Page 24 - Volume 15 Number 1
P. 24
IN HISTORY
Wichita Orphans
(Part One)
In 1939 engineers at Boeing Aircraft Company’s Wichita Division responded to an Army Air Corps bid to design an “attack bomber” that would
later become classified as a medium bomber. The photograph shows the Stearman Division’s entry, designated the X-100, in its original configuration. The all-metal monoplane was powered by Pratt & Whitney R-2180 Twin Hornet static, air-cooled radial engines, each rated at 1,150 horsepower. (Kansas Aviation Museum)
22 • KING AIR MAGAZINE
JANUARY 2021
The airplane designated the XA-21 by the Air Corps, underwent a series of modifications to the airframe that centered on the cockpit and nose sections. Company test pilot “Deed” Levy stands second from left. The main landing gear retracted aft. (Kansas Aviation Museum)
