×
Aircraft / Aviation Vehicles & Artillery Small Arms Warships & Submarines Military Ranks Military Pay Scale (2024) Special Forces

Bell XP-59 (Model 20)


Twin-Boom Fighter Proposal


United States | 1943



"The Bell XP-52 evolved to become the larger XP-59 fighter form - but both were dropped from contention and the XP-59 designation reused for the jet-powered Bell P-59 Airacomet."

Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the Bell XP-59 Twin-Boom Fighter Proposal.
XP-52: 1 x Continental XIV-1430-3 V-12 liquid-cooled piston engine developing 1,275 horsepower and driving a pair of propeller blades arranged in a "puller" configuration through a contra-rotating fashion.
Propulsion
388 mph
625 kph | 337 kts
Max Speed
26,247 ft
8,000 m | 5 miles
Service Ceiling
435 miles
700 km | 378 nm
Operational Range
2,500 ft/min
762 m/min
Rate-of-Climb
Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the Bell XP-59 Twin-Boom Fighter Proposal.
1
(MANNED)
Crew
34.1 ft
10.40 m
O/A Length
37.7 ft
(11.50 m)
O/A Width
12.5 ft
(3.80 m)
O/A Height
7,055 lb
(3,200 kg)
Empty Weight
9,700 lb
(4,400 kg)
MTOW
Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of the Bell XP-59 (Model 20) Twin-Boom Fighter Proposal .
ESTIMATED:
1 x 37mm M4 cannon with 2 x 0.50 caliber heavy machine guns in nose.
2 x 0.50 caliber heavy machine guns in wings (one to a wing).
Variants
Notable series variants as part of the Bell XP-59 (Model 20) family line.
XP-52 - Initial prototype designation
XP-59 - Revised, dimensionally larger form based on the XP-52 design.
P-59 - Assumed USAAC in-service designation
Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 12/21/2016 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

Bell provided its XP-52 design as a contender for a new United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) fighter requirement emerging in the late-1930s. Bell was already gaining notoriety in aviation circles for their rather forward-thinking designs such as the YFM-1 "Airacuda" bomber destroyer and the P-39 "Airacobra". The Airacuda of 1940 was a highly ambitious attack platform intended to tackle enemy bombers head-on but only thirteen were eventually built, the line dropped as soon as 1942. The P-39, on other hand, managed a more successful existence during World War 2 (1939-1945) as over 9,500 were produced and it primarily found success with the Soviets via Lend-Lease.

With that in mind, the XP-52 was another in the company's long line of unique wartime submissions. It utilized a twin-boom configuration not unlike the Lockheed P-38 "Lightning" heavy fighter and similarly sat its pilot in a centralized fuselage nacelle. The engine was placed at the rear of this nacelle to drive a pair of propeller units in contra-rotating fashion by way of "pusher" configuration. The engine would be aspirated through an intake at the nose. The wing mainplanes, swept slightly aft, were positioned at the rear of the fuselage nacelle and from their trailing edges originated the tail booms - each capped by a vertical fin and joined by a shared horizontal plane. As with other Bell aircraft products, a tricycle undercarriage would be featured in the design.

Power was to come from a Continental XIV-1430-3 V-12 inverted liquid-cooled piston engine. The same engine was selected for the experimental Curtiss XP-55, Lockheed XP-49, and McDonnell XP-67 prototypes (all detailed elsewhere on this site) but ultimately ran into issues by performing beyond expectations. Little more than twenty-three were produced.

The XP-52 never materialized beyond some preliminary work and was officially cancelled on November 25th, 1941 (America would enter World War 2 just one month later). Instead, it was decided to pursue an enlarged version of the same aircraft as the "XP-59" so the twin-boom configuration with pusher-propeller setup would be carried over. Power would come from a Pratt & Whitney R-2800-23 engine outputting 2,000 horsepower.

In the end, even this Bell product did not progress beyond preliminary work (a wind tunnel model was completed providing the general shape of the aircraft). Attention was now being paid to a jet-powered fighter that Bell was selected to design and build. General Electric was charged with manufacturing a local copy of the British Whittle turbojet for the new design intended to serve the now-United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). The aircraft received the same designation of "XP-59" (effectively cancelling the original XP-59 Bell initiative) and became the P-59 "Airacomet" in service - America's first jet-powered fighter.

Performance figures on this page are estimates on the part of the author based on similar designs of the period.

Content ©MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.
Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the Bell XP-59 (Model 20). Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 0 Units

Contractor(s): Bell Aircraft Corporation - USA
National flag of the United States

[ United States (cancelled) ]
1 / 1
Image of the Bell XP-59 (Model 20)
Image from the Public Domain.

Going Further...
The Bell XP-59 (Model 20) Twin-Boom Fighter Proposal appears in the following collections:
HOME
AVIATION INDEX
AIRCRAFT BY COUNTRY
AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURERS
COMPARE AIRCRAFT
AIRCRAFT BY CONFLICT
AIRCRAFT BY TYPE
AIRCRAFT BY DECADE
WWII AIRCRAFT
X-PLANE AIRCRAFT
Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Cookies

2024 Military Pay Scale Military Ranks of the World U.S. Department of Defense Dictionary Conversion Calculators Military Alphabet Code Military Map Symbols Breakdown U.S. 5-Star Generals List WWII Weapons by Country World War Next

The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com. No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

Part of a network of sites that includes GlobalFirepower, a data-driven property used in ranking the top military powers of the world, WDMMA.org (World Directory of Modern Military Aircraft), WDMMW.org (World Directory of Modern Military Warships), SR71blackbird.org, detailing the history of the world's most iconic spyplane, and MilitaryRibbons.info, cataloguing military medals and ribbons. Special Interest: RailRoad Junction, the locomotive encyclopedia.


©2024 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Content ©2003-2024 (21yrs)