-gray camouflage, and was most often associated with the 8th AF in Europe -- although they were also flown in the CBI theater. "American Eagles" covers many of the P-38 variances, including the Droop Snoot.

I don't know how they were used but they were made.

JLK
LaLongeCarabine is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 03-04-2008, 07:37 PM   #41
the old Sage
 
Erich's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Platonic Sphere
Posts: 10,775
simple answer is : nope ! yes there are photos but it is after war when the pacific squads were doing ops over China. the standard P-38 without radar was used in darker day fighter camo
__________________
Rip it up !
Erich is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 12-06-2008, 12:16 AM   #42
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Posts: 475
Mosquito!!!

Cheap, deadly, fast, accurate, and reliable...what's not to like???
Burmese Bandit is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 12-09-2008, 01:47 PM   #43
Senior Member
 
Messy1's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Ankeny, Iowa
Posts: 1,411
I went with the P-61. (Big surprise)

But am learning alot, interesting post.
__________________
Bryon O
P-61 Black Widow-Mistress of the Night!


"No bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country."
George S. Patton

"Listen, strange women lyin' in ponds distributin' swords is no basis for a system of government."

"Oh but if I went 'round sayin' I was Emperor, just because some moistened bint lobbed a scimitar at me, they'd put me away."
Messy1 is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 04-07-2009, 04:58 PM   #44
Junior Member
 
koutsivtom's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Thessaloniki Greece
Posts: 4
P - 61!!!!That plane was designed for night fighter from the beginning.Well equiped,powerfull with 2 super engines of its time,advanced enginnering,with the first actually air radar!It was like a cadillac of the air.Far from its time,clearly......But unfortunatelly its value couldn't be clear because when it was appeared there wasn't any enemy......
koutsivtom is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Old 04-07-2009, 05:05 PM   #45
Der Crewchief
 
DerAdlerIstGelandet's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Ansbach, Germany
Posts: 33,152
Quote:
Originally Posted by koutsivtom View Post
P - 61!!!!That plane was designed for night fighter from the beginning.Well equiped,powerfull with 2 super engines of its time,advanced enginnering,with the first actually air radar!It was like a cadillac of the air.Far from its time,clearly......But unfortunatelly its value couldn't be clear because when it was appeared there wasn't any enemy......
The P-61 was not the first aircraft to use radar. It was the first US aircraft purposely built to use radar.

Plenty of aircraft used radar before the P-61 was built, including the:

Mossie
Ju 88
Bf 110
__________________


fly boy:"isnt that the first jet bomber becasue i have flown one in a flight sim before and i know how it handles"[/I]
DerAdlerIstGelandet is offline  
Digg this Post!Add Post to del.icio.usBookmark Post in TechnoratiFurl this Post!Spurl this Post!Reddit! Wong this Post!
Reply With Quote
Reply


Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On


LinkBacks (?)
LinkBack to this Thread: http://www.ww2aircraft.net/forum/polls/best-allied-nightfighter-p-61-mosquito-hellcat-5677.html
Posted By For Type Date
EU Referendum - View topic - And the real Saturday This thread Refback 02-05-2007 02:14 PM

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
RAF Bomber Command Diary... Jan 1945...... lesofprimus Aviation 54 01-28-2007 02:29 PM


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 12:57 AM.
Powered by vBulletin
Copyright ©2000 - 2009, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Content Relevant URLs by vBSEO 3.3.0
Ad Management plugin by RedTyger
Design by HTWoRKS


1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118