The Viper for the original Battlestar Galactica went through quite a few revisions before a final design was chosen. The above sketches are from Ralph McQuarrie (left) and Frank Frazetta (right).
If McQuarrie’s version looks familiar, you’ve probably seen Buck Rogers. The design was different enough from the final Viper design that it was reused in that series a year later.
Both artists did numerous sketches for the original show. Being a fan of pin-up art, this one by Frank Frazetta is one of my favorites.
I never saw Buck Rogers, but Ralph McQuarrie’s sketch does look familiar. It reminds me of the design of the A-Wing starfighter in Return of the Jedi. Since Ralph McQuarrie did the concept sketches for Star Wars and Buck Rogers was a few years before ROTJ, this comes as no surprise.