Warbird Information Exchange

Hello all:
I was curious if anyone could answer a question regarding the Hawker Typhoon and Tempest:
Was curious why the Typhoon and Tempest seem to be the only single seat fighters (ETO) I can think of that have the pilot climb aboard from the right (starboard) side?

The myth -- when I was still actively flying military aircraft -- was that the pilot always mounted the aircraft from the left -- theoretically a carryover from the days of horse cavalry.

I thought possibly the throttle quadrant would obstruct entry/egress on the car-door style Typhoons but a look at the cockpit shows most controls are out of the way (or less in-the-way than the Spit with its small door).

The Hurricane appears to be boarded from the traditional left-hand side.

Tempest also boards from the right side (ala Typhoon) but the follow-on Fury/Sea Fury reverts back to the left side.

Minutae but something I've wondered about for a while. Opinions? Thanks

The steps and hand holds on the F4U series is on the right side. Also,
the P-61s canopy hinged on the left side but good luck getting in through there.

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Don't touch my junk!!

Jacks right the Corsair is a right side entry/exit type aircraft. There is a true art to getting in & out quick on these babies. Many moons ago when I used to help Merle Gustafason with his F4U4, I was a master at those hand holes & foot steps (was a lot younger & in better shape then). If I tried to do it quick now I am sure I would bust my ass. Several years ago Joe Tobul let me climb around on his F4U, after not have been around one in a long time, & man I was worn out.
Regards
Robbie

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Fly Fast Make Noise!

WW II US Navy aircraft were mounted from the right because the pilots came out of the island and then didn't have to walk around it.

Perhaps right side entry came about initially on "car door" Typhoons because english cars were entered on the right ?

Of note, is the fact that these Typhoons had a functional left door aswell.

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Regards,
R.J.Mitchell

Interestingly this same topic of which side you get in and out came up on the FlyPast forum only a day before his one started. See the many suggestons here

http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/showth ... light=exit

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My question was mostly aimed at aircraft in the European Theatre (ETO) but I did find the comments on the F4U interesting. The logic of boarding from the carrier's island-side seems straight forward. On those lines, it then seems paradoxical that the RN's Sea Fury -- an outgrowth of the Typhoon/Tempest -- would revert back to boarding from the left (e.g. the seaward side of the ship) when its predecessors both boarded from the right.

As already mentioned, the early Typhoons with the car doors did have doors on both sides. Despite this, even the earliest prototypes (including Tornado) seem devoid of steps/handholds on the port side.

One can probably safely argue that Tempest retained the starboard side steps as a simple wartime expedient of not bothering to change the basic center fuselage of the Typhoon production line. Whether Tempest literally has an unchanged fuselage (excluding new tail assembly and extended nose), I don't know. An interesting trivia question that I've wondered about for several years!