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The Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress “Texas Raiders” of the Commemorative Air Force starts its engines at Warbirds Over Dallas this past October. Note the ground crew ready with the fire extinguishers.⁣ ⁣ Note the slots on the wing just behind the engine nacelles- they’re the exhaust slots from the intercooler of the Flying Fortress’s turbosupercharger. ⁣ ⁣ The turbosupercharger is driven by exhaust gases from the radial engines- the turbine of the turbosupercharger compresses incoming air and delivers it to the engine, improving the engine’s power output at high altitude as it’s being fed compressed air as if it were operating at a lower altitude. ⁣ ⁣ However, one of the thermodynamic consequences of compressing the air is that it heats up and this can decrease the air density, offsetting the very compression you’re trying to accomplish. Intercoolers are used in turbosuperchargers reduce the air temperature and can also increase the pressure of compression by virtue of the flow restriction by the internal fins in the intercooler. ⁣ ⁣ If you look at the leading edges of the B-17’s wing, there are rectangular openings which are the intakes for incoming air that’s compressed by the turbosuperchargers and another intake that’s for the cooling air that flows through the intercooler. The exhaust air from the intercoolers is vented out through those slots on the top of the B-17’s wing.⁣ ⁣ #Avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #airport #planespotting #WingsOverDallas2021⁣ ⁣ #Boeing #B17 #FlyingFortress #instagramaviation #igaviationcontest #mil_aviation_originals #USAAF #instaaviation ⁣#TexasRaiders #CommemorativeAirForce⁣ ⁣ #AvGeeksAero #AvGeekNation #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge #TeamAvGeek (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/CW94SSbsVkf/?utm_medium=tumblr

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While 1941 was a dark year for the Allies especially in the Pacific, the exploits of the Flying Tigers against a numerically superior Japanese force boosted American morale early in the war.⁣ ⁣ The leader of the Flying Tigers, General Claire Chennault, rigorously trained his men to capitalize on the strengths of the P-40 Warhawk against the more maneuverable Japanese fighters. They avoided a turning fight and used the Warhawk’s speed and sturdiness in slashing attacks at high speed. Contrary to popular belief, the Flying Tigers never battled against the legendary Mitsubishi A6M Zero- it was likely a case of mistaken identity as the Zero was a naval fighter and the Imperial Japanese Navy had withdrawn its Zero units from China before the Flying Tigers went into action. ⁣ ⁣ Their main opposition would have been the Nakajima Ki-43 Oscar and the elderly Ki-27 Kate fighters of the Imperial Japanese Army. In those days, just about any Japanese fighter was referred to as a "Zero". Though not as a capable as the Zero, the Oscar was a more nimble and maneuverable fighter than the P-40 Warhawk. ⁣ ⁣ Flown in the right way, the Warhawk could effectively battle the Japanese. The Flying Tigers astutely realized the P-40 had a climb and speed advantage and used their P-40s in slashing attacks, avoiding the turning fight with the more nimble Japanese fighters. ⁣ ⁣ The bigger ailerons of the Oscar that gave it outstanding roll maneuverability were also a liability as Warhawk pilots would keep their speed up during dogfights- the higher speeds put higher dynamic loads on the Oscar’s ailerons, making the aircraft sluggish and less maneuverable.⁣ ⁣ #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas  #airport #texas #igtexas #WingsOverDallas2021 #CommemorativeAirForce⁣ ⁣ #Curtiss #P40 #Warhawk #FlyingTigers #USAAF #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight  ⁣ ⁣ #AvGeekNation #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/CVwSKSSslnc/?utm_medium=tumblr

The B-17G “Texas Raiders” on its bombing run! Well, sort of. You get the idea. ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ During the strategic bombing campaign against Nazi Germany, most B-17 Flying Fortress missions were flown from 25,000-30,000 feet, but if the target was weakly defended by flak, the bombing missions could take place at considerably lower altitudes on the order of 15,000 feet.⠀ ⠀ ⠀ Bombing accuracy tailed off with increasing altitude as did flak accuracy, for that matter. From the IP (Initial Point) where the bombing run started, to the actual bomb drop point was about 10 miles and took about 30 seconds to traverse while the bombardier took control of the aircraft via the Norden bombsight. It was an agonizingly long 30 seconds to fly straight and level to the bomb drop point! ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ USAAF planners were not biased by notions of the accuracy of high altitude daylight bombing. Data from training and ongoing missions showed that a bomber at 20,000 feet at a 1.2% chance of hitting a 100x100 foot square target zone. That meant you needed just over 200 bombers to have a 90% chance of destroying that target. ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ The standard 500 lb bomb had a lethal radius of under 90 feet and it dug a crater just two feet deep and nine feet across. As a result, the need for 1000-plane bombing missions against key targets becomes pretty obvious!⠀ ⠀ ⠀ It’s been said that “amateurs study tactics, professionals study logistics.” A typical Eighth Air Force B-17 bombing mission used the same amount of aviation fuel as what Nazi Germany could produce in a single month for the Luftwaffe. And in 1944-1945, there were some days where there were several such missions mounted by both the Eighth Air Force in the UK and the Fifteenth Air Force based in Italy. ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Boeing #B17 #FlyingFortress #TexasRaiders #CommemorativeAirForce #USAAF #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 ⠀ ⠀ #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge #AvGeeksAero #AvgeekNation (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/B72IIWmhFlW/?igshid=5bfp9pabdlgm

Long before the A-10 became known for being designed around the massive GAU-8/A Avenger cannon, Bell took the same approach in 1939, designing the P-39 Airacobra around the 37mm M4 auto cannon which fired through the propeller hub, necessitating the moving of the engine to the mid-fuselage behind the pilot. ⠀ ⠀ Designed originally as a high speed interceptor, it was envisioned that the Airacobra would only need one or two 37mm rounds to down enemy aircraft. Design changes during the flight test program ended up hobbling the performance of the P-39, like the removal of the turbosupercharger which made the Airacobra handle like a pallet of bricks above 15,000 feet. ⠀ ⠀ The M4 was unpopular with pilots as rounds had a drooping trajectory (it dropped harshly over distance) thanks to its low muzzle veloicity that made the gun mostly impractical in dogfights. ⠀ ⠀ During the Solomon Islands campaign in the Southwest Pacific, enterprising PT boat crews salvaged M4 cannons from crashed and damaged P-39s at Henderson Field on Guadalcanal and mounted them on pedestals on the bow of their patrol boats. On the PT boats, the M4 cannons were lethal to Japanese landing barges used to move supplies. Pedestal mounts were progressively improved and by early 1944, the M4 cannon was mounted as the standard bow gun on PT boats coming from American shipyards. ⠀ ⠀ P-39s supplied to the Soviets under Lend-Lease did not include armor piercing shells for the M4- only HE shells were delivered. Contrary to common belief, Soviet pilots didn’t use the M4 cannon for tank busting, that role was left to the Ilyushin Il-2 Shturmoviks. ⠀ ⠀ November Aviation Photo Challenge | @kjdphoto1971 | #1119planes | “WW2" | Day 24⠀ ⠀ #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Bell #P39 #Airacobra ##CommemorativeAirForce #USAAF #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #AvgeekNation #WingsOverDallas2016 #WoD2016 #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/B5QpNj5BK8j/?igshid=1c69lichb52l9

Vietnam was truly a helicopter war- approximately 12,000 helicopters of all makes flew in the Vietnam War and of those that flew, 5607 were lost. ⁣ ⁣ Of the all the helicopters that served in Vietnam, 6987 were Bell UH-1 Iroquois “Hueys”- and 3304 of them were lost in the war. To put that number in perspective, Bell produced 10,005 UH-1s from 1957 to 1975. Of those produced, the lion’s share went to the US Army, 9216 airframes. Just over one out of every three Hueys delivered to the US Army were lost in Vietnam! ⁣ ⁣ For comparison, 40% of all B-17s produced were lost in the Second World War. ⁣ ⁣ 1151 Huey pilots were killed in action in Vietnam. That’s just a bit over 50% of all helicopter pilots killed in action in Vietnam. Non pilot Huey crew killed action (door gunners, etc) was 1231, again, this nearly half of all non-pilot helicopter crews killed in action in Vietnam. ⁣ ⁣ It’s very possible that no other aircraft in history has flown more combat flight time than the Bell UH-1- the Army’s Huey fleet from 1966 to 1975 flew 10.6 million flight hours in Vietnam. ⁣ ⁣ #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Bell #UH1 #Iroquois #Huey #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge #AvGeeksAero (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/B2SyeTlBdRc/?igshid=7p3gs3h6q8m7

The B-17G “Texas Raiders” on its bombing run! Well, sort of. You get the idea. ⠀ ⠀ During the strategic bombing campaign against Nazi Germany, most B-17 Flying Fortress missions were flown from 25,000-30,000 feet, but if the target was weakly defended by flak, the bombing missions could take place at considerably lower altitudes on the order of 15,000 feet. Bombing accuracy tailed off with increasing altitude as did flak accuracy, for that matter. ⠀ ⠀ Interestingly in the Pacific Theater, most B-17 missions were flown from medium altitude and the B-17s were even trialed in low altitude skip-bombing, but that was a mission better suited to medium bombers like the B-25 Mitchell or A-20 Havoc that were more maneuverable at low level.⠀ ⠀ USAAF planners were not biased by notions of the accuracy of high altitude daylight bombing. Data from training and ongoing missions showed that a bomber at 20,000 feet at a 1.2% chance of hitting a 100x100 foot square target zone. That meant you needed just over 200 bombers to have a 90% chance of destroying that target. The standard 500 lb bomb had a lethal radius of under 90 feet and it dug a crater just two feet deep and nine feet across. As a result, the need for 1000-plane bombing missions against key targets becomes pretty obvious!⠀ ⠀ The B-17 did have fairly respectable high altitude performance thanks to a lightly loaded wing. Postwar, some B-17 target drones were flown to 40,000 feet and one Boeing test crew took a B-17 to just over 43,000 feet, setting an altitude record for four-engined piston aircraft. ⠀ ⠀ #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Boeing #B17 #FlyingFortress #TexasRaiders #CommemorativeAirForce #USAAF #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #AvgeekNation #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4v7nb-hZYR/?igshid=1e57rs1eq0gyp

Only the B-52 Stratofortress has had a longer career as a bomber with USAF than the Douglas A-26/B-26 Invader. Introduced in 1944 as an attack bomber to replace the Douglas A-20 Havoc, the first A-26s went into action in June 1944-September 1944. ⠀ ⠀ Redesignated B-26 after the war, the Invaders were one of the first aircraft in action over Korea and carried out the first bomber mission against targets in North Korea in June 1950. Invaders also flew the last combat mission of the Korean War, dropping bombs just minutes before the Armistice went into effect. ⠀ ⠀ The Invaders were back in action again in 1960, this time in Southeast Asia. Structural fatigue issues led On-Mark Engineering to rebuild 40 Invaders to the Counter-Invader standard to fly special operations missions in Vietnam. The aircraft were redesignated back to A-26 in acknowledgement of Thai political sensitivities. The Counter-Invaders flew interdiction missions along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The last Invaders were retired from the USAF in 1972 which were the last examples serving with the Air National Guard special operations units. That’s nearly 30 years of service with the USAF. Not bad for a WW2-era bomber! ⠀ ⠀ The B-52 didn’t break the Invader’s service record until 1983.⠀ ⠀ Of the forty A-26 Counter-Invaders rebuilt for service in Vietnam, six survive. Five are in museums. "Special Kay" here is the only one flying, restored by a warbird group at Fort Worth Meacham Field. "Special Kay" is the last of the forty Invaders that were rebuilt and upgraded by On Mark Engineering. They did an impressive job with the restoration and it's a fitting flying memorial to the secret missions flown by the Air Commando Squadrons over Laos and the Ho Chi Minh Trail.⠀ ⠀ November Aviation Photo Challenge | @kjdphoto1971 | #1119planes | “Bomber" | Day 12⠀ ⠀ #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #KRBD #RBD #Dallas #airport #texas #igtexas #Douglas #B26 #A26 #Invader #CounterInvader #SpecialKay #CommemorativeAirForce #USAF #WW2 #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #AvgeekNation #WingsOverDallas2018 #WoD2018 #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge (at Dallas Executive Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4x9IjsBU7g/?igshid=13rkf6m2qa314