P-39K-1 (USSR)

▂P-39K-1

▂P-39K-1

USSR

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
3.3	2.7	3.0

Class:

PREMIUM

Fighter

Purchase:1 000

Show in game

This page is about the premium Russian fighter ▂P-39K-1 Airacobra. For other uses, see P-39 (Family).

Description

The ▂P-39K-1 Airacobra is a premium rank II Soviet fighter with a battle rating of 3.3 (AB), 2.7 (RB), and 3.0 (SB). It has been in the game since the start of the Open Beta Test prior to Update 1.27. It costs 1,000 Golden Eagles.

General info

Flight performance

Describe how the aircraft behaves in the air. Speed, manoeuvrability, acceleration and allowable loads - these are the most important characteristics of the vehicle.

Characteristics
Stock
Max Speed (km/h at 3,900 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
563	546	9500	21.2	22.0	8.7	8.7	300
Upgraded
Max Speed (km/h at 3,900 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
624	590	9500	19.5	20.0	18.8	12.9	300

Details

Features
Combat flaps	Take-off flaps	Landing flaps	Air brakes	Arrestor gear
✓	✓	✓	X	X

Limits
Wing-break speed (km/h)	Gear limit (km/h)	Combat flaps (km/h)	Max Static G
			+	-
		420	~12	~9

Optimal velocities
Ailerons (km/h)	Rudder (km/h)	Elevators (km/h)	Radiator (km/h)
< 360	< 380	< 450	> 312

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
4,000 m	1,150 hp	1,479 hp

Survivability and armour

Examine the survivability of the aircraft. Note how vulnerable the structure is and how secure the pilot is, whether the fuel tanks are armoured, etc. Describe the armour, if there is any, and also mention the vulnerability of other critical aircraft systems.

Armaments

Offensive armament

The P-39K-1 (USSR) is armed with:

• 1 x 37 mm M4 cannon, nose-mounted (30 rpg)
• 2 x 12.7 mm Browning M2 machine guns, nose-mounted (200 rpg = 400 total)
• 4 x 7.62 mm Browning machine guns, wing-mounted (500 rpg outer + 1,000 rpg inner = 3,000 total)

Usage in battles

Describe the tactics of playing in the aircraft, the features of using aircraft in a team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but instead, give the reader food for thought. Examine the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Controllable	Controllable Not auto controlled	Controllable Auto control available	Controllable Auto control available	Separate	Not controllable 1 gear	Not controllable

Modules

Tier	Flight performance		Survivability	Weaponry
I	Fuselage repair	Radiator		Offensive 12 mm	Offensive 7 mm
II		Compressor	Airframe	New 12 mm MGs	New 7 mm MGs
III	Wings repair	Engine
IV		Engine injection	Cover	New 37 mm cannons

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Good fire power
• Well armoured
• Cockpit has good visibility
• Powerful engine

Cons:

• M4-37 mm isn't very accurate
• Has no any payload
• The engine is centrally mounted, taking engine damage while being chased is common

History

The first of the redesignated P-39Gs were the P-39K-1-BE production lot (Model 26A). They differed from the P-39D-2 in being powered by a 1325 hp V-1710-63 (E6) engine driving an Aeroproducts propeller. 210 examples were ordered on August 25, 1941. The armament was the same as that of the P-39D, but the aircraft weighed 800 pounds more and had a slightly reduced range.

Some P-39Ks were flown in New Guinea in 1943.

Six P-39Ks were converted to ground attack/photo reconnaissance configuration under the designation P-39K-2-BE. Serials were 42-4244, 47273, 4352, 4387, 4433, 4437.

One P-39K was converted to P-39K-5-BE with a V-1710-85 (E19) engine and acted as the prototype for the P-39N.

Serials of P-39K Airacobra:

42-4244/4453		Bell P-39K Airacobra

In-game description

In developing this aircraft, the Bell designers came up against two global problems. The first was that the P-39 was intended for export, and there was no way around this. The impossibility of fitting a turbo compressor to the low-altitude Allison engine (for fully explicable reasons) was one reason why the aircraft was never able to achieve a worthy place in the US air forces. The nature of air combat, both in Europe and the Far East, prevented the P-39 from making use of its advantages, while it was not possible to rectify its main drawback - its poor high-speed performance - because of the ban on exporting turbo compressors outside the USA.

The second global problem was connected to a technical failure in the production of the 20 mm Hispano-Suiza AN-M1/M2C cannon by the Bendix company. This was the first problem the Bell specialists tried to tackle. The Bell specialists initially tried to solve this problem themselves. The virtually unusable 20 mm cannon was replaced by the old, heavy but more reliable Colt-Browning M4. The cannon had a lot of faults, mainly its low rate of fire and extremely inadequate stock of ammunition - only 30 shells. On the other hand, in spite of its weight, it could easily be fitted in the front part of the Cobra's fuselage; furthermore, it has one incomparable advantage over the Bendix product - it actually fired.

It must be noted that the M1 cannon was not always fitted onto the first series of the P-39, you could find the M4 here and there. Only the Model 26 (P-39G) carried the M4 as standard equipment. However, it did not go into production, but became the founder of a whole number of virtually identical series from P-39K to P-39Q. The main units were borrowed from the quite promising P-39D-2 series.

The P39K differed from the earlier models in its engine, the Allison V-1710-63, which was successfully tested in that same D-2. It was fitted with an afterburner system. It developed a nominal power of 1352 h.p. and 1550 h.p. in WEP (War Emergency Power) mode. The K series was the only one fitted with such an engine along with a three-bladed Aeroprop propeller. It was a full 360 kg heavier than the D-2, although externally, apart from the propeller, there was no visible difference. In fact, the extra weight was due to additional armor plating, which was used beginning with the K and on all subsequent series.

Altogether, by August 1941, 210 examples of the series K-1-BE, K-2-BE and K-5-BE, which were virtually identical, were built. Forty of them were sent to the USSR.

Notable pilots

• 

  Alexander Pokryshkin flew the ▂P-39K-1 Airacobra during the battle of Kuban starting his 47 kill-streak with the P-39 series lend-lease aircraft.

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• encyclopedia page on the aircraft;
• other literature.