The Zero Was Supposed to Outclass the Wildcat. The 1942 Loss Records Say Otherwise
The F4F Wildcat was pitifully inferior in climb, maneuverability, and speed. Lieutenant Commander Jimmy Thach put that blunt assessment in his report on the Battle of Midway, describing the fighter his own squadron had just flown into combat. Yet the loss records from 1942 tell a more complicated story than the performance charts suggested. Historian … Read more