| Manufacturer |
Northrop Corporation |
Lockheed Corporation |
| Description |
The Northrop P-61 Black Widow is a twin-engine United States Army Air Forces fighter aircraft of World War II. |
The Lockheed XP-58 Chain Lightning was an American long-range fighter developed during World War II. |
| ICAO Code |
P61 |
|
| First Flight |
1942-05-26 |
1944-06-06 |
| Entry Into service |
1944-01-01 |
|
| Service End |
1954-01-01 |
|
| Designer |
Northrop Corporation |
Lockheed Corporation |
| Type |
Night fighter |
Heavy fighter |
| Length (m) |
14.9352 |
15.07 |
| Height (m) |
4.2672 |
4.88 |
| Cockpit Crew |
2 |
|
| Max Speed (km/h) |
589.0199 |
702 |
| Cruise Speed (km/h) |
|
455 |
| Max Ceiling (m) |
10088.88 |
11645 |
| Rate of Climb (m/s) |
12.9032 |
13.1 |
| Armament |
4 × 20 mm (.79 in) Hispano AN/M2 cannon in ventral fuselage, 200 rounds per gun; 4 × .50 in (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns in remotely operated, full-traverse upper turret, 560 rpg; for ground attack, four bombs of up to 1,600 lb (726 kg) each or six 5-in (127 mm) HVAR unguided rockets could be carried under the wings. Some aircraft could also carry one 1,000 lb (454 kg) bomb under the fusela… |
; (proposed) 4 × 37 mm M4 cannons or 1 × 75 mm (2.95 in) M5 cannon and 2 × .50 in Browning heavy machine guns in interchangeable nose; (proposed) 4 × .50 in Browning heavy machine guns in two remotely controlled flexible turrets in the rear. |
| National Origin |
United States of America |
|
| Number Built |
706 |
1 |
| Powerplant Description |
2 × Pratt & Whitney R-2800-65W Double Wasp 18-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engines, 1678 kW (2250 hp) each |
2 × Allison V-3420 24 cylinder liquid-cooled engine, 2238 kW (3001 hp) each |
| Primary Users |
United States Army Air Forces, United States Air Force |
|
| Status |
|
Canceled |
| Wikipedia Article (URL) |
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_P-61_Black_Widow |
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_XP-58_Chain_Lightning |
| Flat Wing Span (m) |
20.1168 |
21.34 |
| Flat Wing Area (m²) |
61.5353 |
55.7 |
| Wake Category |
M |
|
| Aircraft Engine |
|
Allison V-3420 |
| Number of Engines |
2 |
2 |