Vultee "Vanguard"
Model Airplane News Cover Art for May, 1940
by Jo Kotula
Yes, "Vanguard" is spelled incorrectly...
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The Vultee P-66 Vanguard was an accidental addition to the USAAF's inventory of fighter aircraft. It was initially ordered by Sweden, but by the time the aircraft were ready for delivery in 1941, the United States would not allow them to be exported, designating them as P-66s and retaining them for defensive and training purposes. Eventually, a large number were sent to China where they were pressed into service as combat aircraft with indifferent results. The V-11 received it's share of coverage in the media. Possibly as a deception measure, several articles praising the V-11 appeared in the mass media even after it had been declared obsolete. We have extracted a number of small articles from Popular Mechanics to illustrate this:

The V-11 in the Mass media
(above) Popular Mechanics
Click Here to download a free ".pdf" compendium of small articles featuring the V-11
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The Vultee Vanguard was the product of an idea conceived in the late 1930s by the Vultee Aircraft Division of the Aviation Manufacturing Corporation of developing four aircraft designed for different roles from a set of common wings and aft fuselage and tail assemblies. The company assigned four model designations: V-48 to a single seat fighter, BC-51 to a basic combat trainer, B-54 to an advanced trainer, and BC-54D as a basic trainer. Eventually the BC-51 would become the Army Air Corps BC-3 and the BC-54D, the BT-13. Richard W. Palmer wast the principal designer.

     

Vultee P-66 "Vanguard"
Richard Palmer Landing Gear Patent No. 2,391,998
Richard Palmer Wing Patent No. 2,330,185
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No newsreel footage seems to be available, but is a video of a very well-made giant-scale radio-controlled model of the Vultee "Vanguard" that probably performs better than the original:

Click Here for more information about the Vultee "Vanguard".

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