The Boeing XP-15 was an American prototype monoplane fighter.

Design and development

This aircraft was essentially a monoplane version of the Boeing P-12, differing in having the lower wing omitted and in having all-metal construction as well as altered

aileron An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...

s. The XP-15 had a split-axle

undercarriage Undercarriage is the part of a moving vehicle that is underneath the main body of the vehicle. The term originally applied to this part of a horse-drawn carriage, and usage has since broadened to include: *The landing gear of an aircraft. *The ch ...

and a

tail wheel Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft undercarriage consisting of two main wheels forward of the center of gravity and a small wheel or skid to support the tail.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms ...

. Boeing numbered the craft as its ''Model 202''; while the United States Army accepted it for testing and designated it as XP-15, they never actually purchased it, and it retained its civil registration of X-270V.

Operational history

The XP-15 first flew in January 1930, when it was discovered that the vertical stabilizer (a P-12C type) needed to be larger in order to compensate for the single wing. Initial testing showed a top speed to 178 mph, but with enlarged tail surfaces and a Townend cowling, it recorded 190 mph at 8,000 ft. The aircraft performed poorly, with a poor rate of climb and a high landing speed. The USAAC did not order the aircraft for production and on 7 February 1931, the prototype was destroyed when a

propeller A propeller (colloquially often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon ...

blade failed and the engine tore loose from its mounts. The Navy was offered the similar ''Model 205''. It first flew in February 1930. One was bought by the US Navy as the XF5B-1, but by the time flight testing was complete in 1932, other aircraft were ordered instead.

Variants

;XP-15: 1 built ;XF5B-1: 1 built

Operators

; * United States Army Air Corps * United States Navy

Specifications (XP-15)

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Angelucci, Enzo. ''The American Fighter from 1917 to the present''. New York: Orion Books, 1987. * Jones, Lloyd S. ''U.S. Fighters, Army-Air Force: 1925 to 1980s.'' Fallbrook, California: Aero Publishers Incorporated, 1975, pp. 48–49. .

External links

XF5B-1
{{USN fighters

P-15 P15 may refer to: * Aviatik P.15, a German reconnaissance biplane * CDKN2B, a human protein * Lippisch P.15, a German prototype aircraft * MAB PA-15 pistol * Nissan Kicks (P15), a SUV * P-15 radar, a Soviet radar system * P15 road (Ukraine) * P-1 ...

1930s United States fighter aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Parasol-wing aircraft category:Carrier-based aircraft