TJ I gotta thank you for bringing more light to the wildcat. It’s definitely a very underappreciated aircraft. Having to fly a plane that was already considered obsolete at the start of the war, I give so much respect to wildcat pilots. My grandfather flew FM-2 Wildcats over Luzon from 44-45. He also has a pretty good story as well. Nice video! Good work! Excited to see more!
The problem the Wildcat had when fighting against the Zero, is that it couldn’t win a turn fight with the Zero. It always had to fight in the vertical and had to have an altitude advantage to do it. Its chief advantage was its armor and ability to take damage and survive. The F6F Hellcat solved all of those problems.
turn fighting was inferior starting in the 1930s. All US aircraft were designed to boom and zoom. only japan continued prioritizing turn and burn after the 1930s, and to their detriment.
@@SoloRenegade BS. Boom and Zoom as a concept was not even invented until 1942. Read USAAF doctrine documents. Height and speed were always crucial but manoeuvrability and dogfight capabilities were not relegated. Even the Brits learnt their lesson with the Spit V at Darwin. Dont dogfight a Zero. They changed to B&Z. Now try and tell me the Spit was not designed with manoeuvrability in mind!!!
Right, but the F6F only entered service in 1943 (first combat mission in September if I recall correctly). By this time the Wildcats had already largely turned the air war in their favor. Like the P40, he was the unsung hero of the Pacific war but took more of its far share of action and helped win the more crucial battles and campaigns of the war.
@@csjrogerson2377 Boom and Zoom was already a concept used in WW1 by SPAD pilots and others. it just wasn't formalized yet. All US fighter pilot and fighter design doctrine leading up to WW2 was built around boom and zoom tactics. Claire Chennault was actually one of the pilots who helped with that. The Spitfire was one of the only fighters capable of dogfighting a zero in a turn fight, and ti was found to be a very even match. But the A6M was designed to beat literally EVERYTHING, including other japanese fighters, in turn fighting. it was built with that one idea in mind (and long range). Someone always has to be the best. Regarding turn fighting at slow speeds, that was the zero.
Hey everybody! This video was a lot of fun to make. Historical notes - For starters, any American records from 1942 are extremely hard to find. We just weren't super organized at that point. Specifically, I found this over arching story from this date in the reports of VMF-223, but other documents literally said "No detailed diary from VMF-121 is available, as it was lost" so unfortunately, I do not have exact descriptions of these engagements. So I did have to take some creative license on what exactly happened on this date. What I do know for sure is that Joe Foss took off to intercept the 2nd raid that day, shot down one Zero after it overshot him, then was hit very badly by three other Zeros, making an emergency landing at Henderson with no brakes and no hydraulics. I hope I did this story justice! Thanks for watching everyone :)
You did a "top-job"-the"Wildcat"-is my favorite aeroplane,--it was tough-reliable,-and brought you home !-the British used it,-& liked it too !!--it was no "show-pony"but flown with "determination"-it would "save-your arse"-&on many occasions,did so !!
You have a GREAT format with these videos. Very entertaining, informative & challenging too… Extremely well done. Keep it up! ✌️😎 Also, happy to report that I scored full marks on the quiz ✨🥇✨ except for the very LAST question: Unfortunately, I chose to have my celebratory meal with SPAM… when the correct choice should have been… SPAM. 🤷🏻♂️ 😂
100% It's all in the training. The most difficult decision was the one that ended up with being hit no matter what, but knowing that your airplane cannot outclimb a Zero, and jumping out of a still operational airplane at low altitude under fire was also a bad idea, the only option is try for the field. Fortunately, the Wildcat, like most US combat aircraft of WWII, they were very robust and could take significant amounts of punishment. Better to stay inside the "safe" and push towards friendly fields. Great video. Really liked the "make your choice" aspect. I hope you'll do more like this in the future.
A big issue at this time was that US pilots were still guessing at tactics because they didn't really know precisely where they had advantages over the Zero (except, of course, ruggedness). I don't think that much of the info from the American Volunteer Group in China about fighting the Zeros made it to the Marine pilots. Only after the captured Zero was tested was enough info available to give the US pilots the exact weaknesses of their foe vs the strengths of the Wildcat.
try rewarding kids with spam now better be some gourmet version , jokes aside, it always intrigued me how these pilots, fighter pilots in this case, managed to handle orientation, avoid mid-air collisions all whilst dodging fire from one or multiple sides. Simply amazing, the courage, the pioneering of new tactics mid flight, just this first mission was overwhelming, imagine repeating it the next day. Respect to all of them where ever they are now.
Really the "decision tree" format, very interactive and keeps your mind engaged. I got all but one decision right... Looking forward to building my 1/48 Tamiya Wildcat soon!
This is such a fun and creative format, love these ones! Immerses you in such a way that the history is tangible and makes you realise that these men actually had to make these decisions in real life. Keep them coming!
It takes that Navy " Wings of Gold" training to make the right decisions. It takes the COURAGE of Joe Foss to implement those winning decisions 26 times. Great video, thanks.....
I love these type of videos!! I hope you continue to make them. I got them all right except the first one, I waited for back up. After you explained it though, I agreed with attacking now. Thanks for another great video.
The Wildcat had already been in operation for over 3 years at this point. They had them running awesome and had ironed out the bugs. Most wildcats were the fm2 variation.
Yeah, the FM-2 was not a thing, yet. It would enter service later on, and most would be operating from CVE's, escort carriers. Pilots called it, "The Wilder Wildcat."
Ummm...no, most Wilcats WERE NOT FM2'S. The vast majority were the F4f-3's, with the -4's appearing in 1942. The FM-2 didn't arrive until late 1943, the Hellcat was operational in early 43.
@@towgod7985 2580 F4F-3, F4F-4, and a few hundred export models were produced in 1941, 1942, and early 1943. Starting in 1943, production began on 5280 FM-1's and FM-2's.
The Wildcat wasn't operational with the fleet until 1941 which is why when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, a few squadrons were still flying the Buffalo (USS Saratoga comes to mind). The Buffalo was already being replaced by the Wildcat at that time so that is why that none of the Navy squadrons who flew the Buffalo ever encountered the Japanese. The only US forces who actually flew the Buffalo in combat were the Marines at Midway where they found out, like the British and the Dutch, that the Buffalo was outclassed by the Zero.
I read somewhere that the Wildcat, like most US fighters, had a pressure carburettor and the Zero didn't. So it could get away by "bunting" sharply down and a Zero with a gravity carburettor (like the early Spitfire) couldn't follow. Whether the pilots knew that at Guadalcanal is another question.
What can I say you have knocked it out of the Park again. Great video I really like how you did this one, Not only telling Ace Joe Foss Story but combined it with a "Can You Survive ?" video was pure Genius. Still Batting a 1000 in 2024 . As always Thanks for all of you and your film crews hard work and attention to the details. I am sure that is why your channel has grown so much and I am so Happy for you. I had complete faith your channel would keep growing. We talked about how many W.W.2 documentaries out there made me second guess them and they make me feel like I should take everything with a grain of salt. because they would show the wrong aircraft, squadron, camo colors or variant of the aircraft that they are talking about. which instantly makes me feel like "What else do the have wrong in the video" Nothing worse sitting down all happy you got a new documentary about W.W.2 to watch and in the opening scenes they show you something like Zero's painted in the Green camo attacking Pearl Harbor. They were not using that color at that point in time on ZEROS. Once I see something like that I just can't feel like I can trust everything else because it might be wrong too. I had faith like in "Field of Dreams" I knew if you built it they would come. It could not of happen to a nicer guy too. I mean even your graphics are high quality looking very realistic almost like a movie. "Please keep "em Flyin" . Have a Happy Easter Buddy.
It's refreshing that I got all decisions correct, even predicting the zeros were above the bombers accurately. It was because scrambling was one of my favourite way to play back in the days I flew ICI warbirds in 1995 for several years, to save money from spending time to find enemies. It charges an hourly rate and to climb to an altitude where I can do boom and zoom repetitively, and it would have broken my bank account if I only play that way. My bank account was broken anyway in the end, having spent so much time flying there. Yet, my favourite time was spent on scrambling and I often score many kills due to my gunnery skill being above average. In fact, I did almost all the same like Joe did in this story, shot up enemy planes, got shot up myself, and ditch on the airfield I was defending.
This was an excellent production mate enjoyed the animations very detailed and the what would you do format !!! You put a lot of effort into these videos and it shows!!!!😊😊😊😊
I enjoy all your videos. The graphics are top notch The in the cockpit of the F-4F Wildcat as Joe Foss as part of the Cactus Air Force was a great idea and I made all the correct choices but then I am a fellow Marine!.. I hope you create more like this!!.
I got all but the last one right, though I would argue that you could probably belly land the aircraft. I picked attempt to restart the engine but to be honest you could belly land the aircraft if that fails.
yeah the only thing i dont like about this format is that air combat isnt a b or c its super specific small decisions that add up not just should i go fast or go slow
After having studied the book, Stick and Rudder, during my pilot training, knowing now what I learned, I would have pushed the nose down to gain airspeed, to achieve best glide speed, and landed wheels up, with touchdown slightly above stall speed, during the final (engine out) approach. Kudos to Cpt. Foss for getting his gear down in time for a wheels down landing! He managed to keep a cool head, and saved HIMSELF AND THE PLANE, to 'fight another day'! Semper Fi.💪🇺🇸😎
One thing I noticed in the vireo game depictions of the aircraft, is that the Wildcats depicted were the four gun F4F-3 models, instead of the six gun F4F-4 models that were actually used from Mid 1942, until they were replaced with the F6F-3's in early 1943.
In the game used to make the cinematics, the F4F-4 had too many of the old roundels with the red dots in the center for us to be able to cover up, so we had to use the F4F-3
@@Orca4135 What game did you use? It's funny that the F4F-4 had the red dots, and the F4F-3 didn't. I've often wondered if the Marines kept on using the F4F-3 until they were all used up, or if they shipped them back to the US, to be used as very advanced trainers?
@@billkallas1762 We use war thunder, and they both have the red dot roundel, but they can be covered up using a decal, and there are more roundels on the F4F-4 then there are on the F4F-3, and with the limited decal slots in war thunder we can cover them all up on the F4F-3 but not the F4F-4. It’s odd that the F4F-4 even has the red dot in the roundel but can’t change that
Interesting fact that for American pilots the 6 gun Wildcat was less popular as you had less ammo per gun over the 4 gun Wildcat -with 4 they had 450 rpg and 34 secs firing time with. 6 they only 240 rpg which would be expended in less than 20 secs😮😮😮😮
@@pvtjohntowle4081 : Yes. The Spitfire and Hurricane only had 18 seconds of ammunition, so the British (who had asked for Grumman for the change to 6 gun armament in their Martlet Mk IV) were happy with that amount of ammo. (The British Royal Navy wanted 6 guns because the Martlet's intended targets were German bombers with armour and self-sealing fuel tanks - unlike the US Navy which was only concerned with Japanese bombers, which had neither.) (The US government ordered Grumman to switch to the 6 gun armament even though the US Navy didn't want it, so that Wildcat production wouldn't be reduced by having to build it in 2 different versions at the same time.)
I couldn’t taxi that bird without tipping it on one wing. I mean, sometimes I have problems taxiing a Cessna 172 with tricycle gear and a nice wide wheelbase. The F4F looks top-heavy and I have a feeling if I survived taxiing it out, lining up, configuring her for takeoff, givin’ her the gas and dealing with the torque, getting into the air, cleaning her up and the gear up, adjust the mixture and prop and trim the plane. I could fly the ‘Cat around a bit (& that is speaking as a pilot from the present). Trying to land? That would be an entirely different duck. I’m glad Joe Foss was on our side!
In order to attack Henderson or Allied shipping, Japanese bomber crews and fighter pilots were flying several hours down from their bases at Rabaul before they even met the defending Wildcats. And then they had to fly all the way back afterwards, often with damaged aircraft and with no search and rescue services operating that far from "home." In fact, due to the long distances involved, it was impossible to do more than two strikes a day and they tended to come in at roughly the same time of the day like clockwork. All of these things disadvantaged the Japanese although those facing them at the sharp end from Henderson field would not have known that at the time.
13 October 1942 "Seeing that we had just taken this airbase a few days prior"... Try a few months prior (Henderson Field was captured 7 August and the first wildcats arrived 20 August.
I aced all but the last question. I’ve been in that scenario on War Thunder multiple times, and usually I’d stall out and my controls would lock up before I can make the airfield. So I elected to attempt an engine restart. However, had I been given full control over the situation, I would’ve picked Option D. Perform a no gear landing on the ground in my immediate vicinity. For starters, we know it can be done, Jesse Brown and Tom Hudner anyone? Another thing to note is that Henderson Field, in simplest terms, is right there. I could probably walk over after putting the aircraft down. Plus, the zeroes have a lot more to worry about than a Wildcat they already left for dead, so strafing runs aren’t an issue. If Foss made it to the airfield without getting attacked again, he would’ve been fine landing in the woods. And since it’s within a decent proximity, a salvage team could head out to salvage whatever is left of the plane for parts. But that’s all just me though
I got 2 of the 3 correct & partially write on the 1st question. The Wild Cat was a good. Not great like the F4U & F6F. The one thing that the pilots of the F4s did after this was to get way high above. They were even higher than the Zeroes. Their tactic was to dive down, a lot like the P-40 Warhawk, & blast through the covering fighters then pull up again & get as high as they could to continue the fight. It was really the only workable solution they had.
It is all about "wing loading" and stall speed. The Wildcat wing loading far exceeded that of the Zero and thus could not fight in a turning scenario. The BF109 used wing slats to solve this issue whereas the Wildcat had none to overcome this deficiency.
Forcing an overshoot was lucky. Forcing the Zero into a dive is usually a better choice for escape as the increased airspeed causes aileron control issues in the Zero.
You should attempt engine restart at the same time as gliding into the field. Also, without any power you should attempt to roll to the side of the runway. Also, zig zag at bit to lose speed when on the ground plus keep the stick back to increase drag through the tail wheel after landing. I'm sure Capt. Foss did all of these.
Edit: 100/100. Spam & bread sammich! Had the great fortune to meet and have a couple of beers with "Major" Boyington in 1971 at the Royal Hawaiian hotel when I was a young Marine Corps sergeant stationed on Oahu, in-between tours in the RVN. SEMPER FI!
Aced it. The wheels aren't pumped , they're cranked bicycle chain and sprockets Plus you have to count the cranks to know they're locked up and down. No counter. I was just in a flying wildcat a week ago like a kid in a candy store
Out of altitude, out of airspeed, and out of ideas. He’s lucky he lived through that experience. Foss, in much later life, went on to become the governor of one of the Dakotas, IIRC.
I set up a glide to Henderson and tried to restart the engine while gliding towards the field. Rather than try to outrun the Zeros once they were behind me I would have quickly turned into them with the throttle firewalled.
I need to point out to the crowd that this is not Joe Foss's story this is a small part of Joe's story. He wrote an autobiography called Proud American and it should be required reading as far as I'm concerned
Wildcats get too much hate, I mean the Brit’s loved them and saw success with them. Not to mention the US still used wildcats even at the end of the war on escort carriers and they saw success there
My only mistake was trying to outrun the zero instead of slowing and having him over-shoot. I though the Wildcat for whatever reason had a a lot more power than the Zero. But ive always known the Zero to be one of the best handling early WW2 birds. I would have also glided to a landing but I might have tried restarting the engine on the way down anyways.
Hm, I would have been an excellent Wildcat pilot, scored all good. Anyway, the Wildcat was one of my favorite aircraft in IL-2 Sturmovik 1946 back in the old days. Others were Bf-109F-2/ F-4/G-6, P-40E/M, P-38J/L Lightning and Spitfire Mk.IX. I liked the Airacobra models too, but they really had less chance against the Zeros and Oscars than the P-40E. I also loved the Beaufighter, that was a real beast!
I still fly IL-2 UE version on disc at home!I love it!❤️ * 52 kills in F4U * 27 kills in F6F * 104 kills in Bf 109 * 38 kills in FW 190 * 114 KILLS in La 7...the BEAST! ...not bragging here...just sharing. I "died" many, many times before getting these scores...hours upon hours and days upon days learning each plane and the enemy's tactics. Overall...I did my best in the Soviet La7....very fast and packs a heavy punch!
Ok so I studied a lot on the Wildcat and is successor the Hellcat. If the Wildcat pilot got into the silly action of actually having a one on one dogfight with a Zero, the Zero typically climbed for height as it was mush faster in the climb. A lot of US NAvy pilots then choose to follow but the Wildcats alway had to break off first as they couldn't climb as far, so the turn dropped out and the zero simply did the same seeing this and in most cases made the kill. One massive reason they brought the Hellcat out as it could climb as fast as the zero and higher. It was the zeros turn to cap out first and most times the Hellcats got the kill. PS: Oh 3 outta 3 haha
I have to question the issue of cranking the landing gear down; it was a well-known issue with the Wildcat that if you lost your grip on the gear crank while raising the gear, it would spin around in reverse as the gear dropped back to full lowered position, likely breaking your hand. With the condition his plane was in, Foss could have simply flipped the gear operation lever and let the gear drop to full extended by gravity, rather than cranking it down, which would have let him focus on his other problems with making a landing he could walk away from.
Tactics! The F4F Wildcat was actually a very good aircraft that was limited by it's pre war design specifications. Early in the war both the USAAC and USN were still teaching pilots to dogfight and try to outmaneuver or outnumber the enemy. Later when surviving pilots came back with experience fighting the Japanese and the A6M Zero, they formed squadrons that were trained to use tactics developed specifically to take advantage of the Zero's weak wings and fuselage in high speed maneuvers. Another big factor was using tactics like the Thach weave perfected by John "Jimmy" Thach that was very effective and almost eliminated the maneuverability advantage of the Zero, especially with a highly experienced Japanese pilot, not late war poorly trained kids that could barely fly in formation or hit a ship as a Kamikaze and were blown out of the skies in the hundreds by F6F Hellcat and F4U Corsair pilots!
Yes indeed , McPherson was “in the right place at the right time “ !!! … in another WW2 South Pacific battle , my Dad , Lieutenant Robert James Walters shot down three Mitsubishi’s with his P-40 Warhawk in New Guinea … He said by early 1945 , the Japanese had run out of veteran pilots and sent up kids to fly … he said he wasn’t an Ace ‘cause an actual ace shot down at least Five … he also said that he might have shot down the guy that cured cancer and that’s why he didn’t tell of his service record till 3 months before he died in 2011 of cancer !!!
Yay! Another correct decision tree. I'm proud at how well I do at these though there was one I blew on the the last choice. I can't recall which one. These are so much fun.
Every choice of mine was the correct one, i think i am perhaps a reincarnation of a fighter ace of the great wars in Europe! Perhaps a experten Jagdflieger of the Luftwaffe!!
as an ole' fighter pilot with combat experience I would not be able to look my self in the mirror if I didn't get all right - 🙂 - TJ - another great video with a twist about decisions one has to make in combat that are life and death----
I wouldn’t use the word barely. The F4F overall had good success in its battles in 1942 and 1943 until better planes came about. 4:1 kill ratio at Guadalcanal alone. 7:1 in total. The Wildcat and its pilots would shoot down the majority of Japan’s experienced aviators. Making things easier for its successors
Barely? The F4F did the vast majority of the super hard work, taking on the cream of Japan’s pilots. Most of the decisive battles in the Pacific were fought with the F4F being the main fighter used.
I hit 100%, but then I've flown planes and I've been a student of WWII aircraft and tactics since I built my first Aurora, Monogram, Revell and Airfix kits...
Last desicion i would have tried to restart, just to be shure i make the airfield, but i forgot the engine need oil and that the gear is handpumped and takes time to lower
Two 20mm Cannons tossing golf ball sized tracers at your canopy? Can't climb or dive to get away! The turning fight? That is sure Death! What would you do?
Whilst pausing the video and not knowing the outcome, my answers were: Answer: A - Circle back whilst gaining altitude with a corkscrew climb so I can better protect the delayed allied fighters from enemy fighters by having more energy. Answer: A - Boom and Zoom climb attacks on the bombers whilst retaining as much potential energy as possible. Answer: B - Knowing the turn rate of the Japanese Zero at that time: Stick forward, War Emergency Power and Bug Out with as much minus G's I could physically handle (-2 to -3) and try to outrun the Zero on the deck but if I notice that I am not gaining distance quick enough. Slow down and lower flaps whilst doing horizontal scissors attempting to make the Zero overshoot. Answer: B - Head back to Home Base whilst trying to outrun or be as evasive as possible. Answer: A - Attempt to glide to the airstrip. Answer: C - Just eat the bread. Spam sounds disgusting! I think I had one answer correct according to the video. Now can we please get the F4F Wildcat in IL-2 Great Battles or better yet, DCS? Or are we just going to wait for Combat Pilot and hope to God it has good flight physics.
I just remembered that pulling negative G's would likely cut the fuel to the engine for a brief moment. So maybe an Aileron and Yaw roll with positive G's would be more effective for faster acceleration.
Damn! I had it right until the last one, when I tried to restart the engine... But I was still heading to the runway so maybe I could still have belly-landed my big fat F4F ;-)
I scored correctly on all, except for the last question. What was the right answer, TJ3 History? 😂 I think I would have made it easy and gone for a Spam Sandwich! The Grumman F4F Wildcat could be an absolutely lethal Weapon of War in the right hands, but alas was greatly underpowered, something the next iteration, the Grumman F6F Hellcat fixed by installing various versions of the famed 2,000 - 2,200 hp Pratt & Whitney R-2800 radial piston engines, and four-bladed propellers. At a distance it was hard for Japanese pilots to distinguish between the two Grumman planes, which became the downfall of many who thought they had an easy prey in their fangs, when the Hellcat - quite a different kind of beast - expedited them to Hell. Still, the Wildcat had its plusses compared with the Japanese planes. First and foremost was the deep respect for Human Life in the Grumman Corporation. They wanted to give their Pilots the best chance of survival possible, and ven if that meant a weight penalty, it saved Lives. Their Armor Plating around the Pilot, Armored Cockpit Glass in front and Self-Sealing Fuel Tanks all contributed to an ever increasing proficiency in the Pilot Core. Japanese Fighter Planes, like the one seen in this eepisode, the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, had no Pilot Protections. It didn't take many tracer rounds from an allied plane, AA Gun or Ship to light up Japanese Fighters. The hijacked Shinto Philosophy of dying a glorious death sounded magnificent to the Japanese Tojoists. But they were a rather stupid bunch of boot licking Dictatorship Zealots. And only nearing the end of the war did it dawn on them that it would perhaps have been far better making the Mitsubishi A6M Zero more survivable in combat for a bit less nimbleness, than to lose all the most experienced Pilots, and being left with raw recruits when the time came to defend the Home Islands. In this encounter depicted here, as in thousands of other encounters in the Pacific, Grumman's Judeo-Christian Philosophy of protecting the Pilots Life paid off with dividends. The construction of the Wildcat not only saved US Marine Fighter Pilot, Joe Foss' Life, in his encounter with the Zeros. It also gave him the ability to become increasingly proficient and ending up as an Ace, which was not uncommon at all among Fighter Pilots in the Pacific. As for having three Zeros on his tail, it didn't make much difference compared to having just one on his tail. Back in those days, when kills were scored by bullets, it was the ONE plane that was on your six o'clock that killed you. Of course, being pursued by more than one plane limited your options in getting away. But there can only be 1 plane on your six o'clock.
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The answer is not to pay. We must all stop paying bills entirely 😂
the Japanese pilots and engineering were superior !!!
TJ I gotta thank you for bringing more light to the wildcat. It’s definitely a very underappreciated aircraft. Having to fly a plane that was already considered obsolete at the start of the war, I give so much respect to wildcat pilots.
My grandfather flew FM-2 Wildcats over Luzon from 44-45. He also has a pretty good story as well.
Nice video! Good work! Excited to see more!
Aà@@stephenmeier4658
@adambane1719 And for some reason still lost the war...
Apperantly your "superior" technology
The problem the Wildcat had when fighting against the Zero, is that it couldn’t win a turn fight with the Zero. It always had to fight in the vertical and had to have an altitude advantage to do it. Its chief advantage was its armor and ability to take damage and survive. The F6F Hellcat solved all of those problems.
turn fighting was inferior starting in the 1930s. All US aircraft were designed to boom and zoom. only japan continued prioritizing turn and burn after the 1930s, and to their detriment.
@@SoloRenegade BS. Boom and Zoom as a concept was not even invented until 1942. Read USAAF doctrine documents. Height and speed were always crucial but manoeuvrability and dogfight capabilities were not relegated. Even the Brits learnt their lesson with the Spit V at Darwin. Dont dogfight a Zero. They changed to B&Z. Now try and tell me the Spit was not designed with manoeuvrability in mind!!!
Right, but the F6F only entered service in 1943 (first combat mission in September if I recall correctly). By this time the Wildcats had already largely turned the air war in their favor.
Like the P40, he was the unsung hero of the Pacific war but took more of its far share of action and helped win the more crucial battles and campaigns of the war.
@@csjrogerson2377 Boom and Zoom was already a concept used in WW1 by SPAD pilots and others. it just wasn't formalized yet.
All US fighter pilot and fighter design doctrine leading up to WW2 was built around boom and zoom tactics. Claire Chennault was actually one of the pilots who helped with that.
The Spitfire was one of the only fighters capable of dogfighting a zero in a turn fight, and ti was found to be a very even match.
But the A6M was designed to beat literally EVERYTHING, including other japanese fighters, in turn fighting. it was built with that one idea in mind (and long range). Someone always has to be the best. Regarding turn fighting at slow speeds, that was the zero.
@@TheIndianalain I agree. Thanks to good training, heavy armament, and using the Wildcats strength to its advantage, it made a big difference.
Hey everybody! This video was a lot of fun to make. Historical notes - For starters, any American records from 1942 are extremely hard to find. We just weren't super organized at that point. Specifically, I found this over arching story from this date in the reports of VMF-223, but other documents literally said "No detailed diary from VMF-121 is available, as it was lost" so unfortunately, I do not have exact descriptions of these engagements. So I did have to take some creative license on what exactly happened on this date. What I do know for sure is that Joe Foss took off to intercept the 2nd raid that day, shot down one Zero after it overshot him, then was hit very badly by three other Zeros, making an emergency landing at Henderson with no brakes and no hydraulics. I hope I did this story justice! Thanks for watching everyone :)
Very enjoyable , thanks 😊
You did a "top-job"-the"Wildcat"-is my favorite aeroplane,--it was tough-reliable,-and brought you home !-the British used it,-& liked it too !!--it was no "show-pony"but flown with "determination"-it would "save-your arse"-&on many occasions,did so !!
You have a GREAT format with these videos. Very entertaining, informative & challenging too… Extremely well done. Keep it up! ✌️😎
Also, happy to report that I scored full marks on the quiz ✨🥇✨ except for the very LAST question: Unfortunately, I chose to have my celebratory meal with SPAM… when the correct choice should have been… SPAM. 🤷🏻♂️ 😂
You are AWESOME TJ!
Keep em coming bro! We love these brilliant animated history lessons! 💪🇺🇸😎
the Japanese pilots and engineering were superior !!!
100% It's all in the training. The most difficult decision was the one that ended up with being hit no matter what, but knowing that your airplane cannot outclimb a Zero, and jumping out of a still operational airplane at low altitude under fire was also a bad idea, the only option is try for the field. Fortunately, the Wildcat, like most US combat aircraft of WWII, they were very robust and could take significant amounts of punishment. Better to stay inside the "safe" and push towards friendly fields.
Great video. Really liked the "make your choice" aspect. I hope you'll do more like this in the future.
A big issue at this time was that US pilots were still guessing at tactics because they didn't really know precisely where they had advantages over the Zero (except, of course, ruggedness). I don't think that much of the info from the American Volunteer Group in China about fighting the Zeros made it to the Marine pilots. Only after the captured Zero was tested was enough info available to give the US pilots the exact weaknesses of their foe vs the strengths of the Wildcat.
I love the “could you survive” video format! I hope you continue with these, they are super fun to watch, and just as fun to make!
You also would like to bring as much of the plane back as possible. The marines need those parts even if you cant fly the entire plane again.
Especially if the plane is made of crayons.
When faced with a decision in battle, the most aggressive option is usually the correct one.
No, sometimes retreating is the best option
try rewarding kids with spam now better be some gourmet version , jokes aside, it always intrigued me how these pilots, fighter pilots in this case, managed to handle orientation, avoid mid-air collisions all whilst dodging fire from one or multiple sides. Simply amazing, the courage, the pioneering of new tactics mid flight, just this first mission was overwhelming, imagine repeating it the next day. Respect to all of them where ever they are now.
You had me at Joe Foss ... thumbs up!
I love Pacific dogfight stories TJ! Please keep making more!!!
Really the "decision tree" format, very interactive and keeps your mind engaged. I got all but one decision right... Looking forward to building my 1/48 Tamiya Wildcat soon!
This is such a fun and creative format, love these ones! Immerses you in such a way that the history is tangible and makes you realise that these men actually had to make these decisions in real life. Keep them coming!
It takes that Navy " Wings of Gold" training to make the right decisions. It takes the COURAGE of Joe Foss to implement those winning decisions 26 times. Great video, thanks.....
I love these type of videos!! I hope you continue to make them. I got them all right except the first one, I waited for back up. After you explained it though, I agreed with attacking now. Thanks for another great video.
The Wildcat had already been in operation for over 3 years at this point. They had them running awesome and had ironed out the bugs. Most wildcats were the fm2 variation.
I don't believe that the FM-2 Wildcat was issued until 1943, as a carrier-based fighter, for the smaller carriers.
Yeah, the FM-2 was not a thing, yet. It would enter service later on, and most would be operating from CVE's, escort carriers. Pilots called it, "The Wilder Wildcat."
Ummm...no, most Wilcats WERE NOT FM2'S. The vast majority were the F4f-3's, with the -4's appearing in 1942. The FM-2 didn't arrive until late 1943, the Hellcat was operational in early 43.
@@towgod7985 2580 F4F-3, F4F-4, and a few hundred export models were produced in 1941, 1942, and early 1943. Starting in 1943, production began on 5280 FM-1's and FM-2's.
The Wildcat wasn't operational with the fleet until 1941 which is why when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, a few squadrons were still flying the Buffalo (USS Saratoga comes to mind). The Buffalo was already being replaced by the Wildcat at that time so that is why that none of the Navy squadrons who flew the Buffalo ever encountered the Japanese. The only US forces who actually flew the Buffalo in combat were the Marines at Midway where they found out, like the British and the Dutch, that the Buffalo was outclassed by the Zero.
I read somewhere that the Wildcat, like most US fighters, had a pressure carburettor and the Zero didn't. So it could get away by "bunting" sharply down and a Zero with a gravity carburettor (like the early Spitfire) couldn't follow. Whether the pilots knew that at Guadalcanal is another question.
That might work at high altitude, but not 500 feet above the ground.
9:00 I love the the visuals. Really helps flesh out what it must have looked like to be in those
crucial battles in 1942
The 3 major strengths that the wildcat had was it's heavy frontal armor its dive speed and armament.
What can I say you have knocked it out of the Park again. Great video I really like how you did this one, Not only telling Ace Joe Foss Story but combined it with a "Can You Survive ?" video was pure Genius. Still Batting a 1000 in 2024 . As always Thanks for all of you and your film crews hard work and attention to the details. I am sure that is why your channel has grown so much and I am so Happy for you. I had complete faith your channel would keep growing. We talked about how many W.W.2 documentaries out there made me second guess them and they make me feel like I should take everything with a grain of salt. because they would show the wrong aircraft, squadron, camo colors or variant of the aircraft that they are talking about. which instantly makes me feel like "What else do the have wrong in the video" Nothing worse sitting down all happy you got a new documentary about W.W.2 to watch and in the opening scenes they show you something like Zero's painted in the Green camo attacking Pearl Harbor. They were not using that color at that point in time on ZEROS. Once I see something like that I just can't feel like I can trust everything else because it might be wrong too. I had faith like in "Field of Dreams" I knew if you built it they would come. It could not of happen to a nicer guy too. I mean even your graphics are high quality looking very realistic almost like a movie. "Please keep "em Flyin" . Have a Happy Easter Buddy.
It's refreshing that I got all decisions correct, even predicting the zeros were above the bombers accurately. It was because scrambling was one of my favourite way to play back in the days I flew ICI warbirds in 1995 for several years, to save money from spending time to find enemies. It charges an hourly rate and to climb to an altitude where I can do boom and zoom repetitively, and it would have broken my bank account if I only play that way. My bank account was broken anyway in the end, having spent so much time flying there. Yet, my favourite time was spent on scrambling and I often score many kills due to my gunnery skill being above average. In fact, I did almost all the same like Joe did in this story, shot up enemy planes, got shot up myself, and ditch on the airfield I was defending.
Not me, I died, multiple times.
This was an excellent production mate enjoyed the animations very detailed and the what would you do format !!! You put a lot of effort into these videos and it shows!!!!😊😊😊😊
Thank you!!
I enjoy all your videos. The graphics are top notch The in the cockpit of the F-4F Wildcat as Joe Foss as part of the Cactus Air Force was a great idea and I made all the correct choices but then I am a fellow Marine!.. I hope you create more like this!!.
Thanks for watching!
A TJ3 video to brighten up this thursday. Lets go!
This is the first "Choose Your Adventure " story I ever lived through!
You always try an engine restart unless it is on fire. Then you just feather your prop if you can and glide, guide and pray.
I got all but the last one right, though I would argue that you could probably belly land the aircraft. I picked attempt to restart the engine but to be honest you could belly land the aircraft if that fails.
yeah the only thing i dont like about this format is that air combat isnt a b or c its super specific small decisions that add up not just should i go fast or go slow
After having studied the book, Stick and Rudder, during my pilot training, knowing now what I learned, I would have pushed the nose down to gain airspeed, to achieve best glide speed, and landed wheels up, with touchdown slightly above stall speed, during the final (engine out) approach. Kudos to Cpt. Foss for getting his gear down in time for a wheels down landing! He managed to keep a cool head, and saved HIMSELF AND THE PLANE, to 'fight another day'! Semper Fi.💪🇺🇸😎
I love the format of these videos.
Love these videos.I got a prefect score.
One thing I noticed in the vireo game depictions of the aircraft, is that the Wildcats depicted were the four gun F4F-3 models, instead of the six gun F4F-4 models that were actually used from Mid 1942, until they were replaced with the F6F-3's in early 1943.
In the game used to make the cinematics, the F4F-4 had too many of the old roundels with the red dots in the center for us to be able to cover up, so we had to use the F4F-3
@@Orca4135 What game did you use? It's funny that the F4F-4 had the red dots, and the F4F-3 didn't. I've often wondered if the Marines kept on using the F4F-3 until they were all used up, or if they shipped them back to the US, to be used as very advanced trainers?
@@billkallas1762 We use war thunder, and they both have the red dot roundel, but they can be covered up using a decal, and there are more roundels on the F4F-4 then there are on the F4F-3, and with the limited decal slots in war thunder we can cover them all up on the F4F-3 but not the F4F-4. It’s odd that the F4F-4 even has the red dot in the roundel but can’t change that
Interesting fact that for American pilots the 6 gun Wildcat was less popular as you had less ammo per gun over the 4 gun Wildcat -with 4 they had 450 rpg and 34 secs firing time with. 6 they only 240 rpg which would be expended in less than 20 secs😮😮😮😮
@@pvtjohntowle4081 : Yes. The Spitfire and Hurricane only had 18 seconds of ammunition, so the British (who had asked for Grumman for the change to 6 gun armament in their Martlet Mk IV) were happy with that amount of ammo.
(The British Royal Navy wanted 6 guns because the Martlet's intended targets were German bombers with armour and self-sealing fuel tanks - unlike the US Navy which was only concerned with Japanese bombers, which had neither.)
(The US government ordered Grumman to switch to the 6 gun armament even though the US Navy didn't want it, so that Wildcat production wouldn't be reduced by having to build it in 2 different versions at the same time.)
I’m only surviving in a Wildcat if it’s in peace time and I stay in the hangar.
Fr 😂
Lol
I couldn’t taxi that bird without tipping it on one wing. I mean, sometimes I have problems taxiing a Cessna 172 with tricycle gear and a nice wide wheelbase.
The F4F looks top-heavy and I have a feeling if I survived taxiing it out, lining up, configuring her for takeoff, givin’ her the gas and dealing with the torque, getting into the air, cleaning her up and the gear up, adjust the mixture and prop and trim the plane. I could fly the ‘Cat around a bit (& that is speaking as a pilot from the present).
Trying to land? That would be an entirely different duck.
I’m glad Joe Foss was on our side!
Wildcat was rather evenly matched to the Zero, if flown properly.
@@SoloRenegade That may very well be true but never doubt someone’s ineptitude!
Great video...well done, sir! Joe Foss is perhaps my favorite ace of WWII too.
Interesting framing of the action. Very enjoyable. Mahalo for all your work!
PS I love the grungy-looking Wildcats.
Hope you make more of this kind of video
Well done TJ you are really good and getting better and better!
In order to attack Henderson or Allied shipping, Japanese bomber crews and fighter pilots were flying several hours down from their bases at Rabaul before they even met the defending Wildcats. And then they had to fly all the way back afterwards, often with damaged aircraft and with no search and rescue services operating that far from "home." In fact, due to the long distances involved, it was impossible to do more than two strikes a day and they tended to come in at roughly the same time of the day like clockwork. All of these things disadvantaged the Japanese although those facing them at the sharp end from Henderson field would not have known that at the time.
For the first time, I actually got all of them right , because I knew the characteristics and abilities of both planes .
13 October 1942 "Seeing that we had just taken this airbase a few days prior"... Try a few months prior (Henderson Field was captured 7 August and the first wildcats arrived 20 August.
We just did a seance and Boyington is gonna hurt you for that sleazy commercial... don't go to sleep
Excellent! Loved the test questions because I aced it! Keep these kinds of videos coming.
I aced all but the last question. I’ve been in that scenario on War Thunder multiple times, and usually I’d stall out and my controls would lock up before I can make the airfield. So I elected to attempt an engine restart.
However, had I been given full control over the situation, I would’ve picked Option D. Perform a no gear landing on the ground in my immediate vicinity. For starters, we know it can be done, Jesse Brown and Tom Hudner anyone? Another thing to note is that Henderson Field, in simplest terms, is right there. I could probably walk over after putting the aircraft down. Plus, the zeroes have a lot more to worry about than a Wildcat they already left for dead, so strafing runs aren’t an issue. If Foss made it to the airfield without getting attacked again, he would’ve been fine landing in the woods. And since it’s within a decent proximity, a salvage team could head out to salvage whatever is left of the plane for parts. But that’s all just me though
I love the can you survive series! Thanks a lot for your work!
I got 2 of the 3 correct & partially write on the 1st question.
The Wild Cat was a good. Not great like the F4U & F6F. The one thing that the pilots of the F4s did after this was to get way high above. They were even higher than the Zeroes. Their tactic was to dive down, a lot like the P-40 Warhawk, & blast through the covering fighters then pull up again & get as high as they could to continue the fight. It was really the only workable solution they had.
It is all about "wing loading" and stall speed. The Wildcat wing loading far exceeded that of the Zero and thus could not fight in a turning scenario. The BF109 used wing slats to solve this issue whereas the Wildcat had none to overcome this deficiency.
Forcing an overshoot was lucky. Forcing the Zero into a dive is usually a better choice for escape as the increased airspeed causes aileron control issues in the Zero.
The same would be interesting here at Guadalcanal with the P-39 Airacobra. Now that was a tough fight.
the P-40, P-39, and F4F all scored positive kill ratios over Japanese fighters in the Guadalcanal campaign.
You should attempt engine restart at the same time as gliding into the field. Also, without any power you should attempt to roll to the side of the runway. Also, zig zag at bit to lose speed when on the ground plus keep the stick back to increase drag through the tail wheel after landing. I'm sure Capt. Foss did all of these.
Edit: 100/100. Spam & bread sammich!
Had the great fortune to meet and have a couple of beers with "Major" Boyington in 1971 at the Royal Hawaiian hotel when I was a young Marine Corps sergeant stationed on Oahu, in-between tours in the RVN.
SEMPER FI!
I did well, becoming an 18 victory man on Guadalcanal, earning a Distinguished Flying Cross.
Aced it. The wheels aren't pumped , they're cranked bicycle chain and sprockets Plus you have to count the cranks to know they're locked up and down. No counter. I was just in a flying wildcat a week ago like a kid in a candy store
Out of altitude, out of airspeed, and out of ideas.
He’s lucky he lived through that experience.
Foss, in much later life, went on to become the governor of one of the Dakotas, IIRC.
That’s the coolest video I’ve watched in awhile. More of those plz
Thanks!!
I set up a glide to Henderson and tried to restart the engine while gliding towards the field. Rather than try to outrun the Zeros once they were behind me I would have quickly turned into them with the throttle firewalled.
Wildcats were tough and good looking aircraft. Fun fact: you had to hand crank your landing gear up and down.
Was just reading Neptunes Inferno. Nice that this video came up
I need to point out to the crowd that this is not Joe Foss's story this is a small part of Joe's story. He wrote an autobiography called Proud American and it should be required reading as far as I'm concerned
Wildcats get too much hate, I mean the Brit’s loved them and saw success with them. Not to mention the US still used wildcats even at the end of the war on escort carriers and they saw success there
My only mistake was trying to outrun the zero instead of slowing and having him over-shoot. I though the Wildcat for whatever reason had a a lot more power than the Zero. But ive always known the Zero to be one of the best handling early WW2 birds. I would have also glided to a landing but I might have tried restarting the engine on the way down anyways.
Joe Foss, American fighter pilot hero, Governor, and helped out in the making of Microsoft Combat Flight Sim 2
Hm, I would have been an excellent Wildcat pilot, scored all good. Anyway, the Wildcat was one of my favorite aircraft in IL-2 Sturmovik 1946 back in the old days. Others were Bf-109F-2/ F-4/G-6, P-40E/M, P-38J/L Lightning and Spitfire Mk.IX. I liked the Airacobra models too, but they really had less chance against the Zeros and Oscars than the P-40E. I also loved the Beaufighter, that was a real beast!
I still fly IL-2 UE version on disc at home!I love it!❤️
* 52 kills in F4U
* 27 kills in F6F
* 104 kills in Bf 109
* 38 kills in FW 190
* 114 KILLS in La 7...the BEAST!
...not bragging here...just sharing.
I "died" many, many times before getting these scores...hours upon hours and days upon days learning each plane and the enemy's tactics.
Overall...I did my best in the Soviet La7....very fast and packs a heavy punch!
Thank you for your outstanding work!
Ok so I studied a lot on the Wildcat and is successor the Hellcat. If the Wildcat pilot got into the silly action of actually having a one on one dogfight with a Zero, the Zero typically climbed for height as it was mush faster in the climb. A lot of US NAvy pilots then choose to follow but the Wildcats alway had to break off first as they couldn't climb as far, so the turn dropped out and the zero simply did the same seeing this and in most cases made the kill. One massive reason they brought the Hellcat out as it could climb as fast as the zero and higher. It was the zeros turn to cap out first and most times the Hellcats got the kill.
PS: Oh 3 outta 3 haha
The FM-2 was a great plane!!!!!
I have to question the issue of cranking the landing gear down; it was a well-known issue with the Wildcat that if you lost your grip on the gear crank while raising the gear, it would spin around in reverse as the gear dropped back to full lowered position, likely breaking your hand. With the condition his plane was in, Foss could have simply flipped the gear operation lever and let the gear drop to full extended by gravity, rather than cranking it down, which would have let him focus on his other problems with making a landing he could walk away from.
I only missed the first question. Great video. I think I will cook up some SPAM tocino now!
"The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company". A&P grocers. Anyone remember?
@Itgray2780: Yep, long gone now but it was still a thing when I was a kid and it had been for many years.
I used to shop at the A&P that was a block away from my apartment.
thank you.
Tactics! The F4F Wildcat was actually a very good aircraft that was limited by it's pre war design specifications. Early in the war both the USAAC and USN were still teaching pilots to dogfight and try to outmaneuver or outnumber the enemy. Later when surviving pilots came back with experience fighting the Japanese and the A6M Zero, they formed squadrons that were trained to use tactics developed specifically to take advantage of the Zero's weak wings and fuselage in high speed maneuvers. Another big factor was using tactics like the Thach weave perfected by John "Jimmy" Thach that was very effective and almost eliminated the maneuverability advantage of the Zero, especially with a highly experienced Japanese pilot, not late war poorly trained kids that could barely fly in formation or hit a ship as a Kamikaze and were blown out of the skies in the hundreds by F6F Hellcat and F4U Corsair pilots!
The wildcat lived long enough to land, and I doubt a Zero could have taken a similar beating and survived. I like the wildcat and the hellcat.
Yes indeed , McPherson was “in the right place at the right time “ !!! … in another WW2 South Pacific battle , my Dad , Lieutenant Robert James Walters shot down three Mitsubishi’s with his P-40 Warhawk in New Guinea … He said by early 1945 , the Japanese had run out of veteran pilots and sent up kids to fly … he said he wasn’t an Ace ‘cause an actual ace shot down at least Five … he also said that he might have shot down the guy that cured cancer and that’s why he didn’t tell of his service record till 3 months before he died in 2011 of cancer !!!
Nice job TJ! I survived everything until I ate the Spam.
Yay! Another correct decision tree. I'm proud at how well I do at these though there was one I blew on the the last choice. I can't recall which one. These are so much fun.
Thanks Kyle! Hope you are well buddy!
@@TJ3 Fat, old and broke down. But I'm on the rights side of the dirt. 😁 Thank you for asking. I hope you too, are as blessed as I am .
@@KyleCowden haha well said. And I am! Thanks 👍
Every choice of mine was the correct one, i think i am perhaps a reincarnation of a fighter ace of the great wars in Europe! Perhaps a experten Jagdflieger of the Luftwaffe!!
Finally got all of the questions right lol.
By the end of the Battle for Guadalcanal, records show that Navy and Marine Corps aviators shot down 5.9 Zeros for every Wildcat lost.
as an ole' fighter pilot with combat experience I would not be able to look my self in the mirror if I didn't get all right - 🙂 - TJ - another great video with a twist about decisions one has to make in combat that are life and death----
Camping the airfield is always the best option
Wow I got 100%. Thanks TJ
Better than any movie...
Good plane. Just couldn't get into turn fights with the Zero's.
Basically it was the fighter that barely held the line until the F4Us and F6Fs came about.
I wouldn’t use the word barely. The F4F overall had good success in its battles in 1942 and 1943 until better planes came about. 4:1 kill ratio at Guadalcanal alone. 7:1 in total.
The Wildcat and its pilots would shoot down the majority of Japan’s experienced aviators. Making things easier for its successors
Barely?
The F4F did the vast majority of the super hard work, taking on the cream of Japan’s pilots.
Most of the decisive battles in the Pacific were fought with the F4F being the main fighter used.
God bless Joe Foss!
I hit 100%, but then I've flown planes and I've been a student of WWII aircraft and tactics since I built my first Aurora, Monogram, Revell and Airfix kits...
Last desicion i would have tried to restart, just to be shure i make the airfield, but i forgot the engine need oil and that the gear is handpumped and takes time to lower
Also, it's by no means certain it will restart even if you try, just depends what the damage is.
Perfect score ✌🏽
Believe it or not and much to my surprise snd delight, I have somehow made all of the choices correctly.
The only thing i cant think of that would be worse then that first flight would be having to eat spam after it lol
Two 20mm Cannons tossing golf ball sized tracers at your canopy? Can't climb or dive to get away! The turning fight? That is sure Death! What would you do?
Whilst pausing the video and not knowing the outcome, my answers were:
Answer: A - Circle back whilst gaining altitude with a corkscrew climb so I can better protect the delayed allied fighters from enemy fighters by having more energy.
Answer: A - Boom and Zoom climb attacks on the bombers whilst retaining as much potential energy as possible.
Answer: B - Knowing the turn rate of the Japanese Zero at that time: Stick forward, War Emergency Power and Bug Out with as much minus G's I could physically handle (-2 to -3) and try to outrun the Zero on the deck but if I notice that I am not gaining distance quick enough. Slow down and lower flaps whilst doing horizontal scissors attempting to make the Zero overshoot.
Answer: B - Head back to Home Base whilst trying to outrun or be as evasive as possible.
Answer: A - Attempt to glide to the airstrip.
Answer: C - Just eat the bread. Spam sounds disgusting!
I think I had one answer correct according to the video.
Now can we please get the F4F Wildcat in IL-2 Great Battles or better yet, DCS? Or are we just going to wait for Combat Pilot and hope to God it has good flight physics.
I just remembered that pulling negative G's would likely cut the fuel to the engine for a brief moment. So maybe an Aileron and Yaw roll with positive G's would be more effective for faster acceleration.
Damn! I had it right until the last one, when I tried to restart the engine... But I was still heading to the runway so maybe I could still have belly-landed my big fat F4F ;-)
Having heard this story before, i survived the dogfight. But i bailed out instead of trying to go back so im probably ded
That was fun.
Got them all right
Zeros didn't care bombs under wings in 1942. But your graphics are fantastic
War Thunder has limitations.
Speed, energy and coop with wing mate. That is the way how to fight Zeros...
The lowest recorded parachute jump is 95ft so he could do it at 500ft like I did in the army!
I scored correctly on all, except for the last question. What was the right answer, TJ3 History? 😂 I think I would have made it easy and gone for a Spam Sandwich! The Grumman F4F Wildcat could be an absolutely lethal Weapon of War in the right hands, but alas was greatly underpowered, something the next iteration, the Grumman F6F Hellcat fixed by installing various versions of the famed 2,000 - 2,200 hp Pratt & Whitney R-2800 radial piston engines, and four-bladed propellers. At a distance it was hard for Japanese pilots to distinguish between the two Grumman planes, which became the downfall of many who thought they had an easy prey in their fangs, when the Hellcat - quite a different kind of beast - expedited them to Hell.
Still, the Wildcat had its plusses compared with the Japanese planes. First and foremost was the deep respect for Human Life in the Grumman Corporation. They wanted to give their Pilots the best chance of survival possible, and ven if that meant a weight penalty, it saved Lives. Their Armor Plating around the Pilot, Armored Cockpit Glass in front and Self-Sealing Fuel Tanks all contributed to an ever increasing proficiency in the Pilot Core.
Japanese Fighter Planes, like the one seen in this eepisode, the Mitsubishi A6M Zero, had no Pilot Protections. It didn't take many tracer rounds from an allied plane, AA Gun or Ship to light up Japanese Fighters. The hijacked Shinto Philosophy of dying a glorious death sounded magnificent to the Japanese Tojoists. But they were a rather stupid bunch of boot licking Dictatorship Zealots. And only nearing the end of the war did it dawn on them that it would perhaps have been far better making the Mitsubishi A6M Zero more survivable in combat for a bit less nimbleness, than to lose all the most experienced Pilots, and being left with raw recruits when the time came to defend the Home Islands.
In this encounter depicted here, as in thousands of other encounters in the Pacific, Grumman's Judeo-Christian Philosophy of protecting the Pilots Life paid off with dividends. The construction of the Wildcat not only saved US Marine Fighter Pilot, Joe Foss' Life, in his encounter with the Zeros. It also gave him the ability to become increasingly proficient and ending up as an Ace, which was not uncommon at all among Fighter Pilots in the Pacific.
As for having three Zeros on his tail, it didn't make much difference compared to having just one on his tail. Back in those days, when kills were scored by bullets, it was the ONE plane that was on your six o'clock that killed you. Of course, being pursued by more than one plane limited your options in getting away. But there can only be 1 plane on your six o'clock.
can you cover when FAA Wildcats faced BF-109s
Could the pilot have tried to restart the engine, while gliding to Henderson failed?
Only thing I got wrong was the first decision as I went ahead and let the second squad join