Vultee P-66 Vanguard

what is it?

The Vultee P-66 Vanguard was a United States Army Air Forces fighter aircraft. It was initially ordered by Sweden, but by the time the aircraft were ready for delivery in 1941, the United States would not allow them to be exported, designating them as P-66s and retaining them for defensive and training purposes. Eventually, a large number were sent to China where they were pressed into service as combat aircraft with mixed results.

🔎How to recognise it: 1 piston engine with propeller · 10.9 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 547 km/htop speed
• size 3,349 kgmax take-off weight
• built 146made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

• 🎂First flew 87 years ago, in 1939.
• 🏎️Top speed is 4.2× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
• 🚗Wingspan of 10.9 m: about 2 cars parked nose to tail.

piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.

spec sheet

first flight

1939-09-08

introduced

1941

retired

1943

status

retired

number built

146

role

fighter

origin

🇺🇸 United States

makers

Vultee Aircraft

engines

1× Pratt & Whitney R-1830-33 / R-1830 Twin Wasp

crew

1

length

8.7 m

wingspan

10.9 m

max take-off weight

3,349 kg

top speed

547 km/h

cruise speed

467 km/h

range

—

ceiling

8,595 m

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.