Correction, I think the P-38J-5 and J-10 were fitted with wing tanks at modification centres and it was the J-15 in December 1943 when the tanks became factory fitted.
I'm surprised that in 14 pages of posts, and since the central point of the thread seems to be G's criticism of the USAAF leadership in his video, no one has mentioned: The British told them it wouldn't work. "It" being precision daylight bombing (PDB) by lumbering bombers.
Ah G, the name whom one must not speak. Obviously and sensibly they do not want to be associated with the current attempts at video defence.
Actually the British told the US precision daylight bombing would work, it was what the British were trying to do within escort range, including in North Africa, what is day ground support by bombers other than precision, given the usual size of tactical targets? What the British correctly told the US was a campaign of *unescorted* day bomber raids would not work. They did not mention lumbering as a qualifier. The Bomber Command day Mosquito bomber raids, mostly a handful of sorties and at low level but going to places like Germany finished in May 1943. The British were quite sure trying medium to large formations of unescorted Mosquitoes even flying above 20,000 feet bombing Germany by day would not work.
Good to see adjectives keep being used, lumbering more accurately describes the latest failure to know the full advice.
Perhaps because G never mentioned that in his controversial video?
Perhaps because people knew the correct quote you have apparently just partially discovered? Controversial, now often a code word to describe a fairy story that someone wants to be considered true.
Our allies, in theatre, with extensive experience, apparently told the USAAF leadership PDB wouldn't work.
Now having successfully created the new imaginary advice, time to announce how that makes previous imaginary ideas real.
But, since I've been proven "wrong" on numerous other points,
So far you started with 10 times over inflated losses and now seem to want to go back to those figures. Still believe Mosquitoes and B-26 could substitute for B-17 and B-24? Flak suppression sorties? How ineffective the bomber gunners were? Still believe it was under 5% of bombs within 1 mile of target? Nothing you introduced was new, nil, zero. Including guilt by association and the "logic" a new fictional claim must be true so old fictional claims must be true as well. So who are the USAAF bomber mafia generals? How did they stop the 8th Air Force having a numerically viable escort force in 1943?
I'm sure that someone will chime in who knows the exact sequence of events WRT the British telling the American's that PDB would not work, ie., who told who, and when. Or if it is another myth that never happened. If it is true that they were told, then it would appear that the USAAF leadership was rather arrogant in assuming that they knew better. And that would constitute another black mark against them. Or perhaps they just wanted to follow Admiral King's lead in disagreeing with the British.....
Its paragraphs like the above that makes people I know tune in for the laughs. Having proved Americans living on average higher above sea level than the British therefore naturally having superior lung capacity we can see the great advantage that gave to aircraft performance as they did not need oxygen supplies until thousands of feet higher than British, or Germans. The USAAF Tibetan/Gurkha/Nepalese bomber groups, with their still classified history under operation Shangri La, were better still. The President deliberately used the code word to describe the Doolittle Raid base as part of an elaborate double bluff to hide the real program, along with the aircraft carrier of the same name, unfortunately to read more about this requires agreeing to an automatic and Swift death sentence, Taylor made for you.
Actually the USAAF knew they had bigger bomber aircraft, with heavier defensive power, flying 5 to 10,000 feet higher than previous attempts, all of which reduce the casualties taken, until it was tried no one knew if that was enough in 1943, but the warning signs were there practically from the start. In 1939 no one knew if the faster, higher flying than WWI bombers equipped with power operated turrets could do the same. The Wellingtons shot down in the 1939 day raids did not have self sealing fuel tanks. The Bf109 and FW190 upgrades in the 1942 to 1944 period mainly improved firepower and protection, things like top speeds and climb did not change very much, this helped kill big bombers and IL-2 but the extra weight tended to hurt when engaging enemy fighters. Then in 1943/44 the allies created a performance gap between their best and the best Luftwaffe fighters, similar to what the Luftwaffe had done in 1941/2 with similar results.
The strength and location of the defences, the enemy raid tracking systems meant the early B-17F in the 8th Air Force had a combat radius of 320 miles, so 640 miles range, despite test performance figures of 1,730 miles with 6,000 pounds of bombs. Similar effects on fighters. As has been noted a combat radius of 600 miles from Britain takes in most of Germany plus parts of Czech war industry. If the fighters match the bomber 240mph TAS they travel the same distance but have far fewer chances to intercept the interceptors. Fighter fast cruise gives the escorts better chances but they need weaving to stay with their bombers and at 600 bomber miles the fighter covers 750 miles. It is not just add more fuel to the fighters, tactics like patrolling sections of airspace as the bomber formations passed through keep fighter ranges down, as does having enough escorts to use relay tactics but that in turn requires the various formations keeping to timetables and locations. The 600 mile "limit" made it possible for 1944 technology to provide fighters with viable combat performance enough range, Roger Freeman's radius table tops out at 750 miles for a P-51 with a pair of 108 or 110 gallon external tanks. Then add the overall numbers effect, in this case mostly trained pilots, the Luftwaffe ran out of properly trained and experienced fighter pilots before it ran out of fuel and way before (if ever) it ran out of aircraft, for much of 1944 its official operational day fighter strength kept increasing. Which in turn caused worries for the allies as the Bf109K, Fw190D and the occasional Me262 were encountered.
An 8th Air Force that had the escort staying with a bomber formation for the duration of the mission at bomber speeds was not going to do a lot to the Luftwaffe fighter force, and not much better if only the fighter speeds were increased. Leading to the situation similar to the Luftwaffe night fighters, to sometime in 1944 that force was taking losses but not enough to stop the average crew experience level increasing, making them more dangerous, interfering with its equipment was needed and/or night escorts.
In the second half of 1944 the 8th Air force began flying direct or at least more straight courses as interceptions became rare, that saved on fuel and the risks of course changes etc. The downside was making it easier for the Germans to work out the probable target but then again once you start attacking a specific sector of the enemy economy you become more predictable anyway.
Some of the longer distance B-24 raid claims, round trip ranges 380th Bomb Group from North Australia, June 1943 Makassar 2,200 miles, July Soerabaja 2,400 miles, August Balikpapan 2,700 miles (3,000 pounds of bombs, 2,500 (imperial? gallons of fuel), lots of individual night flying and attacks, 10,000 foot runway used. September 1944 USAAF Noemfoor Island to Balikpapan 2,500 miles, 72 bombers, flying through the night, rendezvous at dawn 220 miles from target, form up and stay that way until a similar distance after the attack, 3,000 pounds of bombs and full ammunition, 16 hour flight, 68,500 pound take off weight, 700 gallons above normal fuel load carried. India from second half of 1944, most of the improvement considered due to Wing Commander J Blackburn. Bangkok 2,200 miles carrying 8,000 pounds of bombs, Malaya 2,800 miles, Penang 3,000+ miles dropping sea mines. The Mariana Islands are around 1,500 miles from Tokyo for B-29 raid distances.
1945 8th Air Force bomber raids on Germany, same criteria as before.
01-Jan-45 attacking: 727, missing: 9, percent of attacking missing: 1.24
02-Jan-45 attacking: 969, missing: 4, percent of attacking missing: 0.41
03-Jan-45 attacking: 1002, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
05-Jan-45 attacking: 902, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
06-Jan-45 attacking: 781, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.13
07-Jan-45 attacking: 1023, missing: 3, percent of attacking missing: 0.29
08-Jan-45 attacking: 604, missing: 2, percent of attacking missing: 0.33
10-Jan-45 attacking: 843, missing: 10, percent of attacking missing: 1.19
13-Jan-45 attacking: 887, missing: 7, percent of attacking missing: 0.79
14-Jan-45 attacking: 845, missing: 17, percent of attacking missing: 2.01
15-Jan-45 attacking: 619, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
16-Jan-45 attacking: 566, missing: 3, percent of attacking missing: 0.53
17-Jan-45 attacking: 664, missing: 9, percent of attacking missing: 1.36
18-Jan-45 attacking: 120, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
19-Jan-45 attacking: 11, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
20-Jan-45 attacking: 686, missing: 3, percent of attacking missing: 0.44
21-Jan-45 attacking: 751, missing: 8, percent of attacking missing: 1.07
22-Jan-45 attacking: 186, missing: 5, percent of attacking missing: 2.69
23-Jan-45 attacking: 180, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.56
28-Jan-45 attacking: 872, missing: 10, percent of attacking missing: 1.15
29-Jan-45 attacking: 1107, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.09
01-Feb-45 attacking: 617, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
02-Feb-45 attacking: 9, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
03-Feb-45 attacking: 1359, missing: 28, percent of attacking missing: 2.06
04-Feb-45 attacking: 1, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
06-Feb-45 attacking: 1292, missing: 5, percent of attacking missing: 0.39
07-Feb-45 attacking: 1, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
09-Feb-45 attacking: 1188, missing: 8, percent of attacking missing: 0.67
10-Feb-45 attacking: 155, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
11-Feb-45 attacking: 123, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
14-Feb-45 attacking: 1150, missing: 6, percent of attacking missing: 0.52
15-Feb-45 attacking: 1071, missing: 2, percent of attacking missing: 0.19
16-Feb-45 attacking: 953, missing: 8, percent of attacking missing: 0.84
17-Feb-45 attacking: 330, missing: 5, percent of attacking missing: 1.52
19-Feb-45 attacking: 1065, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.09
20-Feb-45 attacking: 873, missing: 5, percent of attacking missing: 0.57
21-Feb-45 attacking: 1228, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.08
22-Feb-45 attacking: 1356, missing: 7, percent of attacking missing: 0.52
23-Feb-45 attacking: 1216, missing: 2, percent of attacking missing: 0.16
24-Feb-45 attacking: 1062, missing: 2, percent of attacking missing: 0.19
25-Feb-45 attacking: 1141, missing: 5, percent of attacking missing: 0.44
26-Feb-45 attacking: 1132, missing: 6, percent of attacking missing: 0.53
27-Feb-45 attacking: 1092, missing: 3, percent of attacking missing: 0.27
28-Feb-45 attacking: 1087, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.09
01-Mar-45 attacking: 1182, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
02-Mar-45 attacking: 1162, missing: 13, percent of attacking missing: 1.12
03-Mar-45 attacking: 1061, missing: 9, percent of attacking missing: 0.85
04-Mar-45 attacking: 674, missing: 2, percent of attacking missing: 0.3
05-Mar-45 attacking: 431, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.23
06-Mar-45 attacking: 12, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
07-Mar-45 attacking: 922, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.11
08-Mar-45 attacking: 1237, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
09-Mar-45 attacking: 1036, missing: 8, percent of attacking missing: 0.77
10-Mar-45 attacking: 1353, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.07
11-Mar-45 attacking: 1227, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.08
12-Mar-45 attacking: 1327, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.08
13-Mar-45 attacking: 9, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
14-Mar-45 attacking: 1208, missing: 3, percent of attacking missing: 0.25
15-Mar-45 attacking: 1322, missing: 9, percent of attacking missing: 0.68
17-Mar-45 attacking: 1282, missing: 5, percent of attacking missing: 0.39
18-Mar-45 attacking: 1259, missing: 14, percent of attacking missing: 1.11
19-Mar-45 attacking: 1229, missing: 6, percent of attacking missing: 0.49
20-Mar-45 attacking: 428, missing: 4, percent of attacking missing: 0.93
21-Mar-45 attacking: 1351, missing: 7, percent of attacking missing: 0.52
22-Mar-45 attacking: 1308, missing: 2, percent of attacking missing: 0.15
23-Mar-45 attacking: 1258, missing: 7, percent of attacking missing: 0.56
24-Mar-45 attacking: 1463, missing: 19, percent of attacking missing: 1.3
25-Mar-45 attacking: 253, missing: 4, percent of attacking missing: 1.58
26-Mar-45 attacking: 329, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
28-Mar-45 attacking: 903, missing: 2, percent of attacking missing: 0.22
30-Mar-45 attacking: 1320, missing: 6, percent of attacking missing: 0.45
31-Mar-45 attacking: 1300, missing: 6, percent of attacking missing: 0.46
01-Apr-45 attacking: 12, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
03-Apr-45 attacking: 719, missing: 2, percent of attacking missing: 0.28
04-Apr-45 attacking: 968, missing: 11, percent of attacking missing: 1.14
05-Apr-45 attacking: 1034, missing: 6, percent of attacking missing: 0.58
06-Apr-45 attacking: 645, missing: 4, percent of attacking missing: 0.62
07-Apr-45 attacking: 1263, missing: 16, percent of attacking missing: 1.27
08-Apr-45 attacking: 1084, missing: 9, percent of attacking missing: 0.83
09-Apr-45 attacking: 1238, missing: 7, percent of attacking missing: 0.57
10-Apr-45 attacking: 1256, missing: 15, percent of attacking missing: 1.19
11-Apr-45 attacking: 1264, missing: 23, percent of attacking missing: 1.82
12-Apr-45 attacking: 9, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
13-Apr-45 attacking: 222, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
14-Apr-45 attacking: 19, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
15-Apr-45 attacking: 12, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
16-Apr-45 attacking: 721, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.14
17-Apr-45 attacking: 590, missing: 6, percent of attacking missing: 1.02
18-Apr-45 attacking: 644, missing: 2, percent of attacking missing: 0.31
19-Apr-45 attacking: 396, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.25
20-Apr-45 attacking: 755, missing: 1, percent of attacking missing: 0.13
21-Apr-45 attacking: 331, missing: 2, percent of attacking missing: 0.6
22-Apr-45 attacking: 10, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
25-Apr-45 attacking: 124, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
01-May-45 attacking: 4, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
03-May-45 attacking: 14, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
04-May-45 attacking: 7, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
06-May-45 attacking: 15, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
07-May-45 attacking: 15, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0
08-May-45 attacking: 12, missing: 0, percent of attacking missing: 0