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Cold War

How two tiny dents on the SR-71 nose stopped surface-to-air missiles from hitting the Blackbird

by Till Daisd June 11, 2024

The SR-71 Blackbird

The US Air Force (USAF) created the SR-71 Blackbird in the 1960s; it was a plane that could fly at a speed greater than three times the sound made by its own engines.

The SR-71 spy plane held the record for being the fastest and highest-flying operational aircraft in the world for about 24 years. At a speed of Mach 3+, it could cover 100,000 square miles of Earth’s surface per hour while flying at 80,000 feet. In the unlikely event that an enemy attempted to bring it down with a missile, the Blackbird just needed to accelerate and outpace it.

The SR-71’s engineering was so advanced that new tools had to be designed to build it.

Dents on the SR-71 Blackbird Nose

Former SR-71 RSO Richard “Butch” Sheffield (Butch was his nickname because of his haircut that he had back in the 60s) used to point to the nose of the SR-71 Blackbird. He would point to the dimples and say, “This is really important, but I can’t talk about it.”

He would smile.

Here’s how two little Dents placed on the Nose of the SR-71 prevented Surface-to-air Missiles from Scoring any Hit on the Blackbird — Richard Butch Sheffield and Bob Spencer

In the SR-71, he and Bob Spencer executed one of the most crucial missions when they intercepted an SA-5 missile that was flying just inches from the Russian border. Receiving that signal was important to the SR-71’s defense. An SR-71 was never shot down; none ever got close. It was impossible due to defense and speed.

According to former Blackbird pilot Col. Richard H. Graham’s book SR-71 The Complete Illustrated History of THE BLACKBIRD The World’s Highest, Fastest Plane, the nose section allowed the SR-71 to have radar-imaging capability with the advanced synthetic aperture radar system (ASARS), photographic imagery with the optical bar camera (OBC), or a ballast installed. The nose section was held on by faun-massive fasteners.

The Dents that prevented Surface-to-air Missiles from Scoring any Hit on the SR-71 Blackbird

What are those two little dents on the nose of the SR-71 Blackbird?

‘I’m assuming you’re talking about the two “dents” in the chines at the front part of the nose, one on each side? Those aren’t dents, those were put there on purpose for the more advanced ECM systems the Blackbird got in the ’70s and ‘80s,’ says Kelly Pedron, an aviation expert, on Quora.

‘There weren’t any good places to put the ECM receivers in the front of the aircraft, so those “dents” were put in the chine to allow the installation of ECM receivers there. If you’ll notice, the flat part of the “dent” is facing about 60 degrees forward, in order to cover that quadrant of the airspace around the aircraft. Earlier models of the SR, including the A-12, were more concerned with attack radar signals from the rear, so front-mounted ECM receivers weren’t as necessary at the time. With the advent of more advanced Soviet SAM systems, like the S-200 and S-300, a forward warning receiver and jammer were required, hence the development of the so-called ECM “dents” in the nose.’

Pedron concludes;

‘So, yes, those were put there on purpose; nobody accidentally taxied an SR-71 into a solid object.’

Check out Habubrats SR-71’s Twitter profile and Born into the Wilde Blue Yonder‘s Facebook page for further Blackbird photos and stories.

Photo by Linda Sheffield Miller and U.S. Air Force

June 11, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

The only B-47 that that took off from Little Rock AFB to the UK across the Atlantic Ocean

by Till Daisd June 9, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The B-47 Stratojet

The first XB-47 prototype, which was built to fulfill a 1944 need, flew in December 1947 and outperformed its rivals. It had sweeping wings, jet engines in underwing pods, main landing gear located on the fuselage, and automated systems that reduced the crew number to three, among many other cutting-edge technologies for the period.

The B-47 started to replace the B-29 and B-50 propeller-driven bombers in May 1951 in the medium bomber units of the US Air Force’s Strategic Air Command (SAC). The B-47’s maximum speed was more than 200 mph faster than the aircraft it replaced, even though it could carry roughly the same bomb tonnage.

45 B-47s took off from Little Rock AFB to the UK, only one made it across the Atlantic Ocean

45 B-47s were launched from Little Rock Air Force Base (AFB) to the United Kingdom in 1956 as part of a bomb run exercise. All except one of the B-47s returned to the United States after crossing the Atlantic. Lieutenant Richard “Butch” Sheffield, a B-47 navigator and bombardier, was prepared to follow. He needed to learn how to lead rapidly.

He recalls in his unpublished book, “The Very First:”

‘As we prepared to fly to the UK, my aircraft and crew were to be the fifth aircraft in a flight of five. I believe that because I was the lowest-ranking navigator with the least experience, they did not want me to have to navigate the Atlantic as lead or alone.

‘We took off from Little Rock, all forty-five B-47s, and flew up to Northern New York State to refuel from KC-97 tankers flying at fifteen thousand feet. We were at thirty-five-thousand feet. Tankers put out a radar signal that we could identify on our radar screen. Each set of tankers, nine different sets, put signals that were almost alike but not. I saw our signal and told the aircraft commander (AC). He relayed to the lead aircraft that we had the tankers that we were to refuel with, and they didn’t believe him.

‘As we overflew them, we went over twice as fast and twenty thousand feet above them. My AC asked me if I was sure, and I said yes. He then told the lead, you are going to miss them; they are right below us now. Once again, they didn’t believe him, or I guess they didn’t believe that a Lieutenant could find the tankers from among the many radar signals.’

B-47 navigator/bombardier recalls when out of 45 Stratojets that took off from Little Rock AFB to the UK his B-47 was the only one that made it across the Atlantic Ocean

Heading for the UK

He continues;

‘My AC asked me for a heading for the tankers and left the formation. We rendezvoused with our tankers and took on our fuel. After refueling (we could not use the radios while refueling), the pilots asked for our location, and I gave it to them. They called the rest of the flight and told them where the tankers were at that time; by then, they were far away from the tankers.

‘I really didn’t know what we were going to do next, then the AC said; give me a heading for the UK. Now, I knew we were going to the UK alone, and I was going to navigate the North Atlantic in the middle of the winter, all by myself. I broke into a cold sweat; I was not prepared to do it.

‘Normally, the fifth aircraft in a flight of five just station keeps (keeps other aircraft on the radar) on the other aircraft in front of them, and the navigator/copilot team doesn’t shoot stars.

‘The lead navigator would do his planning by pre-computing the star shots on the ground the day before the flight. Now, I had to do the star computations in the small area and dim light of the cockpit. All across the Atlantic, I shot one star after another. My copilot, Mac McCraken, was young and eager, like me. He would do anything I asked him in the air. The older World War Two copilots would not have done it. This was hard work, and we never stopped until I saw the UK lands on the radar. WE HAD MADE IT.’

B-47 navigator/bombardier recalls when his Stratojet flew the largest Nuclear Bomb ever built to Spain — Richard “Butch” Sheffield is on the far right in the photo. His crew was named Best B-47 crew in 1960.

The only B-47 out of 45 that made it from Little Rock AFB to the UK

Sheffield concludes;

‘The following day, we were all told to report to see the Squadron Commander in his Office. This always meant trouble or an award. When we arrived, the AC was told to go in alone; Mac and I waited outside the door. We heard the Commander hollering all over the building, he was very mad that we had left the formation and went it alone.

‘When the AC came out, he was smiling. He said the Squadron Commander was just mad that the others were still back in the US, and they had never found the tankers and landed in North Eastern United States!

‘He said, I told him, we are here, and they are back in the US, so who goofed up?’

When he crossed the Atlantic Ocean alone, he was just 23 years old. A few years later, he was chosen to be among the first navigators on the new B-58. He was also the first RSO to be chosen for the SR-71 Blackbird initiative. He was ordered to follow the experienced, older navigators, but he had to take the lead and soon become good at it.

Check out the Habubrats SR-71‘s Twitter profile and the Born into the Wilde Blue Yonder‘s Facebook page for further Blackbird photos and stories.

Photo by U.S. Air Force and Linda Sheffield Miller

June 9, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

When a USAF F-15 pilot refused to fly a “not all aspect Sidewinder” mock air engagement against his Skyhawk

by Till Daisd June 8, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk

2,960 A-4 Skyhawk aircraft were produced by Douglas between 1954 and 1979. Known by their endearing nickname, “Heinemann’s Hot Rod” (after Douglas designer Ed Heinemann), the Bantam Bomber, Mighty Mite, and Scooter were built small to be economical and to fit more of them on a carrier. The US Navy, Marines, and friendly nations were able to use maneuverable, powerful attack bombers with exceptional altitude and range capabilities and a remarkable degree of armament capacity thanks to Skyhawks.

Furthermore, despite the fact that the legendary A-4 was intended to be a straightforward, lightweight Navy carrier attack aircraft, the Skyhawk performed a variety of tasks, including aerial refueling, nuclear strikes, and acting as an adversary aircraft.

USMC A-4 attack aircraft Vs USAF F-15 fighters

Stephen Smith, former US Marine Corps A-4 Skyhawk pilot, recalls on Quora;

‘True story. We (a Marine Corps Reserve squadron) were doing an exercise with a USAF F-15 squadron back in the 80’s. We were flying the A-4 Skyhawk, a very simple, quite maneuverable single seat aircraft. It was designed for ground attack, but due to it’s maneuverability, it could hold its own in a tight turning dogfight. You may remember it as the aircraft flown by the instructors in the original Top Gun movie. We had no radar, thus, no radar guided missiles. Instead of the two afterburning engines in an F-15, we had one, non-afterburning engine. Basically, we were well outgunned.

‘But we still did quite well against the Eagles. Our air to air weaponry consisted of a 20mm cannon and all aspect sidewinder missiles. The sidewinder used to only work when fired from behind the target aircraft, looking at his hot exhaust, but now, had been improved to be able to kill from any angle, if all the parameters were met.

‘At the end of each mission, we suggested the final engagement scenario to be one where we did not have all aspect Sidewinders available. So we had all launched with the older missiles. This was usually accepted by all to be good training for all of us, and made getting kills much more difficult.’

All aspect Sidewinders

Smith continues

‘On this day, I suggested that as our final engagement scenario. My USAF counterpart asked why? I said that it would simulate a situation where the war was getting stretched out, all the all aspect sidewinders had been used, and the supply had not been replenished. His reply stunned me. He looked me in the eyes , the eyes which would soon be looking for me from the cockpit of one of the world’s most modern and deadly air superiority fighters.

‘A fighter with a radar which would give him my position from 50 miles away, while scorching into the fight powered by two huge afterburning engines, and carrying an array of radar and heat seeking missiles, and a gun designed for air-to-air combat, against my 1960s vintage single, non-afterburning engine, non-radar equipped attack aircraft. And he said, “IF WE DON’T HAVE ALL ASPECT WINDERS, WE’RE NOT GOING.” I really was shocked! After getting my brain back on line, I said, “I don’t think that’s an option in the Marine Corps.”’

Smith concludes;

‘I will never forget that comment.’

Photo by U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force

June 8, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

EF-111A EWO recalls when his Raven with Asymmetric Slats had to do a departure end cable arrestment

by Till Daisd June 6, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The EF-111A Raven

In the 1980s and 1990s, EF-111A Ravens, often referred to as “Fat Tails” and “Spark Varks” (the F-111 is also called the Aardvark), were used as tactical electronic jammer aircraft. 42 EF-111As were delivered to the U.S. Air Force between 1981 and 1985, and the aircraft supported several USAF missions in the 1980s and 1990s.

To build the EF-111A, Grumman started equipping 42 F-111A Raven aircraft with jamming equipment in the 1970s. High-powered transmitter antennas were located in a 16-foot-long, canoe-shaped radome on the fuselage’s underside, and receiving antennae and additional equipment, including a processor to detect hostile radar emissions, were housed in a fin-tip pod on the vertical stabilizer. About four tons of sophisticated gear were involved. The right seat crewmember, or Electronic Warfare Officer (EWO), monitored the jamming equipment instead of performing flight-related duties because the equipment required full-time attention while in flight.

Grumman/General Dynamics Corp. started producing more EF-111A modification kits in 1984, allowing the aircraft to perform three different roles: penetration/escort, close-in jamming, and standoff jamming.

Similar to the F-111, the EF-111A was equipped with variable-sweep wings, which allow for wing configuration changes while in flight. Outstanding aerodynamic efficiency was given by the wing. The EF-111 could take off and land in as little as 2,000 feet when its wings were completely extended. It could fly at high or low altitudes at supersonic speeds when its wings were fully swept back.

EF-111A EWO navigator

Jim Howard, former EF-111A Raven EWO, recalls on Quora.

‘When I was a USAF EF-111A nav/EWO I had only one serious emergency (lots of ‘abnormals, like failed generators, but none that were scary) that really got my attention.

‘The F-111 was a swing wing airplane, the wings could be swept from 16 to 72 degrees.

‘I was an instructor EWO flying with a new pilot in England. The pilot was experienced in another fighter, but new the Vark. This was his third flight in England, and the first one that was not flown mostly in clouds.

‘This was a clear beautiful day. We flew up a low level across Scotland, driving down Loch Ness to the beautiful west coast.

‘Then we returned to our Upper Heyford base where I had the pilot ‘beat up the pattern’, so he could see all the various ground references that were helpful in flying visually near the airport.

‘On final for what we thought would be our full stop landing we configured the airplane, which in the Aardvark involves sweeping the wings most of the way forward. The leading edge slats (flaps to help you fly slow, but on the front of the wing) came down at 26 degrees wing sweep.

EF-111A EWO recalls when his Raven with Asymmetric Slats had to do a departure end cable arrestment

‘When my pilot swept the wings forward I heard an ‘oh shit’ comment from him. “It wants to roll on its back!”

’I looked at the gear/flap/slat position indicator and saw an unsafe indication for the leading edge slats. As I was grokking this my pilot asked ‘Is your slat down, because mine is not!’.

‘Mine was down.’

Asymmetric Slats

He continues

‘So we knew what we had, and it was serious. Asymmetric Slats. The F-111 wing has a bunch of moving parts. If at anytime the airplane detects an configuration it does not like it will lock the wing in whatever configuration you had at that moment.

‘The good news is that there is a checklist for this contingency.

‘More good news. We were light. Bad news: we were low on fuel.

‘We did I think fly two box patterns above the airport while we ran this checklist and consulted with the Supervisor of Flying (SOF, a senior instructor in the control tower). We both calculated a landing speed of 198 knots, much faster than our normal speed which was I think around 140.

‘Remember, energy needed to stop goes up with the square of your velocity.

‘So we go out and carefully line up for a long straight in approach, per the checklist. Everything is looking good, we have the hook down. The 8000-foot runway was kinda short for the mighty Vark even under normal conditions, let alone landing at 198 knots! Any slower than that and we would not have enough roll authority to keep the airplane right side up.

Departure end cable arrestment

‘We were planning for a departure end cable arrestment.

‘The low fuel light came on about two minutes out, but there was the runway, right in front of us, so we about as content as we could be. Of course all this time the pilot is fighting the airplane’s desire to start a continuous barrel roll.

‘All of a sudden the tower says ‘Raven GO AROUND’!

‘Both of us erupt into a string of naughty words, we were both really pissed off.

‘I tell the pilot to declare minimum fuel to discourage them from any further jerking us around.

Ravenous Radiation: a quick look at the Role Played by USAF EF-111A Electronic Jamming Aircraft during Operation Desert Storm

‘So as we are flying back out for a second long straight in I see that the tower let another Vark land in front of us. I’m thinking ‘If that guy blows a tire we are totally screwed’. That was because we did not enough gas to go to another airport with a Vark safe arresting system. We would have been faced with the choice of probably running off the end of the runway at nearby Brize Norton or punching out.

EF-111A Raven Cable arrestment

‘Thankfully that airplane landed normally, and we came in for landing. After touchdown the end of runway was getting pretty close pretty fast as my pilot stood on the brakes. We did catch the departure end arresting cable, the first time I had ever done that in a Vark.

‘I was expecting a Navy style sudden stop, but this cable gave a very Air Force Gentlemanly easy deceleration that left us stopped on the departure end runway numbers.’

Howard concludes;

‘When we stopped my pilot reached over to shake my hand. That was one my proudest moments in 20 years in the Air Force.

‘Postscript:

‘One of the slats had a bunch of bent metal where the slat guide track used to be.

‘We got away from that airplane as fast as we could, we didn’t want to wait around until the tires exploded.

‘When we got back to our squadron I called the SOF to ask why we were sent around.’

Photo by U.S. Air Force, Jim Howard, Mike Freer – Touchdown-aviation and Jason B from Australia via Wikipedia

June 6, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

Landing a Tomcat with a full load of 6 AIM-54 Phoenix missiles on the aircraft carrier

by Till Daisd June 5, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The AIM-54 Phoenix

The AWG-9 weapons control system and P&W TF30 engines were used by the F-14A Tomcat, which was built in 1968 to replace the controversial F-111B, which was being developed for the US Navy’s carrier fighter inventory. The F-14A Tomcat also carried the six AIM-54 Phoenix missiles that were meant to be installed on the F-111B.

Six Phoenix missiles could be guided by the F-14 at long range against six different threat aircraft thanks to the AWG-9. Four missiles, plus two under glove stations, can be carried beneath the fuselage tunnel of the Tomcat on specially designed aerodynamic pallets. Six Hughes AIM-54 Phoenix missiles full-loaded along with the special launch rails constitute around 8,000 lb (3,600 kg), or nearly twice the weight of Sparrows.

Landing an F-14 Tomcat with a full load of six AIM-54 Phoenix missiles on the aircraft carrier

Was it therefore possible for an F-14 carrying six AIM-54s to land aboard the aircraft carrier given the Phoenix’s (heavy) weight?

US Navy F-14 pilot recalls landing a Tomcat with a full load of six AIM-54 Phoenix missiles on the aircraft carrier

Launched on June 30, 1984, from NAS Pt. Mugu, a Tomcat piloted by Lt. Ed Riley and RIO Lt. Scott Lamoreaux from VX-4 carried six AIM-54C missiles trapped aboard the USS Constellation (CV-64) after launch. Operational suitability and operational effectiveness had to be established during operational testing (OT) as part of the AIM-54C OPEVAL, and that involved obtaining a significant number of captive carry-cats and traps aboard a carrier. This was achieved by exposing Tomcats equipped with numerous loadouts of AIM-54C missiles to the carrier environment over two years before they shot in a variety of scenarios to demonstrate their continued reliability under the stresses of carrier operations.

Riley explains in the book Half Century, Baby! by David ‘Hey Joe’ Parsons and Mads Bangsø;

‘So, the question of ‘why’ gets asked regarding a loadout of six Phoenix missiles, due to urban legend that it is not practical off the boat due to fuel remaining at Max Trap. […]

Flying multiple cross-country flights with the six Phoenix/two Sidewinder loadout

‘I had flown multiple cross-country flights, accumulating over 20 hours of flight time with the six Phoenix/two Sidewinder loadout, and to prepare for this CV landing, a regular bounce workup with various loadouts including 6+2 missile loadouts was accomplished and handling qualities at the heavy loads were explored. Particular attention was paid to ‘in-close wave off” and potential ‘bolter’ technique.

‘It was decided that a Case III straight-in approach to the trap with enough fuel to return to Pt Mugu would be used. Knowing that the Tomcat would be ‘trick or treat’ on the ball, a dedicated A-7 tanking aircraft was available to assist if required, to rendezvous and pass enough fuel for a second try. In addition to the landing, the maximum weight takeoff ‘cat shot’ was of equal importance. Full afterburner catapults could be a dicey situation if a burner blowout or a stall with the TF30 engines was encountered at maximum weight. Proper technique and early identification and application of the right controls were absolutely required to successfully fly away.’

Doomsday loadout: a rare event

Riley continues;

‘The question of who should fly the flight caused some discussion within the ranks of the pilots and RIOs at VX-4 at the time. The OPEVAL Operational Test Directors (OTDs) wanted a representative fleet crew and not just more experienced operators.

‘Since I (Lt Ed ‘Dragon’ Riley) and Lt Bill ‘Kato’ Nevius were the Co-OTD team conducting the OPEVAL, it was decided to go with an experienced pilot and a RIO with less experience in the F-14. I had over 1,500 hours in the F-14A and over 400 traps (300+ on CV-64). Lt Scott ‘Scooter Lamoreaux was a very experienced RIO in the F-4, but had less than 100 hours in the F-14A and this would be his first trap in the Tomcat.

‘The operational test crew was aware that landing with six Phoenix was a rare event, however, the tactical significance of this flight was potentially a ‘real world’ requirement (known as the Doomsday loadout). Getting the maximum number of Phoenix missiles airborne as quickly as possible in a Fleet Air Defense (FAD) scenario had been war gamed at WEPTAC and it was determined to be a clear discriminator making a difference against superior numbers of attackers during the Cold War era.

The F-14 Tomcat with six AIM-54 Phoenix missiles was in a class by itself

‘How better to do this than use the maximum loadout capability of the Tomcat loaded with the new AIM-54C that was proving to be effective against air-to-surface missiles at 100,000ft/Mach 4+ as well as low-flying cruise missiles and the attacking aircraft platforms at long range. With the largest warhead of any air-to-air missile and kill radius unmatched, the Tomcat with six Phoenix missiles was in a class by itself.’

Riley concludes;

‘With all the preparation to make this a safe yet operationally realistic event, in the end it went exactly as planned with a successful trap (OK, three wire)/hot pump/and AB cat shot and return to home base.

‘To answer the question of the viability of carrying six Phoenix around the ship: sure — why not, if the tactical situation dictates?’

Half Century, Baby! is published by Mortons Books and is available to order here and here.

Photo by U.S. Navy

June 5, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

When the Warthog became Snowhog

by Till Daisd June 4, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The A-10 Warthog

October 1975 saw the delivery of the first A-10A in production at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base (AFB), in Arizona.

When the Warthog became Snowhog: the story of the A-10 that received a unique arctic camouflage — Ground crewmen perform maintenance on the two A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft being used during exercise Cool Snow Hog ’82-1.

Over the years, numerous enhancements have been made to the A-10 Warthog (also known as the famous Thunderbolt II) CAS aircraft by her aircrew. The Pave Penny laser receiver pod, which sensed reflected laser radiation from a laser designator, was installed in the aircraft in 1978. Now that more capable and sophisticated targeting pods are available, Pave Penney has been phased out. Inertial navigation systems were first installed on the A-10 in 1980.

A-10 history also included a significant event that happened on December 18, 1981.

That day, two A-10 aircraft from the Fairchild-Republic factory in Hagerstown, Maryland, arrived at Eielson Air Force Base (AFB). According to Don Fenton, the historian of the 354th Fighter Wing, in the article “Arctic camouflage makes Eielson’s hogs unique,” the aircraft tail numbers of the first two A-10s assigned to Eielson were 80-221 and 80-222.

Can you guess how the two hogs shown in this post’s images are different from one another?

From A-10 Warthog to A-10 Snowhog

The two “hogs” are identical in every way except for the color. Whereas a warthog is entirely gray or green, a snowhog is covered with arctic camouflage. Both Snowhogs and Warthogs are nicknames for the two A-10s.

Nevertheless, 80-221 was repainted in an arctic camouflage scheme shortly after arriving at Eielson. This was carried out as a test for an upcoming exercise known as Operation Cool Snow Hog.

From March 8 to 16, 1982, a forward operating location in Kotzebue, Alaska, hosted the exercise.

Cool Snow Hog

Cool Snow Hog represented the Air Force’s first test of forward-basing A-10s in Alaska. Overall, the plan called for the Air Force to fly 16 close-air-support sorties in support of the 3rd Scout Battalion of the Alaska Army National Guard.

The forward operating location concept was put to the test during the next few years with a variety of operational readiness exercises and major joint forces exercises like BRIM FROST, but the exercises were never again called Cool Snow Hog exercises.

A-10 Thunderbolt II at COOL SNOW HOG '82-1 — Overhead view of an A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft, with a camouflage paint scheme, parked on the apron beside a Beech C-12 aircraft. The Snowhog is being used during exercise Cool Snow Hog ’82-1.

It is important to remember that this paint scheme was merely an experiment. A-10s never operated in the arctic scheme for an extended period of time because the Air Force never fully adopted it. There are a few sources that claim that up to three more A-10s were painted in a similar manner, but no official records have been found to support this claim. The Hogs nevertheless look fantastic.

Photo by SSGT Bill Thompson / U.S. Air Force

June 4, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

During a scramble, a pilot of a USAF F-86D remembers activating his Sabre Dog’s afterburner in the hangar to take off

by Till Daisd June 1, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The F-86D Sabre Dog

To counter the growing Soviet threat, the US government and USAF started a massive effort in the late 1940s to establish an effective defense of US airspace. The USAF selected the Northrop F-89 Scorpion as an interim aircraft and the Convair “1954 Interceptor” project as their primary aircraft to support this aim. The Air Force considered two aircraft as alternatives to the Scorpion, according to McChord Air Museum: a modified Lockheed TF-80C, which became the F-94 Starfire, and a heavily modified F-95A (F-86D), an all-weather interceptor version of the F-86A Sabre. This decision was made after numerous delays in the F-89 development program.

On December 22, 1949, the Sabre Dog, designated YF-95, completed its first flight. On July 24, 1950, the designation was modified to YF-86D. The F-86A and the Sabre Dog had only 25% in common externally, but otherwise, the two aircraft were very different from one another. Along with being the first USAF aircraft with an all-missile armament, the F-86D was also the first all-weather interceptor piloted by a single person, handling both the radar and flight controls.

Additionally, the Sabre Dog had an afterburning engine (a General Electric J47-GE-17 turbojet with an electronically controlled fuel scheduling system that relieved the pilot of the tedious task of continuously monitoring engine behavior).

The F-86D that the Afterburner in the Hangar to Take Off during a Scramble

David Ross, former F-86D Sabre Dog fighter pilot in the US Air Force, recalls on Quora.

“In the late fifties, while flying an F-86D, on cross-countries I would land at an intermediate base for fuel. As soon as the fuel truck left I would preflight the plane, start the engine and leave. As for letting the engine ‘warm-up’ there is no need for that.

“To illustrate this our alert hangars had doors front and back and on the floor was an iron ring to tie the aux-power cable to. This design was to enable a faster scramble time.

“One day I told my crew chief to tie the start cable to this ring and get the loose stuff cleared out of the hanger, because if we got a scramble I was going straight to afterburner on start.

“We did get a scramble and I started the engine and went to full throttle and afterburner right in the hangar.

“I was airborne just about the time I got to the runway, everything worked as it was designed to do. There was one problem though, the crew chief said I blew stuff out the back of the hangar, with the afterburner, that people didn’t even know was in the hangar.”

Ross concludes;

“We never tried that kind of scramble again.”

Photo by U.S. Air Force

USAF F-86D Pilot recalls when He Lit his Sabre Dog’s Afterburner in the Hangar to Take Off during a Scramble. And tells why He Never did it Again.

June 1, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

KC-135 Crew Chief recalls when his Stratotanker low on fuel had to give 6,000 pounds of fuel to an F-4

by Till Daisd May 31, 2024

written by Till Daisd

KC-135 Stratotanker crew providing support of trans-pacific ferry missions

In February 1977, while on deployment to Andersen AFB, Guam, and the Pacific Tanker Task Force, the crew of a KC-135 Stratotanker belonging to the 7th Air Refueling Squadron (7 ARS) achieved an impressive refueling record, according to the Carswell Sentinel, a squadron-based newspaper at Carswell Air Force Base (AFB) [Carswell AFB no longer exists; it is now Naval Air Station, Joint Reserve Base, Ft. Worth].

According to an article in the Carswell Sentinel, Capt. E. Brady King, the information officer for the 7 ARS, stated that the KC-135 crew was sent to Andersen to support F-4 and A-7 trans-Pacific ferry missions as well as an F-15 re-deployment mission from Korea to the United States.

Emergency air refueling of an F-4

“The most significant accomplishment of the crew, was the emergency air refueling of an F-4 being ferried from Hickam AFB, Hawaii, to Andersen AFB,” said Captain King, “As the crew was leading the F-4 into Guam, the weather rapidly deteriorated and the primary approach aids (electronic means to descend through the clouds to land) were inoperative,” explained King.

“Because of low fuel the aircraft could not divert to Kadena, Okinawa,” he added. The KC-135 crew orbited over Guam while the F-4 attempted six landing approaches.

The F-4 pilot told the Andersen command post that he could not wait for the Andersen strip alert aircraft to take off after the sixth attempt failed and that he required fuel right away. The KC-135 crew took control at that point.

The aircraft commander, Captain Larry C. Beam, proclaimed an emergency and climbed to refuel the F-4. The F-4 was successfully refueled with 6,000 pounds thanks to the excellent coordination of the pilot-navigation team and the calm, confident actions of the boom operator.

Following its refueling, the F-4 landed at Agana Naval Air Station, Guam. With just 4,500 pounds of fuel remaining, Captain Beam landed at Andersen AFB and turned off his engines despite the bad local weather. Thus, a valuable F-4 aircraft was preserved thanks to the careful, deliberate actions of the KC-135 crew.

KC-135 Stratotanker crew chief first TDY

Earl Belz, former KC-135 crew chief, said;

‘I was the assistant crew chief on the KC 135 in this story.

‘It was my first TDY as a new Air Force crew chief. I was part of a pacific tanker task force that was ferrying F-4s from Hickam airbase in Hawaii to Andersen airbase in Guam. My tanker was on approach to land at Guam. When the pilot was asked to go back up and refuel the Phantom because it was almost out of fuel.

‘As a new crew chief, I was surprised that we went back up and refilled the Phantom as our fuel was pretty low in the tanker. However, we climb the altitude refuel the Phantom and managed to land at Andersen with only 4500 pounds of fuel registering in the fuel totalizer.

‘Part of our Pacific tanker, task force deployment, took us to Clark airbase in the Philippines and the crew chief and myself had our own patch (below) made signifying our participation, and that refuel.

‘The following patch instead is the official Pacific tanker task force patch that we were given to wear on our flight suit.

KC-135 Crew Chief recalls when his Stratotanker low on fuel had to give 6,000 pounds of fuel to an F-4 that failed six approaches to Andersen AFB because of bad weather

‘I have saved that article all these years along with those patches because that’s what a geek does.

Photos of the mission

Belz adds;

‘These four photos are ones I took from my KC-135 during that mission.

‘In the first photo taken from the cockpit, you can see an F-4 being refueled by another KC-135.

‘The second photo was taken from the over wing hatch window and shows one of the three F-4s we were ferrying to Guam.

‘The third photo is one of the F-4s moving into position for a top-off. That grease pencil writing you see in the boom pod photo is something the boom operator does to help remind him of the call sign of the fighters that he communicates with.

‘I took this photo from the cockpit and is two F-4s on a KC-135 that was part of the Pacific Tanker task force.’

Photo by US Air Force and Earl Belz

May 31, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

The SR-71 pilot remembers when his Blackbird was hit by a missile fired by a Soviet MiG-25 Foxbat

by Till Daisd May 30, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The MiG-25 Foxbat

The USSR revealed the existence of the MiG-25 (NATO reporting name “Foxbat”), which looked to be the most lethal fighter aircraft in the world in the late 1960s. This aircraft could outpace any fighter in the air and any other military aircraft except the SR-71 Blackbird.

The Foxbat could reach heights of up to 78,000 feet when equipped with two R-40 missiles (designated by NATO as AA-6 “Acrid”), but it could only reach 68,900 feet when all four missiles were deployed. By contrast, the Habu flew at cruise speeds above Mach 3 at over 80,000 feet.

However, Col. Darrel Cobb himself says in this interview with his son Chris that after an SR-71 Blackbird, he was piloting was fired on by a MiG-25,

The “holy grail” of the soviet air defense system: shooting down an SR-71 Blackbird

‘Operational missions.

‘First, let me assure you; we never broke President Eisenhower’s promise to cease overflying the Soviet Union. We remained over international water – 12 mi offshore.

‘All of my operational flying was from Kadena, Okinawa. Area of interest was Vietnam; Korea; Vladivostok, USSR; China. Later, we flew transatlantic & return from Seymour Johnson, NC supporting the Israel-Arab war. After I left the program, the SR flew from Mildenhall, England & Bodo, Norway.

‘We already touched on missions against Vietnam & the only night mission.

‘Today let’s cover “north missions.”

‘Take off, refuel & head into the Sea of Japan; between Japan & south Korea. Accelerated to operational speed – 3.20. Head directly at Vladivostok. headquarters of USSR air defense; and test/r & d of new radar & intercept development. 2200 mph guaranteed to light up all the radar & intercept systems they had.

‘A MiG-25 interceptor squadron was based just outside of Vladivostok. The “holy grail” of the soviet air defense system was to shoot down an SR-71.

‘Turn north up the Sea of Japan & make a U-turn back down the USSR coast (12 mi offshore) with ELINT & SIGINT recorders going full bore. Photo cameras looking oblique into the USSR, updating the interceptor air order of battle. Head south east till past Vladivostok then turn slightly left then right to cross Korea at the DMZ. Photo cameras updating N. Korea force readiness to resume hostilities against S. Korea.

SR-71 Blackbird fired on by a MiG-25

‘Continue down the Yellow Sea coast of China. All sensors evaluating China’s threat to Taiwan. Turn left- decel & land at Kadena. I flew this profile several times during the 4 years I flew ops missions. One of these got very, very thrilling. Southbound, passing Vladivostok, Reg (my RSO) announced;

‘”We’ve got a fighter locked on – it’s gotta be a MiG-25″

‘”Our DEF [Defensive Electronic Gear, DEF. It Provided ground-to-air and air-to-air missile protection. Still Classified. Def systems were labeled DEF A,B,C,E and G. Later modifications to the DEF Systems resulted in DEF A2, C2, H and M systems. Nearing retirement of the SR-71, a programmable DEF labeled A2C could defeat all known threats to the Blackbirds] is blanketing all beautifully.”

‘”Oops – he just fired – – we’ve got a missile locked on”

‘”Our def has shifted to its missile magic”

‘”There – lock’s broken. Missile’s back in search”

‘”That’s weird – sounds like the missile’s locked on – but not locked on us”

‘”He’s gone – coming up on the “s” turn to the DMZ.”’

Fast forward to late 1976 Col. Cobb retired from the Air Force.

MiG-25 at risk of being shot down by its own missile

Cobb continues;

‘I’m retired! Learning that retirement means no days off; no vacation; no holidays; big pay cut.

‘I find the aircraft TV channel & history channel. Lots & lots of SR-71 films. I avidly watch at every opportunity. In my den, glued to the TV & today’s SR-71 show, & who do I see comparing the MiG-25 with the SR-71??

SR-71 pilot recalls that time his Blackbird flew so fast that he and his RSO landed at Kadena AB two hours before they took off from Beale AFB beating the sun

‘You’re right — Lt. Victor Belenko!

‘He was totally gobsmacked; his MiG-25 burned up the engines getting to Mach 3 yet the SR’s cruise speed was greater than 3.0.

‘Belenko is the one who said that the Holy Grail of Soviet air defense was to shoot down an SR.

‘He told of how they would pre-position ahead of the SR’s radar track and had to zoom up to get a lock on & fire their missile.

‘Belenko stressed how quickly & precisely they had to perform because the window of opportunity was so very short.

‘Their target was traveling at 3600 ft/sec. Faster than a speeding bullet.

‘He described in detail how precise the post-firing breakaway had to be executed to avoid getting shot down by their own missile; talking as though they found this out the “hard way.”’

Cobb Concludes;

‘Man talk about intense attention – – I’m quickly mentally replaying that tape from the inter-phone – –

‘”We’ve got a fighter locked on – it’s gotta be a Mig-25″

‘”Our DEF is blanketing all beautifully.”

‘”Oops – he just fired – – we’ve got a missile locked on”

‘”Our def has shifted to its missile magic”

‘”There – lock’s broken. Missile’s back in search.

‘”That’s weird – sounds like the missile’s locked on – but not locked on us.”’

What happened to the missile fired by the MiG-25 Foxbat at the SR-71 Blackbird?

What happened to the missile fired by the MiG-25? Could it have locked onto the Foxbat itself? Could the SR-71 DEF have deceived it? We’ll never know.

But since the SR-71’s cruising speed was more than the MiG-25’s Acrid missiles’ maximum speed, we might presume that the Blackbird just outran the AA-6. The MiG-25 was unable to carry out a head-on intercept, and there was no chance that a Foxbat could conduct a tail-chase intercept of an SR-71. The Foxbat’s fire control system and radar were insufficiently advanced to handle the challenges of a head-on intercept at closing speeds that would exceed Mach 5.

Check out Habubrats SR-71’s Twitter profile and Born into the Wilde Blue Yonder‘s Facebook page for further Blackbird photos and stories.

Photo by Dmitriy Pichugin via Wikimedia and U.S. Air Force

May 30, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

USAF F-102 pilot recalls being left alone in the cockpit of a KC-135 flying from the US to Okinawa

by Till Daisd May 27, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The F-102 Delta Dagger

The F-102 Delta Dagger was designed primarily to intercept and kill hostile aircraft. It was the first operational delta-wing aircraft in the USAF’s history as well as the first supersonic all-weather jet interceptor in the world. On October 24, 1953, the F-102 conducted its first flight. In 1956, it joined the Air Defense Command and began operating regularly. During the peak of their use in the late 1950s, F-102 aircraft outfitted over 25 ADC squadrons. Out of the 1,000 F-102s that Convair produced, 889 were F-102As.

Vietnam was the destination of the F-102 Delta Dagger fighter aircraft from the 16th Fighter Interceptor Squadron of the 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing at Naha Air Base, Okinawa.

F-102 pilot alone in the cockpit of a KC-135

Former F-102 pilot Roger Daisley recalls on Quora;

‘During the Vietnam era, I was stationed in Okinawa, as a pilot, flying the F-102. I had just finished an R&R to the states and was returning to Okinawa. To get back, I caught a “hop” in a KC-135 (Jet tanker) from Travis Air Force Base, California, to Okinawa. Normally, the passengers sit in the back of the aircraft, where many times it is also packed with cargo, such as spare engines, etc. In this flight, there were about five to ten passengers, as I recall.

‘About halfway through the flight, I decided to walk up to the cockpit and chat with the pilots. I was wearing my fighter pilot flight suit. (In the KC-135, the entrance to the cockpit is not blocked or locked. It is not unusual for a passenger to walk up front and talk to the crew members).’

Daisley continues;

‘We chatted about “pilot things,” such as: Where are we now, what are you using for navigation aid, (before GPS) how is the fuel going and what is our ETA… those kind of things. After about fifteen minutes, the Copilot, sitting in the right seat, asked if I would like to sit in his seat for awhile, while he took a break. The AC (Aircraft Commander), who sits in the left seat, agreed, so I slid into the right seat, as the copilot departed.

10 minutes of KC-135 flying time

‘After about ten minutes, and more “pilot talk,” the AC said he was going to go back and get a cup of coffee. He got up and left the cockpit. So… there I was, the only pilot in the cockpit and I have never piloted a KC-135 before! I sat there and contemplated and marveled at the situation (the aircraft was on autopilot).

‘After about ten minutes, the AC returned and we started chatting again. He asked, “How long have you been flying the KC-135?” I replied, “About ten minutes… I’m an F-102 pilot.” No comment! End of chatting.’

Daisley concludes; ‘I logged 10 minutes of KC-135 flying time in my Air Force flight log!’

Photo by U.S. Air Force

May 27, 2024 0 comment

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