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The XF6F-6s were the fastest version of the Hellcat series with a top speed of 417 mph (671 km/h), but the war ended before this variant could be mass-produced. [ 12 ] [ 36 ] The last Hellcat rolled out in November 1945, the total production being 12,275, of which 11,000 had been built in just two years. [ 37 ]
VF-1 F6F-3 launches from the hangar deck catapult of USS Yorktown in June 1943 VF-1 F6F-3 aboard USS Yorktown, June 1944. VF-1 operating the Grumman F6F Hellcat was embarked on the USS Yorktown (CV-10) on its shakedown cruise in the Caribbean in June 1943. VF-1 was transferred to Kaneohe Naval Air Station in August 1943. [2]
VF-2 Grumman F6F-3 Hellcat crash-lands aboard USS Enterprise, 10 November 1943. VF-2 was established on 1 June 1943, at Naval Air Station Atlantic City. VF-2, known now as the "Rippers," became the first World War II fighting squadron to bear the same designation as a previous unit in the war. Several pilots came from VF-6 and VF-10.
File: Burning Grumman F6F-3 Hellcat of VF-2 aboard USS Enterprise (CV-6) on 10 November 1943 (80-G-205473).jpg
The Bearcat was influenced by the larger F6F Hellcat. In 1943, Grumman was introducing the F6F Hellcat , powered by the Pratt & Whitney R-2800 engine, which provided 2,000 horsepower (1,500 kW). The R-2800 was the most powerful American engine, so it would be retained for the G-58.
Grumman's Wildcat production ceased in early 1943 to make way for the newer F6F Hellcat, but General Motors continued producing Wildcats for both U.S. Navy and Fleet Air Arm use. Late in the war, the Wildcat was obsolescent as a front line fighter compared to the faster (380 mph/610 km/h) F6F Hellcat or much faster (446 mph/718 km/h) F4U Corsair.
The W16-powered Bugatti Mistral has set a new record for top speed for open-top production cars, reaching 282 miles per hour in testing.
English: A U.S. Navy Grumman F6F-3 Hellcat of Fighter Squadron 1 (VF-1) in flight over California (USA), in early 1943. VF-1 was redesignated VF-5 in July 1943.