The P-40 was the best known Curtiss-Wright designed airplane of the Second World War. It was also one of the most controversial fighters, vilified by many as being too slow, lacking in maneuverability, having too low a climbing rate, and being largely obsolescent by contemporary standards even before it went into production. The inadequacies of the P-40 were even the subject of a Congressional investigation after the War ended.

While these criticisms were certainly valid, it is also true that the P-40 served its country well, especially in China and Burma, during the opening phase of the War in the Pacific when little else was available to the US Army Air Corps. Along with the P-39 Airacobra, the P-40 was the only American fighter available in quantity to confront the Japanese advance until more modern aircraft could be delivered to frontline squadrons.

The P-40B or Tomahawk IIA had extra .30 in (7.62 mm) US, or .303 in (7.7 mm) machine guns in the wings and a partially protected fuel system; the P-40C or Tomahawk IIB added underbelly drop tank and bomb shackles, self-sealing fuel tanks and other minor revisions, but the extra weight did have a negative impact on aircraft performance. (All versions of the P-40 had a relatively low power-to-weight ratio compared to contemporary fighters.)

Only a small number of P-40D or Kittyhawk Mk Is were made, fewer than 50. With a new, larger Allison engine, slightly narrower fuselage, redesigned canopy, and improved cockpit, the P-40D eliminated the nose-mounted .50 in (12.7 mm) guns and instead had a pair of .50 in (12.7 mm) guns in each wing. The distinctive chin airscoop grew larger so it could adequately cool the large Allison engine.

This particular 1:72 scale replica of an American Volunteer Group Curtiss P-40C Warhawk fighter was piloted by Charles R. Bond, who was deployed to Kunming, China, during June 1942. Now in stock!

Dimensions:
Wingspan: 6-inches
Length: 5-1/2-inches

Release Date: December 2025

Historical Account: "Flying Tigers" - As some of the most celebrated pilots in the history of air warfare, the Flying Tigers of the 1st American Volunteer Group achieved incredible success against overwhelming odds in their robust but ageing Curtiss fighters, at a time when Japanese forces were advancing across vast areas of the Pacific region. A volunteer force of just 100 pilots, equipped with aircraft originally destined for the RAF Desert Air Force, the Flying Tigers are often misconceived as an ill-disciplined group of journeymen flyers, who were simply in it for the money. In fact, they were highly trained fighter pilots who had all volunteered to fight in some of the most inhospitable conditions endured by any pilots during WWII and as they entered combat in the days following the infamous Pearl Harbor attack, they were determined to destroy as many Japanese aircraft as they could. In this aim, they were spectacularly successful, posting some of the most impressive combat kill ratios of the entire war.