TheMadPenguin
Senior Airman
Nope
The plane didn't shoot anything down, the pilot did. Pilot qualifies, plane, no.
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Nope
Nope
The plane didn't shoot anything down, the pilot did. Pilot qualifies, plane, no.
I'll post some pixs when the real "Rosie" gets finished up this spring and added to the collection. As for "best looking" do I really have to say it...?...Hi...I'm back....
Ok, this one might seem like a stretch (especially following that Bugatti. WOW!)...but its my sig and I gotta give it props.
To me, it "cute" (like how a VW Beetle used to be considered "cute") and it does have a certain Elegance of Function going on.....
...and so.....
....I give you.....
THE L-4 GRASSHOPPER
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He used the airplane to bring his weapon to bear. That would be like disqualifying a Bolton-Paul Defiant. It was still aerial combat.
(I'm kinda' having fun here. Don't take it personally.)
IMO, it is one of the best looking DB 600 series powered fighters.I'm surprised that no one has mentioned the real best looking plane of WW2
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IMO the Japanese made the best looking fighters. The Ki-61 is just so sleek
If you like the FW190, you might appreciate the aesthetics of the J-22 as well.....With a user name like Spitlead... I'm going to have to go with... wait for it... the Spitfire -most of the earlier Marks up to the X!V. Followed in a close second with the P-51D. Most of the German airplanes I find to be a bit clunky with lots of bits hanging out, except for the FW190 and Me262. I do like the Yak 9 (which looks kind of Spitfire-esk.
Better than getting shot in the back, like all those cowardly fighters with forward facing gunsThe B-P Defiant was for the air force that plans on running away from the enemy.
Better than getting shot in the back, like all those cowardly fighters with forward facing guns
Well they certainly do share a similar appearance. Maybe more like distant cousins. Fairly thick fuselage, tiny landing gear track so it looks a bit ungainly on the ground. As a side note, I have read that Kurt Tank who designed the FW190 apparently took some design queues from the Hughes H-1 racer he was so impressed with it.If you like the FW190, you might appreciate the aesthetics of the J-22 as well.....
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Just strap two 7.9mm guns on top of the L4 engine cowling, synchronize with the propeller, and away you go! Would make for some interesting dogfights....Sorry guys, I forgot...
...its best looking FIGHTER.
Yes, there are accounts of the L4 holding its own in a "dogfight", but you're right, its not a "fighter"....although that is an interesting notion.....What if the war (in the air) were fought with light sport planes? L4 vs. Fiesler-Storch vs. Ki-76 vs. Po-2....etc......
Anyway, L4 post deleted.
...carry on...
I was thinking send along an "observer" with a couple of tommy guns.Just strap two 7.9mm guns on top of the L4 engine cowling, synchronize with the propeller, and away you go! Would make for some interesting dogfights....
Yes, that is one of the first things I noticed about the J-22.Well they certainly do share a similar appearance. Maybe more like distant cousins. Fairly thick fuselage, tiny landing gear track so it looks a bit ungainly on the ground. As a side note, I have read that Kurt Tank who designed the FW190 apparently took some design queues from the Hughes H-1 racer he was so impressed with it.
I'm surprised that no one has mentioned the real best looking plane of WW2
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IMO the Japanese made the best looking fighters. The Ki-61 is just so sleek
Any other French contenders for best looking ww2 fighter?
For me the Dewoitine D.520 fails in the looks department. The cockpit is too far back.
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And the SNCAO 200 is fugly.
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The Ki-61 was based on the Heinkel He-100, of which numerous prototypes were build but it did not go into production. The He-100 did set a world speed record however, in 1938. Several He-100Ds were sold to Japan, where they influenced the design of the Kawasaki Ki-61 II Hein, or Tony.
Do you have a source for that? The Ki61 was based on a specification released towards the end of 1939 for the IJAAF. The 3 He100s only arrived in Japan the following May and it was the IJN that was most interested in it for use as a land-based interceptor. Hitachi won a contract to build He100s for the Navy but it was never executed.
Apart from the licence-built engine, the Ki61 appears to have been an entirely Japanese design.