The Lockheed P-38 Lightning is an American single-seat, twin piston-engined fighter aircraft that was used during World War II. Developed for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) by the Lockheed Corporation, the P-38 incorporated a distinctive twin-boom design with a central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament.

The twin-engine design of the Lockheed P-38 Lightning and its high fuel capacity made it an ideal fighter and recon plane.

The pilot in a new American fighter, the P-38 Lightning, peeled down from the skies over Iceland on August14, 1942. True to its name, the P-38 was akin to a force of nature: fast, unforeseen and immensely powerful. The aircraft’s target, was a German Focke-Wulf …

2025年1月31日 · P-38, fighter and fighter-bomber employed by the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II. A large and powerful aircraft, it served as a bomber escort, a tactical bomber, and a photo-reconnaissance platform.

It shot down more Japanese airplanes than any other fighter during World War II—seven of the top scoring USAAF aces in the Pacific flew the P-38. It was as versatile as the de Havilland Mosquito, but it was the only truly successful twin-engine fighter of World War II. It was basically a hand-built airplane and was never meant to be mass produced.

2013年1月14日 · The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was the first military type developed by the Lockheed Aircraft Corps. It was designed to meet an Air Corps specification issued in 1936 for a twin-engined interceptor…

The P-38 was originally conceived as an advanced, high-performance twin-engine interceptor. On Feb. 11, 1939, Lt. Ben Kelsey set a coast to coast record of 7 hours, 48 minutes in the sleek prototype Lightning, but crashed while landing.

The P-38 Lightning was a distinctive and highly versatile American fighter aircraft used extensively by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) during World War II. Developed by Lockheed, the P-38 was notable for its unique twin-boom design and twin-engine configuration.

2021年6月12日 · The P-38 Lightning, at the time still known as XP-38, was flown for the first time on January 27, 1939 by one of its strongest advocates, Ben Kelsey, 1st Lieutenant of the Air Corps. It became the interest of national media when …

Originally conceived as a high-altitude interceptor to meet a 1937 Army Air Corps requirement, Lockheed's Model 22, designated P-38 Lightning, was to become one of the most successful fighters of World War II. The P-38 was the only type flown by the top two American aces of the war, Major Richard Bong and Major Thomas McGuire, Jr.