I thought that I had a difficult one this time. But Ernie has it correct. I was thinking of the A-36 Apache.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_A-36_Apache
What warbird am I?
1. At first glance I am often mistaken for a more famous warbird from the same time frame.
2. First introduced in 1942, but had a relatively short military lifespan
3. This plane also had 2 guns mounted in the nose
4. Modifications resulted in the loss of some of the guns mounted in the wing
5. While this plane was a modification of an existing warbird, the modifications required for its new role required a complete redesign of the wing.
6. This plane was powered by and Allison engine.
7. Modifications to the wing included strengthening the wing, fitting with bomb racks, and adding dive brakes.
8. 500 of this plane were produced.
9. Plane was designed for an attack/dive bomber role.
10. Plane was first deployed to North Africa in early 1943.
11. Plane could be put into a dive at 12,000' and the dive brakes would limit the plane speed to 390 mph.
12. In a dive bombs were released between 2,000'-4.000'
13. This plane had some serious accidents because of improper dive techniques, including one dive at over 450 mph that caused the plane to shed both wings.
14. Even though this variant had it's own name, most pilots tend to call it by the name given to the plane it was based on.
15. The Germans gave is a flattering and fearsome name of "Screaming Helldiver".
16. Even though these planes had a breif life, they played a major role in the Allied war effort.