Canadian WWII Aircraft for sale

[uwe]

   As for liking one over the other it is purely a academic/romanticized study. Of course I have never flow either and never will. The Hurricane appeals to me in both the ascetic and it's ability to perform even though much better aircraft were available. The men who flew them were unbelievably brave. Give me a P-47D any day of the week.

Kind of like the Wildcat. Not really a match for a Zero purely performancewise, but it was a workhorse and before the arrival of Hellcat and Corsair (not really suited for carrier work, most of them flew from island strips) there was no alternative.

[godofthunder]

 Exactley! The Wildcat at the time was the only available plane...................well there was the Brewster Buffalo. On second thought lets not talk about that one.  

[Pilgrim]

Just to move to a different theatre of operations.........................

Any of you ever read Samurai



...by Japan's #1 fighter ace who survived the war, Saburo Sakai?



I read it in high school and still have that book.  What a remarkable man and fantastic pilot.  His description of he dogfight which resulted in his being badly wounded and losing the sight in one eye is one of the most spellbinding I have ever read.

[godofthunder]

 Funny the Brits and Newzelanders cleared the F4U for carrier duty right away. Sure the hose nose was a handful but I have always found it interesting that both countries were very happy to have the plane.

[godofthunder]

 Yep read it a couple of times! Always amazed me he could land on  carrier with one eye and no depth perception.

Just to move to a different theatre of operations.........................

Any of you ever read Samurai



...by Japan's #1 fighter ace who survived the war, Saburo Sakai?



I read it in high school and still have that book.  What a remarkable man and fantastic pilot.  His description of he dogfight which resulted in his being badly wounded and losing the sight in one eye is one of the most spellbinding I have ever read.

[TBird1958]

Yes, to Samurai, several times.

[uwe]

Funny the Brits and Newzelanders cleared the F4U for carrier duty right away. Sure the hose nose was a handful but I have always found it interesting that both countries were very happy to have the plane.

Well, it was a great plane, just not a great carrier plane (not that the Brits and Kiwis would have really known, they didn't have your carrier experience and expertise), but that didn't play much of a role once you were successfully island hopping and the Hellcat as the new carrier plane was superior enough to the Zero.

[Aussie Mark]

In keeping with the topic of WWII aircraft and rectal references, if there are any forum members from countries where cricket is popular, you may have heard of Keith Miller - Australian cricket legend and WWII air force pilot ... http://www.awm.gov.au/exhibitions/fiftyaustralians/32.asp

Michael Parkinson famously interviewed him on TV once and asked Miller about the pressure of international cricket matches. Miller's reply was simply "Pressure is a Messerschmitt up your arse"

[godofthunder]

  Yes I would think anything after that would be child's play. Thanks for posting that Mark, I had never heard of the "Nugget" quite a story, one of so many.

In keeping with the topic of WWII aircraft and rectal references, if there are any forum members from countries where cricket is popular, you may have heard of Keith Miller - Australian cricket legend and WWII air force pilot ... http://www.awm.gov.au/exhibitions/fiftyaustralians/32.asp

Michael Parkinson famously interviewed him on TV once and asked Miller about the pressure of international cricket matches. Miller's reply was simply "Pressure is a Messerschmitt up your arse"

[Aussie Mark]

Thanks for posting that Mark, I had never heard of the "Nugget" quite a story, one of so many.

You're welcome.  Miller was the closest thing to a rock star that cricket had in the 1940s and 1950s - he was rumoured to have nailed Princess Margaret at one point too (just like Mick Jagger)

The date: September 19, 1948. The place: the lawns of Balmoral Castle, Scotland. The occasion: an informal farewell party given by King George VI and the Putting on the style: Princess Margaret with Keith Miller at Balmoral in 1948 Queen for Don Bradman and his invincible Australian cricket team, unbeaten through their long tour of England.

The man strolling at the shoulder of Princess Margaret, then 19, is Keith Miller, then 27, a wartime Australian Air Force night-fighter pilot who had survived in combat over Europe longer than the average three-week life-span accorded most of his colleagues.

He once walked away from a terrible crash and thereafter batted and bowled fast for Australia with devastating panache.

Five years later, Miller was back in England on his last cricket tour overseas. One day, an official with the Australian team announced pompously: 'I shan't be joining you for dinner tonight. I've been invited to Buckingham Palace.' 'As a matter of fact,' murmured Miller, 'So have I. But I shan't be going through the same door as you.' Don't ask me. I don't know the answer. I just love this picture of two people in the bloom of youth.

[uwe]

At leat he stayed within the Commonwealth then.

[TBird1958]

Here's my Thanksgiving contribution.............

Malcolm Hood P-51, complete with Invasion Stripes!

Cheers 

[Big_Stu]

not that the Brits and Kiwis would have really known

True, they didn't use them all that much - but when they did...................

[uwe]

Fawlty Rudders: Don't mention ze Bismarck!!!

The irony is: The Swordfish, ancient as it was, could fly so low above sea level, yet remain stable, I doub't if any other, more modern torpedo bomber of the time could have been equally successful. The Bismarck's ant-aircraft guns couldn't go low enough for the lumbering Swordfish which, flying so slow, had all the time in the world to take aim, undisturbed by German fire.

When the Bismarck was being built - it devoured huge capacities, several armies could have been fully equipped with the resources and money that went into it and its sistership Tirpitz -, ze Führer visited the docks. Never much of a navy man, he looked at the huge rudder system of the Bismarck and frowned: "What happens if this is damaged, can the ship still steer?" He never got an answer. Well, in 1940 he did.

[Pilgrim]

Here's my Thanksgiving contribution.............

Malcolm Hood P-51, complete with Invasion Stripes!

Cheers 

A nice Washington wine, and themed appropriately for the thread!!  You rock!