Flying Pancake
History's Unique AircraftThe U.S. Navy’s Unconventional ‘Flying Pancake’ Fighter
Vought V-173 prototype’s 427 square feet of wing area gave it the capability of taking off nearly vertically with typical wind over a ship’s deck.
Jason McDowell![](https://www.flyingmag.com/uploads/2024/10/Yellow-Front-View-V-173-US-Navy.jpeg?auto=webp&auto=webp&optimize=high&quality=70&width=1440)
![](https://www.flyingmag.com/uploads/2022/09/Pilot-and-copilot_adobe-stock-rs.jpg?auto=webp&auto=webp&optimize=high&quality=70&width=1440)
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