Description:
The Boeing P-12 was one of the best known and most successful American fighters produced in the period between World War I and World War II. It was the last of the biplane fighters flown by the Army Air Corps, and was used widely throughout the 1930s. A few P-12s remained in service until late 1941. It was a highly maneuverable airplane--well suited to the pursuit role--and highly regarded by the pilots who flew it. Used by both the Army and the Navy (as the F-4B), the P-12 was developed from two prototypes that the Boeing Airplane Co. built at its own expense as a private venture. The prototypes--the Model 83 and the Model 89--were first flown i the summer of 1928. After evaluation by the Army and the Navy, Boeing received orders for the fighters from both services. The Army Air Corps received its first basic P-12 in February 1929. Shortly after delivery, that aircraft was flown by Capt.. Ira C. Eaker on a good will speed flight to Central America. Nine more P-12s were delivered by the end of April; the last one, which included several refinements, was designated the XP-13. In May, however, it was destroyed in a mid-air collision near Wright field. No standard P-12A ever was manufactured, but production of five additional models of the P-12, in the B through F series, continued until the last P-12F was delivered in May 1932. In all, Boeing produced 366, P-12s of various models for the Army. More P-12Es were built (110) that any other series in the P-12 family. The basic P-12 and the B, C, and D series aircraft had fuselages of bolted aluminum tubing construction with fabric covering. The fuselage of the P-12E and F were quite different, being of all metal, semi-monocoque (stressed skin) construction. The wings of all P-12 models were built of wood and covered with fabric. An engine ring cowling first appeared as a standard production feature on the P-12C and was applied to all later series P-12s. In addition, a number of P-12Bs were retrofitted with the cowling. Tail wheels replace skids on the last few P-12Fs produced, but eventually the rest of the P-12Fs and all P-12Es received them.
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