Fighters and endurance

[Yaab]

In the in-game database and Tracker, aircraft endurance is represented by numerical value i.e. for American fighter P-26A the value is 276. P-26A has normal range of 4. Yet, if I go to the Aircraft Data screen in-game it says that P-26's endurance is 4 hrs 26 minutes. Also Zero and Wildcat have endurances of over 4 hrs, while most fighters have endurance of just 2-2,5hrs. Does that mean that Zeros, Wildcats or P-26s can loiter longer on CAP missions?

[kbfchicago]

No. My take from previous posts on this topic;

- CAP is a consistent % (20% is my recollection) of a %, so if you have 10 aircraft, on 100% CAP, 2 will be in the air at all times with the rest needing to scramble.

Neither fuel tanks nor endurance come into the equation.

Kevin

[Yaab]

What about LRCAP, when a P-26A loiters over a TF which is 4 hexes away from the base? Granted, P-26 would have longer transit time at its 117 mph cruise speed than, for example, Warhawk, but compare Wildcat/Zero to Warhawk - similar speeds, but it seems to me a Warhawk would loiter for just about 15 minutes and would then have to fly home for refuel, while Wildcat/Zero could squeeze an additional hour.

[wdolson]

The P-26 would have very poor loiter time. A P-40 with drop tanks would be able to loiter longer. The P-26 is there as sort of chrome. They were completely obsolete by the start of the war.

Bill

[Yaab]

Interesting. I see drop tanks boost endurance on P-40 from 2 hrs 54 min to a whopping 6 hrs 14 min. It would seem such P-40 with drop tanks should be able to loiter for a whole day phase if put on CAP at 0 range...

[geofflambert]

I'm quite certain I'm a knucklehead since I never have time to read the numerous treatises on any given subject. I was thinking thinking durability referred to how difficult an aircraft was to shoot down, and endurance how much wear and tear a particular airframe could absorb before it was scrapped. Endurance doesn't seem (to me) to have a direct correlation with range and if it did, why would you need that separate stat? Is there no starting point with aircraft giving the how long the machine will persist versus its wear? If not, why not?

[Yaab]

And Zero jumps from 4hrs 46 minutes to 7hrs 58 minutes with drop tanks. Are these numbers really just chrome or do they have some influence on CAP/LRCAP performance?

[jmalter]

I get much better CAP & LRCAP combat-results when the fighters use drop-tanks - they stay on-station longer, but use more supply. Even if the planes are doing CAP at range=0 over their own base, I'll set them to use drop-tanks if the supply situation is good.

I will also set Escort fighters to use drop-tanks if I have good supply at their base. They seem to stay in the fight longer.

This also applies when I use CV fighters - I set them to use drop-tanks, even if I don't use drop-tanks for the strike aircraft. This drains the mission-capability of the CVs more quickly, but I accept that because my experience shows that I get better combat results when the Escort/CAP fighters use drop-tanks.

Note to the Gorn - I think endurance correlates better to 'time on station', not airframe fatigue.