AiCraft co | Republic P-47D Thunderbolt Gh, Phas,RB The Republic P-47D Thunderbolt Thunderbolt Mark 1 (P4725) of No. 135 Stairon, Royal Al Farce, In was ane of the first basch of 120 clreraft delivered. BEAUTY or beast, that wits the Republic P-47 Thuin- derbolt, and there were no two ways about it. Pilots either loved or loathed designer Alexander Kartveli’s corpulent fighter, And yet this aeroplane, conceived during the opening months of World War Il, was to become one of the most outstanding fighters of its generation and a legend in its own time. A legend that ‘was written around the exploits of the numerous “Acc” pilots who flew it, men like Lt.-Col. F. 8. Gabresh ‘whose total af thirty-one confirmed victories put him at the head of the high scoring list, and Captain R. S. Johnson (28) and Colonel H. Zemike (20). Like all new and untried acroplanes the Thunder- bolt was plagued with teething troubles and it was 2 consiant ballle ta overcome them. The prototype XP-47 suffered from many deficiencies including excessive control loads at high altitude, and the first production balches of the P-47B and 47C developed faults (hat were patiently eradicated, By the time the P47D began leaving the production fines most of the major snags had been overcome, and this variant was eventually to be produced in greater numbers than say other type. It represented about 80 per cent of the entire F-47 production programme ‘with a grand total of 12,602 machines built, ‘The U.S.A.A.F. first ordered the P-47D in October 1541, and despite its “1D” sutfix it differed little from its immediate predecessor the P47C-3-RE. But as production mounted the modifications multiplied 50 rapidly that the Inte mode] “D's were a different breed. of aeroplane. Initial sub-batches amounting to a total of 3,962 aircraft, ran from the P-471-I-RE to the P-47D-22-RE, and were produced at Republic's Farmingdale, New York, factory, Demand for the fighter was so. great that second production line was started at a new Republic facility at Evansville, Indiana, where a total of 146 PATD-2RA to P-47D-23-RAs were built. led HD28, cove URS, Imperial War Museum} ‘The Curtiss Aircraft Corporation was brought into the Thunderbolt programme and they constructed just 384 P-47G-1-CU to P-47G-15-CU machines, these bbeing identical ta the Republic ‘These 5,777 asroptanes were fitted with the original metal-framed sliding cockpit canopy as fitted to the early Thunderbolts, and all-round view was extremely restricied. The USA.A.F. had been conducting experiments with the new clear-riew hood, then standard on the Hawker Typhoon, and had sctually fitted one of these (9 a P-47D, redesignating the ai craft XP-47K. Tests proved that the haod provided a 360-degree view foe pilots and the modification, ‘together with a cui-down rear fuselage, was introduced ‘on the three production lines, ‘The first sub-batches to feature all modifications ‘were the P-47D-25-REs produced st Farmingdale, and the P-47D-26-RAs built at Evansville, Existing P-47s serving with the US.AAP, in Great Britain were retrofitted with the new hood at the U.S. Air Service ‘Command bases with canopies supplied by the British aircraft industry. All subsequent Thunderbolts featured the clear-view hood. Early produetian of? Dr 1-RE shoving olf razor-buck fuselage ‘and mefabfra mh coekyit canapy. Lully at Farmingdates deh (Republic Avtation photo)ran PATD-2S-RE of the 1° Grapo de Ariacae de Caca of the af Po gaia. ‘Republi, Faem The P-47D-6-RE to P-47D-1I-RE and the PAT 1O-CU to P-47G-15-CU had ventral bomb shackles which were stressed to carry one $00 Ib, bomb. Later seties had a strengthened wing and shackle to accam- modate three $00 Ib. bombs, or a combination of bontbs or fucl tanks, With a full ordnance load the number of rounds ef ammunition for the six Brown- ing machine-guns was reduced from a maximum of 425 to 267 rpg. Later production batches from the P-47D-20-RE onwards were filled with the universal wing, an idea copied from the standard British practice of producing, a wing that could carry a multitude of loads. A single Pratt & Whitney R-2800-59 or -63 air-cooled piston engine incorporating water-methanol injection was standard, The water injection added several hundred horse-power for emergency use and 10 absorb this increase a four, paddle-bladed airscrew of 13 ft dinmeter was installed, Tt added 400 fect per minute to the climb, but pilots Ieamed to be wary of such a large airserew for when the Thunderbolt was taking-off or landing with the tail wheel up, the blade tips were a scant six inches off the ground, Other improvements included a jettisonable cockpit canopy, operated by pulling a ring, the slipstream then puiling it clear, & fiat, bullet proof windscreen and increased fuel ‘Air Force, aly, 1942, Note three-tier racket tuber. Aircraft butle by Huh prodestion bate, capacity that raised the radius ef setion to 637 miles, ‘The last production batches of this range were fitted with strengthened fuselage shackles capable of supporting a #1 gallon fuel tank, and the bomb load ‘was inereased from two 500 Tb. to two 1,000 Ib, and onc $00 Ib, bomb. Three auxiliary fuel tanks could be carried on the same fittings, and various combinations of bombs and tanks could be carried ta suit tactical requirements. Like the P-SID fitted with the cfear-view canopy the P-47D suffered fromsome loss of lateral control de to decreased keel area resulting from the cut-down rear fuselage, and all Thunderbolts from the P-471D-27-RE batch onwards were fitted with a dorsal fin. strake, Improvements in design also praduced the underwing, zero-length launching stubs for rocket projectiles, that had been previously stored in bazooka-type tubes in groups of three. Farmingdale produced a total of 2,547 P-t7Ds fitted with the clear-view canopy, and Evansville built 4,632. The former facility, sent an enormous total of 6,509 P-47Ds into batil, while the Latter was runner- up with 6093, This enormous rato of production brought the cost of the basic Thunderbolt down drastically, the average price of each aircraft reached low of 83,001 dollars by the time production ceased,Alr Force FAT D-2 of No. 81 Squodion RAF, or e-fornaed Frou Ne. 129 Saadeom i Sake 7243, R.A.F, THUNDERBOLTS ‘The P-47D was the first version of the Thunderbolt Io serve with the U.S.A.A.P. in the Pacific, where it was delivered to the 248th Fighter Squadron in quantity and operated from Brisbane, Austra a long range escort fighter. Next to the U:S.A.A.F. the largest operator of the P-47D was the Royal Air Force, to whom a total of 830 were delivered. In R.A.F. service the 47D. was designated the Thunderbolt Mark I anc Mark Il. The Former, of which 240 were delivered, had the old Another Sth Air Force M7 h220RE, photographed al “RE. Hk prodvetion Batch, Repubile, Farminedafe, Enelau, 1943, ‘¢Photo; via Reger Freeman) metalframed cockpit canopy, while the laiter (590 aircraft) featured the elear-view bubble canopy. ‘Two baiches of Mark Is were delivered and serials ran from FL731 to FL850 (120 aircraft) and #15962 to HIS! (120 aircraft). The Mark Is were evaluated in ‘ape, but shipped immediately afterwards to South East Asia Command, where they were used against the Japanese. ‘The Thunderbolt Mark I was the equivalent of the P-47D-25 and four main batches were delivered, Serials ran as follows: HD/82 to HDIOI (120 air- craft), KJI28 to KJ367 (240 aircraft), KEIG8 to KL347 (180 aircraft), KL83¢ to KL8S7 (30 aircraft), A few aircraft of the last two batches had the dorsal fin strake. One of the first R.A.F. squadrons to operate the Thunderbolt was No. 5, based in Burma snd _pre~ viously operating Mohawks und Hurricanes. They flew the cab-rank patrol under the direction of visual ground control posis, and with their three 5,050 Ib. bombs and cight machine-guns caused tremendous damage amongst Japanese troops and supply lines. R.A.F. squadrons operating the P-47D were:—Mark I, Nos. 5, 34, 113, 123, 135, 146. Mark Il, Nos. 5, 30, 34, 42, ©, 79, 81, 113, 123, 131, 134, 135, 288, 261 and ‘615, Soon after V-Day they disappeared from R.A.E. squadrons which were either disbanded or re-cquipped ‘with Beitish aircraft Despite its exclusive use with the R.A.F, inthe Far ingen attack on Bevin TUh May 1944, Produced! at Farmingdale, Mik hareh.