Bent-Wing Bird

摘要

When you think about the war that was fought in the Pacific theatre, it is easy to close your eyes and conjure up images of primitive island conditions filled with equipment that looked unfit for service and men on the verge of collapse from being asked to do the impossible. The US Marines were at the heart of that war and while the Navy had the glory with its carrier fleets, the guys on the ground had to rely on the Marine aviators to provide the necessary air support. Now insert the Vought F4U Corsair into that image. Originally designed for carrier operations with the US Navy, a landing gear problem caused a higher than expected accident rate resulting in the famed 'Bent-Wing Bird' being issued to the US Marine Corp in order to reequip their island based squadrons; and not a moment too soon since their beleaguered F4F Wildcats were both aging and badly outclassed by rival Japanese fighters, namely the infamous Mitsubishi A6M 'Zero'. The rest of that story, and the Corsair's ascension to aviation immortality are, as they say, history.