Talk:Spartan NP

Questionable order / service dates
I have strong doubts about the stated date of the NP-1s being ordered as 1940. One NP-1 is known to have ditched in the Back River (Virginia) on 10 June 1936 after take-off from Langley Field, (http://www.aviationarchaeology.com/src/1940sB4/1936.htm) so clearly the type was in unit service at least four years before 1940. Mark Sublette (talk) 22:18, 9 May 2011 (UTC)Mark SubletteMark Sublette (talk) 22:18, 9 May 2011 (UTC)
 * Good point but I have rechecked the reference I used and it says the contract was received on 10 July 1940 but as you have said they were certainly around before that. Perhaps we should just remove the date until we find a another soure for the date. MilborneOne (talk) 22:29, 9 May 2011 (UTC)
 * The source that the article image came from says one of 201 which were among over 1,300 primary trainers ordered in Summer 1940. MilborneOne (talk) 22:33, 9 May 2011 (UTC)
 * Aerofiles says 1940 with the prototype NS-1 in 1939. MilborneOne (talk) 22:36, 9 May 2011 (UTC)
 * Do we know why the USAAC would be reporting a loss of a navy aircraft? MilborneOne (talk) 22:40, 9 May 2011 (UTC)
 * Departure from an Air Corps airfield is my guess... Mark Sublette (talk) 12:57, 10 May 2011 (UTC)Mark SubletteMark Sublette (talk) 12:57, 10 May 2011 (UTC)
 * While I have no reason to disbelieve the accident report, I note that the next Bureau Numbers after the NP-1 serials were for F4F-3 Wildcats, known 1940 acquisitions. This leads me to wonder about the veracity or accuracy of the 1936 crash date. Mark Sublette (talk) 00:49, 11 May 2011 (UTC)Mark SubletteMark Sublette (talk) 00:49, 11 May 2011 (UTC)
 * 3824 that crashed is a high serial number (they were 3645 to 3843) and the surviving aircraft the 78th built 3691 was delivered on 17 November 1941. - something not right but all the web info points back at the same accident report. MilborneOne (talk) 07:43, 11 May 2011 (UTC)
 * I am now suspicious of the 1936 accident date, and am seeking additional information. Mark Sublette (talk) 03:14, 16 May 2011 (UTC)Mark SubletteMark Sublette (talk) 03:14, 16 May 2011 (UTC)