Walkaround
Fisher P-75A Eagle
By Steve Muth
Peregrine Publishing
P-75A starboard rear portrait
The Fisher P-75 was originally intended to fulfil a 1942 need for a fast climbing, heavily armed interceptor with a top speed of 440mph at 20,000ft and an initial 5,600ft/min rate of climb. To speed design, construction and testing it was to utilize proven parts from other fighter designs, including P-51 outer wing panels, SBD tail assemblies and F4U landing gear. The power plant was to be the new twenty four cylinder, 2,800hp Allison V3420-19, essentially two V1710 engines. This was to drive two coaxial contra rotating propellers connected by two drive shafts running under the cockpit from the amidships engine.
On 10th October 1942 the United States Air Force ordered two XP-75s but in mid 1943 changed the P-75’s mission from interceptor to long-range escort resulting in significant redesign and the ordering of a total of six new design XP-75s plus 2,500 production P-75As. The new design had a straight through wing instead of the inverted gull configuration and used P-40 outer wing panels instead of P-51 parts.