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Hmm - perhaps DH makes a 2-engined fighter for 1938, and scale-up it into a bomber by 1941?Shame the DH.98 Mosquito hadn't started development then, this would have led to earlier deployment of the DH.103 Hornet.
DH were too busy from the beginning of 1936 designing the DH91 Albatross to meet an Air Ministry Spec for a transatlantic mail plane. Its wooden construction built on the experience obtained with the 1934 DH88 Comet Racer and introduced the balsa sandwich fuselage construction technique later used in the Mosquito. The Albatross flew in May 1937. There was also the DH93 Don multi-role trainer with a wooden stressed skin construction to meet a 1936 Air Ministry Spec which flew in June 1937. Both types entered limited production before WW2.Hmm - perhaps DH makes a 2-engined fighter for 1938, and scale-up it into a bomber by 1941?
no twin boom or push-pull etc.
Well, that restriction takes out just about every historical aircraft.. Start date of 1938 means the type has the 1st prototype flying in the 1st half of 1938, meaning the initial work on pper needs to begin many months in advance. High-lift devices are okay, just let's not overdo it.
as noted by GrauGeist, that takes out most of the rest.no twin boom or push-pull etc
And that takes out just about anything except the Fw 187.1 crew member, tail-dragger, engines are 'tractors' and the widely available types
And here we get into the problem.Guns - what was available, or what was on the market in the timely manner; guns upgrade is allowed.
Well, that restriction takes out just about every historical aircraft.
F5F didn't fly until April of 1940,
The Whirlwind didn't fly until the Sept of 1938.
And here we get into the problem.
The Fw 187 was designed for a pair of MG 17 machine guns.
If you don't upgrade the guns there is little point to the exercise.
You also have to be a bit creative with the engines. Production for the Germans using the Jumo 210 engines aren't going to work well so you are really designing an aircraft to use DB 601 engines and MG FF guns, neither of which are in actual production in early 1938 although in trials.
I think you are right, perhaps a pair of Madison 23mm guns plus 2 MGs?The Fokker G1 was designed for a number of different set ups which included cannons. I don't have access to my records at the moment, but I am sure that was the case
Say, British make a fighter with 300 sq ft wing, powered by two Kestrels, armed with 10-12 Brownings, later up-engined with Merlins. Or, Americans make a similarly sized fighter powered by two R-1830s, later up-engined with V-1710s, armed with two 37mm cannons, later with 6-8 .50s. Germans - something like Fw 187, with a dozen of MG 17s.
Always wondered if it could have handled 2 R-2800s...I think this might have made the cut.
View attachment 690048
Speed, decent range, excellent climb and lots of armament options. It did first fly in early 41' with design work starting in 39. If pursued, I think it could have been available in numbers by 1943
With 1820s it did pretty good, but it did kind of morph into the F7F which did have 2800s.Always wondered if it could have handled 2 R-2800s...
Upgraded to what?If we go back a few years, there were twins designed for competition, like de Havilland's DH.88, which was powered by two Gipsy Six R engines and achieved a top speed of 237mph. As noted, these could have been upgraded as time went by.
well. that could buy about 50% increase in gross weight.The DH.88 had a wing area just over 212 sq.ft. (with a span of 44 ft.) and the XP-50 had a wing area of 304 sq.ft. (with a span of 42 ft. for comparison.