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 Post subject: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 06 Jun 2021, 11:49 
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Location: Castle Rock, Colorado
Aircraft: Prior C310,BE33,SR22
The Northrup P-61 all metal twin-engine, twin-boom fighter first flew in 1942 and was in production in 1943. It was the first aircraft designed to use radar, and the first designed as a night fighter.

706 of these P-61's were built. On the night of August 14, 1945, a P-61B named Lady in the Dark was unofficially credited with the last Allied air victory before VJ Day. I don't think I've ever seen a P-61 in the wild.

The 2021 Harley-Davidson CVO Road Glide comes in 3 color and modification schemes; the best -- in my opinion -- is designated the "Black Hole" and its design and scheme were inspired by the Northrup P-61.

They both fly.

And no, I don't own either one... :sad:
.
Attachment:
P-61 Black Widow.JPG

Attachment:
P-61.1.JPG

Attachment:
21 CVO.JPG

Attachment:
21 CVO.2.JPG

Attachment:
21 CVO.1.JPG


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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 06 Jun 2021, 12:44 
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Location: Birmingham
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Neat post that prompted me to Google them. Apparently there are 4 survivors - 3 on static display and one that's been under reconstruction for the better part of 20 years (and looks no where near complete).


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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 06 Jun 2021, 13:13 
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I believe there is (was?) one at Planes of Fame in Chino. I seem to remember seeing it many years ago and marveling at sheer size of it.
:bow:
Sorry Arlen, but I don’t see the connection in Harley paint scheme to the P-61. I’m sure it’s my failing, I’m just not a motorcycle guy. Still a cool looking bike though.
:thumbup:

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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 06 Jun 2021, 13:26 
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Joined: 04/24/10
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Born and raised in MKE.
A (ret) machinist.
I've always felt obligated to own HDs.
And I have.
I've had my current two HDs for over 20 years.
I don't always approve of HD's marketing.

Seeing this paint scheme, I'm now waiting for an HD with a red rear fender...


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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 06 Jun 2021, 13:27 
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Location: Columbus , IN (KBAK)
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As a kid I built a Revell model P61. I always thought it was a cool looking airplane.

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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 06 Jun 2021, 13:39 
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Username Protected wrote:
As a kid I built a Revell model P61. I always thought it was a cool looking airplane.

I built the same model. The actual plane is bigger than what you think of as a WWII fighter. There is one at the Air Force Museum in Dayton. 6 or 8 years ago they had a Night at the Museum event and they had the cockpit on the P61 open and you could lean in and look around. I read somewhere that the P61 had the fastest roll rate of any WWII fighter. I guess that’s what full span spoilers will do for you.


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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 06 Jun 2021, 15:40 
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Username Protected wrote:
I believe there is (was?) one at Planes of Fame in Chino. I seem to remember seeing it many years ago and marveling at sheer size of it.
:bow:
Sorry Arlen, but I don’t see the connection in Harley paint scheme to the P-61. I’m sure it’s my failing, I’m just not a motorcycle guy. Still a cool looking bike though.
:thumbup:

Probably not at Chino. Only 3 complete ones in the USA I can think of are-
Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center has the ex NACA P-61C https://airandspace.si.edu/multimedia-gallery/4828hjpg
MAAM Air Museum http://www.maam.org/p61/p61_pr_0506.htm
USAF Museum at Dayton http://www.warbirdregistry.org/p61regis ... 38353.html

Edit- 1 in China http://www.warbirdregistry.org/p61regis ... inese.html

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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 06 Jun 2021, 15:58 
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Arlen, how dare you - I'm looking at bikes and you post this? :D

Dad was a radioman at Floridablanca, Luzon 1946-7 with the 419 NFS and got to fly in them on hack duties around the island while there. So, I grew up hearing about them a lot.

We saw the MAAM one coming together a number of years ago and that thing is amazing - they will get it to fly someday and I'll do what it takes to be there to see it. The Udvar-Hazy one is (was, it's been a while) in a nice setup to get a good detailed look at the type.

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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 06 Jun 2021, 16:08 
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P61 was a big girl,
Plus with all that weight on the wings,
Hard to believe she had the best roll rate.


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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 07 Jun 2021, 10:12 
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Username Protected wrote:
As a kid I built a Revell model P61. I always thought it was a cool looking airplane.

I built the same model. The actual plane is bigger than what you think of as a WWII fighter. There is one at the Air Force Museum in Dayton. 6 or 8 years ago they had a Night at the Museum event and they had the cockpit on the P61 open and you could lean in and look around. I read somewhere that the P61 had the fastest roll rate of any WWII fighter. I guess that’s what full span spoilers will do for you.


Make me the third. The P-61 was so cool to me because of how big it was when I saw it in Dayton (back when you could walk all around the planes). I built all sorts of model planes as a kid but the WW2 models were my favorite. The only one I really strayed on was the P-38. I was in the 3rd or 4th grade and wrote a letter to Lefty Gardner explaining what I was doing. He sent me a ton of photos of White Lightning and I replicated it as best as I could. I’m not a bike guy myself but I do look at them as pieces of rolling art the people make unique and personal.

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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 07 Jun 2021, 10:27 
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I met a former P-61 pilot, Joe Jenkins, about 15 years ago at his airport.
https://www.pippinfuneralhome.com/obituary/Joe-Jenkins

The day I met Joe, a few friends and I were spending the day touring grass airports around Delaware and Maryland in our Citabrias. Joe spent quite a bit of time talking to us. Guess what, he and his fellow pilots didn't want the Black Widow. They were hoping to get deHavilland Mosquitos instead. He said that they all felt that the Mosquito was the better plane.

One other thing about Joe. About a year before I met him, I wasn't having any luck tracking down a fuel valve for my 1968 7ECA Citabria. Somebody suggested Jenkins Salvage Yard. I called and spoke to Joe. He told me to mail him a check for $25.00 and he'd mail it out as soon as we got off the phone. He didn't know me from Adam and still sent me the valve without being paid first. Good guy!!!


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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 07 Jun 2021, 22:42 
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Username Protected wrote:
I met a former P-61 pilot, Joe Jenkins, about 15 years ago at his airport.
https://www.pippinfuneralhome.com/obituary/Joe-Jenkins

The day I met Joe, a few friends and I were spending the day touring grass airports around Delaware and Maryland in our Citabrias. Joe spent quite a bit of time talking to us. Guess what, he and his fellow pilots didn't want the Black Widow. They were hoping to get deHavilland Mosquitos instead. He said that they all felt that the Mosquito was the better plane.

One other thing about Joe. About a year before I met him, I wasn't having any luck tracking down a fuel valve for my 1968 7ECA Citabria. Somebody suggested Jenkins Salvage Yard. I called and spoke to Joe. He told me to mail him a check for $25.00 and he'd mail it out as soon as we got off the phone. He didn't know me from Adam and still sent me the valve without being paid first. Good guy!!!


I was there too and remember Joe's preference for the Mosquito. Sept 2006. Unfortunately the only picture I can find has Joe facing away from the camera (the man in green)


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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 07 Jun 2021, 23:20 
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Company: Honeywell International Inc.
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It is one my list to see one in person. My father flew c47s in WW2. He told me stories about flying the black widow after the war. I had forgotten about it until this thread reminded me. Very cool airplane.


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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 08 Jun 2021, 00:52 
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Location: Lynnwood, WA (KPAE)
Aircraft: 1993 Bonanza A36TN
HD's inspiration may have been a little more recent ...
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 Post subject: Re: Northrup P-61 Black Widow inspires Harley-Davidson
PostPosted: 08 Jun 2021, 19:33 
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Aircraft: On the hunt...
I have a picture around here somewhere of my father standing next to *his* P61 at Pontedera Airfield in Italy. He was the Signal Corps electronics tech on the plane and often flew on test missions (I don't know about operationally). I'll try to find the pic.


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