Vultee P-66 Vanguard: The US’s Forgotten WWII Fighter
When you think of WWII aircraft, you often think of aircraft like the P-51, Mitsubishi Zero, Bf 109, Hurricane and Spitfire. The Vultee P-66 Vanguard? Not so much...
For pretty much everyone, even seasoned aviation historians, the Vultee P-66 Vanguard is forgotten. Although it was originally designed as a fighter, the Vanguard served mainly as a trainer, and partly as a fighter during WWII.
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Pre-P-66
Vultee had been established during the interwar period, by Gerard Vultee, a former Lockheed engineer. Initially, Vultee had made its money producing highly successful airliners, as had most other aircraft manufacturers.
As with many other aircraft manufacturers, Vultee saw the growing market for general aviation a...