Next month is the 80th anniversary of the Marianas Turkey Shoot. Listened to a great podcast of the fight, and the Grumann F6F Hellcats absolutely destroyed the Japanese air fleet. The kill ratios were off the chart.
The Corsair and the P51 Mustang get all the love, but the Hellcats were the most effective fighters of the war. Corsair and Mustang both had 11:1 kill ratios. Dominant planes. The Hellcat had an amazing 19:1 kill ratio and shot down more planes in the pacific than all other fighters combined, despite being in service only 24 months. The Hellcats shot down 5,216 enemy planes compared to 4,950 for the Mustang and 2,140 for the Corsair. Great plane that doesn’t get the respect it deserves
The Corsair and the P51 Mustang get all the love, but the Hellcats were the most effective fighters of the war. Corsair and Mustang both had 11:1 kill ratios. Dominant planes. The Hellcat had an amazing 19:1 kill ratio and shot down more planes in the pacific than all other fighters combined, despite being in service only 24 months. The Hellcats shot down 5,216 enemy planes compared to 4,950 for the Mustang and 2,140 for the Corsair. Great plane that doesn’t get the respect it deserves
