Your favourite open cockpit monoplane fighter?

[special ed]

I have mentioned my buddy's L-19 was flown with the rear seat windows open for air to air photos. The rear windows hinge inward at the top and latch. The large front windows hinge outward and latch on the strut. The boundry layer/air stream leaves a calm area about 3-4 inches out from fuselage side allowing the camera lens basically even with the outer fuselage skin. I had often asked Frank to leave the front window open, but he was too cautious. One very hot day, after a wait in line for take off, he made the takeoff with the left front window latched open. Since I was watching it, I didn't tell him. After climb out, and stress level is reduced, he saw it and snatched it closed. I suspect the FACs in Nam flew with all windows open as there was no buffeting outside or inside.

 

[MIflyer]

There was at least one open cockpit B-17 that flew combat in the ETO.

 

[SaparotRob]

I'd to love to hear the story of that B-17!

 

[MIflyer]

Project Aphrodite was designed to take the radio control equipment developed for the Azon guided bomb and create remotely piloted radio guided missiles using war weary B-17's. Using two man crews, pilot and flight engineer, the B-17 missiles, heavily laden with 10 tons of explosives, would take off, and after establishing straight and level flight, the crews would bail out. Radio control of the missile would be done from another B-17, which would guide it into high value targets such as sub pens or V-weapons sites.

In order to facilitate loading explosives into the bomber, one approach was to remove the raised fuselage aft of the cockpit and lower the warload into the gaping hole created. The crew would not be in the bomber very long, so the lack of creature comforts would not be a problem. Pilots assigned to the program would take the greatly lightened B-17 out for a spin, pull up next to B-24 formations that were forming up for a bombing mission, wave from the cockpit, and then pour on the coal and disappear over the horizon. Since the wind blast tended to blow their hats off, they got some scarves from their girlfriends and used them to tie the hats on.

These antics led to B-24 pilots reporting being buzzed by an open cockpit B-17 that displayed incredible performance and being flown by woman wearing babushkas . Of course, the B-24 pilots were referred to USAAF psychiatrists when they told this story.

The USN had a similar program using B-24's guided by Lockheed PV-1 controller aircraft. Neither program did any significant damage to the Germans, although the USAAF accidentally blew up a squad of Germans who broke into a crashed missile to capture the crew, and the USN managed to kill Joe Kennedy, JFK's older brother.

 

[MIflyer]

I think the P-26 was the only open cockpit fighter plane flown by the USAAF in WWII. After the 7 Dec 1941 PH attack P-26's were among the few fighters available in HI and were flown on patrols until they could be replaced. Of course this so terrified the IJN that they launched no more daylight attacks on PH, limiting their further airstrikes to night attacks.

 

[yulzari]

Project Aphrodite was designed to take the radio control equipment developed for the Azon guided bomb and create remotely piloted radio guided missiles using war weary B-17's. Using two man crews, pilot and flight engineer, the B-17 missiles, heavily laden with 10 tons of explosives, would take off, and after establishing straight and level flight, the crews would bail out. Radio control of the missile would be done from another B-17, which would guide it into high value targets such as sub pens or V-weapons sites.

In order to facilitate loading explosives into the bomber, one approach was to remove the raised fuselage aft of the cockpit and lower the warload into the gaping hole created. The crew would not be in the bomber very long, so the lack of creature comforts would not be a problem. Pilots assigned to the program would take the greatly lightened B-17 out for a spin, pull up next to B-24 formations that were forming up for a bombing mission, wave from the cockpit, and then pour on the coal and disappear over the horizon. Since the wind blast tended to blow their hats off, they got some scarves from their girlfriends and used them to tie the hats on.

These antics led to B-24 pilots reporting being buzzed by an open cockpit B-17 that displayed incredible performance and being flown by woman wearing babushkas . Of course, the B-24 pilots were referred to USAAF psychiatrists when they told this story.

The USN had a similar program using B-24's guided by Lockheed PV-1 controller aircraft. Neither program did any significant damage to the Germans, although the USAAF accidentally blew up a squad of Germans who broke into a crashed missile to capture the crew, and the USN managed to kill Joe Kennedy, JFK's older brother.

Joe Kennedy's B-24 is scattered all over the area around my father's village. Presumably so is the crew AFAIK.

 

[MIflyer]

Joe Kennedy's B-24 is scattered all over the area around my father's village. Presumably so is the crew AFAIK.

Kennedy's crew consisted only of a USAAF Sgt as the flight engineer, and fortunately he bailed out before the aircraft blew up. The reason it exploded is a serious embarrassment. The arming circuits were a horrible design, unshielded and vulnerable to the copious amounts of RF present; the Navy used TV guidance, which required a powerful transmitter aboard the missile. The USN officer running the program decided to handle the possibility of inadvertent activation by adding a mechanical safety pin. Kennedy had to pull that pin as his last act before he bailed out and that almost certainly is when the aircraft exploded. The USAAF had been telling the USN that their arming system was a POS but the Navy insisted on doing it their way. Senior USAAF officers told the USAAF O-6 in charge that he was to shaddup about what really occurred; the Kennedys were wealthy and influential people and no one's career would be enhanced by the fact they all had 'effed up big time.
Reference: the book "Aphrodite: Desperate Mission."

 

[GregP]

What was the reasoning for that

I worked on the YP-59A restoration crew for about 10 years. Basically, the front seat had everything to do with: 1) the war being over, 2) money was tight, 3) the P-59s were available without cutting up new P-80s, and 4) senators and congressmen wanted jet rides.

Ergo, the "two seat" P-59 Airacomet used a resource that wasn't really on the "combat ready" books and got funding.

 

[GregP]

I'd go with either the Consolidated P-30 or the Heinkel He112A.

All the P-30s I've seen have a canopy over the pilot. But, I'm sure there was open-cockpit unit that you were talking about.

Got a pic? Just curious ... nothing more.

 

[Shortround6]

Dewoitine D 500

Another plane that cries out for somebody to photo-shop a smoke stack belching black smoke behind the cockpit

 

[buffnut453]

That reminds me...completely forgot another of my favourites:

 

[SaparotRob]

That reminds me...completely forgot another of my favourites:

View attachment 720524

I was waiting for that one to show up. It is a cool plane.

 

[Admiral Beez]

I don't know if it saw any combat in WW2, but as the world's first folding wing, single-seat monoplane carrier fighter, the Dewoitine 373 deserves a mention in our open cockpit monoplane fighter thread.

 

[Admiral Beez]

That reminds me...completely forgot another of my favourites:

View attachment 720524

Is that considered an overhead or parasol monoplane?

 

[buffnut453]

I'd call it a high-wing monoplane rather than a parasol, largely because the wing root connects directly to the fuselage. In a parasol aircraft, the wing is only connected via struttery.

 

[stug3]

Mitsubishi A5M

 

[Shortround6]

via struttery.

You got a bacon for that