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Overweight or not, it was a good performer. And just how effective is rear defense in a night fighter, anyhow? If you're being stalked by a Mosquito intruder, your "tail gunner" isn't going to see him until he opens fire, at which point your gunner is toast. And no other intruder is going to catch you. And a head-on view of a plywood Mosquito is going to paint a mighty small radar return, IF you happen to be one of the very few to have tailcone radar installed. It was in its infancy, and not completely sorted yet. Radar is really better than a gunner. It doesn't light up the sky and bring everybody's eyes on you like a gunner would. If you get a tail warning, just duck out of the way and disappear from your pursuer's scope. Chances are he's trying to home on the emissions of your radar, but has a relatively narrow cone of sensitivity, so if you make a sharp change of direction and get outside the cone, he's got 1 chance in 4 (up, down, left, right) of guessing correctly and re-acquiring you. You have 3 chances in 4 of making a clean getaway. Without the weight and drag of a gunner your chances are better yet.it looked good but was overweight and lacked rear defense.
I always thought that the HE219 won the "How far forward can we get the Pilot" Competition
I am slightly embarrassed about making this post, but I do think this looks bad ass, kind of.View attachment 574048
Could you ask for better visibility? Bet it feels like sitting on the business end of a high dive board. About like the front seat of a Schleicher ASK21 or any other glass slipper. The world yawns before you from right in front of your toes.I always thought that the HE219 won the "How far forward can we get the Pilot" Competition
I never thought "badassness" equaled Ugly As Sin. Somehow the Humpback Whale just isn't high in my "Badass Book".Savoia-Marchetti SM79 Sparviero
That's no airplane, that's a torpedo with fins on it!my vote would have to be the Flying Prostitute herself, the B-26, so called because she seemed to have no visible means of support