P-51 Mustang vs. Fw 190 D-9 

Not all of your viewers are old :) I'm 20 and I'm really enjoying your technical videos. Keep it up!

The ONLY youtube channel (that I've ever found) that does "real" comparisons between WWII aircraft, explaining from actual period source material the actual turn rates and actual speeds at particular altitudes ext. What your analysis shows (in my opinion) is that the various planes of WWII were very evenly matched, the performance numbers are derived from various advantages, superior displacement, aerodynamic advantages, supercharger or turbocharger designs ext, but no matter how the performance is achieved the general performance characteristics of the major types of all nations was generally very similar. To me this says, its not the planes that determine the outcome of the battles, its the pilots and the tactics, the logistics and maintenance because the planes are remarkably evenly matched from a performance standpoint. The 10-1 kill ratio's aren't due to inherent advantages in plane design, they are well trained pilots in well maintained aircraft with good logistics facing poorly trained opponents with poorly maintained equipment and logistical problems. The German's had aces with 300 kills, but these men flew until they died... and their successors were never able to replicate those results because they could never be trained and prepared sufficiently. Japan had the same problem, they could never train pilots quickly enough to make up for the ones lost and so the quality of their pilots steadily eroded while the US sent Aces (25 kills) back home to train new pilots allowing the US to maintain the quality of its pilots throughout the conflict. Everybody wants to argue which plane is the best, the truth is, they were all excellent and all got better as the war progressed but it wasn't the planes that won the battles, it was the men that flew and maintained them, and the logistical support making available spare parts fuel and ammunition. Obviously I am fascinated by the technical advances in aircraft design during this period and I love the way you are able to explain how this model introduced this design innovation which changed this performance parameter in this way, shows the steady technical advances made by every nation at the time, I find it fascinating. I hope at some point you decide to talk about the P-38, I would love to know how it stacks up by the numbers given that it is so much larger than the single engine types. Luv the channel Greg James in CA

Listening to Greg talk about technical comparision between aircrafts makes me feel like I am taking a design course and listening to a seasoned aeronautical engineering professor at college. Thanks Greg!

As an 18 year old I feel extremely blessed for finding your channel. I've been always looking for highly detailed videos on topics like this but never got anywhere. A bit sad that very very few are as interested as I am in technical/historical subjects. I really hope you don't stop making these videos for a long time, it's a true gem to me

I was friendly with a WW2 P51 veteran, whose 1st mission was at 2:30am on D-Day. His group (361FG), was later attached to Patton's drive across France, so he did mostly ground attack. He told me that he wished he flew the P-47 for that kind of work. Toward the end of the war, he encountered a, "long nosed FW-190". Not sure if he went to war emergency power, but he said that FW-190D ran away from him. I have a couple more dogfights that he got into - if there is enough replies, I'll detail them here. Greg - awesome videos, really stellar. Thank you.

2:30 As a side note, late war the Hungarian-built Bf-109G were in high demand by German units, because the Rába factory was one of the few ones, which made by solely professional employees (instead of using partially or fully forced labor).

It’s not all old people! I’m an engineering student and I love your videos. It’s refreshing to see someone go in-depth when so many channels about wartime aviation just quote the same tired tropes we’ve all heard a million times. You’ve also taught me tons about forced induction which has been helpful.

Congratulations by the way for reaching 1 millon views on the 109 vs p 51 speed video. Thats really impressive considering it's such a niche topic

I'm 21 and in training to be an aviation mechanic, we still use the old slide films from the 40s and 50s for some of of r lectures. You just can't beat some of the knowledge they had back then.

When a video starts with the words "Greetings, this is Greg," you know you're in for a treat.

Can't believe how quickly this conversation is evolving! It's like a whirlwind of ideas and insights.😘

I am always blown away by your content, and and super excited for comparisons like these going into the future! Awesome as always!

Damn. The Dora-9 is one seriously sexy beast! I mean, you wouldn't think an inline engine in a round cowling would make for an attractive airplane, but it somehow looks all long lean and sexy.

Little known fact....both fighters were designed by German engineers...Edgar Schmued for the P-51 and Kurt Tank for the FW-190.

Yesss.. 😃 Greg is back with another super quality content. My Monday is saved!

Once again, excellent work, Greg. I love how you break the details down to where someone who doesnt know much about airplanes can understand the topic.

Thankyou again Greg for your excellent presentation on this subject. I especially appreciate your logical analysis on the vague or grey areas in the discussion. By the comments, I enjoy the contributions by sharp people who enjoy these subjects as I do. Many thanks to all.

I'm an 18 year old student studying to be an aeronautical mechanic. Next summer I'll be starting an internship working on world war 2 planes to keep them flying, and your videos help a lot and always keep me engaged.

What a nice surprise for Monday morning! Glad you're alive and well. Always happy to see a new program from you, especially if it's about 190s.

Best channel on RU-vid. I can’t believe the info and how much I’ve learned. All the research right on your screen. Thank you so much Greg

"Greetings this is Greg..." Now there's a name I haven't heard in a long time...

Something I should note: my paternal grandmother's first husband (KIA 2/2/45 in Hausach while trying to make a wheels-up landing of a P-47D), 1st Lt. Albert W. "Bummy" Pines, actually did get his only aerial kill of a Focke-Wulf Fw-190 of some variant in a P-47D of the 315th Fighter Squadron ("The Crusaders"), 324th Fighter Group, 12th Air Force. We don't know what variant it was, but we do know it was not an overclaim; multiple pilots actually saw it disintegrate in the same manner as the tail was basically shot off and the port wing pitched upwards and it started something of an aerial cartwheel as it was coming apart and his old wingman, 1st Lt. Mike McGrath, who lived through 2009, I believe, was the guy whose life he saved; the Fw-190 was shooting at him and then, all of a sudden, it wasn't and he realized Bummy had gotten it. But that's not really the point. When Mike and Bummy both landed at Luneville, since they were actually flying a fighter-bomber mission against railroad targets, well, Mike was very much aware how difficult it was for a P-47D pilot who was maybe 800-1,000 feet BELOW the Fw-190 to shoot it down. So he asks him "how the hell did you do that?" Bummy, as recollected by Mike many years after the fact, admittedly, though it does match Bummy's foul mouth and laconic sense of humor: "The [bleep] if I know." Apparently, shooting down an Fw-190 of any kind was considered pretty impressive. Love a lot of the US contributions to the Merlin that you never hear about. The ultimate Packard Merlin, V-1650-9 that went into the P-51H I know you'd call a superprop, was almost "a Merlin, if American engineers had designed a Merlin", where yeah, it had more similarities than not with the Merlin 100-series, but it was its own engine. But even the V-1650-7 powering the P-51D was not a part-for-part copy of the Merlin 66, no matter how many times I've seen "oh, it was just a Merlin 66".

What a fantastic video and thank you so much for sharing this. I learned more about the P-51/FW-190/Merlin in one hour than I did in the past 40 years!

Sweden flew the P51B/D and DB605 engines and half of the DB605 engines where Swedish built and in peacetime conditions. So if one wants to compare the Bf109G6 vs P51D that would be a great source. They seem to both have been flown on 100/130 aviation fuel which is the regular fuel used by airlines all over the world post war. But the Swedish Mustangs should have been flown at least a short while on the equivalent of B4 fuel as Sweden used fuels in the 75-90 octane range during the war.

Greg's Video never fail to be fascinating. He puts together the pieces in his most detailed manner. It would be equally fascinating to see a video about how the germans tried to make the BMW 801 radial engine a good performer at altitude. They were experimenting with turbo-supercharging but never got anywhere near a convincing result.

I'm a simple man, I see a Greg video I click play.

Mr. Greg goes always in depth; clarification guaranteed! Thank you very much, Mr. Greg!

Glad to see another upload! Really enjoy your content!!

I absolutely love your videos Greg, you do a huge amount of research and proper research. You don’t have a biased opinion and you always look at things from a factual point of view. You clearly have decent mechanical knowledge and aren’t just reciting something you’ve read. Your aviation videos are the best. I have so much more appreciation for just how good some of these warbirds truly were in such difficult conditions and circumstances

I just found your channel, and I gotta say, I love it. It brings me back to my childhood when all I cared about were WWII fighters, haha. Cheers, man. Great content.

Love your technical insight!!! Amazing channel.... keepI’ me coming Greg!!!

Damn!!! Good stuff!!! Answered every wondering thought about these two aircraft I've ever had.

I am always seriously impressed by Greg’s presentations. I’ve found the driest technical descriptions very engaging to follow, he makes complex stuff understandable.

I'm 36 and you've made me feel young! Thank you!

thanks for keeping it real! the Merlin and P-51 collaboration was truly a joint endeavor and credit to both sides is well deserved!

Hi Greg! Thanks for the video...enjoyed it immensely! Keep it up! Greetings from Croatia!

Greg, I'm so glad you mentioned the often overlooked U.S. contribution of high octane fuel to the success of the Merlin..

A while ago a couple of us asked you why the German engineers got stuck with 3 blade propellers while Americans and British jumped to four to five blades. After a bit of googling, I believe I got the answer. Turns out that not only the Germans had kept the 3 blade design, the Soviets did too. And what all of them had in common is guns firing trough the propeller arc. After a bit of research, the only operational fighter I saw with a four blade propeller and nose mounted guns was the Nakajima Ki-84, but it was a very thin four blade design.

Love your dry humour at the end. Your videos are very satisfying. :)

Your technical feedback is nothing short of awesome!! Your channel has put a whole new perspective for me relative to ww2 fighter plane performance…absolutely love it.

Another super-informative video from Greg about a relatively little known German fighter.

I remember in your Bf109 video that you will do D9 vs P-51d one day. Finally!

Thanks! for making such great content. I've been binge watching for a few weeks now. Your videos go hand & hand with my DCS hobby. Thanks again

Excellent video. Thanks for making this stuff available.

Really good stuff as always! I am never short on amazement when I think about how all this technical advancement was accomplished without sophisticated computers, CAD/CAM, FEA etc. and in relatively short time. Then add the pressure of a world war.

Shooting Pistons out of an engineblock is the most simple, but genius way to illustrate this subject. Learned a lot from This video. As always, keep up the good work Greg and I hope you have a nice day. Greetings from germany.

Subscribed. Exceptional breakdowns that are technical enough to keep my interest. You also dictate very well.

Your videos are very informative, Greg. Very interesting!

when you said slides-show in the 70s I laughed, we had it in the 2000s XD, they replaced it in 2003 with small TVs am from Saudi big fan of you Greg and your work

Walmart Greeter Greg: "If you compare the Bf 109 to the Yak 1..." "Dude, I just need to get milk!"

Jam Handy - Been a long time since I heard those. The lessons were really effective. They remain a good learing tool, especially for technical subjects. Thanks for showing them.

What a great Vid Greg! Me, as a German, I really enjoy your explations which make this whole topic much more vivid, especially talking about the small details.

I was so greatful to see this pop up in my feed: "Greg´s got a new vid out....yeaaaah....!!"

US Army Air Force in the 1930's: "Yo Dawg i heard you like superchargers......."

A lot of fun with education and thanks for posting, Greg!

Fascinating and interesting video, easy to follow for both aircraft mechanic me, and my girlfriend with no technical knowledge whatsoever. Keep up the good work Greg!

Greg you're the best. My girlfriend unexpectedly and brutally broke up with me this weekend. On top of my brother dying. And lockdown. And I had to travel back to Scotland after the breakup. I was literally suicidal when you premiered this. You have saved my life. It's not an exaggeration and I really want you to know the effect you have on people. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Speaking of iconic matchups, I would be very interested in good information on the Hurricane. I suspect we have been poorly served by both documentary makers and game developers in favour of the Spitfire. Actually I would welcome any videos you care to make on any of the aircraft mentioned: they are always thoughtful, exceptionally researched and fascinating.

As always, Greg shows up in notifications and is the first thing watched. Love the technical details and logical, step by step presentation. The info on the Spitfire V is right in line with my own research.

Greg is really the GOAT thank you for this videos man really thank you

The Fw 190 D series always was my favorite plane since my grandmother bought me a model kit of that plane in the early 80s. Your videos provide a great deal of information. Thank you! There's only a minor "but" regarding audio quality. Might be due to the lack of insulating material on the walls like in an audio studio.

'we don't have data on a low octane Merlin' Oh yes we do, Rolls Royce Meteor. 'its R-R Merlin origins, the Meteor was very lightly stressed and reliable. With the introduction of the Meteor engine in the Cromwell, the boost to 550 horsepower (410 kW) gave the vehicle exceptional mobility and speed.' many of these engines were ex aircraft engines or components

Greg's in-depth knowledge of factors such as engineering and aircraft design are very impressive - which makes all his videos far more informative than most (or possibly all) other similar channels. Keep up the good work Greg..!

Good to see you back!

RE: The Packard Merlin being a direct clone of the RR Merlin. I read that when Packard acquired the engineering drawings and specifications from Rolls Royce they found they would not work with Packard production methods. They had to redraw all the blueprints to tighter tolerances. As I recall, tolerances of the Rolls Royce parts were too coarse and the parts usually required some degree of hand fitting before they could be installed, which was normal for Rolls Royce craftsmen. For efficient mass production Packard needed the parts to fit interchangeably without hand fitting, so they tightened the tolerances on the parts.

According to Stanley Hooker in his book 'Not Much of an Engineer', (ISBN 978 1 84797 325 2), the 60 series Merlin began in 1940 when the RAF asked for a turbo supercharged Merlin to deliver 1,000 HP at 30,000' for a pressurized Wellington bomber. While RR had well developed tech and tooling for mechanically driven centrifugal compressors, they'd be starting from scratch with an exhaust turbine. However, RR had the larger Vulture motor that delivered 1,000 HP at 30,000'. Long story short, they put the Vulture's compressor in front of the compressor of the Merlin 45 (the engine in the Spitfire V) and - with the after cooler - they got the requisite 1,000 HP at 30,000'. This Merlin 60 was tested in a Wellington bomber. RR suggested the engine be tried in a Spitfire and by mid 1941 they flight tested it in a Spitfire Mk I, which led to the Spitfire IX reaching service in June 1942. By the time the Mustang was in production, Packard was already producing Merlin XXs (or the Packard equivalent) under license. Given the interest in 1942 in the way the Merlin 61 transformed the performance of the Spitfire, it was hardly a leap of imagination to wonder what would happen if you put one in a Mustang. Neither was it much of a leap to get Packard to produce it. The conversion done by RR was literally that: a conversion. It even used a prop from a Spit IX. The RAF were exploring the feasibility of converting their existing fleet of approx 600 Mustang Is to Merlins. The new North American P-51B was a re-design rather than a conversion. Thus it got a deepened fuselage, redesigned induction and cooling systems, redesigned wing root, etc etc etc. It was a major undertaking.

Way to go Greg! Another hit. Thanks!

I would like to thank for the best pages to find info on Fw 190, with the inline engines, compared to for ex P51`s. Thanks again for covering what I really love, piston engines and the development into the automotive technologi you see in for example drag racing and street racing today. Just love it.

Greg, I love all your videos, but im still waitin on the final p47 videos!!! My favorite fighter due to alot of the reasons you mention. Waiting patiently, Jim

_"Don't ask me how this wasn't a violation of the Neutrality Act..."_ Yeah, don't ask the Roosevelt Administration that, either.

another fantastic video. very educational many thx for all of them!

Another great analysis. Thank you Greg.

Damn I have watched Jam Handy films in trade school in the early 80s. I always thought it was a play on words. You know, if you get in a jam this will be good to know.

Greg, love your work, as always very interesting and informative. Your videos almost always have some information that I wasn't aware of, such as the impact of higher octane fuel on late war allied aircraft performance, or why so few WWII aircraft used turbochargers rather than superchargers (which is kind of the reverse of the automotive case). I really liked your debunking of the P-51 range myth in an earlier video. If you ever find the time (and Mrs. Greg gives you permission) I'd love to hear what you had to say about the late war Japanese and Italian fighters (e.g. the Ki-84 or the Fiat G.55). Some of these seem to have been really exceptional machines about which there is very little discussion. (I don't know if there is sufficient detailed technical documentation to do the kind of work that you usually do). Anyway, keep it up!

Amazing .....the details....the little differences make a HUGE difference !

Very nice analysis. I especially liked your explanations about the 100, 130, 150 fuel and the importance of the bendix-stromberg pressure carburetor.

I think it all comes down to the pilot and the specifics of the situation. Each plane has certain situational advantages which can be utilized against the other by a skilled pilot. Either way, two of the loveliest combat aircraft to ever grace the sky.

FYI, the "Nur für den Dienstgebrauch" on your Fw190 manual is a security classification and translates to something like "for internal use only". Fascinating stuff, as always, Greg!

Very nice! I always LOVE when the detours start. 😂👍

Fantastic info as always. Thanks for sharing.

Excellent as usual, Greg. That I am able to keep up is something of a tribute to your ability to translate complex engineering concepts and data into a form where someone (me) with zero engineering background can understand it. I'm also very impressed by the combination of physics and metallurgy involved in the engine mounts for the Merlin, and for the Dora's V-12 as well. Finally, I hope you'll briefly explain in some other video (or perhaps have done so already, in which case, where?) what's involved in WW 2 propeller design. American piston-engined fighters didn't begin to go to paddle-bladed props until right at the end of the war, and even then, it's pretty uncommon to see them in photos. The F6F and F4U-4 that my Dad flew in 1944-45 all had relatively narrow prop blades. German fighters, however, especially the FW-190, seem to have adopted the paddle-bladed prop much earlier. Why? What are the advantages / disadvantages of narrow vs. wide propeller blades? My limited observations have been that few modern planes, private or commercial, use props with that sort of wide blade.

The P-51 D had was a vary different airplane than the earlier models. The "bubble" canopy is the most obvious but they also had greater affective virtical fin area , and thicker wings to house the browning M2 machine guns in it's "normal" position. I have read of complaints from pilots saying the the "D" model had "leaky" fire wall seals that made them vary hot at low levels and just no longer "fun" to fly.

I definitely prefer your hobby of making these video, keep up the good work. It's one the few times I will watch an hour long video without thinking twice.

Excited for this one, Thanks Greg!

The p51a design specification was for what the British called rhubarb attacks or missions. What we would call today ground attack. The specification called for the aircraft to fight from sea level to about 15,000 ft. The choice of the Allison was partly driven by the mission requirements and parts commonality with the P40. Keep in mind the P51 was designed as an alternative to building under license the P40.

We called them "Film Strips".

Excellent and informative as ever

Great job thank you very much for sharing this information some of which I have not heard before especially about the US contributions that really made the Mustang a legendary aircraft

I've always had a sort-of soft spot for the P-51 Mustang for some reason. It always seemed to me to be the decisive American contribution to the European air war during the latter days of WWII. And would have undoubtedly been my choice, if I had one lol if I was a pilot fighting for the Allies back then. 👍

I still wonder what could happen if Fw-190 fitted with BMW 801 TJ engines of ju-388 Ps.greg you improved your voice level on videos thank you for that :)

Best aviation channel on RU-vid!!! One word.....Incredible!

Awesome. Thanks for the amazing content 🙏😊

Yet another informative video Greg. Was not expecting this but enjoyed the surprise immensely. Very much looking forward to the next FW-190 video when it comes. 😁 Yet on the topic of engines, I suppose a video comparing the Allison and the Merlin would not be a bad video to see IMO. Since the Allison has been unfairly maligned through no fault of its own from what I have been learning these past two years. Would be interesting how they actually stack up to one another and from their differences, learn the history that resulted in their differences.

Sayeth my ground school teacher when asked what the difference between preignition and detonation was, "Oh... I'd say a few thousand dollars" XD

Thanks for another detailed vid on some awesome planes

I appreciate factualandand unbiased materials which are the fuel for knowledge and the preservatives of history. Thanks for taking the time to educate.

Greg, I've watched all your fw 190 series of videos and I would suggest you maybe another part where you can talk and explain more about the FW190 and the implementation of the DB 603 in some variants(ta 153 c, fw190c) the problems of this engine in those planes etc etc I'm not finding much information about this topic and you are like a living encyclopedia. Cheers.

„startleistung“ means „Take-off-power“ and „Notleistung“ means emergency power. All the best from Germany

I was born right after my dad came home from the Navy in WW II. When I was six years old he got me a model of an F6F Hellcat for Christmas, and helped me build it. He loved that plane, especially after the First Battle of the Philippine Sea in '44 (the Great Turkey Shoot).

Amazing Greg! Amazing!