Miloch
October 20th 17, 03:17 PM
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_P-59_Airacomet
The Bell P-59 Airacomet was a twin jet-engined fighter aircraft, the first of
the United States, designed and built by Bell Aircraft during World War II. The
United States Army Air Forces were not impressed by its performance and
cancelled the contract when fewer than half of the aircraft ordered had been
produced. Although no P-59s entered combat, the fighter paved the way for
another design generation of U.S. turbojet-powered aircraft, and was the first
turbojet fighter to have its turbojet engine and air inlet nacelles integrated
within the main fuselage.
Major General Henry H. "Hap" Arnold became aware of the United Kingdom's jet
program when he attended a demonstration of the Gloster E.28/39 in April 1941.
The subject had been mentioned, but not in depth, as part of the Tizard Mission
the previous year. He requested, and was given, the plans for the aircraft's
powerplant, the Power Jets W.1, which he took back to the U.S. He also arranged
for an example of the engine, the Whittle W.1X turbojet, to be flown to the U.S
in October 1941 in the bomb bay of a USAAC Consolidated B-24 Liberator, along
with drawings for the more powerful W.2B/23 engine and a small team of Power
Jets engineers. On 4 September, he offered the U.S. company General Electric a
contract to produce an American version of the engine, which subsequently became
the General Electric I-A. On the following day, he approached Lawrence Dale
Bell, head of Bell Aircraft Corporation, to build a fighter to utilize it. Bell
agreed and set to work on producing three prototypes. As a disinformation
tactic, the USAAF gave the project the designation "P-59A", to suggest it was a
development of the unrelated Bell XP-59 fighter project which had been canceled.
The design was finalized on 9 January 1942, and construction began. In March,
long before the prototypes were completed, an order for 13 "YP-59A"
preproduction machines was added to the contract.
On 12 September 1942, the first XP-59A was sent to Muroc Army Air Field (today,
Edwards Air Force Base) in California by train for testing, taking seven days to
reach Muroc. While being handled on the ground, the aircraft was fitted with a
dummy propeller to disguise its true nature. The aircraft first became airborne
during high-speed taxiing tests on 1 October with Bell test pilot Robert Stanley
at the controls, although the first official flight was made by Col Laurence
Craigie the next day. A handful of the first Airacomets had open-air flight
observer stations (similar to those of biplanes) later cut into the nose; over
the following months, tests on the three XP-59As revealed a multitude of
problems including poor engine response and reliability (common shortcomings of
all early turbojets), insufficient lateral stability, i.e., in the roll axis,
and performance that was far below expectations. Chuck Yeager flew the aircraft
and was dissatisfied with its speed, but was amazed at its smooth flying
characteristics. Nevertheless, even before delivery of the YP-59As in June 1943,
the USAAF ordered 80 production machines, designated "P-59A Airacomet".
Role
Fighter
National origin
United States
Manufacturer
Bell Aircraft
First flight
1 October 1942
Primary users
United States Army Air Forces
United States Navy
Royal Air Force
Number built
66
The 13 service test YP-59As had a more powerful engine than their predecessor,
the General Electric J31, but the improvement in performance was negligible,
with top speed increased by only 5 mph and a reduction in the time they could be
used before an overhaul was needed. One of these aircraft, the third YP-59A
(S/n: 42-22611) was supplied to the Royal Air Force (receiving British serial
RG362/G), in exchange for the first production Gloster Meteor I, EE210/G.
British pilots found that the aircraft compared very unfavorably with the jets
that they were already flying. (The YP-59A also compared unfavorably with the
propeller-driven North American P-51 Mustang.) Two YP-59A Airacomets (42-108778
and 42-100779) were also delivered to the U.S. Navy where they were evaluated as
the "YF2L-1" but were quickly found completely unsuitable for carrier
operations.
Faced with their own ongoing difficulties, Bell eventually completed 50
production Airacomets, 20 P-59As and 30 P-59Bs. Each was armed with one 37 mm M4
cannon and 44 rounds of ammunition and three .50 cal (12.7 mm) machine guns with
200 rounds per gun. The P-59Bs were assigned to the 412th Fighter Group to
familiarize AAF pilots with the handling and performance characteristics of jet
aircraft. By 1950, all examples of the Airacomet were no longer airworthy. Over
time, disposal of the aircraft included use as static displays, instructional
aids in military training, and as static targets. While the P-59 was not a great
success, the type did give the USAAF experience with the operation of jet
aircraft, in preparation for the more advanced types that would shortly become
available.
Specifications (P-59B)
General characteristics
Crew: one
Length: 38 ft 10 in (11.84 m)
Wingspan: 45 ft 6 in (13.87 m)
Height: 12 ft 4 in (3.76 m)
Wing area: 386 sq?ft (35.86 m²)
Empty weight: 8,165 lb (3,704 kg)
Loaded weight: 11,040 lb (5,008 kg)
Max. takeoff weight: 13,700 lb (6,214 kg)
Powerplant: 2 × General Electric J31-GE-5 turbojets, 2,000 lbf (8.9 kN) each
Performance
Maximum speed: 413 mph (359 knots, 665 km/h) at 30,000 ft (9,140 m)
Cruise speed: 375 mph (326 knots, 604 km/h)
Range: 375 mi (326 nm, 604 km)
Service ceiling: 46,200 ft (14,080 m)
Climb to 30,000 ft (9,140 m): 15 min 30 s
Armament
Guns:
1x 37 mm cannon
3x .50 cal (12.7 mm) machine guns
Rockets: 8× 60 lb (30 kg) rockets
Bombs: 2,000 lb (910 kg) bombs
*
The Bell P-59 Airacomet was a twin jet-engined fighter aircraft, the first of
the United States, designed and built by Bell Aircraft during World War II. The
United States Army Air Forces were not impressed by its performance and
cancelled the contract when fewer than half of the aircraft ordered had been
produced. Although no P-59s entered combat, the fighter paved the way for
another design generation of U.S. turbojet-powered aircraft, and was the first
turbojet fighter to have its turbojet engine and air inlet nacelles integrated
within the main fuselage.
Major General Henry H. "Hap" Arnold became aware of the United Kingdom's jet
program when he attended a demonstration of the Gloster E.28/39 in April 1941.
The subject had been mentioned, but not in depth, as part of the Tizard Mission
the previous year. He requested, and was given, the plans for the aircraft's
powerplant, the Power Jets W.1, which he took back to the U.S. He also arranged
for an example of the engine, the Whittle W.1X turbojet, to be flown to the U.S
in October 1941 in the bomb bay of a USAAC Consolidated B-24 Liberator, along
with drawings for the more powerful W.2B/23 engine and a small team of Power
Jets engineers. On 4 September, he offered the U.S. company General Electric a
contract to produce an American version of the engine, which subsequently became
the General Electric I-A. On the following day, he approached Lawrence Dale
Bell, head of Bell Aircraft Corporation, to build a fighter to utilize it. Bell
agreed and set to work on producing three prototypes. As a disinformation
tactic, the USAAF gave the project the designation "P-59A", to suggest it was a
development of the unrelated Bell XP-59 fighter project which had been canceled.
The design was finalized on 9 January 1942, and construction began. In March,
long before the prototypes were completed, an order for 13 "YP-59A"
preproduction machines was added to the contract.
On 12 September 1942, the first XP-59A was sent to Muroc Army Air Field (today,
Edwards Air Force Base) in California by train for testing, taking seven days to
reach Muroc. While being handled on the ground, the aircraft was fitted with a
dummy propeller to disguise its true nature. The aircraft first became airborne
during high-speed taxiing tests on 1 October with Bell test pilot Robert Stanley
at the controls, although the first official flight was made by Col Laurence
Craigie the next day. A handful of the first Airacomets had open-air flight
observer stations (similar to those of biplanes) later cut into the nose; over
the following months, tests on the three XP-59As revealed a multitude of
problems including poor engine response and reliability (common shortcomings of
all early turbojets), insufficient lateral stability, i.e., in the roll axis,
and performance that was far below expectations. Chuck Yeager flew the aircraft
and was dissatisfied with its speed, but was amazed at its smooth flying
characteristics. Nevertheless, even before delivery of the YP-59As in June 1943,
the USAAF ordered 80 production machines, designated "P-59A Airacomet".
Role
Fighter
National origin
United States
Manufacturer
Bell Aircraft
First flight
1 October 1942
Primary users
United States Army Air Forces
United States Navy
Royal Air Force
Number built
66
The 13 service test YP-59As had a more powerful engine than their predecessor,
the General Electric J31, but the improvement in performance was negligible,
with top speed increased by only 5 mph and a reduction in the time they could be
used before an overhaul was needed. One of these aircraft, the third YP-59A
(S/n: 42-22611) was supplied to the Royal Air Force (receiving British serial
RG362/G), in exchange for the first production Gloster Meteor I, EE210/G.
British pilots found that the aircraft compared very unfavorably with the jets
that they were already flying. (The YP-59A also compared unfavorably with the
propeller-driven North American P-51 Mustang.) Two YP-59A Airacomets (42-108778
and 42-100779) were also delivered to the U.S. Navy where they were evaluated as
the "YF2L-1" but were quickly found completely unsuitable for carrier
operations.
Faced with their own ongoing difficulties, Bell eventually completed 50
production Airacomets, 20 P-59As and 30 P-59Bs. Each was armed with one 37 mm M4
cannon and 44 rounds of ammunition and three .50 cal (12.7 mm) machine guns with
200 rounds per gun. The P-59Bs were assigned to the 412th Fighter Group to
familiarize AAF pilots with the handling and performance characteristics of jet
aircraft. By 1950, all examples of the Airacomet were no longer airworthy. Over
time, disposal of the aircraft included use as static displays, instructional
aids in military training, and as static targets. While the P-59 was not a great
success, the type did give the USAAF experience with the operation of jet
aircraft, in preparation for the more advanced types that would shortly become
available.
Specifications (P-59B)
General characteristics
Crew: one
Length: 38 ft 10 in (11.84 m)
Wingspan: 45 ft 6 in (13.87 m)
Height: 12 ft 4 in (3.76 m)
Wing area: 386 sq?ft (35.86 m²)
Empty weight: 8,165 lb (3,704 kg)
Loaded weight: 11,040 lb (5,008 kg)
Max. takeoff weight: 13,700 lb (6,214 kg)
Powerplant: 2 × General Electric J31-GE-5 turbojets, 2,000 lbf (8.9 kN) each
Performance
Maximum speed: 413 mph (359 knots, 665 km/h) at 30,000 ft (9,140 m)
Cruise speed: 375 mph (326 knots, 604 km/h)
Range: 375 mi (326 nm, 604 km)
Service ceiling: 46,200 ft (14,080 m)
Climb to 30,000 ft (9,140 m): 15 min 30 s
Armament
Guns:
1x 37 mm cannon
3x .50 cal (12.7 mm) machine guns
Rockets: 8× 60 lb (30 kg) rockets
Bombs: 2,000 lb (910 kg) bombs
*