Role - Fighter
Manufacturer - Thomas-Morse
Designed by - B. Douglas Thomas[1]
Introduced - June 1929
Primary user - United States Army Air Service
Number built - 1[2]

The XP-13 Viper was a prototype biplane fighter aircraft designed by the United States company Thomas-Morse Aircraft Corporation. The airplane was delivered to the United States Army in 1929.

Design and development

This aircraft was one of several B. Douglas Thomas designs built in hopes of a production contract from the Army, following the successful Thomas-Morse MB-3 of 1919. Financed by the company, and named the "Viper", it was officially purchased by the Army in June of 1929 and designated "XP-13".

The XP-13 fuselage had a corrugated aluminum skin built over a metal frame; the flying surfaces were also metal-framed, but covered with the traditional fabric. While designed to use the 600 hp Curtiss H-1640-1 Chieftain engine, (a novel 12-cylinder two-row air cooled radial with the rear cylinders directly behind the front cylinders rather than staggered as normal in a two row radial[3]) for which the XP-13 incorporated a complex system of baffles to direct cooling air over the engine, the engine simply would not stay cool enough, and in September 1930 it was replaced with a Pratt & Whitney SR1340C Wasp of 450 hp. Ironically, the lower-power engine actually resulted in a speed increase of 15 mph, at least partly because of the weight savings.[4]

In the end, the Army decided against production, Thomas-Morse was acquired by Consolidated Aircraft, and the prototype was lost to an inflight fire.

Variants

XP-13
Prototype, serial number 29-453 with 600 hp (448 kW) Curtiss H-1640-1 Chieftain hex engine[2]

XP-13A
The XP-13 modified with a 525 hp (391 kW) Pratt and Whitney SR-1340-C enclosed in a NACA cowling, along with a revised fin and rudder[5]

XP-14
This designation was used for a proposed Curtiss version of the Viper with the Curtiss H-1640-1 Chieftain hex engine

Specifications (XP-13 (Chieftain engine))

Data from "The Complete Book of Fighters" cover Editors: William Green & Gordon Swanborough (Barnes & Noble Books New York, 1998, ISBN 0760709041), 608 pp.

General characteristics

Crew: 1
Length: 23 ft 6 in (7.16 m)
Wingspan: 28 ft 0 in (8.53 m)
Height: 8 ft 5 in (2.56 m)
Wing area: 189 ft² (17.6 m²)
Empty weight: 2,262 lb (1,026 kg)
Loaded weight: 3,256 lb (1,477 kg)
Powerplant: 1× Curtiss H-1640-1 Chieftain 12-cyliner two-row air cooled radial engine, 600 hp (448 kW)

Performance

Maximum speed: 150 knots (172 mph, 277 km/h) (at sea level)
Cruise speed: 113 knots (130 mph, 209 km/h [6])
Range: 168 NM (193 mi, 312 km [6])
Service ceiling: 20,775 ft (6,300 m)
Rate of climb: 1,700 ft/min[6] (8.6 m/s)

Armament

none

References

1. "The Complete Book of Fighters" cover Editors: William Green & Gordon Swanborough (Barnes & Noble Books New York, 1998, ISBN 0760709041), 608 pp.
2. a b "U.S. Army Aircraft 1908-1946" by James C. Fahey, 1946, 64pp.
3. Gunston 1986, p.46.
4. "U.S. Fighters", by Lloyd S. Jones, (Aero Publishers, Inc. ISBN 0816892008, 1975) pp. 46-47
5. "The American Fighter", Enzo Angellucci and Peter Bowers, (Orion Books ISBN 0517565889), 1987
6. a b c Dorr and Donald 1990, p.43

Dorr, Robert F. and Donald, David. Fighters of the United States Air Force. London:Temple, 1990. ISBN 0 600 55094 X.
Gunston, Bill, World Encyclopedia of Aero Engines.London:Guild Publishing, 1986.

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Source: WikiPedia