[url]https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/hawker-hurricane-lands-calgary-museum-1.5347097[/url]
This popped up on my Facebook feed.
I am a nut about warbirds, but the kill totals is not something I've spent much time thinking about. Still, the claim the guy in this video is making seems dubious to me.
I know the Hurricane was the more numerous early-war fighter for the RAF, and I know the Hurricane saw action all across Europe, Russia, the Mediterranean, and Indonesia. That alone should result in higher kill numbers for this particular aircraft, as opposed to, say, a Dewoitine D.520, used only by French and Vichy French forces and in not large numbers.
I'm unable to locate any definitive listing of kills. Everything I've found seems to relate only to US fighter aircraft, or to specific pilots, or specific battles.
Off the top of my head, I know the P-51 Mustang and F6F Hellcat were killers. I find it difficult to believe the Hurricane shot down more than all others, given the numbers attributed to just these two fighters. The Hellcat had a 19-1 kill ratio and was credited with 5156 total aircraft shoot-downs. I can't seem to find any data on the shoot-down numbers for the Mustang, but I guess it will be similarly high. This is to say nothing of the Spitfire, P-38, P-40, and P-47.
This popped up on my Facebook feed.
I am a nut about warbirds, but the kill totals is not something I've spent much time thinking about. Still, the claim the guy in this video is making seems dubious to me.
I know the Hurricane was the more numerous early-war fighter for the RAF, and I know the Hurricane saw action all across Europe, Russia, the Mediterranean, and Indonesia. That alone should result in higher kill numbers for this particular aircraft, as opposed to, say, a Dewoitine D.520, used only by French and Vichy French forces and in not large numbers.
I'm unable to locate any definitive listing of kills. Everything I've found seems to relate only to US fighter aircraft, or to specific pilots, or specific battles.
Off the top of my head, I know the P-51 Mustang and F6F Hellcat were killers. I find it difficult to believe the Hurricane shot down more than all others, given the numbers attributed to just these two fighters. The Hellcat had a 19-1 kill ratio and was credited with 5156 total aircraft shoot-downs. I can't seem to find any data on the shoot-down numbers for the Mustang, but I guess it will be similarly high. This is to say nothing of the Spitfire, P-38, P-40, and P-47.