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Its interesting to note that the RAF never thought any P-40 was good enough for service in Northern Europe. They kept their Hurricane IIs till mid 42 , after which they were replaced by Typhoons. In the DAF the Hurricanes were kept in front line service till the Spring of 43 after which they were replaced by Spitfires. In the Burma theater the Hurricanes excellent ground attack abilities and servicability kept in in front line service in large numbers till late 44, after which it was largely replaced by Thunderbolts.
And all of this has exactly what relationship to the RAF campaign in Malaya, India and Burma?
P-40s weren't deemed suitable for defense of England due to their altitude limitation.
Hurricanes were actually replaced by P-40s in multiple squadrons in the Med, and by mid 42 almost all that were still flying were used as bombers. The only place they kept using them as fighters seems to be Burma.
In Russia Hurricanes were typically replaced by Yaks or P-39s.
In the CBI, as fighters until finally replaced by Spitfires in 1944, but kept for ground attack until war's end. Outclassed with the arrival of the KI-43-II from 1943. All they needed was a Merlin 24 and a cleanup like the Sea Hurricane IIc and they would have been okay as fighters until 1944.
In the CBI, as fighters until finally replaced by Spitfires in 1944, but kept for ground attack until war's end. Outclassed with the arrival of the KI-43-II from 1943. All they needed was a Merlin 24 and a cleanup like the Sea Hurricane IIc and they would have been okay as fighters until 1944.
The supercharger itself was not changed and neither were the gear ratios which means the extra power is only available at relatively low altitudes. Merlin XX was good for 1485hp at 6000ft
Hurricanes were actually replaced by P-40s in multiple squadrons in the Med, and by mid 42 almost all that were still flying were used as bombers. The only place they kept using them as fighters seems to be Burma.
As to how useful the Hurricane II was as a fighter just compare it to the P-40F which used for all practical purposes the same engine. The P-40F was faster by 20-30mph and actually climbed better at around 20,000ft and up. It also carried more fuel (not much more) and carried about the same weight of guns and ammo (depend on how many .50 cal rounds).
I am not sure where this idea that P-40s replaced Hurricanes in North Africa came from but it is basically false.
The Hurricane Squadrons were still making claims from air to air kills till the end of the African campaign. 73 squad made 9 or 10 claims and an equal amount damaged in Tunisia in April and May 43. By this time the Kittyhawks were primarily fighter bombers as well.
Agreed, but you should be able to get an extra 13 mph at altitude if you do the same mods as the Sea Hurricane IIc which would be useful against the Ki-43-II.You do know that a Merlin 24 was functionally a Merlin XX with a modified supercharger drive that allowed 18lbs of boost to be used instead of 14lbs in low gear and 16.bs in high gear (heavier supercharger drive shaft?) and above around 12,500ft there was no difference in the power output of the two engines?
The supercharger itself was not changed and neither were the gear ratios which means the extra power is only available at relatively low altitudes. Merlin XX was good for 1485hp at 6000ft compared to the Merlin 24s 1635hp at 2250ft but the Merlin 24 would have dropped to about 1485hp at 6000ft.
The Merlin 24 was allowed to use 18lbs boost for take-off which would have helped with short airstrips and heavy loads but the utility of the Merlin 24 over the Merlin XX for air to air combat requires certain circumstances at a limited number of altitudes.
As to how useful the Hurricane II was as a fighter just compare it to the P-40F which used for all practical purposes the same engine. The P-40F was faster by 20-30mph and actually climbed better at around 20,000ft and up. It also carried more fuel (not much more) and carried about the same weight of guns and ammo (depend on how many .50 cal rounds).
The Hurricanes usefulness as a fighter rather depends on the Japanese NOT bringing in Ki-44s or K-61s to oppose it.
Not that I know.Did they ever replace the Vokes filters in Burma with more efficient types?
Ideally we need those Spitfire Vb Trops for Russia with the Merlin 46 in early 43 in India. I guess there was some politics involved in their final destination. Alternately, a cleaned up Hurricane IIc with a less drag inducing filter maybe Merlin 24 so that we have it doing 322 at 13000 and 342 at 22000 so being more competitive against the Ki-43-II.Not that I know.
Supposedly it could do 450 in a dive so more than a Ki-43. A Merlin 24 would give it a good low altitude performance edge. So exit manouvre would be dive then boost to run then zoom climb back. That should be okay until the Ki-43-III comes along and it's outclassed. You could then remove 2 cannon to improve the roll rate. Now that they did.I think the only real problem with the Hurricane was the lack of an escape maneuver. Other Anglo-American planes used dive - the Hurri had those big wings. It didn't seem to be able to dive out of trouble.
I agree though that there was clearly a speed (in level flight) threshold involved. So long as the Hurri was in the ballpark on speed or had a slight edge as in Burma in the earlier days, it's pilots had something to work with, once it fell behind a little (beyond a certain point) or lost that edge it lost the initiative.
I was recently discussing a very similar topic with someone else on the forum, and wondered if you could provide some insight with your sources and knowledge about engines. First, do you know when these boost settings were approved for the Merlin XX, and second, were they ever approved for the P-40F/L?
All my sources lack any WEP setting for the V-1650-1 / Merlin 28 (which is nominally identical to the XX but there are no doubt some minor differences) and the highest power setting listed is the takeoff power of 1,300 hp at roughly 12 lbs boost / 54". I have 3 books which list this but none ever mention any WEP setting or any higher power setting.
I have seen brief mentions of 1480 or 1485 hp at +16 lbs boost, and I have seen pilot anecdotes in which they claimed or mentioned using up to 65" Hg boost in emergencies, but I have never seen that associated with any official document related to the Packard Merlin V-1650-1. Do you know of any?
RAF testing differs with you on the climb rate. The info I have is Hurricane 2, 8.8 mins to 20 k and 17 mins to 30 k. The Kityhawk 2 is 10.9 mins to 20k and 18.5 mins to 28 k. You can find better numbers for both but the Hurricane is always ahead on the climb. The speeds are fairly close when using the same boost. The Kitthawk 2 was not used in large numbers by the RAF as overall it really wasn't any better than a Hurricane. The Hurricanes handling and turn rate is far better as well.