P-47 Fanboy Rewrites History

[Leo Etgen]

Hi guys

Here is an excellent example of why one can not trust everything written on Wikipedia. On the Fw 190 page there are included the comments made by Leutnant Karl-Heinz Ossenkopf of 2./JG 26 in which he discusses how the Fw 190 D-9 compared to the Fw 190 A-8 as well as various Allied fighters. Apparently some P-47 fanboy did not enjoy his remarks as to how the Dora-9 compared to the Thunderbolt and edited his remarks to give the impression that the comparison was based upon the early P-47C as can be seen below:

"Compared with the early P-47 ThunderboltC..."

He then edited the footnote to add the following:

"This comparison was to the early P-47C. However, this was not true of the later P-47D with its 433 mph (697 km/h) top speed and paddle propeller, which came as a shock to German Fw 190 pilots used to a more sluggish opponent."

Of course, Ossenkopf, who joined JG 26 in August 1944, was not comparing the Fw 190 D-9 to the P-47C. I./JG 26 began taking the Dora-9 on strength in December 1944 and as such the variant of the P-47 that Ossenkopf would have engaged with this type would have been the P-47D. As an aside, someone should inform our fanboy that you do not edit direct quotes no matter how strongly you may disagree with the sentiments of the author.

Horrido!

Leo

Well, great work! You have helped me to improve my knowledge about this field. Thank you so much for sharing.