Curtiss P-1032-7

Single-Seat, Single-Engine Jet Fighter Proposal

United States | 1946

"The Curtiss P-1032-7 jet fighter led a series of four proposals directed at the United States Army Air Forces in the latter stages of World War 2."

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 03/21/2023 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

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In February of 1944, with the Allied victory in World War 2 (1939-1945) still in doubt and the turbojet engine clearly becoming the future of aerial warfare, the Curtiss Aeroplane Company pushed a series of advanced fighter designs for possible acceptance by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). The first of a series of four total designs became the "P-1032-7", a project fighter featuring a single turbojet engine installation for the required power and performance. While the type was not furthered beyond its paper stage, it offers an intriguing look into the direction of American fighter design in the latter war years - particularly as the jet engine is concerned.

At its core, the Curtis P-1032-7 was a single-seat, single-engine monoplane fighter heavily armed and built around performance. The fuselage was made as slender as possible, seating the pilot aft of a lengthened nosecone assembly. A lightly-framed, two-piece canopy would be used to offer the best out-of-cockpit vision possible. The nose assembly housed a collection of 4 x 20mm automatic cannons, giving the potential fighter a most potent frontal punch against any German (or later, Soviet) adversary of the day. The mainplanes were set at midships and were of tapering, straight design with clipped tips. Its mounting was low with noticeable dihedral (upwards angle) towards the wing tips. The tail unit would rely on a single rudder fin with low-mounted horizontal planes to round out the control surfaces scheme for the jet. A modern tricycle (wheeled and retractable) undercarriage would be fitted for ground-running actions.

Taken as a whole, the P-1032-7 was an impressive fighter proposal on paper. Heavily-armed and potentially of high-performance, the jet fighter would have been a considerable addition to the stable of the massive USAAF as the war years seemingly dragged on, potentially into 1946.

Internally, the aircraft was to be powered by only a single air-breathing, fuel-thirsty turbojet engine of unknown make or model - those this eventually was to become the famous General Electric (Allison) J35 which went on to see some 14,000 units manufactured and powering such classic period types as the North American FJ-1 "Fury", Northrop F-89 "Scorpion", and the Republic F-84 "Thunderjet". Since the P-1032-7's armament was concentrated in the nose, this meant that the air breathing aspect of the engine would be satisfied through intakes embedded at each wing leading edge - requiring duct work funneling the fresh air through the wing into the middle-aft section of the fuselage. Beyond this, however, the design of the Curtiss fighter was largely conventional by late-war standards.

Dimensions of the proposed design included a running length of 40.10 feet with a wingspan measuring 36.8 feet. Gross weight was estimated at 13,000lb with an overloaded weight up to 15,500lb.

While pure estimates, the P-1032-7 was to have a maximum speed near 600 miles-per-hour (under ideal conditions) up to altitudes beyond 40,000 feet. Range was out to 1,200miles as the airframe could accept a pair of underwing jettisonable fuel tanks for extended flights.

At any rate, nothing became of the Curtiss P-1032-7. The subsequent P-1032-9 switched to a twin-engine layout with underslung wing engines (similar to the German wartime Messerschmitt Me 262 "Schwalbe" fighter) and the P-1032-11 combined the power output of an early-form turboprop engine with that of a turbojet. The P-1032-13 reverted back to a more traditional twin-jet arrangement though these were closely paired under the fuselage.

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Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the Curtiss P-1032-7 Single-Seat, Single-Engine Jet Fighter Proposal.

1 x Turbojet engine of unknown make, model, and thrust output. Most likely to become the GE/Allison J35 turbojet engine of around 4,000lb thrust.
Propulsion

606 mph
975 kph | 526 kts
Max Speed

454 mph
730 kph | 394 kts
Cruise Speed

41,010 ft
12,500 m | 8 miles
Service Ceiling

1,190 miles
1,915 km | 1,034 nm
Operational Range

4,430 ft/min
1,350 m/min
Rate-of-Climb

City-to-City Ranges
Operational range when compared to distances between major cities (in KM).

NYC

LON

PAR

BER

MOS

TOK

SYD

LAX

NYC

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the Curtiss P-1032-7 Single-Seat, Single-Engine Jet Fighter Proposal.

1
(MANNED)
Crew

40.8 ft
12.45 m
O/A Length

36.7 ft
(11.20 m)
O/A Width

13,228 lb
(6,000 kg)
Empty Weight

15,465 lb
(7,015 kg)
MTOW

Design Balance
The three qualities reflected below are altitude, speed, and range. The more full the box, the more balanced the design.

RANGE

ALT

SPEED

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of the Curtiss P-1032-7 Single-Seat, Single-Engine Jet Fighter Proposal .

PROPOSED:
4 x 20mm internal automatic cannons embedded in the nose assembly.

OPTIONAL:
2 x External, jettisonable fuel tanks held at underwing hardpoints for extended operating ranges.

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the Curtiss P-1032-7 family line.

P-1032-7 - Base Series Designation.

P-1032-9 - Twin-engine design with underslung wing nacelles housing turbojet powerplants.

P-1032-11 - Combination turboprop / turbojet propulsion scheme.

P-1032013 - Twin-engine design with engines concentrated side-by-side under the fuselage.

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the Curtiss P-1032-7. Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 0 Units
Contractor(s): Curtiss Aeroplane Company - USA

[ United States (cancelled) ]

Relative Max Speed

Hi: 750mph

Lo: 375mph

Aircraft Max Listed Speed (606mph).

Graph Average of 563 MPH.

Era Crossover

Showcasing Aircraft Era Crossover (if any)

Max Alt Visualization

MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

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Mission Roles
Some designs are single-minded in their approach while others offer a more versatile solution to airborne requirements.

AIR-TO-AIR COMBAT

INTERCEPTION

X-PLANE

Recognition
Some designs stand the test of time while others are doomed to never advance beyond the drawing board; let history be their judge.

Military lapel ribbon for the World War 2

Going Further...
The Curtiss P-1032-7 Single-Seat, Single-Engine Jet Fighter Proposal appears in the following collections:

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