eBay: Curtiss P-40

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Cutella Airfield, south of Vasto, Abruzzo's Region, Italy, 1944.
An RAF Wing Commander inspects a 1,000-lb GP bomb slung beneath the fuselage of a Curtiss Kittyhawk Mark IV of No. 450 Squadron RAAF in a dispersal.

Two 500-lb GP bombs are also slung from the wing loading points. The Kittyhawk was widely employed during the Campaign of Italy as fighter-bomber with good results.

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The venerable (and much maligned) P-40 kitted out with 2,000 pounds of bombs, not bad, must have used a lot of runway though.
 
Peter Gunn said:
The venerable (and much maligned) P-40 kitted out with 2,000 pounds of bombs, not bad, must have used a lot of runway though.
Click to expand...
When RAF Fighter Command made plans to create the 2nd TAF to support the ground forces for the coming invasion of France and realized that the Spit IX was a very poor fighter bomber and the Typhoon's pilots were more than a little concerned about crossing the Channel behind that mighty Napier Sabre engine, you have to wonder if anyone asked, "How many Kittyhawks can we come up with by early 1944?"

Note they did not replace the Kittyhawks in Northern Italy with either Spits or Tiffies nor ship any of their later fighters to SWPA to replace the Kittyhawks of the Aussies or Kiwis. They did replace the Hurris in the CBI with T-bolts.
 
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MIflyer said:
Note they did not replace the Kittyhawks in Northern Italy with either Spits or Tiffies nor ship any of their later fighters to SWPA to replace the Kittyhawks of the Aussies or Kiwis. They did replace the Hurris in the CBI with T-bolts.
Click to expand...

Ok, not sure what your point is here, but the reason why the P-40 wasn't replaced in those theatres is because the Brits needed MORE aircraft than what it could supply, so US designs, including P-40s remained in RAF and Allied service rather than replacing them with British built aircraft. Perhaps the point should be re-emphasised as being that British designs were better off at home because it was easier to supply them with parts, particularly the Typhoon and its recalcitrant and maintenance-intensive Sabre. Also, it's worth mentioning that the P-40 was not considered suitable for European operations by the RAF. Bear in mind that although Hurricanes remained in service in the Far East through to the last year of the war until replaced by P-47s and Spitfires, the type had been replaced by Typhoons at home sooner than it was in the Far East.
 
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