They should've concentrated on Continental making R-2800s or R-2600s...
Or at least have them design a 35-40L V12.
P-400 Airacobra In North Africa
- Thread starter MIflyer
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Or at least have them design a 35-40L V12.
It had a turbocharger, but the core engine had originally featured a 2-stage supercharger plus whatever else was hung on it, and the Army cut that to 1-stage plus whatever. The engine ran fine though, despite persistent rumors at the time that have sifted down the years. On 19 January 1944, when XP-67 had barely begun its flight testing, the Army program coordinator for XP-67 sent an Inter-Office Memorandum to the Chief of Aircraft Projects at Wright Field noting that as a result of extensive engine testing in the full-scale nacelle fixture "it is the opinion of this office that the engine has performed satisfactorily. This opinion is borne out by tunnel tests of the full-scale nacelle at Wright Field, during which engine difficulties were practically non-existant [sic] and the engine delivered its rated 1600 hp for protracted periods of time." A few months later, it demonstrated 50 hours running at 2,000hp with water injection at war emergency rating. And with the extremely high-octane 150 grade fuel that was starting to come into service, it was shown that the engine could provide an even higher war emergency rating of 2,100hp without the use of water injection. You can read my XP-67 book if you want to know more...
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- #63
MIflyer
Captain
Yes, note that the R-3350 was single stage also, but was intended for use in the B-29, where it was fed by not just one but TWO GE turbosuperchargers..
Continental IV-1430 shown- and run - at Sun and Fun in 2006. It was LOUD!!!!!
Continental IV-1430 shown- and run - at Sun and Fun in 2006. It was LOUD!!!!!
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- Thread starter
- #64
MIflyer
Captain
Here are some more P-400 photos on Guadalcanal that I have never seen before. From Replica In Scale, a terrific website!
Peter Gunn
Master Sergeant
Speaking of the P-39/400, I've said it before, she looks great, like a real fighter...
But I'm reminded of an old joke from my college days.
Two buddies die in a car wreck, one heads north to heaven the other, well, not so much.
As the one guy is being given the tour of heaven he looks down and sees his buddy in hell with a gorgeous, voluptuous blonde on one knee and a huge bottle of whiskey on the other. After noting to St. Peter that heaven looks rather boring compared to what his friend is "suffering" down in hell he asks St. Peter, "Lord, why does my old friend look like he's having a much better time?"
The Lord answered "Well my son, all is not as it seems, the whiskey bottle has a hole in the bottom and the blonde doesn't".
The P-39 Ladies and Gentlemen... a real looker but...
But I'm reminded of an old joke from my college days.
Two buddies die in a car wreck, one heads north to heaven the other, well, not so much.
As the one guy is being given the tour of heaven he looks down and sees his buddy in hell with a gorgeous, voluptuous blonde on one knee and a huge bottle of whiskey on the other. After noting to St. Peter that heaven looks rather boring compared to what his friend is "suffering" down in hell he asks St. Peter, "Lord, why does my old friend look like he's having a much better time?"
The Lord answered "Well my son, all is not as it seems, the whiskey bottle has a hole in the bottom and the blonde doesn't".
The P-39 Ladies and Gentlemen... a real looker but...
GrauGeist
Generalfeldmarschall zur Luftschiff Abteilung
Just about all of Bell's aircraft were good looking - well, except for the XP-77.
But like at a car show, there are those who "run what they brung" and those trailer queens that are "all show and no go".
But like at a car show, there are those who "run what they brung" and those trailer queens that are "all show and no go".
glennasher
Senior Airman
You guys are a little early on this, TOMORROW is Groundhog Day..............................................
XP-59 and XP-83 were kind of tubby though. P-39 was the apex of "pretty" at Bell, I think. And the Russians got excellent use out of them, too.
Wild_Bill_Kelso
Senior Master Sergeant
- 3,231
- Mar 18, 2022
If your idea of pretty is a Flash Gordon or Buck Rogers cartoon, hard to beat the "Airacuda" though it seems to have been quite the s**t show as a design...
SaparotRob
Unter Gemeine Geschwader Murmeltier XIII
You had me at Flash Gordon.
Shortround6
Lieutenant General
Dr. Zarkov
Your ship is ready.
Anybody can put the propellers on backwards. Using a giant unicycle as the landing gear with training wheels in the rudders takes genius!
Greg Boeser
1st Lieutenant
It's got to be French. No civilized people would ever create such an abomination.
I see what you did there…
Shortround6
Lieutenant General
Warning.......Warning...........Warning
It doesn't look any better from the other end.
Yes that is a 20mm Hispano cannon.
It doesn't look any better from the other end.
Yes that is a 20mm Hispano cannon.
SaparotRob
Unter Gemeine Geschwader Murmeltier XIII
To me, it looks like a Ventura running with its tail between its legs.
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The first plane conceived after the nationalizations by the Popular Front government from a Lioré et Olivier Leo 50 project, to counter the Me 110, or a sort of French Beaufighter, with a three men crew night fighter variant scheduled. Wings were wood and plywood.
Believe it or not, its aesthetics notwithstanding, the Sud-Est SE-100 was a promising design, with a strong punch : five 20 mm guns (including an odd one in the tail) for the first prototype, and six 20 mm for the never finished second prototype (dismantled by the Germans). Another promising '' what if '' if time had allowed its development and production.
And if you plan to buid a model :
Believe it or not, its aesthetics notwithstanding, the Sud-Est SE-100 was a promising design, with a strong punch : five 20 mm guns (including an odd one in the tail) for the first prototype, and six 20 mm for the never finished second prototype (dismantled by the Germans). Another promising '' what if '' if time had allowed its development and production.
And if you plan to buid a model :
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Wild_Bill_Kelso
Senior Master Sergeant
- 3,231
- Mar 18, 2022
Wow, indeed quite good performance from the prototype, certainly more promising than the poor Potez 631. I wonder if they could have made it work.
en.wikipedia.org
Another sad "What If" for France. Sigh... if only they had another 6 months or so, the air war anyway would have been far more interesting.
SNCASE SE.100 - Wikipedia
Another sad "What If" for France. Sigh... if only they had another 6 months or so, the air war anyway would have been far more interesting.
Shortround6
Lieutenant General
It what happens when you use 1080hp engines instead of 700hp engines.
Depends on if.
1. The thing actually was as fast as claimed. Compare to the Gloster F.9/37 and the Gloster figures are in doubt.
2. The pilots could have actually landed it repeatedly on rough fields and/or poor conditions without large operational losses.
I have the official aircraft records from the USAF Historical Research Agency (Maxwell AFB). The attached is a summary of the info related to P-400's flown by the 67th FS at New Caledonia and Guadalcanal. I have the complete listing for all P-400's, but it is too large to email. If anyone has a few that they would like looked up, just let me know and I can extract those. You may contact me directly at [email protected] I also have a lot of info about the 67th FS in 1942. The USAFHRA has all the aircraft records, and can send you whatever groups of serial numbers you need.
