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Admiral Beez
Major
Alright folks, do we need a cognition and literacy test before we post?
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Alright folks, do we need a cognition and literacy test before we post?Yes, the La-5F....Ten built,
Which is the worst mass produced (>500 units), monoplane, single-engine, single-seat, retractable undercarriage fighter of WW2?
I'll have to dig out my Bloody Shambles, but IIRC even the Buffalo had good kill ratios against the Oscar. Of course a few dozen Bufffaloes would be overwhelmed by the number of Oscars. I suppose any aircraft in this category is deadly.And yet, the Ki-43 was deadly as hell
Alright folks, do we need a cognition and literacy test before we post?
Look there were about 10k La-5's built.Alright folks, do we need a cognition and literacy test before we post?
Ok, let's try this one:
Brewster F3A-1 (Brewster built Corsair)
so poorly built that it was redlined for speed and prohibited from acrobatics. 700 built. Not a bad design but a bad manufacturer.
So what went wrong?"Brewster production and engineering test pilot Ralph O. Romaine said, "From the feedback we received from the Aircraft Delivery Units of the US Navy,the Brewster Corsairs were considered of very high quality and trouble-free."
That is a good question and I have been trying to locate better information that good ole' wikipedia. What I find is conflicting, but I will keep looking.So what went wrong?
Nothing. There weren't enough of them. Five squadrons of Buffaloes, with a stark deficit of trained and experienced pilots operating from unprepared and poorly defended airstrips were tasked to defend a territory larger than the entire UK (defended by ~100 fighter squadrons in Dec 1941) against a much larger force of the IJAF's best aircraft and experienced aircrew.So what went wrong?
Nothing. There weren't enough of them. Five squadrons of Buffaloes, with a stark deficit of trained and experienced pilots operating from unprepared and poorly defended airstrips were tasked to defend a territory larger than the entire UK (defended by ~100 fighter squadrons in Dec 1941) against a much larger force of the IJAF's best aircraft and experienced aircrew.
Replace those Buffaloes with five squadrons of the latest Spitfire variant and it will make no difference. But give Malaya twenty or thirty squadrons of Buffaloes and (since there aren't enough Buffaloes) Mohawks and the Japanese will face at least credible opposition. Of course, even if the RAF fighter aircraft could be had, there's still the shortage of pilots, ground personnel and poorly sited and prepared airfields. The loss of Malaya was not the Buffaloes fault.
Ah, true. I didn't know Brewster made Corsairs. Did they make the FAA's clipped wing variety? I've wondered what a USN/MC pilot would think of the RN's bird.I think he's referring to Brewster's licence production of the F4U Corsair and not to the Buffalos.
The Brits did get their share of Brewster products.This pretty little thing was actually their worst aircraft, though it wasn't a fighter...
View attachment 584939
Brewster SB2A Buccaneer - Wikipedia
Bloch 150 / 152 - One hub mounted Hispano 20mm cannon (60 rounds) and two or four x LMG
I wonder which the FAA rejected faster, the Bermuda or Chesapeake. The latter might have been useful in Malaya with the RAF as a CAS bomber.Delivery to the FAA only began in July 1942 so hardly "desperate early days". It never served operationally on a British carrier.
The reason that I have to disagree is that there is no radar cover north of Kuala Lumpur and no Observer Corps at all. Perhaps this is why Percival got the job, he had experience of how to retreat to the sea successfully to Dunkirk. We would have been better off scuttling HMS Repulse in Penang Harbour then at least Penang would have radar and could give fire support to our Imperial forces in Malaya. HMS POW should have been assigned to support HMS Indomitable when it arrived. Then together to steam up to the Japanese beachheads to attack them cutting off the Japanese forces from further supplies.Nothing. There weren't enough of them. Five squadrons of Buffaloes, with a stark deficit of trained and experienced pilots operating from unprepared and poorly defended airstrips were tasked to defend a territory larger than the entire UK (defended by ~100 fighter squadrons in Dec 1941) against a much larger force of the IJAF's best aircraft and experienced aircrew.
Replace those Buffaloes with five squadrons of the latest Spitfire variant and it will make no difference. But give Malaya twenty or thirty squadrons of Buffaloes and (since there aren't enough Buffaloes) Mohawks and the Japanese will face at least credible opposition. Of course, even if the RAF fighter aircraft could be had, there's still the shortage of pilots, ground personnel and poorly sited and prepared airfields. The loss of Malaya was not the Buffaloes fault.
Wiki says two 20mm and two or four 7.5mm.
And since the engine was a radial, they weren't hub mounted.