Best Fighter

[Hot Space]

See................told you the Brit's are the best

Hot Space

 

[Crazy]

Now, I wouldn't go THAT far

 

[Hot Space]

Ok, who's the best at doing EVERYTHING in the world............ok, so it's other countries. But who invented the wheel? That's it, I don't either

Ah, but we are good at...................................a.........oh, no we're not

Hot Space

 

[Crazy]

You guys seriously advanced the ship field. Had the most powerful navy in the world for a time.

But remember, it was in the U.S, where powered flight was born

 

[Hot Space]

Not really.

They say it was a French man in 1898

I do think otherwise though

Hot Space

 

[Crazy]

Who are they?

You need to get out more, Space ol'carp

 

[Hot Space]

SUSAN? BETTY? WHERE HAVE YOU'VE BEEN ALL MY LIFE

Hot Space

 

[Archer]

The Brits are good at flying the Corsair off carriers, beat the US to use carrier-based Corsairs anyways.

 

[Hot Space]

The Royal Navy tought the US Navy how it was done.

Hot Space

 

[Viper]

are you sure about that

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

well, we do pride ourselfs on our naval heratige

 

[Hot Space]

are you sure about that

Sorry, but it is true, M8

The U.S Navy were the 1st operator of the F4U, but they found when the Corsair landed on the Deck it would bounce over the wire. The U.S Navy at the time were happy with the F6F so they gave all their F4U's to the U.S Marine Crops who use them as Land Based Fighters.

The Royal Navy knew about the bounce of the F4U but were in need of a Top Class Fighter and to cut a long story short, the Royal Navy and Vought improved the F4U so it was safe to land on Carriers. The U.S Navy impressed with this started putting the F4U's back into Navy service.

Hot Space

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

this aint the pic i chose for me signature!

 

[Archer]

To expand on what Hot Space said, one major concern other than the bounce on landing was forward visibility in the birdcage Corsairs. The Brits got around this by having the Corsairs come in for landing from the side of the carrier and they only straightened out to land at the last moment so they had better visibility on their approach. Also, the FAA carriers hangar decks were slightly lower than the American's, so eight inches was cut off each wing tip (clipped wings). Inadvertantly this also reduced the bounce on landing somewhat.

I'm not 100% sure, but I'm pretty sure that vast majority of the design changes to the Corsair to make it better suited to carrier ops was by VF-17 Jolly Rogers and a Vought representative. They flew and were carrier-qualified in F4U-1 (birdcage) Corsairs. VF-17 and the representative came up with the small spoiler on the right (I think) wing so that the left wing wouldn't drop suddenly at low airspeeds (ie carrier landings), the first bomb racks for Corsairs if I'm not mistaken, an improved tailhook, and I think there were some other minor changes. VF-17 was ripping off tailhooks on carrier landings when the hooks got caught on the deck and when the hook broke it flew over the stern of the carrier, and in the ensuing wreckage no one realized the hook wasn't there. The reason it was realized that the tailhook was being torn off the Corsairs was that a greenshirt - who I think were the ones to get the wire off the tailhook - saw the hook going flying over the stern.

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

awwww, poor tail hook, never even saw it coming, and think of the little baby tailhooks that lost their father

 

[Birdmanwest]

Well it depends on the technological situation of those certain times.
For 1930's the Bf109. For beggining of war, Focke wulf 190. And later on the Mustang seems to have exceeded above those.

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

P-51 was ok, just one problem, it wasn't brittish

 

[cheddar cheese]

lanc, stop being predjudiced against other countries planes, all the best planes arent british y'know credits due where credits due...

 

[Hot Space]

P-51 was ok, just one problem, it wasn't brittish

It was Designed for the British using Brit Spec's and later it had a Brit Engine, but it was the American's that made the P-51 what it was 8)

Hot Space

 

[Archer]

P-51 isn't a carrier plane either...