Tamiya 61034 - 1/48 Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat  [61034]

Towards Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat

At the onset of the Pacific War in December 1941, the Japanese Navy A6M Zero fighter ended up being the dominant aircraft successful up against the allied atmosphere forces. The Zero's effort at total superiority was thwarted by numerous F4F Wildcat fighters flown from U.S. aircraft providers.
Grumman Aviation produced the G-18, the model XF4F-2, which first flew in September 1937. Initial assessment unveiled a few performance problems, which led the U.S. Navy to reject the G-18 in support of the Brewster's F2A "Buffalo". The Navy asked Grumman to carry on utilizing the project, and triggered the G-36, which flew in February 1939. The G-36 tests exceeded the performance associated with F2A, causing the U.S. Navy approving the style and ordering it into manufacturing whilst the F4F-3 Wildcat. Two yeas after its deployment, throughout the critical phases associated with the Pacific War in 1942, the improved F4F-4 Wildcat had been introduced. It had folding wings, and three 12.7mm machine firearms in each wing, plus the more powerful 1,200 P & W R-1830-86 Twin Wasp motor, providing it a speed of 512km/h. Grumman became known as the "Ironworks" because of its strongly created aircraft, which may take in enormous punishment whilst still being travel home.

Even though the F4F had been substandard in many respects toward Zero, an excellent kill ration had been achieved by Wildcat pilots simply by using its strong points from the Zero's weak spot of fragility and unseasoned pilots.