The plane we all love to hate

[phylo_roadking]

http://www.warbirdforum.com/buff.htm

A page of quite wonderful links covering the "combat" and service career of the "legendary" Brewster Buffalo. Read and judge for yourself....but even in the most glowing and favourable accounts - they can't help mentioning things like broken interrupter gear cablesmeaning their entire gun suite wouldn't fire )and few spares), incorrectly-hardened and heat-treated engine components, "self sealing" petrol tank membranes that ruptured, "new" aircraft being built with second-hand reconditioned airliner engines that had time-expired, selfraising undercarriage legs....when the aircraft was sitting on the ground, an oil system that experienced difficulty keeping oil actually in the engine, various cockpit controls that couldn't be used without bruising or cutting oneself on others, side panels in the cockpit that couldn't be seen through...and the remarkable and unique story of one pilot who had to remove his BOOT in the cockpit, open the canopy, lean out and wipe the oil off his windscreen with his SOCK inflight!

[Commissar D, the Evil]

Well, that about sums it up Phylo! There were better bi-planes flying in WWII, IMHO.

But then, you have to admire the courage of a pilot who flew one against, say, a Zero!!!!

Best,
David

[Troy Tempest]

I do believe one Zero was shot down by a Buffalo during the course of the war, IIRC? If that's true, surely the pilot qualified for a VC for suicidal bravery!

[Paddy Keating]

No, he was just doing his job.

PK