Ralph Savelsberg wrote in message ...
Bill Silvey wrote:
North American Rockwell proposed a derivative of the Vigilante,
with a third engine inserted between (and slightly above) the
two already installed, fed by two dorsal intakes. I have an artist's
impression of the thing (in Planes of Fame 19) in USAF markings
and armed with 6 Phoenix-like missiles (no less) under the fuselage.
If built it would have been quite a beast.


I've found an artist's impression on the following page:
http://www.vectorsite.net/ava5.html
(close to the bottom)
It seems like it's a rather extensive redesign.
Apparently two versions were proposed: one in the late `sixties
involving a rocket engine in place of the Vigilante's weapons' /camera
bay and the one I referred to and which is pictured in the above
mentioned page,
fitted with three J-79 engines.

I find this really interesting since a fella I knew in college who
grew up down on the Gulf Coast was telling me once about a military
aircraft that crashed somewhere in the North Florida brush swamps
once. Said that the people who saw it going down talked about it
having three afterburning engines in the configuration shown in that
photo. It's been a long time since I've seen the guy, let alone heard
the story, so I don't know what the timeframe was, but could be that
the three-J79'd airframe at least made it to flying test stage.