Long Range at the expense of Armor Protection The cup is half empty capitalizes on the lack of armor protection for the pilot The cup is half full emphasizes the reason why the A6 M lacked armor It was designed for long range From about 1940 thru 1943 the A6 M had nearly double the flying range of an ME109 or British Spitfire And more than any other single engine fighter until the advent of the P47s and P51s Additionally no pilot armor could withstand the impact of an American 50 Browning machine gun bullet So long range was far more important than adding armor that would not stop a 50 caliber bullet anyway