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P-39 Airacobra | bgcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3" align="center" style="border-bottom:3px solid"|P-39 Airacobra | olspan="3" align="center"|
Bell P-39 Airacobra | | gcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3"|Description | | ole | colspan="2"|Fighter | | rew | colspan="2"|1 | | irst flight | colspan="2"|April 1939 | | irst variants entered service in | colspan="2"|Early 1941 | | anufacturer | colspan="2"| | | gcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3"|Dimensions | | ength | 30 ft 2 in | 9.2 m | | ingspan | 34 ft 0 in | 10.4 m | | eight | 12 ft 5 in | 3.8 m | | ing area | 213 ft² | 19.8 m² | | gcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3"|Weights | | mpty | 5,347 lb | 2,420 kg | | oaded | 7,379 lb | 3,350 kg | | aximum takeoff | lb | kg | | gcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3"|Powerplant | | ngine | colspan="2"|Allison V-1710 | | ower | 1,200 hp | 895 kW | | gcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3"|Performance | | aximum speed | 376 mph | 605 km/h | | ombat range | 1,098 miles | 1,770 km | | erry range | miles | km | | ervice ceiling | 35,000 ft | 10,700 m | | ate of climb | 3,750 ft/min | 1,140 m/min | | gcolor="#87CEEB" colspan="3"|Armament (P-39Q) | | uns | colspan="2"|1 × 37 mm T9 cannon (propeller hub)
4 × 0.50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns (most P-39 variants armed with 1 37 mm T9 cannon, 4 0.30 in mm, 2 0.50 in machine guns) | | ombs | colspan="2"|500 pounds (230 kg) of bombs externally | The Bell P-39 Airacobra was one of the principal fighter aircraft in service with American forces at the start of World War II. At first for a short time designated XP-45, it had just a single-speed, single-stage supercharger for its engine, instead of an exhaust-driven turbo-supercharger as initially fitted to the prototype but removed, and consequently its performance dropped off rapidly above 17,000 ft (5,000 m). This limited its usefulness in traditional fighter missions, especially in Europe where combat often took place at higher altitudes than in the Pacific. It also had a nasty tendency to go into a spin. The aircraft's unusual design featured its Allison engine mounted in the middle of the fuselage, just behind the pilot, driving the propeller through a driveshaft passing between the pilot's feet. The purpose of this was to free up space for the heavy main armament, a 37 mm T9 cannon firing through the center of the propeller hub for optimum accuracy and stability when firing. The weight distribution necessitated a tricycle undercarriage, a first among American fighters. Entry to the cockpit was through a side door rather than a moving canopy. It is commonly believed that the Airacobra was used as a ground-attack airplane by the Soviet Union; the lack of a turbo-supercharger restricting it to low-altitude combat. In fact, it appears that the Soviets did not use it for ground-attack, but instead to provide top cover. The tactical environment of the Eastern Front did not favor the high-altitude operations that the RAF and USAAF used with their big bombers. In the relatively low-altitude operations in the East the lack of a supercharger was not as bad a handicap. Top scoring Soviet aces Pokryshkin and Rechkalov flew P-39 until end of World War II, even when more advanced fighters were available. 9,584 were produced, with over half being sent to the Soviet Union under the Lend-Lease program. A number are still in existence of which three are still flying. The mid-engine, gun-through-hub concept was developed further in the Bell P-63 Kingcobra. Sources: - Aerodotus 19:18, 3 Jan 2005 (UTC) Variants - XP-39
- YP-39
- YP-39A
- XP-39B
- P-39C
- P-39D
- P-39D-1
- P-39D-2
- XP-39E
- P-39E
- P-39F-1
- P-39F-2
- P-39G
- P-39H
- P-39J
- P-39K
- P-39L
- P-39M
- P-39N
- P-39P
- P-39Q
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