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Northrop Grumman P-61 Black Widow

6,938 CaesarSeizer  6.9 years ago


A very simple version of my favorite aircraft from WWII, optimized for high detail and a relatively light computer load.


Important note:

The cockpit is a modified version of Sarpanitu's MK3 Cockpit. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to keep this aircraft as a proper successor, so the link to his cockpit is here:
https://www.simpleplanes.com/a/sBVv04/Sarpanitus-Cockpit-MK3


Operation of the aircraft:

The aircraft has four guns in the belly of the plane and an additional four guns in a turret on the top. Activate group one to use the turret and use VTOL and Trim to move it around.

Go to camera 1 for cockpit view, and go to cockpit camera for turret view.


Historical background:

The Northrop P-61 Black Widow, named for the American spider, was the first operational U.S. warplane designed as a night fighter, and the first aircraft designed to use radar. The P-61 had a crew of three: pilot, gunner, and radar operator. It was armed with four 20 mm (.79 in) Hispano M2 forward-firing cannon mounted in the lower fuselage, and four .50 in (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns mounted in a remote-controlled dorsal gun turret.

It was an all-metal, twin-engine, twin-boom design developed during World War II. The first test flight was made on May 26, 1942, with the first production aircraft rolling off the assembly line in October 1943. The last aircraft was retired from government service in 1954.

Although not produced in the large numbers of its contemporaries, the Black Widow was effectively operated as a night-fighter by United States Army Air Forces squadrons in the European Theater, Pacific Theater, China Burma India Theater, and Mediterranean Theater during World War II. It replaced earlier British-designed night-fighter aircraft that had been updated to incorporate radar when it became available. After the war, the P-61—redesignated the F-61—served in the United States Air Force as a long-range, all-weather, day/night interceptor for Air Defense Command until 1948, and Fifth Air Force until 1950.

(From wikipedia)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NorthropP-61Black_Widow

General Characteristics

  • Successors 2 airplane(s)
  • Created On Windows
  • Wingspan 57.4ft (17.5m)
  • Length 42.2ft (12.9m)
  • Height 12.7ft (3.9m)
  • Empty Weight 10,660lbs (4,835kg)
  • Loaded Weight 14,172lbs (6,428kg)

Performance

  • Horse Power/Weight Ratio 1.128
  • Wing Loading 32.3lbs/ft2 (157.8kg/m2)
  • Wing Area 438.6ft2 (40.8m2)
  • Drag Points 7145

Parts

  • Number of Parts 168
  • Control Surfaces 7
  • Performance Cost 718

Required Mods

  • Glass by GenrichTitov
    Version 1.0 (9/15/2017 2:31:00 PM)
    View Mod Page
  • Mk20 Autocannon by Gestour
    Version 1.1 (11/24/2016 10:29:45 PM)