Crazy Techniques WW2 Planes Use To Shoot Bullets
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In the Pacific theater during WWII, the 358th fighter group of the Air Force flew P-47 Thunderbolts that utilized locally sourced drop tanks. These were designed and implemented in less than 8 weeks, giving the Thunderbolts an upper hand—a 450-mile combat radius. Without the right drop tank, the Thunderbolt couldn’t have been a meaningful participant in the Pacific theater.
Origins
These partially disassembled P-47s arrived in Brisbane, Australia, on June 20th, 1943. Unfortunately, they didn’t come with drop tanks.
The leader of the 5th Air Force, Gen. George Kenney seemed to understand that help with drop tanks wouldn’t be coming through official channels. Thus, he went to the 27th repair squadron and told mechanics what he wanted. Within two days, they’d come up with a suitable 200-gallon drop tank for the Thunderbolt.
The Brisbane Tank
Gen. Kenney’s tank, the Brisbane tank, used Republic’s mounting system. Gen. Kenney got impatient waiting for drop tanks to come through official channels so he made his own. The Brisbane tank was often called a 200-gallon tank but in reality, it held 220 gallons.
When equipped with the Brisbane tank, the Thunderbolt has a range of approximately. 486 miles. Ultimately, that’s about the maximum radius of the P-47 Thunderbolt with 305 gallons of external fuel. The Thunderbolt has a 450-mile combat radius with the Brisbane belly tank.
Why It Matters
Tank pressurization is vital. It was the USAF, not the Republic that was responsible for the lack of pressurization of drop tanks.
The Brisbane tank, which wasn’t pressurized, was still going up to 28,000 ft. via the 5th Air Force fuel pump. Thus, a Thunderbolt with 220 gallons of drop tank fuel gave it enough range to escort to nearly all the targets the US Army Air Corps hit in Germany in 1943, specifically Scheweinf, because the reason often given for the losses of US bombers on Scheweinf raids is for the Thunderbolt’s lack of range.
However, the true reason was actually a lack of drop tanks, which is an easily solvable issue proven by Gen. Kenney of the 5th Air Force. It’s worth noting that Gen. Kenney’s Brisbane tanks were eventually emulated in the European theater with a 215-gallon centerline tank.
