Favourite Aircraft of WWII

Ta, if you are ever in need of P-61 info give me a buzz. Especially the 9th AF 422nd and 425th nfs. I was a member of the night fighter association for some years before they shut down 2 years ago in October. Now all I have is memories....... !

~E

 

Erich, I bought a new magizane yesterday and it is called Flight Journal. I never read one before but in the June 2003 issue they have a good article and pictures of Me-110 night fighter missions. It also has a copy of the Ju-88 picture by Nicolas Trudgian called Moonlight Hunter.
The article is by Dr. Rolf Ebhardt and Christopher Stuart.

If you can't find a copy I can try and scan the article to you on my scanner... Let me know.

 

Ta, who publishes Flight Journal ? Yes if you can make a scan please send to me.....

~E

 

It is published by AirAge Media. www.flightjournal.com
Send me your e-mail address to steve_c_78602@yahoo.com and I will attempt to scan it to you. Never tried a magizane before.

 

done.......and thanks !

~E

 

Me 262!!



Like I said, youth films still on mind. Avro Lancaster!



Nachtjagd!

Nicolas Trudgian's dramatic painting reconstructs a night action flown by one of the Luftwaffe's most successful night-fighter pilots: A Junkers Ju 88 G-6, piloted by Major Paul Zorner, Gruppenkommandeur III./NJG 100, based at Stubendorf, intercepts and badly damages a four-engine Lancaster of RAF Bomber Command over Germany in late 1944. Shedding debris and trailing flames, there may just be time for the crew to bale out before the mighty bomber falls away into the dark abyss.
With the aid of his FuG 220 and upward-firing Schrage Musik armament, Zorner has stalked his prey, and attacked from beneath unseen. The crew of this Lancaster didn't stand a chance, and with the moonlight briefly glinting on his aircraft, the accomplished Ju88 pilot slips away into the darkness of the night.



Eh, I wonder though if Mr Zorner didn´t like the Ju 88 that much? Maybe Erich can help? Great pic though!

 

Thanks KP for putting up that Trudgian picture. I saw it in a magizane recently and something in my brain said something is wrong with this picture !! But I could not put my finger on it until now

There is flak exploding in the picture and the Germans did not fly into their own flak barrages if they wanted to live very long.

Damn, I still have some brain cells in my head !!

 

The Polikarpov I-16. It looks like a cartoon plane!!!

This from Warbird Alley,

http://www.warbirdalley.com/rata.htm

History: The first low-wing monoplane fighter with retractable landing gear to enter service, the Polikarpov I-16 was obsolete even before the Second World War began, yet plodded along as the Soviet Union's first line fighter until 1943 when the Red Air Force finally introduced top-notch aircraft to slug it out with the Luftwaffe for the remainder of the war.

Of advanced design for its time, the I-16 was, none-the-less, an illustration of poor timing, being the fastest of its type when first introduced, highly maneuverable, with excellent climbing speed and roll rate, yet soon outclassed by a newer craft developed by Germany and Japan. While the aircraft performed well against German combat aircraft during the Spanish Civil War (1936 to 1939), and against the Japanese Air Force in Manchuria starting in 1937, by the time Germany invaded the Soviet Union in 1941, the aircraft was outclassed by new generations of enemy fighters. Yet, as the most numerous of the Soviet fighters available at that time, it bore the brunt of the battle for several years.

On the plus side, its simple, rugged construction, all-wood monocoque fuselage and metal wings made the I-16 easy to maintain under frontline conditions, and enabled it to absorb heavy punishment while staying in the fight. In fact, the plane itself was sturdy enough to be used as a ram to destroy enemy aircraft in midair when ammunition ran out in a dogfight.

On the negative side, it had poor longitudinal stability, a tendency to stall out of a glide, and was exceedingly temperamental, requiring highly skilled airmanship to perform well and not kill the pilot before the enemy had a shot at him.

Although more than 7,000 of the fighters and their two-seat trainer variants were produced, not more than a handful have survived, with 3 non-flying craft being in museums (two in Russia, one in China). However, at least 6 wrecked I-16's had been restored to flying condition in New Zealand by the end of 1998, all of them Type 24s dating from 1939. At least one was imported to the USA in 1999. [History by Kevin Murphy]

Nicknames: Yastrebok ("Hawk") or Ishak ("Little Donkey") in Russia. In Spain it was known as the Mosca ("Little Fly") to the Republicans, and Rata ("Rat") to the Nationalists against whom it was flown. It was also called Abu ("Gadfly") by the Japanese.

Specifications (I-16 Type 24):
Engine: One 1,000-hp M-62 radial piston engine
Weight: Empty 3,252 lbs., Max Takeoff 4,542 lbs.
Wing Span: 29ft. 1.5in.
Length: 19ft. 9.75in.
Height: 7ft. 10.75in.
Performance:
Maximum Speed at 10,000 ft: 304 mph
Ceiling: 31,070 ft.
Range: 373 miles
Armament:
Four 7.62-mm (0.3-inch) Sh KAS machine guns (Two in forward fuselage; two in wings)
Up to 441 pounds of bombs or six RS-82 rockets on underwing racks

Number Built: 7,000+

Number Still Airworthy: 6

Pilots Report on the Plane...

Aircraft from the Spanish Civil War during the 1930's have always had a special appeal to me. I was particularly intrigued by tales of violent, dangerous close-in dog-fights between early 109's, Fiat CR32s and the Polikarpov series fighters, Ratas, Chatos and Chaikas. Of course the pre-war types are impossibly rare.




I remember talking with Robs Lamplough soon after one of his warbirds recovery coup's of the late 1970's and early 80's and him telling me about a Rata which had reputedly been belly landed on a remote hillside in Spain and which was still lying there in dilapidated but complete condition. I felt almost desperate with excitement to attempt to retrieve and rebuild this aircraft.
Nearly fifteen reasonably maturing years later, how incredible then to arrive at a high, dusty, mountainous airfield to see a flight of Ratas sitting outside, cockpit doors opened and straps set as if they were ready to take off for one last duel. This was the remarkable and very exciting sight greeting my father and me when we arrived once more at Tim Wallis' Alpine Fighter Collection in Wanaka, New Zealand.

Tim and his chief engineer, Ray Mulqueen, encountered a great deal of difficulty in fulfilling Tim's objective in rebuilding six original Ratas and three Chaikas (the gull wing biplane comrade to the Rata) in Russia. But finally after five years of work, here at last were the first half of his Russian squadron.

The Rata looks extremely racy. It is very small and overpowered for its time. Russian pilots more used to biplanes, looked with horror at the tiny wings and lack of flaps (in the later variants). Modern pilots also look at the same features with raised eyebrows and a certain amount of trepidation. These features plus the almost full span ailerons ("must roll like hell"), lack of trimmers, an undercarriage retraction system looking like a winch from a boat, an appalling view forward in a three point attitude, plus not an English caption in sight, all promised a fairly exciting ride ahead.

As you approach the aeroplane and begin a walk round, you immediately notice the ply/beech wooden fuselage which is very well finished and extremely strong. You also notice with some surprise, the fabric covered metal construction of the wings and again the huge ailerons (most Russian aeroplanes roll very well). Other unusual features are the very delicate looking undercarriage complete with wire and cables for retraction leading up in to the guts of the aeroplane, numerous exhaust stubs emanating all around the cowling, big two bladed propeller with little ground clearance to absorb all the power from the ASh 62 IR 1,000 horsepower motor, cowl flaps are in the front of the cowlings (good for Russia but not needed in New Zealand in early summer). The cockpit is protected by a tiny windscreen and small side doors similar to the Spitfire but on both sides of the fuselage and of course, no canopy.

Climbing on board, the blended wood fuselage is very smooth and you need care to mount the aeroplane in a dignified manner. Once sat down, you are aware that the ground angle is extreme and that the view forwards is very poor. In comparison the visibility over the nose in a Spitfire or a P-51 is fantastic. In fact, in the Rata it is worse than the Me109. The next problem is that if you choose to sit high in order to see out, the small curved cockpit doors are so tight when you close them that you now almost have to sit sideways to fit in! In conclusion, you simply end up sitting low! Having said that, there is a quaint translated note from the Russian test pilot which states "do not be shy or embarrassed to open the side doors in flight prior to landings to help you see out".

Once finally settled in the aeroplane and looking around left to right you see in order, an emergency fuel shut-off cock, "wobble pump", throttle and mixture controls together both working in the conventional sense and a little further forward the carb heat and prop lever co-located.

The main instrument panel is well appointed with all the standard instruments (although there is no artificial horizon). As with most Russian aeroplanes, there are a bank of switches used to 'arm' systems and to provide electrical power to them (such as fire system, turn and slip indicator, engine instruments etc.). In addition starter energiser and engage switches (on a fly wheel system a bit like the T6), plus primer, gear lights, fuel gauge and an odd pull push handle to make it read. Other peculiarities to Westerners include ASI in km/h, plus boost/manifold pressure in mm of mercury giving 0 boost at 760mm. The pilot's straps are superb and really keep you firmly glued to the seat.

Starting the Rata is simple. Mixture on, throttle set, wobble a bit - get some fuel pressure, prime five or six shots, energise the fly wheel, noise builds to a high pitch - engage and mags on and she'll fire. The noise from the multiple exhaust stacks is spectacular and very satisfying. In sympathy, white smoke coughs and belches randomly from the engine. The noise and vibration levels are very similar to the Yak 11.

It's good practice to warm up to 600 to 700 RPM for a minute and then gently increase to 1000 RPM. The next parameters to look for are 120 degrees cylinder head temperature and 50 degrees in the oil, prior to checking the engine. Once the cylinder head and oil is increasing, you can start a gentle taxi - the brakes are not spectacularly good and taxying is best achieved by power, rudder and judicious amount of forward stick to turn. If you keep the stick back - the elevator grinds the tail wheel hard against the dirt and you will drive along in straight lines all day!

At the hold, with the temperatures and pressures in the green, you stand on the brakes and start to increase power, hoping to get 760mm and about 2000 / 2100 RPM. There is a good chance the brakes will start to slip beforehand - say at 1700 - 1800 RPM, so cycle the prop back and forth slowly once, twice and more quickly a third time. Check the mags - not less that 100 drop per side. Next the simple pre take-off checks consist of:

Trim - N/A; Throttle Friction - tight; Mixture - rich; Pitch - full fine; Fuel contents, pressure, primer; Flaps - N/A; Gills - open; Oil cooler - open; Gyros - set; Instruments in the green; oxygen - N/A; Hood - N/A; Harness - tight and secure; Hydraulics - N/A (brakes holding?); Controls - full and free;

It's time to go - the power can be applied quite aggressively and you can keep it coming to 820mm & 2250RPM. The increase in noise is fantastic and it is possible to lift the tail quickly to vaguely see where you're going - you need to have the horizon cutting the 10.55 and 1.10 position on the forward cowling. There is very little tendency to swing and she runs pretty much straight as an arrow, although the rough Wanaka grass gives a harsh ride to the hard sprung oleos, the Rata and you!

If you have not figured it out before, it is now that you realise that excellent goggles are a must!! With a ground roll of about 400 yards and the smallest of rotations suddenly she's airborne and with a quick glance down you see the speed very rapidly at 200 km/h which is both the best climb and gear up speed.

The Russian test pilots recommend gear retraction not before 1000 metres!! This is rather conservative - but with good reason - getting the gear up is a bit of an epic. Power back now to max continuous 2000 & 760mm and holding the nose up to contain the speed at 200 km/h. Holding it down low after take off and snappy gear retractions are not the Rata's forte.

There is warm buffeting air everywhere, but the aeroplane immediately feels right. With a positive rate of climb it is time to sort the gear out.

Check the "brake spring" is set - check the handle lock is released (allows the retraction handle to rotate) select another handle for the "hoist" ratchet gear to the up position and then start to crank like mad!! 44 turns later you can see the wheels entering the belly of the aeroplane underneath you - suddenly the handle stiffens, a last turn or half turn and "hurrah" 2 red lights telling you the wheels are up. By now we're at 2000 feet and it is noticeably warmer in the cockpit. Power back to 1900 & 680 mm and the speed builds to 350-360km/h. Temperatures and pressures are good, with the oil temperature stable at 75 degrees and the cylinder head temperature at 180.

How does she feel? We're holding a slight push force on the stick (remember no elevator trim) - roll rate is excellent and very positive - about 100 -120 degrees per second. Pitch is also very effective and the Rata is delightful in aerobatics - although as speed increases in the dive, passing 400 km/h the push force on the stick reduces to 0 and then as 430 km/h is reached, a very slight pull force is required - something that needs a little care running in low level for the start of a display. The aeroplane accelerates very quickly in the dive and when seen from the ground, appears extremely fast. Stalling in manoeuvre gives plenty of warning with pronounced tail buffeting before she drops the left hand wing quite progressively and definitely not violently. The aeroplane delights in reversing from a max. rate turn in one direction rapidly to the other. You can see that this is a superb close in dogfighter. The delightful handling characteristics, plus the open cockpit, vibrations and noise provide a very exciting ride. Rolling requires little rudder input to stay balanced. I have the feeling that you could snap roll the Rata deliberately very precisely. Vertical performance is excellent and with excess energy pulling up and unloading straight up in to the vertical produces spectacular performance.

Stalling clean and dirty, is an interesting experience - below 250 km/h you are holding a pull force which is slightly perturbing until you get used to it. She stalls slower clean than with the gear down! Stall is at about 135-140 km/h and again is very gentle power off with a gentle wing drop that stops immediately when back stick is released.

It is back in the circuit that the work load goes up again. You need to select the gear selector down, release the handle lock, grab hold of the gear crank handle very positively, select up slightly to release the up locks - then very carefully start to crank down. The handle will immediately start to try to run away and you must keep hold of it (it's not that difficult) whilst the gear, aided by the airflow, comes down through the same 44 turns (only much easier than up).

As soon as the wheels break from the underside of the wings, the through draft of air up through the cockpit starts the same buffeting as before. Finally 2 greens and you are now down wind at 200 km/h, holding a pull force and starting to turn finals. I have to say that it is here that I least like the Rata - landing on Wanaka's narrow grass, concentrates the mind and the problem is that if you three point the aeroplane - the view forwards is really terrible. It would be fine at Duxford or on a wide concrete strip - but otherwise I am sure you are better off wheel landing the Rata. Definitely not something I expected originally. Basically, you should fly a slightly power on "hot" approach speed bleeding through 180km/h to not less than 160 km/h on very short finals to touch for a tail down wheeler. This seems to cause fairly consistently reasonable landings and the landing roll out is still only 500 yards or so, even not using brake. I have to say that, after only 5 sorties, I'm not exactly the prophet when it comes to landing Ratas - it definitely needs a bit of practice.

How do they compare with other WW2 fighters? Well, I believe, very favourably with some of the other aeroplanes. I had just flown a Hurricane for the first time, a week before the Rata and sorry to Hurricane aficionados, but I was really surprised and disappointed in the aeroplane's handling and performance (although very interesting and lovely to fly the type). I felt that you would be better off fighting in a Rata. At any rate I felt quickly far more comfortable in it. In air combat against early low powered 109's, I would suspect that the two aircraft were very comparable. Later variants of the Messerschmitt would easily be able to dictate the fight against the Rata due to the 109's superior speed and vertical performance.

Considering the Rata was in full squadron service by 1936 and was the first heavily armed, retractable gear, monoplane fighter in the world, it has many merits and surprisingly few vices. It is a real classic in its own right with a European connection and history beyond its combat on the Russian front. I would thoroughly recommend the aeroplane to anyone who would like to own a very reasonably priced exciting example of flying history.


Check out these pics...

http://www.skyshow.co.nz/pages/album.html

 

And another pretty picture from Trudgian ; -

http://www.brooksart.com/TyphoonFalaise.html

 

Greetings -

All right, I know this is going to get some of you here saying "By gosh, this Bill sure does show favoritism for those German aircraft", and you're right, but I'll list a couple of my favorite Allied aircraft too.

My all time World War II favorite aircraft is the Fw190D. A suberb aircraft, the "butcher bird" came in to production at a time when the Reich was beginning to truly feel the effects of strategic bombing on its manufacturing capabilities, and yet, they brought enough variations of the old Fw on line for it to give a good accounting of herself.

But, I also have to throw in the Ju88 in a night fighter role too. Just something about the old girl as a night fighter that I enjoy looking at.
Of course, it didn't hurt to have former pilot, and RKT winner, Gunther Bahr swing by the house with his wife on their way to Canada, and drop off a few autographed pics in person with he and his crew standing on the wing.

Allied aircraft, I'd have to go with the British Spitfire, and the U.S. B-17.

The Spitfire just shines in its glory. Even though the Hurricane served in more numbers during the Battle Of Britain ( one of my areas of Luftwaffe history interest for obvious reasons ), it is the Spitfire that just symbolises British resolve to win the battle and turn the tide of the war in the skies over England. Remember what Gen. Galland stated when asked how to defeat the RAF over England? " A squadron of Spitfires would be nice ". Wish I could have been a fly on the wall to have seen old Goerings face!

The B-17 is just American industry of the time at its best. A truly "flying fortress", she could give as good as she got, and sometimes, even give out better. Just seeing some of those old pictures of B-17's with their tails shot off, engines out, landing gear gone, and she brought her crews home.

In seeing one up close one day, and being able to go through it, I would not have been able to crew on her. They're not all that large in reality.

Have a great day!

Bill

 

Bill :

You are certain that Günther flew a Ju 88G ? I have heard his mounts were always the Bf 110G-4.
May I ask does the pic of him on the wing show many details of (his) ? Ju 88 ?

looks like I need to send him a note !

~E

 

Bill :

Just checked through my nf files and the Kriegstagebuch des NJG 6, all of his 17 victories in 1945 were with a Bf 110G-4 coded 2Z+IH of 1. staffel though he was supposed to be in in 3rd staffel.......ah too confused

~E

 

Kai :

I didn't scroll up high enough to see your posting. Trudgian's bogus painting......Paul was Gruppenkommandeur of III./NJG 5 and the Gruppenkommandeur of II./NJG 100 which received the Ju 88G-6 in December of 44. It was much perferred over the Bf 110G-4 due to speed, aerodynmaics, more power, more visibilty for the crew, a fourth crewmember and having the SM weapons outside of the cockpit.
Still like the looks of the painting though....

~E

 

Hello Erich -

Alas, you have proven me to be incorrect! My apologies to all.

Gunther Bahr did indeed fly the Bf-110 and not the Ju88.

I went back in to my soldbuch files, and found that my Ju88 pilot is ( was ) one Unteroffizier Franz Job whose last unit was with the 3/Lehrgeschwader 1 as of 23 April 1944.

Erich, thank you for the correction.

Respectfully,

Bill

 

No prob Bill ! I was hoping that he did fly the G-6 version as that is almost my favorite a/c. Sent a reply back to you privately about the man and I am due to write him within a month I hope !

Very interesting all the way through 1945, that I./NJG 6 would send up 4-5 Ju 88G-6's on missions and maybe 1-2, but usually 1 Bf 110G-4. This being Günther Bahr and his two man crew.....he was that good !

~E

 

Ha! Nice one! But I don't think it would be a very interesting fight... Both sides would crash before getting anywhere close to the enemy... The Friedrichswaffe crashed because of its incompetence for flying and the Bull Air Force crashed because the advanced age of its pilots...

 

I have to throw my .02 cents in and say the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. Theres something about the thought of 2300hp setting under you. Plus they were legendary for soaking up punishment that would have flamed six P-51's. Not to mention eight .50 caliber machine guns.

 

changed my mind...


The Junkers 52, the old reliable 'auntie Ju', there is just something about it. Must have been from reading the story in warlord comic called Iron Annie about a JU-52 crew and their adventures in Russia. What a miss spent childhood, a weekly comic with all the stories about ww2, you dont get that these days...

 

I like the Messerscmitt 262 best.

 

Spitfire Mk.1G.. i think thats is, lol. i just love it. Its looks like it can fly. It won the battle of britan, i just love it