Which country in ww2 had the best airforce

[Thanatos]

the americans got very peeved when the brits first put a merlin in there mustangs
but in the end they put them in theres as well
we see the same thing with the appache helecopter
the brits put a rolls royce engine in it ,,much upset from the americans
and now they are thinking about puting the same in there machines
you cant beet a good rolls engine
the merlin was a country saver it helped ,,besides the brave pilots ,,to make the RAF the best airforce in the world

Was'nt the P51 designed for the RAF in the first place(102 days from the signing of the requirement papers to the first prototype).The Merlin was a far superior engine than the US Allison so the progression to the Merlin was quite logical.
Cheers
Dave

[ObKrieger]

I am an RAF fan for sure. Japan's sucked!

[Thanatos]

Just to throw in a red herring away from the big 4 I would nominate the Finnish Airforce as maybe the best small airforce of WW2.
Very efficient little organisation that one.Punched well above their weight.Kept the Soviet's on their toes thats for sure.
Cheers
Dave

[Adrian]

I think this thread could get ugly... :^)

If anyone sees this thread as an opportunity for an argument they will be dealt with. This thread is a bit of fun, everyone can state their opinion and no-one should get offended by comments posted. They are just individual members opinions and not an attack on anyone else so if anyone wants to feel insulted I suggest they navigate away from the page.

[Wagriff]

Hmm...Aircraft.....Fighters or Bombers? The American Grumman F6F Hellcat and the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress were 2 frighteningly effective and functional war machines. Any of the Grumman "Cats" were highly respected by the enemy, but the Hellcat was always a favorite of mine. And, of course, the Boeing B-29 "Super Fortress" goes without saying. Not slighting anything the Brits put up or anyone else, of course-they all pretty well did their jobs, but the Cats and the Forts sure did theirs with gusto.

Here is an excellent site for WWII aircraft-it lists an amazing 352 different planes.
WW2 Aircraft

[Thanatos]

I would nominate the Finnish air force-pound for pound the most effective, despite being equipped with mediocre aircraft at best they managed to hold off and gain a measure of air superiority over the vastly larger Soviet forces.

Missed your post bro,sorry
Dave

[Sir Payne]

EDIT: I would say US

Regards,
Corey

[Wagriff]

"none of the losing nations were ever wholly defeated in the air."


You've overlooked the mighty Air Force of Mussolini, Corey.....as I recall, it got pretty well smacked....In fact, Ethiopian spear throwing tribesman actually managed to bring down some of their fighter planes...

[Thanatos]

This was my logic Corey
The German and Japanese airforces were decimated by late 1944.Most of the experienced pilots and aircrew were in the ground by then and replacements were second rate by comparison.Germany and Japan could not defend it's airspace due to this.This rules out both.
The RAF whilst a most efficent and effective AF did not have the size to be a war winner alone.(Harris would disagree with me).
This leaves the US.The worlds largest WW2 AF,good quality airframes, quality highly trained aircrew,good organisation and tactics,both at a tactical and stratigic level.
None of the others had all these factors combined IMO.
Cheers
Dave

[Woolgar]

I believe US as said above they fought in pretty much all theaters produced alot and supplied a good number of the planes and supplies that the British used. Yes they took higher casualties but they were also the ones that took up the task of the daytime bombing raids which I think is pure insanity. IMHO
-Ben

The RAF fought in a few theatres too. Western Europe, Balkans, Russia, Burma, Singapore, Africa, Meditterranean, Atlantic, Pacific....

Nick