| The Curtiss-Wright
Corporation started designing a single-wing, fighter aircraft with
radial engine, retractable landing gear and all-metal construction in
1934. The resulting aircraft they dubbed the Hawk 75 and the American
military called it the P-36 Mohawk. By 1937, over 1,300 had been
delivered when the Curtiss-Wright Corporation decided to make a major
modification by installing an Allison liquid-cooled engine. This
alteration was successful and started a long series of models, the first
named the P-40 Warhawk by the Americans. The rest of the aircraft was
essentially unchanged from the P-36.
By 1940, the RAF was accepting
delivery of the new aircraft that they called the Tomahawk I. In
comparison with the Messerschmitt Me-109 or the Supermarine Spitfire V
it was decidedly inferior except in maneuverability at low altitudes and
having a tough construction. The Tomahawk was used in Britain as a
trainer and an army cooperation aircraft. It was sent to the Orient,
India and North Africa to augment the Hawker Hurricanes. This was the
common solution to inferior aircraft, even if the Japanese, Germans and
Italians were flying better fighters. The RAF, Royal Australian Air
Force and the South African Air Force flew them as ground-attack
aircraft in support of the 8th Army in North Africa. Unfortunately, for
many pilots they were also forced to use this inferior aircraft as an
escort fighter for light and medium bombers against Me-109s and Maachi
202s.
It showed up badly against both
aircraft, with a high loss rate. The P-40D, named the Kittyhawk I by the
English and the Warhawk by the Americans, had an improved Allison engine
that allowed for a shorter nose and had the fuselage mounted 0.50
caliber machine guns moved to the wings to allow for a hefty six 50
caliber machine guns that would become the standard suite of armament
for all American fighters. A Packard Merlin-engined version was produced
for export to Russia, but no models were received by the English,
Australian or South African squadrons flying the Kittyhawk. Many
versions of the aircraft were developed all in an attempt to improve the
performance of the inadequate Allison engines. None of the modifications made up for this engine's lack of
power. Overall, the various models of the P-40 made it the second most
numerous fighter aircraft produced by the Allies during WWII. They had a
production run of some 13,738.
Technical Details
All major variants of the P-40 series were single-seat fighter or
fighter-bomber aircraft. They came in a confusing series of engine
modifications, and gun arrangements with even minor variations given a
letter designation where it likely wasn't warranted.
The P-40C was a major variant called
the Tomahawk II by the RAF. It mounted a 1,040 hp Allison V1710-3 v 12
liquid cooled engine. This engine generated a maximum speed of 345 mph
(555 km/h), although under desert conditions with a sand filter over the
air inlet it was considerably less. It was not usually equipped with
oxygen so it's maximum altitude of 30,000 ft could not be reached by
most pilots and it was typically flown at under 15,000 ft. It's range
with internal fuel was 730 miles (1175 km). The Tomahawk II had two
0.303 machine guns on the cowl and four in the wings. It did not have
the ability to carry bombs.
The P-40F, called the Kittyhawk II
(also the Goshawk) was a major improvement in handling, although more
power was not available. The ones shipped to Russia were equipped with
the Packard built 1,300 hp V-1615-1 Rolls-Royce Merlin engine. All
others used an Allison engine. This boosted the maximum airspeed to 364
mph (582 km/h). Range was 610 miles (976 km). The Kittyhawks had a major
modification in their armaments, with the cowl-mounted machine guns
removed and all guns upgraded to six 50 caliber machine guns in the
wings. It could also carry a 500 lb bomb or a long-range fuel tank on
the center-line, and 250 lbs of bombs under each wing (6 lb and 40 lb
anti-personnel bomb clusters were also carried in North Africa).
wording from http://www.constable.ca/kitty.htm |
