P-40 production

[cardboard_killer]

"[80 years ago today t]he first flight of a production model Curtiss 81A fighter (designated the P-40) takes place at Buffalo, New York. It is armed with two .50 caliber machine guns in the nose and one .30 caliber in each wing. The initial order is for 324 aircraft, with 230 being purchased by France. Deliveries to the US Army Air Corps and the French Armée de la Air are expected to begin in the summer."

 

[cardboard_killer]

[80 years ago today] "
• The Curtiss P-40B with improved protection and self-sealing fuel tanks and an additional .30 caliber machine gun in each wing (for a total of four plus the two .50s in the nose), has its maiden flight. The changes were ordered following observations of the Battle of France. Because of its greater weight, performance is lower than the P-40. The below aircraft will be attached to the 19th Pursuit Squadron at Wheeler Field and is the only airworthy survivor of Pearl Harbor:

 

 

- The British will designate this version the Tomahawk II. The Tomahawk IA has just completed acceptance trials following replacement of French instrumentation, flight controls, and guns with British, and 140 machines are being deployed to Egypt. "

 

[TRRA15]

The lower thrust line of the earlier P40 Allison engines gave them a really sleek look. If they omitted the nose guns ( M2 Browning .50 guns didn't really synch well anyway ) and incorporated the carburetor intake into just a slightly larger "chin" opening, it would've made for a really clean profile that would have paid off in extra speed IMO.

[cardboard_killer]

[80 years ago today] "• With Merlin engines in very short supply, the US orders 600 P-40Ks for lend-lease to China. This version incorporates a stronger Allison engine installed in the lengthened airframe of the Merlin (Packard) engined P-40F.

 

P-40Ks in Yunnan, China, 1944.

- Following Pearl Harbor and cancellation of the Curtiss P-60, the P-40K order will be taken over by the USAAF and increased to 1,325 with numbers going to China, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, and the Soviet Union. The Commonwealth designation is Kittyhawk III."

[Art-J]

Cool photo, but 1st and 3rd are Ns ;). 2nd, however, might be a K or might be an M.