Prior to August 1945, the Vultee Division of Consolidated-Vultee looked at the possibility of a swept-wing aircraft powered by a ducted rocket.

Thus, contrary to suggestions that German designer Alexander Lippisch influenced it, Convair independently discovered the thin high-speed delta wing.

This mixed-propulsion system required a very large intake duct, which not only fed the jet engine but also passed air around the rocket exhaust to provide thrust augmentation.

To address this, the team modified the design in a fashion similar to both the Leduc 0.10 and Miles M.52, placing the cockpit in a cylindrical body in the center of the intake.

[6] In order to gain inflight experience with the delta wing layout, Convair suggested building a smaller prototype, the Model 7002, which the USAAF accepted in November 1946.

[7] In order to save development time and money, many components were taken from other aircraft; the main gear was taken from a North American FJ-1 Fury, the nosewheel from a Bell P-63 Kingcobra, the engine and hydraulics were taken from a Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star, the ejection seat and cockpit canopy were taken from the cancelled Convair XP-81, and the rudder pedals were taken from a BT-13 trainer.

After 47 flights totaling 20 hours and 33 minutes, the aircraft was turned over to the USAAF on 26 August 1949,[8] with the testing being assigned to Frank Everest and Chuck Yeager.

These tests revealed a violent pitch-up tendency during high-speed turns, often as much as 6 g, and on one occasion 8 g. The addition of wing fences partially alleviated this problem.

"[12][13] The delta wing's thin airfoil cross section, low weight and structural strength made it a good candidate for a supersonic airplane.

By controlling the flow in this critical area, the performance envelope of the delta could be greatly expanded, which led to the introduction of canards on most delta-wing designs in the 1960s and 1970s.

Data from Fighters of the United States Air Force[15]General characteristics Performance An unusual application of the XF-92A was as a movie model, stepping into the role of the "MiG-23" in the Howard Hughes film, Jet Pilot, starring John Wayne and Janet Leigh.

Due to the lengthy delay in releasing the film, by the time it appeared in 1957, the XF-92A's role had been left on the cutting room floor.

[17] It did appear in the film Toward the Unknown (1956) starring William Holden, again in the guise of another aircraft, this time as its descendant design the F-102 Delta Dagger.