Were 20mm Hispanos used on P-38's Reliable?

[WTE_Galway]

The inadequacies of 0.50 cal became really clear by Korea.

You only have to compare the effectiveness of the 6 x 0.50 cal in the USAF Sabres with the pair of 30mm Aden (a UK revolver cannon which was a direct copy of the WWII German Mauser MG 213C) which were fitted to the Aussie built CAC Sabres to get the idea.

Its actually curious the Germans did not pursue the 20 mm MG213 and 30mm MG213c revolver cannon route during the war as the MG213 was fully developed quite early (circa 1942) and had excellent rate of fire for a 20mm cannon.

Originally Posted by NukeItFromOrbit

A bit off-topic but did any P-38 variants with the 37mm cannon see combat? Considering the tally I've gotten in IL2 with the 37mm cannon on the P-39, I'd be interested to learn what pilots and engineers thought of this weapon.

The 37mm equipped P-38 was the P-38D.

A quick google reveals at least one victory in combat ... Lt. Eliza Shahan of the 27th FS in a P38D shared in the destruction of an Fw200 off the coast of Iceland on August 14th 1942. However it appears that none of the operational P38D were ever actually fitted with the 37mm.

Originally Posted by www.historyofwar.org

http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_P-38D.html

The P-38D was not fully combat ready. It was meant to be armed with four .50 calibre machine guns and one 37mm cannon, but none carried the cannon. However it did carry self sealing fuel tanks, armour around the cockpit and a low pressure oxygen system, and was officially recognised as suitable for combat.

[secretone]

Most memoirs of the aerial ops in wwii seem to have been written by pilots or senior officers. I have read many of these and enjoyed them very much. But as an armchair historian, I would also be be very interested in reading the memoirs of maintenance personnel (techs and management) and intelligence types to learn more about real world problems such as this and how they were dealt with behind the scenes.

Pilots were very important people but they were just the tip of a very large spear.

[WTE_Galway]

Originally Posted by secretone

Most memoirs of the aerial ops in wwii seem to have been written by pilots or senior officers. I have read many of these and enjoyed them very much. But as an armchair historian, I would also be be very interested in reading the memoirs of maintenance personnel (techs and management) and intelligence types to learn more about real world problems such as this and how they were dealt with behind the scenes.

Pilots were very important people but they were just the tip of a very large spear.

Plenty of that sort of stuff about .. here is just a few ...

http://www.woodfieldpublishing.co.uk...en-uk/d76.html




On the subject of the P38 there is also kelly Johnson's biography:

[BadAim]

Funny, I've never read about any problems with the Hispano in the P-38, but I've read several times about problems with freezing at high altitudes in the Corsairs and the F6F's. I suspect that part of this is due to the much more temperate climate that these birds were flying in late in the war, and also the south pacific air war tended to be fought at lower altitudes.