On July 29, 1948, the U. S. President approved construction of five supercarriers, with 68,250-ton displacement and 1,090 ft (330 m) length, able to carry a group of large nuclear bombers, the most effective weapon of the day, and a new type of swept wing fighters of the F-86 class.
The construction of the USS United States (CVA-58) started on April 19, 1949, with an estimated cost of US $ 189 million, but the USAAF managed to cancel the entire program in favor of the B-36 intercontinental bomber, at the cost of US $ 5.76 million for each plane.
With this operation, the Strategic Air Command kept its monopoly on nuclear weapons delivery until the approval by the Congress of the new USS Forrestal (CVA-59) in April 1950.
During that time, the US Navy was forced to operate with the Essex and Midway-class carriers, straight wing fighters and Lockheed P2V-3C Neptune medium bombers.
The straight wings permitted better handling at lower speeds necessary for carrier operations, but the U.S. Navy needed faster fighters and had no flight data to indicate that this could be done with a swept wing fighter.
In early 1946 the U.S. Navy Bureau of Aeronautics issued a specification calling for a flying aerodynamic demonstrator to explore the behavior of swept wings in the low end of the speed range.
Grumman proposed a modified Wildcat with elongated fuselage and nose landing gear; Bell proposed a modified P-63 that offered lower development costs.
A contract was awarded to Bell Aircraft Corp. for the construction of two prototypes.
The construction of the USS United States (CVA-58) started on April 19, 1949, with an estimated cost of US $ 189 million, but the USAAF managed to cancel the entire program in favor of the B-36 intercontinental bomber, at the cost of US $ 5.76 million for each plane.
With this operation, the Strategic Air Command kept its monopoly on nuclear weapons delivery until the approval by the Congress of the new USS Forrestal (CVA-59) in April 1950.
During that time, the US Navy was forced to operate with the Essex and Midway-class carriers, straight wing fighters and Lockheed P2V-3C Neptune medium bombers.
The straight wings permitted better handling at lower speeds necessary for carrier operations, but the U.S. Navy needed faster fighters and had no flight data to indicate that this could be done with a swept wing fighter.
In early 1946 the U.S. Navy Bureau of Aeronautics issued a specification calling for a flying aerodynamic demonstrator to explore the behavior of swept wings in the low end of the speed range.
Grumman proposed a modified Wildcat with elongated fuselage and nose landing gear; Bell proposed a modified P-63 that offered lower development costs.
A contract was awarded to Bell Aircraft Corp. for the construction of two prototypes.
