Was the Pratt & Whitney Double Wasp the best engine of WW II?
I'd be inclined to say yes, because of all the famous aircraft it powered,
such as the P-47, F4U, B-24, etc. but a very strong second has to go to the
Wright R-1820, whose earlier generation, single bank 9-cylinders powered the
B-17 and the SBD, not to mention the "hot rod" version of the Wildcat, the
FM-2, and of course the Brewster Buffalo. Curtiss-Wright was a wartime
mediocrity, except for the R-1820 and the P-40, but the R-1820 in particular
was the right product at the right time.
Brian O'Neill
|