"Keith Willshaw" wrote in message
...

"William Wright" wrote in message
news:VVP2d.210921$Fg5.133498@attbi_s53...



At Pearl Harbor? I don't think so.

I do, as did the congressional board of inquiry

The most they got over the target at one
time was about 45.

According to the joint congressiional committee findings
the Japanese had 81 fighter aircraft in the attack wave

43 in the first wave (+2 aborts), 35 in the second wave (+1 abort) and the
rest (27) for CAP over Kido Butai (108 total). Maximum number over the
target at one time was 43.


Just about any time P-40s or F4Fs took on Type 0 Kansen
on equal terms they did reasonably well with losses being pretty close
to
one-to-one. When the Americans really got wacked they were usually out
numbered 2 or 3 to one. The Hawaiian Air Force had 64 P-40s and 20 P-36s
in
commission that morning.

The had exactly 108 fighters of all type on strength but a full
59 of those were not available for flight leaving only 49
airworthy fighters.

According to the Operational History of the Seventh Air Force, aircraft in
commission were 9 P-40C, 55 P-40B, 20 P-36A, 7 P-26A and 3 P-26B (94 total)
and aircraft out of commission were 4 P-40C, 32 P-40B, 19 P-36A, 1 P-26A and
3 P-26B (59 total) for a total of 153.

Destroyed were 5 P-40C, 37 P-40B, 4 P-36A, 5 P-26A, 1 P-26B (52 total) and
in comission after the attack were 2 P-40C, 25 P-40B, 16 P-36A, 2 P-26A and
2 P-26B (47 total).

I think you might have misremembered.


Even the Far East Air Force only suffered about
one-to-one loss ratio in air combat on December 8th. The problem was
they
were only able to get about 12 of their 72 P-40s into combat against
about
100 Type 0s.


You just said the IJN only had 45

This last paragraph refers to the attack on the Far East Air Force
(Philippines). That attack force got some thing like 100 fighters over the
target at one time.


Keith