Bell X-5 (1951)

Scale: 1/72
Initial Release: 2004
Medium: Resin
Kit Rarity: 2

About the Design

In the late 1940s, the U.S. Air Force commissioned the development of a Mach 3+ "Air Superiority Fighter" to protect America's skies. Dubbed the "1954 Interceptor," contracts for this advanced supersonic aircraft were given to Convair (XF-102 Delta Dagger) and Republic (XF-103 Thunderwarrior).  The Republic XF-103 design featured numerous esoteric concepts, including a completely smooth titanium exterior (requiring side-mounted windows), a dual-turbojet-ramjet engine and a fully enclosed pilot's capsule that, in the event of aircraft failure, would be blown out of the bottom of the fuselage (then considered the only way to protect a pilot ejecting at Mach 3).

In 1957, while still in the mockup stage, the XF-103 Thunderwarrior underwent an in-depth evaluation by the U.S. Air Force, which rated it poorly.  The plane was so "ahead of its time" that it awarded the 1954 Interceptor contract to Convair virtually by default.

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About the Kit

Anigrand released this resin kit of the elegant XF-103 Thunderwarrior in spring 2004.  It is the only 1/72-scale resin model of this unusual aircraft ever produced.  (Note: A simple 1/72 vacuform kit was released by KR Models in the mid-1970s.) The only other resin model of the XF-103 ever released is the very expensive 1/48-scale resin kit from Collect-Aire. 
This model was built from an original issue.