P-40 Memories
by Bill Lyons
My memories of flying the Curtiss
P-40 are all from flying it out of Perry, Florida AAF Operational
Training (post-Advanced Flight Training as an Aviatioin Cadet
and pre-combat flying out of England in P-51's).
I found the P-40 to be a giant step up in terms of speed, power
and maneuverability over the Advanced Flight trainer, the AT-6.
But I found that flying the P-51 was a major advance upward
over the P-40, on all the same accounts. I thought it was wonderful
to fly the P-40 until I flew the P-51.
I flew the P-40 with the Allison engine of about 1200 horsepower.
The P-51's I flew were powered by the Rolls Royce 1650 HP engine,
plus it was a lighter plane (or maybe felt like it because of
the greater engine horsepower). In any event, the P-51 was significantly
better in performance, and ease and accuracy of maneuver --
to me, at any rate.
Suggest you might check on my view with others who flew both
planes.
© Bill
Lyons 2007
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