Aircraft Quiz #43

Name the military aircraft officially credited with the very first enemy aircraft kill (shoot down) in the 1950 Korean Conflict. (War was never declared by the US Congress).

1a. Maker, 1b. Maker's models/nomenclatures in the aircraft's entire development cycle, NOTE: this answer requires 13 answers. 1c. Quiz aircraft nomenclature, 1d. Quiz aircraft common name.

2a. Name of pilot of the quiz aircraft, 2b. Pilot's outfit attached to and assigned branch of what military service. NOTE: Question 2b. requires three answers.

3. What aircraft record was set by this make and variant model in 1947?

4. Total quantity produced of this aircraft?

I have not searched the Web for any of this very tough quiz info. Give it your best shots.

Ouch! I think yours' a new record for correct quiz response time. SunvisorFlyer, I commend you! Here are the answers based on several sources including official North American Aviation records-(don't ask how I got them.)

1a. North American Aviation. 1b. NA-120/-123/-144/-149/-150, XP-82-/XP-82A (as the P-82Z production was cancelled)/P-82B/C/D, F-82E/F/G/H. 1c. F-82G. 1d. TWIN MUSTANG. (Could be flown from either cockpit).

2a. Lt. William G. Hudson, pilot. 2b. 68th All-Weather Fighter Squadron assigned to the Fifth Air Force of the U.S. Air Force. Enemy shoot down occurred over North Korea on 27 June 1950 (the conflict started on 25 June 1950). Lt. Carl Fraser was the pilot/radar operator in the other cockpit and they based out of Itazuke Air Base in Japan.

3. On 28 February 1947 an NAA P-82B Twin Mustang 44-651168 "Betty Jo" not "Joe" once incorrectly marked, piloted by LtCol. Robert Thacker and Lt. John Ard flew the V-1610 Merlins-powered Twin Mustang from Hickam Field in Honolulu, Hawaii non-stop non-refueled to New York's LaGuardia Field in 14 hours, 32 minutes at average speed of about 342 mph. The aircraft had four external fuel drop tanks of 310 gallons each in addition to normal onboard fuel. This set a record for longest non-stop flight by a propeller-driven fighter aircraft of 5,000 miles.

4. 273 total aircraft is correct, and surprising to many in past discussions.

Most built (100) were the NA-144 F-82E TWIN MUSTANGs, so I enclose those specs only.

F-82E TWIN MUSTANG specs

Power one Allison V-1710--143 right-hand and one Allison V-1710-145 left-hand counter-rotating liquid-cooled 12 cylinder vee engines of 1,600 hp each.

Wingspan: 51'2.75"

Length: 38'3" (F-82F/G/H differed)

Height: 13'10"

Wing are: 408 sq ft.

Weight empty: 14,900 lb (others differed)

Weight loaded: 20,741 loaded (others differed)

Fuel: 576 gallons plus two 310 gallon drop tanks

Cruise speed: 227 mph

Max speed: 482 mph

Landing: 102 mph

Rate of climb: 4,700 ft/min

Service ceiling: 40,000 ft

Range: 2,240-2,700 miles

Armament

Six 0.50-in machine guns in wing center section. Optional underwing pod with eight 0.50s; five launchers with five 5-inch HVAR rockets each; racks for four 1,000-lb or two 2,000 lb bombs.

Of interest is an oddity about the NAA XP-82 first article sample test aircraft 44-83886. It was completed in May 1945 and underwent run-up and taxi tests, but-IT WOULD NOT FLY! Three runway attempts to takeoff were over successive days. A meeting was held about the peculiar problem. On the next trial takeoff attempt there was the same result. Finally, fuel weight was unloaded and another attempt to fly at a weight of 17,057 lbs was launched with some difficulty and returned to land after a short flight.

The inspection of the V-1650-23 and -25 Merlin engines, of opposite rotation, revealed they were installed such that the propeller blades swung upward toward the center, causing airflow that produced drag rather than required lift, stalling the wing's center section which was one-fourth of the total wing area. That center section was a laminar flow airfoil. A normal takeoff of the XP-82 was achieved in June 1945 after the engines were swapped to their opposite sides. This had the left engine rotating clockwise and the right engine rotating counter-clockwise as viewed from behind.

The P-51 Mustangs and the P/F-82 Twin Mustangs were two entirely different aircraft, with the Twin much larger. The only commonality was in some engine cowling. The Twins were too late for World War II, but got a new lease on life in 1950 in the Korean Conflict with several versions effective. Some of the all-black painted F-28C, D and F-82F versions had huge rounded-tube radomes cantilevered forward of the wing center section and flame-damping exhaust stacks for night ops. Very odd-appearing!

The F-82 Twin Mustangs were the last propeller-driven fighters to be purchased by the USAF. The jet age was fully upon us with Russian-supplied MIGs over North Korea, yet one was shot down there by a British Hawker Sea Fury prop plane, another "first".