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aviation

The restored Tupolev Tu-144 supersonic transport aircraft

by Till Daisd September 3, 2021

The outside of the Tu-144 was finished, but work has not yet started on the aircraft inside.

The first phase of the restoration of the Tupolev Tu-144 supersonic transport aircraft (SST) was finished, according to News in Flight. In Russia’s Chetaeva Street, the Kazan Aviation Institute (KAI) building, which will be on display for educational purposes, is seen in the background of the photo in this post, which shows the aircraft standing close to it.

The work on the aircraft exterior has been finished, but work on the aircraft cabin has not yet started, as stated by a spokeswoman for the business in charge of the project during the ceremony that marked the conclusion of the first stage of the restoration.

The Tupolev Tu-144 (Russian: Tyолев y-144; NATO reporting name: Charger) is a decommissioned jet aircraft and commercial SST. The Anglo-French Concorde is the other of the two SSTs that have entered commercial service. The Alexei Tupolev by Tupolev design bureau created the plane during the Cold War, and the Voronezh Aircraft Production Association in Voronezh, Russia, built it. At an average operating height of 16,000 meters (52,000 ft), it flew 55 passenger flights while traveling at a speed of about 2,000 kph (1,200 mph, or Mach 1.6).

Two months before the Concorde’s inaugural flight, on December 31, 1968, the prototype made its first flight close to Moscow. On June 5, 1969, the Tu-144 achieved supersonic flight for the first time, and on May 26, 1970, it became the first commercial vehicle to reach Mach 2. The development of the Tu-144 was halted when one crashed at the Paris Air Show in 1973. On November 1, 1977, the aircraft entered passenger service, nearly two years after Concorde.

After only 55 planned flights, the passenger fleet of the Tu-144 was permanently grounded in May 1978 due to the crash of another Tu-144 (an enhanced version known as Tu-144D). Up until 1983, the plane was still in use as a cargo carrier. Later, the Tu-144 was employed by NASA for supersonic research and by the Soviet space program to train Buran spacecraft pilots.

The Tu-144 had a wingspan of 94 feet, 6 inches, and measured 215 feet, 6 inches long, and 42 feet, 2 inches high. The majority of the aircraft’s structure was made of a light aluminum alloy, with titanium and stainless steel used for the rudder, elevons, and underside of the rear fuselage.

Photo by News in Flight

September 3, 2021 0 comment

History

Awsome video showing YF-16 first unintentional flight

by Till Daisd September 3, 2021

written by Till Daisd

A severe lateral oscillation developed during the initial high-speed taxi test as a direct result of pilot-commanded oscillations as the YF-16 approached rotation speed. Phil Oestricher, a test pilot, thankfully made the decision to fly, maybe saving the entire program

On January 20, 1974, an inadvertent takeoff at Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) resulted in the General Dynamics YF-16’s first flight. The test pilot was Phil Oestricher.

The aircraft lifts off the runway when Oestricher conducts high-speed taxi tests, as seen in the first segment of the video in this post. Rather than risking damage to the aircraft, the pilot decides to lift off and go around to land normally. On February 2, the first “official” flight takes place.

John G. Williams, a structural flight test engineer on the YF-16, recalls: “During the first high-speed taxi test, a violent lateral oscillation had set in as a direct result of pilot-commanded oscillations (several maxima left/right commands) as the airplane reached rotation speed (~120 kt). Remember, this was the first airplane to have a fixed stick, and there was no opportunity for Phil to gain any feel for the airplane, until that high-speed taxi test. As the nose of the aircraft rose, the tailplane inadvertently scraped on the runway. The left wingtip missile and the right tail static probe also lightly contacted the runway. Phil chose to take off because the bird had begun to veer off to the left side of the runway, and he was faced with plowing through the desert or flying. Thankfully he chose to fly and possibly saved the entire program. After take-off, Phil regained control and stayed up for six minutes, and landed uneventfully. Prior to the next flight, the stick sensitivity was reduced by 50% with gear down. Later, after complaints of not enough sensitivity, it was returned to the original.”

Instead, the second segment of the video documents the No. 2 prototype’s involvement in the YF-16 program’s first actual accident.

The No. 2 prototype made its first flight in May 1974, as stated by Joe Stout in his article What A Wonderful Airplane: YF-16 First Flight (Flight 0), which was published on www.codeonemagazine.com. The difference between No. 2 and No. 1 was primarily that No. 2 had a cannon, external tanks, and the capacity to transfer fuel, allowing it to fly farther between refueling sessions. In the summer of 1975, arrangements were made to take No. 2 to Le Bourget and on a tour of many European countries. The USAF had already chosen the F-16 as its replacement fighter by this point. In addition, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, and Norway were thinking about the plane.

In May 1975, a Fort Worth Division open house featured a flight demonstration by General Dynamics pilot Neil Anderson. He finished his routine but couldn’t lower the landing gear. Finally, he was forced to belly-dive the aircraft onto the grass next to the Carswell AFB runway. Surprisingly little damage was done, and the pilot was unhurt. Paris, though, was undoubtedly after ship No. 2.

Due to the accident, YF-16 No. 1 completed the Viper’s first transatlantic flight in the same month.

Photo by Lockheed Martin

September 3, 2021 0 comment

History

C-5 Galaxy can transport a submarine

by Till Daisd September 3, 2021

written by Till Daisd

The Lockheed-built Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle 2, also known as Avalon informally, had a maximum depth rating of 5,000 feet and was designed to rescue submarine operators trapped in the water.

A C-5A Galaxy is loaded with the Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle 2 (DSRV-2) for a 5,500-mile journey from Naval Air Station (NAS) North Island, San Diego, California, to Scotland for training with the Royal Navy in this amazing photo from 1979.

Unofficially known as Avalon, the forty-ton, fifty-foot-long DSRV-2 was created by Lockheed Missiles and Space Company in Sunnyvale, California. It was put into use in 1971 and withdrawn in 2000. Avalon offered a solution to rescue submarine crews trapped beneath the ocean and was capable of diving up to 5,000 feet.

The 60th Military Airlift Wing (MAW) at Travis Air Force Base (AFB), California, was operating the C-5A, which had the Air Force serial number 70-0459. The aircraft had 23,940 flying hours when it was decommissioned in March 2011.

The C-5 has played a crucial role in air mobility for many years, allowing for the quick deployment of combat forces to any location in the world. Since its debut, the aircraft has been extensively used in each significant international crisis since the Southeast Asia War.

The range and cargo capacity of the C-5 far outstripped that of preceding USAF airlifters. The enormous cargo hold was more than 20 feet wide, 120 feet long, and 13 feet high.

It could transport 81 soldiers and 36 equipment pallets when configured normally. The C-5 was also employed to transport specialized large loads and was capable of holding up to three CH-47 Chinook helicopters, two M1 Abrams main battle tanks, or two Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missiles.

The C-5’s huge front and rear cargo doors, which were specially made for big airlifts, enable ground operators to load and unload the aircraft at the same time, speeding up the cargo transfer process. Vehicle loading was made easier and the use of specialized lift equipment was not required thanks to an inventive “kneeling” landing gear design. Despite its large size and weight, the C-5’s “high flotation” landing gear enabled the aircraft to operate from smaller, unsurfaced airfields, enabling the forward transport of soldiers and cargo.

Air Mobility Command (AMC) started an aggressive campaign to update its fleet of C-5A/B/Cs in 1998 after a study revealed that 80% of the C-5 airframe service life remained.

The Galaxy’s revised design is known as C-5M.

Photo by Lockheed Martin

Source: National Museum of the U.S. Air Force

September 3, 2021 0 comment

History

How to fly and fight in the F-20 Tigershark

by Till Daisd September 3, 2021

written by Till Daisd

The F-20 was far faster than the F-5E, added beyond-visual-range (BVR) air-to-air capability, and had a full complement of air-to-ground firing modes that could fire the majority of American weaponry

Northrop designed and produced the F-20 Tigershark (formerly the F-5G), a light fighter that was privately financed. It started to take shape around 1975. The aircraft, which was a development of Northrop’s F-5E Tiger II, was propelled by a new engine with significantly better overall performance and a cutting-edge avionics suite with a potent and adaptable radar.

Super ace Chuck Yeager, the first pilot to break the sound barrier, once said that “of all the airplanes in the world that I’ve flown, the F-5 is the most fun to fly.”

The F-20 was far faster than the F-5E, included beyond-visual-range (BVR) air-to-air capability, and had a full complement of air-to-ground modes that could fire the majority of American armaments. The General Dynamics F-16/79 (a modified export-oriented version of the F-16A/B designed for use with the antiquated General Electric J79 turbojet engine) and other modern fighter designs were able to compete with the F-20 as a result of these advancements, but the F-20 was significantly less expensive to buy and operate.

The famous Paramount motion picture “Top Gun” was inspired by author Ehud Yonay’s article “Top Guns” from the May 1983 issue of California magazine. You can read it today on www.topgunbio.com. Yonay writes, “The F-5 is actually a family of planes, starting with the F-5A back in 1964 and culminating last year with the F-5G Tigershark” (now called F-20). All of them are elegant, energetic beauties with trim body lines that resemble boats with wings.

The F-5 is an outlier in the high-end defense industry because it is the only fighter plane manufactured in California. It is not only compact, practical, and simple to fix, but it is also quite affordable. Even the top-of-the-line Tigershark lists for only $9 million, which is one-fourth the cost of a single F-14 Tomcat. Top Gun instructors use F-5E Tiger IIs that cost roughly $5 million each to replicate Russian MiGs. Anyone caught showing off the F-14’s classified cockpit would face court-martial, but here’s how to do a jump in an F-20:

Exclusive: former Topgun instructor presents the original article that inspired legendary Top Gun movie — F-20 Tigershark Cockpit

1. The stick. Imagine you are entering a bogey country. Push the air-to-air weapon select button with your right thumb to see what comes next. (Your head-up display and digital display indicators are now operational; this is essentially an “on” switch.)

2. The throttle. Choose “range while search” using your left index finger. On your right-hand digital display indication, a plot of the relevant range will appear that resembles a radarscope.

3. The right-hand digital display indicator. A tiny black square will show up on this screen if there is a bogey out there. Press the acquisition button on the throttle when the target is surrounded by the acquisition symbol (two parallel vertical lines) displayed on the screen to lock your radar onto its tail. The acquisition sign abruptly vanishes, and a numbered targeting circle with a black square appears in its place. This gives you a quick glance indication of the bogey’s speed, altitude, and direction.

4. The head-up display. Once you’ve reached this point, you may look directly through your head-up display and see both the actual target and the head-up steering circle, which resembles a bull’s-eye, at once.

A quick look at how you could fly and fight in the F-20 Tigershark, the super light-fighter that never was

5. The left-hand digital display indicator. Your available missiles and ammunition for your gun are listed on this screen. After selecting your weapon, fly the aircraft until the steering circle of the head-up display is directly above your target. Your head-up display will flash the word “SHOOT” when you are within the right range. Your right index finger should be used to trigger the gun or missile release on the stick.

A large portion of the F-20’s development was carried out as part of the “FX” project run by the US Department of Defense (DoD). While avoiding critical front-line technologies used by U.S. Air Force (USAF) aircraft, FX aimed to create fighters that would be capable of combat with the newest Soviet aircraft. The military export plans of the Carter administration, which attempted to give foreign countries high-quality equipment without running the risk of American front-line technology falling into Soviet hands, gave rise to FX. Northrop had great expectations for the F-20 on the global market, but once Ronald Reagan was elected, policy changes meant that the F-20 had to compete for sales against the F-16’s newest variants rather than the downgraded F-16/79.

When three prototypes had been built (two of which crashed after their pilots blacked out from too much g-force), and a fourth that was only partially finished, the F-20 Tigershark program was abandoned in 1986.

Photo by Tom Kasser, published in California magazine, May 1983 and U.S. Air Force

September 3, 2021 0 comment

History

The F-4G Wild Weasel during Operation Desert Storm dodged six SAMs in a matter of seconds

by Till Daisd September 3, 2021

written by Till Daisd

“I looked in the direction of the launch indication on the scope and saw a sight I’d never hoped to see. SA-2 missiles were headed towards us!” Jim Schreiner, former F-4G Wild Weasel pilot

The F-4G Wild Weasel was a modified F-4E fighter carrying AN/APR-47 electronic warfare equipment in place of the gun. Its goal was to take out surface-to-air missile (SAM) air defense radars, among other enemy air defenses. In order to serve this unique role, 116 F-4Es were converted into F-4Gs.

Three active wings received deployments of F-4Gs. One was deployed to USAFE (U.S. Air Forces in Europe) at Spangdahlem Air Base (AB), Germany; the other to PACAF (Pacific Air Forces) at Clark AFB, Philippines; and one was stationed at George Air Force Base (AFB), Victorville, California, as a member of the Rapid Deployment Force.

For Operation Desert Storm in 1991, F-4Gs from George AFB and Spangdahlem AB were sent to Shaikh Isa AB, Bahrain. The F-4G was the only aircraft in the USAF inventory at the time that was outfitted for Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) duty, and it successfully shielded strike packages from Iraqi air defenses throughout the fight.

The incredible story of the F-4G Wild Weasel that dodged 6 SAMs in few seconds During Operation Desert Storm

Brick Eisel, a former USAF officer, and Jim Schreiner, a former F-4G pilot from the 561st Tactical Fighter Squadron at George AFB who flew the aircraft during Desert Storm, describe an exciting F-4G sortie flown to protect a B-52 strike package carrying out a bombing mission over Iraq in their book Magnum! the Wild Weasels in Desert Storm.

On the night of January 19, 1991, Schreiner and his passenger Dan Sharp were piloting the second ship of a four-ship flight with the call sign Longhorn 31 that was being led by Major Steve “Teach” Jenni and Captain Mark “Gucci” Buccigrossi, an EWO. Schreiner was Longhorn 32. As Eisel explains, “The mission for the flight was to provide direct support for a cell of Boeing B-52 Stratofortresses dropping some fifty-four bombs weighing 750 lb each on the dug-in positions of one of Saddam’s vaunted Republican Guard armored divisions.

The B-52, nicknamed since its Vietnam days as the ‘BUFF’, for Big Ugly Fat Fucker, had paid a fearsome toll to North Vietnamese SA-2s in the earlier conflict. Planners for Desert Storm wanted to ensure things went better for this fight. The Longhorn flight would go in ahead of the BUFFs and target and kill the SA-2s and any other SAM that had the altitude range to reach the bombers in their high 30,000 feet track. It was a high priority, do-or-die mission for the Weasels.”

Noteworthy, since their F-4G experienced a failure to its digital ARN-101 navigation system during the previous sortie, Schreiner and Sharp had to switch two spare aircraft, a procedure that delayed their and Jenni and Buccigrossi’s takeoff. Schreiner remembers: “3 & 4 were long gone, and lead, tired of waiting for us, decided to take off without us. I could tell he was pissed because as he taxied by, he twirled his hand above his helmet, telling us to hurry up. At the time, he didn’t realize we were on our third jet. Sweating profusely by this time, I rapidly completed the preflight and got the jet running. Fortunately, everything worked, and we were out of the chocks in record time. I called the tower for take-off clearance and was told to wait for three aircraft to land. The last one was an emergency and might take the barrier and close the runway. Luckily, he didn’t, and we were off, but twenty minutes late. I proceeded to the tanker as fast as the Phantom would go without using the afterburner—about 540 knots groundspeed. Not bad considering a 50-knot headwind and all the shit we were carrying [besides the HARM missiles, the aircraft had three 1,000 gallons of external fuel tanks]. It was a little sporty at the tanker with him flying in and out of a cloud layer. The fact that I was a little nervous didn’t make it any easier. After taking a full load of fuel, we proceeded directly to the target area.”

Schreiner and Sharp made their target time and rejoined the flight. Then, as Eisel explains, “at about 0207, Buccigrossi detected an SA-2 in search mode short of the BUFFs’ intended target. Needing to deal with this threat but not wanting to strip all Weasel coverage from the bombers, he directed Longhorn 31 and 32 to deal with this problem.”

Said Buccigrossi “We picked up the SA-2’s signal—first in search mode and then rapidly switch to targeting. We then pickled a HARM at it.”

Schreiner’s view of the event was: “At the TOT for the BUFFs, we saw many explosions on the ground as they salvoed. At the same time, we picked a ‘2 bar’ on the SA-2 from the APR-47 [‘2 bar’ was shorthand for saying the system had picked up strong, reliable indications of an SA-2D/E SAM, an improved version of the original SA-2]. It went from range unknown to range known to track indications to a firing indication in about as much time as it takes to read this sentence. Lead said he was working the signal so we didn’t shoot, although, in retrospect, we should have because it was the only chance we’d have.”

Buccigrossi continues his part of the story: “We were at medium altitude at around 350 knots. There was a cloud base around 1,800-2000 feet AGL [Above Ground Level]. We picked up an orange glow below the cloud deck at nine o’clock. Popping through the undercast, we saw two SA-2s tracking toward us. Teach and I both saw them, so as he rolled the jet, I put out the chaff and hit the switches for the ECM pod. Both missiles continued towards our six o’clock but climbed while we descended fairly rapidly. I watched the missiles explode behind us.”

The Longhorn flight was allegedly targeted again just seconds after avoiding the first pair of SAMs, according to Eisel. The second pair of missiles were arcing toward Longhorn 31 from their two o’clock position. Once more, they managed to avoid the SAMs by sacrificing height and airspace to get away from the warheads. The F-4G was not harmed when the missiles, which were guided to explode slightly behind them, detonated.

Buccigrossi continues: “Immediately after those two exploded, we saw the third set on our left side, so away we went again, down and around, to avoid these guys. The missiles couldn’t turn hard enough to stay with us, so for the third time in about ninety seconds, they tracked behind us and exploded. The good news was that in less than two minutes, we’d avoided six SAMs and made that site shoot his whole wad, so they wouldn’t be able to shoot again at the BUFFs until they’d reloaded, and that would take them too long. The bad news was that with all our turning and burning, we’d dropped down into the AAA range. I looked down at our gauges and saw that we were below 10,000 feet and under 300 knots. I told Teach to climb or speed up and he said, ‘I’m working on it’.”

From Schreiner’s cockpit: “I looked in the direction of the launch indication on the scope and saw a sight I’d never hoped to see. SA-2 missiles were headed toward us! I immediately selected AB [afterburner], rolled the aircraft inverted, and pulled. All this while keeping the SA-2s on the beam. I was at 25,000 [feet] when I started for the deck and leveled at about 10,000. It was a standard maneuver we’d practiced in training but, for safety reasons, weren’t allowed to try at night – amazing how physics and the airplane work the same at night as during the day. As I did this, I told Dan to hit the chaff and ECM pod. Apparently, the combination of all three did the trick, because one by one, I watched them arc harmlessly away and self-destruct at the end of their lives. After we avoided the SAMs, I rolled level and saw a blue glow outside. Our -47 wasn’t showing any threats, so I couldn’t figure out what the glow was. Then I realized I was still in the afterburner, and the glow was the flames from my engines. What a perfect advertisement for our position! So I pulled the throttles back and started climbing so we could work that site again.”

Due to the fact that Longhorn 31 was only carrying one tank and had used a lot of gas to dodge the six SAMs, they were unable to stay. Returning to base, they flew straight south into Saudi Arabia, stopped at a base, grabbed fuel, and then took off again for Sheikh Isa.

After taking the spare equipped with three tanks, Schreiner and Sharp had additional gas and continued to stay in the area long after the B-52s left in an effort to locate the SA-2 position that had so spectacularly captured their attention. At or about 03:15, they landed at Sheikh Isa.

Major Steve Jenny and Captain Mark Buccigrossi, who were serving at the time, received the Silver Star, the third-highest honor bestowed by the U.S. military for valor in the face of the enemy, for their efforts in defending the B-52s and dodging the six SA-2s in those brief moments.

Photo by U.S. Air Force

September 3, 2021 0 comment

History

The super Starfighter that never was: the Lockheed Lancer

by Till Daisd September 3, 2021

written by Till Daisd

The Lockheed Lancer may have outclassed the majority of aircraft used by air forces throughout the world.

The F-104 Starfighter, a supersonic air superiority fighter, was a technological marvel when it first flew in the 1950s.

It was armed with a six-barrel M-61 20mm Vulcan cannon and performed the roles of a tactical fighter and a day-and-night interceptor when coupled with heat-seeking Sidewinder missiles.

The first XF-104 made its first flight in 1954, after which the F-104’s development started in 1952.

It established several records, including the world altitude record of 103,395 feet (set by an F-104C on Dec. 14, 1959) and the world speed record of 1,404.19 mph (made by an F-104A on May 18, 1958). The Starfighter was also the first aircraft to hold the official world records for speed, altitude, and time-to-climb at the same time.

About 300 one- and two-seat Starfighters were bought by the U.S. Air Force (USAF). The military aid program also saw the construction of 1,700 F-104s in the United States and elsewhere for a number of countries, including Canada, West Germany, Italy, Norway, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Greece, Turkey, Spain, Taiwan, and Japan.

Even though the Starfighter gave these countries a fighter with astounding performance and highly advanced capabilities, the Western European market required a fighter that was efficient and simple to operate. Even in the hands of an experienced pilot, the F-104 had repeatedly shown to be challenging to fly, let alone in their absence. This fact, along with the Starfighter’s advancing age, caused Lockheed to present (in 1971) a proposal for a replacement for the F-104 called CL-1200 Lancer, as detailed by Phillip Friddell in his book F-104 Starfighter In Action.

The Lancer was suggested to employ most F-104 parts possible. Considering that the type was still being produced in both Germany and Italy, this objective could be easily and swiftly achieved. Additionally, the F-104 was still in operation in nine European countries and six other countries, providing a ready market for the new fighter.

The CL-1200 idea, on which the Lancer was based, was created by Lockheed as a side project, and it amounted to a significant reworking of the F-104’s current design. The wing structure was around 53% larger than the Starfighter’s, the vertical tail was expanded, high lift devices, more hardpoints were added to the wings, the intake design was modified, the fuel capacity was significantly increased, and a Pratt & Whitney TF30-P-100 engine was installed. Depending on whether the aircraft was to be a single- or two-seater, the forward fuselage was to be an F-104S or TF-104G section mounted on a thirty-inch fuselage extension.

At first, the Lancer project seemed to hold out the promise of a capable light fighter for the 1980s at a price significantly lower than any brand-new air superiority aircraft. Unfortunately, some in the “Fighter Mafia” of the Air Force believed—possibly mistakenly—that the design may have a negative effect on the advancement of the then-new F-15 Eagle. Political pressure was used as a result, and the experimental name X-27 was given to the CL-1200. The Air Force complied with the suggestion that the type not be manufactured because Friddell said that the Lancer offered only limited scope and technological gains when employed as a research aircraft. No metal was cut, and the project was abandoned.

The Air Force’s reluctance to collaborate with Lockheed on the project had a good deal to do with the fact that the Lancer’s target market had always been Europe. The planned fighter did not provide the “quantum leap” in technology that would have justified significant American financial commitment, even though it could have theoretically given a high-performance aircraft at significantly lower development costs. Additionally, a number of fresh European competitors gave comparable performances.

The Lockheed Lancer: the Super Starfighter that never was

Although a full-scale mockup of the aircraft—which had a wooden fuselage covered in metal skinning and employed an F-104G‘s forward fuselage and landing gear—was built and displayed, no actual flight item was ever produced, and the program quietly died.

Photo by Lockheed Martin

September 3, 2021 0 comment

History

When a KC-135 tanker towed a damaged F-111 fighter bomber over Vietnam

by Till Daisd September 2, 2021

written by Till Daisd

We have a thing that we do call locking the toggles: when you lock the toggles on a receiver you can actually tow him. So we did that and kept giving him fuel

The renowned KC-135 Stratotanker has provided unrivaled aerial refueling and airlift support globally for 60 years to achieve quick global mobility. This aircraft has endured through all of the significant events that the U.S. Air Force (USAF) has participated in.

As you can read in the article titled 60 years in the air: The KC-135 during the Vietnam War. The KC-135 played a crucial role during the Vietnam War as well. According to Airman 1st Class Tara Fadenrecht of the 22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs, the Stratotanker not only made it possible for heavy fighter-bombers to reach North Vietnamese targets and return, but it also towed them back to their bases when they were seriously damaged by enemy action.

“Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! We’ve been struck by a missile,” called the voice on the radio.

The crew of a KC-135 Stratotanker heard the signal over their headsets as they prepared to land at their base after a successful refueling mission during the Vietnam War.

Retired Maj. Jim Hickman was the tanker crew’s navigator when it got the distress signal, and he has clear memories of what happened afterward. When Hickman made the call, the crew members exchanged glances and started to consider their choices.

“Let’s go get him,” he said.

After confirming the location of the F-111 Aardvark in distress, the tanker crew yelled back over the radio and continued flying north until they could see each other.

“He pulled in behind us, we got the boom into the receptacle and started transferring fuel,” said the retired navigator.

The extent of the fighter’s damage wasn’t immediately clear until the boom operator noticed fuel dripping from the aircraft. It would require some imagination to safely return the aircraft and its crew to the base.

“We have a thing that we do call locking the toggles,” said Hickman. “When you lock the toggles on a receiver you can actually tow him. So we did that, and kept giving him fuel.”

The KC-135 flew the plane across the skies of North Vietnam on its way back to Thailand. The boom operator opened the toggles as they approached the base where it was in operation, and the F-111 aircraft glided in for a safe landing.

“That was probably one of the greatest experiences in all my time in the Strategic Air Command,” said Hickman. “There were two crew members on there. If they would have bailed out they’d have been captured and thrown in prison.”

Not just that F-111 crew in danger received assistance from the KC-135. Helping the B-52 Stratofortress was one of the tanker’s main responsibilities during this time.

“We couldn’t have survived without the KC-135 over there,” said retired Maj. Wendell Skinner, former B-52 pilot. “We were flying 16-hour missions out of Guam. We couldn’t carry enough fuel to complete the whole mission.”

With the help of the tankers, the B-52 aircrew was able to reach their destination and finish their mission, saving many lives of U.S. personnel in the process.

“Without the B-52 putting munitions on the ground we couldn’t have supported the [Soldiers and Marines] down there trying to fight the battles,” said the retired pilot. “We were attempting to curtail supply lines, we were hitting weapons arsenals and we were taking out as many of the resources as we could from the enemy so they couldn’t continue to fight. We couldn’t have put bombs on the ground without the KC-135s in the air.”

The only thing left to do after a mission was to safely return to base. Once more, the KC-135s signaled their presence.

“To make it back to Guam we absolutely had to meet that tanker,” said Skinner. “The tankers were always there, they were always on time and they enabled us to complete our mission.”

Photo by Staff Sgt. David S. Nolan, Master Sgt. Patrick Nugent, and Airman Jenna Caldwell U.S. Air Force

September 2, 2021 0 comment

History

The ASM-135A ASAT missile and the F-15 Satellite killer

by Till Daisd September 2, 2021

written by Till Daisd

The first anti-satellite missile launch from an F-15 occurred over the Pacific Ocean on January 21, 1984. No actual target was involved; the ASAT missile was launched toward a predetermined location in space

A high-performance, all-weather air superiority fighter with twin engines, the F-15. The Eagle, which made its debut in 1972, was first used by the U.S. Air Force (USAF) in 1974. The Eagle’s excellent acceleration and maneuverability are among its most remarkable features. It was the first American fighter to have an engine thrust greater than the aircraft’s basic weight, enabling it to accelerate while climbing vertically.

The Eagle was chosen to carry out the satellite-killing mission because of its high thrust-to-weight ratio (which was roughly 1,04 for a nominally laden F-15).

The United States foresaw the Soviet Union developing “killer satellites” that might obliterate crucial American communication and surveillance satellites in the late 1970s.

The F-15 satellite killer and the ASM-135A ASAT missile

The Vought ASM-135A Anti-Satellite (ASAT) missile was selected as the weapon to neutralize this danger. The ASM-135A possessed a number of intriguing features, including the AGM-69 SRAM-A nuclear air-to-surface missile’s first stage and the absence of any warhead, which required direct contact with the target in order to be destroyed. This outcome was made possible by a tiny “homing kinetic kill vehicle” with IR guidance that had to direct the ASAT on the approaching satellite’s heat source.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) controllers would have employed their satellites to follow data of the target to ensure the exact position, as would be the case in a conventional engagement for an anti-satellite operation, to position the F-15 in a holding pattern. In response to NORAD’s order, the F-15 would have made a supersonic rise toward the target before launching the missile. According to Steve Davies and Doug Dildy in their book F-15 Eagle Engaged, the ASAT needed to be launched from an extraordinarily high angle (80,000ft) and high altitude (60-65 degrees).

Airborne experiments using modified F-15 fighters and “captive” (not launched) ASAT missiles with the designation CASM-135A were conducted since 1982.

The first launch of an anti-satellite missile from an F-15 over the Pacific Ocean occurred on January 21, 1984, following zoom tests carried out by two distinct F-15As from the 6512th Test Squadron. No actual target was involved; the ASAT missile was launched toward a predetermined location in space. The IR seeker was fixed to a star’s IR signature (officially referred to as a “celestial IR source”) and three further launches were made in 1985 after the initial one.

These tests, however, served as a warm-up for the one and only actual ASAT launch, which took place on September 13, 1985, when the F-15A 77-0084 destroyed the Solwind P78-1 satellite.

Since Soviet reconnaissance, maritime surveillance, and electronic intelligence satellites were frequently launched into polar orbits, the Solwind P78-1 spectrometer satellite made the ideal target simulator until it was rendered useless in 1985. The Solwind was launched into polar orbit in February 1979 as a spectrometer satellite.

The F-15 was piloted by Maj. Wilbert D. “Doug” Pearson who launched the missile during the operation, which was known as the “Celestial Eagle Flight,” from a height of 38,100 feet. The missile sped into space and zeroed in on the Solwind at a height of 345 miles. The Solwind was destroyed by the ASAT’s 11,000 mph speed and the 17,000 mph speed at which it collided with the satellite 320 miles above the planet.

Despite the test’s astounding success, the solar scientists’ outraged cries that they were still receiving data from the satellite drowned out the joy. Additionally, the ASAT test violated the recently negotiated US-USSR treaty that forbade the use of weapons in space. As a result of these worries, Congress had to reduce funds for the program, causing the USAF to stop developing the anti-satellite mission in 1988.

Pearson tells how he became the only fighter pilot in history to pull off the extraordinary accomplishment of taking down an orbiting satellite in the amazing video down below.

Photo by U.S. Air Force

Additional source: National Museum of the U.S. Air Force

September 2, 2021 0 comment

History

The F-16 test program and USAF’s choice to purchase the Lightweight Fighter

by Till Daisd September 2, 2021

written by Till Daisd

Like every operation to demonstrate a new aircraft, the YF-16 test program had its share of thrilling events

The U.S. Air Force’s (USAF) Lightweight Fighter (LWF) program sought an air superiority day fighter that was compact, light, affordable, and easy to maintain. The LWF was conceived because many people in the fighter community thought that expensive and bulky aircraft like the F-15 Eagle were unsuitable for numerous combat roles.

The General Dynamics YF-16 and the Northrop YF-17 were the two aircraft in competition for the LFW program.

A quick look at the YF-16 test program and at the USAF decision to buy the lightweight fighter — The first flight of the YF-17 occurred on Jun. 6, 1974, at Edwards AFB, California. The second YF-17 flew on Aug. 21, 1974. While never flown head-to-head, the YF-16 and YF-17 went through the same highly structured evaluation process during the competition.

For the LWF competition, two single-seat YF-16 prototypes were created. The first YF-16 was unveiled in Fort Worth on December 13, 1973. It made its maiden flight unintentionally on January 24, 1974, and then on February 2, 1974, as intended. March 9, 1974, saw the first flight of the second prototype. On January 13, 1975, the F-16, now known as the Air Combat Fighter (ACF) program because the LWF program had been renamed, won the fly-off against the Northrop YF-17 prototypes.

As Lou Drendel explains in his book F-16 Fighting Falcon In Action, the YF-16 test program had its share of thrilling events, just like every effort to prove a new aircraft. In two different cases, impurities in the fuel control units drove the F-100 engine to idle thrust, forcing the test pilots to perform dead-stick landings.

“One landing was made from 15,000 feet, on the USAF pilot’s first flight in an F-16, and the other from 1,500 feet, shortly after take-off,” says Drendel. “In neither case was the aircraft damaged. As the program progressed, it became increasingly evident that the YF-16 was going to rewrite the book on air combat maneuvering. It was possible to pull so many Gs, so fast, that the normal G-suit pressure regulator could not keep up, and a newer, faster-acting regulator that could inflate the G-suits at a rate that could keep up with the airplane’s capabilities had to be installed.”

The two YF-16s gained altitude in air battle against one another (most dogfights progress to lower altitudes as the fight occurs). “Starting at 15,000 feet, test pilots generally managed to work the fight up to 30,000 feet. Test pilot Phil Oestricher demonstrated consecutive Immelmann turns, beginning at 5,000 feet and leveling off at 25,000 feet. He indicated that a third Immelmann would have been possible,” continues Drendel. “No fighter then in operational service could have performed such a maneuver.”

A very high rate of test flights was kept up during the whole test program. Six flights were made in a single day within a period of 47 flights in 31 days. Drendel: “This was only possible because of the high degree of reliability of the YF-16’s systems. That reliability was made possible by the fact that many of the systems came from operational aircraft, which also enabled General Dynamics to hold down costs. YF-16s used an environmental control system from the A-7, control actuators from the F-111, the nose wheel from the F-4, main gear wheels and tires from the B-58, an air starter from the C-5, and the ejection seat, air data computer, generator drive and engine from the F-15.”

The USAF chose the F-16 because of these aspects, as well as the F-100 engine’s proven reliability and employment in the F-15, as well as its shown performance superiority in acceleration and overall in the transonic drag regime. After deliberating, the Navy decided to use the F/A-18, a YF-17 variant.

“Much of the resistance to an Air Force buy of the lightweight fighter had centered around the theory that it would only be an American MiG-21… small, with good acceleration and turning capability, but short on range and severely limited in diversity. When the performance of the prototypes indicated that the F-16 would exceed the MiG-21 in all categories, with none of its performance shortcomings, the Air Force did a 180 degree and began to look forward to adding the F-16 to its inventory,” concludes Drendel.

Photo by Lockheed Martin

September 2, 2021 0 comment

History

The Saudi F-15s’ controversial kills during Operation Desert Storm

by Till Daisd September 2, 2021

written by Till Daisd

The two Mirage kills achieved by RSAF F-15s were very certainly motivated by a political direction meant to highlight an Arab country. Existing sources indicate that the F1s were shot down just minutes after being able to engage their objectives

Under the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program Peace Sun, the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) ordered 16 F-15Ds and 46 F-15Cs (without some of the aircraft’s Tactical Electronic Warfare System components and sensitive radar modes). The purchase came after the Saudi monarchy made a concentrated effort to overcome a capability gap between the RSAF and the F-14 Tomcat aircraft of the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF).

The U.S. administration had to take into account some very important political issues as a result of Peace Sun, not the least of which was how the sale was certain to be received by the ever-vigilant Israelis. The RSAF Eagles were downgraded to make them less effective, especially against avionics and weaponry produced in the United States, in order to reduce such tensions.

Nevertheless, in reaction to Operation Desert Shield in late 1990, 24 more jets were hurriedly delivered to the RSAF by U.S. Air Forces in Europe (USAFE) units.

According to Steve Davies in his book F-15C Eagle Units In Combat, on January 24, 1991, Capt. Ayehid Salah al-Shamrani, an F-15 pilot with No 13 Squadron, engaged and downed two Iraqi Air Force (IrAF) Mirage F1EQs, giving the RSAF its sole air-to-air victory during Operation Desert Storm. Although the details of the confrontation are vague, Davies was informed by American sources that Salah was pointed in the direction of the Mirages as soon as they were seen taking off and traveling toward coalition naval warships in the Persian Gulf.

According to reports, a USAF AWACS gave the RSAF Eagle strong vectors, but Salah supposedly found it difficult to accomplish the intercept. Salah was guided step-by-step into position behind the French-made fighters as time to get behind the Mirages, who were aiming their anti-ship Exocet missiles at the naval ships, was rapidly running out. The two AIM-9P Sidewinders he eventually used guided directly to their targets.

An F-15 Eagle aircraft of the Royal Saudi Air Force takes off during Operation Desert Shield.

As reported by Donald J. McCarthy, Jr. in his book “T he Raptors All F-15 and F-16 aerial combat victories,” after the engagement Salah commented during a media interview: “They started breaking in front of me, but it was too late. It was my day.”

One former F-15 pilot observed: “There are several very valid questions to ask about these kills. Firstly, why is the pilot of an aircraft designed to kill BVR doing a stern conversion to visual range without firing a shot? Secondly, where was his wingman during all this? Thirdly, he fired both missiles while they were still ‘caged’ if I remember correctly.”

According to Davies, it was routine procedure to “uncage” the seeker from the radar before firing since it allowed the pilot to confirm that the seeker was tracking the target. Within the fighter pilot community, it was considered a faux pas to “uncage.”

Unsurprisingly, during Desert Storm, RSAF F-15s were kept far from the “coalface,” flying what was known as “Goalie CAPs” for the remainder of the conflict. The RSAF Eagles were effectively placed in a position where they could not obstruct the efforts of the rest of the Coalition by “Goalie CAPs” that were deployed some distance below the Iraq/Saudi border.

The level of professionalism, skill, and pride among the RSAF is allegedly at best mediocre, despite one USAF pilot who did an exchange tour with them in the 1990s telling Davies that two specific Saudi F-15 pilots were the best Eagle pilots he had ever met.

It is almost clear that a political instruction intended to highlight an Arab nation was the driving force behind these two Mirage kills. The presence of nearby U.S. Navy F-14 Tomcats, which were claimed to have been in an equally favorable position to engage the Mirages and could have done so more quickly and competently, is perhaps the strongest circumstantial evidence in favor of this theory.

According to the information that is currently available, the F1s were shot down just minutes after being able to engage their objectives.

The controversial kills scored by Saudi F-15s during Operation Desert Storm — An F-15 Eagle aircraft of the Royal Saudi Air Force takes off during Operation Desert Shield.

Photo by Tech. Sgt. Hans H. Deffner / U.S. Air Force

September 2, 2021 0 comment

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