The history
Vought’s F4U Corsair was built around the biggest engine and propeller of any fighter of its day. The inverted gull wing let the huge propeller clear the ground while keeping the undercarriage short and strong. In October 1940 the prototype became the first American single-engine fighter to pass 400 mph in level flight.
The F4U-1D of 1944 was a fighter-bomber: a water-injected Pratt & Whitney R-2800-8W, pylons for bombs or drop tanks and rails for rockets. With it the Corsair finally went to sea in numbers, flying from US Navy carriers as well as Marine island airfields. Production ran until 1953, longer than any other American piston-engined fighter.
The build
Tamiya’s 1/48 F4U-1D is a very pleasant kit to build, with clear instructions and good detail straight from the box, even without any photo-etched parts. The wings can be built folded or spread; I folded them, which shows off the gull wing and the fold mechanism.
Finished
