073 Hughes XP-73 (D2, XA-37, XF-11, XR-11)

Dave Burgess Autore
I was looking forward to this project: the Hughes D-2 (aka XP-73 / XA-37). First thing that amazed me was its size. The wingspan of this beast is almost the same length as the SR-71!

Unfortunately I ran into problems when I started attaching the wing to the tail booms and fuelage. That's when I realized that there was a slight twist in the center wing section. As a result, the left boom is not parallel to the right, sloping downward from the tail to the engine cowl. As a result the left boom engine is below the right, and the boom tail is above the right; very noticable when you position the hor. stab. Also, the cutout in the center wing section for the pilot compartment was a bit too wide underside, and when I got the best fit, it ALSO is not parallel to the booms, but slopes upward. I'm not sure how I'm going to fix this. I tried repositioning the pilot's section, cracking the center section in the process, but I wasn't able to shift it enough. Putting this project on hold until I decide how to tackle it. One of my first thoughts was to cut the boom off just forward of the wing, to repostition the engine, and just behind the wing to fix the boom height at the tail; then cutting the pilot section out of the center wing and repostioning it as well. That's a lot of surgery, and if not successful, will probably mean scrapping the project. My other though was to just finish the build, warts and all. Thoughts?