Well I figured I'd share a couple of pics of the last model plane I just completed. This one really brings me back as I had built this exact model (formerly Monogram, now Revell) when I was about 12 or 13 years old. I remember it being a finicky kit then as it is now since this model has folding wings and moveable retractable landing gear which makes for very small and fragile parts and tedious assembly. Overall, I think it came out OK, at least a lot better than the one I did in my youth.

This model depicts the F4U-4 Corsair attached to VME-322 which flew for the Marines from the USS Bairoko (CVE 115) during the Korean War in 1953. She carries 2 1000 lb. bombs, 8 rockets and 4 50 cal. machine guns, quite a load! It is one of my favorite planes, right up there with the P51 Mustang. The real planes where actually made just down the road from me right here in Stratford, CT and probably other factories as well.

I've had some fun building the P51, AM6 Zero and now this one during this pandemic. I enjoyed building them as a kid and makes me feel like one again!

Also, if you have never seen this video before click this link and play it loud!!!

https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=br ... &FORM=VIRE

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John Kish
1971 240Z - original owner

Nice work John! Great hobby for the pandemic too, good thinking!

I like your detail work, the paint and decals look terrific. When I was a kid I liked building car models. The building part always went well but the finish work never did. Always sloppy.

I love old planes too, the P51 and Corsair are two favorites. I had no idea they built them in CT either!

Jay

Great work as usual, John. You make me jealous.

Please re-check the squadron designation on your F4U. There was no "E" in any USMC aircraft designation during WWII or the Korean War, to my knowledge.

332 was an Attack squadron (as opposed to an interceptor, observation, fighter, bomber or torpedo squadron), so their designation was VMA-332. "V" for fixed-wing,"M" for Marine, and "A" for attack. Later designations would grow from that as they adopted aircraft with more abilities, such as; VMA(AW)-332 for "all weather", and VMFA-332 for "Fighter-Attack", etc.

Your model carries (8) air-to-ground rockets. They were released in pairs from the outside to the inside, in order to maintain weight stability. The Corsair indeed could carry two 1,000 pound bombs, but those had to be carried under the fuselage centerline.

The (8) 250lb or (4) 500lb bomb loads were preferable to the two 1,000 lb load-out because once you dropped both 1,000 lb bombs, your primary mission was over and you had to return to re-arm. With a lesser load but more bombs, the Marines preferred to make several runs at the same (or another) target, loitering over the area and providing extended Close Air Support (CAS) for the infantry.

The large centerline tank under the fuselage is an external auxiliary fuel tank. They came in various sizes and supplied the primary fuel to get the plane to the combat area, where it was dropped prior to contact with the enemy. Preferably, the Corsair would engage the enemy without these cumbersome tanks, giving them far more speed and maneuverability. The main fuel cells were hidden inside the fuselage spine and in both wing roots.

I once worked in a hangar where a Korean War Corsair was being rebuilt by the Confederate Air Force. It had a huge nacel on the starboard wing which could house either an early airborne radar, or a spotlight. It was thereby designated as a night fighter.

The 4-blade prop was one of the final developments of the series, which gave it greater speed and climb rate. The gun-guru of my youth (Maj Fred Houser, USMC (Ret)) flew several variations of the Corsair and had stories about them which would last you a lifetime. They were extremely hard to land because the huge nose blinded the pilot from what was ahead, and they were downright dangerous to taxi on the deck for the same reason. They had to have ground crew sitting on both wingtips, guiding the blind pilot. Either that, or the pilot 'snaked' the Corsair left and right along the ground to give him glimpses of what lay ahead.

That nose was held so high in the air to allow clearance for the huge propeller; hence the bent wings and long main landing gear. Being a 'tail dragger', If you touched the brakes too soon after landing (especially while the tail was still flying), you could drop the nose to the deck and destroy the prop, or simply ground-roll the aircraft.

These are romantic birds which always capture the imagination of anyone who sees them. Sikorsky airport used to have a Corsair gate-guardian perched on a pedestal as you entered from the road, but it is no longer there today. It was actually a Goodyear-manufactured FG-1D, bureau number 92460 but it looked the same to the public.

Frank

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1970 240Z

Ah Frank, you are right about it being VMA-332, not VME-322 (all thumbs when typing) . And yes, they removed the Corsair displayed at Bridgeport airport as it was deteriorating so badly from the elements and seagulls. Not sure what it's status is now.

The model kit did actually have the wing mounted nacel you described and I've seem films and pics of them on real planes before.

I've attached another video clip (below) that I took of the Corsair that the Collings Foundation had at Oxford airport in 2019. They also displayed and flew the ill fated B-17 that crashed at Bradley airport a few weeks later.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsGACem7SY0

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John Kish
1971 240Z - original owner

Here's FG-1D Bureau Number 92460 at the Sikorsky airport; no squadron designations, early canopy, tri-blade prop, and (6) Browning .50 caliber wing guns.

It is currently undergoing restoration as a permanent static display at the Connecticut Air and Space Museum in Windsor Locks. It will never fly again.

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1970 240Z

Here it is undergoing slow restoration.

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1970 240Z

Great history on these planes guys. You are both very knowledgeable about them, the history of these old planes is really fascinating. Awesome machines!! From reading WWII books it seems like the fighter pilots generally enjoyed their missions, where the bomb crews didn't necessarily share that feeling as they were statistically much more vulnerable on each run they flew. I remember a friend was talking to me one time about how he was able to get a ride in a B24 liberator at an air show (15 min) and how fun it was. An older fellow nearby (I think may have been a WWII vet) casually stated that the boys that had to fly them for real weren't at all excited about it. In fact many were terrified. That stuck with me. I love these old birds and their history, but I always try to imagine the perspectives of the men who flew them.

And John, those videos are great. Love the first one. I had no idea each pilot was issued his own Anna! The lines for new pilots must have been really long!!

Jay

John, Frank, et all:

Somewhere in the way back are memories of F4U Corsairs docked with folded wings behind the prop wash fencing on the north side of Bridgeport Airport in the late 1940s and early 1950's. They were built accross Main Street at the Chance Vought factory.

Gram and Gramp lived on the top of Park St near Paradise Green in Stratford. After Sunday family visits, Dad would always take the long way home, past the airport and through Lordshiip on the way home to Black Rock and later Fairfield. There was no I-95 back then.

In following years, when we lived in Lordship, I remember the life sized "Revell Model" mounted near the new administration building at Bridgeport Airport. That's the photo posted by Frank T. prior. It fell into disrepair and is now being restored for static display as stated.

Alan

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2007 350Z Grand Touring Roadster "OURZ"

So you actually grew up with that bird, and with the main originators of the famous bent-wing fighters.

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1970 240Z