The story of Chinese American composite Wing (CACW)

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Chinese-American Composite Wing


In the six months following Japan’s attack on China in July 1937,the best units of the Chinese Air Force (CAF) were destroyed.

In 1938,Claire L. Chennault,a civilian adviser to the CAF,assembled an international squadron of pilots as flight leaders for Chinese units. The Japanese A6M2 Zero, introduced in 1940, was superior to CAF aircraft.

In October 1940,Chennault visited the United States in search of planes and pilots; the result was the American Volunteer Group (AVG)—military pilots who resigned their commissions to fly for China—and 100 P-40 aircraft. The AVG was disbanded on 4 July 1942 and replaced by the China Air Task Force (CATF) under then-commissioned Brigadier General Chennault. The CATF consisted of four P-40 squadrons of the 23d Fighter Group plus the B-25s of the 11th Bomb Group.Their performance convinced General Henry H.“Hap”Arnold,chief of the U.S.Army Air Corps,of the benefits of providing combat aircraft for Chinese pilots. The Chinese-American Composite Wing (CACW) was conceived by Chennault when the U.S.Fourteenth Air Force was formed in March 1943.

As Chinese pilots lacked training and confidence to engage the enemy,the plan was to have an American commander, assisted by a staff of Chinese officers,head a special unit composed of Chinese and American pilots and crews. CACW plans called for a four squadrons of fighters (80 planes) and four squadrons of bombers (40 planes), all units of the CAF, to be under Chennault’s command.


The 1st Bomb Group and the 3d Fighter Group ofthe CAF were formed on 31 July 1943,after American pilots arrived at Malir, India. One hundred Chinese cadets returned from training in the United States at Luke Air Advanced School to fly for the CACW. Training began at Malir using old AVG P-40s and B-25s that had been used in China.The Chinese and American officers had segregated facilities, and each maintained separate quarters and mess from enlisted per- sonnel. The CACW was activated on 1 October 1943,shortly after 24 new P-40Ns and 12 B-25s were deployed to China; three additional squadrons of the CACW trained at Malir.


In November 1943,the 2d Bomb Squadron began combat operations; a Thanksgiving Day raid on Japan’s largest air base in Formosa (Taiwan) shot down 14 Japanese planes
and destroyed more than 50 without loss of any CACW planes. CACW pressure on Japanese forces in eastern China prompted Japan’s Operation ICHI-GO to capture Chennault’s
eastern China airfields employed for B-29 bombing raids on Japan after June 1944. By late December 1944,as CACW pilots began the transition to the longer-range P-51C Mustangs,the CACW had lost 20 fighters to Japanese pilots and 35 fighters and eight bombers to enemy ground fire; no bombers were lost to Japanese interceptors,a tribute to the B-25 crews and the fighter escorts.


The CACW unofficial combat record included 190 Japanese aircraft destroyed in the air, 301 on the ground; more than 2,500 vehicles were damaged or destroyed; many
bridges,railroads,and enemy facilities and troops were destroyed;and several hundred thousand tons of shipping was sunk. The CACW produced eight air aces, including three Chinese aces. Chennault’s experiment yielded substantial results before it was disbanded on 19 September 1945

Ref:
Chennault,Claire L.Way of a Fighter:The Memoirs of Claire Lee
Chennault. New York: Putnam’s,1949.
Pickler,Gordon K.“United States Aid to the Chinese Nationalist Air
Force,1931–1949.”Ph.D.diss.,Florida State University,1971.
Xu,Guangqiu.“The Eagle and the Dragon’s War Wings.”Ph.D.diss.,
University of Maryland,1993

 

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Images sourced from: Daniel's WWII Aviation Memorabilia 1939-1945

 

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Curtiss P-40 Warhawk

World War II U.S.fighter.The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, made famous by the legendary Flying Tigers,was one ofAmerica’s most important fighter aircraft of World War II. The P-40 originated in 1938 as the XP-40, a derivation of the mid 1930s Curtiss radial-engine design, the P-36 Hawk. Unlikethe Hawk, however, the P-40 was equipped with a liquid cooled Allison V-1710-33 inline engine, which greatly reduced frontal area and increased performance.

Although the P-40 was sturdy, with good diving characteristics and an attractive,sleek-looking design,it exhibited only mediocre performance compared to most other fighters of the day. By the start of the war, in fact, the P-40 was virtually obsolete. Still,it continued to be produced in great numbers,as it was one of the few fighters already in full production and readily available from war’s outset.

The P-40’s chief claim to fame was its use by General Claire Chennault’s American Volunteer Group (AVG), immortalized as the Flying Tigers.The AVG operated in China
under the control of General Chiang Kai-shek in the early months of World War II.With the colorful but intimidating shark’s teeth painted on their noses,the P-40 fighter aircraft flown by the flamboyant and highly capable pilots of the AVG were extremely successful in intercepting and destroying invading Japanese aircraft.Although consistently out numbered, pilots flying the P-40 registered a kill ratio of 25 Japanese aircraft for every P-40 destroyed in aerial combat. Because of its effectiveness,as well as the popular cause the AVG supported,the P-40 became one of the most recognized aircraft in history.


The P-40 saw extensive service throughout World War II beginning with the actual attack on Pearl Harbor.In addition to its use by the United States, the P-40 was used by 28 Allied nations,including the British in North Africa,the Australians in the South Pacific,and the Russians on the Eastern Front. Indeed, even as late as 1943 the P-40—in combination with the Bell P-39—still represented over half of the total fighter strength in the U.S.Army Air Forces.

The P-40 underwent numerous design modifications throughout the war, but when the far superior P-38, P-47, and P-51 fighters arrived on the scene,the P-40 was quickly
relegated to roles other than air-to-air combat, such as ground support. By the end of the war, only one U.S. squadron was still equipped with the P-40.

The rugged P-40 played a significant role in winning the war because it was available at a time when most other World War II fighters were still in the planning stages,and it performed dependably and effectively until more advanced fighters became available. Even though a total of 13,738 P-40s were built from May 1940 through 1944,only a handful of these classic and historic aircraft are still flying today.

Steven A.Ruffin and Daniel A.Ruffin

Ref:
Bowers,Peter M.Curtiss Aircraft,1907–1947. London: Putnam,
1979.

 

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Allison V-1710-33 inline engine

Section View :

Sourced from : Old Engine.org Homepage

In 1937 the Allison V-1710 became the first American engine to qualify at 1,000 horsepower for the new 150-hour military type test. The V-1710-C was also the first in the "long nose" series that provided a basis for later improved and higher powered versions. Allison designers created the long nose by extending the propeller shaft about 30 centimeters (12 inches) to maximize streamlining.

The Allison V-1710 powered most U.S. Army fighters in World War II, including the Lockheed P-38, Bell P-39 and P-63, Curtiss P-40, and early North American P-51s. The V-1710-C15 (military designation V-1710-33) powered the Curtiss P-40, P-40A, B, and C pursuit aircraft.

Manufacturer: Allison Division, General Motors Corporation

Designer: Norm Gilman

Date: 1939

Country of Origin: United States of America

Dimensions:
Length 250.3 cm (98.54 in.), Width 74 4 cm (29.29 in.), Height 106.4 cm (41.88 in.)

Physical Description:
Type: 12 cylinders, V-type, liquid cooled Power rating: 776 kW (1,040 hp) at 2,800 rpm
Displacement: 28 L (1,710 cu in) Weight (dry): 608 kg (1,340 lb)

Sourced from :V-12, Allison V-1710-33 (V-1710-C15) Engine - Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum