Spitfire Vs Me 109....

[Bob Womack]

I can understand Willy Messerschmidt's keeping the oleo legs on the fuselage for strength so the impact is taken by a strong section and not by the wings, how hard it would have been to alter the wing to change it to the config like the FW-190 is baffling given how good the Germans were at building things.

That was a Willy Messerschmitt demand - he wouldn't allow the wings to get junked up with bulges for canon or outboard landing gear mounts.

As far as the negative G getaway by the 109's to quickly counter this whilst the boffins got to work on the problem with the Spitfires carby cutting out the pilots devised a stop gap measure to get onto the tail of the 109 as it dove away. And that was to roll the Spit onto its back pull hard on the stick and dive on the 109 inverted first then either rolling out or continuing the dive in the same attitude it became a nasty shock to some of the Luftwaffe pilots to find as they bunted to scoot away the Spit was still on their tail.

Ah, there was a stop-gap issued during the Battle of Britain nicknamed "Miss Shilling's Orifice" that allowed the negative-G maneuver in the Brit planes. They went around to all the stations one weekend and installed them. Nasty shock that was.

Bob

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[CINDERS]

Spare a thought for the HE-111 they tried to find around the world in flying condition I think they too came from Spain all 3 of them!

[GeeRam]

Spare a thought for the HE-111 they tried to find around the world in flying condition I think they too came from Spain all 3 of them!

You mean all 32 of them.......

[old tanker]

I couldn't help myself...

Attachment 86836

[Bob Womack]

Well, you know, you've got to start somewhere. That was their MINI, a reaction to the Suez Crisis.

Bob

[HOOKED ON HISTORY]

VS ME 262

Can you imagine seeing one of these in battle for the first time?

[CINDERS]

Bob I am not going to ask how they got the name nor how they figured it would work as it conjures up ones imagination of the debonair fighter pilot in all sorts of maneuvers under the bed sheets with a buxom lass.......

I regards to the ME-262 the Red Tails came up with a plan of when the jets were sighted to form up in an extended line with their P-51's and all open fire (when in range) at the same time so the attacking jets had to fly through a wall of fifty rounds lets face it the gun turrets on the B-17 could not track the jets they were that fast and the P-51 were totally outclassed.
The only way they got Nowotony was when he was landing as the jet engines of the day took allot to spool up, it was not like he could hit the afterburners and go vertical make no mistake if H*tler had not dabbled for a revenge weapon the jet would have been deployed a full year earlier and given its 4 x 30mm cannons would have decimated the fortresses.
On they History Channels Wings of the Luftwaffe they have a good burst on the 262 it was mile ahead for the day being compartmentalized so a full fuselage could be changed quickly, 20 minutes to change an engine out/in the gun package was one unit so could be changed out, the Achilles heel of the aircraft on the ground was the weak nose wheel assy they needed a special set up to tow them around with the Kettenkrad.

[HOOKED ON HISTORY]

I can't help but notice the similarity of the 262s fuselage profile to that of a great white shark.

[CINDERS]

Does conjure that image eh HOH

[Peter Laidler]

The Browning we used on that shoot was a Canadian modified 7.62mm version. Not the best and it would stop after every 10 rounds or so. It just didn't have enough 'whoomph' to reliably operate the system. Unlike the good old M1919's that would eat its way through belt after belt without a thought!