Turreted Fighters

[Weaver]

Excellent article on turrets and their occupants here:

http://bayourenaissanceman.blogspot.com/2008/07/weekend-wings-25-air-gunners.html

[GTX]

Something I just found - apparently Boulton Paul did look at a cannon armed Defiant with a single 20mm gun:



Regards,

Greg

[GTX]

Has anyone ever attempted to do one of the Super Turret fighters such as the Boulton Paul P.92:



Regards,

Greg

[GTX]

Something new:



Blackburn Roc competitor perhaps or maybe something for the Far East?

regards,

Greg

PS Mods, could we move this thread/topic to the "Aircraft, Armor, and Ships by Topic" area please as I think it is more appropriate there.

[Nigel Bunker]

Don't forget both the Beaufighter and Mosquito were trialled with turrets fitted, but the idea was dropped in both cases.

[GTX]

Don't forget both the Beaufighter and Mosquito were trialled with turrets fitted, but the idea was dropped in both cases.

Something like this:



or even this:



I did these a while back in the Mossie thread - both are my interpretations of what the Mossie might have looked like had it kept the turret (the 2nd is an update with a remotely controlled turret from an A-26).

Here is the Beaufighter with turret:




Regards,

Greg

Regards,

Greg

[kitnut617]

Mosquito with turret

[sequoiaranger]

When I examine that photo, the "turret" looks fixed. I don't see any way that the turret can rotate (no break in the metal that indicates a track or ability to move). I think it is fixed, but the guns can elevate. Kind of like movable Schrage Muzik, or the guns on top of the P-61 Black Widow.

[PR19_Kit]

From memory that particular turret on the Mossie was an aerodynamic test bed, not the real thing they planned. The gun barrels look like broomsticks to me too.

[kitnut617]

This was the aerodynamic test turret, a couple of different ones were tested and all of them detracted the overall speed by a huge margin.  This one to me looks like it might have been a remote turret, the way the guns are grouped together would not make it very easy for a gunner to be in there too.  If you look carefully you can see four holes in the side, this was where the 'barrels' were positioned to test the effect of cg and aerodynamics when the guns would have been in this position.  I think I read in the Sharp/Bowyers book the the guns were to be 20mm's, BTW this turret shed most of it's bodywork on one flight because of buffeting.  The turrets had to be positioned where it's shown because of the wing spar just between it and the cockpit and the bottom of it hung down in the bomb bay according to the book.

[dy031101]

While not a fighter, but, say, I want to take a A-10A/B/[N/AW] and give the airframe a rear-facing turret to help "hosing down" the enemy ground troops after an attack pass and/or maybe somehow discourage enemy aircraft from pursuing.

I can think of two schemes so far- a tail gun like that of the Il-28 or Il-102, or a streamlined dorsal turret like that designed for the Supermarine 305 (it would probably remind people of G.I. Joe's Cobra Rattler, which also has a dorsal turret).

Which one would you recommend for the afore-mentioned purposes?



(The dorsal turret scheme might require relocation of the engine pods so that the engines won't get in the way.)

[Mossie]

I think the ventral position would be better, similar to the experimental mounting used on the OV-10.  You might need something a bit more lightweight than the Avenger though, it'd basically be a Goalkeeper system.  Maybe a 20mm as used on that Bronco, or maybe a chain gun similar to the Apache?


I mentioned Soviet fighters before, but I just picked up the Aerofax guide on the MiG-17 & it's got some great shots of the MiG-17SN.  The side intakes give a completely different look to the standard MiG-17 & the guns down the side of the radar give a distinctly odd look that just shouts Soviet!  Wasn't a success, the guns would make the nose pitch when elevated or depressed & caused engine surge.

[dy031101]

The idea of putting the Avenger into aircraft turrets never crossed my mind.  

I was ready to settle with two M39 cannons until seeing a webpage from the Jane's suggesting that M197 is actually lighter than M39 on a one-on-one basis.

Admittedly when I said dorsall turret I was indeed thinking Cobra Rattler, so my choice of weapons tended toward 20mm calibre, but M230 chain gun sounds good for practical purposes (i.e. strafing ground troops), too......

[kitnut617]

I picked up a 1/72 kit of this last year or so, MPC I think. It's a YOV-10D

[Mossie]

The idea of putting the Avenger into aircraft turrets never crossed my mind.  

Ah, weight be damned, lets bung two Avenger turrets in, one above, one below!!! :