P-39 Airacobra & Harley - North Africa 1943

[gunbarrel]

Although it wasn't very highly thought of due to its light armament (they called it the "Peashooter"), the much maligned P-39 had a lot going for it under the right circumstances (e.g. attacking ground forces). The Russians loved it and I love the way that 37 mm cannon fired through the propeller hub. So cool!

 

[gunbarrel]

[gunbarrel]

I think this other photo may have been taken in the PTO, where it did very well. Here you can see the back of it. The pilot sat in front of the engine, right over the drive shaft, which was modified to allow that 37 mm cannon to come out of the prop hub.

 

[Spathologist]

Very interesting pics!

[HolyHappiness]

I'm really liking that RAF/US uniform mixture on that pilot.

[Wailuna]

Here are 1st Composite Squadron P-39s based at Ascension Island ca. 1943 (and a New Hudson 500).

 

On patrol over Ascension (Lt. Nichols and Lt. Richardson)

Close Formation

 

1st Composite Squadron Insignia

 

Lt. Richardson riding his New Hudson 500

 

As if he didn't get enough excitement flying his P-39

 

Note:

they called it the "Peashooter"

The Boeing P-26 was called the "Peashooter" -- I've never seen that nickname applied to the P-39 before.

[kphfun]

One of my Fav plane's although I have also never heard it called a Peashooter as I would not call 4-6 M.G.'s and a 37mm cannon along with a bomb load light armament. I believe it's only fault was it's performance at altitude. Other then that some great pic's guy's!

[gunbarrel]

I've never seen that nickname applied to the P-39 before.

 

One of my Fav plane's although I have also never heard it called a Peashooter as I would not call 4-6 M.G.'s and a 37mm cannon along with a bomb load light armament. I believe it's only fault was it's performance at altitude. Other then that some great pic's guy's!

 

Great pictures, Wailuna--thanks for adding them.

 

As far as the nickname goes, read this article:

 

http://www.wwiihistorymagazine.com/2005/se...l-ordnance.html

[Wailuna]

...As far as the nickname goes, read this article...

Thanks, GB. Interesting article, although it does not imply that the nickname "peashooter" referred to the P-39's "light armament" but rather to the unique placement of the 37mm cannon:

The P-39’s pilot actually sat in front of the engine, directly over a drive shaft that was modified so that

a 37mm cannon fired through the propeller hub. It was this feature that led to the peashooter nickname

, a term that was already in wide use in the Army Air Corps long before P-39s entered combat in the Southwest Pacific.

[gunbarrel]

You are welcome. I'm glad you learned something from my post, since you said that you had never since that nickname applied to the P-39 before. I went from memory when I posted the pictures; this (in red fonts) was what I remembered, as the term "peashooter" usually refers to small-caliber, or underpowered weapons. My bad.

 

The P-39’s pilot actually sat in front of the engine, directly over a drive shaft that was modified so that a 37mm cannon fired through the propeller hub. It was this feature that led to the peashooter nickname, a term that was already in wide use in the Army Air Corps long before P-39s entered combat in the Southwest Pacific. The cannon was an effective weapon that could be deadly against bombers and ground targets, although the 37mm shell was a bit small to do much damage to heavier armored vehicles such as larger tanks.

[kphfun]

I had that issue, it is a real shame that the P-39 got the rep that it did as it was the only ground attack aircraft in the USAAF at the breakout of the war even though it had the "P" designation! It was outstanding in it's use during the first years of the war when used in it's proper role in it's .mostly in the Pacific but did see deployment in the North African theater. It was replaced by the P-47 which is hard to argue!

[gunbarrel]

...I have also never heard it called a Peashooter...

I had that issue...

I guess you forgot, then? I'm glad to see I'm not the only one with faulty memory!

[Mark M]

I have never heard of the P-39 referred to as that either. I always thought the P-26 held that honor.

 

[Lee Ragan]

If we're gonna have a thread about the P-39, we have to include this line from an old Air Corps ditty about the plane:

"Don't give me a P-39

With an engine that's mounted behind

It will tumble and roll

And dig a big hole

don't give me a P-39"

When I was a young airman in the USAF, I got to talk airplanes one day with an old salt Lt. Colonel and I asked him about the planes he had flown in the big WWII. He had been in Ferry Command and he said he flew everything in the inventory except the P-39 and it's bigger cousin the P-63 Kingcobra. He said those planes were dangerous and he wouldn't fly either of them!

[El Bibliotecario]

BG Chuck Yeager states in his memoir that during crashes the P39's engine had a reputation of moving forward to occupy the pilots seat--with the pilot still in it.

 

As a Flight Officer, Yeager trained at Tonopah Army Airfield, a major P39 training center. For whatever reasom the army's specs for the P39 included an engine that limited performace to 12K feet--I believe it was something to do with the supercharger, or lack thereof. Since Tonopah's elevation is 6K feet, this caused so many problems that the base was converted to B24 training.