The Northrop P-61 Black Widow, named for the American spider, was the first operational U.S. military aircraft designed specifically for night interception of opposing aircraft, and was the first aircraft specifically designed to use radar. The P-61 had a crew of three: pilot, gunner, and radar operator. It was armed with four 20 mm (.79 in) Hispano M2 forward firing cannons mounted in the lower fuselage, and four .50 in (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns.

It was an all-metal, twin-engine, twin-boom design developed during World War II. The first test flight was made on 26 May 1942, with the first production aircraft rolling off the assembly line in October 1943. The last aircraft was retired from government service in 1954.

Although not produced in the large numbers of its contemporaries, the Black Widow was effectively operated as a night-fighter by United States Army Air Forces squadrons in the European Theater, the Pacific Theater, the China Burma India Theater and the Mediterranean Theater during World War II. It replaced earlier British-designed night-fighter aircraft that had been updated to incorporate radar when it became available. After the war, the P-61 served in the United States Air Force as a long-range, all weather, day/night interceptor for Air Defense Command until 1948, and Fifth Air Force until 1950.

On the night of August 14th, 1945, a P-61B of the 548th Night Fight Squadron named "Lady in the Dark" was unofficially credited with the last Allied air victory before VJ Day. The P-61 was also modified to create the F-15 Reporter photo-reconnaissance aircraft for the United States Air Force.

Pictured here is a signed 1:72 scale replica of a USAAF Northrop P-61A Black Widow interceptor that was nicknamed "Midnight Belle," which was attached to the 6th Night Fighter Squadron, then deployed to Wheeler Army Airfield, Hawaii, during 1945. Now in stock!

Dimensions:
Wingspan: 11-inches
Length: 8-3/4-inches

Release Date: July 2023

Historical Account: "Dark is the Night" - The P-61 was the first US aircraft specifically designed as a night fighter. As large as a medium bomber, it was actually very maneuverable. The P-61 was first fielded in Europe but found greater use in the Pacific. The Black Widow replaced the interim Douglas P-70 and eventually equipped all 14 USAAF night-fighter units. The key to the P-61's success was the Western Electric SCR-720 airborne intercept radar.

The first recorded "kill" came on July 6th, 1944, when 1st Lt. Francis Eaton (pilot), 2d Lt. James E. Ketchum (radar operator), and SSgt. Gary Anderson (gunner) intercepted and shot down a Japanese "Betty" bomber. P-61 crews accounted for 127 confirmed victories, including 18 V-1 "buzz bombs" in Europe. Four Black Widow crews became aces.

The last kill by a P-61 was made by Major Lee Kendall to whom "Lady in the Dark" was assigned. The nose art was commissioned by Major Kendall on Iwo Jima. Major Kendall, a recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross, on August 15th, 1945, while on CAP caused a Tojo aircraft to crash - the Japanese fighter crashed into the Pacific without a shot being fired. At that time Kendall was known as Captain Solie Solomon.

In 1946, 36 aircraft of a slightly modified design were built as the F-15 Reporter photoreconnaissance aircraft. P-61s were also used for ejection-seat tests and for a research program that studied the effects of thunderstorms on aircraft structures after the war. In 1946, a dozen P-61Cs were transferred to the Marines as trainers and were designated F2Ts. The P-61 was phased out of USAF service in 1952, and the last F-15 was retired in 1955.