The Grumman F4F Wildcat was an American carrier-based fighter aircraft that began service with both the United States
Navy and the British Royal Navy (as the Martlet) in 1940. First used in combat by the British in Europe, the Wildcat was the only
effective fighter available to the United States Navy and Marine Corps in the Pacific Theater during the early part of World War II
in 1941 and 1942. With a top speed of 318 mph (512 km/h), the Wildcat was outperformed by the faster and more nimble 331 mph
(533 km/h) Mitsubishi A6M Zero, but its ruggedness, coupled with tactics such as the Thach Weave, resulted in an air combat
kill-to-loss ratio of 5.9:1 in 1942 and 6.9:1 for the entire war.
Lessons learned from the Wildcat were applied to the faster F6F Hellcat which could outperform the Zero on its own terms. The
Wildcat continued to be built throughout the remainder of the war to serve on escort carriers, where larger and heavier fighters
could not be used.
Airframes that survived military service:
|
Bu. 3872 (D-04) Bu. 3956 (D-03) Bu. 3969 (D-04) Bu. 4039 (D-02) Bu. 11824 (S-02) Bu. 11828 (D-03) Bu. 12068 (D-02) Bu. 12114 (D-06) Bu. 12260 (A-19) Bu. 12290 (D-19) Bu. 12296 (D-22) Bu. 12297 (R-03) Bu. 12320 (D-03) Bu. 14994 (D-05) Bu. 15392 (D-04) Bu. 16089 (D-02) Bu. 16161 (D-06) |
Bu. 16278 (S-04) Bu. 46867 (D-19) Bu. 47030 (A-19) Bu. 47160 (A-19) Bu. 55052 (D-19) Bu. 55404 (R-19) Bu. 55585 (R-19) Bu. 55627 (D-03) Bu. 74120 (S-03) Bu. 74161 (D-02) Bu. 74512 (D-19) Bu. 74560 (A-19) Bu. 74763 (?-70) Bu. 86564 (D-03) Bu. 86572 (A-19) Bu. 86581 (A-05) |
Bu. 86680 (A-19) Bu. 86690 (R-19) Bu. 86711 (A-04) Bu. 86741 (D-05) Bu. 86746 (A-02) Bu. 86747 (D-02) Bu. 86750 (W-83) Bu. 86754 (A-19) Bu. 86773 (?-02) Bu. 86774 (A-19) Bu. 86777 (A-19) Bu. 86819 (A-03) Bu. 86956 (A-02) N6699K (?) AL246 (?-02) JV482 (R-02) |
