WesWorld

Once again its time to turn our attentions to the aerial spectacle of the year. As usual the event will be held during the first two weeks of August, this time at Cordoba Air Base to reduce disruption at Cordoba Airport. As usual there will be exhibition spaces for companies to display their latest types and flying slots for demonstrations.

As usual there will be 48 slots, 6 are reserved for twin-engined fighters. It is first come first served and I'm reserving six slots now (2 Argentina, 2 RAF and 2 NPC). Please read the revised rules carefully. There will be some event changes this year and possibly scoring changes too.

RULES
1. Any nation can enter a maximum of two fighters, that is to say the primary role of the aircraft must be to intercept and destroy enemy aircraft; they can be of different types or the same and may be twin-engined fighters or carrier-based fighters.

2. Entries must be production machines, that is to say they must be in regular squadron service (for at least a minimum of six months) and in no way modified from the production standard. All prototype and pre-production aircraft are prohibited from entry. All-up weights should be roughly identical to production machines in service and efforts to lighten the airframe or the removal of equipment to save weight are prohibited. The polishing of surface finish and the tightening of panel gaps is allowed and minor aerodynamic coverings of gun ports and other protruding and drag-inducing imperfections is also allowed. Revised windscreens to reduce drag are prohibited.

3. Engine tuning is allowed but the addition of superchargers to non-supercharged engines is prohibited. Fuel additives are prohibited but special boost systems using separate mixtures not added to fuel are allowed as long as such equipment is fitted as standard. Special racing spec engines are prohibited. Each team can bring two engines for each aircraft entered but both must be the same model and set up identically and one engine must be a spare only and can be fitted during the main events if repair of the race engine proves impossible or impractical. Changes to propeller types are also prohibited as are changes to radiators to reduce drag or to improve cooling.

4. No armament to be fitted, ballast to weight of guns must be added, only those fighter aircraft fitted for bomb racks may be entered into the bombing contest.

5. All aircraft must be fitted with a radio transmitter/ receiver for safety reasons.

6. Pilots must have over three years of flying experience on single-engined types, official state or company test pilots are allowed to compete but other civilian pilots are not. Rank of the pilot is not an issue.

7. All single-engined and twin-engined aircraft will compete in separate race events, all duels will also be separate but the Grand Final Duel will feature both types of fighter. Bombing and altitude and cross country races will be of mixed groups. Pilots will score points and these will be tallied to declare a winner.

Please reserve two slots for the RSAF, details to follow later.

The US will send 2 aircraft (1 single-engined and 1 twin-engined), and Germany will 2 as well (both single-engined).

Atlantis will send 2 aircraft (single engined), Colombia 2 as well (single engined), Turkey the same and Byzantium will consider sending 1 or 2 to fill any empty slots.

Details later.

Latvia will send at least one, and is considering sending a second. Please reserve at least one single engined spot for Latvia. Latvia will consider taking a double engined spot.

Details Later

Don't forget chaps to include pilots names and full specs of the fighters. I know its getting easier to find stats on the board these days but I want to make sure I have the latest and correct stats.

Argentina's entries;
Major de Aero Roja [Holder of the Argentine Nation to the Valour in Combat Medal (Medalla La Nacion Argentina al Valor en Combate) and the Order of the Liberator General San Martin (Orden del Libertador General San Martin) Comendador Grade] is making a final appearance at Talons before his retirement from the Air Force and is flying his personal all-red FMA I-02 Pulqui fighter with a standard 1,300hp Spartan 1300S V-12 inline engine

Major de Aero Antonio Valdez, commander of Squadron 1/2 of the 1st Grupo of Aerea Regimenta No1 based at Cordoba [two confirmed kills in the South American War], he is flying his personal silver FMA I-02 Pulqui with a blue tail for the first time at Talons.

RAF Entries
Group Captain Lionel Mandrake returns again this year flying the sixtieth production Hawker Tornado powered by a 1,980hp RR Vulture II 24-cylinder engine

Squadron Leader Douglas Bader, a celebrity in his own right as a sportsman and pilot and for being the only military pilot in world flying with two false legs after his horrific crash in a Bristol Bulldog in 1932. He is flying the twentieth production Hawker Typhoon powered by a 2,180hp Napier Sabre II 24-cylinder H-24 engine.

Denmark and Iberia will be there, if I ever got caught up on news.......

Romania and Brazil reserve spots each, details to follow. One question, when is the six month cutoff again?

Talons is in August so the aircraft must have entered service before (or at the very very least during) February 1939.

Canada will be sending a twin engine and single engine plane. Details to follow.

Hood, you forgot one important rule: ugly Canadian monstrosities are prohibited.

Also prohibitied; substandard Japanese knockoffs. (:

Quoted

Originally posted by Hood
Talons is in August so the aircraft must have entered service before (or at the very very least during) February 1939.

Oh, that's good to know. It changes what I'm able to send, as Chile isn't starting production at ENAER on the I-02 until April, and the other fighter I was interested in sending, the ZCA Pillan, doesn't go into production until March.

4 slots reserved.

China will send two aircrafts

Let's submit a modified version of last year's entries.

Quoted

[SIZE=4]Fuerza Aérea de Chile (FACh) / Armada de Chilea Arma Aerea (AdCAA)[/SIZE]

Comandante de Escuadrilla Carlos Matta (b.1910) (recently promoted; rank equivalent to Major) is representing the FACh and is flying a ENAER-built I-01-IIB. Matta is the new commander of 110 Escuadrón, 2 Grupo. Matta first flew in combat against Bolivia in the Andean War, shooting down two Bolivian biplanes despite flying a bomber. He was thereafter promoted to pilot fighters. In the recent Air Battle of Arica and Tacna, Matta scored three kills against Peruvian aircraft, shooting down a Hurricane, a Boulton-Paul Defiant, and a Bristol Beaufort. The final combat resulted in Matta's F-12 Aves being hit by machine gun fire; Matta bailed out of his burning F-12 and was taken prisoner by the Peruvian Army. He has recovered from injuries sustained in the war and was repatriated, returning to 2 Grupo. Matta has 17,500 flight hours, being qualified in Spartan Storms, Spartan Cyclones, Accrisius Aves, and now I-01-IIB Buchons, among others. He has a total of nine years flying experience. This is his second Talons appearance. Matta's I-01-IIB, named "Laura Fiora" for his wife, is the same aircraft he used in the 1938 Talons.

Capitan de Corbeta (Lt. Com.) Patricio Mistral (b.1908) represents the Armada de Chile Arma Aérea (Chilean Navy Air Arm) and is flying an ENAER I-01-IIB Buchon. Mistral flew combat missions during the Andean War as well as the Peruvian War, scoring one aerial kill in each war. Mistral commands Escuadrón de Cazas No.3 (aka "The Black Fighters of the Armada") and serves as the executive officer of the AdCAA's III Grupo when deployed aboard the carrier Mapuche. He has 18,200 flying hours and ten years experience, and is currently the only AdCAA pilot (and one of four in Chile) who has qualified for night-fighters (which Chile doesn't have) and was the first Chilean pilot to trap on the airship Capitan Prat. This is his third Talons appearance. This year he will be borrowing an Air Force I-01-IIB Buchon instead of his normal I-01N.

Quoted

[SIZE=3]FMA/ENAER I-01-IIB Buchon[/SIZE]
Dimensions: span 10.05m; length 9.14; height 3.22m; wing area 176sq ft; wing loading 41 lb/sq ft; power loading 0.17 lb/hp
Structure: all-metal monocoque fuselage with I section fames and L section stringers with stressed light alloy covering, light alloy used for cantilever tail construction and tailplane covering. Cantilever metal wing with two steel spars, all-metal split flaps and aluminium framed ailerons with aluminium covering with two hydraulic dive-brakes. Rudder and elevators aluminium framed with aluminium covering. Retractable hydraulically raised main undercarriage with single oleo-pneumatic legs with twin pneumatic brakes and a retractable castoring tail wheel
Weights: empty 5,802lbs, maximum take-off 7,250lbs
Powerplant: one 1300hp Spartan 1300S V-12 inline engine with supercharger, maximum sea level output to 12,000ft
Performance: max speed 374mph at 15,000ft; service ceiling 21,500ft; rate of climb 2,325ft per minute at 1,500ft; range 311 miles full fuel load
Capacity: pilot in enclosed cockpit
Armament: four 13mm Browning HMG in wings and ventral bomb rack for one 250kg bomb and wing racks for either four 50kg or ten 15kg bombs
Equipment: full controls and navigation equipment including receiver/transmitter, reflector sight, Sperry autopilot and one flare chute

Quoted

[SIZE=4]BULGARIAN AIR FORCE / VNVV[/SIZE]

Kapitan Dobri Kolarov (b.1903) is representing Bulgaria flying a DAR/Avia B.137 fighter. Kapitan Kolarov is the senior flying officer of the Bulgarian Air Force and is responsible for testing new fighter acquisitions and developing training regimes for new aircraft. He currently leads Bulgarian pilots in number of hours flown (averaging 2,300 hours per year) with over 29,500 hours total flight time on his logs, and has qualified in over forty-five different aircraft. This will be his second Talons appearance. His B-137 is painted dark green with a red and yellow pinstripe down the sides, and red-tipped wings; the Bulgarian tricolor (white-green-red) is painted on the aircraft tail.

[SIZE=1]Please don't kill him, Bulgaria has no replacement for this guy.[/SIZE]

Quoted

[SIZE=3]DAR-12 / Fokker-Avia B-137[/SIZE]
Statistics
- Crew: 1 Pilot
- Length: 29.78 ft
- Wingspan: 37.47 ft
- Height:
- Wing area: 202 ft²
- Empty weight: 4,754 lbs
- Loaded weight: 5,732lbs
- Powerplant: R1x 1,100hp Minerva-Avia 105
- Armament: 1x 20mm motorcannon, 4 x 7.92mm MGs, 250kg bombs

Performance
- Maximum speed: 325kts (374mph) @ 13,123ft
- Max Range: 508nm
- Service ceiling: 39,500 feet
- Rate of climb: 3,364 fpm (light)

Porucik (Senior Lieutenant) Lidiya Ivanova (b.1916) will be flying one of the latest Supermarine Spitfire MkIIs delivered to Bulgaria. Lieutenant Ivanova is second-in-command of Bulgaria's 502 Kerkenez (Kestral) squadron, and the second-highest ranked female pilot in the VNVV. Ivanova has served as a mercenary pilot in two different campaigns, scoring one kill and one probable while flying a Romanian IAR-80 fighter for the Armenian Air Force, and claiming six air kills (all Bolivian Communist Fiat Cr.32s) and several ground kills while flying a Swiss EKW D-3801 fighter named "Charity" for the Flying Legion in Bolivia (late 1937). Ivanova's identity as "Charity" however is somewhat obscured by the continued secrecy of the Flying Legion. Ivanova has three years military flying experience and five more years flying as a civilian, earning her pilot's license at age fourteen; since then she has logged approximately 16,000 hours. She is qualified on the EKW D-3801, IAR-80, Bf-109, Supermarine Spitfire (all existing marks), Kaproni Bulgarski KB-5 Tchutchuliga-III, DAR-3 Garvan (Raven), DAR-7 Koketka (Kitten), Focke-Wulf Fw-44, and Miles Master. This is her fourth Talons appearance.

[SIZE=1]Please don't kill her.[/SIZE]

Quoted

[SIZE=4]Supermarine Spitfire MkII (for Bulgaria)[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Specifications:[/SIZE]
Length: 29 ft 11 in (9.12 m)
Wingspan: 36 ft 10 in (11.23 m)
Height: 11 ft 5 in (3.86 m)
Wing area: 242.1 ft² (22.48 m²)
Weight: 5,090 lb (2,309 kg) empty, 6,622 lb (3,000 kg) loaded
Crew: 1
Powerplant: 1× Rolls-Royce Merlin XI, 1,100 hp (876 kW)

[SIZE=3]Performance:[/SIZE]
Speed: 366mph at 15,000ft
Rate of climb: 2,490 ft/min at 10,000 ft (3,000 m)
Ceiling: 37,000 feet
Range: 500 nmi
Remarks:

[SIZE=3]Armament:[/SIZE]
- 2 × 15mm MG151 cannon
- 4 × 7.92mm MG17 machine guns

Quoted

[SIZE=4]Irish Air Corps[/SIZE]

Flying Lieutenant Eoin Clancy (b.1914) is representing Ireland in a Boulton Paul Resistant (P94 Defiant). Clancy has nine years flying experience, being the son of a British Great War fighter pilot who started instructing him at age 15. He has logged roughly 8,000 hours of flight time, most of it within the last five years. His fighter, named "Oopsie Daisy", is painted in RAF-style camouflage albeit with the Irish roundel, and a green port wingtip and an orange starboard wingtip. This is his third Talons appearance.

Quoted

[SIZE=3]Bolton-Paul Resistant (Defiant P94)[/SIZE]
Statistics
- Crew: 1 Pilot
- Length: 35 ft 4 in (10.77 m)
- Wingspan: 39 ft 4 in (11.99 m)
- Height: 12 ft 2 in (3.71 m)
- Wing area: 250 ft² (23 m²)
- Empty weight: 6,078 lb (2,755 kg)
- Loaded weight: 8,318 lb (3,773 kg)
- Powerplant: RR Merlin VI, 1,280hp
- Armament: 4x20mm cannon

Performance
- Maximum speed: 360 mph / 579.3 kph (312.8 knots)
- Max Range: 520 mi (837 km)
- Service ceiling: 30,350 ft (9,250 m)
- Rate of climb: 3,235 ft/min (16.4 m/s)

Additional Notes: ENAER, Fanaero-Chile and Constelación Aircraft will be sending displays.

Italy has a new aircraft to send for the first time in a couple of years. The pilots will be Gen di BA Bergamini and Tenente Salvi, representing both ends of the Air Combat School's spectrum. Primo Capitano Ricco and Primo Tenente Tronchon having moved onto normal squadrons in the meantime. The whole Italian delegation is large than the previous year, with a number of companies attending to exhibit. Caproni are present with models of their new 2005 Sagittario fighter, and the 1001 Astore bomber. Fiat's representatives will be trying to sell the G.55 and the A.38 engine. Bergamini feels that he has a very good chance of winning this year given the healthy performance increase given by the Centauro.

Fiat G.55 Centauro Serie I

Crew: 1
Length: 10.12m Span: 11.95m Height: 3.26m Wing Area: 26m­^2
Empty Weight: 3,743kg Maximum Weight: 5,890kg
Engine: 1 x 1780cv Fiat A.38 RC.12/40/58
Maximum Speed: 683km/h@5800m, 578km/h@sl
Rate of climb: 21m/s Service ceiling: 11,900m
Combat Radius: 900km
Armament: 4x13.2mm Breda-SAFAT in wings, 3x500kg hardpoints

There will be two Nordish entries. Details will follow once I've figured out what's actually in service.

Quoted

Originally posted by RLBH
There will be two Nordish entries. Details will follow once I've figured out what's actually in service.

The Saab F-21 Mk1 and Saab Orkan Mk4 (details here) are some fairly hot ships, even though they've been in service for two years now. They're easily on par with all but the newest of the newest fighters. (Around 20mph faster than anything any of my countries have in service, in fact.) I'd guess Saab and Sopwith are working on replacements, but with such a formidable fighter in service, probably not much hurry.

For pilots - might I suggest Finnish ace of aces Ilmari Juutilainen? He'd be in Nordish service at the moment, with a career dating to 1935.

The US team will be somewhat different this year. Lieutenant (now Captain) Leigh Wade will be back with his P-38, but he will be flying the only USAAC aircraft in the competition. The other aircraft flying for the US will be a USMC F4U Corsair, piloted by USMC Captain Harold William Bauer.