Search
Close this search box.

Curtiss Model 76 / XA-14

The Curtiss XA-14 was a 1930s United States airplane, the first multi-engine attack aircraft tested by the United States Army Air Corps.

Carrying a crew of two, it was as fast as the standard pursuit aircraft in service at the time.

Originally built as an in-house venture as the Curtiss Model 76, powered by two experimental Wright XR-1510 radial engines, flight testing was sufficiently impressive that after the USAAC appraisal the Model 76 was returned to Curtiss and fitted with two 775 hp (578 kW) Wright R-1670-5 Whirlwind engines with two-position variable-pitch propellers.

This configuration was accepted by the Army with the designation XA-14.

It had standard Army markings with the serial number 36-146.

The Model 76 was of all-metal construction with an oval section semi-monocoque fuselage, described as “pencil slim”.

The XA-14 was extensively tested, at one stage being fitted with a 37 mm (1.457 in) cannon in the nose.

In July 1936, 13 developed versions, re-engined with two 850 hp (630 kW) Wright R-1820-47 Cyclone 9-cylinder radials, were ordered into production as the Y1A-18.

Specifications

XA-14

Crew

2

Length

40 ft 6 in (12.34 m)

Wingspan

59 ft 6 in (18.14 m)

Height

11 ft 0 in (3.35 m)

Wing area

530 sq ft (49 m2)

Empty weight

8,875 lb (4,026 kg)

Gross weight

11,656 lb (5,287 kg)

Powerplant

2 × Wright R-1670-5 14-cylinder two-row air-cooled radial piston engines,

775 hp (578 kW) each

Propellers

2-bladed two-position variable-pitch propellers

Performance

Maximum speed

243 mph (391 km/h, 211 kn) at sea level

Cruise speed

222 mph (357 km/h, 193 kn)

Service ceiling

28,000 ft (8,500 m)

Rate of climb

1,690 ft/min (8.6 m/s)

Armament

Guns

4 × 0.30 in (7.62 mm) M1919 Browning machine guns forward-firing

1 × 0.30 in (7.62 mm) machine-gun on a flexible mount in the rear cockpit

Bombs

650 lb (290 kg) bombs in an internal bomb bay.

Share on facebook