Westland Whirlwind

[Greebo]

With 60 RPG no one is going to be hosing in it for long, what's that about 6 seconds worth?

Compared to a Hurricane Mk IIC the Whirlwind is about 20 mph faster, has much better all-round visibility, better gun placement but only 2/3 the ammo. Its also got about a 10% better power loading which should help climb rate but with flaps-in a 25% worse wing loading. With the Fowler flaps out it increases the wing area enough so that the Whirlwind would then have only about a 15% worse wing loading. Fowler flaps should help the low speed lift more than by just increasing wing area but by how much is anybody's guess.

So I reckon it would a slightly faster, better climbing, maybe slightly worse turning Hurri IIC that you can see out of but with a short clip and not much range. An interesting plane and probably not an MA hangar queen but its not going to get everyone out of their P-51s.

[Zimme83]

Sounds like an equal to the 110c, w better cannons..

[bustr]

It will be interesting to how Hitech implements the slow speed handling with the flaps and slats. In fact the comparison to the Hurri is relevant but, after the Brewster and Yak3, who knows until the gamey numpties get their hands on it. I bet ghi will be the first to find a way.

[BuckShot]

Firing only two guns at a time would help save ammo.

It works in the Hurri 2, probably even better paired close like on the Whirlwind.

[FLOOB]

Will it be as craptacular as the other two engine "fighters"?

[Zoney]

Like the 262 ?

[bozon]

Will it be as craptacular as the other two engine "fighters"?

what are you suggesting?

[bustr]

He must have voted for the Me410 thinking it would be the uber twin engined 109 of 109's with a mondo gun package to craptastic on everyone. Remember all the broken hearts after it was released?

Twin engined fighters in this game have small followings of players who have succeeded in discovering how to make them dance. The rest of the player base ups in one as a insta tower ticket. The craptastic label pretty much covers their assessment of the amount of interest they have in learning how to make them dance.

[bozon]

That is absurd. The mosquito and P-38 rule supreme in the MA if there is half a competent pilot behind the wheel. Even the 410 can be dangerous in the hands of a dedicated pilot as Torquilla demonstrated - repeatedly. It is true that in the hands of someone who flew nothing other than La7s, these planes are like buses. The terrains of AH are littered with pieces of La7s that thought the mosquito is a bus.

The Whirlwind will make people cry.

[nrshida]

The Whirlwind will make people cry.

It's making me cry right now that we don't have it 

[morfiend]

 I seem to recall the slats were wired shut?   I could be mistaken so plz correct me,if it's true I wonder if HTC would bother with modeling them.

  Thoughts???



   

[nrshida]

I seem to recall the slats were wired shut?   I could be mistaken so plz correct me,if it's true I wonder if HTC would bother with modeling them.

  Thoughts???

That was technically a field mod when they moved to Whirlybomber mode. Same business with the 109: there was a wiggle as they opened. There is an erroneous report that the slats made the wings snap off. That originates in a post-war 'journalistic' article. There's no evidence that that ever hapened and the Whirlwind operated for a long time with the Handley Page Slats fully operational.

Certainly those that fought and died in the channel dash were pre-Whirybomber, full slats.

[Zacherof]

Will it be as craptacular as the other two engine "fighters"?

Hope your not talking about the 110 and 410. Although the 110 flies circles around its older brothers

[Vinkman]

That is absurd. The mosquito and P-38 rule supreme in the MA if there is half a competent pilot behind the wheel. Even the 410 can be dangerous in the hands of a dedicated pilot as Torquilla demonstrated - repeatedly. It is true that in the hands of someone who flew nothing other than La7s, these planes are like buses. The terrains of AH are littered with pieces of La7s that thought the mosquito is a bus.

The Whirlwind will make people cry.

The P-38 and the Mossie are the best twin engine fighters of the war. The 110 is also at the top of th elist. People think NEW will better than what we have, but it isn't in this case, it's a step backwards.

That why the P-63 needs to ahead of the Whirlwind. The P-63 is the P-39 upgrade for Late war. It is missing from the plane set. and poeple in Late war [by far the most popular Arena] will fly it because the P-39 can;t cut it there.

The Whirlwind will be used by a few people in early war and see littel action in Late war where they can just grab a missie or a Lightning. 

[Greebo]

The P-63 saw very little, if any, action in WW2. The Whirlwind only equipped a couple of squadrons but was used extensively by them for a period of two and a half years.

It is also a very different aircraft to any other twin in the game. Its AH equivalents are planes like the Hurri IIC or Spit V, not the Mossie or P-38.