P-61C-1 - Revision history

U44629479: Edits

2024-01-03T10:18:00Z

Edits

U44982996 at 19:59, 25 December 2023

2023-12-25T19:59:06Z

U44982996: decluttering pros/cons

2023-12-25T19:56:02Z

decluttering pros/cons

U91632209: /* Usage in battles */ additional usage of the aircraft

2023-12-16T20:43:35Z

‎Usage in battles: additional usage of the aircraft

U91632209: fixed the spelling of lackluster

2023-12-16T20:39:03Z

fixed the spelling of lackluster

U77257111: /* Usage in battles */

2023-03-23T01:48:21Z

‎Usage in battles

U77257111: Added additional information to "Usage in Battles" tab. Explaining how to properly engage bombers safely.

2023-03-23T01:46:39Z

Added additional information to "Usage in Battles" tab. Explaining how to properly engage bombers safely.

U44629479: Edits

2023-01-09T11:18:05Z

Edits

Show changes

U38088265: /* Details */

2022-11-23T22:34:16Z

‎Details

U38088265: /* Defensive armament */ Updated

2022-09-17T11:26:25Z

‎Defensive armament: Updated

@@ Line 17: / Line 17: @@
 The {{PAGENAME}} is powered by dual Pratt & Whitney R-2800-73 double wasp engines, the same engines which powered the Republic P-47N Thunderbolt. The one difference between the Thunderbolt's -57C and the -73s built explicitly for the P-61 was each had a General Electric CH-5-A3 turbocharger installed. The modified engines allowed the {{PAGENAME}} to fly at all altitudes effectively. While outfitted with powerful engines, turning the aircraft causes loss of energy, and such manoeuvres should be limited as places the aircraft in vulnerable situations.
-[[File:P-61c-1 bomberpilot1784 001.png|300px|thumb|left|Three-quarter view of a '''{{PAGENAME}}''' in standard all-black night-fighter paint scheme.]]
+[[File:P-61c-1 bomberpilot1784 001.png|300px|thumb|left|Three-quarter view of a {{PAGENAME}} in standard all-black night-fighter paint scheme.]]
 One of the roles of the {{PAGENAME}} is to operate as a bomber interceptor. During these operations, if detected, the heavy fighter is likely to encounter defensive fire. To increase survivability and protection of the crew, the Black Widow utilizes various bulletproof glass and armour protective plates throughout the fighter. The gunner who operates the remote turret has the option to utilise armour plates, which fold out of the way when not in use. The crew member sitting in the aft of the aircraft has the least amount of armour protection but is the least likely to be shot at unless being attacked from the rear.
@@ Line 27: / Line 27: @@
 {{Specs-Avia-Flight}}
 <!-- ''Describe how the aircraft behaves in the air. Speed, manoeuvrability, acceleration and allowable loads - these are the most important characteristics of the vehicle.'' -->
-[[File:P-61c-1 argiegrit 002.jpg|300px|thumb|right|'''{{PAGENAME}}''' opening up with its four 20 mm autocannons.]]
+[[File:P-61c-1 argiegrit 002.jpg|300px|thumb|right|{{PAGENAME}} opening up with its four 20 mm autocannons.]]
 The P-61 climbs very well compared to twin-engine fighters from other countries. The engines overheat very slowly even when stock, while never really overheating at all when fully upgraded if using MEC or just being careful with the control of the engines. The turn rate is very slow, but to be expected from a twin-engined heavy fighter with a turret. The air brakes are very efficient, helping you slow down quickly in dives or when landing.
@@ Line 139: / Line 139: @@
 * 4 x 1,000 lb AN-M65A1 bombs (4,000 lb total)
-The {{PAGENAME}} is typically used as a night or strike fighter which is used to sneak up on unwary targets and destroy them with the four forward-facing 20 mm autocannons, however, there is an opportunity to mix it up as a multi-role aircraft and outfit the plane with bombs. There are four external hardpoint pylons in which either 500 lb or 1,000 lb bombs can be loaded for a total of either 2,000 or 4,000 lbs of bombs. With payloads like this, the {{PAGENAME}} can rival the [[B-25 (Family)|B-25]] bombers in their payload deliveries. Unfortunately, for a strike fighter, the {{PAGENAME}}'s flight performance and manoeuvrability suffer when adding the extra 2,000 or 4,000 lbs of weight and can be a challenge to fly when attacked, however after the bombs have been released on their target, the {{PAGENAME}} can get back to its heavy-fighter role.
+The {{PAGENAME}} is typically used as a night or strike fighter which is used to sneak up on unwary targets and destroy them with the four forward-facing 20 mm autocannons, however, there is an opportunity to mix it up as a multi-role aircraft and outfit the plane with bombs. There are four external hardpoint pylons in which either 500 lb or 1,000 lb bombs can be loaded for a total of either 2,000 or 4,000 lb of bombs. With payloads like this, the {{PAGENAME}} can rival the [[B-25 (Family)|B-25]] bombers in their payload deliveries. Unfortunately, for a strike fighter, the {{PAGENAME}}'s flight performance and manoeuvrability suffer when adding the extra 2,000 or 4,000 lb of weight and can be a challenge to fly when attacked, however after the bombs have been released on their target, the {{PAGENAME}} can get back to its heavy-fighter role.
 [[File:P-61_upperturret_cone_of_fire.jpg|350px|thumb|right|The cones of fire for the upper machine gun turret on the {{PAGENAME}}.]]
@@ Line 168: / Line 168: @@
 *Tactic Two: Put the plane in a steep climb and make sure you set the throttle to at least 70%. Jump into the gunner turret and operate it. This will be the most accurate and fastest way of shooting down the hostile plane. When you operate the turret, make sure you try and perform defensive manoeuvres when operating it i.e. sharp turns, rapidly decreasing in height as well as gaining height and changing the speed of the plane in an irrational way. This will give you a higher chance of survival against the enemy.
-*Tactic Three: Fly the plane almost touching the ground, this way the enemy can't get under your gunners. Use rudder yaw to fly side to side while shooting back at your pursuer. With a few hits you can heavily damage if not take out the enemy following you, or at least make them break off from your six and hopfully one of your allies can come and help you. If the enemy is not very fast in a straight line (eg: Japanese fighters, etc) you can fly straight and use your better top speed to kite the enemy.
+*Tactic Three: Fly the plane almost touching the ground, this way the enemy can't get under your gunners. Use rudder yaw to fly side to side while shooting back at your pursuer. With a few hits you can heavily damage if not take out the enemy following you, or at least make them break off from your six and hopefully one of your allies can come and help you. If the enemy is not very fast in a straight line (e.g. Japanese fighters, etc.) you can fly straight and use your better top speed to kite the enemy.
 '''Base destruction capability:''' With 4x 1,000 pound bombs, it has the capability to destroy a base in Air RB.
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 * Great remote-controlled turret with four Browning MGs with full traverse, capable of being used either offensively or defensively
 * Overall great flight performance; good climb rate, decent energy retention, and quite manoeuvrable at medium high speeds
-* Very durable airframe, capable of taking a lot of punishments should the tail remains intact
+* Very durable airframe, capable of taking a lot of punishment should the tail remains intact
-* Can mount up to four 1,000 lbs bombs, giving it great CAS capability
+* Can mount up to four 1,000 lb bombs, giving it great CAS capability
 * Has access to a target detection radar, with much better range than German radars found around this battle rating
 * Low stalling speed and has an access to airbrakes, enabling it to land on carriers or short runways
@@ Line 234: / Line 234: @@
 * Due to its size, it can be hit very easily, especially at low speeds
 * Carrying any payload will significantly reduces the plane's flight performance
-* Uncompetitive roll rate at slow speeds
+* Noncompetitive roll rate at slow speeds
 * Dorsal turret might hit friendlies when active under AI control during furballs or when you're behind friendlies chasing an enemy
 * Huge elevator blocks the turret's direct firing range, often forcing the pilot to pull the nose up to get the guns at a chasing enemy

@@ Line 6: / Line 6: @@
 {{Specs-Card
 |code=p-61c_1
-|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg}}
+|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|ArtImage_{{PAGENAME}}.png}}
 |cockpit=cockpit_p-61c_1.jpg
 }}

@@ Line 220: / Line 220: @@
 '''Pros:'''
-* The offensive armament is mounted under the belly of the plane, this provides excellent accuracy
+* Four powerful 20 mm autocannons mounted under the fuselage, giving it great accuracy
-* Powerful offensive armament with 4 x [[AN/M2 (20 mm)|AN/M2]] cannons with a total amount of 800 rounds
+* Great remote-controlled turret with four Browning MGs with full traverse, capable of being used either offensively or defensively
-* Powerful defensive armament with 4 x [[Browning M2 (12.7 mm)|Browning]] machine guns in a rotating turret, a total of 2,240 rounds
+* Overall great flight performance; good climb rate, decent energy retention, and quite manoeuvrable at medium high speeds
-* Defensive armament is able to be used offensively by the gunner, also remotely controlled
+* Very durable airframe, capable of taking a lot of punishments should the tail remains intact
-* Defensive turret can elevate to a full 90 degrees, can provide a Schräge Musik-like surprise of its own to enemy bombers, providing the P-61 is below the bomber and in the enemy bomber gunners' dead zones
+* Can mount up to four 1,000 lbs bombs, giving it great CAS capability
 * Has access to a target detection radar, with much better range than German radars found around this battle rating
-* Low stalling speed, enabling it to land on carriers
+* Low stalling speed and has an access to airbrakes, enabling it to land on carriers or short runways
 [[File:P-61c-1 iscari 001.jpg|300px|thumb|right|The fearsome {{PAGENAME}} bearing down on an opponent]]
 '''Cons:'''
-* Slow acceleration when not upgraded and requires a long airstrip to take off due to weight
+* Large and heavy plane; slow acceleration when not upgraded and bleeds a lot of energy quickly in prolonged dogfight (especially with payloads)
 * Uncompetitive roll rate at slow speeds
 * Dorsal turret might hit friendlies when active under AI control during furballs or when you're behind friendlies chasing an enemy
-* Loses tail control pretty easily
+* Huge elevator blocks the turret's direct firing range, often forcing the pilot to pull the nose up to get the guns at a chasing enemy
+* Large tail surface can be easily destroyed with cannon shots, often with fatal results
 == History ==
 <!-- ''Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the aircraft in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under <code><nowiki>=== In-game description ===</nowiki></code>, also if applicable).'' -->

← Older revision		Revision as of 20:43, 16 December 2023
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	*Tactic Three: Fly the plane almost touching the ground, this way the enemy can't get under your gunners. Use rudder yaw to fly side to side while shooting back at your pursuer. With a few hits you can heavily damage if not take out the enemy following you, or at least make them break off from your six and hopfully one of your allies can come and help you. If the enemy is not very fast in a straight line (eg: Japanese fighters, etc) you can fly straight and use your better top speed to kite the enemy.		*Tactic Three: Fly the plane almost touching the ground, this way the enemy can't get under your gunners. Use rudder yaw to fly side to side while shooting back at your pursuer. With a few hits you can heavily damage if not take out the enemy following you, or at least make them break off from your six and hopfully one of your allies can come and help you. If the enemy is not very fast in a straight line (eg: Japanese fighters, etc) you can fly straight and use your better top speed to kite the enemy.
		+
		+	'''Base destruction capability:''' With 4x 1,000 pound bombs, it has the capability to destroy a base in Air RB.

	===Radars===		===Radars===

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 {{Specs-Economy}}
-The P-61C-1 is a thoroughbred Boom & Zoom aircraft. However, when the plane is first unlocked the flight performance will be very lacklustre to support this tactic. As such, the initial priority should be to improve the aircraft, by researching the upgrades that improve flight performance the most, namely Compressor, Engine and Engine injection. When the flight performance has reached a satisfactory level to allow for effective Boom & Zoom tactics, the priority should be switched towards researching the New 20 mm cannons upgrade in order to improve the accuracy of the cannons. After this is done, either finish upgrading the flight performance or focus on the turret upgrade. The bomb racks should be left to research last, as they are not critical to the P-61's main role as a fighter.
+The P-61C-1 is a thoroughbred Boom & Zoom aircraft. However, when the plane is first unlocked the flight performance will be very lackluster to support this tactic. As such, the initial priority should be to improve the aircraft, by researching the upgrades that improve flight performance the most, namely Compressor, Engine and Engine injection. When the flight performance has reached a satisfactory level to allow for effective Boom & Zoom tactics, the priority should be switched towards researching the New 20 mm cannons upgrade in order to improve the accuracy of the cannons. After this is done, either finish upgrading the flight performance or focus on the turret upgrade. The bomb racks should be left to research last, as they are not critical to the P-61's main role as a fighter.
 == Armaments ==

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 '''How to offensively engage an enemy aircraft:''' Climb to high altitude and keep on a straight heading once you have seen the enemy. Overshoot the enemy plane, then perform a 180-degree turn. Make sure you stay on his tail and gradually descend. It is recommended to do something similar to a shallow descent, where you can keep speed and height to your advantage in case the enemy aircraft changes course and altitude. Do not perform a dive which requires you to dive straight down since you will rip the wings off and crash. Once you are within firing range, fire a short salvo from your cannons. A couple of bursts from the Black Widow are sufficient to easily rip an enemy plane to shreds.
-'''How to properly engage enemy bombers:''' Bombers at this battle rating tend to have quite strong defensive armaments, namely the Me264. To avoid defensive fire, approach the bomber from below, and maintain a distance of 1.5-2.5km away. Rather than engaging the bomber with the cannons, use the turret and fire bursts into the bomber from afar. The great ballistics of the .50 cals on the turret will make it quite easy to pepper the bomber from afar, and deal quite respectable damage. The idea behind this tactic is to basically dismantle the enemy bomber by firing from long distances as to avoid any retaliation. This tactic is especially effective against bombers at high altitudes.
+'''How to properly engage enemy bombers:''' Bombers at this battle rating tend to have quite strong defensive armaments, namely the Me264. To avoid defensive fire, approach the bomber from below, and maintain a distance of 1.5-2.5km away. Rather than engaging the bomber with the cannons, use the turret and fire bursts into the bomber from afar. The great ballistics of the .50 calibre machine guns on the turret make it quite easy to pepper bombers from afar, and deal quite reasonable damage(often cause fires). The idea behind this tactic is to basically dismantle the enemy bomber by firing from long distances as to avoid any retaliation. This tactic is especially effective against bombers at high altitudes.
 '''How to perform defensive fighting:''' When you are being engaged by an enemy fighter, make sure you keep descending. Do not allow enemy aircraft to get lower than your elevator on the tail boom. You have no defensive armament to cover the belly or full-rear of the plane; these are your weakest defended parts.

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 ! Combat !! Take-off !! Landing !! + !! -
 |-
-| {{Specs|destruction|body}} || {{Specs|destruction|gear}} || 340 || 337 || 280 || ~7 || ~3
+| 726 <!-- {{Specs|destruction|body}} --> || {{Specs|destruction|gear}} || 340 || 337 || 280 || ~7 || ~3
 |-
 |}
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 |-
 | < 530 || < 420 || < 450 || > 337
 |-
 |}