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aviation

US Navy test pilot recalls the unexpected F-14 Tomcat Fatal Flat Spin Mode

by Till Daisd January 11, 2024

written by Till Daisd

‘Within seconds, the F-14 Tomcat rotation rate shot up to 180deg/sec and g forces reached 7.8g eyeballs-out! My head was slammed against the instrument panel and my mask and eyes filled with blood!’ Donald D.D. Smith, Naval Aviator and test pilot

The development of Soviet long-range patrol and bomber aircraft during the Cold War required a fleet defense fighter capable of engaging high-altitude bombers that were well beyond visual range. Grumman’s response was the iconic F-14 Tomcat. Equipped with the long-range AIM-54 Phoenix air-to-air missiles, F-14s were able to engage enemy targets more than 90 miles away. Grumman created the F-14’s highly effective variable-sweep wing, which allowed it to fly at a variety of airspeeds, in response to the need for an interceptor to be able to go at a high speed while carrying this heavy ordnance.

Following Grumman’s tradition of naming its aircraft after cats, the new “Tomcat” made its first flight in December 1970. The first F-14As were delivered to the Navy in June 1972 after a series of modifications during flight testing, with Fighter Squadron (VF) 124 designated for crew training. On the West Coast, VF-1 and VF-2 were the first operational squadrons to receive the new aircraft, while on the East Coast, VF-14 and VF-32 became the first Atlantic fleet Tomcat squadrons.

Donald D.D. Smith, Naval Aviator and test pilot recalls:

‘The F-14 hadn’t been in the fleet a year when some handling problems at high AOA (low speed) started to bust out. Good low-speed maneuvering is right up there with speed and acceleration in the list of “must haves” for a good fighter plane. It turns out that F-14 jocks were having to cross-control to get the roll performance they needed during low-speed hassles. Being fighter pilots, it didn’t bother them much, but it set off alarms all throughout the test community. The Tomcat, after all, was America’s world-class fighter, and was the greatest carrier-based fighter ever built! NAVAIR told Grumman to fix it – and tasked the Naval Air Test Center to test it.

‘I was the only one standing around who had a lot of experience spinning fighters and was also current in the F-14, so I was asked to participate. Suited me fine! Now, this wasn’t going to be a spin program, but we were going to have to take the Tomcat out of control to do the job. Sort of poke the Cat in the eye, so to speak. We learned from Grumman model tests that the F-14 had a vicious spin mode that was NOT SURVIVABLE BY THE CREW – but not to worry, it was not possible for a pilot to fly the airplane into a spin – they said. The Navy had gone along with this – there was never a spin test program on the F-14.’

He continues;

‘This was to be a Class-A Hazardous Test, so our little 15-flight test program was reviewed by senior engineers and test pilots up the line. We hijacked a new airplane right off the Grumman production line and wired it up for a dozen key parameters for live monitoring. But there were none of the usual spin accouterments like batteries, auxiliary hydraulics, spin parachute, etc. (the airplane wouldn’t spin, remember?).

‘Flights 1 through 11 were completed without too much excitement. Unlike the A-7, the F-14 exhibited a docile post-departure mode and recovered easily after half a turn. All this changed on Flight 12 – my flight. The show didn’t stop – it was just beginning. During departure recovery with the nose well down, the airplane started to develop a yaw rate, and within a couple of turns the nose came up to a flat attitude. Within seconds the rotation rate shot up to 180deg/sec and g forces reached 7.8g eyeballs-out! My head was slammed against the instrument panel and my mask and eyes filled with blood! Twenty seconds had gone by and I lost consciousness.’

D. D. Smith concludes;

‘There is much more to this story – obviously since I am here to tell it. You might check it out on Amazon, “Above Average – Naval Aviation the Hard Way.”

‘The video below has been exhibited widely over the past decades, but I think you’ll find it worth a look.’

Photo by NASA

January 11, 2024 0 comment

Bio-F-14-Night-AB

Tomcat RIO tells the story of his pilot’s unrestricted climb during his third F-14 mission

by Till Daisd January 10, 2024

written by Till Daisd

“I looked at our rapidly increasing airspeed as we neared the end of the runway, and Crush yanked back on the stick to launch us into a steep nose-high climb,” Dave “Bio” Baranek, F-14 Tomcat RIO

After serving in F-14 squadrons as a Tomcat Radar Intercept Office (RIO) and in the prestigious TOPGUN training program, Dave “Bio” Baranek had a fruitful and fulfilling 20-year career in the Navy. He later was assigned to the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the US 7th Fleet. At one point, he commanded an F-14 Tomcat fighter squadron, responsible for fourteen aircraft valued at around $700 million and nearly 300 personnel in an F-14 Tomcat fighter squadron. With 2,499.7 flying hours and 688 carrier landings, he concluded his career as an F-14 Tomcat pilot.

The first of the American teen-series fighters, the Grumman F-14A Tomcat, was built to integrate air combat experience against MiG fighters in the Vietnam War. The F-14 was an excellent dogfighter, but the Tomcat’s ability to defend the fleet’s air space was what set it apart. To accomplish this mission, the aircraft was fitted with a powerful weapons system known as the AWG-9, which was able to support the AIM-54 Phoenix, which provided an unprecedented one-hundred-mile range and included a small onboard radar to guide itself to the target during the final phase of flight.

Training-Squadrons-Chart

A RIO in the F-14’s back seat was necessary to maximize the AWG-9’s remarkable capabilities at different stages of the mission. Becoming a skilled F-14 Radar Intercept Officer, however, required a number of training stages, as Baranek explains in his book Before Topgun Days: The Making of a Jet Fighter Instructor.

Actually, after one year spent at Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola, future RIOs progressed to the Replacement Air Group (RAG), a squadron aimed at training naval aviators in specific types of aircraft.

Bio was assigned to Fighter Squadron (VF) 124 Gunfighters at NAS Miramar, the RAG for West Coast Tomcat Fleet squadrons, where he was trained to become an F-14 RIO. As he recalls in his book, among the first Tomcat flights, one stands out in his memories.

VF-124 F-14A

Not long after reaching RAG, Bio and his F-14 instructor pilot (IP), Ron “Crush” Gollhofer, took a cross-country flight to Denver. The flight, according to Baranek, took place over the course of a weekend. He, Crush, and their wingman arrived at Buckley Air National Guard Base, which is currently Buckley Air Force Base, which is located just outside Denver. They stayed at Gollhofer’s parents’ home and went to a Broncos football game, but, as Bio explains, the highlight of the trip was their departure Sunday evening, which was the start of his third Tomcat flight.

Once ready to take off, Crush told Bio to request an “unrestricted climb.” If this procedure were cleared, they would not have had to conform to the stepped climb profiles that accommodated a wide variety of traffic, from propeller-driven Cessnas to Boeing 737s, and instead would be able to use their fighter’s power and zoom quickly to altitude. Although it seemed completely reasonable for a fighter, it was just a request that would have to be made, granted or not. However, since air traffic around Buckley was light, the request was granted, and Buckley Tower cleared Bio and Crush to take off and climb unrestricted to 18,000 feet.

To better understand what an unrestricted climb looks like, Baranek takes us into the cockpit of their Tomcat, ready to go: “We took the runway. Crush pressed the brakes and ran the engines to military power, and the jet’s nose dipped. He wiped out the controls, throttled up to the afterburner, checked the instruments, and asked if I was ready to go. I was, and he released the brakes. The nose popped up, and we accelerated quickly. I called airspeeds, we rotated, and Crush raised the landing gear and leveled off to fly down the runway as we accelerated. In the evening darkness, I was keenly aware of the bright blue-white glow of flame from our engines forty feet behind me. Lights on hangars and buildings streaked by in my peripheral vision. I looked at our rapidly increasing airspeed as we neared the end of the runway, and Crush yanked back on the stick to launch us into a steep, nose-high climb. ‘Buckley Tower, Navy November Juliet 426, airborne, switching Departure.’ I tried to sound like I belonged here, but I’m sure the controllers in the tower knew that I was both new and loving it. Since Buckley is about 5,600 feet above sea level, it took quite a bit less than thirty seconds for us to reach our assigned altitude of 18,000 feet. Crush smoothly leveled off while I rapidly switched through the Departure Control frequency and contacted Denver Center. We were cleared to climb to a higher altitude and start the route back to Miramar. I was storing all the sensations and images in my long-term memory and looking forward to a nice flight home when Crush said, ‘Okay, get some contacts on the radar.’”

Photos used with permission of author Dave “Bio” Baranek

January 10, 2024 0 comment

Why the Soviets never created the SR-71 and the MiG-25 Foxbat never outpaced the Blackbird in terms of speed

by Till Daisd January 9, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The J58 turbine’s blades could withstand temperatures much higher than those of the Soviets, thanks to their technology. Consequently, the SR-71 Blackbird outperformed the MiG-25 Foxbat in terms of speed.

No reconnaissance aircraft in history has operated globally in more hostile airspace or with such complete impunity as the SR-71, the world’s fastest jet-propelled aircraft. From 80,000 feet, the SR-71 could survey 100,000 square miles of Earth’s surface per hour, cruising at Mach 3+ (three times the speed of sound) or over 2,000 mph. The Blackbird’s performance and operational achievements placed it at the pinnacle of aviation technology developments during the Cold War.

Why didn’t the Soviets come up with their own “SR-71” and build a counterpart warplane to the Blackbird?

‘The Soviets built the MiG-25,’ says Iain McClatchie, an aviation expert, on Quora.

Here’s why the MiG-25 Foxbat was never as fast as the SR-71 (and why Soviets never developed their own Blackbird)

‘Notice how huge those air intakes are? Compare that against a Mach 2 airplane:

MiG-29K Fulcrum

‘Dynamic pressure is what holds the aircraft up and causes drag. It scales with air density linearly and with velocity SQUARED.

‘Air mass flow rate through the engines is what is needed for thrust. It scales with air density linearly and with velocity LINEARLY.

‘Since the wing works with dynamic pressure, dynamic pressure can’t vary more than a factor of 5 or so during the flight. So, if you want to go fast, you have to go high, where the air is less dense. For mass flow to keep up with drag, you’ll need big fat intakes. These aren’t going to work well at lower speeds.

‘The moment we saw the MiG-25, we knew it was designed to go fast like an SR-71/A-12, whose intakes are each nearly the size of the fuselage.

The story of the SR-71 Blackbird that slid on JP7 fuel residue while taxing into Kadena Hangar

‘The other problem that a high and fast jet faces is hidden. The engine intake slows the air to subsonic flow before it goes into the compressor. The air’s kinetic energy turns into heat… the temperature rise goes as the SQUARE of velocity. The engine then has to compress that air (heating it more) and then add lots of heat before expanding it through the turbine. The turbine has to survive air heating in all three ways.’

McClatchie continues;

‘The J58 engine in the SR-71 was the first engine to use directionally solidified turbine blades, which were able to resist creep at higher temperatures than any blades before them. This is a critical technology. Without high-temperature turbine blades, you cannot make a jet engine fast.

‘In fact, the SR-71 and MiG-25 are both thermally rather than power-limited. Both have the reserve power to climb (rapidly) at full speed. Their speed is limited by the temperature of their turbines and not by power.

‘(These days, most turbine engines have hollow turbine blades, with “cooler” air from the compressor blown through them and out tiny holes in their leading edges. The air forms a film over the blade, insulating it from the heat of the surrounding gas. Neither the SR-71 nor the MiG-25 had these blades. Neither had the ceramic coatings we use today. These changes would have enabled an operating speed increase, but probably not more than Mach 3.6 or so).

‘As it turns out, the Soviets did not have the technology to make blades that could tolerate as high temperatures as the J58 turbine. As a result, the MiG-25 flew slower than the SR-71 (Mach 2.83 rather than Mach 3.4), and its engine did not last the 400 hours between overhauls that the J58 managed.’

McClatchie concludes;

‘That speed limit, btw, is a very abrupt speed limit. NASA squeezed a tiny performance increase out of the SR-71 by reducing engine life from 400 to 50 hours. A MiG-25 was tracked at Mach 3.2 over the Sinai in March 1971. That speed excursion would have only lasted minutes and the engines were scrapped after the flight.’

Check out Habubrats and Born into the Wilde Blue Yonder Facebook pages for further Blackbird photos and stories.

Top SR-71 Blackbird photo: Stuart Freer

Photo by NASA, U.S. Navy, Alex Beltyukov and Dmitriy Pichugin via Wikipedia

January 9, 2024 0 comment

How the misleading F-19 was born out of the secret development of the F-117

by Till Daisd January 8, 2024

written by Till Daisd

Beginning in the 1980s, four manufacturers offered models of the F-19 Stealth Fighter: Revell, Monogram, Italeri, and Testors

The first operational aircraft in the world built to take advantage of low-observable stealth technology was the F-117A Nighthawk. This precision-strike aircraft employed laser-guided weapons against critical targets while penetrating high-threat airspace. The single-seat F-117A’s distinctive design offered remarkable fighting capability.

In addition to having a wide range of weaponry, the F-117A had advanced attack and navigation systems built into a digital avionics suite, which reduced pilot workload and improved mission performance. Detailed planning for missions into highly defended target areas was accomplished by an automated mission planning system developed specifically to take advantage of the special capabilities of the F-117A.

Monogram F-19 Stealth Fighter

The urgent national need for a jet fighter that could operate entirely undetected from the enemy led to the development of the Nighthawk. It was built fast and in total secrecy, in a typical Skunk Works way.

Skunk Works founder Kelly Johnson preferred traditional, sleek aircraft designs, but the F-117’s special design allowed it to reflect radar waves. With its angular panels bolstered by an external coating of radar-absorbent material, the aircraft was nearly invisible to radar.

In the summer of 1975, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) held a “pole-off” competition. Skunk Work’s design demonstrated unmatched low observability and won Lockheed Skunk Works the contract for Have Blue, the stealth demonstrator that led to the F-117 Nighthawk.

F-19 — F-19 three view

Less than a year after Have Blue’s successful first flight in 1977, DARPA gave Skunk Works the contract for the Nighthawk, and the US Air Force and the Skunk Works team immediately worked together to make F-117 production a reality. Only 31 months after the contract was awarded, the first flight occurred in 1981, and deliveries started the following year.

The aircraft was operated in absolute secrecy for many years after achieving first operating capability in 1983. The program wasn’t made widely known until 1988, and it wasn’t until 1990 that it was first introduced to the public. By this time, the aircraft had been in service for seven years.

Notably, the most mind-blowing fact about the F-117 is that a very unclear picture of the jet led to the creation of one of the most legendary fictional aircraft, the F-19 Stealth Fighter. Noteworthy, the F-19 was based on some very unclear pictures that didn’t show the true shape of the actual plane.

Have Blue — Lockheed Have Blue prototype

Beginning in the 1980s, four manufacturers offered models of the F-19 Stealth Fighter: Revell, Monogram, Italeri, and Testors. Each of them asserted that the model they used started as a kit based on images of a real aircraft captured in nearby Area 51.

The manufacturers had decades of experience in producing highly detailed models that pilots and aerospace engineers purchased. The CBS Evening News with Dan Rather and other media discussed the models after they hit the market in the mid-eighties; when the real stealth aircraft crashed in California in July 1986, news stories used the model to depict it. Representative Ron Wyden asked the chairman of Lockheed Corporation why an aircraft that Congressmen could not see was sold as a model aircraft.

In the meantime, the F-19 became a cult classic; it appeared in Nintendo games and the GI-Joe cartoon series. Everybody agreed it was a real plane, but nobody knew the actual look, the maker, and the role played by the aircraft. The cartoonist who drew the famed Buck Danny comics series depicted all three of the different models of the F-19 parked on the tarmac to make fun of the fact that nobody agreed on the actual shape of the “real” aircraft.

When the F-117 was publicly revealed in November 1988, it was clear that the F-19 did not resemble it, which no doubt pleased those working with the real, black aircraft. However, even though the F-19 Stealth Fighter never came into existence, this one-of-a-kind aircraft that never was will always be remembered as one of the ultimate pop-culture icons of the 1980s.

Photo by Bill Abbott and Bsivko via Wikipedia and U.S. Air Force

January 8, 2024 0 comment

F-84-Nuclear-Explosion

F-84 pilot describes when he flew into the blast radius of an atmospheric nuclear test

by Till Daisd January 7, 2024

written by Till Daisd

Test Pilot Norvin C. “Bud” Evans, in 1956, examined the effect of atmospheric nuclear testing on the most durable aircraft in the USAF inventory by piloting his specially modified F-84 into the blast radius of those tests

The US launched more than 200 above-ground and undersea nuclear bombs between 1946 and 1962, at the height of the Cold War and the aftermath of World War II. During World War II and the Cold War, hundreds of thousands of American soldiers witnessed nuclear weapon tests. As previously said, the majority of them were pilots.

The statements that follow are from Air Force Test Pilot Norvin C. “Bud” Evans. In 1956, Evans was tasked with flying his specially modified F-84 within the blast radius of atmospheric nuclear testing to observe the impact of these tests on the most durable aircraft in the USAF arsenal.

The complete article can be found as “Nuke The Pilot” in Air & Space Magazine 2013.

‘Although it was vastly more powerful than the bombs dropped on Japan at the end of World War II, Mohawk, at 360 kilotons, was an airburst atomic bomb considered only a low risk to pilots flying near the site of its detonation.

‘Following my last-minute briefing, I lifted off into the black sky. It was always about as lonely a time as I have ever spent. About 10 minutes later, I closed my protective hood and continued flying on instruments to the test site over northern Enewetak Atoll.

‘The countdown went perfectly, and the radar controller’s commands were easy to follow. As Zero approached, I pulled the black goggles down over my eyes and covered the lenses with my gloved left hand.

‘Detonation. Shards of brilliant light penetrated all the protective devices and severely pained my eyes for a few seconds. As the brilliance faded, I could see the bones in my hands. Suddenly, I began to feel as if millions of long, hot needles were shooting through my body.

‘We did not have fire-resistant garb; I was wearing only a lightweight flightsuit. When I pushed the goggles up, instead of seeing the light fading the way it had in previous blasts, I had the horrible sensation of being on fire.

‘I wasn’t braced for the shock-wave impact. When it hit, I was affected more by the flaming debris in the cockpit than by the force of the impact.’

Evans continues;

‘In reviewing the flight, we found that the heat reflected off the overcast and onto my F-84 had burned away or wrinkled the skin on the flaps, stabilator, and ailerons. The glare shield above the instrument panel and all of the black tape windings on the instrument lines behind it were completely burned away. The hydraulic fluid that had leaked out around the rudder pedals had created other fires. The lens on the over-the-shoulder camera inside my protective hood had melted. Of the three layers of asbestos and aluminum cloth that made up the hood itself, two were incinerated.’

Evans concludes;

‘I continued to have the sensation of needles burning through my body for several weeks. Because of the overall classification of the Redwing tests, I was never allowed to see the data gathered from any of my missions. Nor was I ever given the radiation readings from the film badges I wore during the last five flights. Although we had been briefed that the maximum exposure we could safely receive was 100 milli-roentgens in six months, I had pointed out to the flight surgeon that I had been exposed to 100 on each of my first two flights. Whether the overexposure contributed to the life-threatening melanoma I developed seven months later, I’ll never know.’

F-84F

Photo by U.S. Air Force and National Nuclear Security Administration / Nevada Site Office

January 7, 2024 0 comment

Thomas-J.-Keck-Tu-22M3

The former SR-71 Blackbird pilot who flew a Russian Tu-22M3 Backfire to become the first NATO serviceman

by Till Daisd January 6, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The USAF’s 8th Air Force Commander and former SR-71 Blackbird pilot, Lt.-Gen. Thomas J. Keck, became the first NATO serviceman to fly a Russian Tu-22M3 Backfire long-range bomber on August 22, 2001

A wave of democratic reform surged across some former Eastern Bloc countries in the mid-1980s. Gradually, democratic reforms also started to emerge in the Soviet Union.

Significant changes occurred in the USSR’s foreign and home policies and the military field following Mikhail S. Gorbachov’s ascension to power in 1985. All of this resulted in the Berlin Wall’s fall, the Warsaw Pact military bloc’s dissolution, and the signing of new arms reduction treaties.

Two Crew Members killed in Tu-22M3 Backfire Supersonic Bomber crash in Murmansk Region — Tupolev Tu-22M3 Backfire

The Soviet MoD created albums with different views and performance data of many kinds of Soviet weapons and military hardware, including combat aircraft, in accordance with the agreements made with the West. Every basic type and version of Soviet Air Force fixed-wing aircraft and helicopter was photographed from different angles, including the upper view; in every picture, an obligatory scale ruler was positioned close to the aircraft to define its dimensions and enable the use of surveillance satellite imagery to track the aircraft’s presence at specific airbases. Comprehensive data on Soviet military hardware, including its accurate Soviet designations, were sent to the NATO command.

Gradually, the absolute secrecy that had surrounded the Soviet Armed Forces started to dissolve.

In their book Tupolev Tu-22M Soviet/Russian Swing-Wing Heavy Bomber, Yefim Gordon and Dmitriy Komissarov tell how this showed Russia’s willingness to be transparent in military politics and their non-aggressive intents toward their former Cold War adversaries.

Shaw-SR-71 — Photo on the left: Thomas J. Keck (pilot, left) and Timothy J. Shaw (RSO, right) in front of their SR-71 Blackbird. Photo on the right: in 2001 Lt. Gen. Thomas J. Keck was commander of the USAF’s 8th Air Force

A six-person American military delegation led by Lt.-Gen. Thomas J. Keck, Commander of the USAF’s 8th Air Force and a former SR-71 Blackbird pilot, accepted an invitation from the Russian Ministry of Defense on August 20, 2001, and traveled to Russia for six days in order to promote military contacts. On August 22, the delegation went to the 43rd TsBP I PLS of Long-Range Aviation at Dyagilevo AB, among other Russian Air Force bases. There, the general became the first NATO serviceman to fly the Backfire on a familiarization flight in a Tu-22M3 long-range bomber.

Live bomb drops were part of the sortie at a practice range. In an initiation procedure sometimes imposed on new arrivals, the Russian pilots offered Keck a shot of vodka after landing at Dyagilevo, then grabbed his arms and legs and swung him, bumping his behind against the aircraft’s nosewheels. Lt.-Gen. Keck took all this with good humor, as similar traditions existed back home. ‘Sometimes you get very wet being dunked in water; sometimes your necktie is cut off; sometimes even the tail of your shirt is cut off’, he said. (As a former SR-71 pilot, Keck referred to the tie-cutting ceremony as one of many traditions perpetuated by Blackbird crews.)

‘I was very impressed with everything from the beginning, from the ground crew preparing the aircraft to the aviators in the sky, the ones who make it all happen’, Thomas Keck told reporters after meeting the then Russian Air Force Commander-in-Chief Army Gen. Anatoliy M. Kornukov in Moscow. ‘The opportunity to see your units firsthand and fly your aircraft has been incredible — something I will never forget for the rest of my life.’ Kornukov said that, apart from the official side of the visit, the unofficial meetings with pilots and air force officers were also important and pledged friendship between Russian and US military aviation professionals. ‘Our meetings are a guarantee that we will not be looking at each other through the crosshairs of a gunsight, but rather facing each other like we do now’, he said.

Tupolev Tu-22M Soviet/Russian Swing-Wing Heavy Bomber is published by Schiffer Publishing and is available to order here.

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

January 6, 2024 0 comment

The F-15E Strike Eagle’s 2000-lb laser-guided bombing of an Iraqi Mi-24 during Operation Desert Storm

by Till Daisd January 5, 2024

written by Till Daisd

One of the most unique air-to-air kills in aviation history is ascribed to “Chiefs” from 335th Tactical Fighter Squadron (TFS, now known as 335th Fighter Squadron, FS) during Operation Desert Storm F-15E Strike Eagle #89-0487, or “487” for short

The F-15E Strike Eagle was created to satisfy the US Air Force’s (USAF) requirement for air-to-ground missions. It took off for the first time in December 1986 from St. Louis. In addition to having an infrared targeting and advanced navigation system, which enables the Strike Eagle to fly at night or in bad weather at a low altitude while maintaining a high speed, the Strike Eagle can carry 23,000 pounds of air-to-ground and air-to-air weaponry, shielding it from enemy defenses.

April 1988 saw the delivery of the F-15E’s first production model to the 405th Tactical Training Wing at Luke AFB in Arizona.

During Operation Desert Storm, which was launched between January 17, 1991, and February 28, 1991, with the intention of freeing Kuwait from the Iraqi invasion, the F-15E was used for the first time in combat. One of the most unique air-to-air kills in aviation history was attributed to F-15E Strike Eagle #89-0487, or “487” for short, from the 335th Tactical Fighter Squadron (TFS, now known as the 335th Fighter Squadron, FS) “Chiefs” during this combat.

The first air-to-air kill for an F-15E Strike Eagle took place on February 14, 1991, during an air encounter by Capts. Richard T. Bennett, pilot, and Daniel B. Bakke, weapon systems operator (WSO).

“On one flight, we used a laser-guided bomb [LGB] to shoot down a helicopter,” Bennet explained to Barry D. Smith for his article Tim Bennett’s War. “This occurred on February 14, Valentine’s Day. The mission was a Scud CAP [combat air patrol] in northwestern Iraq. During the Scud CAPs, we would look around with either the FLIR targeting pod or the radar to find the mobile Scuds. My wingman had twelve Mk. 82s, and I had four GBU-10s-2,000-pound LGBs-four AIM-9s, and two external fuel tanks. I was leading the flight.

“Our CAP time on this mission was 1:00 to 3:00 in the morning. We went up and hit the tanker, then proceeded north. Our patrol area started up at Al Qaim, near the Syrian border, and ran east about halfway to Baghdad, south to just beyond H-2, and then back to the Syrian border.

“The weather was bad that night, with clouds from about 4,000 feet to about 18,000 feet. We were cruising above the weather, waiting for AWACS [an E-3 Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft] or someone else to pass us some coordinates on some Scuds.

“AWACS gave us a call and said that a Special Forces team was in trouble. They had been found by the Iraqis, who were moving to cut them off. We had ten to fifteen Special Forces teams in the general area looking for Scuds. This team was about 300 miles across the border.

“Five Iraqi helicopters were in their area-about fifty miles to our west. As we headed in their direction, I put my wingman in a four-mile trail formation behind me because I had to go down through the weather. When I was about fifty miles from the team, Capt. Dan Bakke, my back-seater, began working the radar to look for the helicopters. We got contacts on them moving west to east, just like the AWACS had said.

“Dan and I started talking about what we were going to do. We knew there were helicopters down there, but if we were going to shoot them down, we wanted confirmation that they were bad guys. We called up AWACS, call sign Cougar, and asked them if there were any friendly helicopters in the area. The AWACS controller said, ‘We don’t have any friendlies in the area. Any helicopters you find, you are cleared to shoot.’

Mi-24

“We got a little closer and kept going down to get below the weather. I wanted to confirm, one more time, before we lost contact with AWACS, that these were definitely bad guys and not some of our Special Forces helicopters coming to get the team. We had a few based in Syria that would have been following the same general course and could have gotten to the area fairly quickly. AWACS confirmed there were no friendlies in the area.

“We continued to press in and were down to about 2,500 feet along the major road between Baghdad and the Syrian border. That area was always hot with a lot of AAA. I was working the radar, and Dan was working the high-resolution FLIR in the targeting pod to find the helicopters. When we popped out of the clouds fifteen to twenty miles from the team, Dan could see the helicopters with the pod. They were moving pretty much abreast, with the lead out in front in the middle. They were still moving west to east. They were moving and stopping at regular intervals.

“There was also a group of troops on the ground to the east of the team. We started getting AAA fire from these troops. To us, it looked as if they were trying to herd the team with the helicopters into the troops to the east. The helicopters were keeping an even distance from each other, and we figured they might be dropping off troops to help herd the team.

“The image on the pod was good enough to identify the helicopters as probable [Mi-24] ‘Hinds,’ five to ten miles out. Hinds can carry troops and are heavily armed with rockets and machine guns. As soon as the helicopters picked up and started moving, we were getting hits off them on the radar. The radar would stay locked on them when they were on the ground because the moving rotor blades were picked up.

“Dan and I discussed how we wanted to conduct the attack. We decided to hit the lead helicopter with a GBU-10 while he was on the ground. If we hit him, he would be destroyed. If he moved off before the bomb landed, it would still get the troops he just left on the ground. It would also give the other helicopters something to think about, which might give the team a chance to get away in the confusion. We would then circle around and pop the others as we could. We passed our plan to our wingman and told him to get the first helicopter he saw with an AIM-9.

“By this time, we were screaming over the ground, doing about 600 knots–almost 700 mph. The AAA was still coming up pretty thick. Our course took us right over the top of the Iraqi troops to the east of the team.

F-15E Mi-24 killer — F-15E Strike Eagle #89-0487 armed for a close air support mission over Afghanistan.

“[…] Dan was lasing the lead helicopter. We let the bomb go from about four miles out while the leader was on the ground. Because of our speed, it had a hell of a range on it-more range than an AIM-9. I got AIM-9 guidance going and uncaged a Sidewinder. I was ready to fire the missile as soon as we were in range.

“Just as we released the bomb, the airspeed readout on the radar showed the target at 100 knots and climbing. The lead chopper had picked up and started moving. I said, ‘There’s no chance the bomb will get him now,’ even though Dan was working hard to keep the laser spot on him. I got a good lock with my missile and was about to pickle off a Sidewinder when the bomb flew into my field of view on the targeting IR screen.

“There was a big flash, and I could see pieces flying in different directions. It blew the helicopter to hell, damn near vaporized it.

“We sat there for a few seconds, just staring. By that time, the AAA was getting real heavy and the other helicopters were starting to scatter. I told my wingman to put three Mk. 82 500-pounders on that same spot to get any troops that the helos dropped off.

“We beat up the area with bombs and were going to circle around and come down on them again. I popped up above 10,000 feet and talked to AWACS to tell them what was going on. They said, ‘I understand you visually ID’ed that as an Iraqi helo.’

“I said, ‘No, it’s still dark out here, but I saw a FLIR image of what I took to be a Hind.’

“At that point, my stomach hit the floor. I told AWACS to get the AWACS commander on the radio. Dan and I were thinking, ‘We hit a friendly helo.’ But when we got the AWACS commander on the air, he confirmed that there were no friendlies in the area.

“With that confirmed, I told Dan, ‘OK, let’s go back down and get the rest of the helos.’ We got down low and the AAA was just as bad as before. The helicopters scattered and were running north. My wingman and I were sorting them out and waiting to get within AIM-9 range. We were about ten miles behind and closing fast.

“I was running in on them and getting ready to be a hero and knock a few more down when, all of a sudden, I started seeing flashes on both sides of us. I thought, ‘What have they done? Here we are in the middle of a bunch of SAMs!’

“Then it hit me: Those weren’t SAMs. They were bombs! AWACS had sent another flight in and told them to drop bombs on a set of coordinates. Those coordinates happened to be us!”

Bennet concludes:

“I figured we had pushed our luck far enough, and we got the hell out of there. AWACS gave the orders to that other flight on another frequency. If it had been on ours, I would have heard the bombers’ side of the conversation and could have canceled the drop. I decided we had had enough for one day, but our night wasn’t over yet. We still had fifteen minutes left on our Scud CAP and were directed to a site near H-2. We found a mobile Scud on a launchpad, attacked it, and then headed home.

“The Special Forces team got out OK and went back to Central Air Forces headquarters to say thanks and confirm our kill for us. They saw the helicopter go down. When the helos had bugged out, the team moved back to the west and was extracted.”

Today, “487”is still assigned to the same squadron it made history with in 1991. It’s the Chiefs’ flagship and still has a small green star adorned on the aircraft’s port side representing that moment in the squadron’s history.

F-15E Driver explains how he shot down an Iraqi Mi-24 attack helicopter with a 2000lb laser-guided bomb — The green star on Aircraft #89-0487 represents an air-to-air victory achieved during Operation Desert Storm.

Photo by Master Sgt. Lance Cheung, James D’Angina and MSGT STEVEN TURNER / U.S. Air Force

January 5, 2024 0 comment

SR-71-penultimate-Mildenhall-18-01-1990-Copy

The slowest Lockheed Blackbird speed ever recorded

by Till Daisd January 4, 2024

written by Till Daisd

The backseater later indicated a slow speed of 155 knots; the pilot saw 152 knots or 175 mph. The SR-71 at that point was gently floating down; control certainly would have been lost completely had not Blackbird pilot Brian Shul firewalled the throttles

One of the most sophisticated members of the Blackbird family, the SR-71 (along with the A-12 and YF-12) was created by a team of Lockheed personnel under the direction of Clarence “Kelly” Johnson, who was vice president of Lockheed’s Advanced Development Company Projects at the time. Known as the “Skunk Works,” this unit is now part of Lockheed Martin.

Beginning in the late 1950s, the A-12 reconnaissance aircraft—which made its first flight in April 1962 and remained classified until 1976—served as the model for the Blackbird. The YF-12A interceptor variant was first made public by President Lyndon Johnson on February 29, 1964, which was more than six months after it made its first flight. The SR-71 completed its first flight on Dec. 22, 1964.

The Blackbird was built to reach altitudes of up to 85,000 feet and cruise at “Mach 3+,” which is just over three times the speed of sound or more than 2,200 miles per hour.

Probably the most common question regarding the “Blackbird family” when discussing them is how high and fast they actually fly.

But what about the slowest Blackbird speed ever recorded?

‘I was flying the SR-71 out of RAF Mildenhall, England, with my backseater, Walt Watson. We were returning from a mission over Europe and the Iron Curtain when we received a radio transmission from home base,’ remembers Brian Shul, former SR-71 Blackbird pilot, in his book Sled Driver.

Rex Lowe, former USAF Staff Sergeant, explains what happened later on Quora.

‘The aircrew was asked to make a low level pass of a British airfield where cadets were training. Having difficulty actually sighting the field, though navigation was dead on, the pilot, Brian Shul, realized the aircraft was below advertised flying airspeed, he lit the burners and darted off. The backseater later indicated slow speed of 155 knots, pilot saw 152 knots or 175 mph. The aircraft at that point was gently floating down, control certainly would have been lost completely had not Shul firewalled the throttles.’

This is most likely the slowest Lockheed Blackbird has ever flown.

However, after landing, Shul and Watson were met by their commander.

Shul remembers;

‘We were both certain he was reaching for our wings. Instead, he heartily shook our hands and said the commander had told him it was the greatest SR-71 fly-past he had ever seen, especially how we had surprised them with such a precise maneuver that could only be described as breathtaking. […]Walt and I both understood the concept of “breathtaking” very well that morning and sheepishly replied that they were just excited to see our low approach.’

Photo by courtesy of Robin Harbour

January 4, 2024 0 comment

SR-71 pilot tells when he revealed Blackbird’s true top speed

by Till Daisd January 3, 2024

written by Till Daisd

‘At some point in the evening, the F-111 guys began to press me, in a good-natured way, for classified information about the SR-71. Probably the most frequently asked Blackbird question is, how high and how fast does it really fly?’ Gil Bertelson, former SR-71 Blackbird pilot

No reconnaissance aircraft in history has operated globally in more hostile airspace or with such complete impunity as the SR-71, the world’s fastest jet-propelled aircraft. The Blackbird represented the highest point in aviation technology development during the Cold War due to its performance and operational accomplishments.

The SR-71 could cover 100,000 square miles of land per hour while traveling at Mach 3+, or three times the speed of sound, or more than 2,000 mph, at an altitude of 80,000 feet.

Now, the question that people ask most often when discussing the SR-71 Blackbird is probably, “How high and how fast does it really fly?“

In the book SR-71 Blackbird Stories, Tales and Legends by Richard H. Graham, Lieutenant Colonel (Ret) Gil Bertelson, a former SR-71 pilot, recalls:

‘When I first joined the SR-71 program, there was one permanent operating location for SR-71s at Kadena AB. The unit at Kadena was known as Detachment 1 (or Det 1) of the 9th SRW. Habus were deployed to Det 1 for six weeks at a time, and each crew made the trip four to six times a year. About twice a year, there was a requirement to temporarily activate an additional Det at RAF Mildenhall in England. Although we’d had two SR-71s permanently stationed at RAF Mildenhall since 1981, it wasn’t until April 5, 1984, that Prime Minister Thatcher formally announced SR-71s would be permanently based at Mildenhall. This unit was known as Det. 4 of the 9th SRW. Dets 2 and 3 of the 9th SRW were U-2 operating locations at Osan AB, Korea, and RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus, respectively.

The incredible story of the SR-71 Blackbird that flew an eleven-hour-long mission from Kadena to the Persian Gulf and back

‘There was a significantly different flying environment between the two detachments. The weather was almost at opposite ends of the spectrum. The missions were not quite as “routine” as many of the Okinawa missions.

‘Because of the more demanding missions at Mildenhall, each new SR-71 crew had to fly its first operational sorties at Kadena. Every SR crew lobbied long and hard to get on the schedule for Mildenhall. And London was not far away!

‘Frank Stampf, my RSO crewmate on the SR-71, and I were fortunate to get on the schedule for Mildenhall after only two trips to Okinawa. For both of us, it was like going home. Just before entering the SR-71 program, Frank had been stationed at RAF Alconbury for about four years as an RF-4 crew dog. And I had been stationed at RAF Lakenheath for a couple of years. As the “crow flies,” Alconbury is only 30 miles from Mildenhall, and Lakenheath is only 3 miles from Mildenhall. We were both anxious to visit the old flying buddies we had known and worked with in our careers before we became Habus.

‘On one occasion, I arranged to meet several of my F-111 friends at Lakenheath Officers’ Club for dinner. We met in the bar and had a few drinks (as a real, live, dyed-in-the-wool teetotaler, I assume I was drinking grapefruit juice or 7-Up). We shared numerous laughs while trying to outdo each other with tales of unequaled courage and great feats of airmanship. I’m sure our hands were getting a good workout—pilots gesticulate a lot!

‘At some point in the evening, the Aardvark (F-111 nickname) guys began to press me, in a good-natured way, for classified information about the SR-71. Probably the most frequently asked Blackbird question is: How high and how fast does it really fly? That question was being actively pursued that night at Lakenheath.

‘I need to back up about a year and a half to set the stage as to why they seemed intent on pushing that particular question. In most Air Force buildings, at least the flying squadron buildings I used to frequent, there were numerous locations where the base fire marshal had posted information regarding fire classifications and appropriate reactions upon discovering different types of fires. These posters were displayed in the restrooms, in the halls, near the duty desks, in the crew briefing rooms, and next to all of the fire extinguishers. I can’t remember all the specifics other than there was one fire classification identified as a category or type 3.

‘At some point in my application for assignment to the SR-71, I was requested to go to Beale for my “tryout” for the Blackbird program. The whole process, from departing Lakenheath until returning back to Lakenheath took about two weeks. During the visit to Beale, I heard and read a number of times that the unclassified speed of the SR-71 was listed as Mach 3-plus. A “3+” patch is displayed on flight suits worn by SR-71 squadron crewmembers.

Remembering Gil Bertelson, the SR-71 driver that saw three sunrises on one particular Blackbird mission

‘When I arrived back to Lakenheath, I was really pumped up and excited about the prospects of being selected to fly the SR-71. I didn’t want to forget the experiences I had at Beale or to lose sight of my goal. To help me remember and to keep my attention focused on what I wanted to do, I began adding a black grease pencil + sign to all of the 3s on the fire code posters. There were many added + signs around the base that the very diligent safety officer in 493rd Tactical Fighter Squadron actually called the base fire marshal to get information about this “new classification.” When he was told there was no such thing as a code 3+, he finally figured it out and started looking for me. I was given a “cease and desist” order and one by one, he began erasing my “unauthorized” + signs.

‘Now back to the “O” Club a year and a half later. My dinner partners remembered the fuss over the posters and figured now was an appropriate time and place to get the real scoop as to how high and how fast the Blackbird really did fly. They were curious as to what kind of speed that little + sign actually equated to.

‘I played along for a while, dragging out the inevitable answer of Mach 3-plus, which, when all was said and done, was all I really could tell them anyway. I finally got them leaning in toward me as we sat around the dinner table. I did a pretty good acting job as I began nervously looking around the room be sure no one else was eavesdropping on what they thought would be a classified conversation.

‘I have to momentarily divert again. A wonderful aviation poem was written the early days of powered flight. The author is John Gillespie Magee Jr. The poem is entitled “High Flight.” Some of you may remember this poem being recited by Orson Wells late in the evening by TV stations that were about to sign off the air for the night. Yes, there actually was a time when television didn’t operate 24 hours a day. As Orson Wells recited this poem with his marvellously deep and resonant voice, the final TV pictures for the day were that a T-38 dashing in and out of clouds and doing aileron rolls, etc. It was a combination of sight and sound that stirred the blood and emotions of everyone who had the slightest interest in airplanes and the wonders of flight. The poem is as follows:

“Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth,

And danced the skies on laughter, silvered wings;

Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth

Of sun-split clouds—and done a hundred things

You have not dreamed of—wheeled and soared and swung

High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,

I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung

My eager craft through footless halls of air.

Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue

I’ve topped the windswept heights with easy grace

Where never lark, or eagle flew.

And while with silent, lifting mind I’ve trod

The high untrespassed sanctity of space,

Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.”

‘Back to the “O” Club again. With the guys leaning in to hang on every word I was about to speak, I said something like, “You’ve got to promise not to tell a soul what I am going to tell you now. If you do, I’ll deny it till the day I die. I’m sure you know I shouldn’t be talking about this at all. You know how high the pile will be that they’ll stick me in if you tell anyone else.” As they gathered closer to make sure they didn’t miss anything, I said, “I can’t specific numbers, but I can give you a point of reference you can use to figure it out. You know the part in ‘High Flight’—where it talks about putting out your hand to touch the face of God?” Well,” I added, “when we’re at speed and altitude in the SR, we have to slow down and descend in order to do that.”

‘So, the word’s out. Feel free to share this information with anyone you’d care to tell. You can even use me as the source document. I’m retired now, so who cares?’

Photo by Lockheed Martin and U.S. Air Force

January 3, 2024 0 comment

The final mission out of Vietnam before Saigon fell was flown by this C-130A Hercules

by Till Daisd January 2, 2024

written by Till Daisd

Before Saigon fell, on April 29, 1975, C-130A Hercules with tail number 56-0518 completed the final mission out of Vietnam

C-130A Hercules, tail number 56-0518, completed the final mission out of Vietnam on April 29, 1975, just before Saigon fell.

On August 23, 1957, 56-0518 was admitted into the US Air Force (USAF) inventory. According to Master Sgt. Jeff Walston, the 913th Airlift Group was initially stationed at the 314th Troop Carrier Wing at Sewart AFB, Tennessee, as mentioned in the article Last “Herk” out of Vietnam. It was in service with multiple Air Force units from 1964 to 1972. The aircraft was sent to the South Vietnamese Air Force on November 2, 1972, as part of the Nixon administration’s effort to support that nation’s defense through the Military Assistance Program against the communist forces who were invading the country from the North.

The day before Saigon fell, on April 29, 1975, North Vietnamese forces destroyed almost every aircraft on the Tan Son Nhut Air Base flightline, totaling over 100 aircraft. The only C-130 to escape destruction was 0-5-1-8.

Maj. Phuong, a South Vietnamese instructor pilot, and his crew were getting ready to take away the last operational aircraft from the demolished Tan Son Nhut air base.

Hundreds of fleeing refugees scrambled in a frenzy to board this last operational C-130, their only hope for freedom. The throng pressed themselves into every nook and cranny, to the point that the humans positioned on the rear ramp prevented it from closing.

The loadmaster alerted Phoung, who had little choice except to slowly taxi the aircraft forward before using the brakes and forcing the passengers forward. The ramp closed.

It would require all of Phuong’s flying skill and more runway than was available to get the laden aircraft off the ground, but the C-130 managed to take to the skies.

Phoung was lost over the Gulf of Siam, delaying his intended 80-minute flight to the safety of Thailand. After locating a map and making adjustments, the C-130 touched down at Utapao Royal Thai Air Base in Thailand three and a half hours later.

There were 452 people on board in total, 32 of whom were in the cockpit. The airplane needed to use every foot of the runway in order to take off because it was overloaded by at least 10,000 pounds. On this historic flight, no lives were lost.

Following the landing, the aircraft was reclaimed by the US Air Force and subsequently assigned to the Oklahoma Air National Guard in 1976. In 1979, the aircraft was assigned to Nashville, Tennessee’s 118th Tactical Airlift Group (ANG). The aircraft, which was retired to Little Rock AFB in 1989, is on display at the main gate. It was originally assigned to the 62d Troop Carrier Squadron and the 314th Troop Carrier Wing.

Photo by U.S. Air Force

January 2, 2024 0 comment

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