The Vought F4U Corsair prototype was originally built in 1940 and the model went on to see the longest production run of any piston-engined fighter in U.S. history. During WWII, the Japanese Zero pilots considered the Corsair to be formidable, with many fearing it far more than the P-51 Mustang.
A total of 12,571 Corsairs were made between 1942 and 1953, there were some minor model variations but most used the 2,000 hp, 18-cylinder, Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp radial. Power was transmitted through a large Hamilton Standard Hydromatic three-blade propeller with a diameter of 13’4″ (4.06 m).
During the second world war, the U.S. Navy counted an 11:1 kill ratio with the F4U Corsair. A remarkable feat not surpassed by many planes in the 20th century.
Nowadays there are a few options for people who feel a burning desire for Corsair ownership, giant R/C scale models are available here, and climb-in-and-fly 82% scale kit planes are available here.
Articles that Ben Branch has written have been covered on CNN, Popular Mechanics, Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, Autoweek Magazine, Wired Magazine, Autoblog, Gear Patrol, Jalopnik, The Verge, and many more.
Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.
