Over 12,000 Corsairs were produced for the United States and her allies. The Corsair compiled an 11:1 kill ratio during World War II. It was not just fast, but also incredibly deadly, armed with six. Powered by a Pratt and Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp 18-cylinder engine producing over 2000 horsepower, the Corsair could not only fly faster than 400 miles per hour, she was the first US single engine fighter to do so.

However, some aircraft stand out from the pack and the F4U Corsair is one of those planes.

There is something amazing about hearing a radial engine screaming down out of the sky and pulling up at the last possible second. Sorry.Aircraft from the World War II era, more often than not, grab the imagination and attention of people more so than today’s aircraft. I have not verified this because I do not have Simple Planes VR. Because of its ample power, it was also used as a fighter-bomber capable of carrying rockets and bombs for ground attacks.Īfter the war, only the F4U remained in service, and it was used until the Korean War, which shows that the F4U was an excellent fighter. The landing gear was also reinforced to withstand the impact of landing.Īlthough its debut as a shipboard aircraft was fraught with twists and turns, its performance was excellent. Slats were added to the right wing to improve stall characteristics. The cockpit height and tailwheel length were changed to improve forward visibility. The F4U-1D improved on these shortcomings and made it possible to operate from aircraft carriers in earnest. Furthermore, the landing gear was considered to be insufficiently strong to withstand the shock of landing, and the aircraft was branded as unsuitable for shipboard use, forcing it to be operated from a ground base. The inverted gull wing also had poor stall characteristics, which was also considered dangerous when landing on an aircraft carrier. This was considered a disadvantage when landing on aircraft carriers. The fuselage was narrowed in diameter and equipped with powerful engines, resulting in a long nose and obstructed forward visibility. In 1942, the mass-produced F4U-1A made its first flight and was tested on an aircraft carrier. The prototype XF4U-1 made its first flight in 1940, recording a speed of 400 mph in level flight. This was to shorten the landing gear to withstand the impact of landing on an aircraft carrier. The wings were inverted gull wings in a mid-wing configuration. The nose was fitted with a Pratt & Whitney R-2800 'Double Wasp' engine, and the fuselage was narrowed in diameter to reduce drag. Vought presented the V116-B, a design proposal equipped with a 2,000 hp class engine, and development of a prototype proceeded. Navy announced a request to develop a fighter aircraft to replace the F2A and other aircraft. The Vought F4U 'Corsair' was a single-engine, single-seat fighter operated by the US Navy during World War II.

Vought f4u corsair fuselage plan