Best plane.

[ACE]

yeah i think F4u4 is probably the best all around plane buy itself but still i all depends on the pilot

[SkyRock]

sup spektor...didnt we have some fights recently?  I agree about the pilot, but if pilots are equal, I'd take the hog-4 over any prop plane in the set. 

[jam934]

Its plane you feel works best for you <S>

[betty]

typhoon is the best plane!!!!!

[Shuffler]

typhoon is the best plane!!!!!

Naaa Typhoon is for girls..... DOH!   

[TwinTail]

P47D25 - (Newest Fav)

P38J/L - Old

Spixteen - for killing high horde on the deck.

La-7 - Killing NOE Goonie Birds vs 30 man missions

[Widewing]

Widewing, just an off topic question if you could answer briefly:  Would the F8F, F7F or P-51H have contended well enough with the F4U4 in a 1:1 dogfight?  If any of them couldn't compete in a committed fight, could any of them have outperformed the F4U-4 enough to inevitably get into a dominant position the way a 109K-4 would a P-51D?

In actual air to air flyoffs, the F8F-1 swallowed the F4U-4 whole. Likewise, the F7F out-performed the F4U-4, especially in the vertical. The Navy's Chief Test pilot stated in 1949 that the F7F was the best fighter he had ever flown and he had flown them all. When we look at the P-51H, we see that it out-climbs the F4U-4 by 20%. It's faster at most if not all altitudes and can truly pick and choose how it fights.

The F4U-4 was a not a true air superiority fighter like the F8F, it was a fighter-bomber. Think about this... An absolutely stock F8F-1 set a world time to climb record. From a standing start, it reached 10,000 feet in 94 seconds. Granted, light fuel and no ammo. Still, an astounding feat. That record stood for more than 10 years.


My regards,

Widewing

[xNOVAx]

Mosquito best all around plane.

While I love my Mossie, the F4U-4 pwns it all over the sky.. 

[ACE]

sup spektor...didnt we have some fights recently?  I agree about the pilot, but if pilots are equal, I'd take the hog-4 over any prop plane in the set. 

Sup skyrock i belive we had a couple of 1v1s in a 109F4? awhile back

[Saxman]

In actual air to air flyoffs, the F8F-1 swallowed the F4U-4 whole. Likewise, the F7F out-performed the F4U-4, especially in the vertical. The Navy's Chief Test pilot stated in 1949 that the F7F was the best fighter he had ever flown and he had flown them all. When we look at the P-51H, we see that it out-climbs the F4U-4 by 20%. It's faster at most if not all altitudes and can truly pick and choose how it fights.

The F4U-4 was a not a true air superiority fighter like the F8F, it was a fighter-bomber. Think about this... An absolutely stock F8F-1 set a world time to climb record. From a standing start, it reached 10,000 feet in 94 seconds. Granted, light fuel and no ammo. Still, an astounding feat. That record stood for more than 10 years.


My regards,

Widewing

I still wonder what the F2G could have done had the Navy had the time to work out its teething issues like civilians had with the racers.

[Nemisis]

Don't be delusional. At 30k, the F4U-4 is as capable as the P-47N and below 25k, it completely owns it.

Think about this: 453 mph at 27k... And, it'll fly circles around the P-47N should it attempt to maneuver with it. The P-47N may be the best fighter above 32k, but the margin over many other fighters is small.

At lower altitudes, the P-47N is out-performed and vulnerable to many types.

Widewing, while you may be correct about the 'as capable as the P-47N' comment, you and I differ in opinion about your 'and below 25k' comment. If you are the at the same skill level as your opponet, you can still be beaten by your opponet. You may make a slip, or he may figure out your fighting style faster than you do him. He may force an overshoot and kill you there. I keep my style loose, and casual untill I have my opponet figured out.


And the plane may help, but it is mostly the pilot.

[Steve]

but it is mostly the pilot.

Dude, who is talking about pilots?  Planes and their capabliities are what is being discussed. How in the heck...... never mind.

[Widewing]

Widewing, while you may be correct about the 'as capable as the P-47N' comment, you and I differ in opinion about your 'and below 25k' comment. If you are the at the same skill level as your opponet, you can still be beaten by your opponet. You may make a slip, or he may figure out your fighting style faster than you do him. He may force an overshoot and kill you there. I keep my style loose, and casual untill I have my opponet figured out.


And the plane may help, but it is mostly the pilot.

There's no "maybe" involved. I speak truth. The P-47N was engineered to escort high flying bombers. At that task, it excels. However, below its critical altitude, performance gradually degrades. It's big. It's heavy. At medium altitudes, it is no better than average. Down low, it's sub-par in the MAs. Engaging an F4U-4 Co-E, Co-Alt would be nearly suicidal.

Remember, we're talking planes here not pilots. If you want to add pilots to the equation, it still won't help you in regard to me.

Your comment: "I keep my style loose, and casual untill I have my opponet figured out." tells me that you tend to avoid a fight where there is no major advantage. Not a bad thing per se, but a common approach to flying P-47s in the MAs.


My regards,

Widewing

[humble]

I would love to have a clue regarding the F7F. From all I can find it was truly the 1st multi role "strike fighter" capable of performing ground attack, fighter escort and air superiority profiles equally well. Given that it was actually in service at the operational squadron level in 5/44 I hope it finds its way into the plane set at some point. i'm always amazed the best prop plane ever built never saw action entirely due to the manufacturer bowing to politics. They had the F6F, F8F already in the bag and Corky already assigned to the F9F and didn't want to rock the boat. So 3,300+ P-61's get built and flown vs 34 F7F-1's....ARGHHH

[Nemisis]

There's no "maybe" involved. I speak truth. The P-47N was engineered to escort high flying bombers. At that task, it excels. However, below its critical altitude, performance gradually degrades. It's big. It's heavy. At medium altitudes, it is no better than average. Down low, it's sub-par in the MAs. Engaging an F4U-4 Co-E, Co-Alt would be nearly suicidal.

Remember, we're talking planes here not pilots. If you want to add pilots to the equation, it still won't help you in regard to me.

Your comment: "I keep my style loose, and casual untill I have my opponet figured out." tells me that you tend to avoid a fight where there is no major advantage. Not a bad thing per se, but a common approach to flying P-47s in the MAs.


My regards,

Widewing

We still differ in opinion, but at least you were curtious and so I shall let you have the last word.