Boeing XAT-15

Boeing · United States · first flew 1942 · bomber

The XAT-15 was Boeing's answer to a US Army requirement for a twin-engine trainer that could teach a complete bomber crew — pilot, bombardier, navigator and gunner — together in one airframe.

Recognition (WEFT)

W — Wings	High-mounted, straight
E — Engines	2 × piston, wing-mounted
F — Fuselage	Plywood-covered, welded-steel-tube fuselage rather than an all-metal skin
T — Tail	Conventional

WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.

Spot it by:

Twin-engine trainer with a functional gun turret and bomb bay
Plywood-covered, welded-steel-tube fuselage rather than an all-metal skin
Boxy, utilitarian lines typical of a wartime crew trainer rather than a combat type

Its plywood-and-tube-steel construction and full complement of bomber-crew stations — turret and bomb bay included — set it apart from simpler single-crew trainers of the period.

Specifications

The Boeing XAT-15 has a length of 12.9 m (42 ft).
It has a wingspan of 18.19 m (60 ft).
Its maximum speed is 333 km/h (207 mph).
Typical crew: 4.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

Developed at Boeing's Wichita Division from the former Stearman Aircraft Company under the project name X-120, two prototypes were ordered and the first flew on 9 April 1942, complete with a working gun turret and internal bomb bay.

Variants

Over 1,000 production aircraft were planned, with the design using welded steel tube and plywood construction to conserve wartime metal supplies; no production order followed.

Where you'll see it

The programme was cancelled after wartime priorities shifted toward proven trainer types already in production; only the two XAT-15 prototypes were ever completed.

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