Martin Model 262 Convoy Fighter: The Naval VTOL Turboprop Project of 1950

The Martin Model 262 was an unconventional turboprop VTOL aircraft proposal submitted to the US Navy's convoy fighter competition of 1950, which ultimately produced the Convair XFY-1 Pogo and Lockheed XFV-1 Salmon. It was a swept-wing aircraft with triple vertical tails powered by an Allison XT-40-A-8 turboprop engine driving 16 ft contra-rotating propellers. The launch and recovery system consisted of a hinged vertical platform mounted on a merchant ship; the pilot approached the platform ...