Favorite plane of WW2?

[Donald M. Scheef]

It's really tough to pick one, but for family reasons I'll go with the B-17 Flying Fortress. My father was flight engineer/top turret gunner on one in the Eighth Air Force. In May, 1945 he was transferred to Seattle for training on the B-29 but the war ended before he completed his qualifications.

Don S.

[MechCommander]

It's really tough to pick one, but for family reasons I'll go with the B-17 Flying Fortress. My father was flight engineer/top turret gunner on one in the Eighth Air Force. In May, 1945 he was transferred to Seattle for training on the B-29 but the war ended before he completed his qualifications.

Don S.

I had a uncle who served as a radio/ Camera operator onboard a PBY Canso in the Atlantic Campaign. Still have his wartime photos somewhere. Plus got to go in a PBY in Fairview Alberta a couple of years ago which was restored to flying condition, it was in its water bomber config.

[Hoth_902]

Hands down, the F4 Corsair. I was first introduced to this beautiful piece of machinery while watching reruns of Black Sheep squadron. I fell in love and have never wavered from that position since. It took me till I went to an airshow in florida before I would see one in person. It rained that day and we were able to go up close in a hangar where it was tucked away. Not sure that was allowed, but no on said anything.. Then it took a long period of time till I was blessed with a close encounter. It was somewhere between 2000 and 2004 that the worlds largest Corsair fly in happened in Mount Comfort Indiana. It was actually featured in Air and Space magazine. This was a small airshow that had at least a dozen corsairs, give or take a few, that were from different era's and models. The highlight of the show was when they taxied into there parking spots and you could feel the prop wash blow over you when they turned..

They are beast and you can just see the raw power, even sitting on the grown.

[Beagle]

I love Black Sheep Squadron, I have them all on DVD, I can binge watch the crap out of that show. That was one of those awesome 70s and 80s TV shows that will never be able to be duplicated. Just like The A Team, 6 Million Dollar Man.....

There is a Corsair at the museum, they fly it on regular basis.

It was one impressive aircraft. It's kinda funny the Navy initially gave it to the Marines for land only operations in favor of the Hellcat, then eventually phased it into carrier service.

[redleg]

Beautiful aircraft! I'm still trying to secure my grandfather's documents and cruise books. I remember seeing pictures he took from Korea of the Corsairs and Skyraiders launching for air strikes. I'll post a few pic if/when I can get ahold of them.

[7.62]

So many favorites it is very hard to single one out. Over the years I have been lucky enough to wangle my way into many of the old birds.
I have a wartime family connection to Castle Bromwich (Lanc & Spitfire factory) so they will always come close to the top.
But I have a soft spot for the Wellington bomber because of my uncle Doug.

I also got to fly a Focke-Wulf once over a Dam in German, makes me smile just thinking back to it.
(well it was a Piaggio P-149 build under license by Focke-Wulf, I don't care it still counts to me )

[Extra Crispy]

I loved that show. Robert Conrad, cute nurses, cool planes, what's not to love?

[Brigade Commander]

I love Black Sheep Squadron, I have them all on DVD, I can binge watch the crap out of that show. That was one of those awesome 70s and 80s TV shows that will never be able to be duplicated. Just like The A Team, 6 Million Dollar Man.....

There is a Corsair at the museum, they fly it on regular basis.

It was one impressive aircraft. It's kinda funny the Navy initially gave it to the Marines for land only operations in favor of the Hellcat, then eventually phased it into carrier service.

The Navy felt it too nose-high for carrier landings was what I read. Pilot fatigue was becoming serious so they added Marine squadrons to the rotation but could not spend the time, or aircraft, re-qualifying them in F6F's. So they gave the Corsair another try.

[Beagle]

There were a lot of issues with the initial design that took a while to work out, kinda more than I feel like typing, lol. The early design with the bird cage canopy had very poor forward visibility, the main struts had a bad tendency to bounce on landing, oil from the cowl flap drive could splatter on the windscreen, the torque from the double wasp engine was immense and could cause issue for new pilots on bolters, it had a high attitude on landing making it hard to see over the nose, and there were logistic issues getting enough spare parts to enough carriers fast enough to make it practical. So the Marines got them in 43 and they started flying from carriers in April? 44.

[SMS KONIG]

Definatly the P-38, the forked tail devil. My second would be Corsair, the look just says this is a bad a&# airplane.

[michaelw43]

My favorites are the P-51 Mustang, P-38 Lightning, F6F Hellcat, and Spitfire in fighters, and the B-17 Flying Fortress and TBM Avenger in bombers. The B-17 because it was so cool looking, but also because my Grandpa Keck was a master machinist who made a milled casting for the master electrical disconnect plug which was located under the pilot's seat. He and another machinist made that part for half of all the B-17s made. My Uncle was a Machinist Mate in a Navy TBM squadron, flying from the Casablanca class escort carrier Tulagi as part of the Taffy Group in the Battle off Samar. When he wasn't servicing aircraft he flew missions as a turret gunner. My Dad was a foot soldier on Leyte Island at the time.

[Beagle]

Those are some good reasons for liking those aircraft, thanks for sharing!

[chrisswim]

Favorite heavy bomber, B-17.

Favorite medium bomber, B-25 Mitchell Bomber.

Fighters: P-38 Lighting, P-51, P-40, P-47, Brit Mosquito. I like P-61, not as much info over the decades as the others.
Probably the P-38 as my favorite.