The Chance Vought F4U-1d Corsair is an American naval fighter in the U.S. Navy. The F4U-1d currently sits at Rank 3 in the American line with an upfront cost of 320,000 .
Design, Development & Operational History[]
When designing the single-engine carrier-based fighter-bomber designated as the Chance Vought F4U-1D Le Corsaire («The Corsair»), it was decided to ignore the new weaponry from the F4U-1C and use six of the proven 12.7 mm machine guns (as had been on the F4U-1A).
The plane’s main innovation was its capacity to hold two 454-kg bombs and one 907-kg bomb. Thus the F4U-1D could be used as a heavy fighter-bomber. Also, additional fuel tanks could be installed instead of bombs. In addition, a more powerful engine was added, and the last 266 F4U-1D's and 295 FG-1Ds could carry eight 127-millimeter HVAR rockets.
The F4U-1D, the first large-scale variant after the F4U-1A, was produced not only at Chance Vought factory, but also at the Goodyear factory. Planes from the latter became known as FG-1D's. The Brewster plant, which had produced the F4U-1A, did not work on the production of this variant, as its contract was annulled.
All in all, 1685 F4U-1D's were made at the Chance Vought factory and 1997 FG-1D's at the Goodyear factory.
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