Lockheed L-2000 Windtunnel Development Model

A rare scale model of the Lockheed L-2000 made for use in a wind-tunnel to assess aerodynamic characteristics, circa 1960. The model was made in brass which has developed a patina that is more like the colour of bronze. The aircraft sits on a newly made aluminium stand.

Dimensions: 35.5 cm/14 inches (length) x 17.75 cm/7 inches (wing span) x 24.75 cm/9¾ inches (max height on stand).

The L-2000 was a fantastic looking plane which in the 1960s, along with the Boeing 2707, was under development as a US supersonic airliner that would compete with Concorde. The L-2000 would have been larger than the Concorde with a capacity of 250 passengers and was due to use the Pratt & Whitney J58 jet engines used on the US air force's SR 71 Blackbird spy planes. Sadly due to spiralling costs and the 1970s oil crisis both the Boeing and the Lockheed projects were cancelled.