View source for FFA P-16

{{Short description|Swiss ground attack aircraft, 1955}}
{{Infobox aircraft
 |name = P-16
 |image = File:P-16 f1.png
 |caption = 
 |type = Fighter
 |national_origin= Switzerland
 |manufacturer = [[Flug- und Fahrzeugwerke Altenrhein]] (FFA)
 |first_flight = 25 April 1955
 |introduction = 
 |retired = 
 |status = Cancelled
 |primary_user = 
 |more_users = 
 |produced = <!--years in production, e.g. 1970-1999, if still in active use but no longer built-->
 |number_built = 5
 |developed_from = 
 |variants = 
}}

The '''FFA P-16''' is a [[Switzerland|Swiss]] prototype [[ground attack]] [[fighter aircraft|jet fighter]] designed and produced by aircraft manufacturer [[Flug- und Fahrzeugwerke Altenrhein]] (FFA). It was Switzerland's second attempt to develop a domestically designed and manufactured jet fighter, following the [[EFW N-20]].

Work on what would become the P-16 commenced during the late 1940s. From the onset, the company intended for the indigenously developed fighter to replace several piston-engined aircraft that were then in service with the [[Swiss Air Force]]. During 1952, a pair of prototypes were ordered from FFA. On 25 April 1955, the first prototype performed its [[maiden flight]]. On 15 August 1956, the second prototype exceeded the [[Speed of sound|sound barrier]] for the first time. The flight test programme demonstrated the P-16 to be capable of achieving favourable performance; accordingly, a production contract for 100 aircraft was issued by the Swiss Government.

In the aftermath of a pre-production aircraft's crash, the Swiss production order was terminated and soon thereafter replaced by orders for the British-built [[Hawker Hunter]]. This cancellation had come before any production P-16s had been completed. While the company continued the program independently for a time, completing a further two aircraft, no buyers could be found for the type. The P-16s were examined by [[Bill Lear]], who later developed the highly successful [[Learjet]] family of [[business jet]]s. However, the P-16 was never introduced into service by any operator, and only a single example of the type remains presently.

==Development==
===Background===
Following the [[Victory in Europe Day|end of the European portion]] of the [[World War II|Second World War]], Switzerland was one of several nations who used the new-found peacetime to modernise and expand its industrial and military capabilities.<ref name="Lombardi 44"/> At the time of the war's conclusion, the [[Swiss Air Force]] was equipped with numerous [[reciprocating engine|piston-engined]] aircraft, while several high-ranking officials sought to adopt new designs that harnessed newly developed [[jet propulsion]] instead. During the same time period, Swiss defense companies also sought to develop increasingly capable equipment, including {{ill|Eidgenössische Flugzeugwerke Emmen|de}}'s [[EFW N-20]], which would be Switzerland's first domestically designed and manufactured jet fighter.<ref name="Lombardi 44"/> According to author Fiona Lombardi, development of the N-20 was greatly hindered by a lack of technical knowledge and over-ambitious performance demands, which contributed to a protracted development programme. This effort would never progress beyond the prototype stage before being eclipsed by more capable aircraft and ultimately terminated.<ref name="Lombardi 44">Lombardi 2007, p. 44.</ref>

During 1947, independent of the N-20 effort, Swiss firm [[Flug- und Fahrzeugwerke Altenrhein]] (FFA) decided to embark on their own independent fighter jet development programme.<ref name="Lombardi 44"/><ref name = "flight 152"/> Designated ''P-16'', it was reportedly conceived as being a [[supersonic]]-capable [[fighter-bomber]] that would be capable of deployment from the more remote and compact alpine bases. According to periodical [[Popular Mechanics]], this ability to operate from short runways was particularly ambitious, as such a requirement had proved to be a substantial and persistence hindrance in efforts to procure suitable jet fighters for the Swiss Air Force.<ref name = "popmech 136">[https://books.google.com/books?id=SeEDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA136 "Swiss P-16 Jet For Short Runways."] ''Popular Mechanics'', April 1956, p. 136.</ref><ref name="Lombardi 44"/> By the end of 1950, the Swiss Air Force had procured numerous [[subsonic aircraft|subsonic]] jet aircraft from foreign sources, including the British [[de Havilland Vampire]] and [[de Havilland Venom]] fighters; however, the service still had a vacant role for a supersonic-capable fighter.<ref name="Lombardi 4550">Lombardi 2007, pp. 45, 50.</ref>

===Flight testing and evaluation===
During 1952, a pair of prototypes were ordered from FFA. On 25 April 1955, the first of these aircraft (''J-3001'') performed its [[maiden flight]]. This prototype was subsequently destroyed in a crash on 31 August 1955, having conducted 22 flights with a cumulative flight time of 12 hours 38 minutes. On 15 August 1956, the second prototype exceeded the [[Speed of sound|sound barrier]] for the first time. This prototype completed another 310 flights by March 1958, being withdrawn shortly thereafter.{{Citation needed|date=July 2019}} A development contract for a batch of four pre-production aircraft was awarded. These aircraft, which were designated ''Mk II'', differed from the earlier prototypes in a variety of ways; perhaps most significantly, these aircraft were furnished with the more powerful [[Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire]] 7 engine in place of the prototype's Sapphire 6.{{Citation needed|date=July 2019}}

Reportedly, test flights of the pre-production aircraft proved itself to have promise; during 1958, a production contract was awarded for 100 aircraft. However, another accident occurred when the first pre-production machine (''J-3003'') was destroyed in a crash on 25 March 1958 after 102 flights. According to Lombardi, the second crash was a major blow to the project; it has been claimed that the Swiss Government decided to cancel the entire order due to the accidents involved.<ref name="Lombardi 4550"/> By the end of the 1950s, Switzerland opted to procure British-built [[Hawker Hunter]]s to meet the Swiss Air Force's needs instead of the P-16.<ref name="Lombardi 50">Lombardi 2007, p. 50.</ref>

===Post-termination development===
Following the cancellation, FFA decided to continue the P-16 program at its own expense for a while. The company completing two further aircraft, which conformed to the more capable ''MK III'' standard; these (''X-HB-VAC/J-3004'' and ''X-HB-VAD/J-3005'') conducted their first flights in July 1959 and March 1960 respectively, while their last flights were performed during April 1960 and June 1960. One of the last flights was the one and only presentation abroad at [[Friedrichshafen Airport|Friedrichshafen]] on the 26th of June 1960.<ref>Felix H. Meier: "Das Düsenkampfflugzeug P-16", Guarda 2019, Page 75</ref> Despite attempts by the company to attract customers, no buyers ultimately emerged for the type.{{Citation needed|date=July 2019}}

Certain design aspects of the P-16 were used by business man and [[inventor]] [[Bill Lear]] when developing the first of the highly successful [[Learjet]] family of business jets, the [[Learjet 23]].<ref name="Schweizerische Strahlflugzeuge und Strahltriebwerke">Georges Bridel, Verkehrshaus der Schweiz, Luzern 1975, {{ISBN|3 85954 902 2}}.</ref> Several of the engineers behind the P-16 later worked for Lear, and the design of both the P-16 and Learjet 23 bore several similarities; some historians have alleged the latter was a direct derivative of the former.<ref name = "tested 2015"/> According to Bill Lear's son, William P. Lear, the designs of the P-16 and the Learjet possessed substantial differences, particularly in terms of their wing and tail configurations, dismissing claims of there being a close similarities between the two as "stories" and "fantasy".<ref>Lear, William P. [https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/aviation-international-news/2007-01-31/learjets-and-swiss-fighters "Learjets and Swiss fighters."] ''AIN Online'', 31 January 2007.</ref> William had become involved in the P-16 program at a later stage, which included flying the type multiple times, after FFA had reached out to him for his assessment of the aircraft during 1960.<ref name = "tested 2015">Dunn, Terry. [https://www.tested.com/tech/488084-strange-and-unlikely-genesis-learjet/ "The Strange and Unlikely Genesis of the LearJet."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190720202804/https://www.tested.com/tech/488084-strange-and-unlikely-genesis-learjet/ |date=2019-07-20 }} ''tested.com'', 8 January 2015.</ref>

==Design==
The FFA P-16 was a single-seat, single-engine aircraft, designed to be especially well suited to the [[close air support]] (CAS) role, but to also perform as a capable interceptor aircraft as well.<ref name = "flight 152"/><ref name = "popmech 136"/> In terms of its basic configuration, it was furnished with a low-mounted wing, air intakes on the fuselage sides, and the [[Tailplane|horizontal stabilizer]] mounted halfway up the [[Vertical stabilizer|fin]]. The exterior skin was composed of a relatively light-gauge [[alloy]]; in key areas, a specialised sandwich-type design was used to preserve stiffness, such as the wings. To facilitate effective operations when deploying upon unprepared fields, a relatively heavy [[Landing gear|undercarriage]], complete with dual-wheels and [[Tire|tyres]], was adopted; furthermore, it was designed with surplus strength to accommodate the potential needs of future variants of the P-16.<ref name = "flight 152"/>

The P-16 could provide a high level of short-field performance, a factor which had been emphasized during its design.<ref name = "flight 152">''Flight'' 1995, p. 152.</ref> To accomplish this, the wing was equipped with various high-lift devices; these included somewhat uncommon full-span [[Krueger flaps]] on the [[leading edge]], large [[Flap (aircraft)|Fowler-type flaps]] on the inboard-[[trailing edge]], and Flaperons; [[aileron]]s which also operated as flaps. In conjunction, these devices reportedly allowed the aircraft to take off and land within 1,000&nbsp;ft (330 m) at high altitude, allowing the P-16 to operate from the Alpine valleys characteristic of Switzerland.<ref name = "flight 152"/> The wing itself was [[Wing configuration#Wing sweep|straight]] and relatively thin, achieved a low-[[aspect ratio]]; it featured multi-[[spar (aeronautics)|spar]] construction.<ref name = "popmech 136"/> It is provisioned with [[Aircraft fuel tanks#Tip tanks|tip-tank]]s which, in addition to storing fuel, provide a structural function, acting as end plates. A fuselage break aft of the wings enabled the rapid changing of the engine.<ref name = "flight 152"/>

The majority of powered systems, such as the flight controls, primarily harnessed [[hydraulic|Hydraulic power]] in the form of a [[Dowty Group|Dowty]]-built high-pressure system; this was driven by the aircraft's turbojet engine and supplemented by [[Hydraulic accumulator|accumulator]]s for emergency operation of the undercarriage, [[air brake (aeronautics)|air brake]]s and flaps.<ref name = "flight 152"/> A second backup system is provided via a [[pneumatics|pneumatic system]], powering the wheel [[brake]]s as well as undercarriage deployment and jettisoning the canopy. [[Bleed air]] drawn from the engine provided [[cabin pressurization|cockpit pressurization]] and [[air conditioning]] for pilot comfort.<ref name = "flight 152"/> The electrical system incorporated a 24 V [[Direct current|DC]] generator, electricity was used for various systems, including the engine starter, fuel pumps, windscreen heating, [[ultra high frequency]] (UHF) [[radio]] and [[radar]] set. Armaments were stored underneath the wings and within a weapons bay housed in the fuselage centre-section; the latter could accommodate [[rocket]]s, fragmentation or [[napalm]] [[bomb]]s, or a large fuel tank for additional endurance; furthermore, a pair of 30&nbsp;mm [[cannon]] were permanently mounted in the nose.<ref name = "flight 152"/>

==Variants==
* '''Mk I''': two prototypes powered with an [[Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire]] ASSa 6 engine of 7,900&nbsp;lb (3983&nbsp;kg) thrust.{{Citation needed|date=July 2019}}
* '''Mk II''': pre-production machine with a Sapphire ASSa 7 engine of 11,000&nbsp;lb (4,990&nbsp;kg) thrust. Only one aircraft was completed out of an order for four before the project was cancelled.{{Citation needed|date= July 2019}}

===Proposed variants to be built by AFU===
[[Aktiengesellschaft für Flugzeugunternehmungen]] proposed several variants:
* '''P-16-Trainer''': Training version with two seats in tandem for the Swiss Air Force.<ref>Georges Bridel: ''Schweizerische Strahlflugzeuge und Strahltriebwerke'', Verkehrshaus der Schweiz, Luzern 1975 Seite 61, {{ISBN|3 85954 902 2}}.</ref> Without the two 30mm guns of the single seater version.<ref>Fricker, 1991, p 145: "Another development considered was a two-seat training and operational derivative which could be easily achieved after removal of the fuselage guns, the cabin conditioning capacity being already there".</ref>
* '''AR-7''': [[Rolls-Royce RB.168]] engine<ref>Buttler 2015. pp 192–204.</ref>

==Surviving aircraft==
[[File:P-16_FFA.jpg|"X-HB-VAD" at the [[Flieger Flab Museum]] in 2016|thumb]]

As of 2007,{{needs update|date=March 2025}} only a single example of the P-16, which was assembled from elements of two separate prototypes, remains in existence. It is on display at the Swiss Air Force Museum at the [[Dübendorf Air Base]].<ref>[https://www.afc-fliegermuseum.ch/de/bildergalerien/halle-2/  FFA P-16 on Pictures inside of the Museum]</ref>

==Specifications (Mark III)==

{{Aircraft specs
|ref= ''Switzerland's P-16: Father of the Learjet''<ref name="Fricker AI p146">Fricker 1991, p. 146.</ref>
|prime units?=met
<!--
        General characteristics
-->
|crew=1
|length m=14.33
|length note=
|span m=11.15
|span note=
|height m=4.27
|height note=
|wing area sqm=30
|wing area note=
|aspect ratio=<!-- sailplanes -->
|airfoil=[[NACA airfoil|NACA 64A109]]<ref name="Selig">{{cite web |last1=Lednicer |first1=David |title=The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage |url= https://m-selig.ae.illinois.edu/ads/aircraft.html |website= m-selig | publisher = U. Illinois |access-date=16 April 2019}}</ref>
|empty weight kg=7037
|empty weight note=
|gross weight kg=
|gross weight note=
|max takeoff weight kg=
|max takeoff weight note=
|fuel capacity=
|more general=
<!--
        Powerplant
-->
|eng1 number=1
|eng1 name=[[Armstrong Siddeley ASSa.7 Sapphire]] 
|eng1 type=[[turbojet]] engine
|eng1 kn=49.1
|eng1 note=
<!--
        Performance
-->
|max speed kmh=1118
|max speed note=at sea level, clean
|max speed mach=<!-- supersonic aircraft -->
|cruise speed kmh=
|cruise speed note=
|stall speed kmh=179
|stall speed note=
|never exceed speed kmh=
|never exceed speed note=
|range km=1447
|range note=at {{cvt|9150|m|0}}
|combat range km=
|combat range note=
|ferry range km=
|ferry range note=
|endurance=<!-- if range unknown -->
|ceiling m=14000
|ceiling note=
|g limits=<!-- aerobatic -->
|roll rate=<!-- aerobatic -->
|climb rate ms=65
|climb rate note=
|time to altitude=
|wing loading kg/m2=
|wing loading note=
|fuel consumption kg/km=
|thrust/weight=
|more performance=<!--<br />
*'''Take-off run:''' {{cvt||m|0}}
*'''Take-off run to {{cvt|15|m|0}}:''' {{cvt||m|0}}
*'''Landing run:''' {{cvt||m|0}}
*'''Landing run from {{cvt|15|m|0}}:''' {{cvt||m|0}}-->
<!--
        Armament
-->
|guns= 2 × 30 mm [[Hispano-Suiza]] [[Hispano-Suiza HS.825|HS.825]] cannon in nose with 120 rounds per gun, or [[Oerlikon KCA]]<ref>{{Citation | last = Johnson | first = Robert Craig | title = Swiss guards: the Federal aircraft factory N-20 & the FFA P-16 | work = Chandelle | publisher = World at war | orig-year = 1995 | year = 1997 | volume = 2 <!-- | month = Jun/Jul --> | number = 2 | url = http://worldatwar.net/chandelle/v2/v2n2/switzers.html}}</ref>
|bombs= 
|rockets= 44 × 68 mm [[SNEB|SNEB rocket]] in retractable [[Matra]] launcher under fuselage
|missiles= 
|hardpoints= 4
|hardpoint capacity= up to 2,590 kg (5,700 lb) of external stores<ref name="Fricker AI p144">Fricker 1991, p. 144.</ref>
|avionics=
}}

==References==

===Citations===
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
* Buttler, Tony. ''X-Planes of Europe II: Military Prototype Aircraft from the Golden Age 1946–1974''. Manchester, UK: Hikoki Publications, 2015. {{ISBN|978-1-90210-948-0}}
* [http://www.flightglobal.com/FlightPDFArchive/1955/1955%20-%201040.PDF "For Alpine Attack."] ''Flight'', 1955. p.&nbsp;152
* Frickler, John. "Switzerland's P-16: Father of the Learjet." ''[[Air International]]'', March 1991, Vol. 40, No. 3, pp.&nbsp;139–146
* Green, William and Gerald Pollinger.''Die Flugzeuge der Welt'' (in German). Zürich, Switzerland: Werner Classen Verlag, 1960
* Green, W. and Swanborough, G.; ''The complete book of fighters'', Salamander (1994), {{ISBN|0-86101-643-2}}
* Johnson, Robert Craig. [http://worldatwar.net/chandelle/v2/v2n2/switzers.html "Swiss Guards: the Federal Aircraft Factory N-20 and the FFA P-16."] ''Chandelle 2'' (2), 1997.
* Lombardi, Fiona. ''The Swiss Air Power: Wherefrom? Whereto?'' Hochschulverlag AG, 2007. {{ISBN|3-7281-3099-0}}
* Schürmann, Roman. ''Helvetische Jäger. Dramen und Skandale am Militärhimmel''(in German). Zürich: [[Rotpunktverlag]],  2009. {{ISBN|978-3-85869-406-5}}.
* Strehler, Hanspeter. ''Das schweizer Düsenflugzeug P-16'' (in German). Erschienen, Switzerland:  2004. {{ISBN|3-033-00051-7}}
* Taylor, Michael J.H. ''Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation''. London: Studio Editions, 1989, pp.&nbsp;39, 383. {{ISBN|0-517-10316-8}}

==External links==
{{commons category|FFA P-16}}
* [http://www.aerospaceweb.org/question/planes/q0143.shtml Origins of the Learjet]

{{Flug- und Fahrzeugwerke Altenrhein aircraft}}

[[Category:FFA aircraft|P-16]]
[[Category:Abandoned military aircraft projects of Switzerland]]
[[Category:1950s Swiss fighter aircraft]]
[[Category:Single-engined jet aircraft]]
[[Category:Low-wing aircraft]]
[[Category:Aircraft first flown in 1955]]
[[Category:Cruciform tail aircraft]]