What would become one of the best fighters in world war ii was created more by happenstance than by design. The lockheed p38 lightning is a world war ii american fighter aircraft. Lightning was used in a number of roles, including dive bombing, level bombing, groundattack, night fighting, photoreconnaissance missions, and extensively as a longrange escort fighter. P38 lightning fighters escorting us 43rd bombardment group aircraft over new guinea, 19421943, photo 1 of 2. Known to the enemy during world war ii as the forktailed devil, the pilots of the lockheed p38 lightning were charged with the responsibility of escorting american bombers deep over heavily defended europe during the early years of the air campaign against nazi germany. In the middle years of the war it was the best long range fighter available to the usaaf. Continues lightning coverage with the p38j through the p38m, a night fighter.
Why was the p38 never used in the european theater. The kit were focusing on here is stock number 1170, named p38j over europe. Jan 30, 20 430th fs back door gang p38 lightnings in action over germany color, 1945. Fighting around the world and in various roles, the p38 proved a powerful plane and one of the most effective american weapons of world war two. Lockheed p38j10lo lightning national air and space museum. Our fighter pilots versus the luftwaffe in western. Jenkins stands by the nose of his p38j lightning cgj, serial number 4267074 nicknamed texas ranger with ground crew members of the 38th fighter squadron, 55th fighter group, at nuthampstead air base, november or. The lockheed p38 lightning was a world war ii american fighter aircraft. Lockheed p38 lightning the plane that changed the course of history. The p38 lightning was the only successful twinengine dogfighter of the war, and it served from europe to the pacific. Warren bodies book is a marvel of completeness, including photos of all series and.
The lockheed p38 tells the full story of one of the most. More than a year passed before the p38 reappeared over western europe. Asisbiz lockheed p38j lightning 8af 55th fg 338th fs coded. The bell p39 airacobra was a singleengine fighter produced. Unbiased comments and insight into aircraft kits and accessories. The l model included the latest allison engine, the v17101111. Allied propaganda claimed it had been nicknamed the forktailed devil german. The p38 made its combat debut in europe in mid1942, the first. In january 1943, during wwii, bong 19201945 became an ace with five confirmed victories in just over a month. P38j lightning 4423628 hey stuff code 4nl, pilot 1lt estabrook of the 394th fighter squadron 367th fighter group. There have been a lot of different model kits of it over the years and this book will be invaluable when building any of them.
The p38 lightning, built by the lockheed aircraft corporation, was the only u. Art high noon over alicante, by roy grinnell, lightning vs nakajima hayabusa oscar always have this book laying open. Eduards 148 scale p38j over europe by matthias becker. The bell p39 airacobra was a singleengine fighter produced by the us to lowwing bell aircraft corporation.
Pdf p38 lightning vol 1 download full pdf book download. Struggling to keep the air campaign over europe alive in the face of. Anthony w tony levier, a lockheed test pilot poses in front of the nose art of a p 38j 10lo 4268008 lightning snafuperman, whilst visiting 496th fighter training group at goxhill. The box contains further two nice photoetched frets and a lot of resin parts for the cockpit area. P 38 lightning strikes documentary history of wars. Volume 2, lockheeds p 38j to p38m in world war ii by david doyle. It was controversial, intimidating, and set countless records in wwii. The lightning increasingly excelled as a fighterbomber armed with 2,000pound bombs and quintupleracks of 5 highvelocity rockets. Tony flew demonstrations for the 8th af to prove the safe operation of the p 38j with only one engine running. Anthony w tony levier, a lockheed test pilot poses in front of the nose art of a p38j10lo 4268008 lightning snafuperman, whilst visiting 496th fighter training group at goxhill.
P38 pilots shot down more japanese aircraft than any other fighter and, as a reconnaissance aircraft, obtained 90 percent of the aerial film captured over europe. Large assortment of 148 scale wwii allied fighter kit decals. The p38 saw service in europe, where it gained the nickname forktailed devil by german pilots and soldiers. For those not familiar with the company, ajpress publishing house was established in 1991 with their focal point being to provide books for. Developed for the united states army air corps, the p38 had distinctive twin booms and a central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament.
Asia, the burning sands of north africa, and the temperate climes of europe. Lockheeds p38j to p38m in world war ii by david doyle, 9780764358227, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. The p38 was used in europe, but given the strengths and weaknesses of the plane, it was a far better fit for the pacific theater, so as quickly as they came off the assembly lines, that tended to be where they went. The man from uncle 1965 coloring book nm view masters excellent. Lockheed p38 lightning project gutenberg selfpublishing. See how these kits and others too actually build up in finished now. Hobbycraft lockheed p38jl lightning large scale planes. Robin olds p38 general discussion large scale planes. P38j lightning with dday stripes 392nd fs normandy. P38j lightning 4423628 hey stuff code 4nl, pilot 1lt. While flying his p38 lightning, bong shot down at least 40 japanese aircraft. The p38 has always been a favorite with aircraft modelers and its shape is easily recognized by most people.
In april 1944, he recorded his 27th victory to pass eddie rickenbacker, world war i ace, with 26 victories. Colin is a boldmethod cofounder, pilot and graphic artist. Tony flew demonstrations for the 8th af to prove the safe operation of the p38j with only one engine running. You are a leaf that doesnt know it is part of a tree. The box design is excellent with nice cover art and the content is very rich also. Eduard has now used that kit for its new limited edition p38j over europe. P38 lightning aircraft loaded aboard an escort carrier for ferrying to europe, new york, united states, date unknown. Later lightnings the last production version was the p38l, and the most numerous, almost 4,000 being built. The lockheed p38 lightning was a heavy fighter aircraft designed to meet specification x608, spearheaded by ly benjamin kelsey, for a high altitude interceptor capable of reaching 579 kmh at 6,000 metres with an endurance of one hour at that height and 466.
The lockheed p38 lightning is a world war iiera american pistonengined fighter aircraft. The first photo is a simple portrait an officers identification card photo. Lockheed p38j lightning texas rangercolonel jack s. Lockheed p38f lightning, republic xp44 rocket, chancevought f4u1 corsair, lockheed p 38j lightning, republic p47b thunderbolt, chancevought f4u4 corsair, grumman f7f tigercat, republic p47n thunderbolt, goodyear f2g super corsair, chancevought xf5u pancake, republic xp72. The lockheed p 38j lightning aircraft was revolutionary, extremely innovative, thanks to doublegirder fuselage, the two allison vengines with turbochargers within the tail beams and landing gear in tricycle. Lockheed p38 lightning wikipedia, the free encyclopedia see more air force blackandwhite photograph of a silhouette of the lockheed georgia peach ii in flight over panama during wwii. Buy mastercraft collection lockheed p38j lightning marge model scale. Along with its use as a general fighter, the p38 was utilized in various aerial. P38j lightning richard ira bong, uprise ur7243 2019. The next two images can be found in jay jones 2003 book the 370th fighter group in world war ii in action over europe with the p38 and p51. The sikorsky ch53e super stallion is the largest and heaviest helicopter in the united states military. It was developed from the ch53 sea stallion, mainly by adding a third engine, a seventh blade to the main rotor and canting the tail rotor 20 degrees.
The lockheed p38 lightning warfare history network. Why was the p38 never used in the european theater against. See more ideas about lockheed p 38 lightning, lightning and ww2 aircraft. Hardbound book 0021028 in wwii in action over europe with the p38 and p51. The lockheed p38j lightning aircraft was revolutionary, extremely innovative, thanks to doublegirder fuselage, the two allison vengines with turbochargers within the tail beams and landing gear in tricycle. Of the 10,037 planes built, 26 survive today, 22 of which are located in the united states, and 10 of which are airworthy. P38 lightning history, photos, and specs of lockheeds.
Possessing an iconic design that placed the engines in twin booms and the cockpit in a central nacelle, the p38 saw use all theaters of the conflict and was feared by german and japanese pilots. The lockheed p38 lightningpage contains all related products, articles, books, walkarounds and plastic scale modeling. Lockheed p38f lightning, republic xp44 rocket, chancevought f4u1 corsair, lockheed p38j lightning, republic p47b thunderbolt, chancevought f4u4 corsair, grumman f7f tigercat, republic p47n thunderbolt, goodyear f2g super corsair, chancevought xf5u pancake, republic xp72. It was easy to divert him from the periodic table of elements to one of his daring flights in a lockheed lightning one of my all time favorite planes p 38 lightning under the spreading chestnut tree i sold you and you sold me i like props. Lockheed p38 lightning aviation art prints and posters gallery. It performed well in north africa, italy and on the continent with the ninth tactical air force, but the records show that the p38 did not do well as a long range, high altitude bomber escort with the eighth air force.
The afternoon shadow of his p38 lightning raced across french hedgerows and fields as. The twinengine, twinboom lockheed p38 lightning was designed to meet a 1937 requirement for a highaltitude interceptor. He disappeared over the mediterranean on his last assigned reconnaissance mission in. This book s chronological listing of the 479th fgs activities in wwii is based on their own historical records, military documents and interviews. The lockheed p38 lightning was one of the most distinctive aircraft of the second world war, and a very fine fighter aircraft. This lightning was the 5,000th example produced, and was a far cry from expectations of mere hundreds when the prototype was built in 193839.
A large and powerful aircraft, it served as a bomber escort, a tactical bomber, and a photoreconnaissance platform. The lockheed p38 lightning was a world war ii american fighter aircraft built by lockheed. Ostrander served as bombardier on the initial test missions of the droopsnoot over europe. The lockheed p38 lighting is an american twoengine fighter used by the united states army air forces and other allied air forces during world war ii. The p38 lightning was built by lockheed during ww2. Lockheed p38 lightning world war ii usaaf fighter world. Lockheeds p38j to p38m in world war ii legends of warfare.
This item is a photocopy of us army manual an 01752 which is the 662 page erection and maintenance instruction manual for the p38 lightning models h1, h5, j5, j10, and f5b airplanes. Army air forces strategists had relearned a painful lesson. I tried book marking when i was heavy into model railroading and it is very useful but also very time consuming unless youve done it from the start. Bodie was a staunch advocate of the p38, but in a 1991 interview he acknowledged that it achieved mixed results in combat with the luftwaffe over northern europe. Although it had been largely replaced in europe by the end of the war, it remained a key allied fighter over the pacific until. P38 lightning aces of the etomto osprey publishing. The story of the lightning began in the mid thirties, in a united states still very much isolationist, and in an acquisition climate dominated by fierce rivalry between the army and navy, who fought bitterly over what little money was spent on aircraft procurement. Subscribe to get the latest videos, articles, and quizzes that make you a smarter, safer pilot. Within a few weeks of flying combat in p38 lightnings over europe and into germany escorting b17 and b24 bombers and strafing ground targets, id shot down one german me109, flown my p38 back to england on one engine after being hit by flak over kiel, and made an emergency bail out of my p38 over england. The lockheed p38 lightning was an american fighter used during world war ii.
Tom has illustrated a number of books in both the aces and combat aircraft. Author of more than 100 books, david doyles aviation books are noted for. Lockheed p38 lightning maintanence manual an01752 ebay. Lockheeds p38j to p38m in world war ii david doyle known to the enemy during wwii as the forktailed devil, the pilots of the lockheed p38 lightning were charged with the responsibility of escorting american bombers deep over heavily defended europe during the early years of the air campaign against nazi germany. P38 lightning vol 1 available for download and read online in other formats. Also discusses the deployments in the mediterranean, european, and pacific theaters. The army air forces accepted this lightning as a p 38j l0lo on. The lockheed p38 lightning was originally designed as a bomberinterceptor and was never intended to be a fighter. Lightning was used in a number of roles, including dive bombing, level bombing, groundattack, night fighting, photoreconnaissance missions. Lightning pilots in the pacific theater downed more japanese aircraft than pilots. Used in europe during world war ii, the germans called it the forked tail devil.
For a variety of reasons, the p38 was not highly regarded, nor widely used, in the european theater. Pdf lockheed p 38 lightning download full pdf book. The box contains further two nice photoetched frets and. P38, also called lightning, fighter and fighterbomber employed by the u. Compared to previous models of lightning, p38j has an improved propeller to help with speed and climb, more powerful pair of engines, greater armament, minor intergenerational tweaks and boosted ailerons made it much easier to handle and very effective.
Book awards book club selections books by author books by series coming. Mastercraft collection lockheed p38j lightning marge. Developed to a united states army air corps requirement, the p38 had distinctive twin boom s and a single, central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament. My high school chemistry teacher, mr williams, flew many missions over europe in one of these. Developed to a united states army air corps requirement, the p38 had distinctive twin booms and a single, central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament. None of our partner shops or mates has this currently for sale. Large scale planes, the home of large scale aircraft modeling. World heritage encyclopedia, the aggregation of the largest online encyclopedias available, and the most. Destructor unit, lockheed p38j10lo lightning national. For those not familiar with the company, ajpress publishing house was established in 1991 with their focal point being to provide books for the enthusiasts of military history and weapons. Since 2003, over 100 of his books have been published. Pdf lockheed p 38 lightning download full pdf book download. The p 38jl lightning is the latest addition to the modelmania series of publications offered by this polandbased company.
Check out these 17 little known facts about the p38 lightning. P38 lightning fighters escorting us 43rd bombardment group aircraft over new guinea, 19421943, photo 2 of 2. Eduard 148 p38j over europe oop, limited edition, no. List of surviving lockheed p38 lightnings wikipedia. Volume 2 online from australias leading online bookstore. The book describes the lightnings design and technical details as it. This thorough history of the 370th covers their formation, their assignment to the 9th air force to fly p38s, and finally their switch to p51s. The man from uncle 1965 coloring book nm view masters. It is already some years old but shows some good details and fine panel lines. P38j 42104066 excursions in jewish military history. Only one fighter group in northern europe, the 474th, flew the lightning from arrival in europe until wars end. Academys p38 is one of the best lightning kits in 148 scale.
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