P-39 Airacobra A Short History

P-39 Airacobra A Short History

The P-39 Airacobra is a unique fighter aircraft from World War 2. Designed by the Bell Aircraft Company, the P-39 had the engine mounted behind the pilot, tricycle landing gear and a 37mm cannon that fired through the propellor driveshaft. All unique attributes to this aircraft.

About 9,500 P-39s were built over the course of the war. 4,800 were sent to Russia under Lend Lease, where they proved effective in the low level air warfare of that theater. Due to a lack of a turbocharger, the P-39 could not be used at altitudes above 15,000 feet.

The P-39 model shown is from the FMS model airplane company. The model is essentially ready to fly with just the controls needing to be connected. For a full review of this kit:

If you would like to purchase the FMS P-39 and save some money, click link below and use a discount code when checking out:

10% off code: TimMcKay
$15 off code: $15TimMcKay

Chapters

00:00 - Intro
00:38 - Overview
01:05 - P-39 design work
01:35 - P-39 internal cannon
02:40 - Turbocharger discussion
03:45 - Russian use of the P-39

[JamesRCPlaneTech]

Nice, I always like to see the connection between the hobby and real planes.

[hangflyer]

Great presentation on the P-39. My father flew both the P-39, and P-63, during WWII but didn't have much good to say about them. He said both cockpits were cramped and small, even for a 5'10" pilot, and he was fortunate to never have to bail out of one because of the door.

[txkflier]

Good overview. Having the engine near the CG brought the center of mass closer to the CG which helped with maneuverability. But, the P-39 had a tendency to become tail-heavy when the 37mm ammo was used up and they would snaproll unexpectedly. The P-39 Airacobra and the P-40 Warhawk were the best fighters we had before WWII started. I've been wanting a P-39 ever since the P-63 collided with the B-17 at Dallas. I wish I could find an NIB E-flite P-39. It was a little larger than the FMS version.

[RebelByNature]

Great video. I was aware of the p39, but did not know much about it. Hope you do more historical aircraft videos particularly in the WWII scale area.

[halgilley]

Respectfully disagree with our turbocharger statement. Only some American planes had turbochargers (P-38, P-47, B-17, B-24 and B-29). All the other combatants in WWII had single stage engines and were able to get adequate high altitude performance. The British and Americans did have two stage supercharging which used a second stage mechanical supercharger instead of a second stage turbocharger for superior high altitude performance. The main problem with the P-39 was excessive weight which was easily corrected. Remove the .30 caliber wing guns and some of the excessive armor plate and P-39 performance was on par with the Me109 and Fw190 at all altitudes.

[AnonymousFlight]

Hi there, Tim. I need help with my bnf umx, for some reason earlier it would bind, but then the control surfaces would freeze and a red led would begin blinking, i restarted it several times, then it stopped binding completely.

[alexherrera]

Nice review. Do you prefer spektrum SAFE or FMS reflex?