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Arrogant U.S. Generals Made the P-51 Mustang a Necessity: With better leadership, [tr]
War is Boring ^
| December 1, 2016
| James Perry Stevenson and Pierre Sprey
Posted on 12/01/2016 11:19:51 AM PST by C19fan
The benefits the P-51 Mustang brought to aerial battles in World War II, particularly over Germany, are reasonably well known. The iconic fighter plane could fly higher, faster, farther and generate more kills per sortie than the U.S. Army Air Forces aviation bureaucracys preferred P-47s or P-38s. However, the real P-51 Mustang story is just as much about the difficult gestation of a great new fighter as it is about the quashing of the drop tanks urgently needed to extend the range of existing fighters. Then theres the guerilla tactics some officials unleashed in the corridors of power to overcome the Armys not invented here hostility to the plane, as well as the mendacious post-war rewriting of history by the newly minted U.S. Air Force.
(Excerpt) Read more at warisboring.com ...
TOPICS: History; Military/Veterans
KEYWORDS: air; bombers; war
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Revisionist article claiming that the higher ups in the Army Air Corps especially the apostles of Giulio Douhet, strategic bombing is a war winner, stopped the development of air drop tanks that could of extended the escort ranges of already existing Thunderbolts and Lightings. Also, the development of Merlin powered Mustang for the escort role was a fortunate accident that required going over the heads of the let us say bomber leadership to get done.
1
posted on
12/01/2016 11:19:51 AM PST
by
C19fan
To: C19fan
Thunderbolts and Lightning very very frightening...
Sorry, couldn’t resist.
2
posted on
12/01/2016 11:24:10 AM PST
by
WayneS
(An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last. - Winston Churchill)
To: C19fan
From what I've read about the Mustang's development, everyone knew the P-51 was a great fighter, but the early P-51A was hobbled by the Allison V-1170 engine, which was not useful at higher altitudes. It was when the Mustang switched to the Packard Merlin engine--which was already being built in the USA for certain later-production P-40 models--that the Mustang became the best fighter of World War II.
3
posted on
12/01/2016 11:24:31 AM PST
by
RayChuang88
(FairTax: America's economic cure)
To: RayChuang88
The article claims it was a Brit pilot who noticed the Merlin and Allison both were the same sized and he came up with the idea of swapping engines.
4
posted on
12/01/2016 11:25:32 AM PST
by
C19fan
To: C19fan
I don't care how it came to be, the P51 Mustang is one of the best single-engine propeller driven aircraft in history.
And the only prop-driven fighter I can think of that looks better is the Supermarine Spitfire.
(In my opinion)
5
posted on
12/01/2016 11:28:48 AM PST
by
WayneS
(An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last. - Winston Churchill)
To: C19fan
Leave it to the Brits to tinker with American military equipment... Example; Sherman firefly.
To: WayneS
7
posted on
12/01/2016 11:36:07 AM PST
by
pingman
(Cruz lost me. Go Trump!)
To: miliantnutcase
"Leave it to the Brits to tinker with American military equipment... Example; Sherman firefly."
Yeah, ask Michael Wittmann about Fireflies:
8
posted on
12/01/2016 11:37:39 AM PST
by
PLMerite
(Lord, let me die fighting lions. Amen.)
To: C19fan
Arnold probably would have given more consideration to fighter protection and gaining air superiority if he had ever been in combat.
9
posted on
12/01/2016 11:49:05 AM PST
by
damper99
To: PLMerite
10
posted on
12/01/2016 11:56:29 AM PST
by
agere_contra
(I will be glad and rejoice in your love, for You saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul.)
To: WayneS
The F4U Corsair was also quite a handsome plane.
In many ways, I think we who are fans of these planes take what we know about their performance and find a way to call the hotter planes more good looking. If we can like an A-10 Warthog....!
Of course the Spitfire was a cool looking plane by any measure.
Looks aren’t everything of course. The P39 Airacobra was a decent looking plane but fairly doggy.
To: C19fan
WIB has some questionable editorial articles. I rarely go there anymore after all the TRUMPBASHING they did during the election.
To: agere_contra
On ths subject of fruitful collaboration in wartime I’d just like to give a shout out to the Tizard mission https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tizard_Mission
This led to the sharing of the cavity magnetron (among many other treasures). The historian James Baxter would call this “the most valuable cargo ever brought to our shores”. I don’t know how true that is, but it’s a beautiful sentiment.
13
posted on
12/01/2016 12:04:57 PM PST
by
agere_contra
(I will be glad and rejoice in your love, for You saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul.)
To: WayneS
I’m more partial to the Chance Vought F4U Corsair.
14
posted on
12/01/2016 12:16:21 PM PST
by
wally_bert
(I didn't get where I am today by selling ice cream tasting of bookends, pumice stone & West Germany)
To: wally_bert
A very nice aircraft.
And the Marines used it, so it has that going for it as well.
15
posted on
12/01/2016 12:20:35 PM PST
by
WayneS
(An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last. - Winston Churchill)
To: C19fan
When the Korean War started, we were forced to use P-51’s as ground attack aircraft. It wasn’t well-suited to the role because of the vulnerability to ground fire. The P-47 was a much better choice but we had eliminated that idea.
16
posted on
12/01/2016 12:28:33 PM PST
by
AppyPappy
(If you really want to irritate someone, point out something obvious they are trying hard to ignore.)
To: C19fan
This thread is worthless without pictures...
17
posted on
12/01/2016 12:28:54 PM PST
by
GreenLanternCorps
(Hi! I'm the Dread Pirate Roberts! (TM) Ask about franchise opportunities in your area.)
To: C19fan
18
posted on
12/01/2016 12:37:48 PM PST
by
GreenLanternCorps
(Hi! I'm the Dread Pirate Roberts! (TM) Ask about franchise opportunities in your area.)
To: AppyPappy
When the Korean War started, we were forced to use P-51s as ground attack aircraft. It wasnt well-suited to the role because of the vulnerability to ground fire. The P-47 was a much better choice but we had eliminated that idea. In the interest of equal time:
19
posted on
12/01/2016 12:47:18 PM PST
by
GreenLanternCorps
(Hi! I'm the Dread Pirate Roberts! (TM) Ask about franchise opportunities in your area.)
To: C19fan
Most of the Air Force top brass had tunnel vision about daylight bombing with unescorted bombers. The Brits basically said if you're crazy enough to want to do it, we won't stop you, but we'll keep bombing at night, thank you very much. It wasn't until the devastating Schweinfurt raids and the big losses of Big Week that reality finally slapped them in the face.
The P-51 was one hell of an airplane - and it could fly to Berlin and back to England.
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