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The Sea Hurricane and Hurricane between them shot down about 6000 enemy...
The Dutch tested a Hurricane in the East Indies with half the armament and fuel and it was fully capable of dog fighting the Hayabusa.
Hawker Hurricane - WikipediaCould you expand on that, maybe posting the reports on the test and the circumstances? I'd like to know what mark of Hayabusa (and Hurricane), what condition it was in/how it was captured and what was actually tested/compared.
I think you'll find the Hurricanes were initially configured as interceptors and for escort.I don't know much about the CBI TO, but as I understand it, hurricanes were not considered or configured as air superiority fighters generally. They were generally used as ground attack a/c, flying low and slow for maximum effect. If that is the case, they will generally be at a disadvantage if caught in that condition by the enemy.
Absolutely, is there any other way?That would be 6000 claimed/ credited by there own side, wouldn't it?
The first Spitfire Vb's that went to Malta carried the 90 gal slipper (ferry) tank, the Spitfire Vc was able to carry the 170 gal (ferry) slipper tank, IIRC the BPF may have used 90 gal slipper tanks initially but switched to the Kittyhawk tanks. A Spitfire/Seafire could retain the 30 gal slipper tank in combat, the 90/170 gal slipper tanks had operating restrictions on them, like only fly straight and level so hardly any good for offensive missions and intended for ferry missions only. The 45 gal tank was okay for defensive patrols but not much else.IIRC, the Malta Spitfires initially used twinned 45 gallon Hurricane drop tanks.
All Spitfire slipper tanks were drop tanks and the RAAF Capstan Spitfires did drop 30G tanks in combat and their initial disaster was entirely due to not using them. The BPF did use 90G slipper tanks, and IIRC, Implacable used modded P-40 teardrop tanks and Indefatigable used 90G slipper tanks.
The Hurricane was effective against the Ki-27 if it employed boom and zoom tactics. Against the Ki-43, it had a hard time. Success depended on having an altitude advantage, the Hurricane was much faster in a dive so it could break off combat. Its tropical filter and heavy armament restricted its climb rate and agility. Both problems were solvable, an Aboukir filter and reducing the armament.The Hurricane was obsolete from the beginning of their introduction in the theatre of war until the end. They were even given a hard time by the Ki27 an aircraft they should have run rings around
The Hurricane was obsolete at the start of the campaign and even more obsolete at the end. The difference in the Ki43 only magnified the problem and its worth remembering that the Hurricanes had a difficult time dealing with the Ki27
I think you need to do a bit more reading.Clearly you are allowed your own opinion and you have a belief which you will not change despite all the evidence and the views of the pilots at the time. If you haven't already I suggest you read the Bloody Shambles series which should open your eyes a little.
You will see that when fighting the Ki27 long range tanks on the Hurricanes were very unusual, that both sides didn't much have radar (the IJAAF having none) and that didn't stop the Hurricanes taking severe losses.
I also notice that you haven't supplied any evidence to support your belief which says a lot about the strength of your case. Finally you haven't explained why a Hurricane with 6 x LMG would be so much better than a IIa with eight the difference in weight being almost negligable
Absolutely, is there any other way?
who, in what TO were doing well against the Japanese in the early part of 1942?I think you'll find the Hurricanes were initially configured as interceptors and for escort.
5871 claims for the ETO, 128 confirmed kills by the FAA. Then there's the MTO, the Eastern Front and SE Asia. Divide by 2 and add 50%?Probably not, but it does mean that how many enemy aircraft were shot down by Hurricanes is unknown; it's also likely to be a much lower number.
I think divide by 2 is the norm, but the figures are just for the ETO, so double for all the remaining theatres of ops after dividing by two. Anyway, if you divide the Hurricane victories by two then that make Spitfire victories in the ETO about 1750, so much for our wonder plane.Or just divide by 3 or 4; who knows?
The 9th Photo Recon tried to convert one of their F-4's into an interceptor to deal with the Dinahs. They mounted two .50 cal machine guns in the F-4 (which was their hangar queen) but failed to intercept the Dinah due to lack of radar warning. Finally the USAAF stripped down a P-40 and got the Dinah.
An interesting item is that the RAF went over to VHF communications and when the USAAF Air Commandos went into action in 1944, the RAF said that they did not need for their pilots to talk to the ground forces in Burma. The ground forces did not have VHF, only HF communications. The P-51A's of the Air Commandos came equipped with SCR-274N HF radios, and they talked to the ground troops.
RCAFson
The F4F-4 had 1 card to play against the Zero, dive to above 300 mph, roll to the right and pull out. We all know the Zero's high speed roll problem, the KI43 did not have the high speed roll problem. I think we are lucky they didn't use the KI43 instead of the Zero, I have come to believe it is the better plane.
I agree the Hurricane was better than an F4F-4 in mock dogfights. In real life vs a Zero the F4F-4 had a couple of advantages: radial engine, I think it had more/better armor, it did not have a fuel tank in front of the pilot that when punctured soaked the pilot in fuel and lit him on fire.
You may not think a Ki27 is a threat, but your forgetting just how well they turn, they probably rivaled a Gladiator. Wildcats had trouble dealing with Japanese biplane float planes due to their extreme agility.
Also remember the Australian test between a Spitfire V and a Zero "The Spitfire has no advantages below 20,000 feet". That quote is from the 2 guys that did the tests
Glider is correct. The later model KI43 had a top speed of around 350, pilot armor and self sealing tanks. The KI43 also did not have the loss of roll at high speed that the Zero suffered from and as I understand could outturn a Zero at low speed as well. There is actually nothing I can think of that a Hurricane can do to evade a KI43 unless they are at altitude and the Hurricane can dive away. (And the Hurricane was never known to be a particularly good diver either)
I got the impression after reading Bloody Shambles volume 3 that the KI43 with armor and tank protection could hold its own with about anything. Hurricanes seemed to be meat on the table, Spitfires faired a little better. P40's could dive and take a pretty good beating and still survive. I was very surprised at how the "slow, underarmed KI43" shot down P47's, P38's, photo recon Spitfire's, photo recon Mosquitoes, F5 recon Lightning's, B24's etc. In fact, I think they were doing better at it than the Luftwaffe.
Hawker Hurricane - Wikipedia
Its in wikipedia, so it must be true.