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The Corsair is one of the worlds most
distinctive looking fighters. The inverted gull-wing is it's most
identifiable characteristic. The Corsair was developed at the beginning
of 1938, at the request of the U.S. Navy, which ordered the
construction of the prototype of a new single-seat carrier-based
fighter with advanced characteristics.
The Corsair scored a number of
Navy firsts. It was the first Navy single engine fighter to fly over
400 miles an hour. The Corsair also set a record for payload, when
Charles Lindbergh took off with a 4,000lb payload; the heaviest flown
by a single engine aircraft at that point in WWII. The F4U-2 was the
Navy's first night fighter and paved the way for other night fighters
in WWII and Korea. A Corsair was the only piston-powered Navy aircraft
to shoot down a jet in the Korean War. In addition, the Navy's only ace
of the Korean war, Lt. Guy P. Bordelon Jr., flew a corsair. The Marines
were given numerous copies of this aircraft as well and had a great
deal of success.
The F4U was nicknamed, "whistling death" by the Japanese because of the
sound the oil cooler vanes made. In later stages of the war, the
Corsair was armed with weapons ranging from 500 to 1,000lb bombs, 20mm
cannon, and napalm.
There are a number of Corsairs
in Lake Washington including one which was recovered, resorted and is
now on exhibit at the Seattle Museum of Flight.
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