- Yes
- No
Vought V-143/AXV1
In 1937, the Japanese bought the only prototype of the Vought V-143 fighter, which received the Japanese designation AXV1 (Navy Experimental Fighter Type V). This aircraft was used by the Japanese for a technological solution for retractable landing gear in monoplane fighters. This aircraft is not related to the Mitsubishi A6M fighter .
History
In 1935, to meet the needs of the American army, Northrop designed the Northropie 3A fighter, which was a development of the XFT-1 aircraft from 1933. During a test flight on July 30, 1935, over the Pacific Ocean near California, the plane and pilot Frank Scare disappeared without a trace. This caused Northrop to eventually chew up on the project. However, at the beginning of 1936, the design, along with all rights to it, was purchased by Vought, who wanted to modify it and sell it to the American army. The design was modified to a small extent, the rudder was increased, the engine cowlings were modified, and the landing gear was modified. The plane also received a slightly more powerful engine and so modified it received the designation V-141. Its maiden flight took place on March 29, 1936. In April 1936, Vought offered the U.S. Army the sale of the V-141 at a unit price of $34,148 for a batch of 25 aircraft (excluding engines and government-supplied equipment), and a cheaper option, i.e. the purchase of 200 aircraft at a unit price of $16,041. However, the army in tests showed that the plane has poor handling, there are problems with spinning and also suffered from tail flutter. Therefore, the plane was rejected and the U.S. Army purchased 77 Seversky P-35 fighters. Undeterred, Vought modified the V-141 by modifying the tail and directed it to the esports market as the V-143. The first potential customer was to be Argentina, which was looking for successors for the Dewoitine D.21 fighters. The Vought V-143 and Curtiss 75 competed in the competition. During testing, it was noted that the V-143 was equipped with an anti-spin parachute in the tail, and when the Argentine authorities asked for its removal, Vought refused, which automatically crossed out the V-143 in the competition. Then, after the V-143 returned to the USA, it was presented to the Japanese commission on January 4, 1937, and in February to two Turkish officers (Captains Enver Akoglu and Allmet Hikmet), but no purchase offer appeared. Desperate, Vought modified the tail of the V-143 in May 1937 (it now resembled the tail of the SB2U-1 bomber) and added a few improvements. In addition, the plane got a new engine… Even during the reconstruction, attempts were made to sell the V-143 to Norway and Yugoslavia, which were unsuccessful. On June 22, Vought informed the Japanese committee that they could present a modified V-143 to the Japanese committee, but the Japanese did not determine when the presentation would take place. However, although the Japanese were not interested in presenting the aircraft, they were very interested in buying it. However, Vought wanted to try to sell the V-143 to the U.S. Army for the last time. On July 18 at Isk Harford, a modified V-143 was presented to a committee from the U.S. Army. The aircraft had much better handling than the V-141, but the requirements of the army were more demanding and the aircraft was rejected. After that, Vought agreed to sell the V-143 to Japan, on the condition that it would not be sent to fight the Chinese. At the end of July 1937, the Japanese bought the V-143 prototype, license production rights, and technical documentation for $175,000. In August 1937, the V-143 was delivered by sea to Japan, where it received the designation Navy Experimental Fighter Type V (AXV1). Although the Japanese purchased the AXV1 for its technological solutions, they decided to test it and compare it to their own fighters. The AXV1 proved to be much inferior to the Ki-27 and A5M, so production was never attempted. It is unknown what happened to the AXV1 by 1945, but it was likely destroyed. After the war, in 1946, a mistaken theory emerged that the Mitsubishi A6M Zero is a modified V-143, which is completely untrue, and the two aircraft have no relation to each other.
Construction description
The Vought V-143/AXV1 is a monoplane fighter with a classic retractable landing gear. The aircraft is powered by a single 14-cylinder Pratt & Whitney R-1535-A5G (SB4G) radial engine with a take-off power of 825 hp (615 kW), which rotates a three-bladed metal propeller with a diameter of 2,900 mm. The aircraft is armed with two 7.62mm Browning machine guns in the nose above the engine and can carry up to 140 kg of bombs under the wings.
General characteristics
- Crew: 1
- Length: 7,92 m
- Wingspan: 10,21 m
- Height: 2,84 m
- Wing area: 17,4 m2
- Empty weight: 1545 kg
- Take-off Weight: 1982 kg
- Powerplant: 1 x Pratt & Whitney R-1535-A5G (SB4G) 14-cylinder air-cooled radial engine with 825 hp (615 kW) take-off power
- Propellers: Three-bladed propeller with adjustable angle of attack of the propeller blades with a diameter of 2,900 mm
Performance
- Maximum speed: 480 km/h
- Cruise Speed: 391 km/h
- Range: 1300 km
- Maximum Range: 1533 km
- Service ceiling: 9333 m
- Time to Climb to: 3 min 6 s to 3050 m
- Climb Rate: 14,22 m/s
Armament
- Guns:
- 2 x 7,62 mm Browning machine gun in the nose
- Bombs:
- 140 kg of bombs under the wings
Summary
The Vought V-143/AXV1 is an interesting aircraft for Japan in War Thunder. This plane has an interesting history behind it, which makes it an interesting aircraft for the event. This aircraft would have been a great fighter of the first era. I encourage you to discuss in the comments and to share your own knowledge on this subject.
Finally, I apologize for the linguistic and logical errors because unfortunately English is not my main language and I had to use google translator.
Internet sources
ヴォート V-143 - Wikipedia
Vought V-141 - Wikipedia
Northrop XFT - Wikipedia
Ужасное невезение или банальный провал? Семейство истребителей Northrop Model 3, Vought V-141 и V-143. Часть 1 - Альтернативная История
Ужасное невезение или банальный провал? Семейство истребителей Northrop Model 3, Chance-Vought V-141 и V-143. Часть 2 - Альтернативная История
Vought V-143 : Vought / LTV
Vought V-143 - fighter
Samolot myśliwski Vought V-141 (V-143) … czyli Japoński Łącznik. – Samoloty 1.5
Уголок неба ¦ Vought V-141(143)
Book sources
Japońskie Samoloty Marynarki 1912-45 (Japanese naval aircraft 1912-45) page 94-95
Thank you for reading the suggestion, see you in the next one. Good luck pilots
