The Vought V-173 "Flying Pancake": A Bizarre Beauty of Aviation History
The world of aviation has seen its fair share of unusual aircraft designs, but few are as delightfully odd as the Vought V-173, or as it’s better known, the "Flying Pancake." With its flat, disc-like shape and oversized propellers, it looked more like something out of a science fiction comic than a serious military aircraft. But this quirky little plane was a legitimate attempt to revolutionize fighter aircraft during World War II.
Why Was It Built?
The V-173 was the brainchild of aeronautical engineer Charles H. Zimmerman, who had a pretty radical idea about how airplanes should be designed. He believed that a flat, all-wing aircraft could generate far more lift than traditional designs, allowing it to take off and land in incredibly short distances—even from small aircraft carriers or compact runways.
His goal was to create a Navy fighter that could match the speed and agility of conventional aircraft while needing just a fraction of the runway space. If it worked, it could have been a game-changer for carrier aviation, allowing more planes to operate from smaller ships.
To test this concept, the Vought V-173 was developed as an experimental prototype. Its bizarre shape wasn’t just for looks, it was the lifting surface. With its giant counter-rotating propellers and unusual airframe, the aircraft was designed to handle like a dream at slow speeds while still being capable of high-speed performance.
Photo Credit: aviationmuseum.eu
What Was It Supposed to Do?
The V-173 itself wasn’t intended for combat. It was more of a testbed to prove that Zimmerman’s radical idea could actually work. If successful, the concept would be refined into a more powerful, combat-ready version: the Vought XF5U-1, or the “Flying Flapjack”.
This production model was planned to be a high-speed Navy fighter with an estimated top speed of 452 mph—a blistering pace for a propeller-driven aircraft of its time. It would have packed heavy firepower, been highly maneuverable, and crucially, could have operated from shorter runways and smaller aircraft carriers, giving the U.S. Navy more flexibility in deploying fighter aircraft.
Why Didn't It Go Into Mass Production?
For all its promise, the Flying Pancake never made it past the experimental stage. There were a few key reasons why:
1. The Jet Age Had Arrived
By the time the V-173 and its successor, the XF5U-1, were being tested, jet fighters were already proving to be the future of aviation. The U.S. military had shifted its focus to jet-powered aircraft, which could fly faster and higher than any propeller-driven plane could ever hope to.
2. Technical Challenges
While the V-173 did manage 190 successful test flights, the aircraft had its fair share of engineering headaches. The gearbox that powered the giant propellers was incredibly complex and prone to vibration issues. The transition from the lightweight V-173 to the heavier, all-metal XF5U-1 only made these problems worse.
3. Funding and Priorities Changed
By 1947, with World War II over and the Navy’s focus shifting to jets, the project lost steam. The XF5U-1 prototype was completed, but it was never flown—instead, it was unceremoniously scrapped before it ever got the chance to prove itself.
The Legacy of the Flying Pancake:
Despite never reaching mass production, the V-173 wasn’t a failure. In fact, its test flights proved that Zimmerman’s concept actually worked—the plane was remarkably stable, highly maneuverable, and capable of near-vertical takeoffs and landings.
The V-173 survived and was restored, and today, it sits proudly at the Frontiers of Flight Museum in Dallas, TX, a testament to one of the most innovative (and weirdest) designs in aviation history.
Photo Credit: wikipedia.org
Conclusion:
The Vought V-173 "Flying Pancake" is one of those aircraft that makes you stop and ask, “What if?” What if it had entered service before jets took over? Could it have been a revolutionary fighter? A reconnaissance aircraft? Would we have seen a whole new era of short-takeoff naval aircraft?
We’ll never know for sure, but one thing is certain—this little pancake flipped aviation history on its head, even if it never made it to the battlefield.
See More:
Plane & Pilot Magazine - V-173 Flying Pancake: The Amazing STOL “Flying Saucer”
U.S. Naval Institute – The Pancake that Didn’t Fly
The Armory Life – Vought V-173: Origins of the Flying Saucer?
Wikipedia – Vought V-173 “Flying Pancake”