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I would use my 20/20 hindsight and have all Muslang MkI Mk II/ P-51A that were taken by the USA after Pearl Harbour to be shipped to UK for fitting with two stage Merlins when avalable, cancel the A 36 and do the same until two stage Merlin production starts at Packard. Along with the Merlin, fit a Malcolm hood as was done to many P-51Bs. Job done.Now this is a big "what if". What if the Mustang was envisioned as a Merlin powered general purpose fighter and interceptor from the beginning? This would take some changes to the real world timeline (like North American being aware of the two-stage Merlin earlier, etc), but I do wonder what thoughts and speculations would be.
Now the parameters:
-Built to British or optimum mix of British and American loading standards
-Intended to be engineered to take a two stage Merlin from the start
-Answer to British (and later USAAF) criticism of the hinged and framed canopy (my solution would be a Typhoon type bubble canopy or a two-piece canopy similar to the Yakovlev fighters or the Lavochkin La-5/7, maybe even La-9 or -11)
-Carry suitable armament for a 1942-era interceptor
-Be open for future development
So in this alternate time line, what would it look like, how would it perform, and how favorable would it be to go on to fufil the role for bomber escort later on?
Held together with blueberry jam and Devonshire clotted cream. Then instead of scrapping it, you eat it with a nice cup of tea.until you get proper scones delivered.And build them out of birch, spruce and balsa.
The first Typhoons had a car-door style cockpit entry (like a P-39) with a razorback style fuselage.Answer to British (and later USAAF) criticism of the hinged and framed canopy (my solution would be a Typhoon type bubble canopy or a two-piece canopy similar to the Yakovlev fighters or the Lavochkin La-5/7, maybe even La-9 or -11)
Or the Westland Whirlwind in 1940.The first Typhoons had a car-door style cockpit entry (like a P-39) with a razorback style fuselage.
Summer of '41 saw the Typhoon's aft cockpit sheet metal replaced with a framed canopy and in 1942, more modifications were made to the canopy but it wasn't until 1943, that the afore-mentioned bubble canopy was fitted.
The La-5 (first flown 1942) had a framed canopy/turtleneck (as did the La-7, La-9 and La-11).
The Fw190 had a much better canopy for the proposed timeline, though foreward visibility was somewhat limited by the cowling.
Perhaps the Miles M.20 (1940), KI-43 (1939) or A6M (1939) would be better sources?
Already in 1938...Or the Westland Whirlwind in 1940.
Excellent example.Or the Westland Whirlwind in 1940.
The Mustang was a big airplane, so perhaps it could have accepted a Griffon engine better than a Spitfire?Now this is a big "what if". What if the Mustang was envisioned as a Merlin powered general purpose fighter and interceptor from the beginning? This would take some changes to the real world timeline (like North American being aware of the two-stage Merlin earlier, etc), but I do wonder what thoughts and speculations would be.
Now the parameters:
-Built to British or optimum mix of British and American loading standards
-Intended to be engineered to take a two stage Merlin from the start
-Answer to British (and later USAAF) criticism of the hinged and framed canopy (my solution would be a Typhoon type bubble canopy or a two-piece canopy similar to the Yakovlev fighters or the Lavochkin La-5/7, maybe even La-9 or -11)
-Carry suitable armament for a 1942-era interceptor
-Be open for future development
So in this alternate time line, what would it look like, how would it perform, and how favorable would it be to go on to fufil the role for bomber escort later on?
Now what do you use instead of those planes while you wait for the Merlins? Or do you swipe the Merlins from the MK VIII and MK IX Spitfires made in 1942 and early 1943?I would use my 20/20 hindsight and have all Muslang MkI Mk II/ P-51A that were taken by the USA after Pearl Harbour to be shipped to UK for fitting with two stage Merlins when avalable, cancel the A 36 and do the same until two stage Merlin production starts at Packard.
No need for a What If.The Mustang was a big airplane, so perhaps it could have accepted a Griffon engine better than a Spitfire?
The Griffon Spitfires needed external bumps and enlarged tail surfaces to squeeze in the big engine and manage it's increased torque, so could a Mustang have accepted it more gracefully?
A lightened Mustang fitted with a Griffon 61 could have been a fearsome beast. Since this is What-If anyway, throw a couple Mk.V Hispano's in each wing
(I realize that neither the 60 series Griffon, nor the Mk.V Hispano were available in 1942)
I was just responding to the "what if". The Two stage Merlin Mk IX was first tested in April 1942. Any Mustang Mk I or II taken after Pearl Harbour by the USA would have arrived in UK around Feb March 1942, so build Mustang XX instead of Spitfire Mk IX. Obviously it means much fewer Mk IX spitfires and Allison Mustangs/ A 36 but the RAF USAAF would have had a long range fighter earlier.Now what do you use instead of those planes while you wait for the Merlins? Or do you swipe the Merlins from the MK VIII and MK IX Spitfires made in 1942 and early 1943?
Yeah the Mustangs may have better than the Spitfires but you are swapping Mustang XXs for Spitfire MK Vs. I don't think your overall power/strength is going to come out ahead.
Packard made 56 two stage engines in June of 1943, 184 in July, 371 in Aug and then it was off to the races.
The last A-36 came off the line in March of 1943. The first combat operation of the A-36 was June 6th 1943. A-36s fly 1000 sorties in the first 35 days after that.
At some point in July 1943 North American had only received 173 Packard Merlins while NA had 534 P-51B airframes completed.
Because the British Tanks were awful. The best of the early British Tanks, the Churchill, still had lousy reliability at this point. The Matilda and the Cruisers did not impress at Aberdeen Proving Grounds, while the US saw many good points of the two Soviet tanks, the KV and T-34 they also testedThe British had tried to get British tanks produced in the US and that went nowhere. Same for artillery production.
Duramold, birch and phenolic resin, pioneered by Fairchild before the WarAnd build them out of birch, spruce and balsa.
The British were asking in 1940-41. The best the Americans would do was change the turret on the M3 Medium to put the radio in the turret instead of the hull. The M3 Stuart light tank was pretty much take or leave it. The Soviet tanks didn't show up until much later.Because the British Tanks were awful. The best of the early British Tanks, the Churchill, still had lousy reliability at this point. The Matilda and the Cruisers did not impress at Aberdeen Proving Grounds, while the US saw many good points of the two Soviet tanks, the KV and T-34 they also tested
The Book _ Business of Tanks_ goes into that British Tank Mission
The 25 pdr really did nothing better that the 105mm was already doing. But did adopt the 6 pdr