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Kool Kitty, the 5th AF P38's often flew 3000 mile missions (1500 RT).
The longest fighter mission of the war was from the PI against Singapore, nearly 1600 miles one way.
Without ammo, and no fuel allowances for combat power, the P38L's could have reached 3300 miles with no problem at all.
Sounds like 3300 would have been easy for ferry based on a combat mission of 3200
In college, I had a fellow geology major who was a former Marine pilot. This was in the 1956-58 time frame and he related stories about flying 8 hour low altitude practise missions with a simulated nuke in an AD. That had to be exhausting.
Bill, I have always wondered about how much physical and mental stamina it took for the pilots of those long legged Mustangs to fly those escort missions. Just to think of sitting in that cockpit with the noise and vibration, maybe too hot or maybe too cold, on oxygen, constantly checking everything, navigating, by yourself, maybe radio silence, over enemy territory, combat, maybe damage, watching fuel, weather, imagination running wild. My hat is off to those young men.
And the combat missions in the P-38 exceeding 1,500 mi radius could be over 12 hours! But at least in the pacific you wouldn't have to deal with cold and if it was too hot you could cruise at a higher altitude...
I suspect that 90% of the mission is at one altitude, boost and rpm until they get to a R/V to pick up the bombers, then move to bomber altitude and adjust cruise settings for maximum endurance rather than maximum range - use less fuel, still faster than bombers.
Escort over target and back to Break Escort point and revert to best altitude, cruise settings for maximum range
The P-47 would be on the opposite side for comfort, often being called an "arm chair fighter" the cockpit was comfortable, the seat was padded, and it was well heated and even had air conditioning iirc.
Besides the info from: WWII Aircraft Performance
There was some here: P-47 Thunderbolt: Aviation Darwinism - The Cradle of Aviation Museum - The Cradle of Aviation Museum
It was a proven fact that the Corsiar was superior to the Mustang..Looking back to the 70's during the Soccor Wars in South America...Not sure of the level of pilot training though...
The actual *unrefueled* distance of that Singapore mission though was around 830 statute miles one way, from Labuan Island off Borneo, by then (August '45) in Australian hands, to Singapore. The a/c were based in the Philippines but staged through that forward base. The late '44 P-38 missions escorting B-24's from Morotai in NEI against oil facilities at Balikpapan in Borneo were around the same one way distance, P-38 missions from Middleburg Island in NEI to Makassar on Celebes were almost 900 miles, probably longest unrefueled radius missions. Longer missions are mentioned (ca. 1000 radius), but sometimes what is quoted is the actual flight distance covered by the a/c, not two times the as-the-crow-flies radius to the target. Of course the planes would end up flying at least some extra miles, that's one reason practical straight line air mile combat radius was much less than 1/2 the ferry range. P-51's and P-47N's in late Pac War also flew very long though AFAIK not quite as long missions, for example P-47N's from Ie Shima to the Seoul area, that's around 780 miles one way, and the 348th FG is said to have flown 1600 mile round trip missions from Clark Field to China and Indochina in early 1945 when it converted to P-51D's (per Hess "Pacific Sweep").Kool Kitty, the 5th AF P38's often flew 3000 mile missions (1500 RT).
The longest fighter mission of the war was from the PI against Singapore, nearly 1600 miles one way.
Without ammo, and no fuel allowances for combat power, the P38L's could have reached 3300 miles with no problem at all.
Try it in an unpressurized 210 non-stop MSP - PWM, 20-25K altitude at night in winter, IMC most of the way, nosebags all the way, repeatedly; I can sympathize with those escort pilots.I made some long rides in an A-36 (Bonanza) from Dallas to Raliegh/Durham in a comfortable seat with auto pilot, etc - and I hated it.
Lol = Great illustration Wes, but you forgot the dingy pack and parachute to add to the comfort.Try it in an unpressurized 210 non-stop MSP - PWM, 20-25K altitude at night in winter, IMC most of the way, nosebags all the way, repeatedly; I can sympathize with those escort pilots.
Cheers,
Wes
It's a little more complicated than that. With supercharged, piston-engined aircraft superiority could change markedly with altitude. From what I've read - and I won't say it's definitive -- is that the Merlin-engined P-51 and Corsair were approximately equal below 8,000 ft, the Corsair was generally superior from 8,000 to 25,000 ft and the P-51 superior from 25,000 ft up.It was a proven fact that the Corsiar was superior to the Mustang..Looking back to the 70's during the Soccor Wars in South America...Not sure of the level of pilot training though...
Good point! Our flotation gear was under our seats instead of under our butts, but those Cessna pilot seats were surely designed by the Spanish Inquisition! A Switlik seat pack would just have to be softer! And a WWII style full face integral mike O2 mask more comfortable than a Cessna nosebag. And with an aircooled engine, cabin heat ain't what it's cracked up to be. The radar set, however, was awesome.Lol = Great illustration Wes, but you forgot the dingy pack and parachute to add to the comfort.