Bell XP-52 - Misplaced Pages

(Redirected from Bell XP-59) Canceled fighter aircraft project "Bell XP-59" redirects here. For the Bell XP-59 jet fighter, see Bell P-59 Airacomet.

XP-52
A wind tunnel model of the XP-59
General information
Type	Fighter
Manufacturer	Bell Aircraft Corporation
Status	Canceled October 1940 (XP-52) Canceled 25 November 1941 (XP-59)
Number built	None

The Bell XP-52 and subsequent XP-59 were World War II fighter aircraft design projects by the American Bell Aircraft Corporation.

Both projects featured a twin-boom layout with a rear-mounted engine driving pusher contra-rotating propellers.

When the XP-59 project was canceled the designation XP-59A was used as a cover for a secret jet fighter prototype, which would enter production as the P-59 Airacomet.

XP-52

The XP-52 design was begun by the Bell Company in 1940, separate from the R-40C competition, under the Air Material Command designator MX-3.

The short fuselage carried a piston engine in the rear, driving a pair of contra-rotating propellers in a pusher configuration. The wings were swept back at an angle of 20 degrees, with a horizontal stabilizer mounted behind the propeller on twin booms running back from the wings. The fuselage was unusually streamlined, being round and barrel-shaped, with the forward-located pilot's cockpit fully faired-in to its lines and the nose ending in a round air intake which was ducted back internally to the engine. The undercarriage was a tricycle arrangement, with the main wheels retracting into the tailbooms. Propulsion was to be provided by the experimental Continental XIV-1430-3 inverted V-12 engine.

The XP-52 was canceled in October 1940 because the XIV-1430 engine ran into technical difficulties. Bell submitted a similar design to the US Navy as the Model 19, but this too was never built.

XP-59

Although generally similar in layout to the XP-52, the XP-59 was slightly larger and heavier, and was to be powered by a Pratt and Whitney R-2800-23 engine of 2,000 horsepower (1,500 kW). Two prototypes were ordered in February 1941.

On 3 October 1941 the contract for Bell's first jet fighter was signed. The prototype was designated the XP-59A and it would enter production as the P-59 Airacomet. The original XP-59 was canceled on November 25, 1941 because Bell itself was pre-occupied with development of the Bell P-63 Kingcobra.

References

^ Jones, L.; US Fighters, Aero, 1975.
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.
^ Buttler, Tony, and Griffith, Alan, 2015. American Secret Projects: Fighters, Bombers, and Attack Aircraft, 1937–1945. Manchester: Crecy Publishing. ISBN 978-1906537487.

External links

Bell XP-52

v t e Bell Aircraft and Bell Helicopter/Bell Textron aircraft
Manufacturer designations	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 (I) 39 (II) 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 J 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70–100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131–199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 214ST 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223–229 230 231–248 249 250–300 301 302–308 309 310–359 360 361–399 400 401–405 406 407 408 409 410 411 412 413 414 415 416 417 418–426 427 428 429 430 431–439 440 441 442 443 444 445 446 447 448 449 550–504 505 506–524 525 526–532 533 534–539 540 541–547 548 549–575 576 577–582 583 846–598 599 600–608 609 610–645 646 647–679 680 681–910 911 912–917 918 D-188 D-255 D-292
Fighter aircraft	YFM-1 P-39 XFL P-59 P-63 P-76 XP-77 XP-83
Target drones	PQM-56
Attack helicopters	207 Bell AH-1 Singles Twins AH-1Z 309 YAH-63 360
Observation and utility helicopters	H-13 H-13J UH-1 UH-1N UH-1Y TH-57 OH-58 TH-67 ARH-70
Commercial helicopters	47 47J 204 205 206 210 212 214 214ST 222 230 407 412 427 429 430 505 525
Tiltrotors	V-22 V-247 V-280 AW609 TR918 QTR
UAVs	MQ-8C
Non-production helicopters	400 417 440
Experimental aircraft	ATV 201 533 D-188 D-255 D-292 FCX-001 L-39 LLRV/LLTV X-1 X-2 X-5 X-14 X-16 X-22 XF-109 XP-52 XV-3 XV-15
Names	Airabonita Airacobra Airacomet Airacuda Arapaho BigLifter Cobra Creek Eagle Eye Fire Scout GlobalRanger Huey HueyCobra Invictus Iroquois JetRanger Jet Ranger X Kingcobra KingCobra Kiowa LongRanger Osprey Quad TiltRotor Ranger Sea Cobra Sea Ranger Sioux Sioux Scout SuperCobra Super Huey Super Transporter Twin Huey TwinRanger Valor Venom Vigilant Viper Zulu Cobra
Unknown/not assigned

USAAS/USAAC/USAAF/USAF fighter designations 1924–1962, and Tri-Service post-1962 systems

1924 sequences
(1924–1962)

Pursuit (1924–1948)	P-1 P-2 P-3 P-4 Curtiss P-4 Boeing P-4 P-5 P-6 P-7 P-8 P-9 P-10 P-11 P-12 P-13 P-14 P-15 P-16 P-17 P-18 P-19 P-20 P-21 P-22 P-23 P-24 P-25 P-26 P-27 P-28 P-29 P-30 P-31 P-32 P-33 P-34 P-35 P-36 P-37 P-38 P-39 P-39E P-40 P-41 P-42 P-43 P-44 P-45 P-46 P-47 P-48 P-49 P-50 P-51 P-52 P-53 P-54 P-55 P-56 P-57 P-58 P-59 XP-59 P-59 P-60 P-61 P-62 P-63 P-64 P-65 P-66 P-67 P-68 P-69 P-70 P-71 P-72 P-73 P-74 P-75 P-76 P-77 P-78 P-79 P-80 P-81 P-82 P-83 P-84 P-85 P-86 P-87 P-88 P-89 P-90 P-91 P-92
Fighter (1948–1962)	F-38 F-39 F-40 F-47 F-51 F-59 F-61 RF-61C F-63 F-80 F-81 F-82 F-83 F-84 F-84F/J F-84H F-85 F-86 F-86C F-86D/G/K/L F-87 F-88 F-89 F-90 F-91 F-92 F-93 F-94 F-95 F-96 F-97 F-98 F-99 F-100 F-100B F-101 F-102 F-102B F-103 F-104 XF-104 F-104S NF-104A F-105 F-106 XF-106 F-106 F-107 F-108 F-109 F-110 F-111 F-111B F-111C F-111K AFTI/F-111A EF-111A
Pursuit, biplace	PB-1 PB-2 PB-3
Fighter, multiplace	FM-1 FM-2
Non-sequential	F-24 P-322 P-400

Tri-service sequence
(1962–present)

Main sequence	F-1 F-1C/D F-1E/F F-2 F-3 F-4 F-4K/M F-5 G F-6 F-7 F-8 F-9 F-9F–J F-10 F-11 F-12 F-12C F-13 F-14 F-15 F-15E F-15EX F-15J F-15 STOL/MTD F-16 F-16XL NF-16D F-17 F/A-18 F/A-18E/F EA-18G F-19 F-20 F-21 F-22 YF-22 FB-22 F-23
Non-sequential	F-35 F-35I X-35 F-117

Covert designations

Related designations

FV-12

Not assigned • Unofficial • Assigned to multiple types
See also: "F-19" • 1919–1924 sequence

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