In the spring of 1945, barely after V-E Day, the U.S. government sent teams from various aircraft manufacturers to Europe seeking German aeronautical records. The searchers included Douglas aerodynamicists L. E. Root and Apollo M.O. Smith who were especially interested in delta wing and tailless configurations. Upon return to California, "Amo" Smith convinced the company to conduct wind tunnel tests based on Dr. Alexander Lippisch's work, notably the Messerschmitt 163. The tests at Cal Tech were encouraging, leading to Douglas Model 571. Chief engineer Edward H. Heinemann (already known for the SBD dive bomber and A-26 Invader) conceived a basic design of 600 square feet wing area and gross weight of eight tons. Despite the positive test results, the U.S. Navy — Douglas' main customer — expressed doubts about delta wings. Therefore Heinemann's men took matters into their own hands. They asked the company shop to build balsa models of two-foot spans in various delta configurations. Then some of the world's most accomplished engineers took themselves atop a building while others held nets on the ground. As Heinemann recalled, "We launched each model straight out, applying slight downward pressure on the leading edge of the wing. The pure flying wing model flipped over, out of control... But the others, all of which had shapes similar to the (future) Skyray, flew beautifully." In 1947, the Navy's fighter design branch expressed interest in the Douglas concept. One of the advocates was Lt. Cdr. Turner Caldwell, who that year set a world speed record in Heine-mann's D-558 Skystreak. Caldwell's boss, Cdr. A.B. Metzger, let it drop that the Navy might be interested in a carrier-based interceptor that could reach 40,000 feet in five minutes or less.
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