Bell XP-77
| XP-77 | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Role | Fighter aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Bell Aircraft Corporation |
| First flight | 1 April 1944 |
| Retired | December 1944 |
| Primary user | U.S. Army Air Forces |
| Number built | 2 prototypes |
The Bell XP-77 development was initiated by the United States Army Air Forces during World War II to produce a simplified "lightweight" fighter aircraft using non-strategic materials. Despite being innovative, the diminutive prototype proved tricky to handle and the project was canceled when the XP-77 did not deliver its projected performance.
The Tri-4 (Company designations, later changed to D-6 ) project with the Bell Aircraft Corporation was initiated in October 1941. Originally a design study to meet the USAAF specifications for a "very light" interceptor, the XP-77 was intended to be a small, light fighter much in the mold of the 1930s Thompson Trophy air racers.
On 16 May 1942, the USAAF recommended the construction and testing of 25 XP-77s. The aircraft featured a single-engine, low-wing monoplane with mainly wood construction, equipped with tricycle landing gear, a Bell trademark that bestowed good ground handling. A sleek bubble canopy also provided all-round visibility (except forward due to the extended nose); a key requirement for a fighter.
While originally conceived using an air-cooled 500 hp Ranger XV-770-9 12-cylinder engine with a supercharger, the prototypes were delivered with the non-supercharged XV-770-7 engine due to engine development delays. With the anticipated delivery time of the original engine delayed for one and a half years, Bell proposed that seven XP-77s be built using the seven XV-770-7 engines then available. The planned armament was one Hispano 20 mm cannon firing through the propeller hub (much like the larger caliber 37 mm moteur-canon of the SPAD S.XII) and two 0.5 inch Browning machine guns, with the option of either a 300 lb bomb or 325 lb depth charge with the deletion of the cannon armament.
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