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| The P-38 was the only American fighter built before World War II to be still in production on VJ Day. Developed through many successively improved versions, the Lightning was used in all US combat zones as a high- and low-altitude fighter, fighter escort, bomber, photographic-reconnaissance aircraft, low-level attack and rocket fighter, and smoke-screen layer.
The first aeroplane developed from the start as a military type by Lockheed, the P-38 was designed to meet an Air Corps specification issued in 1936. The XP-38 prototype flew for the first time on 27 January 1939 and the first YP-38 service-evaluation aircraft of a limited procure-ment order for 13 was delivered to the USAAF in March 1941.
The P-38D was the first version of the Lightning to go into service in the war - an aircraft of this mark was the first American fighter to shoot down an enemy aeroplane, flying over Iceland a few minutes after the US declared war on Germany. The P-38L was the last fighter version to see combat service, which took in the final stages of the Pacific War. Two P-38L Lightnings escorting a Boeing Fortress were actually the first Allied fighters to land on Japanese soil after the surrender.
Built in large numbers throughout the war, the Lightning - as the type was first named by the RAF- appeared in 18 variants. The RAF, however, received only three of 143 aircraft similar to the P-38D which followed the P-38 into production - their performance being unacceptable to the RAF. This resulted from the fact that Lockheed were not permitted to export aircraft with turbocharged engines, making it necessary to install the unsupercharged 775kW Allison V-1710-33 engines which had proved to be underpowered in the XP-38 prototype.
P-38D in US service differed from the original P-38 by introducing self-sealing tanks and tail-unit revisions to overcome buffeting. P-38E had armament changes and were followed by the P-38F with more powerful engines and underwing racks (between engines and fuselage nacelle) for drop-tanks or weapons: late production examples introduced Fowler-type flaps which had a 'droop' setting to enhance manoeuvrability. P-38G had more powerful engines, as did the P-38H and -38J - the latter introduced an improved cooling system and powered ailerons. Most extensively built version was the P-38L (3,923), equipped to carry rocket projectiles beneath the outer-wing panels. Some P-38J were converted to serve as two-seat 'Pathfinders'; some P-38L as P-38M night fighters or TP-38L two-seat trainers; and other versions included F-4 and F-5 photo-reconnaissance aircraft.
The Lightning is remembered especially as a long-range escort for Eighth Air Force bombers making deep-penetration daylight attacks on targets in Germany, as well as for the long-range interception and destruction of the Mitsubishi G4M1 (Betty) bomber carrying Japan's Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto.
| MODEL | P-38L |
| CREW | 1 |
| ENGINE | 2 x Allison V-1710-111/113 V-12, 1100kW |
| WEIGHTS |
| Take-off weight | 9798 kg | 21601 lb |
| Empty weight | 5806 kg | 12800 lb |
| DIMENSIONS |
| Wingspan | 15.85 m | 52 ft 0 in |
| Length | 11.53 m | 38 ft 10 in |
| Height | 3.91 m | 13 ft 10 in |
| Wing area | 30.47 m2 | 327.98 sq ft |
| PERFORMANCE |
| Max. speed | 666 km/h | 414 mph |
| Ceiling | 13410 m | 44000 ft |
| Range | 724 km | 450 miles |
| Range w/max.fuel | 3640 km | 2262 miles |
| ARMAMENT | 1 x 20mm cannon, 4 x 12.7mm machine-guns, 1451kg of bombs |
 | A three-view drawing (1697 x 1063) |
| STEVE YODICE, e-mail, 31.12.2010 06:43 "The P-38D was the first version of the Lightning to go into service in the war - an aircraft of this mark was the first American fighter to shoot down an enemy aeroplane, flying over Iceland a few minutes after the US declared war on Germany." Even 'tho the P-38 is one of my favorites, I'm pretty sure P-40's and a P-36 scored kills on Dec 7. reply | | Robert Vrilakas, e-mail, 24.11.2010 09:31 I flew 51 combat missions in P-38's with the 94th Ftr. Sqdn.out of N. Africa and Italy. It broght me home on 1 engine 3 times. I instructed in P-38's at Ontario AB. after my combat tour. The Dr. who watched as a kid probably saw us dogfighting with the Marince Corsairs stationed nearby. reply | | Aaron, e-mail, 23.11.2010 19:45 Robert,
I don't really have any connections to Dick or Chuck but I have a little information on them both.
1st Lt. Charles C. Arthaud, Chillicothe, MO. 77th Fighter Squadron. He flew two P-38s and a P-51. They were named
Gabriel's Horn I, II and III.
Richard L. West was with the 8FG and flew P-40s. He had 12 confirmed victories. reply | | Robert Beckett, e-mail, 12.11.2010 01:16 Does anyone have any connections to Richard "Dick" West or Charles "Chuck" Arthaud.. Believe Charles flew out of England and Richard in the pacific... Duck hunted between these two guys in the 70's and 80's and the stories were teriffic. Richard was a double ace and Charles was a single ace according to them. Charles died in the 80's and Richard died about 6 years ago.. The Chillicothe, Mo. airport is named after Richard L. West....Regards.. reply | |
| | Dr. Charlie Fox, e-mail, 05.11.2010 21:26 As a young teenager I used to watch practice "dogfights" just East of San Diego, Ca. It was an amazing,
almost everyday sight. reply | | Aaron, e-mail, 27.10.2010 19:32 Mitch,
God bless you man for protecting our country. You are mostly right about the boosted ailerons. They were not installed on production Lightnings until the P-38J-25-LO which entered service in July of 1944. However Early P-38J-5-LOs were modified at Langford Lodge with replacement kits and some P-38J-10 /15-LOs were retrofitted in the field. The modification kits included electrically actuated dive recovery flaps and 3,000psi hydraulically boosted aileron system. reply | | Mitch Cwiek, e-mail, 19.10.2010 05:46 A possible error in your data regarding powered ailerons. The production J model did not have "aileron boost". I believe the L model was the first to use powered ailerons. Some background and a war story: I flew the P322 at Williams Field, was assigned to B-25 transition after graduation, then joined a B-17 crew (as co-pilot) training at Drew Field, Florida. We flew a new B-17G to Italy via Brazil and North Africa and became part of the 352nd Bomb Squadron, 301st Bomb Group. Three days after arriving in Italy we flew our first bomber mission: the first high altitude mission to Ploesti, Rumania. In the following month half my crew (Pilot: Charles Bogar, Navigator: Don Strieby, Radio man: Bernard Klein, Waist Gunner: Cecil Taylor, and Tail Gunner: Tom Hudson, were killed in a mid air collision which took the lives of 19 men while returning from a combat mission. Two months later my request to be transferred to fly P-38s with the 37th Figter Squadron, 14th Fighter Group was approved. I flew six P-38 combat missions, five of them out of Corsica in support of the South France invasion. Two days after returning to our base in Italy I was assigned to fly a P-38J as wing man for the group commander on on an escort mission to Austria. During a dog fight over Hungary I was shot down. I experienced compressiblity during a vertical dive from about 30,000 feet. Pulling back on the control yoke as hard as possible eventually got results. I was on the deck when I finally pulled out. Damaged aircraft made a mission termination necessary. I had only seconds to make up my mind... either pull up and bail out or crash land. I elected to bring it down, wheels up. I still had excess flying speed when I made contact with the selected piece of farm land. It was a very rough crash landing but the plane held together. As soon as I regained consciousness I exeted the cockpit and ran for the nearest patch of woods where I took off my Mae West, burried it under a pile of leaves and then ran deeper into the grove of trees. My evasion attept was unsuccessful as I was captured by a couple Hungarian soldiers a few hours later. reply | | Ben kreilkamp, e-mail, 02.10.2010 17:29 I was a flight surgeon for the 68th Ftr. Sqr. 347th ftr gp 13th air force in the So Pacific. They took out the radio and let me (6ft 2") sqweeze in behind the pilot and gave me the thrill of my life-with three other P38's and took me thru barrel rolls--simulated air combat--great aircraft!!! reply | | Bill B, e-mail, 18.06.2010 00:42 Some of the first productions of the P-38 had a problem due to the rotation of the propellor blades. They rotated in the same direction and once a P-38 went into (I think) left bank, they could not come out of it. It crashed. Therefore, the newer design made opposing rotation engines to offset this problem. Also, side note, my mom, Ruth, was the Lighting Lady pinup girl for this production P-38 reply | | Aaron, e-mail, 11.08.2010 19:06 Gary,
I'm not sure where the figures 414 mph and 1000 miles came from. I see them published everywhere but I've never seen a military document using them using them for all -J and -L models. A tactical planning chart dated 1944 shows that the P-38J-25 at a take off weight of 21,700 lbs. flying at 10,000 ft. had a maximum range of 2,260 miles, an endurance of 13.4 hrs. carrying 1,024 gallons of fuel.
Maximum speed of an aircraft depends on a lot of factors. This same tactical report does list the maximum speed of the P-38J-5 through J-25 as being 414 mph. at 25,000 ft. but it does not state the amount of boost used on the engines. An ENGINEERING DIVISION MEMORANDUM REPORT SERIAL No. 47-17-A dated February 1944 on a P-38J AAF No. 42-67869 stated in tests the aircraft reached 345 mph. at S.L. and 421.5 mph. at 25,800 ft. Initial rate of climb was 4,000 f.p.m. and a Service Ceiling of 40,000 ft.
I have seen a flight comparison chart comparing a P-38H to several other fighters of the 43 /44 era. It shows an Initial climb of. 4,600 fpm. Speed listed are 365 mph. at S.L. increasing to 435 mph. at 26,000 ft. Climb rate at 37,200 ft. is 1,000 fpm. (combat ceiling) and at 40,000 ft. it is 500 fpm. These figures are from, at one time confidentual, charts.
I'll post more information when I have the time.
Oh and Dave,
Yes my mother was cranky and my new wife does have a child. reply | | Aaron, e-mail, 11.08.2010 21:56 I have read that Mcguire did not jetson his wing tanks in hopes that he could continue to fly longer in order to get the two kills he needed to catch Bong. Extremely wrong move. He was a sitting duck for the Oscar ace at low speeds and height. reply | | Aaron, e-mail, 11.08.2010 22:15 I have found a graph that was marked confidential at one time. It is comparing the P-38J with /without hydraulic ailerons. I am no aeronautical engineer, but if I have read the graph correctly the J could out roll any FW-190 from 275 mph. and up. The P-38L could out roll (depending on model) the FW-190 from 325-360 mph. and up. The faster the P-38 flew the faster it rolled. At 400 mph. the J-25 rolled at 195 degrees /sec. The L-5 rolled at 95 degrees /sec at 400 mph. reply | | dave surville, e-mail, 11.06.2010 10:06 HEY BITCH that plane STINKS SON OF A BITCH MOTHER FUCKER reply | | Aaron, e-mail, 13.08.2010 07:39 414 mph. maximum speed. That was always hard to believe with the power available and that sleek body....Well I finally stumble onto several articles that refered to a Lockheed test that showed the true capabilities of the P-38L. 375 mph /5,000 ft. 390 mph /10,000 ft. 405 mph /15,000 ft. 443 mph /20-23,500 ft. 438 mph /25,000 ft. 422 mph /30,000 ft. 395 mph /35,000 ft. 346 mph /40,000 ft....not to shabby. Those figures I can believe. Oh and by the way, the P-38L could reach 20,000 ft in 4.91 minute. Sounds like an interceptor to me. reply | |
| | Aaron, e-mail, 13.08.2010 08:03 Did you know: During the late winter of 1944 occured the famous dual between a Griffin-engined Spitfire XIV and P-38H (before the hydraulic boosted flaps) of the 364 FG. Col. Lowell flew the P-38 engaging the Spitfire at 5,000 ft. in a head-on pass. Lowell was able to get on the Spitfire's tail and stay there no matter what the Spitfire pilot did. Although the Spitfire could execute a tighter turning circle than the P-38 (debatable), Lowell was able to use the excellent characteristics to repeatedly pull inside the turn, Pick up speed and cut back in again in what he called a "cloverleaf" maneuver. After 20 minutes of this, at 1,000 ft. the Spit tried to Split-S (at a 30 degree angle, not vertically down). Lowell stayed with the Spit through the maneuver, although his P-38 almost hit the ground. After that the Spitfire pilot broke off the engagement and flew home. This contest was witness by 75 pilots on the ground. reply | | Aaron, e-mail, 13.08.2010 08:17 I forgot to mention the P-38L's acceleration. From cruise it could accelerate at (on military power) at 2.8 mph /sec.
Perspective: the P-51D accelerated at 2.2 mph /sec. and the F4U-4 accelerated at 2.4 mph /sec. all at 10,000-15,000 ft. I do not know there acceleration at combat power but the P-38 had two engines to pull from. reply | | Zdenek Kocab, e-mail, 03.06.2010 18:36 Hello Ben, do you know the EXACT DAY of promotion of Harry T. HANNA to 2nd Lt, 1st Lt, Capt and also Maj? I am from the Czech republic and very interested in US aces of the second world war. I was not able to find. This info anywhere were not mentioned even in Stars and Bars by Frank Olynyk. Regards Zdenek Kocab reply | | Zdenek Kocab, e-mail, 22.08.2010 08:56 Hello Ben, do you know the EXACT DAY of promotion of Harry T. HANNA to 2nd Lt, 1st Lt, Capt and also Maj? I am from the Czech republic and very interested in US aces of the second world war. I was not able to find. This info anywhere were not mentioned even in Stars and Bars by Frank Olynyk. E-mail z.kocab@seznam.cz please help me. Regards Zdenek Kocab reply | | carl wollaston, e-mail, 09.05.2010 00:50 Ithink that the twin tails on this plane make it look very modern, even though it is from 1939.Do you think that might have been the reason it was made that way? to make it look more modern? reply | | GARY BEDINGER, e-mail, 31.03.2010 07:36 THE LOCKHEED P-38"LIGHTNING" WAS TRULY ONE OF AMERICA'S FINEST FIGHTER PLANES THAT WAS EVER BUILT.THE JAPS IN WW2 WERE TERRIFIED OF THE P-38,AND FOR VERY GOOD REASON.THE P-38 WAS FAST,414 MPH,GREAT RANGE,1,000 MILES,AND HAD GOOD ALTITUDE,38,000 FEET.WHAT A PLANE!!!!! reply |
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