Republic P-47 Thunderbolt

The P-47 Thunderbolt (also called The Jug ^[3]) was a fighter aircraft made by Republic Aviation. It first flew in 1941, and was introduced in 1942. It had a very big Pratt and Whitney R-2800-59 engine, which had more than 2,000 horsepower. Because of this, the P-47 could go more than 430 miles per hour. In fact, it was the biggest engine ever at the time. ^[4] It had 8 machine guns, 2 more than most fighters. It's shape and speed made it similar to the Fw 190.

P-47 Thunderbolt
XP-47N flying over the Pacific during World War II
Role	Fighter-bomber
Manufacturer	Republic Aviation
Designer	Alexander Kartveli
First flight	6 May 1941
Introduction	November 1942[1]
Retired	1966, Peruvian Air Force
Primary users	United States Army Air Forces Royal Air Force French Air Force
Produced	1941–1945
Number built	15,636
Unit cost	US$83,000 in 1945[2]
Variants	Republic XP-72

During 1944, the P-51 Mustang was lighter, faster, and could turn better. Because of this, it started replacing the P-47 as a fighter. The P-47 was then used for bombing in late World War II. It was retired from the American Air National Guard in 1955.

Now, there is a jet called the A-10 Thunderbolt II, and it is named after the P-47.

Related pages

• P-40 Warhawk