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Gotta agree with you there. Have meet a few old fighter pilots in my travels, from WW2 and later jet era as well and they are a breed to themselves, almost all are laid back and casual, up for a chat after a few beers.
Once met a tail gunner from an Australian crewed Lancaster, a rather rare man.
I was working on my glider pilot's license many a year ago and had a turn at flying a few light planes, but that's as close as I've ever got to being a fighter pilot .

droid wrote: Which twin engined fighter-bomber - Beaufighter or Mosquito!!!!!
Droid

Hmmm, actually its gotta be the ME-110

Mind you though the Mozzie was an impressive bit of kit, and versatile too.
Lowel level ground attack, high level reconnaisance, night fighter.
And more impressively, in bomber guise it could carry the same weight of bombs as a B-17 flying fortress!!!
Yes, really

Ben

Currently building models (1/72) of all RAF/RAAF/RCAF planes that fought in the European Theatre ww2
Will move onto Pacific Theatre later - my dad was an RAF fitter/wireless operator in Burma - wish I'd picked his brains when he was alive - 2 walls already covered!

Wasn't the Bf110 known as the German Mosquito?
(runs off to get book)
Sorry - Ju88
That's the trouble with the German planes - too many choices!

The B17 probably carried so much ammo for its 10 or so MGs that it could only carry 8 bombs.

Ben,

The ME 110 looked good on the ground

droid,

I've got a book called Beaufighters over Burma and it's not a bad read. what aircraft did your old man service on? Unfortunately the Pacific is a largely forgotten theatre, especially the Burma and Borneo areas. I'm off to Borneo in October so I will finally get to wander around some of the old battlefields there.

Good luck with the models.

Not sure - he didn't talk much about it, except to claim that he spent much of his time smoking in a slit trench! But I hope it was Beaufighters or Hurricanes!

Mate, if he was a fitter/wireless op and he was aircrew, then he was possibly gunner/navigator trained as well, depending on when he served. So he could have worked on any of the following:

Dakotas, Hudsons, Beaufighters, Blenhiems, Beauforts, plus a collection of other aircraft that required a separate radio operator, that don't come to mind at the moment.
If he wasn't aircrew, then he could have worked on any aircraft in the theatre.
Anyone help out?
If you know his squadron, it is easy to work out what they flew.

And I'm thinking a slit trench would be a good thing when bombs or bullets are landing all over the place

omg...so many ww2 plane nuts, this is great! i dunno where to start...

droid, the Me109s produced after the war were the hispanoswesas (sp) were they not? although the airframe was the same it was actually a different aircraft!

Hilter canceling "sealion" was britains savour thats true, although its said if he had continued bombing RAF fields for another 2 weeks he would of run us into the ground! penshurst airfeild anyone? lol

As for twin engined, thats a hard one!! i would say the bleinhem but it was a bit wack really, but then the beaufighter was heavy, i think im more of a mossi man myself, although i think the wellington really did look great!

Correct me if im wrong, but the reason the ju88 was know as the "german mosquito" was because of the nasty sound it made when it went into the final bomb run dive? a loud whining buzzing noise...(pity theres no ju88s left flying!)

My fav axis twin engined plane has to be the Doriner Do217, verstile, light, powerful and looks great. It had a massive run during the war in various different versions but my fav has to be the experiement "mistel" version which launched a small jet powered plane from its fuselarge!!

Ive had the joy of flying a cessna 172 and its the ONLY thing i can say is more fun than riding my bike! I LOVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE it, and im still saving for my licence tho, will be a few years yet!

Considering these planes are small engined light little trainers, they are still nice and easy to fly, and the slightest movement on the stick or pedals will produce the oddest of sensations! Landing is also not as hard as people would have you believe, its the taking off you need to get right! Also i think i almost shat myself during my one and only loop, god knows what sort of forces were exherted on the ww2 pilots!

droid, what aircraft are u currantly modelling? i have a load of surplus AM parts and decals here for various aircraft from the ww2 theatre if you intrested?

Any of you guys going to biggin hill this year?

Thanks for that Toby. At the moment I'm half way through a Coastal Command B17, and a 1/24 Mustang - another Merlin engined plane!
My info is gleaned from various books, except a facsimile copy of Jane's which I can't relocate after putting it somewhere 'safe'. You know how it is!
Like you I'm made up at the number of WW2 plane nuts on here. Maybe it's summat to do with the sound a Storm makes with loud pipes on

A meet at one of the Museums might be a goer. Cosford is just down the road from me!

ATB

Droid

Isn't there a WW2 aircraft forum you guys can waffle on in?

yeah there is sharpe but they moan we talk about storms too much :-P

Droid, sorry dude ive got nothing in those scales! 1:24th is HUGE! im quite a fan of the early B version mustangs, i love the cannopy on the older ones, much more like the kittyhawk!

I reccon a meet at a musem would be well good, either that or one of those memorial fly past days somewhere, they seem to be on every other weekend in the summer!

Toby

Sharpe1 wrote:Isn't there a WW2 aircraft forum you guys can waffle on in?

Makes a change from babies

Never thought it would start this much debate

so, why your in the mood, joke, never mind then

Thoughts on these please,

long ranger fighter escort
Mustang or Thunderbolt

British bomber
Lancaster or Halifax

Yank bomber
B17 Fortress or Liberator

Alan

A couple of years ago I stayed with my children at the Windermere Hydro on a last minute hotle deal. At 9.30am I was rowing across a peaceful Windermere, beautiful morning, ablsolute perfection, when a Spitfire flew low over the lake and right over the top of us. Absolutely bloody marvellous!

Went to the Norwich Air Museum on Saturday - had a good look round and just had to buy a model of a Buccaneer to build - haven't done one for years!

badger...the bubble cannopied thunderbolt any day, beaut doll markings and the works, great planes if a little heavy!

Halifax is a great choice, they were under-rated and the basis for so many of our "heavies" although i still love the short-stirling