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[History] Mörkö-Morane

Mörkö-Morane (“Bogeyman-Morane” or “Ghost-Morane”), also known by its official designation MSv, was a Finnish modification of the French Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 and M.S.410 fighter aircraft serving in the Finnish Air Force during the Second World War. It was an attempt to improve the obsolete Morane fleet for use during the late war period and to help retain the capabilities of the Finnish Air Force. Designed and converted by Valtion Lentokonetehdas (“The State Aircraft Factory”), Mörkö-Morane was considered to be the second most capable fighter aircraft operated by the FAF during the Second World War, though it arrived too late to have any significant impact.

All the fighters that served in the Finnish Air Force during WW2

During the Second World War, the Finnish Air Force was very diverse when it came to equipment. This was the result of multiple procurement programs, donations from other nations, and the continuous process of pushing captured or even downed enemy aircraft back into service on the home front. In this article, we’ll go through all the aircraft classified as fighters that served in the Finnish Air Force during this period, how they ended up in Finnish service, and what their service was like.

Chi-Ri: Imperial Prototype

As America began to push towards mainland Japan, the Imperial Army began prototyping the Type 5 Chi-Ri tank. Although the tank never saw combat and all prototypes were destroyed, you’re able to play this tank in War Thunder and simulate the battles it could’ve fought. Despite its similarities to the Type 4 Chi-To, it requires a different approach to defeat enemies and emerge victorious in battles.

Su-30MK2 AMV: The Venezuelan Flanker

The Su-30MK2 AMV is an export variant of the Su-30, a twin-seat multirole combat aircraft capable of performing both air superiority missions and close air support. Based on the Su-30MK2 produced by the KnAAPO plant, this variant does not feature canards or thrust-vectoring engines. To avoid confusion with the Su-30MK2 operated by Vietnam, the Venezuelan version was designated Su-30MK2 AMV, standing for Aviación Militar Venezolana (Venezuelan Air Force). In War Thunder, the Su-30MK2 AMV is a strong option thanks to its wide selection of air-to-air and air-to-ground weaponry. Although heavier than the Su-27, the aircraft retains respectable maneuverability and benefits from excellent missile payload capacity, allowing it to remain effective throughout extended engagements.

Vautour IIN: The Forgotten Interceptor

The Vautour IIN is a twin-seater interceptor variant of the French Vautour multirole bomber aircraft, manufactured by Sud Aviation during the Cold War. While it is largely overlooked by many due to the much more commonly encountered IL-28 and Canberra family of bombers, the Vautour IIN can pose a notable threat to enemy fighters due to its high top speed, Shafrir air-to-air missiles, and powerful search radar. However, the Vautour IIN is thoroughly outclassed by more modern aircraft that it commonly faces, such as the F-106, Hunter F.58, MiG-19PT, and the F-104 Starfighter. The Vautour's poor control authority and sluggish roll rate in particular make dogfighting in it a struggle, although skilled pilots may still find ways to outsmart their enemies. 

P-26 Peashooter: The Little Plane That Could

The P-26 Peashooter is a family of American monoplane fighters developed by Boeing during the interwar period. In War Thunder, it serves as an introduction to the USA’s aviation tech tree, where it stands out for being a monoplane fighter, rather than a biplane, contrary to what other nations have at its tier. That being said, its flight performance and armament is not too dissimilar from those biplanes, albeit with some minor differences.

The destroyer, destroyed: the 'Zerstörer' escort-fighter idea, and why it was fatally flawed

From the first operational jet fighter, to bombers intended to be able to fly to America in one trip, Germany’s Luftwaffe pushed the boundaries of military aviation to its fullest extent during the Second World War. However, from the war’s beginning, the Luftwaffe's leader, Hermann Göring, had avidly believed in the power of a certain aircraft type for ridding the skies of enemy fighter opposition: the 'Zerstörer' ('Destroyer'). But what actually was this design, and how successful was it in combat?

Matilda III — The Desert Queen

The Matilda III is an early heavy tank in the British tech tree. It boasts amazing armour and weaponry, but suffers from a poor top speed and can easily be outflanked and defeated if fighting on its own against a coordinated and determined enemy. There is also the Matilda Hedgehog, that has a mortar in the back, which can be used against enemy light vehicles, or even tanks with enough luck and skill.

[History] SABCA F-104G Starfighter

In the early Cold War era, the Belgian Air Force (Force Aérienne Belge, FAB) faced the challenge of modernizing its fighter fleet to meet escalating NATO air defence demands. During the 1950s, Belgium operated subsonic fighters such as the Republic F-84F Thunderstreak and the Hunter F.6, which were increasingly seen as inadequate against emerging high-speed threats. In response, NATO initiated a coordinated effort to equip several of its European members with a supersonic multi-role platform capable of both interception and tactical strike duties. Belgium opted to join this programme by selecting the Lockheed F-104G Starfighter, a derivative of the original Lockheed F-104 designed with enhancements tailored for European operations.

Mirage IIIC – Beginning of the French deltas

The Mirage IIIC is an iconic French single-seat delta-wing jet fighter from the late 1950s. The aircraft is highly maneuverable with excellent flight performance, capable of flying at supersonic speeds at any altitude. Its primary armament consists of two 30mm DEFA cannons and air-to-air missiles, initially carrying only one Matra R530 radar-guided missile while later versions could also carry two AIM-9B or Magic 1 IR-guided missiles. For its time, the Mirage IIIC was equipped with a very modern radar, the Cyrano Ibis. This was the first radar in the world capable of automatically slewing its antenna onto a target, which meant that the pilot simply had to press a button, and the radar would acquire and lock onto the target. This reduced the workload of the pilot drastically, which is always of crucial importance in actual combat engagements.

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