Polikarpov I-153

Posted on September 14, 2020 by atcDave

At the start of World War II the Soviet Union had a vast combat air force that was not quite modern.

Let’s take a look at one of the most prevalent types.

Continue reading →

Posted in Fighter, Soviet Union | Tagged , , | 12 Comments

Grumman TBF-1 Avenger

Posted on September 7, 2020 by atcDave

The US Navy’s upset victory at Midway is well known, a hard won American triumph.

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Let’s take a look at a part of the cost of that victory. Continue reading →

Posted in Bomber - Naval, USA | Tagged , , | 17 Comments

Panzerjager Jagdtiger

Posted on September 5, 2020 by atcDave

The dramatic spiral in size and capability continued to the end of World War II.

Just what were the upper limits? Could a monster vehicle be effective in combat? Let’s take a look.

Continue reading →
Posted in Armor, Germany | Tagged , , | 23 Comments

North American F-6A Mustang

Posted on September 3, 2020 by atcDave

Early production Mustangs often generate a lot of confusion and mis-information.

Let’s take a look at one and it’s role.

Continue reading →

Posted in Reconnaissance, USA | Tagged , , | 18 Comments

Humber Armoured Car Mark IV

Posted on August 24, 2020 by atcDave

This ubiquitous vehicle accompanied the British Army everywhere from 1941 to the end of World War II.

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Let’s take a look at another of the important but often overlooked pieces of Wartime hardware. Continue reading →

Posted in Armor, Britain, Poland | Tagged , | 7 Comments

Hawker Hurricane Mk IId

Posted on August 22, 2020 by atcDave

A reasonably successful effort to bring anti-tank capability to the Desert Air Force.

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Let’s take a look at a late model Hurricane. Continue reading →

Posted in Anti-Tank, Britain | Tagged , , | 12 Comments

Sd.Kfz.222

Posted on August 14, 2020 by atcDave

Another of the ubiquitous armored cars employed by every military in World War II.

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Let’s take a look at a more or less “typical” piece of hardware. Continue reading →

Posted in Armor, Germany | Tagged , | 6 Comments

Bristol Blenheim Mk I

Posted on August 11, 2020 by atcDave

This brand new, state-of-the-art-the-art fast bomber made quite the splash in 1937.  By the time War came it didn’t seem so blazing fast, but it still capable when well supported.

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Let’s take a look at one of those weapons that made do until something better was available. Continue reading →

Posted in Bomber - Tactical, Britain | Tagged , , | 21 Comments

Vought F4U-1 Corsair

Posted on August 9, 2020 by atcDave

The Corsair made a huge impact from its earliest appearance in the Pacific.

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Let’s take a look at one of those first combatants. Continue reading →

Posted in Fighter, USA | Tagged , , | 11 Comments

Scale Matters, Part II

Posted on August 7, 2020 by atcDave

I never planned on revisiting this article.  But a visitor to this site, ericritter65, asked a question about scale and it just got me to thinking I had never really shown how big any of these subjects are in real world terms.

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Several recognizable subjects with common scale objects.

So let’s take another look at scale, and compare it to reality. Continue reading →

Posted in Dave's Essays | Tagged | 9 Comments