XP-74 Comet
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The XP-74 Comet was an experimental fighter craft, and the first plane to be developed for the military by Treadstone Industries. The design was originally proposed in 1942, and represented a radical departure from standard fighter designs of the period. While pursuit craft like the P-61 relied on dual propellers for propulsion, the XP-74 placed these propellers - and the wings - at the rear of the craft: a configuration that would became common with jet propulsion in later years.
Because of this configuration, the XP-74 was nose-heavy: an intentional part of the design. In a dive, the positioning of the control surfaces meant that the craft could be guided towards a target with considerable ease: more like aiming a rocket than steering a plane. Though this made the plane slower to climb, once past a particular angle sufficient force was generated by the propellers to carry the relatively light aircraft upwards: the same principle that gives tilt-rotor aircraft their VTOL characteristics.
The craft was particularly well suited for attacks on enemy airfields, where it's speed and evasiveness allowed it to reach ground level rapidly, and then exploit it's momentum to evade anti-aircraft fire while causing maximum damage to ground targets. Similar tactics also worked well with naval battles, and the plane's climb characteristics were well suited for use with early air craft carriers.
Unfortunately for Treadstone, while the design was revolutionary and progressive, the leadership of the US military was not. Even so, a small number of the experimental fighters entered service with specialist squadrons: in particular, some found their way into the hands of Special Wing, who saw them as a particularly useful means of deploying commando-pilots behind enemy lines.
Out of Character
The appearence of the XP-74 Comet is based on the Manta Fighters from Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.
