Look for the profile of "F6F-3" aircraft! ! !

F6F was the standard carrier-based fighter of the US Navy in World War II. It was not the fastest fighter in World War II, but unlike previous American fighters, the F6F could play a "cat and mouse" death game with Japanese aircraft at low altitude, successfully suppressing the Zero fighter and gaining air superiority. F6F produced a total of 12272.

Large carrier aircraft

The history of F6F can be traced back to 1938, when the prototype XF4F-2 of Grumman F4F-2 was undergoing flight test. Both the US Navy and Grumman want to put a more powerful engine into F4F to further improve its performance. However, based on the basic design of XF4F- 1, the overall improvement of performance can not be guaranteed only by reloading, and the wing area needs to be increased, so the very successful XF4F-3 appeared, which provided valuable experience for the future development of F6F.

During the period of 1939~ 1940, the us navy began to develop a new generation of carrier-based fighters. The inverted gull wing XF4U- 1 of Chance Water Company and the double engine XF5F- 1 of Grumman Company are two competitors in this project. While trial-producing XF5F- 1, Grumman did not stop the research of single-engine fighter, and continued to improve F4F "Wildcat" to learn from the valuable information of European battlefields. It is worth mentioning that the new F4F-4 introduces the folding wing for the first time, which greatly reduces the occupied area of the aircraft carrier deck, thus making it possible to design a larger carrier-based fighter.

At the end of 1940, the XF5F- 1 of Grumman was questioned by the navy. The twin-engine XF5F- 1 fighter designed by Grumman for the safety of carrier aircraft was originally a good idea, but before the two engines of XF5F- 1 were in the cockpit, the pilot could not see the signal of the landing signal officer LSO when landing, which was definitely a serious problem, and the flight results of the prototype XF5F- 1 were not satisfactory. The navy asked Grumman to propose another alternative. 194 1 In the early years, Grumman Company proposed the XF6F- 1 scheme. Considering the procurement cost and the convenience of production, 14 cylinder air-cooled Wright R2600 and 1700 horsepower are selected for the engine, which has been applied in Grumman XBF-65400. XF6F- 1 draws lessons from many mature technologies of F4F, which enables this kind of aircraft to be designed in a short time. After evaluating the design scheme of Grumman, the US Navy ordered two prototypes from Grumman on June 30th, 194 1. The two planes were equipped with different engines for comparative tests.

XF6F- 1 can be regarded as an enlarged version of F4F. The normal takeoff weight of XF6F- 1 is 5,896kg, which is twice as heavy as that of F4F, and its geometric size has also increased by 20%. Both of them are from Grumman's "blacksmith shop" design team, so it is not surprising that the two planes are similar in appearance. The fuselage and tail structure of XF6F- 1 have inherited F4F, but their geometric dimensions are different. XF6F- 1 redesigned the mid-wing, so that the main landing gear can be retracted into the wing instead of the fuselage like F4F, and the trajectory of the main landing gear of F6F is much wider than that of F4F, which is more suitable for operation on aircraft carriers. XF6F- 1 also strengthened the armor of pilots and increased the ammunition capacity. The large-scale carrier-based aircraft has greatly improved the tactical performance of XF6F- 1, and the same trend has also appeared on its competitor XF4U, whose weight has reached more than twice of zero.

F6F series

XF6F- 1

Soon after, XF6F- 1 made its first flight on June 26th, 1942. When the R2600- 16 engine and three-blade propeller of Curtis Electric are installed, the maximum power of 1 1,600 horsepower can be generated when the engine rotates at 2400 rpm. Six 12.7mm Bai Langning machine guns are installed side by side in the wing, each with 400 rounds. XF6F- 1 The spacious cockpit is located above the main fuel tank of the fuselage. The pilot has a good forward vision and the cockpit is perfectly armored. Although the test flight results are as expected, and the performance of XF6F- 1 has been improved step by step compared with F4F, Grumman plans to install Pratt & Whitney R2800- 10 engine with 25% power increase on the second prototype XF6F-3.

XF6F-3

XF6F-3 is the second prototype of F6F. Because the R2800- 10 engine has been replaced, the details are somewhat different from XF6F- 1. The opening of the left engine exhaust pipe is narrowed, and the pitot tube moves to the bottom of the right leading edge. On July 30th 194 1, test pilot R. Huo successfully made his first flight in XF6F-3. Subsequently, Grumman changed the first prototype XF6F- 1 to XF6F-3 standard, and these two XF6F-3s became the ancestors of the later 4,400 fighters of various types.

F6F-3

1942165438+10. Five months after the first flight of XF6F-3, the first mass-produced F6F-3 flew into the blue sky. Compared with the prototype, F6F-3 has undergone a lot of modifications, and the main landing gear door has been modified to reduce the drag. Hamilton standard all-weather propeller is used to replace Curtis electric products; The engine hood and exhaust pipe are also slightly modified, but the F6F-3 weapon still uses the prototype 6 12.7mm Bai Langning machine guns. After eliminating some minor design defects, Grumman began to deliver F6F-3 to the navy on June 1943+ 16, and VF-9 squadron on Essex aircraft carrier became the first unit equipped with F6F-3. On August 3 1, 1943, F6F-3 of VF-5 squadron of Yorktown aircraft carrier participated in actual combat for the first time. By the end of 1943, as many as 2,500 F6F-3s had been delivered. The reason why F6F is produced so fast is not only because of the strong aviation industry strength of the United States, but also the similarity between F6F-3 and F4F helps Grumman to switch production quickly. The early model of F6F-3 used R2800- 10 engine, and at the end of 1943, the later model of F6F-3 was changed to R2800- 10W engine with water injection afterburner, and the belly hanger was added, which can be used to mount bombs or 150 gallon auxiliary fuel tanks.

F6F-3N/E

1943165438+1October, Grumman developed an advanced night fighter based on F6F-3, and produced about 200 F6F-3N and 18 F6F-3E. Both F6F-3N and F6F-3E have radar antennas installed on the right wing, but the difference is that the AN/ASP-4 radar antenna unit of F6F-3E is installed on the right wing pylon in the form of a pod, and the AN/ASP-6 radar antenna unit of F6F-3N is installed in the right wing streamlined fairing. Both types of radar receivers are installed in the fuselage, and radar displays are added to the cockpit dashboard. Both types are equipped with R2800- 10W engine.

By the time/KLOC-0 stopped production in April, 1944, a total of 4,402 F6F-3s had been produced. Among them, according to the lease act, the British navy obtained 252 aircraft.

XF6F-2

XF6F-2 is a prototype produced at the same time as XF6F- 1. The fuselage is the same as XF6F- 1, except that a borman turbocharger is added to increase the output power of the engine. After the construction of XF6F-2, no flight test was carried out, and the work of XF6F-2 was resumed under the supervision of the navy. At first, XF6F-2 was ready to install the white R2600- 15 engine, but later Grumman chose the more powerful Pratt & Whitney R2800-2 1 engine. 1944 65438+1On October 7th, the XF6F-2 equipped with a brand-new engine finally started its maiden voyage, with the test pilot Carl Eber. Because the turbocharger failed to improve the performance of XF6F-2, the only XF6F-2 prototype was removed from the turbocharger and sold to the Navy as F6F-3.

XF6F-4

The first prototype of F6F-3 was XF6F- 1, which was later changed to XF6F-3 and then to XF6F-4. The main improvement of XF6F-4 is to strengthen the firepower. The machine gun was replaced by two 20 mm cannons, each with 200 rounds, and the engine was replaced by the updated Pratt & Whitney R2800-27. After a lot of tests, the Naval Aviation Test Center on the Patusan River in Maryland decided not to put this model of F6F into production. This plane, 1942, made its first flight, was modified three times and was modified for the last time, and became F6F-3.

F6F-5

1944 In the spring, F6F-3 was officially discontinued and replaced by F6F-5. F6F-5 -5E, -5K, -5N and -5P produced 7870 aircraft. F6F-5 adds a pair of pylons to the wing root inside the main landing gear, which can mount two 450kg bombs. In addition, six HVAR (Airborne High Speed Rocket) rocket guide rails are added under the outer wing, three on each side. Two 20mm machine guns and four 12.7mm machine guns were installed on some models of F6F-5, which strengthened the firepower. The engine cowling gap of F6F-5 and R2800- 10W engines is reduced and more streamlined. The biggest difference in appearance between F6F-5 and F6F-3 is that except for the earlier models, most F6F-5 cancelled the side window behind the cockpit. At an altitude of 7000m, the maximum speed of F6F-5 reaches 6 1 1km/h, and it can climb to an altitude of 6 100m in 7 minutes.

The British Navy has acquired 930 F6F-5s, and France and Uruguay also have a small amount of equipment.

British navy type

At first, the British Navy's F6F-3 was renamed Gannet Mk.I and equipped to the British Navy's 800 carrier-based fighter squadron. Later, it was renamed bitch Mk.I. F6F-5 is bitch MK.II. Bitch MK.i is no different from standard F6F-3. On the basis of F6F-5, bitch Mk.II improved the engine water injection afterburner, redesigned the engine fairing and aileron, strengthened the cockpit armor and polished the fuselage skin. In this way, the maximum speed and maneuverability of Mk.II is slightly better than that of F6F-5, and the maximum speed reaches 644 km/h. The British Navy also acquired 70 F6F-5 night fighters, renumbered as bitch NF.MkII.

F6F-5N/E

Like F6F-3N/E, F6F-5N is equipped with AN/ASP-6 radar and F6F-5E is equipped with AN/ASP-4 radar. The F6F-5N/E is usually equipped with two 20mm machine guns and four12.7mm machine guns. In addition to the navy's use of F6F-5N/E on ships, the Marine Corps also operates this night fighter at land airports.

F6F-5P

F6F-5P is the reconnaissance type of F6F-5. The F6F-5P is equipped with an airborne camera on the left fuselage below the cockpit, which usually moves with the large formation to evaluate the results and take photos. The F6F-5P retains the standard weapons, and its air combat capability has not decreased. In several operations, the F6F-5P also shot down the Japanese plane.

XF6F-6

The prototype of F6F-6, two in total. It is transformed from F6F-5 fuselage, and adopts new Pratt & Whitney R2800- 18W engine and Hamilton standard four-blade propeller. XF6F-6 reached 67 1 km/h in the test flight, becoming the fastest bitch. When Grumman planned to put into production, the Pacific War won in August 1945, and the Navy immediately cancelled the order. The ultimate type of bitch failed to catch the last bus of the war.

F6F UAV

In the huge family of F6F, there are two models with special numbers, namely F6F-3K and F6F-5K. The "K" in their numbers indicates that this is a drone with a remote control device (similar to the QF-4 remote control drone modified by an F-4 by the US military). These F6F-3K/5K are modified from the standard F6F-3/5, and some aircraft are also equipped with fixed wing tip auxiliary fuel tanks. Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) retains all cockpit equipment, which can be remotely controlled by ground base stations, surface ships or another aircraft, and can also be piloted by pilots.

When the US military carried out a nuclear explosion on Bikini Island in the Pacific Ocean, the F6F-3K UAV crossed the nuclear explosion cloud for the first time. During the Korean War, these World War II surplus materials were installed with high explosives, and under the control of Douglas Ad4Q pilot, suicide attacks were carried out on the bridges in North Korea. The remaining F6F-3K and F6F-5K were painted with striking orange, which became target aircraft and were shot down one by one in the later air-to-air missile tests.

F6F in battle

The F6F can be said to be a zero-type air superiority fighter. After the Pearl Harbor incident, Grumman re-examined the previous air combat concept. They found that although the engine horsepower of Zero is not large, the wing loading is extremely low and the fuselage is very light, so it has good maneuverability. Grumman also introduced the concept of low wing loading light fuselage into F6F, and greatly reduced the structural weight, with the wing area reaching 3 1 m2. The increase of wing area will inevitably increase the resistance, so Grumman installed Pratt & Whitney's famous "Bumblebee" R2800- 10 engine for XF6F-3. In addition to high power, this kind of engine also has the advantage of small size, which makes the cockpit tilt down 3 degrees from the nose. For carrier-based fighters, a good front low field of vision is especially beneficial to take off and land on board. F4U pirate of Chance Water Company, a competitor of F6F, because the cockpit is located at the back of the fuselage, the pilot can't see the front and the bottom when landing, and there have been several landing accidents during the initial equipment. So the Navy handed this fighter to the Marine Corps for use at the land airport, and the F6F became the standard carrier aircraft of the US military at that time.

In order to further reduce the resistance, the F6F fuselage skin is riveted with flat rivets, which makes the fuselage look smooth. British bitch Mk.II(F6F-5) further polishes the skin. In this way, this fighter with low wing loading horsepower naturally gained excellent maneuverability, and the United States quickly gained a sharp weapon against zero-type by relying on the powerful aviation industry.

After 1943+ 10 was officially delivered to the navy in June, more and more F4F "wildcat" squadrons were replaced by bitch planes. By the end of the year, all large aircraft carriers of the US Navy were equipped with F6F-3, and the old F4F was handed over to small escort aircraft carriers. When these first-line fighter pilots fully understood their own landline, they regained their confidence and prepared to tear the arrogant zero with the intensive fire of 6 12.7 mm machine guns, so they made the following incredible achievements.

One night, a group of evil women patrolled near Guam and found 49 Japanese carrier aircraft hovering on the landing route over the Japanese-occupied Orot airport in Guam. They followed these planes unnoticed, shot down 30 planes one by one, and destroyed 19 on the runway. Another time, an evil female pilot dropped her auxiliary fuel tank on a model accurately and "smashed".

At first, Japanese pilots thought it was just an improved version of F4F, but after suffering, they found it was a brand-new American fighter, better than zero. F6F's cockpit armor and self-sealing fuel tank enable it to withstand zero-type 7.7mm machine gun projectiles. Compared with Zero Type, F6F is superior in speed, firepower and vertical maneuver, but inferior in endurance and hovering performance. The dominant place of zero type is turning and hovering with small radius. After being caught up by a vicious woman, Zero often gets rid of it with a small radius, and sometimes it can bite a vicious woman. The zero style is slightly dominant below 3000 meters, but above 5000 meters, the zero style becomes stiff and becomes a living target of evil women. In the later period of the war, F6F-5 has been able to cut into the inner circle of A6M5, changing rapidly. On the one hand, it is related to the improvement of the maneuverability of F6F-5, on the other hand, it is also related to the decline of the maneuverability of A6M5, which pursues higher speed.

1In June, 944, the United States attacked the Mariana Islands, a stronghold of Japan in the Pacific Ocean. On June 19, the largest air battle in the Pacific War broke out, and F6F fought fiercely with several Japanese planes. Beat back four consecutive attacks by Japanese fighters and bombers. The American plane lost 26 planes and the Japanese plane lost 336 planes! This battle is the "Mariana Turkey Hunting" battle.

1945, in the last few months of the war, the Japanese navy disappeared, and the idle F6F fleet could only perform some armed reconnaissance/search missions. In these missions, F6F usually mounts a 900-kilogram bomb under the belly or six rockets under the wing, and once it finds Japanese warships and merchant ships, it will strike them mercilessly.

Among many fighters in World War II, F6F's evil wife set an impossible record: in less than two years, F6F shot down 5 155 enemy planes, accounting for 80% of the 6,477 enemy planes shot down by pilots of the US Navy and Marine Corps!

Technical performance analysis

Performance comparison table of World War II fighters

Year model total length meter wingspan meter weight kilogram horsepower horsepower limit speed kilometer/hour voyage kilometer fixed ordnance wing area meter wing loading kilogram

1940 A6M2b zero type 2 1 type 9.0612.002,410 940533,502 20mx2/7.7mx222.4107.5.

1 941ki-43-1Hayabusa1type 8.8311.43 2 043 990 4911.

1940 F6F "bitch"10.2213.05 5800 2000 605 225812.7mmx631kloc-0/87.

1942 F4U "Pirates"10.2614.29 5556 21007181.60912.7mmx629/.

1939 P-38 Lightning11.5315.859,8061.425 (double shot) 666 3,025 20mmx1.

1939P-40Tomahawk 9.671.37 3.6071.150 570 56312.7mmx6

194 1 P-47 "thunderbolt"10.9212.43 6623 2300 764 76412.7mmx8

194 1 P-5 1 "Wild Horse" 9.8211.27 4,581.490 7031.529/kloc.

1937 Bf 109 e 8.74 9.86 2，770 1.200 578 1.090 20 MMX 1/7.92 MMX 2 16.35 16 1

194 1 Fw 190 a 9.00 10.50 4，460 1.700 640 1.450 20mm x2/ 13mm x2

1937 Hurricane 9.8212.193,31.280 5501.585 7.7mmx1223.97/.

1938 spitfire 9.121.22 4,6631.440 598 750 20mm2/7.7mmx22.3 209

The wing loading of a typical fighter in World War II is between 150 and 220kg/m2, except for Zero and P-38, and Zero is only 107.5kg/m2. The weight of the twin-engine P-38 is as high as 9806kg, but the true wing loading value of this aircraft cannot be found, which is estimated to be around 350 kg/m2. Actual combat also proves that this kind of aircraft has poor maneuverability. Surprisingly, German B f 109E wing loading has only 16 1 kg/m2, and its combat weight is only 2770kg. It is a light fighter.

On the surface, the wing loading advantage of the protagonist F6F and its contemporary F4U is not the most prominent, but if the fighter with wing loading data on it is divided by an engine horsepower, we will get the following ranking:

Model wing load/horsepower

F4U "Pirate" 0.090

F6F "bitch" 0.093

Hurricane 0. 107

A6M2b zero type 2 1 type 0. 1 14

Blast furnace 109E 0. 134

P-5 1 mustang 0. 142

Spitfire fighter 0. 145

F4U and F6F jumped to the first place with the ratio of 0.09, indicating that these two fighters have higher engine residual power and less energy loss after strenuous maneuvers, except the low wing loading. Although the wing loading of Zero fighter is very low, its engine horsepower is too small, which limits its further development. If F6F enters Europe as a land-based fighter, it will be superior to any fighter of Germany and allied countries.