Operational history In April 1939, the U.S. Army Air Corps, witnessing the new sleek, high speed, in-line-engined fighters of the European air forces, placed the largest, single fighter order it had ever made: 524 P-40s. French Air Force An early order came from the French Armée de lAir, which was already operating P-36s. The Armée de lAir initially ordered 100 (later the order was increased to 230) as the Hawk 81A-1 but the French military had been defeated before the aircraft had left the factory, consequently, the aircraft were diverted to British and Commonwealth service (as the Tomahawk I), in some cases complete with metric flight instruments. In late 1942, as French forces in North Africa split from the Vichy government to side with the Allies, U.S. forces transferred P-40Fs from 33rd FG to the GC II/5, a squadron that was historically associated with the Lafayette Escadrille. GC II/5 used its P-40Fs and Ls in combat in Tunisia and, later, for patrol duty off the Mediterranean coast until mid-1944 when they were replaced by Republic P-47D Thunderbolts. In all, 18 Royal Air Force (RAF) squadrons, as well as four Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), three South African Air Force (SAAF), and two Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) squadrons serving with RAF formations, used P-40s. The first units to convert were Hawker Hurricane squadrons of the Desert Air Force (DAF), in early 1941. The first Tomahawks delivered came without armor, bulletproof windscreens or self-sealing fuel tanks. These were installed in subsequent shipments. Pilots used to British-designed fighters sometimes found it difficult to adapt to the P-40s rear-folding landing gear, which was more prone to collapse than the lateral-folding landing gear found on the Hawker Hurricane or Supermarine Spitfire. In contrast to the three-point landing commonly employed with British types, P-40 pilots were obliged to use a wheels landing: a longer, low angle approach that touched down on the main wheels first. Testing showed the aircraft did not have adequate performance for use in Northwest Europe in high-altitude combat due to the effective service ceiling limitation. Spitfires used in the theater operated at heights around 30,000 ft (9,100 m), while the P-40s Allison engine, with its single-stage, low altitude rated supercharger, worked best at 15,000 ft (4,600 m) or lower. When the Tomahawk was used by Allied units based in the UK from February 1941, this limitation relegated the Tomahawk to low-level reconnaissance with RAF Army Cooperation Command and only one squadron, No. 403 Squadron RCAF was used in the fighter role. Subsequently, the British Air Ministry deemed the P-40 completely unsuitable for the theater. UK P-40 squadrons from mid-1942 re-equipped with aircraft such as Mustangs. The Tomahawk was superseded in North Africa by the more powerful Kittyhawk (D-mark onwards) types from early 1942, though some Tomahawks remained in service until 1943. Kittyhawks included many major improvements, and were the DAFs air superiority fighter for the critical first few months of 1942, until tropicalised Spitfires were available. An interesting discovery in 2012 was the virtually intact remains of a Kittyhawk that ran out of fuel in the Egyptian Sahara in June 1942. DAF units received nearly 330 Packard V-1650 Merlin-powered P-40Fs, called Kittyhawk IIs, most of which went to the USAAF, and the majority of the 700 lightweight L models, also powered by the Packard Merlin, in which the armament was reduced to four .50 in (12.7 mm) Brownings (Kittyhawk IIA). The DAF also received some 21 of the later P-40K and the majority of the 600 P-40Ms built; these were known as Kittyhawk IIIs. The lightweight P-40Ns (Kittyhawk IV) arrived from early 1943 and were used mostly in the fighter-bomber role. From July 1942 until mid-1943, elements of the U.S. 57th Fighter Group (57th FG) were attached to DAF P-40 units. The British government also donated 23 P-40s to the Soviet Union. Combat performance Tomahawks and Kittyhawks bore the brunt of Luftwaffe and Regia Aeronautica fighter attacks during the North African campaign. The P-40s were considered superior to the Hurricane, which they replaced as the primary fighter of the Desert Air Force. I would evade being shot at accurately by pulling so much g-force ... that you could feel the blood leaving the head and coming down over your eyes... And you would fly like that for as long as you could, knowing that if anyone was trying to get on your tail they were going through the same bleary vision that you had and you might get away. I had deliberately decided that any deficiency the Kittyhawk had was offset by aggression. And Id done a little bit of boxing – I beat much better opponents simply by going for [them]. And I decided to use that in the air. And it paid off. Nicky Barr, 3 Sqn RAAF The P-40 initially proved quite effective against Axis aircraft and contributed to a slight shift of momentum in the Allied favor. The gradual replacement of Hurricanes by the Tomahawks and Kittyhawks led to the Luftwaffe accelerating retirement of the Bf 109E and introducing the newer Bf 109F; these were to be flown by the veteran pilots of elite Luftwaffe units, such as Jagdgeschwader 27 (JG27), in North Africa. The P-40 was generally considered roughly equal or slightly superior to the Bf 109 at low altitude, but inferior at high altitude, particularly against the Bf 109F.[31] Most air combat in North Africa took place well below 16,000 ft (4,900 m), thus negating much of the Bf 109s superiority. The P-40 usually had an edge over the Bf 109 in horizontal maneuverability, dive speed and structural strength, was roughly equal in firepower, but was slightly inferior in speed and outclassed in rate of climb and operational ceiling. The P-40 was generally superior to early Italian fighter types, such as the Fiat G.50 and the Macchi C.200. Its performance against the Macchi C.202 Folgore elicited varying opinions. Some observers consider the Macchi C.202 superior. Clive Caldwell, who scored victories against them in his P-40, felt that the Folgore was superior to both the P-40 and the Bf 109 except that its armament of only two or four machine guns was inadequate. Other observers considered the two equally matched, or favored the Folgore in aerobatic performance, such as turning radius. Aviation historian Walter J. Boyne wrote that over Africa, the P-40 and the Folgore were equivalent. Against its lack of high-altitude performance, the P-40 was considered to be a stable gun platform, and its rugged construction meant that it was able to operate from rough front line airstrips with a good rate of serviceability. The earliest victory claims by P-40 pilots include Vichy French aircraft, during the 1941 Syria-Lebanon campaign, against Dewoitine D.520s, a type often considered to be the best French fighter used during World War II.[5] The P-40 was deadly against Axis bombers in the theater, as well as against the Bf 110 twin-engine fighter. In June 1941, Caldwell, who was serving at the time with No. 250 Squadron RAF in Egypt, and flying as F/O Jack Hamlyns wingman, recorded in his log book that he was involved in the first air combat victory for the P-40. This was a CANT Z.1007 bomber on 6 June. The claim was not officially recognized, as the crash of the CANT was not witnessed. The first official victory occurred on 8 June, when Hamlyn and Flt Sgt Tom Paxton destroyed a CANT Z.1007 from 211a Squadriglia of the Regia Aeronautica, over Alexandria.Several days later, the Tomahawk was in action over Syria with No. 3 Squadron RAAF, which claimed 19 aerial victories over Vichy French aircraft during June and July 1941, for the loss of one P-40 (as well as one lost to ground fire). Some DAF units initially failed to use the P-40s strengths and/or utilised outdated defensive tactics such as the Lufbery circle. However, the superior climb rate of the Bf 109 enabled fast, swooping attacks, neutralizing the advantages offered by conventional defensive tactics. Various new formations were tried by Tomahawk units in 1941-42, including: fluid pairs (similar to the German rotte); one or two weavers at the back of a squadron in formation, and whole squadrons bobbing and weaving in loose formations.[39] Werner Schröer, who was credited with destroying 114 Allied aircraft in only 197 combat missions, referred to the latter formation as bunches of grapes, because he found them so easy to pick off.[39] The leading German expert in North Africa, Hans-Joachim Marseille, claimed as many as 101 P-40s during his career. From 26 May 1942, all Kittyhawk units operated primarily as fighter-bomber units,[41] giving rise to the nickname Kittybomber. As a result of this change in role, and because DAF P-40 squadrons were frequently used in bomber escort and close air support missions, they suffered relatively high attrition rates; many Desert Air Force P-40 pilots were caught flying low and slow by marauding Bf 109s. Victory claims and losses for three Tomahawk/Kittyhawk squadrons of the Desert Air Force, June 1941–May 1943. Unit 3 Sqn RAAF 112 Sqn RAF 450 Sqn RAAF Claims with Tomahawks 41 36 – Claims with Kittyhawks 74.5 82.5 49 Total P-40 claims 115.5 118.5 49 P-40 losses (total) 34 38 28 Caldwell believed that Operational Training Units did not properly prepare pilots for air combat in the P-40, and as a commander, stressed the importance of training novice pilots properly. Nevertheless, competent pilots who took advantage of the P-40s strengths were effective against the best of the Luftwaffe and Regia Aeronautica. At least 46 British Commonwealth pilots achieved ace status flying the P-40. For example, on one occasion in August 1941, Caldwell was attacked by two Bf 109s, one of them piloted by German ace Werner Schröer. Although Caldwell was wounded three times, and his Tomahawk was hit by more than 100 7.92 mm (0.312 in) bullets and five 20 mm cannon shells, Caldwell shot down Schröers wingman and returned to base. Some sources also claim that in December 1941, Caldwell killed a prominent German Experte, Erbo von Kageneck (69 kills), while flying a P-40. Caldwells victories in North Africa included 10 Bf 109s and two Macchi C.202s.[46] Billy Drake of 112 Squadron was the leading British P-40 ace with 13 victories. James Stocky Edwards (RCAF), who achieved 12 kills in the P-40 in North Africa, shot down German ace Otto Schulz (51 kills) while flying a Kittyhawk with No. 260 Squadron RAF. Caldwell, Drake, Edwards and Nicky Barr were among at least a dozen pilots who achieved ace status twice over while flying the P-40. A total of 46 British Commonwealth pilots became aces in P-40s, including seven double aces. r/max
Posted on: Sun, 21 Sep 2014 18:00:03 +0000
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