Bell YFM - 1 Airacuda The Bell YFM - 1 Airacuda was an American heavy fighter aircraft , developed by the Bell Aircraft Corporation during the mid - 1930s . It was the first military aircraft produced by Bell . Originally designated the " Bell Model 1 , " the Airacuda first flew on 1 September 1937 . The Airacuda was marked by bold design advances and considerable flaws that eventually grounded the aircraft . The Airacuda was Bell Aircraft ' s answer for a " bomber destroyer " aircraft . Although it did see limited production , and one fully operational squadron was eventually formed , only one prototype and 12 production models were ultimately built , in three slightly different versions . Design and development . In an effort to break into the aviation business , Bell Aircraft created a unique fighter concept touted to be " a mobile anti - aircraft platform " as well as a " convoy fighter . " Created to intercept enemy bombers at distances beyond the range of single - seat fighter interceptors , the YFM - 1 ( Y , service test ; F , fighter ; M , multiplace ) was an innovative design incorporating many features never before seen in a military aircraft , as well as several never seen again . Utilizing a streamlined , " futuristic " design , the Bell Airacuda appeared to be " unlike any other fighters up to that time . " According to Major Alexander De Seversky ' s 1942 book , " Victory Through Air Power " , the Bell Airacuda " represents a great engineering achievement . But its designation as ′ convoy fighter ′ is erroneous , since that requires different disposition of armament . With its maximum firepower directed forward , it really offers a preview of an effective long - range interceptor fighter . " A forward - firing M4 cannon with an accompanying gunner was mounted in a forward compartment of each of the two engine nacelles . Although capable of aiming the cannons , the gunners ' primary purpose was simply to load them with the 110 rounds of ammunition stored in each nacelle . The crew of five included the pilot and gunners ; a copilot / navigator who doubled as a fire - control officer , using a Sperry Instruments " Thermionic " fire control system ( originally developed for anti - aircraft cannon ) combined with a gyro - stabilised and an optical sight to aim the weapons ; and a radio operator / gunner armed with a pair of machine gun s stationed at mid - fuselage waist blisters for defense against attack from the rear . An unusual feature of the Airacuda was the main door for entry . The door was opened and pulled down and hinges folded in on three steps for the crew to climb into the aircraft . Design flaws . The Airacuda was plagued with problems from the start . The lofty performance estimates were unobtainable as , despite its sleek looks , the Airacuda was heavy and was slower than most bombers . In the event of interception by enemy fighters , the Airacuda was not maneuverable enough to dogfight , while the meager bombload was of little use in the intended fighter - bomber role . Even the 37 mm cannons were of less value than predicted . The cannons had a tendency to fill the gun nacelles with smoke whenever fired and , additionally , fears persisted as to how the gunners would escape in an emergency , with the propellers directly behind them . An emergency bailout would have required both propellers to be feathered , though additional provision was made with the use of explosive bolts on the propellers to jettison them in the event of a bailout . The Allison V - 1710 - 41 engines , though relatively trouble - free in other types , had no additional cooling systems . Like many pusher designs , they were prone to overheating . On the ground , the aircraft had to be towed to and from the runway and could only be started when the Airacuda was able to take off immediately . Even in the air it was not uncommon to experience overheating problems . Although designed for turbo - supercharging , the first flights were made with V - 1710 - 9 carbureted engines that only delivered each . Despite the - long shaft extensions , there were no problems with this feature . When the turbos were fitted to the later YFM - 1 , they were plagued by cranky turbo regulators that backfired continuously . An explosion during a September 1939 test flight made it apparent that the teething engine troubles would not be solved easily . Additionally , Marshall Wainwright notes that other sources indicate the first eight aircraft were to originally have been powered by Allison V - 1710 - 13 engines fitted with GE Type B - 6 turbosuperchargers . These aircraft were eventually delivered with improved V - 1710 - 23 ( D2 ) engines . Wainwright further states that two of the YFM - 1 airframes were changed on the production line to accept the V - 1710 - 41 without turbosupercharging , becoming YFM - 1Bs . This is noted in a contract change dated 19 October 1939 which shows that aircraft 34 - 489 and 38 - 490 had their turbos , all associated ducting , and controls removed and V - 1710 - 41 ( D2A ) " Altitude Rated " engines installed instead . The ( D2A ) was essentially a - 23 with higher supercharger gear ratios ( 8 . 77 : 1 versus 6 . 23 : 1 ) , which allowed the motor to develop around up to ASL . They used the same ratings and components as the Altitude Rated V - 1710 - 33 ( C15 ) Allison fitted to the original Curtiss XP - 40 . Allison was paid $ 1 , 690 to modify each engine . Initial flight testing by Lt . Ben Kelsey proved the Airacuda virtually impossible to control with only one engine , as the aircraft would go into an immediate spin . Problems with stability in pitch were also encountered , and had to be corrected by reducing power . Test pilot Erik Shilling described his experiences in a later book , " Destiny : A Flying Tiger ' s Rendezvous With Fate " as : Flying the Bell Airacuda was a new experience for me , since it was the first pusher aircraft I ' d ever flown . Its handling characteristics were foreign to anything I had ever had my hands on . Under power it was unstable in pitch , but stable with power off . While flying straight and level , if a correction in pitch was required , a forward push on the control resulted in the airplane wanting to pitch over even more . Pitch control became a matter of continually jockeying the controls , however slightly , even when the aircraft was in proper trim . The same applied if pulling back on the control . It would tend to continue pitching up , requiring an immediate corrective response . The same happened in a turn with power off , the Bell became stable in pitch . This was fortunate because during approach and landing , it was very stable , and a nice flying airplane . " The Airacuda was also saddled with a complex and temperamental electrical system and was the only aircraft ever built to rely on an independent auxiliary power unit ( APU ) to power both engine fuel pumps , as well as all aircraft electrical systems . Systems usually powered by an aircraft ' s engines were instead powered by the single generator . The generator , with its own supercharger , was located in the belly of the aircraft . In the event of a failure ( and they occurred frequently ) , the crew was instructed to begin immediate emergency restart procedures as the aircraft basically shut down . When the APU failed , the pilot had " NO fuel pressure , NO vacuum , NO hydraulic pressure , NO gear , NO flaps and NO ENGINES " . Accidents . Despite the aircraft ' s many faults , only two were lost in accidents . The seventh aircraft ( 38 - 492 ) was on its final test flight from the Buffalo factory prior to delivery to the Air Corps when pilot John Strickler , a Bell pilot and engineer , and co - pilot Brian Sparks , who was Bell ' s chief test pilot at the time , encountered problems recovering from a deliberate spin attempt which was part of the test flight profile . Despite every effort to emerge from the spin , the aircraft would not respond , and it appeared that the rudder had locked . Co - pilot Sparks shut down the engines and waited for the propellers to come to a stop before bailing out . Because of the tandem seating , it was necessary for Sparks to exit the aircraft first , and in doing so he struck the empennage , breaking his legs — and in the process , freeing the rudder . Strickler decided to stay with the aircraft and attempt an emergency landing . By this time , the aircraft had lost sufficient altitude that there was not time to restart the engines . Strickler put the Airacuda down hard in a farmer ' s field , and walked away unhurt . The Airacuda was so badly damaged it had to be scrapped . All three Airacudas with tricycle landing gear encountered problems and were damaged at one time or another . The most serious accident occurred to YFM - 1A ( Model 8 ) 38 - 497 , on a flight from Chanute Field , Illinois , and Keesler Field , Mississippi , when a broken oil line started an in - flight fire . The cause of the broken line appeared to be serious airframe vibration encountered during the flight . With no way of extinguishing the fire , both the pilot and crew chief agreed to bail out . The pilot was killed when his parachute failed to deploy ( he may have struck the tail while bailing out ) . This was the only fatality to occur during the flying of Airacudas . The accident investigation report stated " inherent defects in design caused constant maintenance difficulties and the flying of this type has been very limited . " Operational history . Despite these problems , one fully operational Airacuda squadron was eventually assembled , and operated from 1938 until 1940 . Funds were appropriated , but never released , for the purchase of two groups of Airacudas . Continuing problems gave the aircraft a reputation as " hangar queens " . Toward the end of the type ' s operational life , the aircraft were flown primarily for photo opportunities and always accompanied by a chase plane for safety . Eventually the decision was made to disperse the aircraft to various airfields to give pilots an opportunity to add the unusual aircraft to their log books . Airacudas were sent at various times to Langley Field , Virginia ; Maxwell Field , Alabama ; Hamilton Field , California ; and Wright Field , in Dayton , Ohio . YFM - 1 38 - 488 was displayed at the 1940 World ' s Fair in New York , finished in the markings of the 27th Pursuit Squadron . During this time , the aircraft saw limited flight time , as few pilots were interested in flying the unusual aircraft . Several plans were made to modify the Airacudas to give them operational status , including modifying the airframe and adding more powerful engines , but all proposals were eventually rejected . In early 1942 , despite fears of enemy bomber attacks against which the Airacuda was intended , the aircraft were stricken from inventory . Variants . The prototype , known as the XFM - 1 , incorporated a tailwheel , side " blister " ports , and a smooth , rounded canopy . This is the best known , and most produced version . An updated version called the YFM - 1A eliminated the side blisters and added externally mounted radiators and turbo - superchargers . Produced in 1940 , the final version designated YFM - 1B , was slightly larger , had slightly less powerful Allison engines and incorporated a tricycle landing gear . The canopy was redesigned , with a flat forward windshield . A rearward - facing belly gunner ' s position was also added . The resulting aircraft was roughly the size of a Douglas B - 18 Bolo medium bomber . Three YFM - 1Bs were produced in 1939 before production was finally terminated . Survivors . By 1942 , all nine surviving YFM - 1 airframes were flown by ferry crews to a training facility at Chanute Field , Illinois where the aircraft were assigned to the 10th Air Base Squadron to be used for ground crew instruction . By March 1942 , all Airacudas were scrapped .