What was the most widely used bomber in World War 2?

Answer 1

For Bombers:AnswerThe B-17 was most effective. Answer-> B-17 was a four-engine American bomber used i.e. when bombing Germany. Why the heck should that plane have been the most effective??? Why not then the british equivalent Lancaster-bomber, even able to bomb at high precision during night??? The problem is what you mean by effective... do you mean the most adequate for its purpose? Or the overall (whole WW2) most deadly airplane? None of the bombers can be called most effective... as they were effective bombers (especially the dive-bombers like the Stuka), but they all (even the slow B-17!) relayed on cover by escorting fighters. And don't forget... bombers were mainly used against civilians... so what's effective in bombing civilians (whole cities)?

One of the most deadly (or probably the most deadly at all) airplanes of WW2 was the single engine (propeller) German fighter Messerschmitt Bf-109. It was a performing and well developed airplane... but the main cause why it should have been the most deadly one is that it was produced more than any other war-plane (till today) - more than 30'000 times. It was used during the whole war - even before that, when the Germans used it in Spain (civil war). There were many many different improved versions of it. The Focke-Wulf was the only other fighter that was used in a considerable amount besides the Bf-109. The biggest part of those famous German fighter pilots used the Messerschmitt... the best 100 aces scored together more than 15'000 air-victories... beside all the other pilots! Some destruction of 70'000 allied planes is attributed (assumption) to the Luftwaffe... and quite a few to this model!

But everything is relative... there were very good allied planes, too. And probably Germans had others good models as well. It would be silly to choose one of them as "the best ever"... this can't be done.

Vic

For Fighters:

Answer: P51 D Mustang

The mustang was faster more maneuverable than anything the axis powers had, I t was built and designed by North American Aviation. The Mustang was the fighter that could go the longest distance with out refueling in the war. It was faster than any thing the axis had until the ME-262 and the ME-163 came out. The mustang went toe to toe with the FW-190 and the BF-109/Me-109. I t was used right up to the start of the Korean War that's when it was decommissioned

Answer 2

With the exceptions of experimental jet aircraft/rocket propelled aircraft, etc. The standard aircraft of WW2 were all metal constructed airplanes powered by piston engines. There were DOZENS of types for each combatant nation, but the following "Fighter Aircraft" were the most commonly known: 1. US-Mustangs, Wildcats, Hellcats, Corsairs. 2. Germany-ME-109's, FW-190 3. Japan-A6M Zero Answer Famous British aircraft? Don't they rate a mention? Aircraft such as the Mosquito were of wooden construction, and many British aircraft such as the Hurricane had a fabric skin. The Mustang (P-51) mentioned above had a British Rolls-Royce engine.

Answer 3

I'd be more specific... Pacific Theater or European, and beginning of the war or end of it? PTO beginning of the war probably the Zero; end of the war probably the Hellcat. ETO beginning of the war probably the ME-109; end of the war the P-51. Just one guys opinion...

Yes to the above: But I mention also the Spitfire ! The Lockheed P38 lightning was a great allround aircraft, as was the Mosquito & the FW 190. Merlin engine features greatly, especially when fitted into a P 51 Mustang. In terms of the time & what it did however it is the unsung Hawker Hurricane, it kept the Luftwaffe at bay (alongside the Spit & others) in the dark days of the autumn of 1940..... Notably both the Spitfire & ME 109 were in production at the start & end of WW2.

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According to the History Channel, the Russian T34/85 was the best tank of WW2, but the US had the best fighter plane in the P-51 Mustang. I agree, yet none of the top Allied aces flew it because it arrived too late in the war. Bong and McGuire flew the P-38, and Johnny Johnson flew the Spitfire. Joe Foss and Greg Boyington flew the F4F Wildcat and F4U Corsair respectively, and Francis Gabreski flew the P-47.

* Erich Hartmann, the highest-scoring fighter ace in world history, flew the Me109 although he had the option to fly the more modern FW190. The pilot was, is, and always will be the most expensive and important part of a fighter plane.

* In fairness to my British cousins (especially JRWADDY) it should be noted that all of the the above is correct. The North American P-51 was a complete failure as a fighter plane until its Allison engine was removed and replaced with a Rolls-Royce Merlin, the same engine which powered the Supermarine Spitfire and DeHaviland Mosquito. America may have led WW2 in airframes, but when it came to aircraft engines, Brittania ruled the air!

• This contributor also agrees about the Hawker Hurricane. It was tough and heavily armed, and it did well against Italian Macci C.200 fighter planes in the Med and North Africa.. And in the Battle of Britain the Hurricanes shot down most of the German bombers, while the Spitfires got the glory for their romantic duels with the German fighters.

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The only criteria when judging the 'best of' is what it/they did to change the course of WWII. And in that strict category only the Hawker Hurricane and Supermarine Spitfire fill the role. For it was their decimation of Germany's Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain of 1940 that forced Hitler to cancel his planned (Operation Sealion) invasion of Great Britain, because the Royal Air Force had gained control of the skies. And that event changed the whole course of the war, because at that time the USA was still more than a year away from entering the war, with no guarantee that she would ever become involved.

Of the two aircraft it was the Hawker Hurricane which claimed some two-thirds of destroyed Luftwaffe fighters, with the Supermarine Spitfire picking off the other one-third.

The Spitfire also went on to become the only WWII fighter to continue in production, in various guises, throughout the entire length of the war, from 1939 to 1945.

Other aircraft some good, some less so, had their roles to play as the war progressed. The USA's P51 Mustang became a very good plane once it was equipped with the superb Rolls-Royce Merlin engine - the same engine fitted to most British planes, fighters or bombers. The Lockheed Lightning came a very poor second to Britain's twin-engined Mosquito fighter/bomber, and it suffered poorly in North Africa against German fighters. And it was the DeHavilland Mosquito which played a large part in Great Britain's Pathfinder squadrons, which laid flare-paths over designated targets for the heavy bombers to follow.

For the British, the Supermarine Spitfire can never be equalled, so beautiful was it with its semi-elliptical wings . German pilots who were shot down and survived always claimed to have been shot down by Spitfires, feeling it beneath their dignity to have been shot down by the less glamorous Hurricane. There is also the account of the German ace Adolph Galland, having been asked by Field-Marshal Goering what he needed, replied with: 'A squadron of Spitfires'. And that says it all about the Spit!

Edited to Add: My dad was a WWII pilot who flew the P47, but he said that he thinks the best fighter for actually inflicting casualties on the enemy would have to be the P-38 lighting. Not only did hit have twin engine power and plenty of speed, but it had a lot of guns and all were in the nose, firing straight forward, not crossing right to left and left to right.

Answer 4

the b-29 superfortresss was quite big but the biggest plane in World War 2 is probably the American Douglas XB-19 bomber ( b-19 ) it was made for a project to test giant bombers but never went into production. there are only a few left in the world, i don't think any are in flying condition.

Answer 5

B17 Flying Fortress I would think. Lancaster, Stuka (JU 87),.... I would guess the Convair B24 Liberator. It was the most numerous aircraft of any type, military or civilian, produced in world history. Short of 20,000 of them were built. B24s dropped more bombs on Germany than the B17s ever thought about. The Liberator was superior to the Flying Fortress in every area except one (it could not fly nearly as high). Unfortunately, perhaps because of their longer range, the B24s were stationed in northern England where the press and movie stars did not go, and the B17s in southern England got the glory. President Roosevelt used a B24 as his personal aircraft, as did the Polish General Sikorsky. The most famous moment for the B24 was their costly low-altitude raid on Ploesti, Romania, and many B24s were lost to anti-aircraft fire and Romanian fighter planes. The British RAF and the US Navy also used the B24, although not in a strategic bombing role. I would still rate the Avro Lancaster, or possibly the Boeing B29 Superfortress, as the most destructive bomber of World War 2. Punches thrown are not always punches landed, yes?

Answer 6

the most impotant aircrafts of world war two are the B-17 the B 24 liborator an the P-51 mustangs because they did the heavy lifting when it came two bombing an escorts an latter on the B-29 super fortress which also helped with many bombings. bombers where pretty much the work horeses in world war two.

Answer 7

The most common for he Americans was the F4U Corsair.

Answer 8

The Supermarine Spitfire. Along with the Hawker Hurricane (and British radar), helped to win The Battle of Britain. The Spitfire is one of the best loved planes ever made.

Answer 9

They were used for reconnaissance, bombing, ground support, ASW patrol, transportation, Air/Sea rescue, torpedo planes and as fighters.