On this day in 1932, the Boeing XP-936 prototype made its first flight, leading to the Boeing P-26 Peashooter, the first all-metal production fighter operated by the U.S. Army Air Corps and its first pursuit monoplane. It retained an open cockpit, fixed landing gear, and externally braced wings, marking a transitional design between the old wood-and-fabric biplanes and the modern fighters that followed.

Aircraft: Boeing P-26A Peashooter

• Length: 23 ft 7 in (7.2 m)
• Wingspan: 28 ft (8.5 m)
• Height: 10 ft (3.0 m)
• Engine: Pratt & Whitney R-1340-27 Wasp radial, 600 hp
• Top speed: 234 mph (377 km/h)
• Armament: two .30 caliber machine guns, or one .30 caliber and one .50 caliber