World War II Chinese Aircraft - World War II Chinese Fighter Aircraft, P-36 Hawk, Development of Chinese Nationalist Air Force (Paperback)

Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: World War Ii Chinese Fighter Aircraft, P-36 Hawk, Development of Chinese Nationalist Air Force, Curtiss-Wright Cw-21, Chu X-Po. Excerpt: The Curtiss P-36 Hawk, also known as the Curtiss Hawk Model 75, was an American designed and built fighter aircraft of the 1930s and 40s. A contemporary of the much superior Hawker Hurricane and Messerschmitt Bf 109, it was one of the first of a new generation of combat aircrafta sleek monoplane design making extensive use of metal in its construction and powered by a powerful piston engine. Obsolete at the onset of World War II and best known as the predecessor of the Curtiss P-40, the P-36 saw only limited combat with the United States Army Air Forces, but it was used more extensively by the French Air Force, both during the Battle of France and by the Vichy France armed forces, and also by the British Commonwealth (where it was known as the Mohawk), and Chinese air units. Several dozen also fought in the Finnish Air Force against the Soviet Red Air Force. With around 1,000 aircraft built, the P-36 was a major commercial success for Curtiss. This article also covers the YP-37 and the XP-42 prototypes based on the P-36. The Curtiss Model 75 was a private venture by the company, designed by former Northrop Aircraft Company engineer Donovan Berlin. The first prototype constructed in 1934 featured all-metal construction with fabric-covered control surfaces, a Wright XR-1670-5 radial engine developing 900 hp (671 kW), and typical U.S. Army Air Corps armament of one 0.3 in (7.62 mm) and one 0.5 in (12.7 mm) machine guns firing through the propeller arc. Also typical of the time was the total absence of cockpit armor or self-sealing fuel tanks. The distinctive landing gear which rotated 90 to fold the main whee... More: http://booksllc.net/?id=493939