The Glass-Nosed XF-12 Rainbow

Military History

During World War 2, Republic Aviation was best known for creating the world-famous P-47 Thunderbolt fighter aircraft. But by the end of the War, one of the company’s lesser-known but most beautiful projects, the stunning XF-12 Rainbow, was in the works. The XF-12 was born from a mid-war Request for Proposal. The U.S Army required a high-performance and high-altitude photo reconnaissance aircraft to fly reconnaissance missions over Japan and its home island fortresses. Although highly innovative and visually stunning with a clear glass nose-cone, the XF-12 Rainbow arrived too late to join the war effort. The aircraft was made obsolete by more modern jet engine technology. Although two successful prototypes were built, it never entered formal production. Whatever impact the XF-12 might have had in the War was ruined by bad timing

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