Republic P-43

Republic P-43 Lancer
P-43 Lancer
Type:	Fighter plane
Design country:	United States
Manufacturer:	Republic Aviation Company
First flight:	February 1939 (AP-4) 1940 (YP-43)
Commissioning:	1941
Production time:	1940 to 1942
Number of pieces:	272

The Republic P-43 "Lancer" was an American fighter aircraft in World War II , but was only used in China for combat missions.

history

Prototype AP-4

The development of the P-43 goes back to that of the Seversky Aircraft Corp. developed P-35 (AP-1), which entered service in 1938 by the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Further developments were the AP-2 (Advanced Pursuit 2) racing aircraft and the last P-35 in series production, which received improvements to the engine and landing gear as the XP-41 (first flight in March 1939) as well as countersunk rivets in the planking.

With the model AP-4 , a turbocharger was used for the first time compared to its predecessors with mechanical superchargers, which was arranged under the rear part of the fuselage. It also had self-sealing tanks , a cell with countersunk rivets, and improved rear visibility. The armament corresponded to that of the P-35. The tests on Wright Field yielded good assessments of the climb and altitude performance. However, the AP-4 crashed on March 22, 1939 after catching fire in midair.

YP-43

On May 12, 1939, the USAAC ordered 13 copies of the model under the military designation YP-43. Seversky guaranteed a top speed of 351 mph (562 km / h) at an altitude of 20,000 feet (6000 m). The most obvious change was the relocation of the turbocharger inlets from the wing root to the lower part of the engine cowling. Although this resulted in a significantly deeper fuselage, it avoided the position of the cockpit that was pushed backwards, as was extremely evident on the YP-37 . The back of the fuselage was also given the razor-back look typical of Republic for the first time . The delivery of the 13 YP-43s took place between September 13, 1940 and March 31, 1941.

P-44 Rocket

Shortly after the contract was awarded, the USAAC launched a tender for a high-altitude interceptor. Alexander Kartweli then designed the AP-4J with a turbocharged Pratt & Whitney R-2180 Twin Hornet, which won the tender. The USAAC ordered 80 of the plane known as the P-44 Rocket even before a prototype had flown. Another variant was the AP-4L, which was to receive a 2000 hp Pratt & Whitney R-2800 radial engine . Of these, 225 were ordered on July 19, 1940 and increased to a total of 827 on September 9.

Series production

Servicing a P-43 of the Republic of China Air Forces in 1943

The first experiences on the theater of war in Europe showed that the performance of the P-43 and P-44 would not be sufficient for the intended tasks. In the meantime, however, the development of the promising Republic P-47 had started. In order to keep the production line running until the start of series production and because the R-2800 engines were not available, the USAAC converted the orders for the P-44 on September 13, 1940 into orders for 54 P-43s in the YP-43- Configuration and 80 P-43A with an R-1830-49 engine around. The first P-43 was delivered in May 1941 and the first P-43A in September 1941.

The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) then enabled a lend lease order for 125 P-43A-1s for the Air Force of the Republic of China , which were produced by March 1942. However, only about 50 aircraft actually arrived in China, the USAAF also received a few of the aircraft from the order. In China, however, it was the best aircraft in terms of performance, mainly because of its good altitude performance. It was the only aircraft that could intercept the Japanese Mitsubishi Ki-46 fast reconnaissance aircraft . The machine was popular with the pilots, but the tank system was a constant problem. Due to the very bombardment-sensitive fuel system, the machine was not used to a great extent and ultimately the less powerful, but mass-produced Curtiss P-40 was preferred. The Royal Australian Air Force used some P-43s as reconnaissance aircraft.

construction

Single-engine single-seat all-metal low-wing aircraft with retractable landing gear and radial engine. Self-sealing tanks and armor had been dispensed with. As a result, there was no interest on the part of the USAAF and the machines were only used as training aircraft. Some have been converted into photo scouts and shipped to Australia. In this role, the machines proved themselves very well, as they could act unmolested by Japanese defenses. The Seversky S-3 known from the P-35, which was also used in the successor P-47, was used as the wing profile. The elliptical wing layout and the spreading flaps also remained features of the aircraft family. The fuel was stored in the tightly riveted wings without special tanks (wet wing). However, this system turned out to be leaky and led to leaks, a problem that could not be solved in front-of-house operation.

production

Acceptance of the Republic P-43 by the USAAF:

version	1940	1941	1942	TOTAL
YP-43	2	11		13
P-43		54		54
P-43A		80		80
P-43A-1		15th	110	125
TOTAL	2	160	110	272

Technical specifications

Mark	Data
crew	1
drive	1 × 14-cylinder radial engine Pratt & Whitney R- 1830-49, 1,200 PS (883 kW)
length	8.7 m
span	11.0 m
height	4.3 m
Wing area	20.7 m²
Empty mass	2,713 kg
Takeoff mass	normal 3,365 kg maximum 3,837 kg
Wing loading	163 kg / m²
Top speed	573 km / h
Range	1,046 km
Summit height	10,970 m
Climb performance	13 m / s
Armament	4 × 12.7 mm Browning M2 machine guns

operator

•  China : Air Force of the Republic of China
•  United States : United States Army Air Forces
•  Australia : Royal Australian Air Force

literature

• Dennis R. Jenkins, Tony R. Landis: Experimental & Prototype US Air Force Jet Fighters , Specialty Press, 2008, ISBN 978-1-58007-111-6 , pp. 50 f.
• Encyclopedia of Airplanes. Aerospace Publishing, 1992, ISBN 3-89350-055-3
• William Green: Warplanes of the Second World War. Volume Four: Fighters, Macdonald & Co. Ltd. , London 1969, ISBN 0-356-01448-7 , pp. 166-168.

Web links

Commons : Republic P-43 Lancer  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ AP-4 on aviastar.org
2. ↑ Statistical Digest of the USAF 1946, p. 100 ff.