Manufacturer: Fairchild Aircraft

Model: M-202

Name: Kestrel

Type: Attack

Date: 1950

Status: Prototype evaluation

Country: United States of America

Service: U.S. Air Force

Designation: XA-46

At a time when the USAF was still deciding what to do with the A-for Attack designation, Fairchild submitted an odd-looking combat type, the M-202 Kestrel, which was evaluated as the XA-46.

It was a very capable aircraft, appreciated by the test pilots, but then the Air Force decided to leave the Attack mission aside and go for big bombers and missiles instead.

The Kestrel is made from one of the booms of the Fairchild C-119 Packet (better known as the "Flying Boxcar"), with a Lockheed F-80 Shooting Star cockpit grafted onto it and various modifications to the wings and tail. Original photo used can be seen below right.

Certainly not the most elegant of my re-created aircraft, but it was fun to do!

• so it's basically what they made in flight of the phoenix... (Josh-The-Hedgehog1)

Ha ha, you're right. Well done! Hadn't even though of it.