The design had a serious flaw in that it lacked any kind of struts or braces for the wings, with Christmas insisting that they should be flexible.

[5] Although the Chief Engineer at Continental, Vincent Burnelli, tried to institute changes, the "Christmas Bullet" was completed with the original design features intact.

Construction materials were scrounged from available wood and steel stock and were not "aircraft grade", which was also a concern to Burnelli.

[5] On its maiden flight in January 1919, the wings of the "Bullet" peeled from the fuselage and the aircraft crashed,[2] killing the pilot, Cuthbert Mills.

His far-fetched assertions were proved untrue but he claimed that he sold his unusual wing design to the US Army.