Northrop Tarantula(Project X) - PM Models Horten Ho.229V.7 nightfighter.

[CSMO]

Jack Northrop, Mr. "Flying Wing", used some political pull and got his hands on the Horten brothers research and two partial airframes after WW2. He bankrolled this private project, using company funds, as a parallel project to the Air Force's XP-89/XF-89 Scorpion night fighter. He took the V.7 as a starting point and added American motors, guns, and radar.



I modified the stock PM Models kit by adding a radar nose, from an old Airfix Do.217 external tank and a radar scope in the back cockpit from sprue and green paint.




As the XF-89 was painted Gloss Black and had minimal markings, I painted and marked  the Tarantula in the same way. Paint is hand-brushed testors Gloss Black and Yellow Zinc Chromate. The decals are by Microscale.



I like this one because it was a simple conversion and I consider the backstory to be plausible.




Adios, Larry.

[FAAMAN]

That looks wildly plausible  , although the in scale giant nose wheel actually looks out of scale  , very well done!!! 

[elmayerle]

Quite plausible; developed, I assume, by Jack Northrop's brother?

[CSMO]

Quite plausible; developed, I assume, by Jack Northrop's brother?

Duly noted and corrected. Accumulated
Glue fumes got Jack and Donald(Douglas) mixed up. Thanks for the correction.

Adios, Larry(red-faced with embarrasment).

[elmayerle]

The mix-up isn't that difficult, considering that Jack Northrop worked for Douglas before starting his second company, with Douglas backing.  This company later became the El Segundo division of Douglas when Jack sold it to start a third company and work mainly on flying wings (that's why the Northrop A-17 is the direct ancestor of the Douglas SBD).

What's amusing is that Northrop again owns that facility and it's where their portion of the F/A-18 is built.

[Brian da Basher]

Looks great with stars-and-bars in that overall black scheme!

Brian da Basher