1935 Northrop Gamma 5B Sole Prototype Original Factory Photo, Spanish Civil War For Sale

1935 Northrop Gamma 5B Sole Prototype
Original Factory Photo, Spanish Civil War
One of One - Smuggled to Fight in Spain's Civil WarDESCRIPTIONOriginal 1935 factory photograph of the Northrop Gamma 5B, the only example of this aircraft ever built. Negative #1738, dated December 22, 1935 and captioned by the studio as a complete exterior side view.This period gelatin silver print was made at the Northrop plant in Inglewood, California just weeks after the aircraft's completion in October 1935, at the start of a career few single prototypes can match.In 1936 the plane toured Argentina, where its demonstration flights led the Argentine government to place an order for thirty Northrop attack bombers.In late 1937 it was quietly resold through a Mexico City front buyer, shipped aboard the S.S. Ibai to Bordeaux, France, and delivered to the Spanish Republican Air Force, where it trained pilots and flew coastal patrol during the Spanish Civil War.Captured as a war trophy by Franco's Nationalist forces in the spring of 1939, the same airframe kept flying in secondary roles for Spain's air force into the early 1950s, nearly two decades after this photo was taken.It captures the aircraft's distinctive trousered landing gear and sliding cockpit canopies exactly as it looked in its original American test configuration, before any of that happened. Scanned at 600dpi for archival reference.Every effort is made for fact checking and provenance including background research through news and historical archives. If any listing is incorrect in any way and you're unsatisfied with the item, please connect with me and I'll make it right.Orders placed before Noon CDT will ship same day Ground Advantage with tracking so you know exactly when it will arrive.Shipping is free and already built into the price, so the BIN price is exactly what you pay, no surprise shipping costs at checkout. Returns accepted on all items exceeding $25 in cost. Rigid, professional packaging on all shipments, sealed and protected in acid free protectors.CONDITIONThis is an original vintage factory print, not a modern reproduction.The image area is clean and sharp with strong tonal range and no tears, creases, or emulsion loss. Overall toning is a warm cream to sepia tone consistent with a 90 year old gelatin silver print.There is a small circular file hole near the top edge of the border, a light bump to one corner, and the studio's original negative number and caption handwritten in white ink along the lower right margin, all typical of period factory archive handling and not affecting the photographic image itself.Approximate size is 8 x 10 inches.

---

---