I've just read 'Beaufighters in the Night' which is an superb book about a US nightfighter squadron which operated Beaufighters before converting to the P-61 Blackwidow.
But there was a comment in the book that they used cast-off British Beaufighters as there was no suitable US airframe for the nightfighter role. It referred to the Havoc as being tested as a nightfighter but discarded as being unsuitable.
I am intrigued about this, as the pre-war American idea about air defence seems ideally suited to night-fighting i.e. heavily armed multi-crew planes stooging about acting as defence (i.e. loitering)
The US also developed fast medium bombers, as did other nations who then adapted them as nightfighters. But although other nations were succesful in developing them as nightfighters, the US just seems to have given up or been unsuccesful, placing all their hopes in the P61.
The US adapted the P38 Lightning as a nighfighter late in the war (as the Night Lightning - excellent name!) and even the Hellcat - but none of them seemed succesful. Thought I'm surprised that the P38 Night Lightning didn't work out - with a bit of thought I'm sure they could have got a decent WOp station in that airframe (the rear bubble-canopy seemed a bit half-hearted).
So, my queston is, which of the pre-Blackwidow US airframes (i.e. early war) could have been developed as a decent nightfighter? And if it didn't work out, then why not?
But there was a comment in the book that they used cast-off British Beaufighters as there was no suitable US airframe for the nightfighter role. It referred to the Havoc as being tested as a nightfighter but discarded as being unsuitable.
I am intrigued about this, as the pre-war American idea about air defence seems ideally suited to night-fighting i.e. heavily armed multi-crew planes stooging about acting as defence (i.e. loitering)
The US also developed fast medium bombers, as did other nations who then adapted them as nightfighters. But although other nations were succesful in developing them as nightfighters, the US just seems to have given up or been unsuccesful, placing all their hopes in the P61.
The US adapted the P38 Lightning as a nighfighter late in the war (as the Night Lightning - excellent name!) and even the Hellcat - but none of them seemed succesful. Thought I'm surprised that the P38 Night Lightning didn't work out - with a bit of thought I'm sure they could have got a decent WOp station in that airframe (the rear bubble-canopy seemed a bit half-hearted).
So, my queston is, which of the pre-Blackwidow US airframes (i.e. early war) could have been developed as a decent nightfighter? And if it didn't work out, then why not?
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