Vought XF3U-1

By the spring of 1931, several months of operation of the Curtiss F8C-4 aboard the USS Saratoga had proved conclusively that this type was unsatisfactory in the fleet fighter role. As a consequence, the US Navy's BuAer reformulated its two-seat fighter requirement, and, from seven proposals received in April 1932, those of Vought and Douglas were selected, contracts being signed on 30 June 1932 for one prototype of each as the XF3U-1 and XFD-1 respectively. The XF3U-1 was flown on 9 May 1933, and was of all-metal construction with fabric skinning apart from the metal-covered fixed tail surfaces. Powered by a 14-cylinder Pratt & Whitney R-1535-64 Twin Wasp Junior geared and supercharged engine rated at 700hp at 2715m, the XF3U-1 had an armament of two 7.62mm cowl guns and a third gun of similar calibre on a flexible mounting in the rear cockpit. It demonstrated a marginal performance superiority over the competitive XFD-1, but the BuAer had meanwhile lost interest in the two-seat fighter category, and, in November 1933, it was decided to adapt the XF3U-1 for the scout-dive bomber role as the XSBU-1.

3-View

A three-view drawing (1278 x 980)