Texas Flying Legends Museum FM-2P Wildcat | EAA Warbirds QR Code Website

History:
Grumman designed the F4F Wildcat and it became the primary fighter for the Navy in the early days of WWII playing an instrumental role in the Battles for Wake Island, the Coral Sea, and Midway. Starting in 1943, though Grumman held the production rights, they had others build them.

General Motors Eastern Division produced the FM-1 Wildcat, identical to the Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat, and the FM-2, which is based on a Grumman prototype designated XF4F-8. General Motors specifically made FM-2s for small carrier operations. They featured four wing guns, a slightly taller tail fin than the previous models to handle the torque, and a more powerful engine – a Wright R-1820-56 engine (1,350 hp).

This aircraft is an FM-2P because it has been fitted for photoreconnaissance missions. Its flaps are vacuum operated, its under carriage is hand cranked, and the only hydraulic system in the aircraft is the brakes.

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Specifications

Registration Number	Date of Manufacture
N5HP	1945
Aircraft Role	Nickname
Carrier based Fighter	Wildcat
Aircraft Type:	Wingspan:
GrummanFM-2	38 feet
Overall length:	Empty weight:
28 feet 9 inches	5895 pounds
Gross weight:	Fuel capacity:
7,000 pounds	845 miles
Oil capacity	Engine type:
	FM-2 1200 hp Wright R1820 radial piston engi
Propeller type:	Max Speed
Curtiss Wright electric	331 mph
Rate of Climb	Cruise Speed
2,303 ft/miin	200 mph
Service Ceiling	Number of Crew
39,500 feet	one
Armament	Bomb Load
four .50 machine guns	two 100 pound bombs
Number Built	Number Surviving
7885	75