AHC: make de Havilland A/C more important in ww2

I thought they were available sooner than that

American 1600 lb AP bombs - yes.
British 1600 lb AP bombs - winter of 1943/44? Quote from Wiki entry about Op Tungsten, April 3rd 1944:

While carrier aircraft had previously lacked a bomb capable of penetrating a battleship's thick deck armour, it was hoped that the recently developed 1,600-pound (730 kg) armour-piercing bomb would be able to pierce at least the first layer of Tirpitz's armour if they were dropped from an altitude of 3,500 feet (1,100 m) or higher.
 

Wimble Toot

Banned
All these ideas shouldnt impact on DeHavillands most important product the Tiger Moth trainer. No point having shiny new aircraft if the RAF has no pilots.

Nearly all the Tiger Moths made in the U.K. IOTL were made by Austin Motors in Oxford, not by de Havilland.
 
Nearly all the Tiger Moths made in the U.K. IOTL were made by Austin Motors in Oxford, not by de Havilland.

During the war yes you are correct but during the prewar period DH built most training aircraft and most of the civilian aircraft that were taken over by the RAF in the early months of the war. The pilots who fought in the battles of 1940 were trained on prewar aircraft.
 

Wimble Toot

Banned
Ab initio trainers were not a pressing need, before the war (Avro 504Ks, Avro Tutors, Miles Magisters all existed)

Decent combat aircraft, however, were.

More Mosquitos, more Hornets, more Halford H1s, more Vampires, sooner.

To secure peace is to prepare for war.
 
Ab initio trainers were not a pressing need, before the war

Oh yes they were. If you were lucky enough to own a suitable aircraft and have a license to be an instructor the RAF was willing to pay £80 per week plus expenses to train prospective pilots. To put that into perspective the average national wage was around about £4 per week.
 

Wimble Toot

Banned
Since there actually was a Sea Mosquito TR Mk 33 & TR Mk 37 with folding wings and arrestor hook, its perfectly possible.?

Apart from the fact that the Mosquito's carrier landing speed and stall speed were nearly identical, it's perfectly lethal I mean feasible

https://www.alternatehistory.com/forum/threads/de-havilland-mosquitoes-on-aircraft-carriers.146719/

One or two were landed on, and taken off from carriers, out of 64 built.

They became land-based trainers and target tugs, mostly
 
The DH might have jumped on the earlier V12 based on the Gipsy. I know that 425-525 HP is not world beating even by standards of early 1930s, but here is what Latvians, of all people, designed - a fighter with air-cooled V12 of 540 HP and wing half the size of Hurricane's, supposedly capable for 300 mph. Fixed U/C.
By late 1930s, with a better supercharging and up-rating the engine for short term power we'd probably see the Gipsy King making close to 600 HP at altitudes more useful than 7750 ft. Thus the 'minimum fighter', now with retractable U/C, can do better than 300 mph.
BTW - Argus have had the As 411 (12L engine) pushed to 600 PS on 87 ict fuel, while the 16.2L As 412 was supposed to make 900 PS in 1939.

Apart from the fact that the Mosquito's carrier landing speed and stall speed were nearly identical, it's perfectly lethal I mean feasible
...

Interesting - care to point me into direction re. source for those speeds ?
 
The 1600lb AP was used by the Royal Navy against Tirpitz. I think they did about as much damage as dropping 1600lbs of dimes would have done.

Operatoin Tungsten in general and British 1600 lb AP bombs in particular were too late, too few, and mis-used. Instead in early 1944, the attack need to be made in early 1943. The 1600 lb AP bombs were just introduced in winter of 1943/44. Only 7 Barracudas took off with those bombs, that were dropped from too low altitude.
My scenario would've unfolded earlier as noted, with at least 30 aircraft carrying 1600 lb AP bombs (don't wait for British type, use US type, plus another 30 A/C carrying HE bombs) dropped from 7000-8000 ft.

Here is the opinion of US military on the drop altitudes and speeds for, among other stuff, the 1600 lb AP bomb:

AP perf.jpg


Barracudas dropped their 1600 lb AP bombs from altitude as low as 2000 ft. Tirpitz's deck armor was 100-120 mm (~3.95 to 4.7 in).
 
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