Further improvements to the P-40 line produced the "D" model which raised performance specifications of the Allison piston engine. By this time, armament had increased to 6 x 12.7mm machine guns and the addition of an optional undercarriage bomb rack that allowed for the provision of a single 500lb bomb adding to the versatility of the aircraft. The engine cowling was revised some. On top of the diverted French Warhawks/Tomahawks, the British also ordered their own P-40D models and assigned the name of "Kittyhawk" to these. The notable follow-up marks, therefore, included the P-40D, P-40E, Kittyhawk Mk 1 and Kittyhawk Mk Ia. These served from 1942 into 1943 and fought over New Guinea, Guadalcanal, Kokoda, Milne Bay, Darwin, North Africa and over China.
From 1942 to 1942, the P-40K, P-40M and Kittyhawk Mk III all made their appearance in the war. The K-model had a revised, larger-area tail fin while M-models saw lengthened tail units altogether. These served over Guadalcanal, Kokoda, Milne Bay and Darwin.
The P-40F, P-40L, Kittyhawk Mk II and Kittyhawk Mk IIa introduced the Packard-Merlin engine and lost their top-mounted engine intakes. Armament varied some across the new marks and some featured lengthened fuselages. These airframes operated over North Africa, the Mediterranean Sea and across the Pacific Theater during 1943 with American and Free French air forces.
The P-40N, Kittyhawk Mk IV and Warhawk lines appeared from 1943 to 1944 over the Mediterranean and South West Pacific theaters of war. These featured a revised rear cockpit section promising improved situational awareness. A lengthened fuselage promoted more internal volume as well as stability. Some versions lacked the wing guns to save weight.
By this in the war, the Warhawk line was increasingly out-classed by newer generation enemy fighters. Regardless, the Warhawk - in all its varied forms, continued to find success wherever it was fielded up to the closing weeks of the conflict, solidifying her place as one of the classic American fighters of World War 2.
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