The distinctive, rugged lines of this heavyweight single-seater earned it the nickname the jug. But what the Thunderbolt lacked in elegance, it more than made up for in firepower. Of the 15,683 Thunderbolts built, only 54 airframes are known to exist today. This book provides a generously illustrated and thoroughly researched tribute to the aircraft.

Beskriver det navnlig fra 2. verdenskrig kendte, amerikanske jagerfly Republic P-47 Thunderbolt her anvendt af lande i Sydamerika.

REPUB P-47 TBOLTBODIE, W

The pugnacious lines of this stocky fighter show its strength and ruggedness. It was first deployed as a long-range escort fighter, protecting the massed fleets of B-17 and B-24 bombers attacking targets in Europe. As the war progressed P-47s were increasingly used for ground-attack and by the end of the war they had accounted for 6,000 tanks, 9,000 locomotives, 86,000 rail wagons and 68,000 trucks. Add 3,916 enemy aircraft destroyed and the result makes it one of the most effective fighters of World War II.

The US aviation industry produced three great fighter designs to equip its burgeoning army air force during World War 2, and of this trio, Republic's P-47 Thunderbolt was easily the heaviest. Powered, crucially, by a turbocharged Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp radial engine that produced 2000 hp, the first production fighters reached the 56th FG in June 1942, and six months later the group joined the Eight Air Force in Britain. The arrival of the first P-47Cs in mid-1943 addressed the problem of the aircraft's short combat radius, as this model could be fitted with an external tank. Slowly, as combat tactics evolved in units like the 56th and 78th FGs, pilots learnt how best to fly the Thunderbolt in order to effectively counter the more nimble Luftwaffe fighters.

Although New Guinea's Thunderbolt pilots faced several different types of enemy aircraft in capricious tropical conditions, by far their most common adversary was the Nakajima Ki-43-II Hayabusa, codenamed 'Oscar' by the Allies. These two opposing fighters were the products of two radically different design philosophies. The Thunderbolt was heavy, fast and packed a massive punch thanks to its battery of eight 0.50-cal machine guns, while the 'Oscar' was the complete opposite in respect to fighter design philosophy – lightweight, nimble, manoeuvrable and lightly armed. It was, nonetheless, deadly in the hands of an experienced pilot. The Thunderbolt commenced operations in New Guinea with a series of bomber escort missions in mid-1943, and its firepower and superior speed soon saw Fifth Air Force fighter command deploying elite groups of P-47s to Wewak, on the northern coast. Flying from there, they would pick off unwary enemy aircraft during dedicated fighter patrols. The Thunderbolt pilots in New Guinea slowly wore down their Japanese counterparts by continual combat and deadly strafing attacks, but nevertheless, the Ki-43-II remained a worthy opponent deterrent up until Hollandia was abandoned by the IJAAF in April 1944. Fully illustrated throughout with artwork and rare photographs, this fascinating book examines these two vastly different fighters in the New Guinea theatre, and assesses the unique geographic conditions that shaped their deployment and effectiveness.

The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, nicknamed "Jug" was an American fighter-bomber used during the Second World War. Because of its more than seven tons of weight and of considerable size, is considered the single-engine car largest and heaviest ever built before and during the conflict. It was equipped with an extremely powerful engine, 2,000 HP or more, and it was fast, especially at high altitudes. It was also heavily armed with eight 12.7 mm machine guns and its robustness allow him to return to base even if very damaged. Since the early months of 1943 was used intensively on all fronts, contributing significantly to consolidate the supremacy ally in the last two years of war. It was built at a total of 15,678 copies (at a cost of $ 83,000 each of the time) with winning colors USAAF the remarkable total of 3,752 victories in combat against the loss of 824 machines and, after the war, he served in the air forces of fifteen countries, including Italy.

A visual history of the P-47 Thunderbolt. Contains more than 120 black and white photographs - all accompanied by informative captions, 12 color photos, 8 pages of color profiles. Also includes bonus decals representing the unique markings of featured aircraft in 1/72, 1/48 and 1/32 scale.

Before the P-47 Thunderbolt gained a "bubble top" fairing, these fighters had slightly different - some claim to be more racial - figure. In the first versions, the plane had a typical canopy built into the fuselage, which resulted in a slightly hunched line.The first copies of the P-47B underwent a series of tests at the turn of 1941 and 1942. Initially, they were not very promising. One of the planes was lost because of the tail tearing off during the dive. In addition, at heights above 9144 m, the flaps froze, it was impossible to open the cabin hood, and the forces on the rudders were very big. At high speeds, the paint covering the elevators fell off and the aerodynamic pressure inflated their sheath (they were covered with canvas), causing dangerous tail vibrations. To remedy these problems, metal sheathing was introduced, elevators shape was changed and weight flaps were added. The propulsion of the P-47B version was a 2000 HP R-2800-21 engine. The time to reach the ceiling of 4572 m was 6.7 minutes. The aircraft developed a speed of 690 km/h at an altitude of 8230 m (in horizontal flight), which was a great result.