Why Was The US Navy & Marines’ WWII F4U Corsair Known As The ‘Whistling Death’?

Besides actual kill ratios against enemy aircraft, one of the great testaments to a fighter plane’s combat efficacy is the respectfully deadly nicknames bestowed upon it by those adversaries. For example, during World War II, the Lockheed P-38 Lightning was nicknamed “Der Gabelschwanz Teufel” (the fork-tailed devil) by Nazi Germany’s Luftwaffe.