P-51 and Bf-109 break sound barrier (big pics)

[flakbait]

Just for a time killer I did a little test. I took both the P-51 and Bf-109G10 up to 40,000 feet. Once there I checked top speed (got the expected results) and dove for the fun of it. I wanted to push both planes to their breaking point.

 


 

Yep, they both blew through the sound barrier at 12.7k with the Bf-109 losing the vert stab and rudder. Amazing ain't it?


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Flakbait
Delta 6's Flight School
"For yay did the sky darken, and split open and spew forth fire, and
through the smoke rode the Four Wurgers of the Apocalypse.
And on their canopies was tattooed the number of the Beast, and the
number was 190." Jedi, Verse Five, Capter Two, The Book of Dweeb
 

[Jigster]

I can go one better. Try either F4U from that alt. You won't believe what happens when they punch through. You'll have to go to the external view, either F5 or F4 to see otherwise it looks like the game has gone haywired.

By the way, be sure to bring an air sick bag.

The Typhoon and N1K2 and a few others can skip right along the barrier, and if you start leveling soon enough both are capable of full recovery without any damage  

PS I forgot, that F4U thing was with v 1.04, it might not be around anymore.

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33rd FW www.33rd.org

[Jimdandy]

I would think they should start coming apart as they moved through the transonic (approximately 0.8<M<1.2). The local shock waves forming on the surface of the plane would cause failure of the air frame. I'm only  swaging it. Some of them might have been strong enough to handle it. I've cranked the P-38 up there and lost my rudders and was able to take it home and land it on one engine with no rudders.   And it said I ditched because I drifted off the runway.   Heck maybe they could handle brief periods in the transonic region. Some on here should know.

[Eagler]

Don't let Chuck Yeager see this  

Eagler

[Jigster]

 

Originally posted by Eagler:
Don't let Chuck Yeager see this  

Eagler

Didn't you know? He broke it twice before he went to England during WWII. First time was a power dive in the P-39, the second was in a P-47 over Hamlin. There's a documented account that he flew under a fence in the same P-47  

First to make it through with a plane using it's own power mind you  

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33rd FW www.33rd.org

[Jigster]

btw that "thing" still happens when you hit Mach in the F4U  

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33rd FW www.33rd.org

[TheWobble]

I did similar with a p-38 accept with the help of 125mph wind i took it to 90,000 and dove, it broke up at around 650 and then began doing ungodly spins and twists.

[This message has been edited by TheWobble (edited 01-16-2001).]