The unpainted XF6F-1 prior to its first flight

On June 26th, 1942, a prototype of the Grumman F6F Hellcat took to the skies
for the first time. Initially conceived of as an improved version of the Grumman
F4F Wildcat which had been in service since the 1930s. The plane was designed
with its greatest opponent, the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero, in mind. 

The Hellcats were credited with destroying 5,223 aircraft while in service with the
U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps and the Royal Navy‘s Fleet Air Arm. They remained
in service as late as 1954 as a night fighter.

The F6F-3 as introduced in 1943