.jpg)
10 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. Vought F4U Corsair (USMC): Gerry Metzler· CC BY-SA 2.0
- 2. Grumman F2G Corsair: en:User:Bzuk· Copyrighted free use
- 3. AU-1 Corsair in flight 1952: U.S. Navy· Public domain
- 4. Boyingtons Corsair: Cizek Martin· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 5. Brewster F3A-1 Corsair: USN· Public domain
- 6. CF15 Corsair ZK-COR 040415 02: Oren Rozen· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 7. Chance vought corsair f4u-5n FAH-609: User:Bernardo Moncada· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 8. Corsair FG-1D Bu88391 RNZAF: Alexander Flühmann· CC BY-SA 3.0
- 9. Corsair Mk1 Quonset Point 1943: USN· Public domain
- 10. F4U-1 Corsair in flight c1942: USN· Public domain
what is it?
The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft that saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Designed and initially manufactured by Chance Vought, the Corsair was soon in great demand; additional production contracts were given to Goodyear, whose Corsairs were designated FG, and Brewster, designated F3A. The Corsair was designed and principally operated as a carrier-based aircraft, and entered service in large numbers with the U.S. Navy and Marines in World War II. It quickly became one of the most capable carrier-based fighter-bombers of the war. Some Japanese pilots regarded it as the most formidable American fighter, and U.S. naval aviators' claims suggested an 11:1 kill ratio.
How to recognise it: 1 piston engine with propeller · 12.5 m wingspan
base stats
Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).
fun facts
- First flew 86 years ago, in 1940.
- Top speed is 5.5× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- Wingspan of 12.5 m: about 3 cars parked nose to tail.
- Range of 1,633 km: 9× Amsterdam to Brussels.
- Can fly 1.4× higher than Mount Everest (8,849 m).
piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.
spec sheet
- first flight
- 1940-05-29
- introduced
- 1942
- retired
- 1979
- status
- retired
- number built
- 12,618
- role
- carrier-based fighter-bomber
- origin
- 🇺🇸 United States
- makers
- Brewster Aeronautical Corporation, Goodyear Aerospace, Vought
- engines
- 1× Pratt & Whitney R-2800-18W / R-2800 Double Wasp
- length
- 10.3 m
- wingspan
- 12.5 m
- height
- 4.5 m
- max take-off weight
- 6,592 kg
- top speed
- 717 km/h
- cruise speed
- 346 km/h
- range
- 1,633 km
- ceiling
- 12,649 m
- wings
- monoplane
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
family
Sources: Wikidata Q465806, Wikipedia: Vought F4U Corsair (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.