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Bell P-59 Airacomet

August 20, 2023

"P-59" redirects here. For other uses, see P-59 (disambiguation).
"XP-59" redirects here. For the unrelated Bell XP-59 fighter, see Bell XP-52.

The Bell P-59 Airacomet was a single-seat, twin jet-engine fighter aircraft that was designed and built by Bell Aircraft during World War II, the first produced in the United States. As the British were further along in jet engine development, they donated an engine for the United States to copy in 1941 that became the basis for the General Electric J31 jet engine used by the P-59 a year later. Because the plane was underpowered, the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) was not impressed by its performance and canceled half of the original order for 100 fighters, using the completed aircraft as trainers. The USAAF would instead go on to select the Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star as its first operational jet fighter. Although no P-59s entered combat, the aircraft paved the way for later generations of U.S. turbojet-powered aircraft.

P-59 Airacomet
Bell P-59B Airacomet at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Dayton, Ohio
Role Fighter/Jet Trainer
National origin United States
Manufacturer Bell Aircraft
Designer Robert A. Wolf and Herbert L. Bower
First flight 1 October 1942
Primary users United States Army Air Forces
Number built 66

Design and development

 
The Power Jets W.1 engine that was later to be produced by GE as the General Electric J31

Major General Henry H. "Hap" Arnold became aware of the UK's jet program when he attended a taxiing 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. on 1 October in a Consolidated B-24 Liberator,[1] 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 pre-production aircraft was added to the contract.[2]

The P-59A had an oval cross-section, all-metal stressed skin semi-monocoque fuselage that housed a single pressurized cockpit. The mid-mounted, straight wing had two spars plus a false spar in the inner panel. The electrically-powered tricycle landing gear was attached to the center spar. The pair of General Electric J31 turbojets were positioned under the wing roots in streamlined nacelles. The armament was located in the nose of the aircraft; two of the three XP-59As and most of the YP-59As had a pair of 37-millimeter (1.5 in) M10 autocannon. Later aircraft, including the production models, had one M10 autocannon and three 0.5-inch (12.7 mm) AN/M2 Browning heavy machine guns. The aircraft carried a total of 290 US gallons (1,100 L; 240 imp gal) of fuel in four self-sealing tanks in the inner wing panels. Both production models could carry 1,590-US-gallon (6,000 L; 1,320 imp gal) drop tanks under the wings. In addition, the P-59B was provided with a 66-US-gallon (250 L; 55 imp gal) fuel tank in each outer wing panel.[3][4]

The crated prototype had been built on the second floor of a disused Pierce-Arrow factory, but its components were too big to fit through any elevator and required a hole to be broken in the brick outer wall to remove the first XP-59A. It was shipped to Muroc Army Air Field (today, Edwards Air Force Base) in California on 12 September 1942 by train for flight testing. 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 Colonel Laurence Craigie the next day. While being handled on the ground, the aircraft was fitted with a dummy propeller to disguise its true nature. When heavy rains flooded Rogers Dry Lake at Muroc in March 1943, the second prototype was towed 35 mi (56 km) to Hawes Field, an auxiliary airfield of Victorville Army Airfield, later George Air Force Base, over a public road. After one flight on 11 March, security concerns caused the jet to be transferred to nearby Harper Lake where it remained until 7 April.[5][6]

Five of the Airacomets, a pair of XP-59As, two YP-59As, and a P-59B had open-air flight observer cockpits (similar to those of biplanes) fitted in the nose with a small windscreen, replacing the armament bay. The XP-59As were used for flight demonstrations and testing, but one of the latter pair was used as a "mother ship" for the other modified YP-59A during remote control trials in late 1944 and early 1945. After the drone crashed during take-off on 23 March, a P-59B was modified to serve as its replacement.[7][8] During diving trials in 1944, one YP-59A was forced to make a belly landing and another crashed when its entire empennage broke away.[9]

Over the following months, tests on the prototypes and pre-production P-59s revealed a multitude of problems including poor engine response and reliability (common shortcomings of all early turbojets), poor lateral and directional stability at speeds over 290 mph (470 km/h), so that it tended to "snake" and was a poor gunnery platform. The performance was greatly hampered by the insufficient thrust from its engines that was far below expectations. The Army Air Force conducted combat trials against propeller-driven Lockheed P-38J Lightning and Republic P-47D Thunderbolt fighters in February 1944 and found that the older aircraft outperformed the jet. It, therefore, decided that the P-59 was best suited as a training aircraft to familiarize pilots with jet-engine aircraft.[10][11]

Even as deliveries of the YP-59As began in July 1943, the USAAF had placed a preliminary order for 100 production machines as the P-59A Airacomet, the name having been chosen by Bell employees. This was confirmed on 11 March 1944 but was later cut to 50 aircraft on 10 October after the procurement bureaucracy had digested the earlier evaluation.[12][13]

Operational service

 
The first production P-59A with a Bell P-63 Kingcobra behind

The 13 service test YP-59As had a more powerful engine than their predecessor, the General Electric J31, but the performance improvement 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: 42-108773) was supplied to the Royal Air Force (receiving British serial RJ362/G), in exchange for the first production Gloster Meteor I, EE210/G.[14] British pilots found that the aircraft compared very unfavorably with the jets that they were already flying. 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. Three P-59Bs were transferred to the Navy in 1945–1946, although they kept their designations. The Navy used all five of its jets as trainers and for flight testing.[15]

Faced with their own ongoing difficulties, Bell eventually completed 50 production Airacomets, 20 P-59As and 30 P-59Bs; deliveries of P-59As took place in the fall of 1944.[16] The P-59Bs were assigned to the 412th Fighter Group to familiarize AAF pilots with the handling and performance characteristics of jet aircraft.[17] While the P-59 was not a great success, the type did give the USAAF and the USN experience with the operation of jet aircraft, in preparation for the more advanced types that would shortly become available.[12]

Variants

 
XP-59A with the short-lived red-outlined national markings (June 1943 to September 1943)
XP-59
Unrelated piston engine-powered pusher-propeller design developed from the Bell XP-52. Not built.[18]
XP-59A
Prototype of the new jet engine-powered aircraft, three built, serial numbers 42-108784/108786.[19]
YP-59A
Series of test aircraft, 13 built, serial numbers 42-108771/108783.[20]
YF2L-1
Two YP-59A (42-108778/108779) delivered to the US Navy for carrier evaluation as Bu63960/63961.[21]
P-59A
First production version, 20 built, serial numbers 44-22609/22628. Redesignated ZF-59A in June 1948.[22]
XP-59B
Study for a single-engined P-59A.[23]
P-59B
Improved P-59A. 80 aircraft ordered but only 30 built, serial numbers 44-22629/22658, further 50 (44-22659/22708) canceled. Redesignated ZF-59B in June 1948.[24]

Operators

Surviving aircraft

 
3-view drawing of the P-59

Six P-59s are known to survive today.

On display:

XP-59A
42-108784 – National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC.[27]
P-59A
44-22614 – March Field Air Museum, March Air Reserve Base (former March AFB) in Riverside, California.[28]
P-59B
44-22633 – Edwards AFB.[29]
44-22656 – Pioneer Village (Nebraska) in Minden, Nebraska.[30]
44-22650 – National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio.[31]
 
A Bell P-59A Airacomet at the March Field Air Museum in 2013

Under restoration:

YP-59A
42-108777 – As of 2020, being restored to flying condition with General Electric J31 engines by the Planes of Fame Museum in Chino, California.[32]

Specifications (P-59B)

 
Details of fuselage and undercarriage of a P-59B, showing the nose armament

Data from The American Fighter[33][34]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 1
  • 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 (35.9 m2)
  • Airfoil: root: NACA 66-014; tip: NACA 66-212[35]
  • Empty weight: 8,165 lb (3,704 kg)
  • Gross weight: 11,040 lb (5,008 kg)
  • Max takeoff weight: 13,700 lb (6,214 kg)
  • Fuel capacity: 356 US gallons (1,350 L; 296 imp gal)
  • Powerplant: 2 × General Electric J31-GE-5 centrifugal-flow turbojet engines, 2,000 lbf (8.9 kN) thrust each

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 413 mph (665 km/h, 359 kn) at 30,000 ft (9,144 m)
  • Cruise speed: 375 mph (604 km/h, 326 kn)
  • Range: 375 mi (604 km, 326 nmi)
  • Ferry range: 950 mi (1,530 km, 830 nmi)
  • Service ceiling: 46,200 ft (14,100 m)
  • Time to altitude: 30,000 ft (9,144 m) in 15 minutes 30 seconds

Armament

See also

 
Bell YP-59A in flight. X and Y aircraft had rounded vertical stabilizers and wingtips while the production A and B models had squared surfaces. The YP-59A can be distinguished from the XP-59A because Ys had nose armament.

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

Related lists

References

Notes

  1. ^ Meher-Homji 2004, p. 306.
  2. ^ Pace 2000, pp. 4–7.
  3. ^ Pace 2000, pp. 40–41.
  4. ^ Air International March 1980, pp. 134, 138.
  5. ^ Air International March 1980, pp. 132–134.
  6. ^ Pace 2000, pp. 6–10, 12.
  7. ^ Air International March 1980, pp. 136–137.
  8. ^ Pace 2000, pp. 32–34.
  9. ^ Pelletier 1992, p. 52.
  10. ^ Air International March 1980, pp. 137.
  11. ^ Pace 2000, pp. 27, 29, 36–38.
  12. ^ a b Air International March 1980, p. 138.
  13. ^ Pace 2000, pp. 22, 27.
  14. ^ "Gloster Meteor." Flight, 27 May 1955, p. 727.
  15. ^ Pace, pp. 64, 75.
  16. ^ "P-59A Airacomet". March Field Air Museum. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
  17. ^ "Bell XP-59A Airacomet." 4 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Retrieved: 15 December 2011.
  18. ^ Pace 2000, p. 5.
  19. ^ Pelletier 1992, pp. 50–51.
  20. ^ Pelletier 1992, p. 51.
  21. ^ Pelletier 1992, pp. 51–52.
  22. ^ Pace 2000, pp. 22–23.
  23. ^ Pace 2000, pp. 25–26.
  24. ^ Pace 2000, pp. 23–24.
  25. ^ Pace 2000, p. 75.
  26. ^ Pace 2000, p. 28.
  27. ^ "XP-59A Airacomet/42-108784" 4 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine National Air and Space Museum. Retrieved: 14 December 2010.
  28. ^ "P-59A Airacomet/44-22614" 23 December 2005 at the Wayback Machine March Field Air Museum Retrieved: 10 April 2012.
  29. ^ Pace 2000, p. 80.
  30. ^ Pace 2000, p. 79.
  31. ^ "P-59B Airacomet/44-22650" 26 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine National Museum of the United States Air Force Retrieved: 10 April 2012.
  32. ^ "Restoration Projects". Planes of Fame Air Museum. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
  33. ^ Angelucci and Bowers 1987, p. 50.
  34. ^ AN 01-110FF-2 "Erection and Maintenance Instructions for Army Models P-59A and P-59B Airplanes"
  35. ^ Lednicer, David. "The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage". m-selig.ae.illinois.edu. Retrieved 16 April 2019.

Bibliography

  • "Airacomet... A Jet Pioneer by Bell". Air International, Vol. 18 No. 3, March 1980, pp. 132–139. Bromley, UK: Fine Scroll. ISSN 0306-5634.
  • Angelucci, Enzo and Peter Bowers. The American Fighter. Yeovil, UK: Haynes, 1987. ISBN 0-85429-635-2.
  • Meher-Homji, Cyrus B. (2000). The Historical Evolution of Turbomachinery (PDF). Proceedings of the 29th Turbomachinery Symposium. p. 306.
  • Pace, Steve. Bell P-59 Airacomet. Air Force Legends Number 208. Ginter Books, Simi Valley, California, 2000. ISBN 0-942612-93-0.
  • Pelletier, Alan J. Bell Aircraft Since 1935. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1992. ISBN 1-55750-056-8.

Further reading

  • Carpenter, David M. Flame Powered: The Bell XP-59A Airacomet and the General Electric I-A Engine. Boston: Jet Pioneers of America, 1992. ISBN 0-9633387-0-6.
  • Jenkins, Dennis R. and Tony R. Landis. Experimental & Prototype U.S. Air Force Jet Fighters. North Branch, Minnesota, USA: Specialty Press, 2008. ISBN 978-1-58007-111-6.

External links

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bell P-59 Airacomet.

August 20, 2023
bell, airacomet, redirects, here, other, uses, disambiguation, redirects, here, unrelated, bell, fighter, bell, single, seat, twin, engine, fighter, aircraft, that, designed, built, bell, aircraft, during, world, first, produced, united, states, british, were,. P 59 redirects here For other uses see P 59 disambiguation XP 59 redirects here For the unrelated Bell XP 59 fighter see Bell XP 52 The Bell P 59 Airacomet was a single seat twin jet engine fighter aircraft that was designed and built by Bell Aircraft during World War II the first produced in the United States As the British were further along in jet engine development they donated an engine for the United States to copy in 1941 that became the basis for the General Electric J31 jet engine used by the P 59 a year later Because the plane was underpowered the United States Army Air Forces USAAF was not impressed by its performance and canceled half of the original order for 100 fighters using the completed aircraft as trainers The USAAF would instead go on to select the Lockheed P 80 Shooting Star as its first operational jet fighter Although no P 59s entered combat the aircraft paved the way for later generations of U S turbojet powered aircraft P 59 AiracometBell P 59B Airacomet at the National Museum of the United States Air Force Dayton OhioRole Fighter Jet TrainerNational origin United StatesManufacturer Bell AircraftDesigner Robert A Wolf and Herbert L BowerFirst flight 1 October 1942Primary users United States Army Air ForcesUnited States Navy Royal Air ForceNumber built 66 Contents 1 Design and development 2 Operational service 3 Variants 4 Operators 5 Surviving aircraft 6 Specifications P 59B 7 See also 8 References 8 1 Notes 8 2 Bibliography 9 Further reading 10 External linksDesign and development Edit The Power Jets W 1 engine that was later to be produced by GE as the General Electric J31Major General Henry H Hap Arnold became aware of the UK s jet program when he attended a taxiing 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 on 1 October in a Consolidated B 24 Liberator 1 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 pre production aircraft was added to the contract 2 The P 59A had an oval cross section all metal stressed skin semi monocoque fuselage that housed a single pressurized cockpit The mid mounted straight wing had two spars plus a false spar in the inner panel The electrically powered tricycle landing gear was attached to the center spar The pair of General Electric J31 turbojets were positioned under the wing roots in streamlined nacelles The armament was located in the nose of the aircraft two of the three XP 59As and most of the YP 59As had a pair of 37 millimeter 1 5 in M10 autocannon Later aircraft including the production models had one M10 autocannon and three 0 5 inch 12 7 mm AN M2 Browning heavy machine guns The aircraft carried a total of 290 US gallons 1 100 L 240 imp gal of fuel in four self sealing tanks in the inner wing panels Both production models could carry 1 590 US gallon 6 000 L 1 320 imp gal drop tanks under the wings In addition the P 59B was provided with a 66 US gallon 250 L 55 imp gal fuel tank in each outer wing panel 3 4 The crated prototype had been built on the second floor of a disused Pierce Arrow factory but its components were too big to fit through any elevator and required a hole to be broken in the brick outer wall to remove the first XP 59A It was shipped to Muroc Army Air Field today Edwards Air Force Base in California on 12 September 1942 by train for flight testing 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 Colonel Laurence Craigie the next day While being handled on the ground the aircraft was fitted with a dummy propeller to disguise its true nature When heavy rains flooded Rogers Dry Lake at Muroc in March 1943 the second prototype was towed 35 mi 56 km to Hawes Field an auxiliary airfield of Victorville Army Airfield later George Air Force Base over a public road After one flight on 11 March security concerns caused the jet to be transferred to nearby Harper Lake where it remained until 7 April 5 6 Five of the Airacomets a pair of XP 59As two YP 59As and a P 59B had open air flight observer cockpits similar to those of biplanes fitted in the nose with a small windscreen replacing the armament bay The XP 59As were used for flight demonstrations and testing but one of the latter pair was used as a mother ship for the other modified YP 59A during remote control trials in late 1944 and early 1945 After the drone crashed during take off on 23 March a P 59B was modified to serve as its replacement 7 8 During diving trials in 1944 one YP 59A was forced to make a belly landing and another crashed when its entire empennage broke away 9 Over the following months tests on the prototypes and pre production P 59s revealed a multitude of problems including poor engine response and reliability common shortcomings of all early turbojets poor lateral and directional stability at speeds over 290 mph 470 km h so that it tended to snake and was a poor gunnery platform The performance was greatly hampered by the insufficient thrust from its engines that was far below expectations The Army Air Force conducted combat trials against propeller driven Lockheed P 38J Lightning and Republic P 47D Thunderbolt fighters in February 1944 and found that the older aircraft outperformed the jet It therefore decided that the P 59 was best suited as a training aircraft to familiarize pilots with jet engine aircraft 10 11 Even as deliveries of the YP 59As began in July 1943 the USAAF had placed a preliminary order for 100 production machines as the P 59A Airacomet the name having been chosen by Bell employees This was confirmed on 11 March 1944 but was later cut to 50 aircraft on 10 October after the procurement bureaucracy had digested the earlier evaluation 12 13 Operational service Edit The first production P 59A with a Bell P 63 Kingcobra behindThe 13 service test YP 59As had a more powerful engine than their predecessor the General Electric J31 but the performance improvement 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 108773 was supplied to the Royal Air Force receiving British serial RJ362 G in exchange for the first production Gloster Meteor I EE210 G 14 British pilots found that the aircraft compared very unfavorably with the jets that they were already flying 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 Three P 59Bs were transferred to the Navy in 1945 1946 although they kept their designations The Navy used all five of its jets as trainers and for flight testing 15 Faced with their own ongoing difficulties Bell eventually completed 50 production Airacomets 20 P 59As and 30 P 59Bs deliveries of P 59As took place in the fall of 1944 16 The P 59Bs were assigned to the 412th Fighter Group to familiarize AAF pilots with the handling and performance characteristics of jet aircraft 17 While the P 59 was not a great success the type did give the USAAF and the USN experience with the operation of jet aircraft in preparation for the more advanced types that would shortly become available 12 Variants Edit XP 59A with the short lived red outlined national markings June 1943 to September 1943 XP 59 Unrelated piston engine powered pusher propeller design developed from the Bell XP 52 Not built 18 XP 59A Prototype of the new jet engine powered aircraft three built serial numbers 42 108784 108786 19 YP 59A Series of test aircraft 13 built serial numbers 42 108771 108783 20 YF2L 1 Two YP 59A 42 108778 108779 delivered to the US Navy for carrier evaluation as Bu63960 63961 21 P 59A First production version 20 built serial numbers 44 22609 22628 Redesignated ZF 59A in June 1948 22 XP 59B Study for a single engined P 59A 23 P 59B Improved P 59A 80 aircraft ordered but only 30 built serial numbers 44 22629 22658 further 50 44 22659 22708 canceled Redesignated ZF 59B in June 1948 24 Operators Edit United Kingdom Royal Air Force received one aircraft becoming RJ362 G in exchange for a Gloster Meteor I EE210 G 25 United States United States Army Air Forces 26 412th Fighter Group 29th Fighter Squadron 31st Fighter Squadron 445th Fighter Squadron United States NavySurviving aircraft Edit 3 view drawing of the P 59Six P 59s are known to survive today On display XP 59A 42 108784 National Air and Space Museum in Washington DC 27 P 59A 44 22614 March Field Air Museum March Air Reserve Base former March AFB in Riverside California 28 P 59B 44 22633 Edwards AFB 29 44 22656 Pioneer Village Nebraska in Minden Nebraska 30 44 22650 National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton Ohio 31 A Bell P 59A Airacomet at the March Field Air Museum in 2013Under restoration YP 59A 42 108777 As of 2020 being restored to flying condition with General Electric J31 engines by the Planes of Fame Museum in Chino California 32 Specifications P 59B Edit Details of fuselage and undercarriage of a P 59B showing the nose armamentData from The American Fighter 33 34 General characteristicsCrew 1 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 9 m2 Airfoil root NACA 66 014 tip NACA 66 212 35 Empty weight 8 165 lb 3 704 kg Gross weight 11 040 lb 5 008 kg Max takeoff weight 13 700 lb 6 214 kg Fuel capacity 356 US gallons 1 350 L 296 imp gal Powerplant 2 General Electric J31 GE 5 centrifugal flow turbojet engines 2 000 lbf 8 9 kN thrust eachPerformance Maximum speed 413 mph 665 km h 359 kn at 30 000 ft 9 144 m Cruise speed 375 mph 604 km h 326 kn Range 375 mi 604 km 326 nmi Ferry range 950 mi 1 530 km 830 nmi Service ceiling 46 200 ft 14 100 m Time to altitude 30 000 ft 9 144 m in 15 minutes 30 secondsArmament Guns 1 37 mm M10 autocannon with 44 rounds of ammunition 3 50 cal AN M2 Browning heavy machine guns with 200 rounds per gun Rockets 8 x 60lbs 27kg Bombs 2 x 1000lbs 450kg AN M65A1 or simply Mark 65 bombSee also Edit Bell YP 59A in flight X and Y aircraft had rounded vertical stabilizers and wingtips while the production A and B models had squared surfaces The YP 59A can be distinguished from the XP 59A because Ys had nose armament Aviation portalHeinkel He 178 Heinkel He 280Aircraft of comparable role configuration and era de Havilland Vampire Gloster E 1 44 Gloster Meteor Lockheed P 80 Shooting Star Messerschmitt Me 262 Nakajima Kikka Sukhoi Su 9Related lists List of aircraft of World War II List of fighter aircraft List of jet aircraft of World War II List of military aircraft of the United StatesReferences EditNotes Edit Meher Homji 2004 p 306 Pace 2000 pp 4 7 Pace 2000 pp 40 41 Air International March 1980 pp 134 138 Air International March 1980 pp 132 134 Pace 2000 pp 6 10 12 Air International March 1980 pp 136 137 Pace 2000 pp 32 34 Pelletier 1992 p 52 Air International March 1980 pp 137 Pace 2000 pp 27 29 36 38 a b Air International March 1980 p 138 Pace 2000 pp 22 27 Gloster Meteor Flight 27 May 1955 p 727 Pace pp 64 75 P 59A Airacomet March Field Air Museum Retrieved 19 November 2017 Bell XP 59A Airacomet Archived 4 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Retrieved 15 December 2011 Pace 2000 p 5 Pelletier 1992 pp 50 51 Pelletier 1992 p 51 Pelletier 1992 pp 51 52 Pace 2000 pp 22 23 Pace 2000 pp 25 26 Pace 2000 pp 23 24 Pace 2000 p 75 Pace 2000 p 28 XP 59A Airacomet 42 108784 Archived 4 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine National Air and Space Museum Retrieved 14 December 2010 P 59A Airacomet 44 22614 Archived 23 December 2005 at the Wayback Machine March Field Air Museum Retrieved 10 April 2012 Pace 2000 p 80 Pace 2000 p 79 P 59B Airacomet 44 22650 Archived 26 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine National Museum of the United States Air Force Retrieved 10 April 2012 Restoration Projects Planes of Fame Air Museum Retrieved 24 November 2020 Angelucci and Bowers 1987 p 50 AN 01 110FF 2 Erection and Maintenance Instructions for Army Models P 59A and P 59B Airplanes Lednicer David The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage m selig ae illinois edu Retrieved 16 April 2019 Bibliography Edit Airacomet A Jet Pioneer by Bell Air International Vol 18 No 3 March 1980 pp 132 139 Bromley UK Fine Scroll ISSN 0306 5634 Angelucci Enzo and Peter Bowers The American Fighter Yeovil UK Haynes 1987 ISBN 0 85429 635 2 Meher Homji Cyrus B 2000 The Historical Evolution of Turbomachinery PDF Proceedings of the 29th Turbomachinery Symposium p 306 Pace Steve Bell P 59 Airacomet Air Force Legends Number 208 Ginter Books Simi Valley California 2000 ISBN 0 942612 93 0 Pelletier Alan J Bell Aircraft Since 1935 Annapolis Maryland Naval Institute Press 1992 ISBN 1 55750 056 8 Further reading EditCarpenter David M Flame Powered The Bell XP 59A Airacomet and the General Electric I A Engine Boston Jet Pioneers of America 1992 ISBN 0 9633387 0 6 Jenkins Dennis R and Tony R Landis Experimental amp Prototype U S Air Force Jet Fighters North Branch Minnesota USA Specialty Press 2008 ISBN 978 1 58007 111 6 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bell P 59 Airacomet Bell XP 59A Airacomet National Air and Space Museum P 59A Airacomet March Field Air Museum Bell P 59B Airacomet National Museum of the United States Air Force America s First Jet Flight October 1942 Aircraft Owner Online How The First U S Jet Was Born Popular Science Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bell P 59 Airacomet amp oldid 1153302522, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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