NEW FIGHTERS

New Zealand Herald, Volume 79, Issue 24244, 9 April 1942, Page 4

NEW FIGHTERS

AMERICAN WAEPLANES LATE TYPES FOR BRITAIN Quick to profit from the candid reports of Royal Air Force pilots testing United States aircraft under the most arduous possible conditions) in actual combat, American engineers have, in th 3 last two years, evolved and perfected some outstanding* fighter machines. While it was generally agreed that earlier in the war American fighters supplied to Britain were lacking m several important respects, the successors of these early models have been ,compared favourably with some of Britain's best, and have, by repeated aerial victories, shown their superiority over -current enemy types. Three Demonstrated

Three of the new fighters, each from a leading American factory, were demonstrated before representatives of the British press at a large assembly stiation in Britain recently. The fighters seen on this occasion were the Curtiss Kittyhawk, the North-American Mustang, and the Bell Airacobra, all singleseaters of high performance. Best known is probably the Airacobra, one of the world's most successful unorthodox; aircraft, but the Kittyhawk has so far shown to greatest advantage in the air, having scored repeated successes against the German Luftwaffe and the Italian Regia Aeronautica in Africa, ! and against the Japanese in the Philippines. The Kittyhawk is the third of a series of fighters developed in recent years, and used in the present war. First was the Mohawk, which was not conspicuously successful. It was followed by the Tomahawk, a fine machine that scored heavily in recent fighting in North Africa, and one that is in extensive use. The Kittyhawk, however, while embodying the best features of its predecessors, is a considerably "cleaner" machine, having slimmer lines than the Tomahawk, and, it is said, a substantially improved performance. Details of performance and firepower are secret, but British reports of the machine referred to its fine turn of Epeed. Speed and Handling .The Mustang is generally similar in appearance to the Kittyhawk, and is favourably considered by British experts. It bears a close resemblance, externally, to the German Me. 109E, and this fact might cause some confusion among spotters., The test-pilot reported the Mustang to be responsive ana light on the controls, and those who saw its flight commented upon its manoeuvrabiuty. The Airacobra, already in service with the Royal Air Force, carries both cannon and machine-guns. It is a surprising machine, with the single Allison engine mounted behind the pilot, driving the propeller by means of a Jong snaft. In addition, the Airacobra has a tricycle undercarriage, a feature that was looked upon with suspicion until the nose-wheel proyed its ability to withstand heavy landings on smali, wartime emergencv fields. The Airacobra has been credited with a speed of 409 miles an hour, and even conserva-tive-British journals have estimated its maximum at 375. It is one of the most perfectly streamlined machines yet produced and British pilots like it.