F8F-1 BEARCAT

The Grumman F8F Bearcat is an American single-engine carrier fighter from the end of the war. The flight of the prototype took place on August 21, 1944, and the F8F entered the line in February 1945 to reach the Pacific in May of the same year. Nevertheless, the plane did not take an active part in World War II. The heart of the F8F was the powerful Pratt-Whitney R-2800-34W Double Wasp engine with 2400HP and 2800HP supercharged. The Bearcat was lighter than the Hellcat, was definitely faster than it and had a much better rate of climb. The F4 Corsair was also ahead of the competition in many respects. Interestingly, many design solutions in the F8F were taken from the captured German Fw-190s. The F8Fs were used in combat by France in the Indochina War (1946-1954). They were also exported to South Vietnam and Thailand. Technical data (version F8F-2): Maximum speed: 720 km / h, speed of climb: 25.3 m / s, maximum ceiling 12190 m, maximum range: 1400 km, armament: fixed - four 20mm M2 cannons suspended - up to 908 kg load.