kool kitty89
Senior Master Sergeant
I agree that the P-72 would have been a beter choice for a high performance escort. Speed almost up to P-80 standards, climb-rate over 5000 ft/min, 42,000 ft, longer range (at least 1200 miles combat), verry tough, strong armament, few development problems since based on well prooven P-47, more reliable, little or no need for conversion treining (especially for former P-47 pilots). Handeling was supposedly good especially compared to the P-47. It may have had a pressurizd cockpit as well. Had the initial production order for 100 P-72s not been canceled thy could have been in production by mid '44 and service by the end of the year.
It would have been the best intrim measure until the P-80 was ready (as Bell didn't seem to be making any apreaciable improvements on the P-59, unlike the improvements being made on the Meteor) and would have been excelent for ground support in Korea. Though if the Airacomet had seen the same rapaid improvements as the Meteor, it woul have been a good contender.(who knows what the P-59 would have been like with engens like the Derwent V, or even just the 2400 lbf of the Derwent IV, though the only US engine like this would have been the J36 copy of the Goblin with 2,700 lbf but its development was running behind)
With the P-80A's standard load I think it had better climb thn the 262 though...
And I found this in another discussion:
Well here's what Chuck Yeager said in his book, " I was among the first Mustang pilot's to shoot one down in the War, so I was facinated to discover that the 262 and the Shooting Star performed identically-the same range, top speed, acceleration, and rate of climb " from the book" Yeager ".
Of cours the range is without droptanks.
It would have been the best intrim measure until the P-80 was ready (as Bell didn't seem to be making any apreaciable improvements on the P-59, unlike the improvements being made on the Meteor) and would have been excelent for ground support in Korea. Though if the Airacomet had seen the same rapaid improvements as the Meteor, it woul have been a good contender.(who knows what the P-59 would have been like with engens like the Derwent V, or even just the 2400 lbf of the Derwent IV, though the only US engine like this would have been the J36 copy of the Goblin with 2,700 lbf but its development was running behind)
With the P-80A's standard load I think it had better climb thn the 262 though...
And I found this in another discussion:
Well here's what Chuck Yeager said in his book, " I was among the first Mustang pilot's to shoot one down in the War, so I was facinated to discover that the 262 and the Shooting Star performed identically-the same range, top speed, acceleration, and rate of climb " from the book" Yeager ".
Of cours the range is without droptanks.
but this came at a price)
