The Culver XPQ-15, also known as the XTD3C-1, was an American
target drone
A target drone is an unmanned aerial vehicle, generally remote controlled, usually used in the training of anti-aircraft crews.
One of the earliest drones was the British DH.82 Queen Bee, a variant of the Tiger Moth trainer aircraft operation ...
developed by the
Culver Aircraft Company
The Culver Aircraft Company was an American aircraft manufacturer of light aircraft of the 1930s and 1940s.
History
The Dart Manufacturing Corporation was founded in Columbus, Ohio, by Monocoupe dealer Knight K. Culver and Al Mooney to purchase ...
late in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
.
Design and development
The XPQ-15 was a low-wing monoplane of conventional design. It was powered by a
Franklin O-405 opposed piston engine.
[Parsch 2009] Design work began in 1943.
Operational history
Four examples of the XPQ-15 were built for evaluation by the
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
in 1945; two additional aircraft were tested by the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
as the XTD3C-1. No production contract was placed.
Variants
;XPQ-15
:USAAF variant; four produced.
;XTD3C-1
:USN variant; two produced, BuNos 29665-29666.
[Grossnick and Armstrong 1997, p.540.]
Specifications (XPQ-15)
References
;Citations
;Bibliography
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External links
Photo of XPQ-15 model in ''Popular Science''
{{USN target drones
PQ-15
1940s United States special-purpose aircraft
Single-engined tractor aircraft
Low-wing aircraft
Target drones of the United States
Aircraft first flown in 1945
Aircraft with retractable tricycle landing gear
Single-engined piston aircraft