Show American Battle Planes Must Be Worlds World's Best Is Pledge v of Designers and Manufacturers u n U. U S. S Air Superiority Result of Constantly Improved Machines ae The test of battle the battle the only valid test of the performance of combat aircraft has aircraft has by now resulted resulted resulted re re- in a number of box scores which reveal the pattern of accomplishment accomplishment accomplishment ac ac- ac- ac of American combat combat comat com- com bat at planes In every theater of operations American airmen and American planes have met the challenge of our enemies and outfought them by scores cores never worse than two to one onen in n our favor said Gen Henry H H. H Arnold commanding general of the army air forces All types of American fighter planes have shot out of the skies the best interceptors both oth Germany and md Japan have put against them This has been true since ince January 1942 when our planes were outnumbered on practically all fronts While much of this favorable fighting fighting fight- fight ing ng ratio is attributable to the excellent excellent excellent ex ex- training versatility and courage courage courage cour cour- age of our pilots a good part is traceable to the mechanical superiority superiority superiority of our planes Constant im- im improvement improvement provement is the watchword Even though hough production schedules must be delayed our aircraft must be the best jest possible say army and navy air corps officers Here is a summary of the chief combat planes which have run up the he high scores in our f favor vor from a report just released by the Office of War Information Fi Fighters I V-type V liquid-cooled liquid engines are found in most fighter models because the he long slender shape of a liquid- liquid cooled engine is more adaptable to streamlined fighter design It allows better setter vision and has a smaller frontal rental area for the same er But it will be noted that in the P 47 where 2000 horsepower was desired an cooled air-cooled engine was used The same is true of the navys navy's Vought Corsair and the new Grumman Hellcat The navy uses no liquid cooled cooled id-cooled engines The navys navy's fighter program is large arge An airplane carrier carries torpedo planes bombers and fighters fight fight- ers and of these the fighters are needed to protect the other planes and the carrier itself Fighters also protect land bases In the South Pacific army P are doing this latter atter job along with navy fighters In the opinion of the materiel command command command com com- I mand the Curtiss P 40 or orVar War War- hawk has reached the limit of its developmental developmental developmental de de- de- de possibilities It has gone through numerous type changes the most basic being the P when the engine was changed rom om om Allison to Merlin Although the latest model P 39 ceiling and general performance have lave been improved the P 39 has shared the deficiency climb-deficiency of the P It is being supplanted by a anew anew anew new model now under construction with a low drag wing and a two- two stage Allison supercharged engine which will make it an efficient plane at arty aily altitude up to or feet Ceet The greatest efficiency of the I 39 P models has been below feet Like the P 39 the new plane will be equipped with cannon Low Altitude Fighter Although superior to th the P 40 and I I P 39 the original P 51 or Mustang is lS also only a low and medium- medium altitude fighter Now in production is a new P 51 with a highly supercharged supercharged super super- charged Packard-built Packard Royce Rolls-Royce Merlin engine similar to the Merlin 61 engine in the newest Spitfires Its performance is reported as even better better better bet bet- ter than that famous ships The new engine gives the plane the highest highest highest high high- est ceiling up to feet and the highest speed well over miles an hour of any fighter in existence The A 36 Invader the fighter- fighter bomber version of the P 51 has seen heavy service i in iri the Mediterranean theater and its best features are being incorporated in the new P 51 which will r replace place both the A 36 and the old P The latest model of the Lockheed P 38 or Lightning is a fast powerful fighter that has been given greatly increased horsepower in its Allison engine improved pilots pilot's vision and improved interceding for better high-altitude high performance It outperforms outperforms outperforms out out- performs the Zero and later Jap fighters at all altitudes The P 38 has always possessed the versatility that is coming increasingly increasingly increasingly to characterize all combat air air- craft It has excelled at low-altitude low strafing high-altitude high fighting and andas as a particularly range long-range bomber escort Its distinctive silhouette with i its twin tail booms has been seen over four major fighting fronts The newest fighter at present in r Z f HAVOC One VOC A One of t the he latest of the nations nation's battle planes is the Douglas Havoc fighter-bomber fighter a two motored ship combat the P 47 or Thunderbolt has been currently rolling roIling up a score of approximately four to one in its contests with and high flying Focke over England England England Eng Eng- land France and the Low Countries Armed with eight 50 caliber ma ma- guns chine-guns and heavily plat armor ed it is capable of flying over miles an hour lour and of reaching an altitude of feet High Scorer for Navy The Grumman Wildcat or a navy fighter with Pratt Whitney Twin Wasp cooled air-cooled engine and with folding wings for compact stowage stowage stowage stow stow- age on aircraft carriers has run up many high scores in Mediterranean Although the will win continue to tobe tobe tobe be manufactured for use on auxiliary carriers and for training it is now being supplemented by a new plane the Grumman Hellcat This newest member of the navys navy's fighter family is described by the navy as an answer to the prayers of our pilots A brother of the famous Grum Grum- big u man Wildcat the Hellcat nas has better Detter range speed climb maneuverability ity and altitude It has a 2000 horsepower horsepower horsepower horse- horse power engine as compared with the Wildcats Wildcat's 1200 It has a low wing improved armor and a new flexible type gasoline tank which is an improvement improvement improvement im im- im- im provement over the ordinary ture-proof ture type It carries 50 caliber caliber caliber cali cali- ber machine guns The Corsair or also has a 2000 horsepower Pratt Whitney engine and is easily distinguishable by its inverted gull wing The Corsair Corsair Corsair Cor Cor- sair has until recently been the chief navy fighter in the South Pacific Now Hellcats are beginning to join it in large numbers Heavy Four-Engine Four Bombers The newest models of both the I Boeing B 17 Flying Fortress and I Ithe the Consolidated B 24 Liberator bombers are equipped with new defensive defensive defensive de de- de- de armament in the form of of nose turrets with machine gun in in- in External racks bomb-racks can increase the potential bomb capacity of the B 17 to pounds pounds' Nevertheless this plane has a smaller small small- er bomb capacity at long range than the B The most accurate comparison comparison com com- parison pariso perhaps is to say that load- load r ry y 9 rf 9 w t Successor HELLCAT HELLCAT Successor to the famous famous famous fa fa- fa- fa Grumman Wildcat is the new Hellcat It has folding wings as shown in the picture below so that it will take up a minimum of space on the deck of a carrier The Hellcat is a standard fighter now in both the U. U S. S S and British navies It has more power and climbs faster than the Wildcat ed with 2800 gallons of gasoline the B 17 can carry pounds of bombs the usual load carried over targets in western Europe whereas where where- as the thc B 24 with 2900 gallons can carry pounds of bombs Consequently Consequently Consequently Conse Conse- the B 17 is being concentrated ed in the western European theater and the B 24 is being used chiefly elsewhere elsewhere in in the Middle East in India India India In In- dia China Chinn and Australia for Australia for longer range operations B have made trip round-trip flights up to 2600 miles the raid on the oil fields in Rumania from bases in Egypt the theraid theraid theraid raid on the works at Wiener Neustadt and raids in the Pacific on Wake Vake and a d Surabaya The B 24 is used by the navy under the designation 1 Medium Light and Dive Bombers New models of the two two-en two engine ine Tokyo raider the North American B 25 Mitchell are equipped with heavier armament and possess in increased increased increased in- in creased speed and range The B 25 is the chief medium bomber in the present program production of the Martin B 26 Marauder being ta tapered tapered tapered ta- ta off B powered with Wright Cyclone engines are flying on 11 fronts are used by both army and navy for submarine anti-submarine patrol patrol patrol pa pa- service and have scored particular particular particular par par- successes with skip The Douglas A 20 Havoc is the principal light army bomber in the program until the totally new advanced advanced advanced ad ad- light bomber mentioned above comes into production Thed The H Un d A b th f n. for newest use uy UJ y me e army v low-level low bombing is fitted with a power turret and with armament for ground strafing The A 24 army version of the Douglas Dauntless dive- dive bomber is now being produced in decreasing numbers chiefly for training purposes Grumman Avenger The Grumman Avenger the navys navy's carrier-based carrier torpedo-bomber torpedo has completely supplanted the Douglas TBD Devastator It carries machine machine ma- ma ma chine guns as well as torpedo or bombs and has destroyed many Japanese vessels in the Pacific Chief among the navys navy's patrol bombers are three flying boats and two land planes The land planes are the Consolidated 1 l and the Vega PV PV-l. The are the Consolidated Catalina Consolidated Consolidated Consolidated Con Con- Coronado and Martin Mariner All three flying boats are used for transport purposes as well as for patrol and bombing operations The two-engine two the oldest slowest and smallest smallest smallest small small- est the ship which first spotted the Jap forces on the Aleutians is still being built still dive-bombing dive and strafing enemy shipping and rescuing rescuing rescuing ing pilots who have been downed at sea sea The four-engine four has double double double dou dou- ble the horsepower of the The does good work in antisubmarine anti rine coastal patrol and range long-range reconnaissance Not even the newest newest newest new new- est navy flying boats have speeds much above miles an hour but all are required to be able to land landin in a choppy hoppy sea The Vega PV 1 a navy adaptation of the twin Vega B 34 Ventura Ventura Ventura Ven tura bomber is the navy navys navy's s chief land-based land submarine anti-submarine patrol plane It carries depth charges or a torpedo is heavily armored and andis andis andis is now often used in preference to flying boats in submarine anti-submarine operations operations operations op op- op- op because of its greater speed The Consolidated 1 l is a four- four angine land-based land bomber and as previously mentioned is ls s used for range long-range bombing missions and for submarine anti-submarine patrol work Design and Technical Improvements Aeronautical engineering demands experimentation with numerous designs designs designs de de- de- de signs in order to obtain several high- high performance aircraft of the required types But on the other hand the constant constant constant con con- stant improvements being made on models already in use and the continuing continuing continuing con con- addition of totally new airplanes airplanes airplanes air air- planes to our forces slow down the I rate of production Nevertheless even at this stage inthe in inthe inthe the war when cut clear-cut air superiority superior superior- ity over the enemy has been achieved there is no assurance that the planes which have achieved it are superior to planes which the enemy may produce produces tomorrow Changes in strategic and tactical problems too top and changes of terrain terrain terrain ter ter- ter- ter rain over which fighting takes place bring with them new demands for aircraft design and equipment Even planes plan s which have run up high box- box scores must be constantly improved and replaced The up make-up of our air fleet has never been static and andis andis andis is not to become so BOX SCORE 0 OF F U. U S. S ARMY COMBAT AIRCRAFT Branch of Air Force When Enemy Losses Our Loss Ratio Army air forces Total December 7 19 1941 11 enemy planes 1867 planes Almost 4 to 1 to September 1 1943 19 Army air forces Total March 1 to enemy planes 1239 planes Better than than September 1 1943 19 4 to 1 Heavy bombers January 1 to 1333 enemy planes planes Better than June 30 1943 19 4 to 1 Medi Medium m bombers Jan l to June 30 19 13 enemy planes 69 planes Almost 2 to 1 Fighters January 1 to enemy planes planes Better than June 30 1943 19 2 to 1 |