Curtiss F11C Goshawk

In April 1932, the U.S. Navy signed a contract with Curtiss-Wright for the construction of a series of aircraft, which were an upgrade to the F6C fighter. The new fighter was named F11C .

The design of the F6C biplane has undergone several changes, in particular, a new Wright R-1510 98 radial engine with a power of 450 kW was installed on the aircraft, the chassis design was modified. The fighter was armed with two 7.62 mm machine guns. The aircraft could carry 215 kg of bombs or an additional fuel tank under the fuselage. The biplane had an all-metal construction, covered with fabric from above.

The aircraft was designed as a model 64 and subsequently received the naval designation XF11C-1 (later replaced by XBFC-1 ).

The US Navy was delivered in September 1932 ^[1] .

The U.S. Navy also purchased a demo (brand name model 64A ), equipped with a Wright R-1820 engine. The aircraft had an elongated landing gear design, a tail wheel instead of the tail of the prototype. A bomb load or an 189-liter fuel tank was suspended under the fuselage of the aircraft. The aircraft received the designation XF11C-2 (later renamed XBFC-2 ) and was sent for testing, and, after some minor modifications, it was ordered the construction of 28 aircraft, designated F11C-2 ^[1] .

Later, the aircraft was modified, in particular, the fighter received a semi-closed cockpit, an R-1820-80 engine and a retractable landing gear. The modification was designated XF11C-3 ^[1] .

Fighters were used for escorting other aircraft (modifications Hawk I and Hawk II ). Several aircraft were used by the Colombian Air Force in the war against Peru . One Thai Air Force aircraft participated in World War II ^[2] .

• Eden, Paul and Soph Moeng. The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft .. - 2002.

• Thomas, Andrew. Beaufighter Aces of World War 2. - 2005.