Hobby Master 1/72 - Hellcat 'USS Essex'

Hobby Master 1/72 - Hellcat 'USS Essex'

General Background

The F6F Hellcat was basically designed as the “Zero Killer”. It could fly about an average 55 mph faster than the Zero and it was heavier and more powerful than the Zero. The Hellcat also had the highest kill ratio of any American fighter plane during WWII (19 to1). US Navy pilots referred the Hellcat as the "Aluminum Tank".

The Hellcat could carry two 1,000 pound bombs with its most destructive weapons being six 5-inch HVAR's (High Velocity Aircraft Rockets). It could also carry a torpedo under the fuselage but this was never seen in combat. When it was all over the F6F was one of the most feared and successful planes in WWII.

The Aircraft

On March 10, 1945 VF-83 Hellcats embarked onboard USS Essex as one of the four squadrons of AVG-83. A week later the Essex and other fast carriers took part in the attack on the Japanese home Islands.

The Essex and her group played an important role in the invasion of the Okinawa including the sinking of the Japanese battleship Yamato with confirmed kills of 122 by VF-83.

Specifications :

Total production :	F6F-3 (4,403), F6F-5 (7,870)
Powerplant :	Single 2,000-horsepower 18-cylinder, Pratt and Whitney R-2800-10W air cooled radial engine
Climb rate to 14,000 ft. :	6 minutes 42 seconds
Armament :	six .50-caliber M2 Browning machine guns a 2,000 lb. bomb load, or six 5-inch rockets
Wingspan :	42 ft. 10 in. (13.1 m)
Length :	33 ft., 7 in. (10.2 m)
Height :	13 ft., 1 in. (4.0 m)
Weight :	9,238 lb. empty
Maximum speed :	380 mph at 23,400 ft.
Ceiling :	37,300 ft.
Range :	945 miles