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Fighter / Attack:
   Bell P-39 Airacobra
   Bell P-63 Kingcobra
   Brewster Buffalo
   Chance-Vought F-4U Corsair
   Curtiss P-40 Warhawk
   Curtiss SB2C Helldiver
   Douglas A-1 Skyraider
   Douglas A-26 Invader
   Douglas SBD Dauntless
   Fairey Firefly
   Focke-Wulf Fw 190
   Grumman F4F Wildcat
   Grumman F6F Hellcat
   Grumman F7F Tigercat
   Grumman F8F Bearcat
   Grumman TBF Avenger
   Hawker Hurricane
   Hawker Sea Fury
   Lockheed P-38 Lightning
   Messerschmitt Bf-109
   Mitsubishi A6M Zero-Sen
   North American P-51 Mustang

   Polikarpov I-16
   Republic P-47 Thunderbolt
   Supermarine Spitfire
   Yakovlev Yak-3
   Yakovlev Yak-9


Trainers:
  
Beechcraft AT-11 Kansan (C-45)
   Beechcraft T-34 Mentor
   Boeing / Stearman PT-17

   Commonwealth CA-25 Winjeel
   Commonwealth CA-1 Wirraway
   DeHavilland DHC-1 Chipmunk
   DeHavilland DH-82 Tiger Moth
   Fairchild PT-19 Cornell
   Hunting / Percival Provost
   Meyers OTW
   Nanchang CJ-6
   Naval Aircraft Factory N3N
   N. Am. BT-9 / BT-14 / Yale
   N. Am. T-6 Texan / SNJ / Harvard
   N. American T-28 Trojan

   Piaggio P149
   Ryan PT-22 Recruit

   Scottish Aviation T1 Bulldog
   Vultee BT-13 Valiant
   Yakovlev Yak-11
   Yakovlev Yak-18
   Yakovlev Yak-52


Bombers:
   Avro Lancaster
   Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress
   Boeing B-29 Superfortress
   Bristol Blenheim / Bolingbroke
   Consolidated B-24 Liberator
   Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer

   Douglas A-3 Skywarrior
   DeHavilland Mosquito
   Fairey Swordfish
   Heinkel He-111 / Casa 2.111

   Lockheed PV-2 Harpoon / Ventura
   Martin B-26 Marauder
   North American B-25 Mitchell


Transports:
   Beechcraft C-45 (AT-11)

   Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter (KC-97)
   Curtiss C-46 Commando
   Douglas C-47 Skytrain / Dakota
   Douglas C-54 Skymaster

   Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar
   Fairchild C-123 Provider
   Grumman C-1 Trader (S-2)
   Lockheed C-60 Lodestar
   Lockheed C-69 Constellation


Utility / Observation / Special Duty:
   Aeronca L-3 Grasshopper
   Aeronca L-16 Grasshopper
   Antonov AN-2 Colt
   Auster AOP 6/9
   Avro 652 Anson
   Avro Shackleton
   British Taylorcraft I-V
   Cessna L-19 / O-1 Bird Dog
   Cessna O-2 Super Skymaster
   Cessna T-50 / UC-78 Bobcat
   Consolidated PBY Catalina

   DeHavilland U-6A / L-20 Beaver
   Fairey Gannet
   Fairey Swordfish
   Fieseler Fi156 Storch
   Grumman S-2 Tracker (C-1)
   Grumman HU-16 Albatross
   Grumman OV-1 Mohawk
   Junkers Ju 52/3m

   Lockheed P2V Neptune
   Max Holste M.H.1521 Broussard
   Messerschmitt Bf 108 Taifun

   Noorduyn UC-64 Norseman
   North American L-17 Navion
   N. Am./ Rockwell OV-10 Bronco
   Piper L-4 Grasshopper
   Stinson L-5 Sentinel
   Taylorcraft L-2 Grasshopper
   Westland Lysander


Jets:
   Aero L-29 Delfin
   Aero L-39 Albatros
   Aermacchi MB-326
   Avro Vulcan
   BAC Strikemaster
   Blackburn (BAC) Buccaneer
   Canadair Tutor
   Cessna A-37 Dragonfly
   DeHavilland Vampire
   DeHavilland Venom
   English Electric Canberra
   English Electric Lightning
   Folland Gnat
   Fouga CM-170 Magister
   Gloster Meteor
   Grumman F9F Panther
   Hawker Hunter
   Hispano HA-200 Saeta
   Hunting Jet Provost
   Lockheed F-104 Starfighter
   Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star
   McDonnell-Douglas A-4 Skyhawk
   McDonnell-Douglas F-4 Phantom
   Messerschmitt Me-262
   Mikoyan MiG-15
   Mikoyan MiG-17
   Mikoyan MiG-21
   N. Am. F-86 Sabre / FJ-4 Fury
   N. Am. F-100 Super Sabre
   N. Am. / Rockwell T-2 Buckeye
   Northrop T-38 Talon / F-5
   PZL / WSK TS-11 Iskra
   Saab J35 Draken
   Soko G-2A Galeb
   Temco Pinto & Super Pinto


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Lockheed P-38 Lightning

(Variants/Other Names: F-4; F-5)


Lockheed P-38 Lightning
P-38 "Joltin' Josie" makes a low pass at the Cable Air Fair, Upland, California, USA in July 2002. This aircraft is operated by the Planes of Fame Air Museum, Chino, California. 
(Photo courtesy of Tony Zeljeznjak)

History: In 1937, the US Army Air Force expressed a need for a new high-altitude fighter design. The Lockheed Company answered the call with their first military airplane, the XP-38, which first flew on 27 January 1939. This experimental prototype was shortly followed by full-scale production of the P-38D, which was equipped with one 37mm gun and four 12.7mm (0.5 inch) guns in the nose.

At the time of its initial delivery to the USAAF in the fall of 1941, the Lightning was the fastest fighter in the American inventory. 143 P-38Ds were also delivered to the Royal Air Force just after Pearl Harbor, but due to an American ban on the export of turbochargers, the contract was cancelled and the aircraft were returned. During its production run, over a dozen model variants of the P-38 were built. Most changes from the early D-model involved improved armament or increased load-carrying capability. The most-built version was the P-38L, of which 3923 were built. (It is a little-known fact that a small number of Lightnings were built under license by the Consolidated-Vultee Corporation. 2,000 airplanes were contracted, but production was halted on VJ-Day after only 113 had been built.)

The Lightning gained fame in the hands of Army Major Richard I. Bong, whose 40 aerial victories were scored in the P-38, making him the highest-scoring American ace of the war. P-38 pilots were also credited with the downing of Japanese Admiral Yamamoto.

The final variants of the Lightning design, the F-4 and F-5, were photo-reconnaissance models used in Europe and the Far East. Pilots loved the airplane for its maneuverability, high-altitude capabilities and long flight endurance, which could reach almost 12 hours with a full external fuel load.

Nicknames: Fork-Tailed Devil; Pathfinder (P-38L carrying a nose-mounted Mickey radar.)

Specifications (P-38J):
    Engine: Two 1475hp Allison V-1710-111/113 V-12 piston engines
    Weight: Empty 12,800 lbs., Max Takeoff 21,600 lbs.
    Wing Span: 52ft. 0in.
    Length: 37ft. 10in.
    Height: 9ft. 10in.
    Performance:
        Maximum Speed at 25,000ft: 414 mph
        Service Ceiling: 44,000 ft
        Normal Range: 450 miles
    Armament:
        One 20-mm cannon in nose
        Four 12.7mm (0.5 inch) machine guns
        Two 1600 lb. bombs

Number Built: 10,037

Number Still Airworthy:  Approximately 5

Links:
CAF Centex Wing's P-38 Project
Elmendorf AFB P-38G (Ser.No. 42-13400)
Glacier Girl photos
The Lost Squadron -- Information about Glacier Girl, the P-38 retrieved from inside a glacier!
P-38 Crash Site -- Photos of archeological interest.
P-38 National Association & Museum, Riverside, California, USA.
P-38 Lightning Online
White Lightnin' -- Lefty Gardner's famous P-38.
Wild Bill's P-38 Page

 

 

[ Click for more great books about the P-38! ]

 

 


 


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All text and photos Copyright 2016 The Doublestar Group, unless otherwise noted.
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