Fork-tailed devil - Lockheed P-38 Lightning
Of the three outstanding U.S. Army Air Corps (USAAC) fighters of World War II (the others being the P-47 Thunderbolt and the P-51 Mustang), the P-38 was the first to fly by almost two and a half years. Built by the Lockheed Aircraft Company, it was designed to a 1937 specification calling for a high-altitude interceptor with heavy armament and a high rate of climb.

Lockheed won the competition on 23 June 1937, construction began in July 1938, and the XP-38 first flew on 27 January 1939 at the hands of Ben Kelsey. Losing this prototype in a crash at Mitchel Field, New York, with Kelsey at the controls, did not deter USAAC from ordering 13 planes for service testing on April 27. Kelsey survived the crash and remained an important part of the Lightning program.

The P-38's service record shows mixed results, which may reflect more on its employment than on flaws with the aircraft. As a World War II fighter, the Lightning’s legacy is unmatched. A total of more than 10,000 P-38s—including 18 distinct models—were manufactured during the war, flying more than 130,000 missions in theaters around the world. P-38 pilots shot down more Japanese aircraft than any other fighter and, as a reconnaissance aircraft, obtained 90 percent of the aerial film captured over Europe.


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⏰ Timestamps
00:00 P-38 Lightning Design and development
3:17 Test Flights
05:29 Allied Orders
09:16 Mediterranean Theater
12:03 Pacific Theater
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