SERVICE HISTORY

The USAAC received its first P-26A in December 1933, and it entered service the following year. P-26B and P-26C models followed, with an improved fuel-injected engine. A total of 136 of all models were flown by the USAAC in fighter units in the US, in the Philippines, and in Panama. From 1936 they began to be replaced, and the aircraft in Panama and the Philippines were sold to their respective native air forces. The last P-26s left front line US service in 1941.

The aircraft in the Philippines Army Air Corps saw service against the Japanese at the end of 1941 and in early 1942, as did 11 export versions of the P-26 (designated the Model 281) that were sold to the Chinese between 1934 and 1936. A further, single Model 281 was to sold Spain, where it flew with Republican forces until being shot down in October 1936.

“THE AIRCRAFT IN THE PHILIPPINES ARMY AIR CORPS SAW SERVICE AGAINST THE JAPANESE AT THE END OF 1941 AND IN EARLY 1942”

Although lacking the sleek lines of World War II monoplane fighters, the P-26A was surprisingly modern in its construction

The P-26 was Boeing’s last fighter design until their involvement in the F-15 Strike Eagle in the 1980s. Instead, the company focused on bombers