Flying the Northrop P-61 " Black Widow" Night Fighter (1944)

[@drmeva]

No wonder this plane was used as a night fighter. Pre-flight checks takes all day...

[@thegreatdominion949]

The p-61 was really an over-complicated design which took a long time to come to fruition, so long in fact that by the time it appeared on the scene the need for night fighters had been much reduced. Consequently it ended up being used for a number of other roles in addition to night fighter and most of the airframes were scrapped immediately after the end of the war. Although some would disagree, despite its long design process and the fact that it was purpose-built as a night fighter, it wasn't even the best night fighter of the war.

[@Handle0i]

An then , check : Victory at Sea , it's been done , let's invent Peace please

[@hokep61]

In combat....the ground crew would periodically take care of that. Pilots then only had a minimum of checks.

[@noelwarner1235]

Ha ha very funny indeed

[@BJBFOREST]

I met an A20 (Havoc) pilot from the 89th Bomb Squadron, 3rd BG, 5th AF ,USAAC a few years ago and asked him how he kept his eyes on all these gauges during combat. He replied that you were just too busy and you just flew the aircraft with a few instruments and the feel of your seat. He passed away in Sept 2012 at the age of 91 yrs. Lest We Forget.

[@Sharty_McFly]

I can't wait until the Black Widow at the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum is airworthy! It would be an awesome thing to see.

[@akennas]

This was what my dad, Lt. Col. Richard "Dick" Stewart, flew in the south Pacific. He flew P-38's until the P-61's finally arrived. Really interesting to see what procedures he followed before, during, and after flights, He loved the Black Widow! His radar operator was James J. Allen, and that is who I am named after.

[@rodcordell]

I don't know where the film was made, but it could have been where we were stationed in 1942/1943 in Orlando, Florida or in 1944 till the end of the war. Hammer Field, Fresno, California. My dad was stationed there as a crew chief for the P-61 training squadrons. He just might have some involvement with the plane that was found in New Guinea or the one we left in China. He worked on the A20/P70 in Florida. He was 32 years old when he was drafted.

[@tomski787]

Great, showing the pre-flight walk around, a luxury that most day-fighter pilots didn't have - they had to rely on the ground crew. But WWII ground crew were probably the best ever, they had so much pride…I believe the P-61 was the first plane EVER to be expressly designed as a night fighter, others being adaptations of existing day designs. Although a large aircraft, its deceleron ailerons and spoiler arrangement made it competitively manoeuvrable. Thanks for this, its good to see it flying!

[@SebHaarfagre]

+Tom Foyle First plane ever for the USA, yes. The other major WWII participants, no.

[@MrJest2]

Fascinating how much effort is spent on engine maintenance and monitoring in these old craft - things we take for granted now, all controlled by electronics and "they either work or they don't". No fiddling with cowling flaps or oil radiator cooling ducts; that stuff is all taken care of for us - if it's even necessary at all. "Pilots" of the era had more in common with steam locomotive engineers than today's USAF fighters... literally (think where the term "engineer" comes from).

[@MrJDP1974]

I love you videos! Thank you so much for the time and effort!

[@ronaldmoskovitz6630]

At the Reading Pennsylvania Airport Museum, they are rebuilding a P 61

[@justforever96]

If the circuit breakers are behind the gunner's seat, what do you do if one gets tripped when you're flying alone? You can't leave the seat to re-set them.

[@deepscuba7384]

One thing you don't see in the video is "numbers". Literally tens of thousands of other fighter types were produced during WW II. Only 700... that's right... only about 700 P-61s were ever built. Very specialized aircraft. VERY SPECIAL MEN TO FLY HER.

[@DubbleTwice]

Well this looks bloody difficult. I got lost after checking the wheel-thingies.

[@fjbutch]

Didn't know about this aircraft 'til now...awesome..

[@525Lines]

When I visited the Planes of Fame air museum in Diamond Bar, California, the museum was in an airfield. A nearby hanger had a P-61 in it. The pilot or owner wouldn't get me get near it.

[@williamaustin217]

My dad was a machinist at Northrop, building these animals.

[@steadmanuhlich6734]

Stealthy night fighter with three man crew and heavy armament.

[@jackwhite9395]

I had never heard of a P-61 before. Great video. TKS!

[@Alecin_]

It's the most beautifull aircraft of ww2

[@theunknowngamer5477]

A random search for unusual airplanes... This is KZbin GOLD! How was it possible for the pilot to do anything other than fly this ship?

[@MrJest2]

Single pilot, yes. Generally they had a crew of 3, including a gunner/weapons officer (they could and did drop bombs) and a radar operator, which was an even more complicated specialty in and of itself. Computers now let one person do all three tasks, but "back in the day" .......

[@howdyradio934]

Thank you for uploading. Watching from Australia

[@pip12111]

"An obituary notice goes with each fight" Epic,

[@Flamehazard]

Isn't it "with each bite"?

[@EvilBonsai]

Was hoping for more information about the other crew stations.

[@HuasoPodrido]

Holy Crud! What was the setting again.......

[@Ronbo710]

I still remember the cool diorama Monogram put in their model kit of this plane. My favorite I never got to see in the air (too young) is the B-36 but this is a close second.

[@MrFlintlock7]

If you haven't seen it, "Strategic Air Command" has some decent B-36 flight scenes.

[@saburusakai]

When my late Dad was in the post war USAF just after it gained independance as it own service, and the designation was changed to F-61, he was an early warning radar operator in Japan, and regularly scrambled 61s at night and in daylight along with F-51s to intercept soviet snooper aircraft (it was a big game) until he left in late 48. They were scrambled in daylight along withthe 51s sometimes since they had radar.

[@ZenosWarbirds]

Like what you see? Your DVD purchases at our store make this channel possible. www.zenosflightshop.com Don't miss our P-61 DVD with two more videos & complete P-61 pilot's manual bit.ly/I3d0Nc We need your support! Zeno

[@michaelapps2890]

hi

[@MrJest2]

Oh, yeah... and deadly in the right hands. As intimated in the film, it took a lot of work and concentration to make it run, but with a good crew it was an utterly devastating aircraft. Appeared too late in the war to have the effect it could have, and was quickly outclassed by post-war tech advances... but if things had rolled a little differently back then this could have been a decisive machine. I've always loved it (although B17s are still my fave, for irrational emotional reasons)

[@sdingeswho]

Had to check this out 😁 - in my news-feed today was a nice article on the one being restored to airworthiness at Mid-Atlantic Air Museum! Amazing labor of love, to do that, since there aren’t many “junkers” you can scrounge for spare parts left in the world 😮. One of the other commenters mentioned a P-61 being crashed into a mountain on a joy-ride with a nurse, in someplace like New Guinea … that sounds very similar to the back-story on the one being restored at Mid-Atlantic Air Museum 😁!

[@Goatboysminion]

That was a sleek, sexy looking thing.

[@stealth7usa]

John Anderson, Pilot of "Tennessee Ridge Runner" Photo Documentary #1 - WWII 422nd Night Fighter Squadron - P-61 Pilot John Anderson

[@Bluenose352]

Come ooon MAAM!! Get that baby restored and back in the air!!

[@casperfriendly47]

That's one bad bird!

[@taketimeout2share]

Jeez! I didnt really appreciate this was a single seater. I thought there were co pilots like in a Mossie. Wow. Busy pilot! Hot ship need hot pilots. Respect is due and is given.

[@stuarthawksworth]

The Mosquito did not have a co-pilot and indeed did not have dual controls. The other crew member was a navigator/bomb aimer.

[@richwalter3107]

This is a 3 man crew... how'd you figure its a single seater ???

[@tholmes2169]

“I’ve got to concentrate…concentrate…concentrate…”

[@JackFlemingFan1]

Excellent video!

[@3-2-1-.]

A WWII guy once told me that he was stationed on an island in the Pacific and they had Black Widows. One night a young pilot took a nurse up in one, which was not allowed. Fraternization and all... Anyway, he had her in his lap during takeoff. He didn't get enough speed to clear the mountain after the runway, and crashed that bad boy right into the jungle. It was too high up on the mountain for them to do anything with the aircraft. Don't recall survivors in the story. I heard they rediscovered and removed the airplane, around 2010? The US Air Force Museum has one restored in Ohio.

[@PhantomMigKiller]

Boy-! There sure is an awful lot to remember when flying one of these old airplanes-!

[@frankteunissen6118]

That is what checklists are for.

[@vampsith]

An obituary notice goes with each bite.

[@frankteunissen6118]

The P-61 looks impressive, but in fact it was already obsolescent when it entered service. For one thing it wasn’t fast enough. The De Havilland Mosquito performed way better all round, as even acknowledged by the USAAF by acquiring some from the British.

[@iaiband]

this is the most bad ass training vid ive ever seen... 4 20 mm cannon an obituary notice goes with each bite...

[@nukebuilder]

Wow, I had no idea these planes were so complicated.

[@edhilferty9287]

My uncle was killed in a P61 Black Widow, off Pearl Harbor in 1949 , night flying two crashed, USMC. The bodies were never recovered.

[@TheAverageSushi]

Are you lying ? I asked since I don't see anything about a P-61 lost in the year of 1949 in Pearl Harbor and I'm pretty sure only the USAF and the USAAF flies these...

[@russnixon6020]

Two USMC aircraft and four aviators were lost 5 April 1949 off Barber's point. Maybe he got the A/C type wrong... BTW, the Navy did have some P-61Bs postwar.

[@skyfix9813]

Did he say, getting checked out on her is a pleasure? Holy shit! I can't even remember to press the priming bulb on my lawn mower before I'm exhausted trying to start it. He thinks I can remember this shit..?

[@TheDarwiniser]

+skyfix My guess is a manual checklist that is completed via ticking off each step before every flight. Once you had been through it a number of times it would be easier to remember.

[@briancooper2112]

Why wasnt this plane used in Korea?

[@SupernalOne]

Good Lord, it takes about 20 minutes to make ready to take off

[@SenorSpode]

How does that make that bad?

[@SupernalOne]

***** nothing really, it's just a complicated machine - as all aircraft are, presumably - but it's impressive to see how much a pilot has to learn

[@ronaldreed3446]

great aircraft,,i have to finish two 1/48 models

[@paulmanson253]

Is there anyone out there who can tell me why it is so important the rubber tires not creep on the rims ? Presumably the answer was written in blood when something unpleasant happened.

[@russnixon6020]

They become unbalanced and at 110 KIAS landing speed, a little bit of imbalance can lead to "death wobble", especially in the nose gear. With the size and mass of those tires, a little creep can be dangerous.

[@agoodchristianpilot159]

Those engines sounds.... that’s so unique!!! The P-61 sounds so menacing and scary. Must’ve given Japanese diaper companies one hell of a boost in product!

[@JTelli786]

BoTimeGaming brought me here!

[@SebHaarfagre]

+JTelli786 Same here, but I don't think anyone cares -_-

[@TheAverageSushi]

Really ? Cause the show Dogfights from years ago did

[@deepscuba7384]

Never was called "widow maker". The early B-26 was called a flying prostitute... the wings were so small that it was said to have "no visible means of support". There was also a saying about the B-26... "One a day in Tampa Bay". Dolittle demonstrated the aircraft before he took command of the 8th Air Force...proved everybody wrong.

[@camlpg]

Just got my Bachelor's Degree in How to Fly a Black Widow.

[@bboucharde]

Ever wonder what borders, language, and culture means? ..... This film rests on a set of values that are fundamental to the survival of our republic: (1) We have recognized borders, and we defend them. (Mexico & Central America, take note.) (2) We speak, write, & read English. It is the basis of all technical & business communication in our society. That was true in 1942, and it remains true now. (3) We are a Judeo-Christian culture that has immensely benefited by the scientific revolution and the Enlightenment. We are an advanced people who can build highly complex, powerful, & sophisticated machines. And, the average Joe can learn how to use them---if he follows the rules. We operate by consistent and objectively established standards.....including how to maintain and fly a P-61 aircraft. But, when you watch this video, think about the wonderful society that built it......and realize that VERY few other nations even TODAY could design and build something like this.

[@SebHaarfagre]

+bboucharde lol. Btw it was built/designed by a genius workaholic. All that USA did, was put it in service when it had become useless.

[@bboucharde]

SebSk Seb, Your point does not contradict my point. And, the souls of the German and Japanese crews that were shot down by P-61's would argue with you about your "useless" adjective. In any case, I was making a much broader point, which stands. Obviously, you can read the Wikipedia article about this aircraft, and mull over your word choice: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_P-61_Black_Widow The conversation is over.

[@SebHaarfagre]

The conversation isn't over unless both parties choose it to be. I used the word "useless" to emphazise how late the US actually put them into action. They had a wonderous machine in front of them, and ignored it. I know you had a much broader point of view. I just found it a bit over the top, if not zealous.

[@bboucharde]

SebSk OK

[@williambeck2202]

I read the P61s own book on the history and the general performance of all P61s made(742) , the things were a disaster, in the back of the book is a long list of everyone made, you see landing gear collapses all the time ( left, right and nose) the engines had a habitat catching on fire as did the fuselage , oh and the vaulted turret with 4 .50 cal machine guns didn’t work until the very last of the war, it has the dubious distinction of being the cause of an Army nurses death ! , taken up for a ride the POS caught on fire behind the pilot and burned her to death before he could set the plane down, and this thing was huge-almost as big as a B25 and carrying the same equivalent armament of a single seat fighter it has a terrible history completely ignored by the old crews who give their loyalty to a death trap that was never the shining example of American skill and craft and deserves to be remembered for what it was , a nightmare !

[@Goatboysminion]

Nah, give me the B24. Gotta love a workhorse.

[@armoredangel01]

I'll take the even bigger workhorse, the B17, over the 'Flying Boxcar'

[@wpmk]

Check and sign for red diagonals.

[@Ronbo710]

(before take-off) Now go refuel and do it all again

[@camlpg]

No info on how to use MGs or Cannons, and no info on how to use radar in night fighting.

[@noelwarner1235]

One at the Air Force Museum at Dayton Ohio ,but I dont think it is flyable.

[@Neopedia]

Este fue usado en bahía de Cochinos en la fallida invasión a cuba. Los aviones usados fueron dejados en Guatemala

[@phayzyre1052]

Damn! Check this, check that, do this, do that, adjust this, adjust that! Now I see why they called this silly thing a “night fighter”… by the time you got airborne it was night!

[@ZenosWarbirds]

One thing in common with just about every one of these WW2 aircraft training videos is that they stress the importance of doing the check list. That’s because there was lots of evidence that crews who ignored it had a disproportionate likelihood of crashing from non combat related SNAFUs.

[@phayzyre1052]

@@ZenosWarbirds Oh, I know. I’m a private pilot to. It just seems like with these older airplanes for everything we have to check nowadays they had to check 20 things back then!

[@nonnobissolum]

I wonder if these members of the greatest generation struggled with figuring out what their preferred pronouns might be...

[@onceANexile]

The god dam pilot needs a haircut!

[@leehansen4750]

Typical military! Teach ten times what you need to concentrate on! How to shoot a Mi carbine! Took all day to teach, took three minutes to shoot EXPERT on first try! No heavier them my .22, squirrel gun. LOT less kick then my 12 gauge pheasant shot gun! Sights were self explanatory & got all in the bull but two & they were right next to it! Felt sorry for those that never went hunting, or handled a gun before. My dad had four sons & we were 13 or so when he took us hunting squirrels, pheasants, rabbits & fishing! He was a WW2 infantryman & was decorated for bravery , with a bronze star after serving in the " Battle of the bulge, " where he carried a browning automatic rifle! Killed a lot of Germans & was nearly killed himself. Passed in 2012 @ 93! Still miss him!

[@SebHaarfagre]

Ok, video finished. I think I'll remember it now. .... not -_- holy jesus

[@animalacker]

uncage the gyro's! Shit, we gettin' ready to scramble nigga!

[@billybonewhacker]

water injection? wtf

[@billybonewhacker]

***** wow thanks alot. i never knew that even about methanol, which i assume has better frezze properties.

[@russnixon6020]

Actually, it's usually a mixture of both. It is used to delay or eliminate combustion detonation.

[@hokep61]

Actually it was to give a few seconds of extra power boost. War Power Mode.

[@MrJest2]

Well, no... this was a wartime film; these techs were either classified or just not generally disseminated on principal. What is funny is that today's radar operators would be totally befuddled by the non-computer-assisted displays this old bird used, and would have no clue how to use them to aim weapons.

[@soonermodels1173]

Is that Ronald Reagan?

[@alreadytracer8864]

yep, he's in quite a few

[@williambeck2202]

Most defective aircraft of WE2 , Engine and fuselage fires , landing gear collapses, famed 4 gun turret didn't work , etc , worst and most dangerous aircraft of WW2

[@hokep61]

You Really don't know what your talking about. My Dad was a crew chief on a P-61 with the 427th NFS. The pilots and crews loved the plane. Was a very stable aircraft to fly.

[@りょういち-h9y]

B-25とP-61は、 男子の厄年なので、日本ではやみ嫌われた？

[@tspiderkeeper]

it was later called widow maker for the deaths from crashes it caused making a lot of wives back home widows of the pilots who crashed in these

[@deepscuba7384]

Just the opposite... my dad was a Sqd CO in the Pacific. No such name was ever attached for both reasons (from the film and yours). My family exists because it DID bring him home!

[@tspiderkeeper]

This aircraft had a lot of crashes research it .Your dad was one of the lucky ones that known how to pilot it greatly

[@navajoc8025]

the82spartans actually, the narrator says 'black widow' not widow maker... now pay attention and say sorry to TSpider Keeper

[@tspiderkeeper]

np told you

[@SebHaarfagre]

+Navajo C What? They both (TSpider and spartans) say "widow maker". Wtf lol And that was not even the point...