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The Chance Vought F4U Corsair is considered the premier Navy and Marine fighter of World War II. The Corsair, along with the Grumman Hellcat, are credited with turning the tide of the Pacific air war by overwhelming the once-fearsome Japanese Zero fighter. Besides its role in air-to-air combat, Corsairs were used as night fighters and as fighter-bombers at the tail-end of World War II and throughout the Korean War.
The Corsair had an unusually long production run for a World War II-era aircraft with 12,571 examples, the last in 1952. During the war, demand for Corsairs was so high that additional production lines were established by Goodyear and Brewster. The license-built Goodyear FG-1D is equivalent to the Vought F4U-1D; Goodyear manufactured 1,997 FG-1Ds and a third of all Corsairs during the war.
In 1941, with war on the horizon, Chance Vought lead designer Rex Beisel (a graduate of Seattle's Queen Anne High School and the University of Washington) was directed to design a fighter around the large Pratt & Whitney R-2800 "Double Wasp" 2,250-horsepower engine and massive propeller. Instead of building long, awkward landing gear needed for propeller clearance, the bent-wing design of Beisel's team allowed for shorter, stronger gear for carrier landings. The unusual wing not only gave the Corsair its distinctive shape but also reduced drag, allowing the "Bent Wing Bird" even greater speed. However, the long-nosed configuration posed visibility issues for pilots. This and other technical issues delayed the Corsair's deployment in Navy carrier-based squadrons. The type was initially used to great advantage by the Marines beginning in 1943 and eventually, when carrier suitability issues were solved, by the Navy.
The Museum's Corsair is an FG-1D model built under license by Goodyear. It was delivered to the U.S. Navy in April 1945 and served aboard the USS Intrepid. After the war, it was transferred to the Naval Reserve and eventually stationed at Naval Air Station Sand Point in 1950. That July, Commander Ralph Milleson made a water landing on Lake Washington following a non-fatal midair collision with another Corsair. After 30 years under 190 feet of water, the aircraft was recovered from the lake in 1983 and eventually restored.
This Corsair is dedicated to the memory of Seattle native Lieutenant Jerome Reese Schuchart, USNR, to serve as a tribute to all military aviators. Jerome died April 13, 1989 in the service of his country. The "89" on the landing gear doors represents the year of his death, and the "S" on the vertical fin represents both his last name and NAS Sand Point.
This aircraft is on loan from the National Naval Aviation Museum at Pensacola, Florida.
The Chance Vought F4U Corsair is considered the premier Navy and Marine fighter of World War II. The Corsair, along with the Grumman Hellcat, are credited with turning the tide of the Pacific air war by overwhelming the once-fearsome Japanese Zero fighter. Besides its role in air-to-air combat, Corsairs were used as night fighters and as fighter-bombers at the tail-end of World War II and throughout the Korean War.
The Corsair had an unusually long production run for a World War II-era aircraft with 12,571 examples, the last in 1952. During the war, demand for Corsairs was so high that additional production lines were established by Goodyear and Brewster. The license-built Goodyear FG-1D is equivalent to the Vought F4U-1D; Goodyear manufactured 1,997 FG-1Ds and a third of all Corsairs during the war.
In 1941, with war on the horizon, Chance Vought lead designer Rex Beisel (a graduate of Seattle's Queen Anne High School and the University of Washington) was directed to design a fighter around the large Pratt & Whitney R-2800 "Double Wasp" 2,250-horsepower engine and massive propeller. Instead of building long, awkward landing gear needed for propeller clearance, the bent-wing design of Beisel's team allowed for shorter, stronger gear for carrier landings. The unusual wing not only gave the Corsair its distinctive shape but also reduced drag, allowing the "Bent Wing Bird" even greater speed. However, the long-nosed configuration posed visibility issues for pilots. This and other technical issues delayed the Corsair's deployment in Navy carrier-based squadrons. The type was initially used to great advantage by the Marines beginning in 1943 and eventually, when carrier suitability issues were solved, by the Navy.
The Museum's Corsair is an FG-1D model built under license by Goodyear. It was delivered to the U.S. Navy in April 1945 and served aboard the USS Intrepid. After the war, it was transferred to the Naval Reserve and eventually stationed at Naval Air Station Sand Point in 1950. That July, Commander Ralph Milleson made a water landing on Lake Washington following a non-fatal midair collision with another Corsair. After 30 years under 190 feet of water, the aircraft was recovered from the lake in 1983 and eventually restored.
This Corsair is dedicated to the memory of Seattle native Lieutenant Jerome Reese Schuchart, USNR, to serve as a tribute to all military aviators. Jerome died April 13, 1989 in the service of his country. The "89" on the landing gear doors represents the year of his death, and the "S" on the vertical fin represents both his last name and NAS Sand Point.
This aircraft is on loan from the National Naval Aviation Museum at Pensacola, Florida.
