Brief HistoryThe Republic P-47 Thunderbolt was the largest single-engine craft built during World War II, and the Army Air Force acquired it in greater numbers than any other fighter. The Thunderbolt’s ability to absorb incredible damage and stay aloft was legendary, and pilots affectionately referred to it as the “Jug.” This famous aircraft was a further development of the mediocre Republic P-43 Lancer. It was built around a 2,000-horsepower Pratt & Whitney radial engine and carried a supercharger in the aft section of the fuselage. The prototype XP-47 flew for the first time in May 1941 and showed great promise, but a succession of technical problems delayed production until spring 1942. Orders were placed in September 1940 for one hundred and seventy-one P-47Bs and six hundred and two P-47Cs, and on 6 May 1941 the XP-47B made its first flight. The B and C models were basically similar, but C was given a slightly longer fuselage to improve manoeuvrability. The first Republic P-47 Thunderboltfighters entered United States Army Air Force (USAAF) service in 1942, becoming operational with Eighth Air Force units over Europe in April 1943 and in the Pacific theatre some two months later. […] Source: Republic P-47 Thunderbolt Technical & Scale Drawings | Scale Model Aircraft Universe
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