By
Scott Schwartz
Intending to build a replacement for the F6F Hellcat, the Grumman
Aircraft Engineering Corporation planned to create a small, light fighter that
would be highly maneuverable and fast.
In other words, the new airplane had to be more nimble than the
Mitsubishi Zero. Specifically, an
interceptor was needed in order to combat the Kamikaze attacks on U.S. ships. Although not as fast as late-model U.S. aircraft,
such as the Hellcat and Corsair, a Zero flown by an experienced pilot (of which
there were few, by 1944) could still turn the tables on an American fighter in
a twisting-turning dog fight.
Not surprisingly, Grumman engineers attempted to build a
smaller airplane around the same engine that powered the Hellcat; the Pratt
& Whitney R-2800 eighteen cylinder radial.
Ironically, 1943 saw Grumman test pilots flying a captured
FW-190 in England . The report written by one of them, Bob Hall,
was sent directly to Leroy Grumman himself.
Mr. Grumman, who personally wrote the specifications for the new light
weight fighter, incorporated some of the German design elements into what
became known as “Design 58”.
Unfortunately, it proved impossible to make Design 58 as
light as the FW-190, because the Grumman airplane had be tough enough to handle
repeated carrier landings. So, Grumman
designers came up with a uniquely 1940’s solution to this problem. The airplane’s wing tips would simply detach
if 7.5 g’s were exceeded during any maneuver.
Sans wingtips, the airplane was still flyable and could still land on an
aircraft carrier! While this idea was
successful under test conditions, using hand made prototype aircraft which were
not subjected to the daily stresses of carrier landings, operational aircraft
occasionally suffered complete wing failure during simulated attack runs and
combat maneuvers. Engineers then tried
using explosive charges to blow the wing tips off during high “g” maneuvers. However, the explosives could detonate
accidentally, and actually did so on one occasion, killing a worker. Eventually, wings were beefed up
structurally, and a 4.5 g limit was placed on the aircraft.
With the first prototypes flying in August, 1944, the F8F
arrived in squadron service too late for World War Two.
However, it saw extensive service as a post-war “interim”
fighter. This was during a time when jet
fighters barely out performed piston types.
It was even used by the Blue Angels from 1946 until 1950 – when the
Korean War caused the team to be temporarily disbanded.
In 1946, a “time to climb” record was set by an F8F, which,
after a take-off run of only 115 feet, reached 10,000 feet in 94 seconds!
By the mid-1950’s, the F8F was largely retired from U.S. first-line service. Although it never saw
combat with U.S. forces, the
French used the Bearcat during their war in Indochina .
The Royal Thai Air Force kept its Bearcats in service until
1960.
A number of Bearcats found their way into civilian hands,
and were flown as air racers. One of
these, “Rare Bear”, set the world speed record for piston – engine aircraft,
after hitting 528.33 mph in 1989. Of
course, Rare Bear is highly modified, and is powered by a Wright R-3350 engine
that generates over 4,000 horsepower!
Still, the Bearcat - in its stock form – is considered by
many to be one of the best-handling fighters ever built.
Grumman F8F-1 Bearcat specifications:
Length: 28 feet, 3
inches.
Wingspan: 35 feet, 10
inches.
Empty Weight: 7070
lbs.
Maximum take off weight: 12,947 lbs.
Engine: One Pratt
& Whitney R-2800, eighteen cylinder radial, 2100 horsepower.
Top Speed: 421 mph.
Range: 1105 miles.
Service Ceiling:
38,700 feet.
Armament: (4) .50
cal. machine guns, under-wing rockets, up to 1,000 lbs of bombs.
 |
| An F8F Bearcat, parked at March Air Reserve Base, Moreno Valley, CA. Photo by Scott Schwartz |
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