Curtiss P-40 Warhawk / Kittyhawk / Tomahawk Fighter-Bomber / Fighter Aircraft - History, Specs and Pictures

Authored By Staff Writer | Last Updated: 5/29/2012

The Curtiss P-40 series was used to good effect by the famed American aviators of the Flying Tigers fighting in China.

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The P-40 Warhawk / Kittyhawk / Tomahawk series of aircraft was the further development of the P-36 Hawk platform (detailed elsewhere on this site). The Warhawk would become synonymous with the American Volunteer Group fighting in China against the Japanese under the identifiable nickname of the "Flying Tigers". Generally forgotten amongst the cast of American ace-makers in the war, the P-40 series was a capable and proven fighter aircraft in its own right and produced a bevy of famous pilots attached to her name - most notably were American airmen George Welch and Ken Taylor who were able to get their mounts airborne during the Japanese attack on Peral Harbor. Soviet pilots Nikolai Fyodorovich Kuznetsov, Petr Pokryshev and Stephan Novichkov all became aces flying thier Lend-Lease P-40s. The P-40 was a good fighter for its time, however production numbers never seemed to keep pace with the war, allowing technological developments and airborne tactics to evolve past the aircraft's usefulness and strengths.

Not an overly exceptional aircraft in any one category, the P-40 Warhawk was a deadly fighting machine in trained hands. The formidable armament of 6 x 12.7mm (.50 caliber) machine guns (up to 200 rounds per gun) was complimented by the ability of the aircraft to carry a bombload for an increasingly expanding workload. Warhawks were fitted with a liquid-cooled in-line piston engine as opposed to the air-cooled variety commonly found in the P-36 Hawk.

Though the French placed orders for the P-40 at the outset of the war, the eventual Fall of France forced the order to be diverted to Britain where it was promptly renamed the "Tomahawk". Some Tomahawk models would eventually end up in the hands of the American Volunteer Group in China which, in turn, offered up an increasing amount of aerial victories against intruding Japanese fighters and bombers.

Further improvements to the P-40 line produced the "D" model which raised performance specifications of the Allison piston engine. By this time, the dual nose-mounted 12.7mm machine guns were dropped from the design, leaving only the four wing-mounted machine guns. The deletion of the machine guns was offset to an extent by the addition of an optional undercarriage bomb rack that allowed for the provision of a single 500lb bomb adding to the versatility of the aircraft. On top of the diverted French Warhawks/Tomahaeks, the British also ordered their own P-40D models and assigned the name of "Kittyhawk" to these.

By this time, the entire Warhawk series was becoming out-classed by the up-and-coming next generation piston flyers. Despite this fact, the Warhawk - in every form - continued to find success where ever it was fielded. So much was the impression of the Warhawk that the final "E" model was introduced and used to good effect throughout the North African campaign (as the Kittyhawk under British use) and again in China with the American Volunteer Group. Total production at war's end would amount to an astounding 16,800 P-40 Warhawks / Tomahawks / Kittyhawks of all models and marks. Text ©2003-2013 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • No Reproduction Permitted
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Picture of Curtiss P-40 Warhawk / Kittyhawk / Tomahawk

Pic of the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk / Kittyhawk / Tomahawk

Image of the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk / Kittyhawk / Tomahawk

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Specifications for the
Curtiss P-40 Warhawk / Kittyhawk / Tomahawk
Fighter-Bomber / Fighter Aircraft

Country of Origin: United States
Manufacturer: Curtiss-Wright Corporation - USA
Initial Year of Service: 1941
Production: 16,800

Focus Model: Curtiss P-40N / Kittyhawk IV
Crew: 1

Length: 33.46ft (10.2m)
Width: 37.47ft (11.42m)
Height: 12.37ft (3.77m)
Weight (Empty): 6,005lbs (2,724kg)
Weight (MTOW): 8,858lbs (4,018kg)

Powerplant: 1 x Allison V-1710-81 in-line piston engine generating 1,360hp.

Maximum Speed: 378mph (609kmh; 329kts)
Maximum Range: 240miles (386km)
Service Ceiling: 38,156ft (11,630m; 7.2miles)
Rate-of-Climb: 2,143 feet per minute (653m/min)

Hardpoints: 3
Armament Suite:
STANDARD:
6 x 12.7mm M2 Browning air-cooled machine guns

OPTIONAL:
Up to 2,000lbs of external ordnance across thrss hardpoints (centerfuselage and two underwing).

Variants:
Model 75I - Prototype Base Model derived from XP-37A airframe fitted with Allison 1,150hp V-1710-11 inline engine.

P-40 - United States Army Air Corps production version fitted with V-1710-33 powerplant.

Hawk 81-A1 - Export model for French use.

P-40B - Improved model featuring improved armor and armament with seal-sealing fuel tanks.

P-40C - Additional 2 x 12.7mm machine guns added to wings; improved seal-sealing fuel tanks.

P-40D - Fitted with V-1710-39 generating 1,150hp; increase performance at high altitude; improved supercharger.

P-40E - Only 4 x 12.7mm machine guns in wings.

P-40F - Improved supercharger.

P-40L - Similar to the P-40F with improved supercharger and 1,300hp Packard V-1650-1 (license-built 1,300hp Rolls-Royce Merlin) powerplant.

P-40K - Based on the P-40E model with V-1710-33 powerplant.

P-40M - Fitted with V-1710-71 powerplant.

P-40N - Fitted with V-1710-81 OR V1710-99 OR V1710-115 powerplants; improved performance capabilities; decreased overall weight.

Tomahawk Mk I - Export model for British use.

Tomahawk Mk IIA - British export model of the P-40B.

Tomahawk Mk IIIB - British export model of the P-40C.

Kittyhawk Mk I - British export version of the P-40D.

Kittyhawk Mk IA - British export version of the P-40E with 6 x 12.7mm machine guns in wings.

Kittyhawk Mk II - British export version based on the P-40L with 1,300hp Rolls-Royce Merlin engine.

Kittyhawk Mk III - British export version based on the P-40K.

Kittyhawk Mk IV - British export version based on the P-40N.

Operators:
Australia; Brazil; Canada; China; Egypt; Finland; France; Indonesia; Japan; Netherlands; New Zealand; Poland; South Africa; Soviet Union; Turkey; United Kingdom; United States

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