Recent content by pinsog

My info on diving turned out to be Zero 52 vs FM2, instead of Zero 21 or 32 vs F4F-4 so feel free to process that info how you like. I will not disagree with your claim because my info was of different models of those airplanes than we were discussing

Oh I agree. I have stated in other threads that I know what the Wildcat did, but it defies explanation of how it did it. One of the aces at Guadalcanal stated that they should have been easily wiped out and he didn’t understand why they didn’t. I think I read that in the 2nd book of the First...

It isn’t exactly what I remembered, wrong models, it is the Zeke 52 vs FM2 Wildcat, not an early Zero vs an F4F-4 so regard the info as you see fit.

Actually the Wildcat wasn’t faster in a dive. I think I can find the test, but they were about equal in top speed in a dive. I was shocked as I always thought the Wildcat was faster going down hill. I’ll look for the test when I get home. But if they were diving the Wildcat could get up to...

They did a terminal dive test on the XF5F skyrocket. I think it was a 505 mph straight down power dive. I can give the date after I get home. They did it a couple of times a day or so apart. Don’t know if they did it on the Wildcat or not

The F4F-4 had a top speed more like 318 mph and that may have been optimistic. The climb rate was a joke, a bad joke, a bad off color joke with a horrible punch line. Your 100% correct that the Zeros roll rate slowly got worse, but you need to be able to get over 300 mph for this to help you...

According to The First Team, the F4F-3 pilots at Coral Sea didn’t think they gave up anything in climb or speed and had better protection and firepower (I was surprised by this but that’s what the book said). The F4F-4 gained several hundred pounds, couldn’t climb, was slower etc. If I had been...

2 other advantages a Zero had that people fail to mention. 1. The bubble canopy. A Zero pilot had about the same field of view as I do sitting in a lawn chair in my driveway. If a Zero pilot wasn’t asleep or in a neck brace then you weren’t going to sneak up on him. 2. Acceleration. You may...

Only the Zeros roll rate degraded above 300 mph, the elevators still worked just fine. And from I believe the Australian test, they said it could loop from cruise speed, I believe 210 mph, and GAIN altitude. The AM6-21 that were tested by the US were also reasonably fast, coming in around...

I would think that fast climb would be even more important without Chain Home. With the engine power of the time and no constant speed props early on, I wouldn’t think they would try to add more fuel, you would more than likely end up with a P40 situation if you did (slow climb)

The USA had the “integrated hydro air defense system” for the whole war. Less educated people call them the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

I’m not going to drag the discussion that far off topic. It was leading edge technology and they did as well as anyone could expect the first time it was tried in battle. People can argue Big Wing vs smaller attacks if they want to but the British developed it, used it, it worked and they won...

Oh I actually agree with you. A. I know what it is B. They did as good a job implementing a new technology as could ever be expected (USA had surface ship radar at Guadalcanal but lack of experience in using it really showed up in the early stages of the battle along with Japanese night fighting...

“The best coordinated air defense system in the world” It was a radar and a telephone. Radar gave them current position, speed and direction they were headed so hopefully Spitfires and Hurricanes could get to the proper altitude in time. They didn’t always make it. It wasn’t the Death Star...