31.01.2010, 13:28
That was the clip Taz posted the link to. However, an SBD isn't an Avenger - an SBD at max weight is almost exactly the same weight as an empty Avenger (10 000 lbs).
Hmm, big aircraft/big wing... maybe Mitsubishi would have been better off doubling the size of the wing and near trebling the empty weight of their Zero, then they could have had a fighter almost as fast, but with armour, 2 rear gunners, a bomb-bay AND still have had the excellent manoeuvrability prized by the Japanese. :wink: OTOH I believe the standard fighter evasion technique in the Vulcan if intercepted at 40 000 ft or more was to go into a spiral climb - the fighters of the day tended to stall out if they tried to follow. Then, the Vulcan had a massive wing and the fighters of the 60s had tiny wings and were built for uber straight-line speed. The Avenger wasn't a Vulcan and the Zero was certainly not designed for straight-line speed, so there isn't really any comparison.
Hmm, big aircraft/big wing... maybe Mitsubishi would have been better off doubling the size of the wing and near trebling the empty weight of their Zero, then they could have had a fighter almost as fast, but with armour, 2 rear gunners, a bomb-bay AND still have had the excellent manoeuvrability prized by the Japanese. :wink: OTOH I believe the standard fighter evasion technique in the Vulcan if intercepted at 40 000 ft or more was to go into a spiral climb - the fighters of the day tended to stall out if they tried to follow. Then, the Vulcan had a massive wing and the fighters of the 60s had tiny wings and were built for uber straight-line speed. The Avenger wasn't a Vulcan and the Zero was certainly not designed for straight-line speed, so there isn't really any comparison.