Aerocobra ku New Guinea
Aerocobra ku New Guinea. Mmodzi wa P-400s wa gulu 80 la 80 fg. Tanki yowonjezera yamafuta a galoni 75 ikuwonekera bwino pansi pa fuselage.
Oyendetsa ndege a Bell P-39 Airacobra anali achangu kwambiri pa kampeni ya New Guinea, makamaka mu 1942 pachitetezo cha Port Moresby, mzere womaliza wa Allied pamaso pa Australia. Pofuna kumenyera mtengo waukulu wotero, Achimereka adaponya omenyana, omwe ankaonedwa kuti ndi oipitsitsa kuposa onse omwe anatumikira ku US Air Force pa Nkhondo Yachiwiri Yadziko Lonse. Chochititsa chidwi kwambiri ndi zomwe oyendetsa ndege awo adakwanitsa, omwe, akuwuluka pa omenyanawo, adawombana ndi okwera ndege a Imperial Japanese Navy.
Wankhondo wa R-39 Airacobra mosakayikira anali wopangidwa mwaluso. Chomwe chinasiyanitsa kwambiri ndi omenyana a nthawi imeneyo chinali injini yomwe inayikidwa pakati pa fuselage, kuseri kwa cockpit. Kukonzekera kwa malo opangira magetsi kumeneku kunapereka malo ambiri aulere mu uta, kukulolani kuti muyike zida zamphamvu zapaboti ndi chassis yakutsogolo, zomwe zimapatsa mawonekedwe owoneka bwino kuchokera pabwalo pokwera taxi.
M'zochita, komabe, zidapezeka kuti dongosolo lomwe lili ndi injini yolumikizidwa ndi propeller ndi shaft lalitali la cardan linasokoneza kapangidwe ka ndegeyo, zomwe zidapangitsa kuti zikhale zovuta kusunga luso m'munda. Choipa kwambiri, dongosolo ili la injini linali losavuta kumenyedwa kumbuyo, makamaka popeza silinali lotetezedwa ndi mbale ya zida. Inatenganso malo omwe nthawi zambiri amasungidwa ku thanki yayikulu yamafuta, zomwe zikutanthauza kuti P-39 inali yocheperako. Kuti zinthu ziipireipire, mfuti ya 37mm inali yodziwika bwino. Komabe, ngati pankhondo woyendetsa ndegeyo adatha kugwiritsa ntchito zida zamfuti ndi mfuti zolemera 12,7-mm pamphuno ya ndegeyo, mphamvu yokoka yapakati idasunthira mowopsa ku injini, chifukwa chomwe R-39 idagwa. kupota mchira wathyathyathya panthawi yakuwongolera komwe kungatulutsemo kunali kosatheka. Ngakhale chassis yokhala ndi gudumu lakutsogolo idakhala vuto, chifukwa m'mabwalo andege aatali ku New Guinea, chithandizo chachitali chimasweka potera komanso pokwera taxi. Komabe, kulakwitsa kwakukulu kunali kuchotsedwa kwa turbocharger ku mapulani apangidwe, chifukwa chake kuthawa kwa R-39 kunagwa pamwamba pa 5500 m.
Mwinamwake, ngati nkhondo siinayambe, R-39 ikanaiwalika mwamsanga. Anthu a ku Britain, amene anaitanitsa mazana angapo, anakhumudwa naye kwambiri moti pafupifupi onse anaperekedwa kwa Arasha. Ngakhale Amereka zida squadrons awo anaima pamaso pa nkhondo Pacific ndi mitundu ina ya asilikali - Curtiss P-40 Warhawk. Chotsalira cha dongosolo la Britain chinali mtundu wa R-39 wokhala ndi mizinga ya 20mm (m'malo mwa 37mm). Pambuyo pa kuukira kwa Pearl Harbor, US Air Force inalanda makope onse, kuwatengera pansi pa dzina la P-400. Posakhalitsa adafika pothandiza - chakumayambiriro kwa 1941 ndi 1942 Achimerika adataya a Warhawks pankhondo zaku Hawaii, Philippines ndi Java, anali ndi Aircobras kuti ateteze Port Moresby.
Chakumayambiriro kwa chaka cha 1942, si mayiko a New Guinea okha amene ankada nkhawa ndi mayiko a m’nyanja ya Pacific. Pambuyo pa kulandidwa kwa Java ndi Timor ndi Japan, mizinda ya kumpoto kwa gombe la Australia inali pafupi ndi ndege zawo, ndipo mu February kuwombera ndege kunayamba pa Darwin. Pachifukwa ichi, asilikali oyambirira a ku America (P-40Es) anatumizidwa kuchokera ku US kupita kumalo omenyana nawo anaimitsidwa ku Australia, kusiya chitetezo cha New Guinea ku gulu limodzi la Kittyhawk (75 Squadron RAAF).
Pomwe anthu aku Australia adalimbana ndi zigawenga zaku Japan ku Port Moresby, pa February 25, ogwira ntchito ku 35th PG (Pursuit Group) adafika ku Brisbane panyanja, wokhala ndi magulu atatu ankhondo - 39, 40 ndi 41 - okhala ndi P-39 mkati. zosankha D. ndi F. Posakhalitsa pambuyo pake, pa March 5, 8th PG, yomwe ilinso ndi magulu atatu (35th, 36th ndi 80th PS), inafika ku Australia ndipo inalandira tsogolo la British P-400s. Zinatenga mayunitsi onsewa milungu yambiri kuti akonzekere kumenya nkhondo, koma Allies analibe nthawi yochulukirapo.
Kumayambiriro kwa Marichi 1942, asilikali a ku Japan anatera kugombe la kumpoto chakum’maŵa kwa New Guinea, pafupi ndi Lae ndi Salamaua, kumene posakhalitsa anamanga mabwalo a ndege, n’kuchepetsa mtunda wa makilomita 300 kuchokera ku Port Moresby. Ngakhale kuti asilikali ambiri a ku Japan ku South Pacific anali adakali ku Rabaul, anthu osankhika a Tainan Kokutai anasamukira ku Lae, gulu lankhondo la A6M2 Zero kumene ena mwa magulu abwino kwambiri a ku Japan monga Hiroyoshi Nishizawa ndi Saburo Sakai anachokera.
