The XFV-1 was in competition with the equally precarious Convair XFY-1 Pogo (my photo #21684) in 1954 for a high performance fighter that could be vertically launched from small platforms on ships. The sheer difficulty in flying these bizarre designs together with the rapid advance of conventional jets led to these projects being quickly abandoned. This was the second of two XFV-1s built and was not completed. Some sources say this survivor is actually the first (BuNo 138657), others that it was completed for display using parts from the first.