Its gull-wing shape made it instantly recognizable. Its characteristic sound while in an attack dive led the Japanese to call it "The Whistling Death." Combined with its high speed, agility and toughness, the Vought F4U Corsair was one of the finest fighters ever built. Originally thought to be too powerful to fly from a carrier, the Corsair weaved a path of destruction in battle after battle during WWII, totally outclassing the much-feared Zero. The last of the great piston-engine fighters, the Corsair went on to become an important component of the US naval air power during the Korean War. Even while it was being replaced by jet aircraft, pilots flying this tough warbird were credited with downing a few MiG-15 jet fighters.

In part because of its advances in technology and a top speed greater than existing Navy aircraft, numerous technical problems had to be solved before the Corsair entered service. Carrier suitability was a major development issue, prompting changes to the main landing gear, tail wheel, and tail hook. Early F4U-1s had difficulty recovering from developed spins, since the inverted gull wing's shape interfered with elevator authority. It was also found where the Corsair's left wing could stall and drop rapidly and without warning during slow carrier landings. In addition, if the throttle were suddenly advanced (for example, during an aborted landing) the left wing could stall and drop so quickly that the fighter could flip over with the rapid increase in power. These potentially lethal characteristics were later solved through the addition of a small, 6 in (150 mm)-long stall strip to the leading edge of the outer right wing, just outboard of the gun ports. This allowed the right wing to stall at the same time as the left.

Other problems were encountered during early carrier trials. The combination of an aft cockpit and the Corsair's long nose made landings hazardous for newly trained pilots. During landing approaches, it was found that oil from the opened hydraulically-powered cowl flaps could spatter onto the windscreen, severely reducing visibility, and the undercarriage oleo struts had bad rebound characteristics on landing, allowing the aircraft to bounce down the carrier deck. The first problem was solved by locking the top cowl flaps in front of the windscreen down permanently, then replacing them with a fixed panel. The undercarriage bounce took more time to solve, but eventually a "bleed valve" incorporated in the legs allowed the hydraulic pressure to be released gradually as the aircraft landed. The Corsair was not considered fit for carrier use until the wing stall problems and the deck bounce could be solved.

Pictured here is a 1:72 scale replica of a USMC Chance-Vought F4U-1D Corsair fighter that was attached to VMF-512, then embarked upon the USS Gilbert Islands (CVE-107) during 1945. Now in stock!

Dimensions:
Wingspan: 7-inches
Length: 6-inches

Release Date: October 2021

Historical Account: "Till the Bitter End" - VMF-512 was commissioned on February 15th, 1944, at Marine Corps Auxiliary Air Field Oak Grove, North Carolina. During its first few months, the squadron was a part of Project Danny which was a plan for Marine Corps F4U Corsair fighter aircraft to attack German V-1 flying bomb launch sites in northern France. The operation was canceled before departing for the European Theatre of World War II. Shortly thereafter the squadron was transferred along with the rest of Marine Aircraft Group 51 (MAG-51) to Marine Corps Air Station Mojave, California on September 5th, 1944.

Training quickly resumed at MCAS Mojave and on November 5th, 1944, the squadron was re-designated as Marine Fighting Squadron (Carrier Squadron) (VMF(CVS)-512) denoting that the squadron was now Aircraft carrier-based. On December 8th, 1944, VMF-512 was transferred to Marine Air Support Group 48 (MASG-48) at Marine Corps Air Station Santa Barbara, California where it continued training until it went aboard the USS Gilbert Islands (CVE-107) in March 1945 for a shakedown cruise and carrier-landing practice. For their initial cruise, VMF-512 was paired with VMTB-143 to form Marine Carrier Group 2 (MCVG-2). After their training cruise the squadron departed San Diego on April 12th, 1945, for exercises in Hawaiian waters.

The USS Gilbert Islands arrived off the coast of Okinawa, Japan, on May 21st. During the Battle of Okinawa VMF-512 aircraft blasted and strafed concrete dugouts, troop concentrations, ammunition and fuel dumps on Okinawa from May 24th-31st. In the following days they helped neutralize outlying Japanese airfields and installations, including the Sakishima Islands with repeated bomb and rocket attacks. Later in June, the USS Gilbert Islands departed for Leyte, in the Philippines. Soon thereafter they sailed to support operations in Borneo.

During the Battle of Balikpapan, VMF-512 provided close air support for the Australian 7th Division. The squadron remained carrier based and at the end of World War II was operating at sea near Tokyo. As part of the post-war draw down of forces, VMF-512 was decommissioned on March 10th, 1946.