Mission P40

Obélix, si tu as de la doc de mission avec des P40 en russie, je suis preneur.

En gros, tu me donnes le contexte de la mission et son briefing, force en présence, ligne de front, opposition, date, heure, et je m'occupe de mettre en forme. ;)

doc sur le P-40 en russie
http://lend-lease.airforce.ru/english/articles/romanenko/p-40/

Merci Yve, mais ce que je veux, c'est que l'on me donne tous les éléments, et que je ne m'occupe que de la mise en forme de la mission. Je n'ai pas le temps de décortiquer la doc. ;)

Je vais creuser

Voilà ce que j'ai récupéré dans ma doc et qui pourra servir à d'autres créateurs de mission.

Sur Stalingrad, il n'y avait que la 126 IAP équipé de P40 E. Elle est présente en P40 à Stalingrad de début aout (pas de date précise) au 18 septembre, date de son retrait du front à cause des pertes. Elle a fait 194 sorties, 36 kills (je ne traduis pas par victoire volontairement, car kill est vague), a perdue 13 P40, a eu 5 pilotes tués.
Source : Osprey Soviet Land lease Fighter in the WW2

Elle a opéré du terrain de Leninsk (carré 355 de la carte de BoS)
Source : Black cross Red star vol 3 Everything for Stalingrad (p246)

Plus clairement :

Front : Stalingrad
Unité : 126 IAP
Terrain : Leninsk (carré 355 BoS)


Si vous avez d'autres infos, n'hésitez pas, surtout des missions.

http://www.staldata.com/map.php#Maploc

Ci dessus c'est le site de l'éditeur des petit Atlas spécial Stalingrad.

Il y a deux batailles aériennes consacrés à Stalingrad, je vais les relire, mais je dois dire que les activités aériennes russes sont parfois très peu documentées, sauf quand il y a un as super connu

As part of the 6th Air Corps, the 126th IAP flew 666 combat sorties to cover the forces of Kalinin and West Fronts and 318 combat sorties for the defense of Moscow in the period from 25 October 1941 to 25 April 1942. During this effort the regiment downed 29 enemy aircraft at a cost of four of their own aircraft and two pilots. The most intensive period was the first month-685 sorties and 17 kills. But later the regiment was plagued by a continuous series of accidents. The Tomahawk IIB was completely unsuitable for use in the Russian winter. The oil, hydraulic fluid, and antifreeze all froze in temperatures that reached -38° C.

On 38 occasions radiators burst due to freezing temperatures. To provide for repairs all the silver forks had to be confiscated in neighboring villages to be used for soldering. Tires cracked and batteries burst; generators frequently broke and engines seized up. Because the 126th IAP was the first "happy owner" of the Tomahawks, it fell to that unit's maintenance personnel to attempt to rectify this "avalanche" of defects, albeit with the assistance of specialists from the VVS Scientific Research Institute. The generators and tires were changed out for Soviet-produced items and the hydraulic fluid, engine oil, and cooling systems were modified with special petcocks through which the fluids could be completely drained at night. But by the time these specialists had learned how to deal with all the defects, a large portion of the aircraft were already combat incapable. There was a total lack of spare parts and engines (no spare engines had been sent) and even cartridges for the British and American machine guns. Only nine aircraft were in flyable condition by mid-January 1942 [5].

Despite these problems, active combat continued. In January some 198 aircraft sorties were flown (334 flying hours) and 11 aerial engagements were conducted, in which 5 Bf-109s, 1 Ju-88, and 1 He-111 were shot down [6]. These statistics reveal a surprising fact - it turns out that the Tomahawk was fully capable of successful air combat with a Bf-109. The reports of pilots about the circumstances of the engagements confirm this fact. On 18 January 1942, Lieutenants S. V. Levin and I. P. Levsha (in pair) fought an engagement with 7 Bf-109s and shot down two of them without loss. On 22 January a flight of three aircraft led by Lieutenant E. E. Lozov engaged 13 enemy aircraft and shot down two Bf-109Es, again without loss. Altogether in January two Tomahawks were lost-one shot down by German antiaircraft artillery and only one by Messerschmitts.

However, the Tomahawk was a frequent target of friendly fire - an unfamiliar aircraft engaged in the heat of battle by both Soviet fighters and antiaircraft artillery. This normally resulted in scores of bullet holes and apologies, but around New Years Day Soviet PVO outdid itself: five I-16s, and later antiaircraft gunners, attacked the Tomahawk AN507 of Junior Lieutenant P. G. Maz. He made a forced landing, resulting in heavy damage to the engine, and the aircraft was sent off for repairs.

But the primary source of losses was mechanical failures. Practically not a single combat sortie was flown without some kind of problem. It was a common practice to land with a dead engine. Not all of these flights were completed successfully. On 17 February 1942, one of the best pilots of the regiment, HSU Senior Lieutenant S. G. Ridnyy (Tomahawk AK325) suffered an engine failure on takeoff and was killed in crash. Despite this abundance of accidents and incidents, the general impression of the pilots of 126th IAP regarding this aircraft remained good. The Tomahawk had qualities that were lacking in aircraft of Soviet production.

During the creation of Soviet fighter planes, the priority was to obtain high speed and maneuverability, and all other qualities were considered to be of secondary importance. In the P-40, special attention had been paid to such "lesser qualities" as firepower of armaments (a one-second salvo of its guns was 1.5 times heavier than that of a MiG-3), protection (38mm frontal armored glass, seat-back armor), durability of the airframe (even during forced landings pilots normally were uninjured), comfort (precise, reliable radio communications, good vision from the cockpit with clear canopy glass and a reliable canopy jettison mechanism [7], and a comfortable cabin), and great (up to 1100 km) flight range. Therefore despite its deficiencies in speed and maneuverability, its sluggishness even in climbs (in this basic characteristic it fell behind the Bf-109, Yaks, and LaGGs), in the hands of experienced aerial warriors this aircraft turned out to be a threatening weapon. A special set of "group tactics" was developed for its use, in which an insufficiency of aircraft was compensated for by good coordination within flights and echelonment by altitude [8]. Therefore a majority of the victories in the 126th IAP were group victories: HSU S. G. Ridnyy (AN965)-9 personal plus 17 in group; HSU V. G. Kamenshchikov-7 + 10; and regiment commander V. M. Naydenko-5 + 11 [9]. Twelve pilots became aces (five or more victories), and 31 pilots of the regiment were awarded orders and medals for the battle for Moscow.

The 126th IAP was re-equipped with the P-40E in May 1942. Located in the deep rear after the Germans' retreat, it combined its training on the Kittyhawk with its air defense mission of Moscow and environs in the quiet situation until the end of August. At the end of August it was also tasked to provide escort to government aircraft flying along the route from Moscow to Arzamas to Kuybyshev [10].

Subsequently the regiment was transferred to a more dangerous sector of the front-near Stalingrad. The 126th IAP, formed on TOE 015/174, but having a total of 18 aircraft (NN 818-821, 830, 841, 842, 844, 979, 1014, 1018, 1027-32, and 1104 [11]) and 50 percent of its maintenance personnel strength, arrived at the 268th Fighter Air Division (IAD) on 28 August and was stationed at the Solodovka airfield.

The intensity of the aerial combat here was so fierce that even the experienced and well-trained regiment was burned up like a match in this hell in just a week. It was not so bad at first - on 29 August the pilots shot down a Bf-109, Ju-88, and FW-189 at the cost of a single P-40E; on 30 August-5 Bf-109Fs and 5 He-111s with the loss of 3 P-40Es; on the 31st-10 Bf-109Fs, 1 He-111, and 1 Ju-87 for 2 destroyed and 2 damaged P-40Es. But the crossover came on 5 September - it cost 4 Kittyhawks (two destroyed in combat and two in a mid-air collision) for 2 Bf-109Fs and 1 Ju-88. The regiment commander, Major V. M. Naydenko, was shot down and seriously wounded on this day. The four surviving aircraft were assigned to combat patrol over their own airfield.

The regiment flew a total of 194 aircraft sorties by 13 September 1942, all of which (rare occasion!) were combat sorties that involved engagement with the enemy. The greater share (163 combat sorties) was to escort Il-2 Shturmoviks. The pilots of 126 IAP conducted 29 group and 24 individual aerial engagements in which 36 enemy aircraft were destroyed (23 Bf-109F, 6 He-111, 3 Ju-88, 1 Bf-110, 1 Ju-87, 1 Hs-123, and 1 FW-189). The regiment lost 13 aircraft, 7 pilots did not return from combat missions, and 5 were wounded. After withdrawal to the rear on 18 September 1942, 126 IAP was re-equipped with the La-5 and subsequently fought only in Soviet-manufactured aircraft.

Dans le deuxième paragraphe, on lit bien que la plupart des sorties se sont faites au profit des Il - 2:

The regiment flew a total of 194 aircraft sorties by 13 September 1942, all of which (rare occasion!) were combat sorties that involved engagement with the enemy. The greater share (163 combat sorties) was to escort Il-2 Shturmoviks

Donc on peut partir sur cette idée, sachant que le 126 IAP est retiré de Stalingrad le 18 septembre afin d'être ré équipé avec des La-5

Je me charge de nous faire 10 skins de P40E pour les 126 IAP

Parmi mes maigres sources, je note la présence des P-40 (modèle non précisé) du 910 IAP en date début janvier 43 ayant abattu un FW 200 Condor entre Stalino et Stalingrad, ceux du Lt Viktor Pavlovich Ivanov et de son ailier.

Plusieurs P-40 seront revendiqué au cours de la bataille de Stalingrad mais sens précision sur leur régiment d'appartenance ni leur lieu de résidence.

Bah le 126 IAP est le premier régiment à être équipé de Curtiss P40, manque de pot pour Moscou (où il est présent), il est doté de Curtiss Tomahawk II donc des P40B/C... fau que les dev nous sortent un Tomahawk du coup!!!

Merci Obélix, je note aussi le terrain que je vais chercher sur la carte pour le mois d'aout.

Obelix a écrit:on 28 August and was stationed at the Solodovka airfield.

Dans le Batailles Aériennes n° 20 pages 42-43; on a quasi la traduc en français de ce que j'ai posté...

On ajoute que les 4 derniers P40E ont été utilisés pour couvrir leur terrain.

Donc escorte de Mules, avec de temps des interceptions ou du straffings, de quoi faire (pour dames)!

Ce volume, 3ème de la série, semble pas mal, mais à 98€ + port ça commence à être cher...

BLACK CROSS RED STAR VOLUME 3

"Attendu depuis de nombreuses années, voici que nous arrive enfin le volume 3 de la série Black Cross / Red Star consacré à la guerre aérienne sur le front de l’Est. Il est principalement axé sur la terrible bataille pour la conquête de Stalingrad, observée des deux côtés. De nombreuses photos inédites et de très jolis profils couleur agrémentent cette étude très poussée. Vivement le prochain tome ! Jean-Baptiste Delouis."


http://www.livre-aviation.com/BLACK-CROSS-RED-STAR-VOLUME-3-p-9789-c-1400_1413.html#FP

Je l'ai, c'est justement là que j'ai récupéré la localisation du terrain en septembre. ;)