The ‘Bat Outta Hell!: A 1/48 Civilian XP-67 By Terry Moore

In August 1941, the new McDonnell Company awarded a bid for a twin engine heavy fighter and received a contract for 2 aircraft, to be designated XP-67. The popular name given to the aircraft was "Moonbat". The XP-67 was powered by two Continental I-1430 engines and carrying six 37mm cannon. The Continental engines proved to be rather problematical, having a tendency to burst into flames at seemingly the slightest provocation. On a test flight in September of 1944 an in-flight fire erupted in the starboard engine and the plane was forced to make an emergency landing. Unfortunately, once the plane was on the ground the fire spread and damaged the sole flying example beyond repair. At this time the program was cancelled and work on the second prototype was halted, just before it was completed.

The second prototype and the remains of the first were sold for scrap after the war and purchased by a St. Louis metals dealer and aviation enthusiast, A.P. Rilfool.

Instead of scrapping the aircraft, he reasoned that there were enough salvageable parts on the remains of the first prototype to complete the second. His plan was to finish the second aircraft and race it in the 1947 Cleveland National Air Races. The aircraft was completed but the Continental engines were still causing problems. He missed the 1947 air race and took his time resolving the issues with the engines so that he would be ready for the 1948 air race. He nicknamed the plane "‘Bat Outta Hell!", a carryover from its original name, Moonbat. The ‘Bat received race number 17 and was thought to have a pretty good chance to win. Unfortunately, during a test flight a week before the event, smoke filled the cockpit and Rilfool had to make an emergency landing. He got the plane down on the ground in one piece, but rolled off the end of the runway and into a ditch. The damage was minor but he decided that flying in a competitive air race was not for him.

A Second Life

The plane sat for a number of years falling into disrepair, and eventually Rilfool sold it. The plane was dismantled and shipped by truck to a small aircraft company in California, Aero Confederate.

The staff at AC replaced the balky Continental engines with late model Rolls Royce Griffons that had much more horsepower and were available in great quantities at war surplus prices. Fortunately, very little modification to the airframe was required to adapt the Griffons and it was soon flying again. Aero Confederate decided that its sole designated mission was to fly in advance of firebombers to find the best way to attack a forest fire. No consideration was ever made of converting it into a firebomber, as it was considered by the owners of AC that it "would have ruined the lines of such a beautiful aircraft".

In its new form it was exceedingly maneuverable and served in its job quite well, flying as a lead aircraft throughout the ‘50s and ‘60s. Unfortunately, time caught up with the ‘Bat and fatigue cracks were discovered in the main spar of the wing and horizontal tail. It was retired by AC in the late 1960s, but for reasons unknown, it disappeared. No record exists of where it went to but rumors of sightings keep showing up to this day, mostly saying "a strange, bat-like aircraft flew over today". The last story to surface about the strange looking aircraft was that it was sighted, flying fast and low off the coast of Colombia. The story has yet to be confirmed.

The Model

I inherited this CollectAire 1/48 scale kit from a friend in a half built state. I could tell that he had put more than a considerable amount of work in it with just putty and sanding alone. Perhaps that is why he passed it along to me. I’d always wanted to model this aircraft due to my interest in firebomber aircraft and the opportunity was presented to me with this model. There were no modifications necessary to the kit to make it into "’Bat Outta Hell!", save for filling in the gun ports and adding an antenna or two. The aircraft was painted using Floquil Crimson and various shades of Alcald II. Decals came from the spare decal box and the "’Bat Outta Hell!" name was painted by hand. Since the model was received in a half built state there was no possibility to add weight to the nose to support it on its tricycle landing gear, hence the crewman working on the plane is actually holding it up.

Sources

Interview with A.P. Rilfool, April 1, 1998

www.moonbat memories.com (photos of ‘bat Outta Hell!)

Aero Confederate Inc (photo of ‘bat Outta Hell!)

Forty Yard Dash to the Outhouse, Willie Makit and Bettie Dont (chapter 18 - Like A Bat Outta Hell!)