Wimble Toot
Banned
FW-187 with JU-211.....should be able to punch through enemy fighter escorts and attack bombers at > 400mph @ medium altitude.
Half a fighter for the price of two!
FW-187 with JU-211.....should be able to punch through enemy fighter escorts and attack bombers at > 400mph @ medium altitude.
But yes, Spitfire III is a reason why I've said that we need to go to the UK (and Germany) in order to have a real performer. Merlin XX is indeed the engine (with Merlin III until the Mk.XX is available), basic Spitfire fuselage and wings, cooling system is inn the wing leading edges -
For Germany - an about 10% bigger He 100, so it can carry 2 cannons + 4 MGs, along with protection for fuel and pilot; drop tank facility. At 1st with DB 601A, switch to 601N when available.
an interceptor, which is what they really neededHalf a fighter for the price of two!
an interceptor, which is what they really needed
For what? The RAF didn't get good at bombing until 1942 due to their previous focus on defensive radar developments rather than radio guidance systems for offense. The Germans were mainly the inverse until then.The Germans needed a radar-equipped nightfighter in 1940
The RAF didn't get good at bombing until 1942
The Bf110 was effectively a dedicated nightfighter and pretty great for the role until the Mosquito showed up, but even then still good against the Lancaster. The issue was the airborne radar system.Luftwaffe has the best of everything in 1940 - the only real gaps are an escort fighter (the Bf110 was hopeless), a dedicated nightfighter and a proper MRA
The cancelled FW187 would have filled the escort role and made the Me210 unnecessary, sparing manpower and factory space for a DB605-powered 109 replacement.
Sure, but it wasn't hitting anything of importance until after the Butt Report in late 1941.The fact that the Reich was being bombed at all was enough to enrage Hitler and Göring.
FW-187 with JU-211.....should be able to punch through enemy fighter escorts and attack bombers at > 400mph @ medium altitude.
I think you're overlooking the design philosophy that went into the Spit's wing. The leading edge and main spar form a torsion box which is compromised by a leading edge coolant radiator. Better to install the small fuel tanks, as fitted later. Clipping the wing tips improve roll but impair high altitude performance.
Best (IMHO) response for He-100 is to build it as the Ki-61, a similar aircraft with larger wing and Meredith coolant radiator.
The alternative would be a liquid cooled engine, of course. In that case I would consider building a 180 degree fuel injected V-12. Why 180, you ask? Well, think of packaging.
Except the Lycoming is an O-12 (horizontally opposed aka "Boxer" like a modern Porsche Flat-6 or Subaru Flat-4) rather than a 180 degree V-12. Packaging is the same but the crank and firing order are completely different as on the V-12 the opposing pistons share a crankpin rather than having independent crankpins as on the H-12. It may require some counter weights but it is a more accessible design for the period and can be treated in much the same way as a conventional V-12.That would be the Lycoming O-1230. Perfect 1200 hp at 3400 rpm. Just a little shaky and not reliable at high power. Rather than deal with lack of reliability, they twinned the engine, resulting in a bigger, more powerful engine that lacked reliability.
Hard to have a twin engine that could keep up with the singles of 1940.Would the Fokker G.I fitted with engines in the 1,000hp class have been the best twin-engine fighter?
Tell that to Lockheed.Hard to have a twin engine that could keep up with the singles of 1940.
I assume you mean the P-38? In 1939-40 the aircraft has still in testing and having a number of issues.Tell that to Lockheed.![]()
Would the Fokker G.I fitted with engines in the 1,000hp class have been the best twin-engine fighter?
Tell that to Lockheed.![]()
I assume you mean the P-38? In 1939-40 the aircraft has still in testing and having a number of issues.
Too many issues indeed. Also it can't cater for requirement of a decent number of aircraft before Autumn of 1940.
Perhaps it is too bad the Americans didn't tried to produce a no-nonsense classic twin (ie. no twin boom). Sorta 10-20% bigger Whirlwind, or a Fw-187 lookalike, powered initially by non-turbo V-1710 and, alternatively, Twin Wasp. The Skyrocket almost came close, but it was too late, designed around wrong engines etc. Stick 6 HMGs and that's it.
'Classic' layout keeps weight and cost within boundaries (also improves pilot's field of vision), so does having no turbo, at least not initially. .