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The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt was one of the truly great fighters of World War II. It was designed around the most powerful engine then available, the new 1492kW (2000hp) Pratt & Whitney Double Wasp radial. The design was submitted to the USAAC in June, 1940 as the XP-47B and was immediately accepted, orders being placed in September for 171 production P-47Bs and 602 P-47Cs. The XP-47B flew for the first time on May 6, 1941. In the European Theatre alone, the Thunderbolt was credited with destroying 9,000 locomotives, 86,000 railway wagons, and 6,000 armoured vehicles. In all theatres of war, its pilots claimed the destruction of 3,752 enemy aircraft in the air and a further 3,315 on the ground.
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