The Curtiss P-36 has become one of the truly iconic aircraft of the late inter-war and early-war period.
While the U.S. Army Air Corps was pleased to have such a modern aircraft in service, they still sought improvement. Curtiss was approached to tweak their Hawk for enhanced performance gained through greater streamlining.
Thus the Curtiss YPF-36 was born. The Y designated the aircraft as an off-budget expenditure and the PF stood for the new "Pursuit, Fast" or Fast Pursuit program both Curtiss and the Air Corps hoped would lead to a new era in air defense.
Modified with a new, more streamlined canopy and prop spinner, the first (and only) service-test batch of YPF-36s was delivered to elements of the 21st Pursuit Squadron in the summer of 1937. This would be fortunate timing indeed.
At that time, the U.S. was in the throes of a bootleg crisis. America was awash in white lightning which was controlled by violent, criminal gangs. One of the worst of these was led by Ol' Jed in the hills of Kentucky.
By the summer of 1937, these thugs were out of control. Local sheriffs and even Federal Revenue Dept. agents had almost given up. A call for help went out and was answered by units of the 21st Pursuit Sqn.
Aerial reconnaissance and interdiction were seen as the sensible, modern approach but it wasn't without controversy.
Thus the pilots of the 21st and their YPF-36s began patrolling rural Kentucky. They were given special camouflage for the mission that would be barely recorded as Kentucky Bluegrass Scheme No. 3, making these some of the first P-36s to don warpaint.
Long hours were logged and many sorties flown as the 21st kept a weather eye peeled for the wily criminal moonshiners. For a time, it seemed Ol' Jed and his confederates had eluded the authorities.
Finally one morning an innocent-sounding report of smoke possibly from an untended campfire roused the pilots of T flight and they quickly arrived over the scene.
Two YPF-36s peeled off and buzzed the source of the smoke. Rousted, Ol' Jed raised his shotgun and took aim.
As Ol' Jed only had two barrels and the YPF-36s had 12 rapid-fire machine guns between them with another 60 waiting upstairs, it was over very quickly. Ol' Jed and his hard-bitten gang surrendered and were taken into custody once government agents showed up on the ground.
Unfortunately the YPF-36 would be out of service before Ol' Jed was out of the pen. That cutting-edge, pointy prop spinner caused long term cooling and ventilation issues which made the engine consume its own vitals. The Air Corps scrapped both the Fast Pursuit program and all remaining YPF-36s.
As for Ol' Jed, well he was eventually released, but there is only anecdotal evidence of his activities afterwards.
While the hapless YPF-36 was fast for its day, it's now practically unknown among aircraft historians and modelers. The only reminder of this once-proud pursuit is a one-off, possibly apocryphal conversion set rumored to be sold under the table at select IPMS meetings.
Brian da Basher
