A very complete article on the development of the P-38 Lightning
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Re: A very complete article on the development of the P-38 Lightning
Thanks for that.
My Da was an engineer at Lockheed and worked on the P-38, then went to England to supervise the re-assembly of the aircraft (mostly P-38s and Hudsons) shipped across. He was both an inspector and a test pilot, as he had to take each reassembled plane up for a shakedown flight. Lockheed painted the insignia on each plane but the guns were mounted by the US Army Air Force, after delivery. So he was flying craft that were marked as warplanes but had no armament. This was during a time when German fighters made regular forays through British airspace. Here he is in the cockpit of a P-38.
What with mechanical problems and being shot down when his evasive maneuvers failed (most often in the Hudsons) he survived quite a few ditches and crashes. He loved the P-38 because he could evade the German fighters and get back in one piece. When he was repatriated, he came home on a ship, and despite having offers from a number of airlines, decided his luck in the air was used up, whence he turned to civil engineering.
My first big hope was to be a pilot. Since I had horrible distance vision, that was also my first big disappointment. -
Re: A very complete article on the development of the P-38 Lightning
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Re: A very complete article on the development of the P-38 Lightning
Chips... I wouldn't know what he looks like but I'm sure that's him.
Yamamoto is the other word/ name I associate with P 38. Did they get the whole aircraft, I forget whether it was shot down over land ... I thought over sea?Comment
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Re: A very complete article on the development of the P-38 Lightning
That's a great story about your dad, Chip. Flying unarmed combat had to be a challenge.
I got to spend some time with a P-38 that was being rebuilt at Barstow-Daggett airfield. It was amazing how similar the cockpit layout of that old war bird was to a modern aircraft.Comment
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Re: A very complete article on the development of the P-38 Lightning
Yes, the pic in #4 is Bong. He's big in Wisconsin.Comment
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Re: A very complete article on the development of the P-38 Lightning
"Schwanz" means something other than "tail"Comment
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Re: A very complete article on the development of the P-38 Lightning
Schwantz, a small but important difference, though they are homophones.One of the most enduring qualities of an old wooden boat is the smell it imparts to your clothing.Comment
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Re: A very complete article on the development of the P-38 Lightning
Originally posted by The Bigfella497 air-air victories in the ETO, 1,431 in the Med, 1,700 in the Pacific and another 157 in the China, Burma, India theatre.
.... as a matter of interest, I saw (have a photo somewhere) some of the damage inflicted in the most famous P38 engagement. The assassination of Admiral Yamamoto. The seat he was in when shot down has a nice bullet hole through the steel back. Its in the war museum in Port Moresby, PNGWithout freedom of speech, we wouldn't know who the idiots are.Comment
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Re: A very complete article on the development of the P-38 Lightning
And for a completely useless piece of information, the wing for the Lockheed Constellation was basically a scaled up version of the P38 design.
PeteThe Ignore feature, lowering blood pressure since 1862. Ahhhhhhh.Comment
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