F4F Wildcat - Gore Rokutanga muPacific: Gunyana-Zvita 1942 p.2

F4F Wildcat - gore rekutanga muPacific. Mhuka dzemusango dzakamira pamucheto weFighter 1 runway paGuadalcanal.

Kupinda kweAmerica muGuadalcanal muna Nyamavhuvhu 1942 kwakavhura kumberi kutsva muSouth Pacific uye kwakatungamira kuhondo yechitatu yevatakuri vemauto kumabvazuva kweSolomons gare gare mwedzi iwoyo. Nekudaro, mutoro wekurwira Guadalcanal wakawira pandege inoshanda kubva pasi pasi.

Panguva iyoyo, mauto maviri eMarine Wildcats (VMF-223 uye -224) uye rimwe boka reUS Navy (VF-5) rakanga rakamira pachitsuwa ichi, richidzivirira kupambwa kukuru neJapan Air Force yakavakirwa muRabaul, New Britain. .

Kusvika kwevarwi ve11 VF-24, vakaburuka kubva kuUSS Saratoga mushure mekukuvadza chikepe mukupera kwaNyamavhuvhu, katatu simba reWildcat pachitsuwa musi wa5 Gunyana. Panguva iyoyo, mauto eAviation of Imperial Navy muRabaul, akaungana mu11th Air Fleet, akanga akapakatira ndege dzinokwana zana, kusanganisira makumi matatu eRiccos (mapatya-mabhomba) uye 100 A30M Zero fighters. Nekudaro, iyo chete A45M6 Model 6 yaive neyakakwana renji yekubvisa Guadalcanal. Iyo nyowani A2M21 Model 6 yainyanya kushandiswa kudzivirira Rabaul kubva kuUS Air Force airstrike inoshanda kubva kuNew Guinea.

Masikati musi waSeptember 12, rwendo rwe25 rikko (kubva kuMisawa, Kisarazu neChitose Kokutai) rakasvika. Vakaperekedzwa nemaZero gumi nemashanu kubva pa15nd uye 2th Kokutai. Vasvika pedyo nechitsuwa, mabhomba akachinja kuenda kundege zvinyoro nyoro, achidzika kusvika pakakwirira 6 m kuti awane kumhanya. MaJapan akanga ari mune chishamiso chikuru. Kusvika makumi maviri eWildcats VF-7500s uye gumi nemaviri kubva kumapoka maviri eMarine akasimuka kubva kuHenderson Field. Vatyairi vendege veZero vakaedza kuvadzivisa, asi havana kukwanisa kutevera varwi makumi matatu nevaviri. Somugumisiro, maJapan akarasikirwa neRikko nhanhatu uye Zero imwe yakaedzwa naCheckmate Torakiti Okazaki we20. Kokutai. Akapfurwa pasi naLieutenant (Junior) Howard Grimmell weVF-5, Okazaki akatiza akananga kuSavo Island, achizvuzvurudza jeti yemafuta emhepo kumashure kwake, asi haana kuzoonekwa zvakare.

Mambakwedza musi waGunyana 13, vatakuri vendege Hornet neWasp vakaendesa 18 Wildcats kuGuadalcanal kune mauto akamira pachitsuwa. Zvichakadaro, ruzivo rwakasvika kuRabaul kuti mauto eJapan akange atora Henderson Field, nhandare huru yechitsuwa. Kuti asimbise izvi, vanaRikko vaviri, vachiperekedzwa nevarwi vapfumbamwe, vakaenda kuchitsuwa chacho. MaZero akati wandei, achiona Katsi dzemusango dzichisimuka dzakananga kwadziri, akarova pamusoro, akawisira pasi rimwe, uye akapinza mamwe mumakore. Zvisinei, ikoko, vatyairi vane chivimbo uye vakagadzirira kurwa vevakuru vakuru Tainan Kokutai vakaita pfuti refu yakadzika pasi, uye apo mamwe maWildcats akabatana navo, vakaurawa mumwe nomumwe. Vana vakafa, kusanganisira maekisi matatu: Mar. Toraichi Takatsuka, mubatsiri waKazushi Uto uye shamwari yaSusumu Matsuki.

Mishumo kubva kuvashandi vaviri veRikko yakanga ichipokana, saka mangwanani ezuva rakatevera, Gunyana 14, matatu A6M2-N (Rufe) akaenda kuHenderson Field kuti aone kuti ndiani aitonga nhandare yendege. Dzaive ndege dzemugungwa dzichishanda kubva kuRecata Bay base paSanta Isabel pamhenderekedzo, makiromita 135 chete kubva kuGuadalcanal. Vakaita tyisidziro chaiyo - manheru ezuva rapfuura, vakapfura Vasingatyi vachisvika pakumhara. Panguva ino imwe A6M2-N yakarovera panhandare yendege ndokurwisa chifambiso cheR4D chaive chichangobva kuHenderson Field. MaJapan asati aita chero kukuvadza, yakapfurwa nevatyairi veVF-5, sezvakaita mamwe maviri maA6M2-Ns. Imwe yakarohwa naLieutenant (Second Lieutenant) James Halford. Sezvo mutyairi wendege wekuJapan akabuda, Halford asina kumupfura mumhepo.

VaJapan havana kukanda mapfumo pasi. Mangwanani, 11 Zeros kubva ku2 Kokutai yakatumirwa kubva kuRabaul "kurutsira" mudenga pamusoro peGuadalcanal, uye chechina yeawa mushure mavo, Nakajima J1N1-C Gekko high-speed reconnaissance ndege. Mumwe wevashanu. Kokutai's aces, boatswain Koichi Magara, akaurayiwa mukurwisana nevanopfuura makumi maviri veVF-5 neVMF-223 Wildcats. Nguva pfupi yapfuura, Gekko wekuziva akaonekwa ndokutanga kutenderera pamusoro peHenderson Field. Vashandi vendege vakanga vasina nguva yekutaurira zvakasimbiswa - mushure mekudzingirira kwenguva refu, akapfurwa neChipiri Lieutenants Kenneth Fraser naWillis Lees kubva kuVMF-2.