Originally posted by Citabria
add to that you must be the alt monkey flying to high if the p38 is compressing on you.
haha i laff at your incompetence and ignorance. 
p38 rules! 
I can't imagine taking the P-38 above 20K, unless to intercept bombers. Even then, it's far from the best choice, although circumstances may dictate taking one up another 5k. However, I have not found that compressibility is a major problem. I've gone to 27k to kill a Lanc, escaping the Spitfire (2) and Mustang (1) escorts by out-diving them. Sure, it shakes like a wet dog, so what? Neither the Spit or P-51 could follow for fear of losing their wings on the pullout. No problem for the P-38, just used trim to ease out.
I will argue that the dive recovery flaps do not function as they are supposed to, nor should the flaps blow up. This is confirmed by P-38 combat pilots Art Heiden, Stan Richardson and Jack Ilfrey, who scored 15 kills, 2 probables and 3 damaged between them in the ETO and North Africa. Stan was an "engine-out" instructor at a P-38 RTU. He claims to have more time flying on one engine than with two!
Beyond those two issues (relatively minor), the P-38 model is extremely usable. Personally, I like the fact that you can perform some amazing maneuvers in the vertical, going up or down. A bit more elevator authority would be nice.
My regards,
Widewing
