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Curtiss XF14C

1944 WORLD WAR 2 X-PLANE

History of the Curtis XF14C

The success of Curtiss Aircraft's P-40 Warhawk series of inline piston engine fighters, which later served in many air forces of the era and fought in theaters from North Africa to China throughout World War II .The font produced nearly 14,000 copies, making Curtis-Wright & Company a household name. However, the Warhawk served with the U.S. Army Air Corps (USAAC), and Curtis sought to restore ties with the U.S. Navy (USN) Air Force, which is now largely allied with rival Grumman Aircraft to develop its carrier-based fighter needs. In 1941, the USN issued new requirements for a well-equipped carrier-based monoplane interceptor, andunlike the specification that largely restricted USN fighter designs to essentially air-cooled radial piston enginesthe new design would carry Also new liquid cooled high performance - Lycoming XH-2470-4 inline piston engine.

On June 30, 1941, Curtis-Wright received a development order for two complete prototypes called the "XF14C".

When development of the new mount began - officially named "XF14C-1" - it became clear that the Lycoming engine chosen could not meet the requirements of the US Navy. The focus now shifts to the Wright XR-3350 "Twin Cyclone" air-cooled radial piston engine, the type proposed by the U.S.

Navy for the first incomplete Curtiss XF14C-1 airframe. Curtis engineers then paired the engine with a 2 x 3 blade counter-rotating propeller to produce the new "XF14C-2" prototype, which first flew in July 1944.

The new fighter is powered by Wright's XR-3350-16 18-cylinder, 2,300 hp, twin-row, air-cooled, radial piston engine. This gives the plane a top speed of 424 miles per hour (296 mph), a range of 1,350 miles, and a service ceiling of nearly 40,000 feet. The climb rate is 2,700 feet per minute. On the outside, the Curtis design is traditional, with forward-facing engine mounts and a traditional rear wing.

The cockpit is centered along the length of the fuselage, with a canopy of thick glass providing limited visibility. The air-cooled engine forced the front of the fuselage to be very low, giving the aircraft a rather generous appearance. The engine drives a pair of three-bladed propellers in a "counter-rotating" fashion for maximum power from a single engine armature. The wings are straight appendages mounted low on the sides of the fuselage, while the tips of all wing surfaces are rounded for a very clean and elegant look.

The landing gear is retractable, with two main gear legs under each wing. Standard armament is 6 x .50 heavy Browning machine guns or 4 x 20mm cannons, all mounted on the wings.

The XF14C-1 was officially phased out in December 1943, allowing the design to focus on the XF14C-2. Despite a different engine configuration and the use of counter-rotating propellers, this type of performance was lacking compared to contemporaries, and unusual vibrations in flight were noted during testing.

In addition, the XR-3350 series of engines have been experiencing incipient problems, making them unsuitable in the short term. Their long-term availability is also in question, as they are intended for mass use on the new Boeing B-29 Superfortress four-engine heavy bomber needed in the Pacific Theater.

At this stage of the war, the U.S. Navy was already using the Grumman F6F Hellcat and Vought F4U Corsair fighters with great success, further dooming the XF14C program to become the U.S. Navy's new carrier-based interceptor. /fighter. Because of this, the Curtiss XF14C program was officially terminated by the U.S.

Navy in early 1945, leaving only a full prototype. Initial work on a version of the XF14C with a pressurized cockpit for high-altitude work was born as the "XF14C-3", but this design never progressed.