First flight 27 August 1940. Couldn't get out of its own way, but it was cool.
Posted on 10/29/2017 4:13:03 PM PDT by DFG
Thanks.
The Spitfire was not a jet.
And the Vampire wasn’t a World War II fighter. Gloster Meteor wasn’t exactly iconic, so perhaps the story is about nothing.
///I don’t know; the Me-262 was faster and had heavier armament. The engines were dodgy but when they were running, it was fast and nimble.///
Yeah, it’s hard to know. Edge to ME-262 for sure. The specs for the vampire show it has a better power to weight ratio and top speed with it’s straight wing is only 15-mph or so slower than the swept-wing 262. But actual operational speeds, as we know from every other WWII fighter, could be very much different. Also, “dog-fighting” was changing with the jet wars, and any maneuverability advantage the Vampire may have had (if any) might have been unimportant.
It’s probably telling, that future jets resembled the 262 rather than the Vampire. (Chance-Vought Cutlass, anyone?)
I am amazed to learn that the P-80 was operational before the end of WWII.
At least those guys didn’t get pasted by Vesuvius like the B-25’s when the volcano corked off a year earlier in 1944. Airborne ash is fierce stuff.
Faster yes, because of the narrow chord wings, but in a knife fight you'd want the manouverabilty of the Meteor's broad chord ones.
And heavier shells, but the 262's 30mm guns were slow firing and low velocity, and tended to jam under hard turns. OK for bomber killing, but one on one the Meteor's 20mm are faster firing and higher velocity.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/pM2n49OY2XQ/maxresdefault.jpg
The Gloster Meteor actually saw service in ww2....
[so perhaps the story is about nothing.]
Need a show about nothing.
Nothing happens. You read on TV.
What did you do today?
I got up. I came to work.
There ya go. That’s a show.
Don’t forget the F80 Shooting Star and the German M262 (which saw combat).
As far as I have read, the F80s did not see combat though they were flying as early as 1943. Would love to know if anyone has information on them being used in aerial or ground support combat.
I met the American flier who shot down two M262’s. Believe his name was George Drew. You can see one of his strafing runs in the film that shows a French/German ammo train blowing up from his hits as he flies into the blasts.
Dick Bong died in an F-80
Actually, the Hawker Hurricane was the mainstay of the Battle of Britain. Spitfires were still in relatively short supply. Very important, but most of the German losses were to Hurricanes.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aircraft_of_the_Battle_of_Britain
I visited the Bong Museum in Superior, WI, a few years ago. Worthwhile. Nice P-38 on display. Plus it’s fun watching people’s reactions when you tell them you’ve been to the Bong Museum.
Looks a bit like the Lockheed Lightning.
I know his nephew . Total Liberal progressive bisexual jerk . His uncle would throw up.
The Leftist tilt in that area is strong, is my impression, if he’s there. Old school upper Midwest labor Leftism plus a big university is a recipe for Dem dominance.
First flight 27 August 1940. Couldn't get out of its own way, but it was cool.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.