This nifty little plane did its part to defeat the Axis.
Key point: This plane served in its own rightly role. Here is its forgotten history.
If there is an American combat airplane that has achieved an ill-deserved reputation, no doubt it would be the much-maligned Bell P-39 Airacobra, a tricycle landing gear single-engine fighter whose reputation was greatly overshadowed by the more famous, and of more recent design, Lockheed P-38 Lightning, Curtiss P-40 Tomahawk, Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, and North American P-51 Mustang.
In the minds of some, the P-39 was a practically worthless airplane, with few redeeming features.
They consider the nickname used by pilots of the P-39 Airacobra—Peashooter—a term of derision that implies the airplane’s effectiveness as a fighter. But the P-39’s many detractors ignore the reputation of the Airacobra with the Soviet Air Force, and the important role it played in the Southwest Pacific Area of Operations in 1942, when P-39s were the only fighters available, thanks at least in part to the decision not to use them in large numbers in the European Theater. And if considering overall capabilities instead of concentrating solely on certain features, the P-39 comes off as a capable fighter.