The XP-56 was a heavy fighter built in 1943, was the result of a specification which gave permission to invesitgate radical designs (the other resulting aircraft being the XP-54 “Swoose Goose” and XP-55 “Ascender”). Being a Northrop design, it was a flying wing with no horizontal tail surfaces. Unfortunately, its relatively new design coupled with a last-minute change to a large radial engine combined to doom the project- after two prototypes and numerous flights, the airframe was considered basically non-airworthy and abandoned. The second airframe currently resides in the Paul-Garber restoration facility, while the first prototype (the one I built) was destroyed after a tire blew during a high-speed taxi test.
This is the 1/72 MPM kit. I originally intended to motorize it with working contra-props, but that idea fell through and I decided to just build it OOB. The only additions are oleo scissors on the landing gear, as they are absent in the kit, and new exhausts.
Nice work on the XP-56 as is typical for your projects. I have always been sort of partial to the XP-55 because all three of them were tested at Scott AFB, where I retired and still live close.
They’re okay. Limited run, so sprues and details are not as crisp as they could be. The resin details are nice, although the small bumps on the nose of the XP-56 are a bit extreme.
Not the best I’ve ever built, but not the worst, either. For five bucks I wouldn’t be worried.
