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Northrop P-61 Black Widow
Northrop's P-61 Black Widow was a creature of the night. This large, powerful, twin-engined craft was the first American combat plane designed from the beginning as a night-fighter and optimised for air-to-air combat during the nocturnal hours. Beneath its slick coat of black paint, the P-61 proved itself a deadly foe in the dark, invisibly approaching Japanese aircraft and blasting them from the sky.
The P-61 Black Widow was the largest, heaviest and most powerful fighter of World War II. It resulted from efforts by designer Jack Northrop to create a night-fighter able to use air-to-air radar to destroy enemy warplanes after dark.
The Black Widow was deceptively agile and challenged and defeated smaller fighters. More than a twin-engine, twin-boomed aircraft of great size and strength, the Black Widow was truly a fighter and it produced an impressive number of air-to-air kills.
The Black Widow looked like a strange, menacing machine. In fact, it was easy to fly and responsive to the touch. The unusual cockpit layout placed the radarman/forward gunner above and behind the pilot (the third crewman was behind both) and pilots disliked having the propellers in line with their cockpit position. But once P-61s reached night-fighter squadrons in Europe and the Pacific in 1944, they achieved an impressive combat record.
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| Once the strict initial flight limitations were lifted, P-61s became highly regarded. |
The original XP-61 prototype was flown on 26 May 1942 with most of its features mocked-up while awaiting the real parts. |
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Northrop P-61 Black Widow (Technical Specification) |
| Role |
Three-seat night-fighter |
| Manufacturer |
Northrop |
| Maximum Speed |
589 kmh (365 mph) |
| Maximum range |
1,513 km (940 miles) |
| Ceiling |
12,445 meters (40,800 feet) |
Weight
Empty
Maximum Takeoff |
9,654 kg (21,239 lbs)
16,420 kg (36,124 lbs) |
Dimensions
Wingspan
Length
Height
Wing Area |
20.11 meters (66 ft)
15.11 meters (50 ft)
4.47 meters (15 ft)
61.53 square meters (662 sq ft) |
| Engines |
Two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-65 Double Wasp 18-cylinder radial engines each providing 1491-kW (2,000 hp) |
| Armament |
Four 20 mm (0.79 in) M-2 cannon each with 200 rounds
Four dorsal barbette with 12.7 mm (0.50 cal) machine-guns each with 560 rounds
Pylons for 454 kgs (1,000 lbs) of bombs, rockets or other weapons |
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