THE WORLD WAR TWO GROUP discussion
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Jonny wrote: "Robert Taylor did a nice painting of a Pete; https://www.brooksart.com/Dawnoperati..."
A nice painting, Jonny.
From William Green's War Planes Of The Second World War: Flying Boats- Volume Five.One of the most successful amphibious flying boats of WW II was the Supermarine Walrus. First built with an all-metal hull and flown in 1933, the Walrus went on to become the first aircraft of its kind to be catapulted from a warship with a full military load. Supermarine built 287 Walrus aircraft, and then production was shifted to Saunders-Roe, which went on to construct 453 more. Production ceased in 1944. The Saunders-Roe aircraft, known as Walrus II, had a wooden hull and a 775 hp Pegasus engine.
A strength of the aircraft was versatility. They flew recce, gunnery spotting, ASW, communications link, courier missions, and vital air/sea rescues – especially in the Channel and North Sea. They could be catapulted or winched over the side for water takeoffs. On 18 November 1940 the Walrus aboard HMS Dorsetshire undertook a bombing raid on targets in Italian Somaliland. That doesn't sound promising in an airplane with a max speed of 124 mph. It returned to the ship, which doesn't say much for Italian AA gunnery prowess.
A Walrus on the water:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...
A Walrus on a carrier flight deck.
https://www.lonesentry.com/images/wp-...
The picture of the Walrus on the carrier deck looks pretty ungainly, its hard to imagine it taking off successfully!
Wow, that Walrus could barely go fast enough to kill you in a crash. The aircraft had to be pretty tough to do all those missions in the North Sea and surrounding areas.
That's an hilarious measure. I may use that at car shows ...Mike wrote: "Wow, that Walrus could barely go fast enough to kill you in a crash. "
carl wrote: "That's an hilarious measure. I may use that at car shows ...Mike wrote: "Wow, that Walrus could barely go fast enough to kill you in a crash. ""
I think I would pass on any crash at 124 mph!
From Chris Chant's
Aircraft of World War II.I have long been interested in unusual aircraft from both World Wars. One such was the Bell P-39 Airacobra. It was designed to create an advanced fighter by placing the engine in the center and driving the propeller by means of a long shaft passing under the pilot's seat. The idea was to free the nose for heavier armament, improve agility by placing the engine's huge weight near the center of gravity, and utilize a tricycle landing gear. Unfortunately, the design wasn't the breakthrough it was intended to be. The lack of an appropriate turbocharger hindered performance at higher altitudes and kept the Airacobra from effective use in the skies over Western Europe. They performed better at low and medium heights, and the heavy nose armament and stout armor made them good ground support planes. The U.S. Army considered the P-39 a disappointment, yet 9,590 were built. Of these 4,924 were shipped to the Soviet Union. It was common for air engagements on the Eastern Front to take place at much lower altitudes than over England, France, or Germany. The Russians liked the good armor protection of the P-39, as well as the nose guns. Variations in armament included a 20mm Hispano-Suiza cannon and two .50 machine guns, and later a 37mm cannon and four machine guns.
Grigori Andreevich Rechkalov, twice a Hero of the Soviet Union, amassed 50 aerial victories, with 47 at the controls of a P-39. The UK, Australia, and Italy flew the Airacobras too. The only RAF squadron with P-39s was No. 601, but they only flew one operational mission. The RAF didn't like the Airacobra.
Here's a pic of an Airacobra in Soviet colors:
https://picfiles.alphacoders.com/340/...
This plane didn't end up too well:
http://www.asisbiz.com/il2/P-39/Bell-...
Very interesting info on the Airacobra MR9. You might enjoy this for a bit of fun:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-bFb...
'Aussie Rick' wrote: "Very interesting info on the Airacobra MR9. You might enjoy this for a bit of fun:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-bFb..."
Apparently the Soviets used the Airacobras effectively against Stukas, Ju-88s, Me-110s, and earlier model Me-109s.
'Aussie Rick' wrote: "Very interesting info on the Airacobra MR9. You might enjoy this for a bit of fun:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-bFb..."
The scene is from V2. Escape from Hell
Here's an article in Deadline:
https://deadline.com/2020/02/searchin...
I guess this only works on small screens (film was planned for vertical viewing - as in mobile phones - explained in the Deadline article) - the VFX looks like a video game - and the actor only shows very limited talent when it comes to varying facial expression - there is a trailer on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcoAr...
For airplane enthusiasts - there is a Dutch TV series out "Vliegende Hollanders" about the conflicts between Anthony Fokker and Albert Pliesman as they try and set up KLM after WWI.
VFX was used for almost all airplanes - although also intended for the small screen the image quality (and the attention to detail) is fabulous.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlDJr...
An arrival with this morning's mail:
Battle Line: The United States Navy, 1919-1939 by Thomas and Trent Hone.
Manray9 wrote: "An arrival with this morning's mail: Battle Line: The United States Navy, 1919-1939 by Thomas and Trent Hone."Nice, how does it look?
'Aussie Rick' wrote: "Manray9 wrote: "An arrival with this morning's mail: Battle Line: The United States Navy, 1919-1939 by Thomas and ..."Good, especially for those interested in warship design and construction, as well as fleet organization.
Hey all, I was curious: I am looking for some good and comprehensive books that talk about the various tanks, planes, and ships, of World War Two. What would you recommend?
Creighton wrote: "Hey all, I was curious: I am looking for some good and comprehensive books that talk about the various tanks, planes, and ships, of World War Two. What would you recommend?"Creighton: There are so many! Here are a few recommendations --
Allied Tanks of World War II 1939-1945 by David Porter.
Aircraft of World War II by Chris Chant.
War Planes Of The Second World War: Flying Boats- Volume Five by William Green. This is one of a series of ten that includes floatplanes, flying boats, four books on fighters and four on bombers. They're not so easy to find at a reasonable price.
American Cruisers of World War II: A Pictorial Encyclopedia by Steve Ewing.Peter Smith's excellent --
The Great Ships Pass: British Battleships at War 1939-1945.
Monitors of the Royal Navy: How the Fleet Brought the Big Guns to Bear by Jim Crossley.
The E-Boat Threat by Bryan Cooper.
The Eclipse of the Big Gun: The Warship, 1906-45 by Robert Gardiner (Ed.).PBY: The Catalina Flying Boat
by Roscoe Creed.
The American Flying Boat: An Illustrated History by Richard C. Knott.
Sunderland at War by Chaz Bowyer.
Rare Birds: Forgotten Aircraft of the Second World War by Charles R. G. Bain.
Blimps & U-Boats: U.S. Navy Airships in the Battle of the Atlantic by J. Gordon Vaeth.There are many Osprey titles focused on individual ship, aircraft, and tank types, these include --
Gloster Gladiator Aces by Andrew Thomas.
British Motor Torpedo Boat 1939–45 by Angus Konstam.
M3 Lee/Grant Medium Tank 1941–45 by Steven Zaloga. This list could go into the thousands. If you could be more specific, I could give you a targeted list.
Creighton wrote: "Hey all, I was curious: I am looking for some good and comprehensive books that talk about the various tanks, planes, and ships, of World War Two. What would you recommend?"Well, for German tanks there are some by Thomas Anderson which might be of interest:
Tiger
Panther
Ferdinand and Elefant Tank Destroyer
Sturmgeschütz: Panzer, Panzerjäger, Waffen-SS and Luftwaffe Units 1943–45
Panzer IVThere's also this Osprey compilation:
Hitler's Tanks: German Panzers of World War IIThen there's this excellent volume:
Encyclopedia Of German Tanks Of World War Two: The Complete Illustrated Directory of German Battle Tanks,Armoured Cars, Self-Propelled Guns and Semi-Track
There's also Squadron Signal's In Action and Walkaround series, if they're still a thing.
Jonny wrote: "There's also Squadron Signal's In Action and Walkaround series, if they're still a thing."I still have a few dozen of the "In Action" series--loved those books in my youth and they definitely fueled my love of artwork and aircraft profiles.
Creighton wrote: "Hey all, I was curious: I am looking for some good and comprehensive books that talk about the various tanks, planes, and ships, of World War Two. What would you recommend?"Thought I'd chime in on submarines--these three books will tell you pretty much all you need to know about the German and American submarines:
Silent Victory: The U.S. Submarine War Against Japan
Hitler's U-Boat War: The Hunters, 1939-1942
Hitler's U-Boat War: The Hunted, 1942-1945
Creighton, here are a few others you might find of interest: 
Creighton wrote: "Hey all, I was curious: I am looking for some good and comprehensive books that talk about the various tanks, planes, and ships, of World War Two. What would you recommend?"Jane's Fighting Ships of World War II
German Tanks of World War II: The complete illustrated history of German armoured fighting vehicles 1926-1945
I got this one for Christmas. My kids know me waaaaaaay to well:)
My thoughts if anyone is interested
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Lancaster: The Forging of a Very British Legend: if it looks right, it'll fly right?His pilot training complete, Jim Penny loved the Lancaster he and his new crew would take to war. ‘From my very first flight, I knew it was a pilot’s aircraft. I had real trust in it; the controls were just right, it was beautiful to fly and it handled perfectly. It was a delightful aeroplane and did exactly what it was designed to do.’ Jim and his crew were assigned to 97 Squadron, RAF Bourn, west of Cambridge, where he found there was still a lot to learn; which he did, from his Wing Commander, a law unto himself, who handled an aircraft as if it were a part of his own body.The effect of this on the Elsan toilet doesn't bear contemplation.
‘What can you do if you get coned in searchlights, sir?’ ‘Stop and go sideways.’
‘You’re having me on.’
‘Haven’t you ever heard of a stall turn, lad?’
The Wing Commander’s way of flying the giant bomber, like a fighter, was very different to what Jim had been trained to do. ‘You pull the nose of your Lancaster up through a quarter loop until the speed falls off to a point where it won’t support the aircraft any longer and the nose drops sharply. Then you kick the full right rudder, which sends you into a steep right dive. You stop and go sideways.’ Not for the faint- hearted.
But that wasn’t all.
‘Have you rolled your Lancaster, lad?’
‘You’re having me on again, sir.’
‘I’ve been blown on my back. Find out how to recover.’
So Jim tried it. On a test flight one sunny day, he performed a barrel roll– a manoeuvre normally reserved for fighters or aerobatic aircraft. While flying straight and level, Jim pulled the Lancaster into a climb and, rotating at the same time, his flight path mimicked the shape of a barrel– the upper surface of his aircraft remaining in contact with the imaginary barrel throughout the manoeuvre so, at the top of the roll, Jim, his crew and their Lancaster were upside- down and facing earthwards. Completing the roll to the usual, more sedentary position, the aircraft handled like a dream. But at a price.
Jim’s navigator had managed to get hold of a pound of tomatoes and, not having time to stow them before the test flight, had brought them on board. Jim had warned the crew about what he was going to do, but the navigator had never been in a barrel roll before. None of them had, pilot included. When the Lancaster was inverted, he came off his seat and, held aloft by his safety harness, dangled upside- down. When the aircraft eventually righted itself at the bottom of the roll, he plunged back onto his bag of precious tomatoes.
‘I was not a popular skipper with my navigator that day!’
Lancaster: The Forging of a Very British Legend
Shit and tomatoes splattered everywhere - what a great post, very funny Jonny ! :)
This morning I've started --
Flame On: U.S. Incendiary Weapons, 1918-1945 by John W. Mountcastle.Mountcastle is a retired brigadier general, U.S. Army.
Manray9 wrote: "This morning I've started -- Flame On: U.S. Incendiary Weapons, 1918-1945 by John W. Mountcastle.Mountcastle is ..."
I hope its an interesting book MR9, keep us all posted.
I finished Flame On: U.S. Incendiary Weapons, 1918-1945 by John Mountcastle.Mountcastle's book is brief (113 pages of text) and rather dull. There is little about tactical usage of flame weapons. The book concentrates on organization, development, and doctrine. It wasn't interesting to me.
Manray9 wrote: "I finished Flame On: U.S. Incendiary Weapons, 1918-1945 by John Mountcastle.Mountcastle's book is brief (113 pages of text) and rather dull. There is little about tactical usage o..."
Bummer news MR9!
Manray9 wrote: "I finished Flame On: U.S. Incendiary Weapons, 1918-1945 by John Mountcastle.Mountcastle's book is brief (113 pages of text) and rather dull. There is little about tactical usage o..."
Disappointing!
"Engineers of Victory"; I found this story of the development of the Merlin engined P-51 interesting; Freeman is Sir Wilfred Freeman, who's very influential in this Air Ministry, while Harker is Ronnie Harker, Rolls-Royce's test pilot; I've marked the quote as a spoiler, it's a bit of a monster!Harker flew the P-51 four the first time in 30 April, 1942 (the Rolls-Royce archives have, happily, a photo of that very plane after he brought it back to base). It clearly puzzled him. It turned easily, never stalled, and was fine at low to medium altitudes. Aerodynamically it was superb, that is, it had a very low drag, although neither he nor anyone else at the time could quite figure out why.* Harker’s report finished with a sentence that, though laconic, caught the attention of everyone who read it: “The point which strikes me is that with a powerful and good engine like the Merlin 61, its performance should be outstanding, as it is 35 m.p.h. faster than a Spitfire at roughly the same power.” A few days later, a team of Rolls-Royce mechanics pulled out the Alison engine and carefully lowered a Merlin 61 into the front of the machine Harker had flown. As the sharp-eyed test pilot noted, the distance between the front edge of the cockpit and the noise of the P-51 chassis was the same as that on the latest Spitfire, so it was a perfect fit.
At the same time, Rolls-Royce’s outstanding Polish mathematician turned performance engineer, Witold Challier, equipped with the comparative aerodynamic details of both planes, produced a chart suggesting that a Merlin-powered P-51 should be able to outperform the Spitfire at all levels up to 40,000 feet and reach the astounding speed of 432mph. (All Challier’s calculations proved to be absolutely correct). Both men, supported by the dynamic general manager of Rolls-Royce, E. W. Hives, began agitating foot the new hybrid version as soon as possible.
When this information got to the resourceful Freeman, he responded immediately. Although Fighter Command and Bomber Command wanted all the Merlin engines for their own projects, Freeman ordered the engine conversion on another five P-51s, directing that two of them be sent to Spaatz in the United States as soon as possible for USAAF testing. When Hives shortly afterward proposed the conversion of 250 aircraft, Freeman doubled it to 500. Freeman was swiftly in touch with the managers at Packard (who put one of their Merlins into a P-51, which by now had received its more familiar name, the Mustang); with the influential U.S. ambassador to Britain, John Winant; and with the well-connected assistant air attaché Thomas Hitchcock, a former Lafayette Escadrille flier and a great Rolls-Royce enthusiast who had family links to the White House. Freeman also started nudging Churchill to write to Roosevelt, since everyone in the United Kingdom realised that if this Anglo-American hybrid was to be produced speedily and in sufficient numbers to alter the aerial balance, it had to be done in American factories. It was like the cavity magnetron story all over again; Britain was industrially overstretched, but the United States still possessed enormous capacity for additional aircraft and engine production.
Then, inexplicably to Freeman, the scheme foundered. Sheer obstructionism on the American side now slowed down the mass production of the Merlin engine Mustang. In the United States there were genuine rival claims being made on resources, and it was always going to be hard to argue that the output of American aircraft already in production should be curtailed for an unknown and essentially foreign newcomer. There was continuous mishandling of Harker and Challier’s point that the P-51 was good at all altitudes, and certain area commanders kept insisting that the plane was to be used according to the original specifications as a low-altitude tactical fighter, in which capacity it was just one of many. Then there were the USAAF leaders who could not accept any claims of the Mustang’s superiority because they were devoted to the P-38 Lightning and the P-47 Thunderbolts, both of which had well-tried combat records. There were also powerful objections in the air force’s procurements offices and amongst rival manufacturers. Freeman, who followed American production figures almost as anxiously as he did Britain's own, was warned by Roosvelt’s personal and very Anglophilic advisor Harry Hopkins in September 1942 that the USAAF had on order no fewer than 2,500 P-40 Kittyhawks, 8,800 P-39 Airacobras, and 11,000 P-63 Kingcobras, all of them hopeless against the formidable Focke-Wulf 190 fighter that was beginning to dominate the European skies, but each of these underperforming aircraft had its own significant backers. Additionally, the Mustang surely needed further testing and improvements.
This was all understandable, if regrettable. What was less understandable was the sheer, relentless anti-Britishness of her members of the all-important Air Production Board under the stiff- necked Major-General Oliver Echols. Hopkins was only half joking when he told Freeman that many Americans believed they naturally flew better than the British and always built better planes than the British. Since the P-51 had been first ordered by the RAF, it had not gone through the normal American channels of engineering scrutiny, and many officers devoted to that system fed Echols disparaging details when they inspected some of the early models. Essentially, the attitude was “not invented here”. The attaché in London, Hitchcock, was particularly scathing about all of this: “Sired by the English out of an American mother, the Mustang has no parent in the Army Air Corps or at Wright Field to appreciate and push its good points... [I]t does not satisfy important people on both sides of the Atlantic who seem more interested in pointing with pride to the development of a 100% national product than they are concerned with the very difficult problem of rapidly developing a fighter plane that will be superior to anything the Germans have.” The more restrained official historians merely point out that “the story of the P-51 came close to representing the costliest mistake made by the AAF in World War Two."
Wilfred Freeman: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilfr...
Ronnie Harker: http://www.mustang.gaetanmarie.com
Very interesting post Jonny, happily it all ended well with the P-51 Mustang! :)
Today I am starting --
Flame Thrower by Andrew WilsonWilson was a young lieutenant in charge of a troop of three Churchill Crocodile flame-throwing tanks fighting across NW Europe in WWII.
Manray9 wrote: "Today I am starting -- Flame Thrower by Andrew WilsonWilson was a young lieutenant in charge of a troop of three Churchill Crocodile flame-thro..."
I read that book back in the late 1970's and really enjoyed it. I hope you find it just as interesting.
Jonny wrote: ""Engineers of Victory"; I found this story of the development of the Merlin engined P-51 interesting; Freeman is Sir Wilfred Freeman, who's very influential in this Air Ministry, while Harker is Ro..."Somehow I missed this very interesting post Jonny! Excellent story and so typical of arms procurement, no change in today's environment. Personal opinion often overrides excellence.
Manray9 wrote: "Today I am starting -- Flame Thrower by Andrew Wilson..."
Looks like a good one MR9. I may have to start looking for a copy.
Manray9 wrote: "Today I am starting -- Flame Thrower by Andrew WilsonWilson was a young lieutenant in charge of a troop of three Churchill Crocodile flame-thro..."
I remember reading this in high school in the early 80's--good book about a topic which doesn't get much ink.
Manray9 wrote: "Tonight I've started --The E-Boat Threat
by Bryan Cooper."I hope it's a thrilling read MR9, keep us all posted!
Yes looks good ! 'Aussie Rick' wrote: "Manray9 wrote: "Tonight I've started --
The E-Boat Threat
by Bryan Cooper."I hope it's a thrilling read MR9, keep us all posted!"
From Bryan Cooper's The E-Boat Threat.I was unaware of the fundamental design difference between British MTB/MGB vessels, American PT boats and German E-boats. The boats of the Allies used a hard-chine planing hull, while the Germans used a round-bilge hull. The planing hulls displayed good lateral stability and were capable of high speeds with a short hull. However, the high bow at speed resulted in serious seakeeping issues resulting from hull slamming in rough conditions (common in the North Sea and the Channel). The planing hulls also displayed prominent “rooster-tail” wakes that could be seen at long distances – especially at night. The German boats remained (almost) horizontal at full speed and disturbed the water less. This improved their ability to operate unobserved. Also the E-boats were aided in staying horizontal by the high power generated by their excellent Daimler Benz diesel engines.
Manray9 wrote: "From Bryan Cooper's The E-Boat Threat.I was unaware of the fundamental design difference between British MTB/MGB vessels, American PT boats and German E-boats. The boats of the Al..."
Thanks, it is so easy to assume that they have similar designs until someone brings up a point like this.
Just finished reading Shockwave: The Countdown To Hiroshima by Stephen Walker. What an excellent book!! I would definitely recommend it to all!!
Doreen wrote: "Just finished reading Shockwave: The Countdown To Hiroshima by Stephen Walker. What an excellent book!! I would definitely recommend it to all!!"Good to hear Doreen, I am sure a few members will be looking for a copy!
While looking for A Town Like Alice, which I read ages ago, I came across a coauthor of Nevil Shute’s named Alfred Hessell Tiltmanhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A._H._T...
Manray9 wrote: "From Bryan Cooper's The E-Boat Threat.I was unaware of the fundamental design difference between British MTB/MGB vessels, American PT boats and German E-boats. The boats of the Al..."
Hi Bryan. Thanks for sharing that; I'm sure a lot of us were also unaware of those differences, which clearly were important.
Currently reading
The Last Great Victory: The End of World War II, July/August 1945 by Stanley WeintraubHe reveals a "weapon" I was unfamiliar with, the "Pumpkin Bomb":
The 509th Composite Group on Tinian had the most curious mission. With oversized and shielded bomb-loading pits constructed at North Field on Tinian ready, the 509th began what would be a series of sorties familiarizing crews with the areas of Japan expected to be “Special Bomb” targets, and dropping, one per mission, a ten-thousand-pound bright orange “pumpkin” approximating “Little Boy.” Maneuvering tactics to evade blast and radiation were employed by groups of three planes flying widely apart. The Japanese were already accustomed to small formations flying at high altitudes to drop leaflets, take pictures, and sample weather, but these, Lieutenant Masataka Hakata of Central Communications Research realized, were different...What were the....planes doing, and where did they come from? Why had they begun dropping, with such curious maneuvers, such a curious-looking (but otherwise ordinary) bomb? No one had an answer.
https://mag.uchicago.edu/science-medi...
Mike wrote: "Currently reading The Last Great Victory: The End of World War II, July/August 1945 by [author:St..."Very interesting Mike! Thaks for posting that link as well.
THE WORLD WAR TWO GROUP
Books mentioned in this topic
The Last Great Victory: The End of World War II, July/August 1945 (other topics)The Last Great Victory: The End of World War II, July/August 1945 (other topics)
The E-Boat Threat (other topics)
A Town Like Alice (other topics)
The E-Boat Threat (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Stanley Weintraub (other topics)Nevil Shute (other topics)
Andrew Biggio (other topics)
Alistair MacLean (other topics)
Clare Mulley (other topics)
More...
https://www.brooksart.com/Dawnoperati..."
Very nice painting!