Naval Aircraft Factory XOSN

The Naval Aircraft Factory XOSN was an American biplane observation floatplane developed for the United States Navy in the late 1930s. In 1936 the Navy asked manufacturers to bid for an observation and scouting aircraft able to work from water or land, mainly to spot gunfire from battleships and cruisers. The factory's XOSN-1 was a two-seat biplane of mixed metal and fabric construction with the pilot and observer in tandem under an enclosed cockpit, automatic leading-edge slats on the upper wing and an I-strut bracing system without interplane wires. It reached trials in May 1938, lost to Vought's monoplane, and served at the Naval Academy as a trainer until mid-1944.