Best Aircraft in many different roles

Best German night fighter had to be the He219 Uhu. It was specifically designed for the job, and did it well. Burt that's not the point of this thread.

Ju-88. Best all rounder of the war years. It was a bomber, fighter, heavy-fighter, ground attack, dive bomber, anti-tank, anti-sub shipping, Night fighter, transport, just about everything.

Kiwimac

Nothing else came close: the Ju 88 was slower, the P-38 too limited.

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I disagree about the P-38 being too limited, it could do everything the Mossie could just as well, and in a lot of cases much better.

as a bomber the P-38 was useless, as a night fighter it wasn't combat proven, whereas the mossie was the best the allies had and one of the most feared NFs of the war, anti-tank the mossie Mk.XVIII well outclassed the P-38, anti-shipping the mossie's got it and transport the mossie gets it again....................

The P-38 was NOT useless as a bomber, it was extremely effective. against tanks it was damn good, anti-shipping the P-38 was also damn good and what the fuck could the Mossie do for transport?

cheddar cheese said:

.............and what the f**k could the Mossie do for transport?

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I think there would be certain issues concerning that statement

Yes, that the Bus Fare has gone up by 5p. It's disgusting I tell ya, disgusting

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No! If you took that bus twice a day every day for a year it will cost you £36.50 more than it would normally do!

It's ok, I'm the Driver

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Bet the oldies love you

what the f**k could the Mossie do for transport

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6 passengers, what the f**k could the P-38 do for transport..........

The P-38 was NOT useless as a bomber

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i class the ability to carry 3,200lbs the distance of 450 miles useless...............

against tanks it was damn good

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you think that the 20mm and 4x.50cal +bombs of the P-38 could stand up to a 57mm and 4x.303 + rockets and bombs.............

The P-38 could also carry rockets. 20mm and 4 .50cals is better than the 4 .303s, cos an far as I know the 57mm cannon wasnt used very often

Look, I know the range with bombs of the P-38 was poor, but at doing the actual bombing it proved very accurate. The Droop Snoot P-38J was slightly modified to make a better bomber, il have a look around for some info on it.

Ok I didnt mean the transport like that, I was a little surprised that a 2 seat plane was being used for Transport role, however I doubt it was used often in that role cos Ive never read any accounts of them going on Transport missions.

And I reckon that a P-38 would comfortably have a Mossie in a dogfight any day, and give it a run for its money at night.

So now this is a P-38 vs Mossie rant?

The Ju-88 woud be a Jack of all Trades master of non!

But i wil take the P-38. It did very well and was proven in the fare east were the Mossie had problums staying together, all that wood and water
The P-38 could turn inside the A6M because it flew combat a a faster speed! Under 250mph the A6M was ear purfect!
As much as I love the P-40 it is not a place here.

Junkers Ju 88 /188 / 388

Pour moi~

Kiwimac

an far as I know the 57mm cannon wasnt used very often

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it was used on the FB.XVIII, the second most numerous FB mark...............

but at doing the actual bombing it proved very accurate

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any fighter bombing at low level will be accurate, as long as the pilot knows wht he's doing.............

I doubt it was used often in that role cos Ive never read any accounts of them going on Transport missions.

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but would you really expect to??

kiwimac said:

Junkers Ju 88 /188 / 388

Pour moi~

Kiwimac

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No 288?

I like the 488, 4 engines

the lancaster kicks ass said:

an far as I know the 57mm cannon wasnt used very often

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it was used on the FB.XVIII, the second most numerous FB mark..............

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It was dropped quickly, too much recoil, and rockets were more suited to the job; only 33 Mossies were equipped with the Molin 57mm...

Hi all!

My vote on this would be the Ju88. It was deployed in an extraordinary range of roles, yet never became obsolecent like the Bf110. Furthermore, it was well-proven in each role:as a bomber from 1939 onwards, as a nightfighter, it saw service almost nightly from its introduction in 1944, and as an anti-shipping a/c, it served well throught the war, on all fronts.

On the other hand, the Mossie NF only entered service after the worst German night raids were over, and so was never proven as thouroughly as the 88. As GrG mentioned, the big-gun anti-shipping version operated in only small numbers. The only roles the Mossie was fully proven in were light bomber and recon machine. So while it can be argued that it was a better aircraft than the 88, it doesnt have such an extensive combat record behind it.

As for the P38, it really was too limited in its deployment. It was used more-or-less exclusively fas a fighter-bomber or photo recon machine. It never served as a bomber, tank-buster or night-fighter, making it hard to put in the same league as the Mossie or Ju88.

Just my 0.02 8)

The Mossie was used as a transport - they were sent to collect much-needed ball bearings from Sweden, which involved flying through German-controlled airspace, so speed and stealth were essential.

There was nothing wrong with the 'Tsetse' (the FB Mk.XVIII armed with the 57mm Molins gun). It worked exceptionally well. The problem was that it was designed for the anti-tank role but the RAF changed their mind about the requirement (shame really, it was accurate and powerful) so it was given to Coastal Command who used it in anti-shipping generally and anti-sub in particular. The gun was far more accurate than RPs but the plane was less flexible (you couldn't switch the payload) so the use was limited. They did shoot down some aircraft with the big gun, though - including at least one Ju 88! You can read about the Tsetse and see photos at: http://www.quarry.nildram.co.uk/Molins.htm

You are right that the one argument in the Ju 88's favour is that it was in use throughout the War, while the Mossie only came in a bit later (but still before the USA did!). However, in every respect the Mossie could do what the Ju 88 could do, only better (the possible exception being torpedo dropping - the Mossie was never considered for that AFAIK).

Don't get me wrong - I like the Ju 88, it was IMO one of Germany's best aircraft and would certainly be on my top ten list of WW2's best planes. But it was very much 'jack of all trades, master of none'. And it was obsolescent by the end of the war (see Ju 188, also being replaced in some roles e.g. night fighter), while the Mossie remained the cream of the crop for years afterwards.

The Mossie came in four main versions:

1. P.R. - almost uncatchable, and the wooden construction made it hard to pick up on radar (one of the first stealth planes!). Also had a very long range.

2. Night-fighter; the best in the war (only the He 219 compared, and that came in very late and was very specialised). It actually operated as an escort fighter to the Bomber Command attacks, its role being to pick off the German night-fighters - which it did very well.

3. Bomber: it suffered only one-tenth of the loss rate of the Lancaster, and in winter the plane was so fast it was capable of two trips to Berlin in one night. Later versions could carry one single 4,000 lb bomb.

4. Fighter-bomber (with 4x20mm and 4x.303 in a solid nose, plus rockets and bombs): highyl effective and widely used in the ground attack and anti-shipping role. The Tsetse was a version of this.

Then there were the special roles, e.g. the bomber used as a transport etc.

The Mossie would get my vote as the best all-round aircraft of the war, by a comfortable margin. The Ju 88 was very good - the Mossie was brilliant.

Tony Williams: Military gun and ammunition website and Discussion forum