Which was the ARR's deadliest opponent in 1944?

[Dénes]

In 1944, Rumanian airmen encountered opponents of 3 major air forces: the VVS, the USAAF and the Luftwaffe.

What's your opinion: which one was the most dangerous to the Rumanian flyers?

[dragos]

I voted for USAAF. Just for their Mustang :evil:

[Von Maybach]

No... I think WS. THe soviets just kept comming... no matter how many you shot down... The USAAF was just too far from Romania to mount a threat as serious as the soviet air force ... (maybe except the air raids on Ploiesti)...

[dragos]

At least from the Soviet planes one could flee...

P-51 was the deadliest fighter met by Romanian pilots.

[Von Maybach]

QUOTE

At least from the Soviet planes one could flee... P-51 was the deadliest fighter met by Romanian pilots.

It depends on who's point of view. For a pilot of course it's allways better to face crappy soviets planes rather than the deadly P-51 (although I consider planes like YaK-3 and Mig-3 very deadly, too).
But I think for a tactician, when he has to consider threats, he has to evaluate his foes on a more global scale. So, on one hand you have the Americans strikeing from south (Grece), from a great distance, the Luftwaffe with not so unlimited resources and the huge behemont Russian Air Force advanceing towards you (side by side with countless Red Army's T-34's ) haveing more aircrafts and manpower than you have bullets.

Just my humble opinion.

[Victor]

Gen. Dobran's words come to mind: at least with the Russians you had a chance...
This was from a Bf-109 pilot. I suspect the IAR-80 pilots would also agree.
For them, however, there also the issue of the Luftwaffe Experten in September and October 1944.

[dragos]

Both share the same blood:





Horsepower!

[PanzerKing]

Horsepower...damn right! I hate being nationalistic, but one thing I do love about my country is the fact that we know how to make some serious kick ass machines.

Mustang = King of the skies, King of the road.

[Florin]

QUOTE

...I hate being nationalistic, but one thing I do love about my country is the fact that we know how to make some serious kick ass machines.   Mustang = King of the skies, King of the road.

When you are proud about something considered a damn good thing even by the enemy, it is a justifiable and understandable feeling to be proud about it, and that feeling is not nationalism :wink: :keep:

On a well documented German site dedicated to Luftwaffe, it was said that the Mustang P-51 was better than the Focke Wolf 190.
However, that was comparing the planes as flying machines alone, without considering the weaponry.

As the Germans were growing desperate about the combined problem of P-51 and the huge 4 motors American bombers, eventually they attached to the Focke Wolf 190 a pneumatic canon, able to fire about 10 shells per second, and with a caliber close to 50 mm, if I remember right. However, the canon magazine was in the wing, and had a limited space for about 50 shells. A continuous shot couldn't last more than 5 seconds. However, the effect was so formidable, that a good aimed fire of that pneumatic canon could literally tear a wing of a B-24 from the body of the plane.

[Von Maybach]

QUOTE

Horsepower...damn right! I hate being nationalistic, but one thing I do love about my country is the fact that we know how to make some serious kick ass machines.

The P-51 Mustang had 1720 HP.
The russian La-7 had 1850 HP.
Some Bf-109 had 1850HP up to 2000HP, (not to mention the methanol boost).
And compared to the deadly arsenal employed by the germans (Mk 108 cannons), the P-51 was rather underarmed.

So, the americans were not the only who mounted high power engines in their fighter aircrafts. But I dare to say that from an engineer's point of view the germans had the best engines.

[dragos]

P-51H & P-51K could develop 2220 HP in "emergency" regime. However, power of engine alone means nothing, other characteristics also count.

[C-2]

USAF no doubt!
The P-51 and also the bomber formations that attaking them was almost imposible.
All vets said that a ARR celula could do with as many as 10 nRussians figters.
The Germans had not much left after 23/8 44.Not enougt fuel ,airplanes and pilots.

[Florin]

QUOTE

P-51H & P-51K could develop 2220 HP in \"emergency\" regime. However, power of engine alone means nothing, other characteristics also count.

I think alcohol was injected in cylinders, or a mixture.
To ignite the emergency mode of the motor (usable only for few minutes) you had to broke a seal, something like the seal for the alarms in passenger trains.

Good point - the motor means a lot, but is not everything.
P-51 had an exhaustion system of the burnt gases from cylinders that acted like a mini jet engine, adding a traction force of about 15% of that of the motor.

Also P-51 did well with the range of flight.
I don't know how the range was improved for the European fighters in 1943-1944, but in 1940 the Me-109 and the Spitfire had a range of about 100 km. That was good for the little and crowded Europe. It was difference about how the Europeans understood the concept of "mid-range" and "long-range", and how the Japanese and American designers understood it.

[Victor]

Also the two-stage compressor the P-51 had allowed it to have better horsepower at the high altitudes where the aerial battles were being fought. Many Romanian pilots recalled having the feeling the propeller was spinning fruitlessly.

[PanzerKing]

QUOTE

QUOTE Horsepower...damn right! I hate being nationalistic, but one thing I do love about my country is the fact that we know how to make some serious kick ass machines.   The P-51 Mustang had 1720 HP. The russian La-7 had 1850 HP. Some Bf-109 had 1850HP up to 2000HP, (not to mention the methanol boost). And compared to the deadly arsenal employed by the germans (Mk 108 cannons), the P-51 was rather underarmed. So, the americans were not the only who mounted high power engines in their fighter aircrafts. But I dare to say that from an engineer's point of view the germans had the best engines.

Ok, the Germans had the best engines, but the U.S. had the best airframes. Obviously so if 1850hp & 2000hp engines weren't enough to rival the P-51's performance.

Just imagine a German plane that was designed to work with a 2000hp machine, then you would have something better then the P-51 I think.