Lightnilina from P-38

[Captain Canada]

Great stuff Tophe ! Hard to pick a winner out of that bunch.

[Tophe]

Thanks Captain!

And now a little improvement on the gull-wing version: with big anhedral on outer wings, there is no need anymore of float pylons, thus the drag is reduced.

[ericr]

wah ! 

[Tophe]

Thanks!

Well, the refusal of the F3Os by the US Navy led Lockheed to consider the F4O-1 with radial engines, like a Grumman Cat:

[Captain Canada]

That M-wing looks phenomenal !

[Tophe]

Thanks!

Ahem, I must confess I made a mistake (revealed by the expert of Dreams Inc.)... My drawing of the F4O-1 was wrong, this was the F4O-2, and the F4O-1/2/3 was following the number of engines:

[Tophe]

The F4O-1P, F4O-2PP, F4O-4 were completing Lockheed's great offer, alas the USN discarded the float requirement and ordered Hellcat and Tigercat instead...
(not even twin-boomers! what a shame...)

[Tophe]

Deeply chocked by the F6F-1 success, Lockheed engineers proposed the F5O-1 Navining without floats and with a single radial engine (and folding wings). From the folded F5O-1 came also the F5O-2 proposal (biplane with top maneuverability). No order alas.

[Tophe]

Less simple was a triple-hull triple-tandem-wing twin-tail-boom Sea-Lightning...

[Tophe]

Less simple was a triple-hull triple-tandem-wing twin-tail-boom Sea-Lightning...

The final goal was the Lightnoviplane, a reco plane with round-the-world range:

[Captain Canada]

Pilot doing a walk around would get lost 

[ericr]

looks a bit like a Caproni Ca. 60

[Tophe]

Yes, the Lockheed Lightnoviplane was named referring to the Caproni Noviplano...

[Tophe]

The XF6O1, YF6O1, F6O1 were another family of Sea-Lightning:

[Tophe]

The SMO1 was very different and unique (in the USA 1940s): an airplane that could transform itself into a SubMarine.