eBay: Republic P-47 Thunderbolt

[Snautzer01]

Vintage Photo WWII FIGHTER PILOT SITS ON FIGHTER PLANE NOSE ART SNOW WHITE | eBay

 

[Wurger]

 

[Snautzer01]

ORIGINAL WW2 US AAF P47 THUNDERBOLT AIRPLANE PHOTO TAKEN BY GI | eBay

 

[Snautzer01]

Langley Test Pilots with P-47 Thunderbolt Fighter 13"x 19" WWII Photo Poster 402 | eBay

 

[Wurger]

 

[Snautzer01]

**WWII photo- P 47 Thunderbolt Fighter plane Nose Art & D DAY Stripes- ROSEMARY* | eBay

 

[Snautzer01]

**WWII photo- P 47 Thunderbolt Fighter plane w/ CHECKERED NOSE** | eBay

 

[Gnomey]

Good shots!

 

[michael rauls]

Langley Test Pilots with P-47 Thunderbolt Fighter 13"x 19" WWII Photo Poster 402 | eBay

View attachment 554264

Great shot. Thought the guy on the far left looked like Gabby Gabreski at first glance.

 

[fubar57]

6-gun Thunderbolt?

 

[Wurger]

Why not? Possible it could be a kite used for training. Six MGs would be enough in the case. Also one could have been dismounted because of repairing, maintenance etc...

 

[fubar57]

I did find another 6-gun Jug...

USAF PHOTO
​

Republic P-47D-2-RE Thunderbolt:
8009 (MSN 157) National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics (NACA); Aircraft Engine Research Laboratory,
Lewis Field, Cleveland, OH; Engine & Test Branch, Wright Field, Dayton, OH; Destroyed 5Mar45 at
Wright Field, OH. Lockheed C-60A Lodestar 42-55962 was taking off from Wright Field on a test flight when the
pilot lost control of the airplane. It crashed into a hangar, killing five workers. A fire erupted, destroying seven planes
inside, including P-47D 42-8009

 

[michael rauls]

I've read a couple of times, I think twice, over the years that there was a very limited production block of p47s made with 6×50s. Can't remember how many but I think it was just a few hundred.
Why they were configured this way or where they ended up was not mentioned in the two articles as best I can remember.

 

[Wurger]

It seems to be true as the one seems to have the six MGs per a wing..

However even those with the 8 MGs looked like having 6 ones. It seems that the barrel of the most outer MG protruded not too much from the leading edge. Being protected with a piece of fabric or self-adhesive tape might have been unnoticed giving the impression of the lack of the gun there. See also the post #166 and #167 above.

 

[michael rauls]

Two of those 6×50 Jugs look like field mods( perhaps to save wieght or extended firing time for the remaining guns) but the other does apear to be factory made that way.
I got curious and did an internet search on p47 armament but the closest thing I found to mention of 6 gun p47s was one site that said" the p47 typicaly was armed with 8×50 caliber machine guns". Using the word" typically" would seem to denote that sometimes this was not the case but other than that I could find nothing.
The articles I read a few years back seem to be gone.

 

[michael rauls]

That top picture of Gabby is one of my favorite of the war by the way

 

[Wurger]

Looking at Geo's posted pics I would say both were armed with the 8x50 caliber MGs. The enlarged images seem to present four MGs per a wing . The razorback has the barrels protected and therefore the outer one isn't seen. The pic posted by Snautzer01 was taken form the front and no wonder the barrel also can't be noticed although I would say it is there.

What is more the outher barrel can't be noticed even if a pic is taken from above.

the pic source: National Museum of the USAF

 

[fubar57]

The enlargement I posted looks like clear covers over the opening; maybe over a camera as the aircraft was used for testing. The lower photo of Gabreski's Jug show the outer barrel protruding ever so slightly

 

[Wurger]

Well, the camera must have been installed on the straboard wing too as the leading edge there looks the same. Although both resized shots are a little bit blurry I would say there is the protection for the barrels stuck.

 

[michael rauls]

Well, the camera must have been installed on the straboard wing too as the leading edge there looks the same. Although both resized shots are a little bit blurry I would say there is the protection for the barrels stuck.

View attachment 554969

I thought the first pic you posted looked like it was made that way( I can't see anything covering the nub where that most outboard 50 would be or the nub itself) but it is a little fuzzy.