The first aircraft to be purposely designed as a radar-equipped nightfigher, Northrop's P-61 Black Widow was heavily influenced by early RAF combat experience with radar-equipped aircraft in the years 1940/41 of World War II (1939-1945). Built essentially around the bulky Radiation Laboratory SCR-720 radar, which was mounted in the aircraft's nose, the P-61 proved to be the largest fighter ever produced for frontline service by the USAAF. Twin-engined and twin-boomed, the Black Widow was armed with a dorsal barbette of four 0.50-in Browning machine guns and two ventrally-mounted 20 mm cannon. This volume features all the frontline users of the mighty P-61, and includes many first-hand accounts from pilots and gunners who saw action in the Pacific, Mediterranean and Western Europe.
| Published | Aug 28 1998 |
|---|---|
| Format | Paperback |
| Edition | 1st |
| Extent | 100 |
| ISBN | 9781855327252 |
| Imprint | Osprey Publishing |
| Illustrations | 100 b/w; 40 col |
| Dimensions | 248 x 184 mm |
| Series | Combat Aircraft |
| Short code | COM 8 |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
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