The history of an aerial combat that tested the endurance of the P-40 Warhawk fighter

World War II was a time when combat aviation underwent a significant technological leap.

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At that time there were exceptional fighters whose fame continues to this day, such as the Messerschmitt Bf-109, the British Supermarine Spitfire, the North American P-51 Mustang and the Lockheed P-38 Lightning and the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero. There is one aircraft that is not usually listed among the best, but whose endurance deserves high praise: the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, a fighter that made its first flight on October 14, 1938, entering service almost two years later in the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC).

The P-40 entered the war before its manufacturer, the United States. The air forces of the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, China (with US volunteer pilots), South Africa, and the USSR all operated this aircraft in combat before the United States was attacked by Japan. The USAAC had 99 P-40s in Hawaii at the time of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, most of them at Wheeler Airfield on Oahu. Most of them were destroyed on the ground by the Japanese, but some managed to get airborne and shoot down a few Japanese aircraft.

Between 1939 and 1944, more than 13,000 P-40s were manufactured in various versions. The British and Soviets nicknamed it the "Tomahawk" at the beginning of the war, while the RAF gave the P-40D the name "Kittyhawk". The P-40E version could reach a speed of 581 km/h (366 mph) and was armed with six 12.7 mm M2 Browning machine guns, and could carry up to 910 kg (2,000 lb) of bombs in two underwing racks and a ventral rack. The P-40 was not the fastest or most maneuverable fighter, but it became famous for its ability to take a lot of punishment in dogfights without being shot down, quite unlike its great rival, the Japanese Zero, a very agile aircraft that barely resisted fire.

A few hours ago, the channel Yarhub published a magnificent video recreating the aerial combat between four American P-40s and 15 Japanese Nakajima Ki-43 Hayabusa fighters on May 17, 1944. The American planes belonged to the 89th Fighter Squadron "Burma Banshees", known for the skulls painted on the nose of their planes. This combat was an example of the toughness and resilience of the P-40:

You can see some screenshots from this video here, which demonstrates the extraordinary quality Yarnhub is achieving in its videos.

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Main image: Yarnhub.