Northrop P-61B-15-NO  Black Widow          42-39728
                           
                               

                                   What a great brute this aircraft was!   The Black Widow was one of the very few aircraft designed
                                   at the outset as a night fighter, and, in fact, the U.S.'s first as a radar-equipped machine.  Some 706
                                   Black Widows were built, the most numerous (450) being the P-61B seen above. They were used
                                   in both the European and Far East theaters of war.  For a pilot in a lightly armored Mitsubishi A6M2
                                   to have one of these monsters on his tail must have been truly awesome!   In Europe they wrought
                                   havoc against German V-1 Doodle Bug sites in Holland and Northern Germany.    This P-61B has
                                   a dorsal four gun turret.  Early machines had this armament removed since it caused severe buffeting.
                                   This problem was resolved with later P-61Bs and the turrets were re-installed.