Test Group #6: CW-21B, A6M2, F6F-3, F4U-1A, Ki-61 ('43), Macchi C.202 ('43), FW 190A-5 (Std) and FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata).
From 270 to 350 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 25 seconds; FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata), 24 seconds; Ki-61 ('43), 21 seconds; CW-21B, 20 seconds; A6M2, 20 seconds; F6F-3, 20 seconds; Macchi C. 202 ('43), 18 seconds; F4U-1A, 16 seconds.
To 370 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 30 seconds; FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata), 30 seconds; Ki-61 ('43), 29 seconds; CW-21B, 30 seconds; A6M2, 30 seconds; F6F-3, 27 seconds; Macchi C. 202 ('43), 24 seconds; F4U-1A, 21 seconds.
To 380 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 34 seconds; FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata), 34 seconds; Ki-61 ('43), 34 seconds; CW-21B, 37 seconds; A6M2, 37 seconds; F6F-3, 33 seconds; Macchi C. 202 ('43), 27 seconds; F4U-1A, 24 seconds.
To 390 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 39 seconds; FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata), 38 seconds; Ki-61 ('43), 39 seconds; CW-21B, 37 seconds; A6M2, 47 seconds; F6F-3, 38 seconds; Macchi C. 202 ('43), 30 seconds; F4U-1A, 28 seconds.
To 400 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 43 seconds; FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata), 43 seconds; Ki-61 ('43), 45 seconds; CW-21B, 59 seconds; A6M2, 59 seconds (top speed achieved/487 TAS); F6F-3, 45 seconds; Macchi C. 202 ('43), 34 seconds; F4U-1A, 31 seconds.
To 410 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 46 seconds; FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata), 47 seconds; Ki-61 ('43), 52 seconds; CW-21B, 1 minute 49 seconds (top speed achieved/501 TAS); F6F-3, 51 seconds; Macchi C. 202 ('43), 40 seconds; F4U-1A, 35 seconds.
To 420 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 51 seconds; FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata), 53 seconds; Ki-61 ('43), 1 minute 2 seconds; F6F-3, 1 minute; Macchi C. 202 ('43), 45 seconds; F4U-1A, 39 seconds.
To 430 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 58 seconds; FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata), 57 seconds; Ki-61 ('43), 1 minute 16 seconds; F6F-3, 1 minute 12 seconds; Macchi C. 202 ('43), 52 seconds; F4U-1A, 44 seconds.
To 440 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 1 minute 3 seconds; FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata), 1 minute 3 seconds; Ki-61 ('43), 1 minute 41 seconds (top speed achieved/531 TAS); F6F-3, 1 minute 27 seconds; Macchi C. 202 ('43), 59 seconds; F4U-1A, 49 seconds.
To 450 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 1 minute 10 seconds; FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata), 1 minute 10 seconds; F6F-3, 1 minute 51 seconds (top speed achieved/549 TAS); Macchi C. 202 ('43), 1 minute 13 seconds seconds; F4U-1A, 54 seconds.
To 460 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 1 minute 20 seconds; FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata), 1 minute 18 seconds; Macchi C. 202 ('43), 1 minute 29 seconds (top speed achieved/556 TAS); F4U-1A, 1 minute 1 second.
To 470 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 1 minute 29 seconds; FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata), 1 minute 25 seconds; F4U-1A, 1 minute 9 seconds.
To 480 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 2 minute 1 second; FW 190A-5 (1.62 ata), 1 minute 35 seconds (top speed achieved/590 TAS); F4U-1A, 1 minute 17 seconds.
To 490 kph IAS: FW 190A-5 (Std), 2 minutes 36 seconds (top speed achieved/593 TAS); F4U-1A, 1 minute 29 seconds.
To 500 kph IAS: F4U-1A, 1 minute 54 seconds (top speed achieved/608 TAS).
NOTES:
1. CW-21B ran faster and much cooler at 120% Mixture; this is consistent with Navy and Marine pilot's accounts of high power settings when flying Wildcats and Buffalos which used a different model of the same engine, even though it doesn't appear to apply to those aircraft's FMs; while not actually quicker than the A6M2, it is modeled just a hair faster at 10,000 ft, and a lot easier to fly straight and level.
2. A6M2 Zero Type 21 is hamstrung by its very poor cockpit layout and the difficulty of tracking its instruments' readings; this is made more difficult by the inconsistent trim response. Actual performance might be better for someone who has gotten used to it and can keep it on the straight and level. I couldn't get out of it soon enough.
3. The early F6F-3 Hellcat is fairly sluggish without the water injection that the F4U in this test boasts; it is further limited by its tendency to go straight up the microsecond the pilot's attention shifts from the climb indicator which is at best very deceptive; a single division up or down results in a couple of hundred meters' difference in three to five seconds. Like the Focke-Wulf, the elevator trim is either miles behind or suddenly catches up and in either case, you are fighting your stick's springs. Rudder trim is almost as bad, but the rudder response is not so sensitive as the FW or the Corsair's.
4. Corsair is still the hot ship in this bunch; the water injection really makes up for minor errors in trim and rudder application; it just bangs through every interval from 350 to 450 kph indicated in 5 seconds or less, and just goes at a steadily decreasing rate until it hits the 'wall' at around 605 kph true airspeed.
5. Ki-61 is just a sweet ride; the cockpit is attractive, the instruments are clear and accurate and it responds beautifully. It is not as quick as it feels, but it is so easy to fly accurately that it will be superior to many aircraft with higher performance FMs, especially if you can sucker them into a low speed contest where their controls are not going to be as cooperative.
6. Macchi MC 202 is sneaky quick, but the cockpit feels a bit cramped, with your virtual face mashed up against the upper instruments. It's pretty, but it seems much too close, even in Wide View. Like the Hellcat, the Zero and the Focke-Wulf, the ailerons are constantly slipping off to one side or the other and you find yourself making constant microcorrections--it's like when you are half asleep, nodding off in your chair and fighting to keep your head upright. Still, after the initial 'twist' from pushing the throttle and prop pitch forward, it holds course and altitude better than most, and instruments are accurate, if poorly located IMHO.
7. There is very little difference between the plain 'vanilla' 190A-5 and the 'souped up' 1.62 ata version with its WEP. For all intents and purposes, they are identical in acceleration up to 460 kph indicated at this altitude, with the same faults. On the other hand, the 1.62 ata version sounds faster. The poorly animated and out of focus instruments (in Wide and Normal FOVs) are hard to read and inaccurate, if not dishonest. The climb and dive indicator has 100m per minute divisions up to 500m per minute, but if that needle rises or falls slightly higher or lower than one division, you can expect an increase or loss of 100m in 5 seconds or so. As mentioned above, the trim is inconsistent and is either not felt or will suddenly seem to show up all at once, driving your nose sharply up or down as you reach the low to middle 400 kph range; this doesn't match Western Allied test reports and evaluations that I am familiar with, which report the elevator trim as predictable and consistent. The rudder is touchy as well; very minor changes can drive the vector ball across the screen (well, at least across the sight circle), and you often find yourself with a three degree course change in a 5 second/10 kph interval. This may be partly the fault of the older cockpit paint, which makes it harder to keep up with the aircraft as it accelerates, but it is an enormous pain in the neck.
cheers
horseback
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