F-82E

F-82E

P-38L-5-LO

F-80A-5

F-82E

P-38L-5-LO

F-80A-5

USA

IV Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
5.0	5.3	5.0

Class:

Fighter

Interceptor

Research:71 000

Purchase:210 000

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Description

The F-82E Twin Mustang is a Rank IV American fighter with a battle rating of 5.0. It was introduced in Update 1.39.

Perhaps the most distinctive feature about the F-82E "Twin Mustang" is that it literally looks like two P-51 conjoined together into a plane.

This means the F-82E Twin Mustang has nearly two of everything, two fuselage, two engines, two tails, and two pilots. The last of which makes the Twin Mustang more survivable than most other aircraft as each can work independently if the other is incapacitated.

Built with the intent of long-range escort for the B-29 Superfortress bombers, the fuel capacity in the Twin Mustang is also much higher than its contemporaries.

Unlike the preceding American planes, the Twin Mustang no longer features wing-mounted armament but instead are now center-mounted between the fuselages, so gun convergence is no longer a big issue.

The F-82E works best as a high-altitude bomber-killer or escort plane. While its respectable payload of bombs, machine guns, and rockets make it an effective ground attacker, it is very vulnerable in that role unless the enemy's fighters have all been neutralized.

The F-82E's main assets are its destructive firepower (with the gun pod) combined with massive ammo count, its good climbing speed and its amazing escape speed. Using the tracer bullets and shooting continuously it is possible to adjust aim effectively from more than 1.5 km away. In head-ons this means your opponent will usually be destroyed or crippled well before he gets his own target indicator. With bombers it means one serious burst from 0.7-1.0 km will deliver a critical, and a full-second burst from less than 0.7 km should cut any bomber into several pieces.

General info

Flight Performance

Characteristics
Stock
Max Speed (km/h at 6,126 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
713	696	11,600	28.3	28.7	15.3	15.3	450
Upgraded
Max Speed (km/h at 6,126 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
770	742	11,600	25.8	27.0	26.4	18.7	450

Details

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

Limits
Wing-break speed (km/h)	Gear limit (km/h)	Combat flap (km/h)	Max Static G
			+	-
812	450	520	~8	~8

Optimal velocities
Ailerons (km/h)	Rudder (km/h)	Elevators (km/h)	Radiator (km/h)
< 450	< 400	< 500	> 240

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
5,000 m	3,200 hp	4,499 hp

Survivability and armour

• 38 mm Bulletproof glass - Windshield
• 6.35 mm Steel - Fore cockpit armor plate, pilot and co-pilot
• 8 mm Steel - Armor plate, pilot and co-pilot's seats
• 11 mm Steel - Armor plate head rests, pilot and co-pilot
• 19.05 Steel - Engine protective plate

Armaments

Offensive armament

The F-82E is armed with:

• 6 x 12.7 mm Browning M3 machine guns, center-mounted (400 rpg = 2,400 total)

Suspended armament

The F-82E can be outfitted with the following ordinance:

• Without load
• 2 x 500 lb AN-M64A1 bombs (1,000 lb total)
• 2 x 1000 lbs AN-M65A1 bombs (2,000 lb total)
• 2 x 2000 lbs AN-M66A2 bombs (4,000 lb total)
• 10 x 127 mm HVAR rockets
• 8 x 12.7 mm Browning M2 machine guns, center-mounted (400 rpg = 3,200 total)

Usage in the battles

Start play by climbing above 5,000 m while always maintaining speed above 290 kph. If this brings you in range of enemy fighters before you have achieved a height advantage simply turn away and let them seek other targets. Once you have achieved 5,000 m altitude with airspeed above 300 kph you are virtually invulnerable since you will always have the option of running away with or without diving. You can seek and destroy bombers. Any fighter foolish enough to go after you should be dealt with head-on starting from more than 1.2 km away to ensure time to adjust and kill with your machine guns. If this is not an option or if you are being engaged by a pair of fighters, or if your initial pass fails to kill, keep running. Very few planes have the ability to follow you and your frame is sturdy enough to withstand the occasional long-distance hit.

As a rule, never let your airspeed drop below 300 kph; do not go near ground level if there is more than one enemy fighter in the vicinity unless your airspeed is above 500 kph; and never engage in furballs.

When used as a heavy fighter, keep in mind the brutally low handling capability of the F-82. Always avoid "furballs" and stay above your opponents. The climb rate makes the F-82 a capable bomber-killer. As a bomber killer, the aiming problems that many pilots face against smaller, more agile fighters evaporate. It is recommended to utilize the 8 x M2 Gun pod, due to the extremely high damage output. However, more experienced players may do away with this option, as it does hamper the handling of the craft.

Due to its high speed it is very dangerous when used in a boom and run strategy (energy retention and very high top speed in level flight mean it can be literally untouchable for a lot of single engine fighters). In this case it's very important to watch one's speed and to throttle back in dives or it can lose it's wings due to high speed. For achieving the maximum straight line speed at sea level, one should have the engine mixture set to 72%.

Remember, do not attempt to engage smaller and nimbler fighters. Most of the times you will overshoot and completely miss due to the poor handling.

Always use the tracer bullets with your six or fourteen 12.7 mm machine guns. Not only are the tracers very effective incendiaries, they give you the ability to see exactly where you are shooting up to 2 km away. This is invaluable in destroying bombers from far enough away to avoid their tail gunners, and in achieving incredible accuracy in head-ons well before your enemy gets a target indicator on you.

Boom and Zoom is not an ideal strategy with the F-82. At about 650 kph you will experience extreme control stiffening. The F-82 excels in bomber killing and head-ons.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Controllable	Not controllable	Not controllable	Not controllable	Separate	Not ontrollable	Not controllable

Modules

Tier	Flight performance		Survivability	Weaponry
I	Fuselage Repair	Radiator		Offensive 12 mm	FMBC mk.1
II	New Boosters	Compressor	Airframe		FLBC mk.1	NAGP mk.1
III	Wings Repair	Engine		New 12 mm MGs	FLBC mk.3
IV	G-Suit	Engine Injection	Cover		FRC mk.5

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Variety of payload options
• Good fast-firing armament (M3 Browning MGs) with high ammo capacity
• Above average climb rate
• Fast once upgraded(can outrun pretty much every fighter in level flight)
• Excellent in head-ons (which should rather be avoided due large profile of F-82)
• M20 API-T ammunition option
• When equipped with a gun pod the F-82 is a flying flamethrower
• Brutal acceleration in dive
• Center mounted armament both primary and gun pod, allowing for devastating accuracy
• Pilot and co-pilot seated offset from the center of the aircraft, making them harder to reliably hit
• Sturdy air frame

Cons:

• Poor handling
• Difficult to aim(it gets a bit better with booster upgrade)
• Elevator prone to failure when damaged
• With the gun pod installed, continuous fire will slow the plane down significantly
• Prone to control stiffening in a dive

History

Designed to provide the US forces with long range escort capabilities over the Pacific, the F-82 bore the appearance of desperate measures taken to use surplus P-51 parts. In reality, the F-82 was purposely designed as such in order to provide a fighter plane that had fresh pilots ready to engage, despite the tedious nature of long distance flights. Each fuselage carried a pilot and a co-pilot/navigator which reduced individual fatigue over long missions.

The F-82 started development in 1944, with significant deliveries done in early 1946. Although too late for the war, the fighter still saw extensive use by Air Defense Command as an escort fighter and a night fighter. 14 F-82's were converted to winterized interceptors for use over Alaska. It also saw significant use in the Korean War with Japanese based (US planes deployed from Japan) F-82s among the first aircraft to operate over Korea. In fact the first three North Korean aircraft shot down by US forces were done so by the Twin Mustang.

Media

An excellent addition to the article will be video guides, as well as screenshots from the game and photos.

Read 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.

Sources

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• page on aircraft encyclopedia;
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