P-38L

[gatt]

I've red an interesting book about P-38 Lightnings, trying to understand P-38L performances.

From what I red I understand that the P-38J and the P-38L had almost the same basic good performances but that the L type kept those performances up to 30,000ft (ouch!), thanks to an outstanding supercharger system.
Moreover, dive flaps and hydraulic powered ailerons gave the kite very good high speed handling.

Does our P-38L have dive brakes and/or powered ailerons? Is there a P-38L expert?

Thx for any input,
GATT
4°Stormo Caccia
   


[This message has been edited by gatt (edited 05-10-2000).]

[Westy]

Fowler flaps & dive brakes have not been implemented as of yet per the last post  I saw HiTech say in regard to the 38l. And niether is the tail warning radar      Now THAT I could really use!!  

-Westy

[Vermillion]

Hiyas Gatt,

I'm not a P38 experten, but I know a little about them.

All models of the P-38 had a turbo-supercharger system, and this is the destinctive strange shaped system on top of the engine booms. Turbo-Supercharging allows a very slight drop in engine power at altitude compared to a standard Supercharging systems in most planes, but comes with increased production costs, and increased maintenance.

The only other plane that quickly comes to mind that had turbosupercharging was the P-47 and the B17.  This is why both the P38 and P47 were considered so deadly at high altitudes as fighters, and the B17 has such amazing abilities above 30k in AH.

Powered Ailerons (and I think the dive brakes also) were introduced in the late blocks of the J model, but were standardized in the L model.

The P-38L in AH currently has the powered ailerons, but Pyro hasn't added the dive brakes yet.



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Vermillion
**MOL**, Men of Leisure
Carpe Jugulum
"Real Men fly Radials, Nancy Boys fly Spitfires"

[juzz]

The dive flaps and boosted ailerons were standard items from the P-38J-25-LO model onward.

The dive flaps aren't modelled yet as compression isn't either.

[Citabria]

the P-38J had better performance by a few  miles per hour, they kept adding gadgets and wieght to the P-38L I guess.

the AH P-38L has power boosted ailerons but they are not much help at low speeds of 150-100mph at getting a good roll going with any haste with the big twin. however the rudder assisted roll entry used in real life helps a bit.

I wish we had the dive flaps for the braking action they also provide, but they are not modelled yet.


p.s.
did you guys know the P-47 also was fitted with Dive brakes for the same reasons the P-38 was?  

[GADGET]

Acording to my ORIGINAL manuals on the P-38, and the tech books I have read, P-38 always lacked of a good aileron response at low speeds, due to great inertia caused by that big mass on the wings. The roll response was at it's best at 300 MPH, but beyond that point it decreased again, caused by the high effort needed by the pilot to move the control surfaces. On the P-38L that problem was solved by adding a hydraulic system, that controlled the so boosted ailerons. During the Fighters Convention, the P-38L got the Best Ailerons at 350 MPH award, after the boost system was installed.

The P-38L also had two small rectangular spoiler-like pieces under the wings, that deflected at 35º making dive recoveries easier, when compresibility phenomenon presented itself at Mach 0.67. Pilots declared that the Dive Flaps made recoveries almost automatically. That was a real big problem before P-38J (late models) and P-38L, because the Venturi Effect produced on the narrow canal between the fuselage and the engine nacelles, formed shock waves that made the Aerodinamic Center of the aircraft to move farther aft, causing an unrecovebable Transonic Dive

Truly at your 6

GADGET

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