Bell X-2 by Golden Age
1/72 scale
Kit No. GA 72-01
Retail: $30.00
Decals: One version
Comments: Limited run kit, one-piece canopy, engraved panel lines, faint recessed rivet detail
History
The Bell X-2 was the first swept-wing, rocket-powered aircraft designed to investigate the structural effects of aerodynamic heating as well as stability and control effectiveness at high speeds and altitudes. Constructed of stainless steel and a copper-nickel alloy, it was powered by a two-chamber Curtiss-Wright XLR25 rocket engine. On July 23, 1956 it achieved a speed of Mach 2.87 at 68,000 feet with test pilot Major Pete Everest at the controls.
The program was developed jointly in 1945 by Bell Aircraft Corporation, the U.S. Air Force and the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) to explore aerodynamic problems of supersonic flight and to expand the speed and altitude regimes obtained with the earlier X-1 series of research aircraft.
In 1946, the NACA Pilotless Aircraft Research Division (PARD) began testing rocket launched X-2 models at Wallops Island, Virginia, to gather stability and control data. Additional tests helped NACA and Bell engineers design a pilot escape system for the X-2. The NACA made its spin tunnel and supersonic wind-tunnels at the Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory in Hampton, Virginia, available to evaluate various aspects of the X-2 design. The NACA was also responsible for scientific instrumentation of the X-2.
Two X-2 airframes, nicknamed “Starbuster,” were built at Bell’s plant in Wheatfield, New York, using stainless steel and K-monel (a copper-nickel alloy). The vehicles were designed to employ a two-chamber Curtiss-Wright XLR25 throttleable liquid-fueled rocket engine. It had a variable thrust rating from 2,500 to 15,000 pounds. The X-2 was equipped with an escape capsule for the pilot. In an emergency, the entire nose assembly would jettison and deploy a stabilizing parachute. Once at a safe altitude, the pilot would then manually open the canopy and bail out. Although the Air Force approved the final escape system design, NACA representatives were concerned that it might prove dangerous to use.
A Boeing B-50A bomber was modified to carry the X-2 to launch altitudes around 30,000 feet. The pilot then climbed into the X-2, dropped away from the bomber, and ignited the engines if it was a planned powered flight. After engine burnout, the pilot guided the X-2 to an unpowered landing on the surface of Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards Air Force Base, California.
Bell test pilot Jean L. “Skip” Ziegler made the first glide flight on June 27. A rough landing caused some damage to the aircraft and the second glide flight was delayed until Oct. 8. Two days later, Air Force test pilot Maj. Frank K. “Pete” Everest successfully completed the third glide flight of the X-2. Everest finally made the first powered X-2 flight on Nov. 18, 1955, igniting only the 5,000-pound-thrust chamber. His maximum speed during the mission was Mach 0.95. Following several aborted attempts, Everest completed a second powered flight on March 24, 1956, this time only igniting the 10,000-pound-thrust rocket chamber.
Both chambers were used for the first supersonic X-2 flight on April 25, 1956. The airplane reached a speed of Mach 1.40 and a maximum altitude of 50,000 feet. Everest completed three flights in May that pushed the airplane’s speed envelope to Mach 2.53. Everest’s final X-2 flight, on July 23, 1956, earned him the title “Fastest Man Alive.” While gathering data on aerodynamic heating, Everest achieved a speed of Mach 2.87 at 68,000 feet.
Major Frank “Pete” Everest in front of the X-2, the day he flew it to a speed of Mach 2.87 to become “the fastest man alive.”
The X-2 was the first piloted airplane to exceed 100,000 feet altitude when on the 12th powered flight it set an unofficial world’s record of 126,200 feet (38,466 m) at Mach 1.7 on September 7, 1956. On its next flight, also on September 27, the X-2, piloted by Captain Milburn G. “Mel” Apt, became the world’s first airplane to exceed Mach 3 when it set a new world’s speed record of Mach 3.20 (2,112 mph or 1835 kph) at 65,500 feet (19,964 m). Unfortunately the X-2 was lost during the same flight when it exceeded a stability boundary and became uncontrollable at high Mach number. Captain Apt jettisoned the escape capsule, but was unable to extract himself before it struck the ground. His death cast a shadow over the most spectacular achievement of the program.
The Kit
This kit is injection molded in grey plastic but as a limited run kit there is visible discoloration in the form of red streaks on the two fuselage halves. The fuselage and wings bear crisply engraved panel lines, with a minor amount of flash on the larger parts. There is yet more flash on the smaller parts and their detail is rather soft. Sanding will be required on some parts whose finish is visibly rough. The kit consists of 30 parts including a single clear part for the canopy.
The cockpit assembly consists of six parts including a floor with side instrument panels bearing raised detail, a main instrument panel bearing recessed detail, a separate control yoke, a flat seat and a rear bulkhead bearing raised detail including cushions for the seat back. The parts for the fuselage- and wing-mounted skids are rough and will require sanding. The nose wheel is crudely molded and will require sanding and clean-up. The instructions are clear and well-laid out. They include a three-view schematic of the finished kit and a paint guide calling out Humbrol, Model Master, and Revell colors.
Markings
The kit markings appear to be of higher quality than the kit itself. They are thin with a professional semi-gloss finish, but the national markings have a minor amount of bleed, and the dark blue of the “stars and bars” may be a little too light in hue.
The first X-2 gains speed over Southern California. (NASA)
Conclusion
This kit is of great historical interest. It may not be Tamiya quality, but with a bit of care and effort due to the fairly good raw material provided, it can build up into a fine kit.
References
- www.bellx-2.com
- https://www.nasa.gov/aeronautics/bell-x-2/