Note: This aircraft is located in the Research & Development Gallery on a secure part of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Click here for visiting instructions.
This airplane was the world's first jet aircraft to fly using the radical delta-wing configuration pioneered by Germany's Dr. Alexander Lippisch during the 1930s.
The Convair Model 7002 was completed in 1948 as a flying mock-up for the proposed delta wing XP-92 interceptor. (In 1948 the Air Force changed the designation from P for pursuit to F for fighter.) The XP-92 was to be powered with a new propulsion system that consisted of a ramjet engine with several small rockets inside the combustion chamber. It would have been a short range, Mach 1.65 interceptor with a flight time at altitude of 5.4 minutes. The Model 7002 was designed to investigate delta wing behavior at low and high subsonic speeds.
When the XP-92's engine proved impractical to build, the project was shelved in 1948. Even as the XP-92 program was ending, the Model 7002 was being prepared to fly. The 7002 was initially powered by an Allison J33-A-23 turbojet engine and later the J33-A-29 turbojet with afterburner. It was formally delivered to the USAF on May 14, 1949, and named the XF-92. It was flown by Air Force test pilots until its nose gear collapsed on landing on Oct. 14, 1953, ending its flying career. With the experience gained from the XF-92 program, Convair was able to win the competition for the "1954 Interceptor" program and to build the successful delta-wing F-102.
Only one XF-92A was built; it was delivered to the museum in 1969 from the University of the South, Sewanee, Tenn.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Span: 31 ft. 3 in. Length: 42 ft. 5 in. Height: 17 ft. 8 in. Weight: 8,500 empty; 14,608 lbs. maximum Armament: None Engines:Allison J33-A-29 of 7,500 lbs. thrust with afterburner Crew: One Cost: $6,048,928
PERFORMANCE:
Maximum speed: 715 mph/624 knots Cruising speed: 654 mph/569 knots Range: Not applicable Service ceiling: 40,000 ft.
