March Madness WWII Fighter Plane matchup (ROUND ONE)


  • After my battleship matchup, I begin to think what other March Madness WWII topic would make a good topic for our discussion. I decided on the WWII Fighter plane. I have picked planes that had a lengthy career in WWII, so many of the planes to appear in the closing days of the war have been left out. Sorry guys no jets. A few twin engine bombers/fighter made the list to honor the night fighters of WWII, which seem to get forgotten. I stopped the list at 32, for the list to get any closer to fifty was adding unneeded weight. Sorry if I left any planes out, a few of the planes on my list may not turn heads, but the awsome story of WWII could not be told without them. Once again, sorry for all of you Me-262 fans, no jets.

    P-51 vs Soviet I-16
                             
    British Mosquito vs. Ki-43 Oscar

    Gloster Gladiator vs  P-39

    Yak-9 vs. Nik-j George

    Me-109 vs F4 Wildcat

    P-61 Black Widow vs. P-38

    A6M Zero vs. Hurricane

    Beaufighter vs Ju-88C

    IAR 80 vs Yak 3

    F4U Corsair vs. Typhoon

    ME-110 vs Ki-61 Toney

    British Spitfire vs Soviet MiG 3

    P-47 vs. Macchi C. 200

    Macchi C. 202 vs. Dewoitine D… 520

    La-5 vs F6 Hellcat

    FW-190 vs P-40


  • Hi Worsham.
    P51
    Mosquito
    P39
    George
    109
    P38
    Zero
    Beaufighter
    Yak 3
    Typhoon
    110
    Spit
    P47
    Macchi 202
    La5
    190

  • '10

    @wittmann:

    Hi Worsham.
    P51
    Mosquito
    P39
    George
    109
    P38
    Zero
    Beaufighter
    Yak 3
    Typhoon
    110
    Spit
    P47
    Macchi 202
    La5
    190

    You have got to be joking Witt. Typhoon over an F4U? LA5 over an F6F? When are the regionals?


  • The American planes cannot win every time!
    Must admit the Corsair and the Typhoon gave me the most bother.
    The La5 was Russia’s best fighter, but I admit it was a little undergunned.


  • @wittmann:

    The American planes cannot win every time!
    Must admit the Corsair and the Typhoon gave me the most bother.
    The La5 was Russia’s best fighter, but I admit it was a little undergunned.

    Tough to compare any army equipment without comparing the men using them and the situation that presented itself.  The Japanese Zero was king of the Pacific from 1941-1942.  The Spitfire ruled over Britain in the battle of Britain.  Were Axis pilots better than American pilots in 1941/1942?  Probably- they have been fighting/flying for years at that point.

    How can you ignore jet aircraft when you place some of the best piston engine planes (not all that much inferior to early jets) to the early piston planes, which frankly, sucked?


  • @Fishmoto37:

    @wittmann:

    Hi Worsham.
    P51
    Mosquito
    P39
    George
    109
    P38
    Zero
    Beaufighter
    Yak 3
    Typhoon
    110
    Spit
    P47
    Macchi 202
    La5
    190

       You have got to be joking Witt. Typhoon over an F4U? LA5 over an F6F? When are the regionals?

    I wanted to make some of the face offs difficult and somewhat odd. And lets give the La-5 and the Red Air Force some love. After all the highest scoring Allied ace was from the Soviet Union.


  • How can you ignore jet aircraft when you place some of the best piston engine planes (not all that much inferior to early jets) to the early piston planes, which frankly, sucked?
    it’s the first round, top notch planes face off against lesser ones, saving the best for the later rounds.

    As for some of the planes that ‘suck’, the I-16 had a lengthy service counting the Spanish Civil War, China’s opposition to Japan in the 30’s and the Soviet-Japanese conflict in North China.

    The Gladiator made the list for the heroic defense of Malta. The bi-plane still serviced every air force at the start of the War and the Gladiator was the best representative.

    And to best answer the jet question, WWII wasn’t a jet war. The war could have been, but as fate had it the Jet was the encore of the great air war not the main player.


  • As Worsham said, adding jets would have made it too easy: so many of us rank the 262 as the best of the war. He was mixing it up. Made me think a bit.

    My first interest in WW2 was planes.

    Thank you for your time and effort Worsham.

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