Aviation Archive Issue 25 - 2016 UK

(Jacob Rumans) #1

28 HEAVY FIGHTERS OF WW2


T


he Luftwaffe called it ‘der
Gabelschwanz Teufel’ or ‘Fork-tailed
devil’. The P-38 Lightning was not
only one of the most recognisable aircraft of
World War 2, but it was also one of its finest.
As the most successful long-range tactical
fighter of the combat, the twin-boomed
masterpiece from Lockheed was fast,
heavily-armed and extremely versatile.
Lockheed began work on its legendary
P-38 Lightning in early 1937, in response to an
exacting USAAC requirement for a twin-engine,
high-altitude interceptor. Specifications called
for a maximum airspeed of at least 360mph
(580km/h) at altitude, and a climb to 20,000ft
(6,100m) within six minutes. Conceived by
Lockheed chief engineer Hall L. Hibbard and
his then assistant, Clarence ‘Kelly’ Johnson, the
innovative twin-boomed P-38 combined
speed with unheard-of advances: two
supercharged engines and a potent mix of
machine guns and cannon.
The eventual configuration was rare in terms
of contemporary fighter aircraft design, with
only the preceding Fokker GI, the contemporary
Focke-Wulf FW 189 Luftwaffe reconnaissance
aircraft, and the later Northrop P-61 Black
Widow night fighter having a similar planform.
The Lockheed team chose twin booms to
accommodate the tail assembly, engines, and
turbo-superchargers, with a central nacelle
for the pilot and armament. The design
incorporated tricycle undercarriage and a
bubble canopy, and featured two 1,000hp
turbo-supercharged 12-cylinder Allison V-1710
engines fitted with counter-rotating propellers
to eliminate the effect of engine torque, with
the turbochargers positioned behind the
engines. The P-38 was the first American
fighter to make extensive use of stainless
steel and smooth, flush-riveted butt-jointed
aluminium skin panels.
The XP-38 (c/n 37-457) made its maiden flight
on 27 January 1939, in the hands of test pilot
Lt Benjamin S. Kelsey. Its performance was so

Lockheed P-38 Lightning


Right: True to its name, the P-38 was akin to a
force of nature: fast, unforeseen, and immensely
powerful. The P-38 airframe could be pushed to
550mph in steep dives as a defensive manoeuvre
against pursuing foes. In this famous image, the
‘pursuers’ are three other Lightnings, framed
within the famous ‘fork tail.
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