Distinguising One Lockheed Twin From Another

[mrhenniger]

I have some aircraft in some old pictures to try and ID. I need to be able to tell the differences between the Hudson, Ventura, Electras, etc. Where can I find good line drawings of these types. Preferably on the web so I can quickly get my hands on them. However I have heard about a book called "Lockheed Twins". Is this a good resource? Anyone know of an ISBN number and other details?

Regards,

Mike

[Scott Rose]

I have some aircraft in some old pictures to try and ID. I need to be able to tell the differences between the Hudson, Ventura, Electras, etc. Where can I find good line drawings of these types. Preferably on the web so I can quickly get my hands on them. However I have heard about a book called "Lockheed Twins". Is this a good resource? Anyone know of an ISBN number and other details?

Regards,

Mike

Try this site http://freespace.virgin.net/m.zoeller/

[JDK]

Amazingly, I'm working on Lockheed twins at the moment Mike!

a quick lesson:

Lockheed 10 - nice, slim fast looking. Came first.

Lockheed 12 - fast fewer seats than the 10. Looks VERY similar. Cowling tapers to the rear is the clue I use.

Lockheed 14 - Fat version of above, became:

Lockheed Hudson - above with guns, glazed nose etc. Fat, no step for ventral position, short compared to:

Lockheed Ventura etc (this is where I lose interest) Avaliable as military (not normally a glazed nose (different to Hudson) and with step for ventral gun position under rear fuselage.

Civil version (getting shaky here... ) 16? As above, but without guns.

Have a look over on the vintage aviation forum, and on the FP forum there was a thread a few days ago (with pics) of Hudson Survivors - but the usual Venturas got in there.

This guide's a bit wobbly, but is a quick one - corrections from the more knowledgeable hapily recieved...

Cheers James K

The book ISBN is 0 85130 284 X .
It was published in 2001 by Air Britain the author Peter J Marson.
It's an excellent hard-back thick and large volume with details (including drawings ) of all types plus conversions, full development description, lists of users and production histories of each individual aircraft.

[bilwor]

Mike,
Try this site: [url]http://freespace.virgin.net/m.zoeller/

bill word[/url]

[Dan K]

James,

I thought your "quickie" lesson was just fine, except you stopped one twin short of the design series: the Harpoon! Probably easiest way for the novice to tell PV-2 from PV-1 is that the Harpoon has the larger, "squared-off" vertical stabilizer and rudder. Also, where the Ventura's horizontal stabilizer extends outward slightly from the verticals, the Harpoon's horizontal ends "flush" with the verticals.

Probably the biggest design difference between the PV-1 and PV-2 was the Harpoon's extended wingspan. I'm sure some of the crews missed the hotrod feel of the Ventura, but single-engine operation on the Ventura's smaller wing was a challenge, and I'm sure the Harpoon pilots were happier in the long run (especially if trying to get back from Paramushiro to the Aleutians on a single engine).

[JDK]

Hi Dan,
Thanks. Yes, I'd missed the Harpoon. I think it all went wrong (aesthetically) with the Model 14! I also can stand corrected - early Venturas had 'glass' noses; like the Hudson, so it's the Ventral Step that tells 'em apart for certain.