World's Fastest Four-Engine Piston-Powered Aircraft: Story of the Republic XR-12 Rainbow

by Mike Machat

Still the fastest multi-engine piston aircraft ever flown, the Republic XR-12 and its competitor, the Hughes XF-11, were well ahead of their time in 1946. Envisioned as a long-range photo-reconnaissance aircraft with a top speed of more than 450 mph, the Republic XR-12 also offered near jet-like performance for the world's airlines with a 44-passenger commercial version named the Rainbow. Using original Republic photos, data, and artwork, the author reveals never-before-published information about the Rainbow airliner. While the clear emphasis of this book is on the Republic airplane, the Hughes XF-11 is also covered and compared in its role as a twin-engine competitor to the more advanced four-engine Republic airplane. Although the XR-12 and XF-11 were among the most elegant-looking aircraft ever built, the Rainbow was considered to be Republic chief designer Alexander Kartveli's ultimate masterpiece. Conversely, the more cantankerous XF-11 almost took the life of its designer and chief test pilot, Howard Hughes.

143 pages, Hardcover

First published May 15, 2011

Reviews

[Steve Sarrica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am totally a plane geek, no doubt because of family history and several trips to the Museum of the United States Air Force as a kid. This book is about the Republic XR-12 Rainbow, a four-engine photo-recon plane built at the end of WWII. My grandfather worked on the plane when he was at Republic and he and I were able to discuss it before he passed. He said many in the company, which had only built single-engine fighters up to that point, were sure that the plane would tear itself apart. It didn't. Unfortunately, the jet age killed the Rainbow before it got anywhere. Now it's an amazing "What Might Have Been".