Curtiss-Wright XP-55 Ascender

Curtiss-Wright XP-55 Ascender
Land	Usa
Rolle	Fighter
Produceret	19. juli 1943
Bygget	3

Den Curtiss-Wright XP-55 Ascender (virksomhedsbetegnelse CW-24) er et amerikansk prototype jagerfly fra 1940'erne bygget af Curtiss-Wright. Sammen med Vultee XP-54 og Northrop XP-56 var det et resultat af United States Army Air Corps forslag R-40C udstedt den 27. november 1939 for fly med forbedret ydeevne, bevæbning og pilotudsyn i forhold til eksisterende jagerfly; Det tillod specifikt ukonventionelle flydesign. Et meget usædvanligt design for sin tid, det havde en canard-konfiguration, en bagmonteret motor, fejede vinger og to lodrette haler. På grund af dens pusher-design blev den sarkastisk omtalt som "Ass-ender". Ligesom XP-54 blev Ascender oprindeligt designet til Pratt & Whitney X-1800-motoren og måtte redesignes, da dette motorprojekt blev aflyst. Det var også det første Curtiss-jagerfly, der brugte trehjulet landingsstel.

Kilde: Curtiss-Wright XP-55 Ascender på Wikipedia

XP-55 Ascender Walk Around
Fotograf	Michael Benolkin
Lokalisering	Unknow
Billeder	39

XP-55 Ascender 01

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XP-55 Ascender 09

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General Characteristics and Role

The Curtiss XP-55 Ascender (Curtiss-Sperry Model 24) was an experimental fighter prototype developed for the U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF) during World War II. It was the product of the 1940 “R-40C” proposal for unconventional aircraft designs, alongside the Northrop XP-56 Black Bullet and Vultee XP-54 Swoose Goose. The Ascender featured a highly radical and futuristic design for its time: a tailless canard configuration with the engine mounted at the rear, driving a pusher propeller. This layout was intended to improve aerodynamics and provide an unobstructed forward field of fire. Despite the design’s potential, the XP-55 suffered from stability issues, poor low-speed performance, and did not live up to performance expectations, leading to its cancellation after three prototypes were built.

Property	Typical Value (XP-55)
Rolle	Experimental Fighter Prototype
National Origin	USA
Producent	Curtiss-Wright Corporation
First Flight	13 July 1943
Antal bygget	3
Besætning	1 (Pilot)
Længde	9.0 m (29 ft 6 in)
Vingefang	12.4 m (40 ft 8 in)
Højde	3.45 m (11 ft 4 in)
Empty Weight	2,884 kg (6,358 lb)
Max Takeoff Weight	3,792 kg (8,360 lb)

Powerplant and Design

Engine: One Allison V-1710-95 (F23R) liquid-cooled V12 engine.
Power Output: 954 kW (1,275 hp).
Propulsion: 3-bladed propeller in a pusher configuration (at the rear).
Maximum Speed: 628 km/h (390 mph; 339 kn) at 5,800 m (19,000 ft).
Range: 1,040 km (650 mi; 560 nmi).
Design Layout: Canard (small horizontal surface in the nose) and a mid-set wing with twin tail booms supporting the rudders. The main wings were swept back slightly.
Pilot Safety: Due to the rear-mounted propeller, the pilot was equipped with a system to jettison the propeller assembly before bailing out in an emergency.

Armament (Intended) and Service

Intended Armament: 2 x 20 mm cannon and 2 x .50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns, all mounted in the nose. (Prototypes often flew with reduced or no armament).
Service History: The first prototype crashed due to a stall/spin in a test flight. Despite modifications to the second and third prototypes, they were ultimately outclassed by conventional and early jet fighters.
Legacy: The XP-55’s radical configuration helped advance research into canard aerodynamics, a concept later successfully used in aircraft like the Saab Viggen and Eurofighter Typhoon.

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