Colin1
Senior Master Sergeant
For me
1. Spitfire Mk VIII: arguably regarded as the nicest variants of all to fly.
2. Sea Fury: okay, strictly speaking, it wasn't WWII but I'd have one anyway just for the sheer hotroddy-ness of it.
3. P47-D: if you don't want one of these, you're not really a man... No seriously, there's just something about the chunky muscularity of the Jug that never fails to stir the imagination, esp when it's sitting at dispersal all gunned up.
4. Fw190A: to fly the RAF's wake-up call and know why.
5. Me262A-1A: to fly the USAAF's wake-up call and know why.
6. Do335: largely unsung and for me, desirable owing to it's unusual configuration; a performer in the same class as the P47-M.
7. Me163: Eight minutes but what a ride, as well as seeing what it's like to fly a firework with guns.
8. A6M: early version, to see what it's like to fly a kite with guns.
9. Dewoitine D520: obviously nipped in the bud somewhat early in its development, nevertheless an interesting French design, seemingly a match for the Bf109E, that merits it a place in the collection.
10. P51-D: a great fighter from a company with no real experience of designing fighters. It incorporated alot of novel design features, some of which worked (eg Meredith Effect) and some of which were somewhat overblown (eg Laminar Flow).
It's got to be in there simply for being able to deliver a first-rate fighter to the Reich's front door and take him on, on more or less equal terms. Range and fightability; two terms in WWII fighter design engineering trade-off that seldom went together for the same aircraft.
1. Spitfire Mk VIII: arguably regarded as the nicest variants of all to fly.
2. Sea Fury: okay, strictly speaking, it wasn't WWII but I'd have one anyway just for the sheer hotroddy-ness of it.
3. P47-D: if you don't want one of these, you're not really a man... No seriously, there's just something about the chunky muscularity of the Jug that never fails to stir the imagination, esp when it's sitting at dispersal all gunned up.
4. Fw190A: to fly the RAF's wake-up call and know why.
5. Me262A-1A: to fly the USAAF's wake-up call and know why.
6. Do335: largely unsung and for me, desirable owing to it's unusual configuration; a performer in the same class as the P47-M.
7. Me163: Eight minutes but what a ride, as well as seeing what it's like to fly a firework with guns.
8. A6M: early version, to see what it's like to fly a kite with guns.
9. Dewoitine D520: obviously nipped in the bud somewhat early in its development, nevertheless an interesting French design, seemingly a match for the Bf109E, that merits it a place in the collection.
10. P51-D: a great fighter from a company with no real experience of designing fighters. It incorporated alot of novel design features, some of which worked (eg Meredith Effect) and some of which were somewhat overblown (eg Laminar Flow).
It's got to be in there simply for being able to deliver a first-rate fighter to the Reich's front door and take him on, on more or less equal terms. Range and fightability; two terms in WWII fighter design engineering trade-off that seldom went together for the same aircraft.
