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P-59
Airacomet
Development of
America's first jet-propelled airplane, was ordered personally by General
H.H. Arnold on September 4, 1941. The project was conducted under the
utmost secrecy, with Bell building the airplane and General Electric the
engine. The first P-59 was completed in mid-1942 and on October 1,
1942, it made its initial flight at Muroc Dry Lake (now Edwards Air Force
Base), California. One year later, the airplane was ordered into
production, to be powered by I-14 and I-16 engines, improved versions of the
original I-A.
Bell produced 66 P-59s.
Although the airplane's performance was not spectacular and it never got
into combat, the P-59 provided training for AAF personnel and invaluable
data for subsequent development of higher performance jet airplanes.
The P-59B pictured here
was obtained from Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico in February 1956.
(NMUSAF)
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