Author Topic: P-38 & The Yoke  (Read 10165 times)

Offline MachFly

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #30 on: January 04, 2012, 01:34:05 PM »
I have watched the Lockheed training videos on how to handle a single engine emergency landing and I'd have to say that they have enough going on their hands without having to worry about pumping for 5 mins. Just seems easier to shut off a system that isn't necessary and carry on then to add, as you say, five minutes of work to an already busy pilot.

Most of the time you can just circle around the airport and work on your gear. Thankfully trouble with the gear does not call for an emergency landing.
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Offline RTHolmes

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #31 on: January 04, 2012, 02:31:35 PM »
its like a car steering wheel I guess - two hands gives you more precise control and greater force, and the design uses less cockpit space.



Ive always wondered why the mossie used a stick rather than a spade grip like all the other RAF fighters, and why the bomber version used a yoke. and for that matter why the spade grip was abandoned. or why no one else used it. :headscratch:
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Offline Seanaldinho

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #32 on: January 04, 2012, 02:35:58 PM »
Most of the time you can just circle around the airport and work on your gear. Thankfully trouble with the gear does not call for an emergency landing.

Well for war time use though Id imagine when he rtb's hes low fuel and maybe damaged.

Offline MachFly

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #33 on: January 04, 2012, 02:44:45 PM »
its like a car steering wheel I guess - two hands gives you more precise control and greater force, and the design uses less cockpit space.

That's not exactly accurate. When your flying in straight lines you want to hold the yoke with your finger tips in order to be smooth, it is next to impossible to fly smooth when squeezing the controls. When your maneuvering your other hand is on the throttle so you still have only one hand to control the aircraft. So a yoke is almost always useless.
The only time when you would really need a yoke is when flying some heavy bomber with a hydraulics failure.  

When you have a complex aircraft with a small cockpit (not a bomber or an airliner) all your gauges and buttons are cramped together, quite often a yoke gets in the way and unfortunately you can't just turn it 90° to get to something else.
Even in an airplane as basic as a C-172 the yoke gets in the way. When a circuit breaker pops or you want to reset it you typically want to see the circuit breaker in order to identify which system is belongs to before doing anything to it, but you just can't see them because of the yoke. I never had such problem with any aircraft that has a stick.  
« Last Edit: January 04, 2012, 02:51:15 PM by MachFly »
"Now, if I had to make the choice of one fighter aircraft above all the others...it would be, without any doubt, the world's greatest propeller driven flying machine - the magnificent and immortal Spitfire."
Lt. Col. William R. Dunn
flew Spitfires, Hurricanes, P-51s, P-47s, and F-4s

Offline MachFly

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #34 on: January 04, 2012, 02:48:02 PM »
Well for war time use though Id imagine when he rtb's hes low fuel and maybe damaged.

That is a very specific scenario that does not happen very often. Putting a totally different set of controls just a very specific scenario is a bad idea. If the 38 could not climb on a single engine I'd understand it, but given that it's single engine produces more than 1000hp I think it will most likely be able to wait a few extra minutes before landing.  

You see landing at your base with about 2 minutes of fuel is extremely rare, you would normally have more fuel or would run out of fuel before that, loosing an engine is also something that does not happen everyday. Then you can start extending the gear when your approaching the airport you so you would already be in a landing condition. So having all those things happen in one flight is not very likely.
« Last Edit: January 04, 2012, 02:50:31 PM by MachFly »
"Now, if I had to make the choice of one fighter aircraft above all the others...it would be, without any doubt, the world's greatest propeller driven flying machine - the magnificent and immortal Spitfire."
Lt. Col. William R. Dunn
flew Spitfires, Hurricanes, P-51s, P-47s, and F-4s

Offline colmbo

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #35 on: January 04, 2012, 03:25:20 PM »
I'm going to guess that since our top scoring ace of the war flew with a yoke, a yoke just isn't that big of a hinderance.

 :t
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Offline RTHolmes

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #36 on: January 04, 2012, 03:30:17 PM »
how wide is the 38 cockpit - spit or jug?
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Offline MachFly

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #37 on: January 04, 2012, 03:52:25 PM »
I'm going to guess that since our top scoring ace of the war flew with a yoke, a yoke just isn't that big of a hinderance.

 :t

He only had 40 kills, Hartmann flew with a stick and had 352.  :D
« Last Edit: January 04, 2012, 04:41:30 PM by MachFly »
"Now, if I had to make the choice of one fighter aircraft above all the others...it would be, without any doubt, the world's greatest propeller driven flying machine - the magnificent and immortal Spitfire."
Lt. Col. William R. Dunn
flew Spitfires, Hurricanes, P-51s, P-47s, and F-4s

Offline MachFly

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #38 on: January 04, 2012, 04:16:51 PM »
how wide is the 38 cockpit - spit or jug?

In the Showdown Air Combat Maj. Moga said that the 38 cockpit is very roomy, even for a big guy. I was unable to find anything more specific than that.
"Now, if I had to make the choice of one fighter aircraft above all the others...it would be, without any doubt, the world's greatest propeller driven flying machine - the magnificent and immortal Spitfire."
Lt. Col. William R. Dunn
flew Spitfires, Hurricanes, P-51s, P-47s, and F-4s

Offline colmbo

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #39 on: January 04, 2012, 05:52:26 PM »
He only had 40 kills, Hartmann flew with a stick and had 352.  :D

Bong flew combat less than a year, Hartmann was at war what 5 or 6 years.   :D
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Fate whispers to the warrior "You cannot withstand the storm" and the warrior whispers back "I AM THE STORM"

Offline PFactorDave

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #40 on: January 04, 2012, 05:54:48 PM »
Bong flew combat less than a year, Hartmann was at war what 5 or 6 years.   :D

Weren't most of Hartmann's victories against poorly trained Russian pilots?  Also, I believe he started in 1942.  So, he only had about 3 years...  More or less...

EDIT:  Looked it up.  Hartmann was first deployed in October of 1942 and only scored two victories in '42.  Also, in August of 1943, he scored 48 victories.  So, he scored more in that one month then Bong's entire tally.  So, he was a stud after all!
« Last Edit: January 04, 2012, 06:03:02 PM by PFactorDave »

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Offline Oldman731

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #41 on: January 04, 2012, 06:10:52 PM »
Weren't most of Hartmann's victories against poorly trained Russian pilots?  Also, I believe he started in 1942.  So, he only had about 3 years...  More or less...

EDIT:  Looked it up.  Hartmann was first deployed in October of 1942 and only scored two victories in '42.  Also, in August of 1943, he scored 48 victories.  So, he scored more in that one month then Bong's entire tally.  So, he was a stud after all!


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Offline MachFly

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #42 on: January 04, 2012, 07:43:09 PM »
Bong flew combat less than a year, Hartmann was at war what 5 or 6 years.   :D

352/6=58.66 that is still more kills per year than 40.

But let's chance the topic. Your making me defend Hartmann and I don't want to be pro Germany. Just pro stick. :)
"Now, if I had to make the choice of one fighter aircraft above all the others...it would be, without any doubt, the world's greatest propeller driven flying machine - the magnificent and immortal Spitfire."
Lt. Col. William R. Dunn
flew Spitfires, Hurricanes, P-51s, P-47s, and F-4s

Offline B4Buster

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #43 on: January 04, 2012, 09:28:28 PM »
Bong had many more kills that could never be confirmed because they were downed somewhere in the dense jungle or out in the middle of the ocean.
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Offline MachFly

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Re: P-38 & The Yoke
« Reply #44 on: January 04, 2012, 09:34:03 PM »
Bong had many more kills that could never be confirmed because they were downed somewhere in the dense jungle or out in the middle of the ocean.

Didn't they have gun cameras on board that would confirm their kills?
"Now, if I had to make the choice of one fighter aircraft above all the others...it would be, without any doubt, the world's greatest propeller driven flying machine - the magnificent and immortal Spitfire."
Lt. Col. William R. Dunn
flew Spitfires, Hurricanes, P-51s, P-47s, and F-4s