Question for Guppy

[Shifty]

Dan,

I just finished reading Gordon W. Prange's book Miiracle at Midway for the fourth or fifth time...
On page 274 it discribes an episode where an SBD gunner (AMM 2/c Floyd Adkins ) of VS-6 engaged a
"Messerschmitt type fighter". I've also read where Wade McClusky reported being attacked by a "Messerschmitt type fighter"
 I believe in Walter Lord's Incredible Victory although I no longer have that book so I can't confirm it.

Do you have a source with the Japanese Order of battle for Midway that includes aircraft type for each CV?
I'm wondering if these guys were seeing early D4Ys that may have been involved in the battle.

Thanks.

[B4Buster]

I've read noters from P-38 pilots where they said they ran into inline "Mersserschmitt type fighters" aswell. Once they looked at the guncams they found they had run into some Tonys

[Delirium]

B4 nailed it, the Tony engines were copies of the DB engines being made in Germany and caused some false reporting.

[Shifty]

B4 nailed it, the Tony engines were copies of the DB engines being made in Germany and caused some false reporting.

This is true the Ki-61 was reported as ME-109s when first encountered over NG. However the Tony was an Army plane and never involved with Naval Carrier Operations.

The D4Y was a carrier based dive bomber, the early models had an inline engine as well.

[B4Buster]

edit: found the answer by myself

It is possible that they were seeing D4Y1s. When he says "Mersserchmittt type fighters" He just means they saw inline engined planes right? Because I know in the notes about the 38 pilots that I was talking about thought they were actually fighting 109s that the Germans dispatched to the PTO (That is assuming Caidin was telling the truth and not making it up like Dan said he liked to do  )

[Shifty]

edit: found the answer by myself

Yes.

[B4Buster]

I've never read that book...Will have to add it to my growing list.

[Shifty]

I highly reccomend it along with his other book about Pearl Harbor  At Dawn We Slept.

Oh yeah....

Judy Judy Judy.

[B4Buster]

I always thought they kinda looked like Stukkas

[Widewing]

edit: found the answer by myself

It is possible that they were seeing D4Y1s. When he says "Mersserchmittt type fighters" He just means they saw inline engined planes right? Because I know in the notes about the 38 pilots that I was talking about thought they were actually fighting 109s that the Germans dispatched to the PTO (That is assuming Caidin was telling the truth and not making it up like Dan said he liked to do  )

There were two D4Y1-C reconnaissance aircraft onboard the IJN carrier Soryu at Midway. Neither flew and both went down with the carrier.


My regards,

Widewing

[B4Buster]

There were two D4Y1-C reconnaissance aircraft onboard the IJN carrier Soryu at Midway. Neither flew and both went down with the carrier.


My regards,

Widewing

Thanks for the info widewing, it's always appreciated.

In answer to Shifty's question...what could these planes have been?

[fudgums]

no wonder people think the germans attacked Pearl Harbor 

[Oldman731]

In answer to Shifty's question...what could these planes have been?

...misidentified....?

Honestly, I admire anyone who can tell what side a plane belongs to when he only has a second to glimpse it.

- oldman

[B4Buster]

Honestly, I admire anyone who can tell what side a plane belongs to when he only has a second to glimpse it.

Yeah that's what I was getting at.

[Shifty]

...misidentified....?

Honestly, I admire anyone who can tell what side a plane belongs to when he only has a second to glimpse it.

- oldman

I'd buy that if it wasn't for the fact that if this is the reason the guy misidentified a radial engined A6M for a German inline engined 109.
Then again June 1942 was still very early in the war for the USN. This could have been the first enemy aircraft this particular gunner had encountered.
However if he's being attacked by an enemy plane his view as a gunner would be of the nose.