OPENING QUESTION:
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Let's take a few moments to add pictures to our timelines. Remember, we're trying to get an idea of how aircraft changed during each decade (10 years) of tho 20th century!
OBJECTIVES: I will be able to describe the features of two unique WWII fighters after today's class
CALENDAR:
- Our 20th Century Aircraft Quiz is Tomorrow, Friday, February 10th.
- Our 20th Century Aircraft Presentations Begin Tuesday, February 14th
WORK O' THE DAY:
Be SURE and sign up for our aircraft presentations HERE
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We didn't get a chance to review these last week so let's talk WWW aircraft with an emphasis on FIGHTERS!
World War II saw a vastly increased use of "Fighter" aircraft. They could attack targets on the ground with machine guns, drop a bomb (but usually only 1), attack enemy fighters in "dog fights" as well as attack enemy bombers, transports and other aircraft)
NAME: Mitsubishi "Zero" TYPE: Fighter
YEAR/DECADE: Early WWII
SIGNIFICANCE: Very Fast, Very Agile but later on in the war, much too easy to shoot down
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NAME: P51 Mustang TYPE: WWII Fighter
YEAR/DECADE: WWII (1940's)
SIGNIFICANCE: Very Fast, Very Tough... over 15,000 manufactured by the US in WWII
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NAME: Messerschmitt me TYPE: WWII Jet Fighter
YEAR/DECADE: Late WWII (1940's)
SIGNIFICANCE: This jet fighter was MUCH faster than any of the propeller driven aircraft and would have been a real game changer if it had entered the war sooner.
As it was, the allies found out where the jets were taking off from and bombed the smithereens out of those airfields and hangers!
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Now let's backtrack a wee bit and talk a bit about the roles that fighters played in WWII
In particular we'll be talking about the Battle of Britain:
The year is 1940:
The Germans have control of virtually all of Europe.
They are in the process of invading the Soviet Union (Russia) and that is going very badly for them. Even though they are fighting along a thousand miles of the "Eastern Front" with Russia, Hitler decides to attack Britain.
His strategy is to bomb Britain mercilessly (especially the capital, London) until the British surrender.
Let's jump into our breakout groups for a few moments:
Odd numbered groups -- Please discuss, jot down a few notes, and otherwise consider the best approach to bombing Britain from the German point of view
Even numbered groups -- Please discuss, jot down a few notes, and otherwise consider the best approach to defending Britain from German bombers
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The British few two types of fighters:
The Spitfire
The Hurricane
What characteristics made these two fighters so successful against the German bombers
Please take a few moments to look-up the specifications for those two fighters... lets discuss
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What about the German bombers? Let's take a look at this snippet
The Germans quickly found out that flying large numbers of bombers over Britain during daylight hours ended with large numbers of bombers being shot down... so what did they do then?
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The British actually knew not only where the German bombers were coming from but their altitude, course and number of planes?
How did they know that?
Review THIS for interesting tidbits
The wartime leader of Britain was Sir Winston Churchill.... one of the orators (speech makers) of the 20th century
Here's what he had to say about the RAF (Royal Air Force) Fighter Pilots in the Battle of Britain
Let's recap -- what about the Spitfire and Hurricane made them ideal defenders in the Battle of Britain?