×
Aircraft / Aviation Vehicles & Artillery Small Arms Warships & Submarines Military Ranks Military Pay Chart (2024)
HOME
AVIATION INDEX
MODERN AIR FORCES
AIRCRAFT BY COUNTRY
AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURERS
COMPARE AIRCRAFT
AIRCRAFT BY CONFLICT
AIRCRAFT BY TYPE
AIRCRAFT BY DECADE
COLD WAR AIRCRAFT
X-PLANE AIRCRAFT
Aviation / Aerospace

McDonnell Model 40 / 40A


Carrierborne Day Fighter Proposal [ 1948 ]



The McDonnell Model 40 comprised three fighter forms for a USN carrierborne day fighter requirement - none were advanced beyond the paper stage.



Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 06/08/2022 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site.

VIEW SPECIFICATIONS [+]
McDonnell's first foray into combat fighter design resulted in the short-lived XP-67 "Moonbat". Following this, the company made a name for itself as a primary supplier of jet-powered fighters to the United States Navy (USN), solidifying itself in American aerospace lore. The company certainly had a way with drawing up elegant designs and this went on to include the FH Phantom, the F3H Demon, and the A-4 Skyhawk - the company's pinnacle product becoming the F-4 Phantom II of the Cold War period.

Following the close of World War 2 (1939-1945), amidst a backdrop of advancing turbojet technology set to replace piston-powered combat aircraft, the USN sought a jet-powered day fighter for which to launch from its large fleet of aircraft carriers. This initiative resulted in Specification OS-105 arriving at the end of 1946. The call went out to industry players in Chance Vought, Curtiss-Wright, Douglas, Martin, and others that included McDonnell. The fighter would have to be of an advanced type, capable of straightline speeds of 600 to 650 miles-per-hour with a range out to 345 miles and a service ceiling of 40,000 feet. As a quick-reaction solution launched from carrier decks, a fast rate-of-climb was appreciated and the requirement sought something in the range of 10,000 feet-per-minute.

McDonnell engineers returned with three possible candidates under the "Model 40" project designation. While all of the submissions were equipped with 2 x Westinghouse 24C-6 series afterburning turbojet engines, the first two entries differed in their tailplane arrangement - the first featuring a single fin with upward-canted horizontal planes and the second switching to a V-type tailplane arrangement, doing away with the centralized rudder. All utilized a swept-back monoplane planform to help achieve the high-speed performance sought by USN authorities.

The initial submissions buried their turbojets separately in the wing roots, jettisoning exhaust at the wing trailing edge ahead of the empennage. Intakes for the air-breathing engines were triangular in their general shaping, airflow to pass unobstructed to the powerplants. The mainplanes were positioned slightly ahead of midships for balance.

The pilot was given a commanding view over and aft of the short nosecone assembly. A retractable, wheeled undercarriage (the nose leg allowing for a "kneeling" effect) would be used for ground-running and a tailhook for arresting on the carrier deck when landing. Folding wings would be used to improve storage space within the carrier hangar decks.

The Westinghouse 24C-6 turbojet promised an output rating of 3,000lb each, the combined thrust set to make this McDonnell Navy fighter one of the fastest in the world.

Expected standard armament was to comprise 4 x 20mm internal automatic cannons with two guns seated in the lower sides of the nose assembly. Future consideration was made for "up-gunning" these to 4 x 60mm types to contend with emerging threats.

The McDonnell 40A was the third aircraft of the proposed lot. This design form was something of a near-complete rewrite to the original approach. The engines were moved from the wingroots to the fuselage proper and fresh air was taken in through a nose-mounted intake instead. This reformed the wings to a more elegant shape (still retaining sweepback) and moved the guns to a higher mounting along the sides of the nose while also increasing the dimensions of the fuselage. A single-finned tailplane (with upward-canted horizontal planes) would make up the empennage.

In any case, none of these proposed designs was accepted for further work by the USN.©MilitaryFactory.com
Note: The above text is EXCLUSIVE to the site www.MilitaryFactory.com. It is the product of many hours of research and work made possible with the help of contributors, veterans, insiders, and topic specialists. If you happen upon this text anywhere else on the internet or in print, please let us know at MilitaryFactory AT gmail DOT com so that we may take appropriate action against the offender / offending site and continue to protect this original work.

Specifications



Service Year
1948

Origin
United States national flag graphic
United States

Status
CANCELLED
Development Ended.
Crew
1

Production
0
UNITS


National flag of the United States United States (cancelled)
(OPERATORS list includes past, present, and future operators when applicable)
AIR-TO-AIR COMBAT
General ability to actively engage other aircraft of similar form and function, typically through guns, missiles, and/or aerial rockets.
INTERCEPTION
Ability to intercept inbound aerial threats by way of high-performance, typically speed and rate-of-climb.
MARITIME / NAVY
Land-based or shipborne capability for operating over-water in various maritime-related roles while supported by allied naval surface elements.
X-PLANE
Aircraft developed for the role of prototyping, technology demonstration, or research / data collection.


ARMORING
Survivability enhanced by armor allocated to protect pilot / crewspaces and / or critical operating systems.
MULTI-ENGINE
Incorporates two or more engines, enhancing survivability and / or performance.
WING SWEEPBACK
Mainplanes, or leading edges, features swept-back lines for enhanced high-speed performance and handling.
FOLDING WING(S)
Mainplanes are designed to fold, improving storage on land and at sea.
HIGH-SPEED PERFORMANCE
Can accelerate to higher speeds than average aircraft of its time.
HIGH-ALTITUDE PERFORMANCE
Can reach and operate at higher altitudes than average aircraft of its time.
MARITIME OPERATION
Ability to operate over ocean in addition to surviving the special rigors of the maritime environment.
PILOT / CREW EJECTION SYSTEM
Assisted process of allowing its pilot and / or crew to eject in the event of an airborne emergency.
CREWSPACE PRESSURIZATION
Supports pressurization required at higher operating altitudes for crew survival.
ENCLOSED CREWSPACE(S)
Features partially- or wholly-enclosed crew workspaces.
RETRACTABLE UNDERCARRIAGE
Features retracting / retractable undercarriage to preserve aerodynamic efficiency.


Length
46.1 ft
(14.05 m)
Width/Span
38.5 ft
(11.75 m)
Empty Wgt
14,958 lb
(6,785 kg)
MTOW
17,229 lb
(7,815 kg)
Wgt Diff
+2,271 lb
(+1,030 kg)
(Showcased structural values pertain to the McDonnell Model 40 production variant)
monoplane / mid-mounted / swept-back
Monoplane
Design utilizes a single primary wing mainplane; this represents the most popular modern mainplane arrangement.
Mid-Mounted
Mainplanes are mounted along the midway point of the sides of the fuselage.
Swept-Back
The planform features wing sweep back along the leading edges of the mainplane, promoting higher operating speeds.
(Structural descriptors pertain to the McDonnell Model 40 production variant)
Installed: 2 x Westinghouse 24C-6 series afterburning turbojet engines developing 3,000lb of thrust each.
Max Speed
662 mph
(1,065 kph | 575 kts)
Cruise Speed
621 mph
(1,000 kph | 540 kts)
Max. Speed Diff
+40 mph
(+65 kph | 35 kts)
Ceiling
49,213 ft
(15,000 m | 9 mi)
Range
345 mi
(555 km | 300 nm)
Rate-of-Climb
10,300 ft/min
(3,139 m/min)


♦ MACH Regime (Sonic)
Sub
Trans
Super
Hyper
HiHyper
ReEntry
RANGES (MPH) Subsonic: <614mph | Transonic: 614-921 | Supersonic: 921-3836 | Hypersonic: 3836-7673 | Hi-Hypersonic: 7673-19180 | Reentry: >19030


(Showcased performance specifications pertain to the McDonnell Model 40 production variant. Performance specifications showcased above are subject to environmental factors as well as aircraft configuration. Estimates are made when Real Data not available. Compare this aircraft entry against any other in our database or View aircraft by powerplant type)
PROPOSED:
4 x 20mm internal automatic cannons OR 4 x 60mm internal automatic cannons.


Supported Types


Graphical image of an aircraft automatic cannon


(Not all ordnance types may be represented in the showcase above)
0
Hardpoints


Model 40 - Base project designation; second design with V-type tail unit.
Model 40A - Engines relocated to fuselage; nose-mounted intake; conventional tail unit.


Military lapel ribbon for Operation Allied Force
Military lapel ribbon for the Arab-Israeli War
Military lapel ribbon for the Battle of Britain
Military lapel ribbon for the Battle of Midway
Military lapel ribbon for the Berlin Airlift
Military lapel ribbon for the Chaco War
Military lapel ribbon for the Cold War
Military lapel ribbon for the Cuban Missile Crisis
Military lapel ribbon for pioneering aircraft
Military lapel ribbon for the Falklands War
Military lapel ribbon for the French-Indochina War
Military lapel ribbon for the Golden Age of Flight
Military lapel ribbon for the 1991 Gulf War
Military lapel ribbon for the Indo-Pak Wars
Military lapel ribbon for the Iran-Iraq War
Military lapel ribbon for the Korean War
Military lapel ribbon for the 1982 Lebanon War
Military lapel ribbon for the Malayan Emergency
Military lapel ribbon representing modern aircraft
Military lapel ribbon for the attack on Pearl Harbor
Military lapel ribbon for the Six Day War
Military lapel ribbon for the Soviet-Afghan War
Military lapel ribbon for the Spanish Civil War
Military lapel ribbon for the Suez Crisis
Military lapel ribbon for the Ukranian-Russian War
Military lapel ribbon for the Vietnam War
Military lapel ribbon for Warsaw Pact of the Cold War-era
Military lapel ribbon for the WASP (WW2)
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 1
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 2
Military lapel ribbon for the Yom Kippur War
Military lapel ribbon for experimental x-plane aircraft

Images Gallery



1 / 1
Image of the McDonnell Model 40 / 40A
Image copyright www.MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.

Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Cookies

2024 Military Pay Chart Military Ranks DoD Dictionary Conversion Calculators Military Alphabet Code Military Map Symbols

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; site is 100% curated by humans.

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.


©2023 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Content ©2003-2023 (20yrs)