P-47D-30
Overview
The latest model of P-47 in AH currently, the
D30 offers a pretty good package. It has the most powerful engine, best climb, best
speed while giving better handling than the D25 and greater range and options than the
D11. This makes it probably the most popular version of P-47 in the main arena.
I've flown the D30 from time to time and it is good airplane, tough, flexible, and
a pretty fierce opponent that doesn't usually surrender without a fight. In a
typical engagement you will find P-47's diving at you like meteors, blazing away at long
range and strange angles with their guns, and if their aim is accurate enough, your plane
will be cut to ribbons. |
P-47D-30 |
To be successful
The P-47D-30 is likely the best P47 in the game, although
there would surely have to be some serious discussion about that since I'm sure a number
of people disagree. It has a couple of features that in my mind make it just a tiny
bit better than the others. The views are excellent with a good bubble canopy giving
good allround views from the cockpit, much better than in the D11. It also has
dive-brakes which can help both offensively and defensively, as I'll explain later.
Load-carrying is basically on par with the D25 while speed is more like the D11. It
also has superior climb rate to the other P-47's and feels like it accelerates more
quickly.
Identifying a P-47D-30 is easy, it is silver and often even
beyond icon range you can spot D30's. Something to do with how the dot appears at
long range usually triggers you off to a silver plane, making it either a P-51D or
P-47D-30.
Engine power on the D30 is uprated from the D25, making it
the most powerful of the group. It packs what I think is the best acceleration and
climb rate although it is still not a strong climber or accelerator by any stretch.
Hampering it further is that fact that most people grossly overload their P-47's with
external ordinance which seriously degrades all areas of performance. WEP is an
important part of the game-plan in a P-47 and the D30 is no different. Don't overuse
it just for climbing and cruising purposes lest you need it later in combat and have it
all used up. Top speed at sea level is 329mph without WEP, 340 with, but that
increases to more D11 numbers as altitiudes increase. Again the increase is linear
so at 17K the D30 can do 375mph in cruise. Every weapon you carry will decrease
performance though so this is another good reason to not overload yourself. Fuel
range on internal tanks is 45minutes with the option to increase it with up to 3 external
tanks in place of other ordinance. A good option is to take a centerline tank and
only 75% internal fuel (50% if you take the lighter gun option). Drop the tank when
you are about to enter the fight to lighten up incase you need to maneuver.
Firepower on any P-47 is awesome. Where four 50's is
usually considered the low range of effective firepower, this plane can mount either 6 or
8 .50 calibre guns in the wings. The 8 gun arrangement is nothing short of amazing
but again makes the aircraft heavier. Each gun configuration also has the option to
load either 425 or 267 rounds/gun. I've found I like to load the eight gun version
but only take the lighter ammunition load if I'm going to an air-combat situation, while I
load up the heavy eight gun loadout for ground attack. The 50's are wonderfully accurate
allowing for shots that with other weapons would likely be near impossible. With
each bank of guns mounted in close proximity in the wings I've set my convergence out to
D650 for the 8 gun version, sometimes I reduce this for the 6 gun mount (although I don't
think many people fly the 6 gun P-47 that often). Having the long convergence allows
me to take long range shots (D800) while retaining a good concentration on the weapons.
I know that a number of people also set interlocking zones of convergence so
that they cover a pattern between something like 325 and 450, but I find 4 guns all set to
the same convergence point puts potentially 4 bullets on a parallel path from each wing
and effectively provide infinite convergence. That said, the 8 guns are awesome,
something akin to a chainsaw cutting through aircraft. Snapshots, high-deflection,
crossing shots, you name it, take whatever shot you have especially if you've decided to
load up on the heavy ammunition load. I also like to take merging shots, not
necessarily Head-On's though, putting bullets into the path of an aircraft that is trying
to merge too close to me. With all the lead in the air there is a reasonable chance
they will run into a couple of rounds and find themselves merging with engine damage.
For ground attack this is a great plane to bring though it packs slightly less external
weapons than the D25. Still, it has a slightly better stability with lots of weapons
on the racks. I has two wing hardpoints for bombs or drop tanks up to 1K in size,
and a centerline station which can carry another bomb/droptank. I can not carry
additional rockets on the centerline like the D25. Even without the rockets though
it has an excellent combination of weapons and the 8 50's are perfect for strafing.
It's hard to be dissapointed with the ground attack of a P-47D-30 unless trying to kill
heavy ground vehicles with only your machineguns. One advantage the D30 has though
is dive-brakes which you can extend at almost any speed. These can help you maintain
a more constant speed when diving from high altitudes. The P-47 really does like to
dive like a meteor and sometimes in the other models you can find yourself actually
approaching the drop point at too high a speed and make mistakes. The dive-brakes
allow you to better control your speed. Be careful though that if you extend them in
a dive, retract them as soon as they are not needed anymore. Leaving them out by
accident is not uncommon and usually fatal.
Offensively, the P-47D-30 is a great BnZ'r. The keys to
a good BnZ'r are excellent high speed maneuvering (usually roll), strong instantaneous
firepower, and good zoom-climb (to recover for your next run). The P-47 is exactly
that and the D30 model fits in well and possesses a little more speed/climb to get you out
of trouble. A climb above the fight will afford a good diving speed advantage while
strong roll control and eight 50's allows you to position yourself on target and take
deadly shots at sometimes difficult angles or closing rates. Post
attack, a vertical zoom, aided by the heavy mass, tends to carry you nice and high back
into position for your next attack. The keys really are to keep you speed up through
the pass, make adjustments, and open fire with maybe a little more range than if you had
tougher guns to aim. Turn fighting is not really advised and the D30 is less stable
at slower speeds and more likely to become uncontrollable. When light on fuel, ammunition,
and with the smaller gun package, the D30 can be used as a turn-fighter although it is not
advisable. Proper use of flaps to increase turn rate is usually advised under such
conditions. The heavy weight though and limit to climb should make extended
turn-fighting a difficult proposition.
Another good use of the P-47D-30 is in a slash attacking style, climb away from the
fight, dive early and then come level into the pile of enemy cons at high speed and
snap-shot anything you can without having to maneuver too aggressively. Once out the
other side of the enemy pile, go vertical to recover your altitude, reverse, and repeat.
The P-47 can carry great speed and retain complete maneuverability, thus
allowing you to setup your shots while giving enemy aircraft very little time to take
defensive actions to avoid you. This is particularly effective if they are already
engaged with someone else and you can predict their position early. This is a
similar tactic that is successful in the Corsair models since the P-47 hides energy in
speed very well, just like the corsair, giving enemies false security in your energy
state. When in a classic bounce situation with 1 or 2 lower enemies below I
tend to use the BnZ, but in a huge furball I tend to prefer the Slashing attack working
from side to side of the furball, not penetrating deep into enemy territory before
slashing back out towards friendlies.
Defensively the P-47D-30 has fairly few options, less than the D11 at least. The
first thing to consider is that you should dump any external ordinance you may be carrying
in order to lighten up. While the P-47 is a heavy plane to begin with, strapping an
extra 2500lb's of external weapons on it makes it more like a dumptruck than a fighter.
At the first signs of trouble I would dump my ordinance unless I'm about to
begin a dive-bomb attack where I plan to drop them all anyway. A good idea is to set
a low altitude ceiling for your combat and break off when you reach that altitude and head
back towards base. A typical floor would be an altitude of maybe 5,000ft, at which
time you dive in a 0G style pushover in order to get maximum acceleration, then roll till
you are facing the friendly side of the fight, and dash away in that direction. The
P-47 doesn't just dive, it could better be described as a plunge, and it is not unusual to
take a P-47 well over 550mph in near vertical dives then pull out to use the momentum of
all the mass to carry you away to safety. Of course, in order to use this tactic you
have to have altitude, so don't wait until it is too late. There are
several planes who can match the initial stages of a P-47's dive also if you are not
accelerating efficiently (with WEP and 0G's) but it is unlikely they can sustain the dive
angle, speed, and maneuverability that you have for long. The D30 is slower at low
altitudes than the D11 and extended chases by the enemy are more likely to end up with you
being caught. The P-47's are all tough and can take damage, though extended periods
of damage should be avoided since it will eventually catch up to you. A couple of
pings on a merge or lucky bogie shot are unlikely to seriously hamper a P-47 though.
One thing that a lot of P-47 drivers use in defensive is
scissors; vertical, horizontal, or rolling. Proper use of scissors though is really
based on accurate timing and predicting enemy response so practice is required to become
good at scissoring. It also helps to have an overly aggressive, if there is such a
thing, opponent. Part of the reason the P-47 can do scissors so well is roll-rate,
and that it can take a hit and still fly. Bogies who spend all their E on one good shot
may find it ineffective and have placed themselves in a position that the P-47 will get
the next shot, and that's typically fatal. Never spend all your E to take a single
shot on a P-47. Always plan that you may need 2 or 3 solid passes where you land hits
before you fatally wound a P-47, even with heavy cannons or lots of guns at close ranges.
P-47's don't seem to fall apart easily.
Another trick the P-47D-30 can try as a last ditch thing is
to use the dive-brakes and lag displacement to cause a quick overshoot. It's a
pretty common trick to see in the MA by experienced P-47 pilots. They will accept a
position where you approach from behind and have a fairly high overtake speed, often even
diving slightly to sucker you into committing even more speed. They will maneuver in
some sort of barrel roll, or extended turn as you approach, accepting that you may hit
them a bit from behind with gunfire briefly. Then they dump the dive-brakes, rudder
violently to slide off more speed, and cut the engine... this causes an almost instant
closure rate for the attacker and unless the attacker reacts quickly he may find himself
sliding in-front of the P-47 at close range, which would be fatal. Even a terrible
overshoot where you end up D600 or more infront is not safe as the P-47 is likely to pour
fire at you and simply beat you to death at long range.
To beat it
All P-47's can be a bit of handful as they usually pack a lot
of altitude, make high speed passes that give little reaction time, and then when you
finally get into position, they nose over, dive like a stone, and race off towards
friendly protection. It's a solid game-plan from their standpoint, a hit and run
thing where they make the decision to get out of Dodge before things get too hot.
Defensively, you need to be very careful of P-47's regardless
of variety since you can expect that 90% of the ones you will face will have 8 50's
mounted in the wings. The briefest of snapshots is most likely fatal so you can't
afford to present them with opportunities if at all possible. You can be sure the
P-47 won't be shy about trying difficult to impossible shots either since lots of P-47's
will also be packing the heaviest ammunition loadout of 425 rounds/gun. Unless
you've been caught in the sights of a P-47 before and know what it's like you probably
can't really appreciate the experience. If one gets you in his sights for more than
a half second you pretty much ensure that you will be pilot killed, cut to pieces, and the
pings from the hits will continue for an additional second or two when you find yourself
back in the tower at a friendly airfield.
If the P-47 is above you then you should watch him closely
for the signs of his initial dive towards you. It is unlikely you can out-dive him
but ensure that you quickly build enough speed for violent maneuvers in defense. You
don't want to find yourself a slow and easy target by climbing up to meet him. Don't
try to give up too much position though and plan to try and recover whatever energy and
altitude you expend in defense immediately after the P-47 passes. Start your
defensive maneuvers slightly earlier since the P-47 is more likely to fire earlier than
most other planes. Barrel rolls, increasingly sharp turns (to start to sucker them
in and then get them to the point of black-out when they are in firing range), or
slipping/sliding maneuvers tend to work best. Remember that if you are fast enough
to black yourself out and the P-47 is faster and trying to pull increasing hard angles on
you then there is a good chance he is also blacked-out, or very close.
After avoiding the attack, immediately try and position
yourself back to a position of advantage, or at least decrease the disadvantage.
Lots of P-47 drivers will pull extensive maneuvers to try for a shot,
bleed far more energy than they though, and find themselves with less advantage to repeat
an attack. The P-47 is not a strong climber and even though the D30 is the
class of the P-47 field, it is amongst the worst in the game for a fighter. Every
defense should be an attempt to bleed away some altitude and speed from the D30, two
things which it will be difficult for him to replace. Eventually you may find
yourself able to take advantage in position or energy, or maybe force the fight into one
that better suits you, such as a turn-fight in a superior turner.
Often though, the D30 will simply dive away at great speed
once initiative is lost. Catching one is unlikely in the dive although if he is a
long way from help then several planes should easily catch him on a level run (especially
if he has to dive all the way to sea level). Always be aware of his zoom potential
though, he may be able to out-zoom a poor zoomer if you follow him and can't catch him in
pure pursuit.
Offensively, the P-47 is a big target and when forced
defensive and turning it tends to bleed away speed quickly. The D30 is neither a
great energy fighter nor a fair turner, so decide which type of fight your plane is better
at and then use that style to attack it. Turn-fighting tends to leave the P-47 the
most helpless but if you've caught the bogie while he's light on ammo, guns, and fuel you
might be surprised at how nimble he is. In a turn-fight, try to stay nose high on
him and spiral climb, he can't follow and will eventually have to break off unless he
began with more energy/speed than you thought. Don't get into a spiral dive to keep
your own speed up as he will be able to maintain a good turn rate himself. The D30
is less of a turn-fighter though with the extra weight hurting the turn-rate. Don't
get suckered by overshoots or violent scissors, the P-47D-30 can dump speed very quickly
as a last ditch defense and any time spent at close-medium range infront of one is
generally fatal.
Often, for reasons of the D30's use in ground attack, you may
find him heavily loaded with bombs/rockets and can sucker punch him quickly before he
decides to drop his external stores. Honestly, at the first sign of trouble or lack
of advantage a P-47 should dump anything that is weigh, or slowing, him down. If he
doesn't hit him quickly as his speed will be low (as much as 30mph slower with full
weapons) as compared to when he is light.
In an energy fight, try and use your acceleration and better
climb rate to open up an E advantage. Don't merge into a twisting turn-fight at
merge, extending instead up and away, then reversing high. Continue this until you
have a clear energy advantage and then go on the aggressive attack. The energy fight
in this situation is mostly a setup to getting into a BnZ position, or to force a
turn-fight with more energy.
Key Statistics, P-47D-30
Sea-level speed (cruise/max): 329/340
Max-climb rate: 3100 (WEP) at sea-level, 2400 (no
WEP), decreasing with altitude
Best cruise altitudes: any, with speeds increasing
from sea-level to around 410 @ 25K
Fuel Duration (minutes without WEP): 45minutes in MA.