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MODEL AIRPLANE PLANS PAGE 8

MODEL AIRPLANE PLANS: PAGE 7

McDonnell XP-67

The McDonnell Aircraft Corporation of St Louis, Missouri was incorporated on July 6, 1939. McDonnell was certainly not a company to start small--as its first military project, the company immediately began a design study for a long range fighter. A rather ambitious first project for such a new aircraft corporation!

In June of 1940, the new McDonnell company submitted an unsolicited proposal to the USAAC for an unconventional fighter powered by either an Allison V-3420-B2 or a Pratt & Whitney H-3130 engine equipped with a two-stage supercharger. The engine was to be buried in the fuselage aft of the pilot. The engine was to drive a pair of pusher propellers situated aft of the wings by means of a complicated system of extension shafts and gear drives. Although the USAAC rejected the proposal because of excessive weight and complexity, the Army was sufficiently impressed that it bought the engineering information from McDonnell on June 6, 1940 and encouraged the new company to keep trying.

The next McDonnell proposal to the Army came later that same month. This time the company issued a proposal for a twin-engined, two-seat heavy fighter powered by a pair of Continental I-1430 twelve-cylinder inverted-Vee liquid-cooled engines. Initially, the USAAC expressed no interest, but during subsequent discussions with McDonnell some revisions were made and on May 5, 1941 a formal proposal was submitted to the Army. The project was given the company designation of Model S-23-A and called for a single-seat long-range fighter with a pressurized cabin. An unusually heavy armament of six 0.50-inch machine guns and four 20-mm cannon was proposed. McDonnell's design team attempted to maintain true aerofoil sections throughout the entire airframe, the center fuselage and the rear portions of the engine nacelles merging smoothly together. This gave the aircraft a unique bat-like appearance. The forward member of the tricycle undercarriage retracted into the fuselage, whereas the mainwheels retracted into the engine nacelles. Guaranteed maximum speed was a rather optimistic 472 mph at 25,000 feet, and gross weight was estimated to be 18,600 pounds.

This time the Army was definitely interested, and on August 2, 1941 the USAAF issued an authority for purchase of two prototypes. The contract was formally approved on October 29, 1941. The designation XP-67 was assigned, and the serial numbers of the two prototypes were 42-11677 and 42-11678.

By the time that detailed design of the XP-67 got underway, the armament was changed to six 37-mm cannon with 45rpg in the inboard wing sections. The pair of Continental XI-1430-1 engines were fitted with General Electric D-1 turbosuperchargers and drove four-blade propellers. A unique idea was to use the engine exhaust to augment the thrust. The increased armament and other changes caused the estimated gross weight to rise to 20,000 pounds.

With the exception of armament, cabin pressurization equipment, and the oxygen system, the first XP-67 (42-11677) was ready by December 1, 1943. The aircraft had conventional ailerons rather than the planned drooping ailerons. By this time, the engines were XI-1430-17/19s, with D-23 turbosuperchargers. The Continental engines were rated at 1350 hp for takeoff and 1600 hp at 25,000 feet.

The initial flight tests of the XP-67 were delayed by fires in BOTH engines that broke out during a high-speed taxiing run at Lambert Field in St Louis on December 8, 1943. After being repaired, the XP-67 was trucked to Scott Field in Illinois. The first flight of the XP-67 took place there on January 6, 1944 with test pilot E. E. Elliott at the controls. However, this flight had to be abruptly terminated after only six minutes owing to engine problems.

The XP-67 was grounded while modifications were made to the engine compartments. A stainless-steel bulkhead was installed to seal off the turbosupercharger compartment from the rest of the engine, improvements were made to the cooling air circulatory system, and the aft ends of the engine cowlings were shortened. With these modifications, two test flights were completed successfully. However, on the fourth flight (on February 1, 1944), the Continental engines were deliberately overspeeded and the bearings burned out, forcing yet another emergency landing.

This mishap had damaged the Continental engines beyond repair, and since replacements were not immediately available, the XP-67 was returned to McDonnell in St Louis for modifications. Wind tunnel testing had suggested that the tailplane should be raised one foot in order to improve longitudinal stability, and this was done while the aircraft was awaiting replacement engines.

Test flying resumed on March 23, 1944, and five more successful flights were made during the month of May by USAAF test pilots. During this time, some problems were encountered with engine roughness, with improper aileron balance, and with unsatisfactory main undercarriage door closure. However, the USAAF pilots reported that the cockpit layout was adequate and that ground handling was satisfactory. Handling in the air was considered as being satisfactory and the roll rate was deemed to be good at high speed. The fighter was stable longitudinally, but it was neutrally stable laterally and tended to "Dutch roll".

However the performance of the XP-67 fell quite short of that which was promised. The takeoff run was excessively long, the initial climb rate was poor, and the acceleration was slow. The aircraft was clearly underpowered with its troublesome Continental engines, which failed to develop their design rating of 1350 hp, barely reaching 1060 hp.

Test flights continued throughout the summer of 1944. A dorsal fin and an additional two degrees of dihedral were added to the tailplane to improve lateral stablity. The XP-67 was scheduled to begin official performance tests in September, but before they could get underway a fire broke out in the right engine nacelle while test pilot E. E. Elliott was taking the XP-67 for a test flight. Elliott safely landed the aircraft, but the wind blew the flames over the fuselage and caused major damage to the structure.

The XP-67 was deemed to have been damaged beyond economical repair. This accident, plus the seemingly endless series of problems caused by the temperamental Continental engines, caused the USAAF to recommend that work on the XP-67 project be halted. On September 13, both McDonnell and the USAAF agreed that the project should be terminated. The contract was formally cancelled six weeks later.

The second prototype (42-11678) was cancelled before it could be completed. This prototype was to have been powered by I-1430 liquid-cooled engines with war emergency power ratings increased to 2100 hp. Contrarotating propellers were to be fitted in place of the handed propellers of the first prototype. There was even some talk of fitting a mixed powerplant arrangement to later production P-67s, with either a Packard V-1650 or an Allison V-1710 engine with two-stage supercharger in front of each engine nacelle and an I-20 turbojet in the rear of each nacelle. However, nothing ever came of these plans, since the USAAF requirement for long-range escort fighters was more than adequately satisfied by the North American P-51H Mustang, the Republic P-47N Thunderbolt, and later by the North American P-82 Twin Mustang.

The maximum speed attained by the XP-67 during tests was 405 mph at 15,000 feet and 357 mph at 10,000 feet. Initial climb rate was 2600 feet per minute, and service ceiling was 37,400 feet. Maximum range was 2385 miles. Weights were 17,745 pounds empty, 23,114 pounds loaded, 15,400 pounds maximum. Dimensions were wingspan 55 feet 0 inches, length 44 feet 9 1/4 inches, height 15 feet 9 inches, and wing area 415 square feet. The planned armament of six 37-mm cannon was never actually fitted.

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The P-36 Hawk

The Curtis Airplane and Motor Company previously established a relationship with the US Army, where in 1914 Curtis supplied a large scale of some 94 classic JN (Jenny) series of aircraft. Twenty years when the Curtis Airplane Company became a division of the Curtis Wright Corporation, it was deidd to design a and develop as a private venture, a new monoplane pursuit fighter. Known as the Curtis Model 75, it would incorporate advanced features as a retractable landing gear, and an enclosed cockpit for the pilot.

It was these features that the company believed would prompt the US Army to consider the aircraft as a replacement for the lower-performance Boeing P-26. Contemporary with the famous wartime triad of the BF-109, Hurricane, and Spitfire, it failed to achieve the level of performance desired by a fighter of that time. At a later date the aircraft was redesigned as attempt to upgrade the Model 75 which would include a Allison V-1710-21 engine, but during trials prototypes designated YP-37, failed to rise to the level of a higher standard of performance, not to mention were superseded by the P-40 Warhawk.

The model 75 prototype, powered by a 900 hp Wright XR-1820-39 Cyclone radial engine, was submitted to the USAAC in May of 1935 for evaluation in a design competition for a single seat pursuit fighter. This failed to materialize because no other designs by competing companies were ready, an it was not until April 1936 that the twice-postponed contest began. By that time the Model 75 had been re-engined with an 850 hp Wright XR-1820-39 Cyclone radial engine, and was identified as the Model 75-B.

The seversky Aircraft Corporation won the competition with a similar aircraft, which was ordered into production as the P-35. However, Curtis was awarded a contract for just three examples of the design, to be powered by a under rated version of the 1,050 hp Pratt and Whitney R-1830-13 Twin Wasp radial engine, and to be used for test and evaluation under the designation Y1P-36. Service tests of the Y1P-36s were considered so successful that a contract for 210 production P-36As was awarded on July 7th, 1937. (Then the USAAC’s peacetime contract for pursuit fighters). Delivery of these aircraft began in April of 1938, but by late 1941 when the United States became involved in World War II, they were considered obsolete.

Circumstances compelled limited use of the P-36As in the opening stages of the war with Japan, but later they were soon regulated for a training role only. Variants included a single XP-36B with a 1,100 hp Pratt and Whitney R-1820-25 engine, and the last 31 of the original production aircraft were completed with a more powerful Twin Wasp engine. The designations XP-36D, 36E, and 36F were applied to experimental examples with different armament. Export Hawk 75As were supplied to the French as 75A-1, A-2, A-3, and A-4s but most of them were transferred to Britain after the fall of France. Britain designated the aircraft Mohawk I, II, III, and IV. The type was also supplied to Norway, Persia, Finland, Peru, Portugal, Netherlands East Indies and India.

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The Morane Saulnier MS 406

The Morane Saulnier had the privilege, and perhaps the misfortune, to be the first modern French fighter, i.e., a low-wing monoplane with enclosed cockpit, retractable landing gear, and what was supposed to be appreciably higher performance than what the French Air Force (or Armee de l'Aire) had used before. Aerodynamically a reliable aircraft, the MS 406 evolved from the earlier MS-405 which first flew in August of 1935.

The Morane's fault lay in the fact that the official request that led to its design was not visionary enough, at a time of great and revolutionary changes in fighter design and development. What was cutting edge in 1935 was passe in 1939, unless the airframe had a built in ability to evolve and incorporate new powerplants, armament, and internal systems.

The MS-406 would have given a good account of itself had it gone up against its contemporary, the Bf-109B-D; however, it was fated to be opposed by the much improved Bf-109E - a fighter that was a generation ahead of the Morane - and suffered accordingly.

At the outbreak of the Second World War, the Morane Saulnier was the most numerous French fighter, followed by the Curtiss Hawk 75, an airplane of similar generation, but with more advanced thinking behind it. Lacking armor plate or self-sealing fuel tanks, the Morane was little more than a maneuverable target for its enemies. The fact that all its systems were pneumatic meant that one bullet in the right place would render the entire aircraft inoperable, not something one should do with an aircraft meant to go in harm's way.

After the collapse of France Germans captured many French planes. There was unknown number of airworthy Morane Saulnier MS 406 and MS 410 fighters (no less than 120 planes) and Germans tried to recover as many as possible. One plane (with German markings) was exhibited in Aviation Museum in Berlin. Other captured planes were transfered to SNACAO plants in Bourges, where, after repairs, they were repainted in typical German camouflage and German markings.

Planes were used mainly for training purposes together with older versions of Messerschmitt Bf 109 (B, C and D) and Focke Wulf Fw 56. In 1941 Germans sold 25 their own MS 406s and MS 410s to Finland. After seizing non-occupied part of France in November 1942, Germans captured another Morane fighters. As many as 46 entered Luftwaffe service.

Transfered to Morane Saulnier plants in Ossun-Tarbes were modified to German standards (i.e. they were equipped with FuG 7 R/T set). Later planes were repainted (camouflage seen in photo below) and sent to operational traning units such as JG 101, JG 103 and JG 105. They were used together with Dewoitine D.520C1, older Bf 109 (B-E versions) and older Fw 190A. Intensive and fast training of many young pilots caused many accidents. Soon only 33 Moranes survived and were sold to Bulgaria and Croatia. Fate of plane exhibited in museum in Berlin in still unknown. Probably destroyed during bombing run or evacuated after this run and is sitll missing.

Despite its shortcomings, the MS 406 served throughout the war with the French and Vichy-French forces in France, North Africa, Syria, and Indochina. The obsolescent fighter was also in the air forces of Turkey and Switzerland. The Luftwaffe used it as a fighter trainer.

Sixty MS-406s were supplied to the Finnish Air Force during the Russo-Finnish Winter of 1939 - 1940, although only a handful arrived there prior to the end of the conflict in March of 1940. The fighters soldiered on with the Finns during the Continuation War and were generally successful against Soviet aircraft and pilots.

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Vultee P-66 Vanguard

The Vultee Model 48 was an company-originated design evolved during the late 1930s by Richard Palmer, chief designer of the Vultee Aircraft Division of the Aviation Manufacturing Corporation. The aircraft was intended for the export market, and was pattered after the H-1B racer which Palmer had designed for Howard Hughes. The Hughes H-1B achieved the distinction of setting a world landplane speed record of 352.388 mph in 1935.

In late 1938, Palmer and his team were busily working on their Model 48 project when the US Army announced a design competition for an advanced trainer. Since a substantial Army order was anticipated for the winner of the competition, the Vultee Aircraft Division decided to enter the contest. Palmer's team came up with the idea of using the work already done on the Model 48 as a basis for Vultee's trainer proposal.

Eventually, the Vultee team evolved four separate and distinct aircraft designed to fulfill different military roles from this one basic design. The four designs used the same basic tooling and featured the same wings, the same aft fuselage, and the same tail assembly. Other details differed according to the roles assigned to the individual aircraft. The four types carried the company designations BC-51, B-54, B-54D and P-48.

The BC-51 was the designation given to the basic combat trainer which was eventually entered by Vultee in the USAAC competition. However, the BC-51 lost out to the North American BC-2 in the trainer contest. Nevertheless, the Army bought the sole Vultee BC-51 under the Army designation BC-3.

The B-54 was an advanced trainer design intended for export and the B-54A was a basic trainer version. The B-54A eventually evolved into the famous BT-13 Valiant.

The P-48 was the fighter version. The designation "P-48" was a company designation, not to be confused with the USAAF's P-for-pursuit designation scheme. Vultee put work on the P-48 on the back burner while they concentrated on the three trainer versions.

The P-48, BC-51, and B-54 had the same fuselage center section and a retractable undercarriage, and the BC-51, B-54, and B-54D had the same wing outer panels which had a greater span but the same wingtip and root chord as those of the P-48.

After the three trainers had been produced in 1939, Vultee returned to work on their original P-48 design. The P-48 featured a steel-tube semi-monocoque fuselage, a two-spar wing, and a fully-retractable undercarriage. It featured hydraulically-actuated split flaps. The aircraft was all metal-covered, with the exception of the control surfaces. The P-48's detachable outer wing panels shortened its wing span by six feet in comparison to the wings of the trainers. At one time, an armament of no less than TEN 0.30-inch machine guns was envisaged, with two of the guns firing rearwards aimed by mirrors. However, this idea was abandoned during development and a more conventional layout of two 0.30-in guns in the cowling and four wing-mounted 0.30-in guns was adopted.

The P-48 aircraft was to have been powered by a Pratt & Whitney R-1830-S4C4-G air-cooled radial engine rated at 1200 hp for takeoff and 900 hp at 15,400 feet. According to the initial plan, the engine was to be enclosed in an orthodox cowling similar to that fitted to the Curtiss P-36. However, during construction it was decided to switch to an unorthodox long and pointed cowling on order to reduce aerodynamic drag. In order to accommodate the long and pointed cowling, the engine was fitted with a lengthened drive shaft. Engine cooling was provided by a retractable air intake fitted beneath the nose immediately behind the propeller spinner. The nose of the P-48 looked a lot like the nose of the abortive Curtiss XP-42.

The Model P-48 was given the civil designation NX21755, and was flown for the first time in September of 1939 by test pilot Vance Breese. The name *Vanguard* was chosen. Unfortunately, the Model P-48 ran into the same sort of engine cooling problems that bedeviled the Curtiss XP-42. After a few flights with the initial cowling configuration, the variable air intake underneath the nose was fixed in the open position and another scoop was added above the cowling. At the same time, the rudder area was increased. Only limited flight testing had been completed when, on May 9, 1940, the Model P-48 Vanguard was damaged in a mid-air collision with Paul Mantz's Lockheed Sirius during a landing at Vultee Field. The impact severed one of the undercarriage legs, but test pilot Vance Breese succeeding in landing the Vanguard with little additional damage.

The production version of the Model P-48 was to have been designated Model 61, but by the time of the P-48's landing accident it had already been decided to give up on the pointed-nose for the Vanguard, since the drag reduction that it provided was insufficient to justify the increased weight and the cooling problems that it caused. Consequently, the second prototype Vanguard, the Model 48X (NX19999), reverted to the orthodox radial engine cowling that had originally been planned. The Model 48X made its first flight on February 11, 1940. The second prototype also differed from the first in having a compound wing dihedral with a break in the middle.

The damaged first prototype was rebuilt with the originally-planned orthodox radial cowling, a modified main undercarriage, and a rearward-retracting tailwheel. Provisions were made for twin guns in the upper fuselage decking and two wing guns.

Some instability was encountered by the Model 48X during flight testing, and substantial increases were made in the areas of both the vertical and the horizontal tail surfaces. The maximum speed was 358 mph at 15,600 feet. Initial climb rate was 3300 feet per minute. Service ceiling was 34,300 feet, and normal range was 738 miles. Weights were 4657 pounds empty and 6029 pounds gross. Dimensions were wingspan 36 feet 0 inches, length 29 feet 2 inches, height 9 feet 5 inches, wing area 197 square feet.

On February 6, 1940, Vultee received an order from Sweden for 144 Vanguards, the production version being given the company designation Model 48C. The Flygvapen designation for the aircraft was J10. The first production prototype bore the civilian serial number NX28300 and flew for the first time on September 6, 1940. It was essentially similar to the Model 48X, but had an R-1830-S3C4-G (R-1830-33) engine rated at 1200 hp for takeoff and 1050 hp at 13,100 feet. Armament consisted of four 0.30-in machine guns in the wings and two 0.50-in machine guns in the fuselage. The military equipment added to the Model 48C caused the weight to go up-- weights were 5237 pounds empty, 7100 pounds gross, and 7384 pounds maximum. The extra weight caused the performance of the Model 48C to degrade in comparison with that of the Model 48X. The maximum speed was 340 mph at 15,100 feet. Initial climb rate was 2520 feet per minute, and an altitude of 19,680 feet could be attained in 9.2 minutes. Service ceiling was 28,200 feet, and normal range was 850 miles. Weights were 4657 pounds empty and 6029 pounds gross. Dimensions were wingspan 36 feet 0 inches, length 28 feet 4 inches, height 9 feet 5 inches, wing area 197 square feet.

Before any production aircraft could be delivered to their Swedish customer, the US government placed an embargo on the export of military aircraft to Sweden, fearing that they might fall into Axis hands. Although the British had earlier rejected the Vultee fighter for their own use, they agreed to take over 100 of these aircraft under Lend-Lease as Vanguard Is. RAF serials BW208 through BW307 were assigned to these aircraft. The Vanguard I was considered as being unsuitable for combat use by the RAF, but it was considered appropriate for advanced training use by units based in Canada.

In early 1941, Chiang Kai-Shek's Nationalist Chinese forces were being hard-pressed by Japanese air attacks, and were in desperate need of more combat aircraft. So dire was their need that they were willing to accept just about anything that had wings. On May 19, 1941, the British government agreed to release its Vanguards for supply to Chiang Kai-Shek's Nationalist Chinese forces. The 144 Vanguards were given the USAAC designation P-66 and were assigned the serial numbers 42-6832 thru 42-6975.

Following the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, there was complete panic on the west coast of the USA. The Japanese fleet was expected to show up off Santa Barbara at any moment. In anticipation of a Japanese attack, some forty to fifty P-66s originally intended for China were hastily impressed into USAAC service and issued to the 14th Pursuit Group for use in the emergency defense of southern California. The pilots of the 14th Pursuit Group actually liked their P-66s, and they described the P-66 as being a very good aerobatic aircraft. Test pilot Gil Clark thought that it was the best aircraft he had ever flown, being much better than the Curtiss P-36. However, the cockpit layout was rather poor, and the aircraft was not sufficiently robust for a fighter. In addition the P-66 had an disconcerting tendency to ground-loop, some 15 examples being lost to this sort of accident.

Eventually, the US west coast was regarded as being sufficiently secure that the Vanguards were eventually released from USAAC service and allowed to be transferred to China. The first shipment of P-66s left for China in February of 1942, the last aircraft being delivered by August. They went first to Karachi (at that time in India) where they were assembled, tested, and ferried to China.

The combat record of the Vanguard in China is rather undistinguished. The actual number of Vanguards which actually reached China is uncertain. Several were lost during tests in India and others were lost while enroute to China. Others remained unairworthy at Karachi. About twelve Vanguards were on station at Kunming with the 7th Fighter Squadron of the 23rd Fighter Group, but they saw little use. Two Chinese squadrons based at An-Su saw combat action with the Vanguard from August 1943 onward. Many Vanguards were destroyed on the ground during Japanese attacks. The Vanguard had an unfortunate resemblance to the Japanese Nakajima Ki-43 *Oscar* and Nakajima Ki-44 *Tojo*, and several Vanguards were shot down by Chinese forces by mistake.

Some Vanguards were placed in caves for storage at Chungking for use in the upcoming civil war against Mao's Communists. Many were reported still in their crates as late as 1947. I am uncertain if they actually saw any service during the civil war. It is possible that there are some Vanguards in China STILL sitting in their crates in pristine condition. Would be an astounding discovery if this were actually the case!

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Grumman F8F Bearcat

The Bearcat made its maiden flight on 21 August 1944. The plane was supposed to be the successor to the F6F Hellcat, another Grumman plane. Bob Hall, the then Grumman chief engineer went to Britain in 1943, to evaluate a captured German Fw-190. He was so impressed by the performances of that compact fighter that the design of the Hellcat successor was already in his mind.

Weight was saved anywhere it was possible and the use of a Pratt & Whitney R-2800 -W22 engine gave outstanding results. During WWII, the French territories in South East Asia were under Japanese occupation. When the war was over, France regained authority over the territory, but a Nationalist guerrilla force - the Viet-Minh - arose and soon led to an open war. At the beginning, air support was provided by a handful of Spitfires and Mosquitoes, which were not suitable to operations in dense humidity areas due to their wooden construction. Armée de l'Air (French air force) then resorted to use F6F Hellcat and P-63 Kingcobra, along with a few captured Japanese airplanes. By 1951, the potential of both types was down to alarming levels and attrition was high.

Bearcats were then delivered under the Mutual Defense Assistance Programme, equipping 8 fighter squadrons (Groupes de Chasse). This was the only war use of the Bearcat, except a few sorties in the hand of the South Viet-Nam air force.

By the last half of the Second World War, most new US fighter designs were much heavier and more complex than earlier fighters. When planning a replacement for their successful F6F Hellcat carrier fighter, however, Grumman chose to built as lightweight a design as possible around the most reliable large radial engine.

The result was the F8F Bearcat, which was often called a "hot rod" by its pilots for its fantastic acceleration and climbing ability.

Using the well-proven Pratt & Whitney R-2800 engine, the first Bearcat prototype flew on August 21, 1944. After minor modifications, including the addition of a dorsal fin, early production F8F-1s began armament tests and carrier qualification trials in early 1945. By May of 1945, the Bearcat was cleared for operations, with very few restrictions on its flight operations over its wide speed range.

A total of 654 F8F-1s were delivered, all fitted with the 2,100 hp R-2800-34W engine.

The Bearcat was the first US Navy fighter to feature a full "bubble" canopy, giving excellent all around vision. It was also fitted with so called "Safety Wing Tips", the outer 40 inches of which were designed to break off cleanly in case of the wing being overstressed in a dive or other maneuver. After several incidents where one or both wing tips tore off, this feature was eliminated from later production Bearcats.

Two squadrons, VF-18 and VF-19 were equipped with F8F-1s, and training was expedited in order to get the new fighter into service against Japanese suicide attack planes in the Pacific.

VF-19 was onboard the carrier USS Langley, enroute across the Pacific, when the war ended on August 16, 1945.

The final production Bearcat was the F8F-2, with a more powerful R-2800-30W engine of 2,250 hp and an automatic variable speed supercharger. The extra power required an extra foot be added to the vertical fin, and F8F-2s carried a heavier armament of four 20mm cannons.

The F8F-2P was a photo-reconnaissance version, fitted with up to three cameras in the fuselage. By 1956, the last Bearcats were taken out of service and stored or scrapped, having been replaced by the new age of jets.

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