Bell P-59 Airacomet (US Navy designation: YF2L-1) was a twin jet engined fighter aircraft, the first for the USAAF, designed and built by Bell Aircraft during World War II. Bell Aircraft was one of the companies asked to explore the development of jet-powered fighter aircraft, a technology that had caught the United States by surprise. While Britain, Germany, and Italy were already progressing with jet aircraft projects, the United States lagged behind. Impressed by the potential of jet engines, General ‘Hap’ Arnold, the Chief of the US Army Air Forces (USAAF), requested the blueprints of the British jet engine to manufacture it under license in the USA. Given the support provided through the Lend-Lease program, the British government agreed to share the technology.

On September 4, 1941, a meeting at Wright Field led to the selection of the General Electric Corporation as the primary contractor for the American production of the British jet engine, due to their extensive experience with turbines. Fifteen engines were initially ordered, with all production and testing conducted under strict secrecy. The next day, Bell Aircraft was approached to build a jet fighter using these engines. Bell was chosen because of its available capacity and proximity to the General Electric plant, essential for maintaining secrecy.

Bell agreed to construct three prototypes, with the first due eight months after the contract signing on September 30, 1941. The project was given the cover designation ‘XP-59A’ to mislead Axis intelligence into thinking it was related to the unrelated XP-59 piston-engine fighter. The original XP-59 project was quietly canceled on December 1, 1941, as work on the new jet fighter began.

The General Electric jet engine, designated I-A, was portrayed as a new turbocharger. Bell’s conservative aircraft design featured a conventional layout with a mid-mounted wing and retractable tricycle landing gear. It was powered by two 1,400 lb (5.12 kN) thrust General Electric I-A jet engines mounted under the wing roots. The aircraft had a high-set tailplane and a pressurized cockpit accessed via a side-hinged canopy. The fuselage was divided into a forward section, containing the armament bay and cockpit, and a rear section of stressed-skin, semi-monocoque construction. The control surfaces were fabric-covered and manually operated.

Though primarily an engine test bed, the XP-59A was also viewed as a potential combat aircraft, equipped with two 37mm cannons in the nose. The USAAF approved the design and the construction of three prototypes on January 9, 1942. Before the first prototype flew, the USAAF ordered thirteen YP-59As for service testing in March 1942. These had serial numbers 42-108771 to 108783 and were powered by an improved General Electric engine, the 1-16 (later J31), rated at 1,650 lb (6.04 kN) thrust. The YP-59As featured sliding canopies instead of the hinged ones used on the prototypes. Toal production: 66. Specifications:

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