Quote:
Originally Posted by Achtung baby
The P-38 suffered in the higher altitudes in the cooler climates, but was a damn good kit.
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Actually there was nothing wrong with the P-38 at altitude or in cooler climates, the problem was that pilots were cruising at altitude using too rich of a setting on the fuel mixture control.
This over cooled the engines so when the pilots went from cruise to full power, it caused the pistons to over heat, resulting in piston seizure.
Once Lockheed technicians taught the crews to cruise at leaner settings, the engine failures were dramatically reduced.