What's a P-75?

A sheep ranching ATP friend of mine once said that a llama looks like a horse designed by committee. So it can be said of the XP-75, which flew with Curtis P-40 wings, a Douglas SBD Dauntless rear fuselage, and the undercarriage from the F4U Corsair. Needless to say, this arraignment was unsatisfactory, and the design was completely reworked into the rather stunningly good looking P-75A. However, the Allison V-3420 was balky and its pairing with the Fisher airframe did not surpass established USAAF fighters. Only a handful of Eagles were built.

National Museum of USAF has restored the last one built and displays it in their R&D hanger, along with an Allison V-3420. This is how they looked on 10 July 2012.

Let NMUSAF tell you about this Eagle

Look at that snout!

That blue-gray thing between the nose and left (right in the photo) wing is the Northrop Tacit Blue

Main tire, natural light

Main tire, unnatural bright

Tread detail

Hub cast detail

Blurry (sorry) -says "ACCESS GUNS" and something in Klingon

Allison V-3420 twin-vee 24-cylinder engine

Allison's 2,885 hp V-3420 was a pair of V-1710s joined together at an angle, giving it a "W" appearance from head-on.

NMUSAF explains....