[Christer Bergström]

Yes, it is also my understanding that 350th flew mostly coastal patrols, IIRC P-39's got only 14 kills in MTO, but April 6th wasn't its only ground attack day

That is quite right. Following the Allied defeat in the third battle of Monte Cassino and in preparation for the next Allied attempt to achieve a breakthrough, the 350th FG was temporarily called to bolster the intense Allied air offensive against German lines of communication. 27 March 1944 was one example, as Juha mentioned. The P-39s of 350th FG also were out attacking German lines of communication on 28 March 1944. On 2 April 1944, 350th FG Airacobras took off from Alghero/Sardinia, dive-bombed and strafed rail lines at Falloncia/Italy; refueled and rearmed at Ghisonaccia/Corsica; dive-bombed and strafed rail lines at S.Vincenzo/Italy; refueled and rearmed at Ghisonaccia; dive bombed and strafed rail lines at Grossetto/Italy; returned to Alghero/Sardinia. Then followed the 6 April operations which we have already discussed. Next on 11 April 1944 the Airacobras were even used to escort B-25s to bomb targets in Italy.

Where did you find the information that P-39s got only 14 kills in the MTO? If that is true, the P-39s had an even worse victory-to-loss rate in the MTO - even if only losses due to Axis fighters are included - than I thought. Can you imagine any other Allied fighter plane with such a bad victory-to-loss rate?

I agree that pilot opinions on the Airacobra differed, although the negative opinions appear to be in the majority. I have to say that I find it hard to understand why Major Douglas V N Parsons "hated" to exchange the Airacobra for a Thunderbolt - particularly since he in the same sentence admits that re-equipping on Thunderbolts meant an improvement of the air equipment. "We got better equipment, and we hated it. . ."

Okay. . .

Now if anyone believes that the Airacobra was a fighter plane which was equal to the Bf 109 G-6 or Fw 190 A - in spite of the US War Department's assessment that the Airacobra in April 1944 was an "outmoded aircraft" and "dangerously inferior to enemy fighters" - I can agree that we disagree, as Ruy puts it in his rules. I think we have come as far as possible in this discussion. I think we can all agree on that.

Thanks a lot for your contributions, which I learned new things from!