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Grumman
F7F "Tigercat" |
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Ordered in 1941, the Grumman F7F "Tigercat"
was the Navy's first twin-engine fighter design to be built in
production quantities and the first to incorporate tricycle
landing gear. Other wartime production requirements by Grumman
delayed the F7F's first flight until 1943 where it proved to be
a highly maneuverable aircraft with a top speed of 400 mph
despite its large radial engines and heavy armament of four .50
caliber machine guns and four 20 mm cannons.
Originally fitted with a tail hook for
operations from "Midway" class carriers, the F7Fs
proved too heavy for such duty and were transferred to Marine
Corps shore based squadrons in 1944. While the "Tigercat"
never saw action in WW II, an F7F-3 variant with a rear seat for
a radar operator was effectively used in combat by the Marines
in Korea as a day and two-place night fighter as well as an
attack aircraft (e.g., two enlisted Marine pilots in an F7F-3
awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for destroying an entire
enemy road convoy on a single mission). |
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Grumman
F7F-1 "Tigercat"
From
our Deluxe Series. 1/32nd scale. 19.25"
wingspan by 17.8" long
No. AEN7D-DX. Only $139.95 |
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