“Indestructible” Plane Built (Dec, 1937)
“Indestructible” Plane Built
FEATURING construction that makes it practically indestructible by machine gun fire from other aircraft, a “convoy fighter” airplane has been developed by the Seversky Aircraft Corp., of Farmingdale, L. I. The all-metal construction is such that the stresses of flight are spread over the entire wing and no single beam carries a critical load. The wings can be literally riddled with bullets and the plane can still maintain flight.
The new plane is powered by an 1100-horsepower, twin-row radial engine and is said to be capable of traveling 300 m.p.h. Armament consists of five machine guns and wing racks for carrying 300 pounds of demolition bombs.
The plane is believed to be the most versatile ever constructed for military use. It can be used as a light bomber, an observation plane, a pursuit plane, an attack plane, or as an advanced trainer.
Related posts:
- Sensational German Paddle Plane Built On “Flapping Wing” Principle (Sep, 1936)
- Novel Parachute Plane Is Built to Land in the Back Yard (Jun, 1934)
- Egg-Beater Wind Plane Imitates Hovering Flight of Eagle (Oct, 1934)
- Queer Wing-Flapping Plane Ascends Vertically Into Air (Feb, 1934)
- THIS PLANE BLOWS UP (Nov, 1958)
That would be the Seversky P-35:
http://en.wikipedia.org…
“The wings can be literally riddled with bullets and the plane can still maintain flight.”
…except for the minor detail that the wings were, of course, where the P-35 kept its FUEL. In a “wet wing” design, yet, where pretty much the whole wing IS the fuel tank, with no armour or self-sealing capabilities at all. It wasn’t a complete sitting duck when it actually saw combat, but it sure as hell wasn’t indestructible, either.
The later Seversky airplanes (by WWII, the company was known as Republic) such as the P-47 were legendary for the punishment they took in combat.
Kosher Ham: Continued on in the last plane built under the Republic name after the takeover by Fairchild, the A-10 Thunderbolt II. End of an era.
Yep, so when the A-10 needed retrofitted wings, the Boeing company was contracted to do the work.
The latest rumor of aerospace consolidation is Boeing and Northrop Grumman merging.
No, not quite the P-35 (EP-1), but the similar but two-seat 2PA. Which Sweden ordered as a light bomber (but only got two out of the 52, the rest became AT-12 Guardsman).