- Yes
- No
Hello again! and welcome to my final suggestion for the Grumman Martlet (aka F4F Wildcat) in Royal Navy service, today I will be covering the final and most advanced variant of the Martlet, the Wildcat Mk.VI, more commonly known as the FM-2 Wildcat. I feel this could come to game to help diversify the lower ranks of the British naval line that currently lacks many iconic aircraft.
I would like to point out that this aircraft has already been suggested for the American tree by @Nostalgistic, I would recommend you read his suggestion for more info on the FM-2 in US service as well as for information on its development.
History
Spoiler
The FM-2 was the Last variant of the Wildcat to be used by britain, with 340 units being delivered between late 1944 and early 1945, these aircraft had no differences to the American units, and was well received by its pilots, with almost all of the issues from the earlier variants having been fixed, The aircraft was different from its predecessors as it carried the 1,350 hp Wright R-1820-56 engine that offered 150 hp more than any of the previous Wildcats in British use, aside from this, it also featured various other features including the ability to carry both bombs and rockets under its wings. In RN service the FM-2 was split into three variants the Mk.VI, Mk.VIA and Mk.VIB, with each variant representing the 1820-56, 56A and 56B engines, although they are all functionally identical for the games sake.
This variant was assigned almost entirely to the rapidly expanding escort carrier fleet of the Royal Navy, despite how late in the war it was introduced, the need for escort carriers was still sorely felt, with Thousands of supplies, troops and equipment crossing both the atlantic and pacific constantly, the Axis Submarine threat was still alive and well. The Wildcat was ideal for these smaller carriers, as the Larger more modern Hellcats were too bulky and required more space to operate from carriers, which limited their usefulness on small carriers of 6-12 aircraft, the Wildcats smaller size however made it ideal for these roles.
Whilst by this stage of the war the Wildcat was pretty well outperformed by almost any fighter the Axis powers had being outgunned and outperformed, with both the new Fw-190 and Bf-109 variants being able to fly circles around the Wildcat with ease, however, the 4 x 12.7mm machine guns were more than capable at one important role, putting holes in U-boat conning towers, this would limit the U-boats Capabilities to dive and leave them easy pickings for either other allied aircraft (such as the Swordfish) or Allied destroyers to come in and finish the job. The Wildcat was also still more than a match to deal with Long range german bombers like the Fw-200 or the He-111, both of which were quite easy pickings for a well flown Wildcat.
This variant was also part of the last allied air raid of the war in europe, where on the 5th of May, 28 Wildcat Mk.VI aircraft, alongside another 16 Grumman Avengers launched a raid against a German U-boat depot near Harstad, Norway, the results of this raid were the sinking of 1 U-boat and 2 other ships at the cost 2 aircraft. several Wildcats from 882 Squadron also fought 8 Bf-109G fighters during this raid, in which 4 enemy aircraft were shot down.
Images
Spoiler
A Pilot climbing into his Wildcat Mk.VI on an unknown escort carrier
A Wildcat Mk.VI in flight with 2 58-gal drop tanks under its wings
Wildcat Mk.VI JV642 was the first Wildcat Mk.VI to be delivered to the RN, being assigned to 881 NAS
A Restored Wildcat Mk.VI in flying condition
An image of the Mk.VI showing what they looked like in British Pacific markings
A Martlet Mk.VI of HMS Searcher following a crash landing on deck in the Indian ocean
Specs/armament
Spoiler
General Characteristics
- Crew: 1 (Pilot)
- Length: 28 ft 10.625 in (8.8 m)
- Height: 13 ft 6.5 in (4.13 m)
- Span: 38 ft (11.58 m)
- Wing Area: 260 sq ft (24.15 sq m)
- Powerplant: Wright R-1820-56W Cyclone air-cooled, water-injected, radial piston engine ( 1,350 hp)
- Empty Weight: 5,448 lb (2,471 kg)
- Gross Weight: 7,487 lb (3,396 kg)
- Internal Fuel: 126 US gal. (477 L)
- Oil Tankage: 11 US gal. (41.6 L)
Performance
- Power-to-Weight Ratio: 0.18 hp/lb (295.9 W/kg)
- Sea Level Speed: 306 mph (492 km/h)
- Critical Altitude Speed: 326 mph @ 10,700 ft (525 km/h @ 3,261 m)
- Stall Speed:
- Gross Weight: 75.6 mph (121.6 km/h)
- Empty Fuel: 71.6 mph (115.2 km/h)
- Wing Loading: 28.8 lb/sq ft (140.6 kg/sq m)
- Takeoff Distance - Calm: 489 ft (149 m)
- Rate of Climb: 3,650 fpm (18.5 m/s)
- Time to Altitude:
- 3.2 minutes to 10,000 ft (3,048 m)
- 7.5 minutes to 20,000 ft (6,096 m)
- Service Ceiling: 34,700 ft (10,577 m)
- Range: 900 miles (1,448 km)
Armament
- 2 x 58-gal drop tanks
Guns
- 4 x 12.7mm Machine guns (400 Rds/gun)
Bombs
- Up to 250 lbs under each wing
Rockets
- Up to 6 HVAR or RP-3 rockets
Place in game
Spoiler
I feel this could come to game to end a Possible Martlet/Wildcat folder in the British Naval line, this variant would be the penultimate iteration of the Wildcat in RN service and would provide a large upgrade over the Previous Mk.II or Mk.Vs. In terms of BR it would likely sit at 2.7/3.0 as an analogue to the F4F-4 currently in the american tree, this variant would sacrifice the two extra Machine guns for a more powerful engine giving the Wildcat an edge in dogfights at the cost of firepower.
Sources
