--------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F3T00004 Date: 03/20/98 From: CHRISTOPHER TARANA Time: 11:11pm \/To: DANIEL STARNES (Read 0 times) Subj: Re: F-7 Tigercat DS> Anyone out there have details and/or experience with the F-7 DS> Tigercat? I've seen a model of one but am having trouble finding any DS> more information about this plane. Daniel, here's some additional information I dragged out of the basement for you regarding the F7F Tigercat, as well as the later F11F Tiger and Supertiger The Grumman F7F Tigercat The F7F Tigercat was ordered by the Navy on the same day in June of 1941 that it ordered the F6F Hellcat. The Navy had been studying air combat in Europe the previous two years, and concluded that the things that mattered most were engine power, armament, protective armor and self-sealing tanks. At a time when the average U.S. Navy fighter had 1,000 hp and two machine guns, the Bureau of Aeronautics asked Grumman to build a fighter with more than 4,000 hp and a weight of fire more than 100 times as great. The F6F project advanced quickly due to its more modest goals, resulting in the introduction into battle of the war-winning Hellcat in early 1943. The F7F project, being far more ambitious, meant that the first Tigercat prototype did not fly until December of 1943, and the first service deliveries did not take place until October of 1944. Tigercats were deployed to Guam and Okinawa in May of 1945 and saw limited combat in the waning days of the war. Had the invasion of Japan been necessary, the tremedous versatility of the F7F design would probably have resulted in its becoming the Navy's single most effective and valuable aircraft. In 1945, the F7F Tigercat was the fastest aircraft in the sky at low altitude, was almost as fast as the Mustang at high altitude, had an absolutely devastating firepower of four 20-mm cannon (200 rpg) and four .50 caliber machine guns (300 rpg), could outmaneuver a P-38 or a Japanese "Nick" (two contempory twin-engine designs) and could outclimb everything but an F8F Bearcat. As a fighter bomber, it could be equipped with a torpedo, or two 1,000 lb bombs, or six rockets. The rugged, battle-tested design of its two air-cooled 2,100 hp radial Pratt & Whitney R-2800-22W Double Wasp engines and excellent protective armor meant that it could sustain battle damage that no other fighter could withstand and still get its pilot back home. In addition, the F7F was roomy enough to incorporate a second seat and a radar operator, resulting in a night fighter as capable as the newest and fastest USAAF model - the P-61C Black Widow. With the veterans of Japanese airforce largely shot out the sky, the emphasis for Naval air missions would have shifted from air-to-air combat to ground attack sorties such as attacks on kamikazi aerodomes, interdiction of rail and other ground transport facilities and strikes against coastal shipping, all for which the F7F Tigercat was imminently suited. As it turned out, of course, the Tigercat as an air-to-air fighter wound up only a footnote in the history of aviation. Like so many other excellent aircraft of its era, the Tigercat as an air superiority fighter was made obsolete by the dawn of the age of jets. By the time the Navy found itself in air-to-air combat five years later in the skies over Korea, it was meeting that challenge with its first jets, most notably the Tigercat's (and Bearcat's) direct successor, the Grumman F9F Panther. But the Tigercat lived on in Korea as the Navy's and Marine's most advanced night-fighter until replaced late in that war by the jet-powered F3D Skyknight. The Tigercat also was used heavily by the shore-based Marines in Korea as a very capable ighter -bomber, supplementing the work of F4U Corsairs, AD-1 Skyraiders, F9F Panthers and F2H Banshees in critically important Naval and Marine close-air and interdiction strikes against the North Korean and Chinese Communists. e-mail: phartl@siopmag.ucsd.edu Phone: 619-587-8878 (home) 619-534-6531 (office) The Grumman F11F Tiger and F11F-F1 SuperTiger The Grumman F11F Tiger's two greatest claims to fame were both results of peacetime activities. To many of us "boomers" who grew up in the fifties and sixties, the F11F Tiger was THE Blue Angels jet. The Angels flew the Tiger from 1957 to 1969, the longest period for any aircraft, a period which corresponded to the duration of conscious childhood for me. Indeed, when the Angels finally changed over to F-4J Phantoms in 1969, I felt as if I'd lost an old friend! The Tiger's other claim to fame is not nearly as glorious, however, as it was the only U.S. military aircraft known to have shot itself down! This decidedly inglorious incident occurred in September 1956 when Grumman test pilot Tom Attridge was test firing the craft's 20-mm cannon in a dive and somehow managed to catch up with his own projectiles! There were at least three hits, one on the windshield, one on the nose cone and one on the starboard intake which apparently was subsequently ingested by the engine. Attridge managed to get out of the aircraft after a crash landing. The F11F Tiger started out as a proposed design modification of the F9F Cougar to incorporate the newly discovered "area rule" concept to reduce transonic drag and push the jet through Mach 1. The plan soon evolved into a completely new design, and by spring 1953, the F11F project had begun. The area rule stated that the total frontal cross-sectional area of the aircraft must be maintained down the length of the aircraft. Thus, where wings and tail surfaces joined the fuselage, the fuselage cross section must be reduced to allow for the increase in frontal area presented by those components. This gave rise to the "coke bottle" fuselage shapes of this and other aircraft of its era (most notably Republic's F-105 Thunderchief). The design worked. The F11F exceeded Mach 1 in level flight soon into its test program in the fall of 1954, even though the specified engine was not yet ready. When the F11F finally was properly engined, it was with a 7,400/10,500 lb thrust dry/afterburning J65-W-18, which gave it top speed of 754 mph and a rate of climb about 10,000 ft/min. However, rapid advances in jet engine design during this period made this performance almost obsolete before the F11F could reach its destination squadrons. Vought, McDonnell, Douglas and others were all vying for a shot at becoming the Navy's number one fighter contractor, and this time Grumman had taken a misstep. Grumman of course soon realized this, and quickly drew up plans for a Super Tiger, designated F11F-1F, to be powered by a 9,600/15,000 lb thrust dry/afterburning General Electric YJ79-GE-3. This version of the F11F first flew in May 1956 and attained a speed of Mach 2 and set an altitude record of 80,250 feet a year later. But it was too late. Vought had in the meantime won the competition for first-line fighter with its excellent F8U Crusader, and McDonnell-Douglas sealed up all possible chances for a Grumman comeback shortly thereafter with its superb F4 Phantom. All in all, just 200 or so F11F Tigers served with the Navy as front-line fighters from March 1957 to April 1961. If the F11F-1F Super Tiger had been available a bit sooner, these would almost surely have seen action over Vietnam in the middle and late sixties, but this was not to be. Grumman had lost out, and for the first time in 28 years, since even before the F4F Wildcats of Midway and Guadalcanal fame, no Grumman fighters were protecting the fleet. Not until 1974 did Grumman make its fighter comeback with the F-14A Tomcats. 20 years later, F-14 Tomcats still patrol the skies over the fleet as its first-line fighter. Specifications F11F-1 F11F-1F Dimensions: Span 31'7" 31'7" Length 46'11" 48'9" Height 13'3" 14'5" Wing Area, sq. ft. 250 250 Weights (lb): Empty 14,330 16,457 Loaded 21,280 23,360 Max 24,078 26,086 Performance: Max speed, mph 754(s.l.) 1,325 (35K ft) Cruise speed, mph 578 580 Climb rate, ft/min 10,000* 30,000* Service Ceiling, ft. 42,000 50,300 Normal range, miles 1,275 1,136 Powerplant, type J65-W-18 YJ79-GE-8 Powerplant, lb. thrust 7,400/10,500 9,600/15,000 (dry/afterburning) Armament: 4x 20mm cannon 4x 20mm cannon Weapons load: 4,000 lb. 2,000 lb. Weapons types: Bombs, 5-in HVAR or HPAG rockets, Sidewinder (* Rene Francillon gives unrealistically low climb rates for both Tiger versions, so I have put down estimates based on power/weight ratios and comparisons with other similar aircraft such as the F3H Demon and F8U Crusader. His numbers are 5,130 and 8,950 ft/min.) Reference Source: "Grumman Aircraft Since 1929" by Rene J. Francillon e-mail: phartl@siopmag.ucsd.edu Phone: 619-587-8878 (home) 619-534-6531 (office) Have Fun, Christopher ... "Do you suppose we've died and gone to the Army?" -- Trapper ___ Blue Wave/DOS v2.30 [NR] --- Maximus 3.01 * Origin: Odyssey BBS (1:3603/73) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F3T00005 Date: 03/21/98 From: JIM SANDERS Time: 11:38am \/To: DEREK WAKEFIELD (Read 0 times) Subj: Re: f-101 voodoo retirem DEREK, In a message dated 03-19-98 you wrote ... > Still, I'd be very interested in finding out what was the last > unit to fly the 101B. You might be able to get the information from the USAF Museum at Dayton, OH or the the Air University Historical division at Maxwell AFB, AL. I do not have address readily available. -=* Jim Sanders *=- === * MsgView V1.13 [R028] * Rock filled clouds are dangerous. --- DB 1.39/004487 * Origin: Volunteer BBS (423) 694-0791 V34+/VFC (1:218/1001.1) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F3T00006 Date: 03/21/98 From: JIM SANDERS Time: 12:06pm \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: News-099 Boeing adds to job losses 8,200 positions eliminated as part of plan to discontinue MD-80, MD-90 NEW YORK -- March 20, 1998: 11:40 a.m. ET -- Boeing Co., the world's largest aircraft maker, will cut an additional 8,200 jobs as part of a previously announced plan to streamline operations in the wake of its acquisitions of McDonnell Douglas Corp. and Rock- well International Corp.'s defense operations. The cuts, which represent about 3.4 percent of the combined company's work force of 238,000, come as part of its November 1997 announcement to discontinue the MD-80 and MD-90 jetliner programs. Boeing noted the latest decisions will not require an addition- al one-time charge against earnings. Boeing already has disclosed in January that discontinuing the MD-80 and MD-90 programs would result in pretax inventory write-offs of $1.4 billion. The layoffs come on top of the 12,000 positions to be cut in the commercial airplane business starting in the second half of 1998, as announced in December. In addition, Boeing expects its restructuring to reduce its fa- cilities by about 18 million square feet, or more than 15 percent, by the end of the year 2000. "As a result of the merger with McDonnell Douglas and acquisition of Rockwell's aerospace and defense operations, we are strategically realigning the use of our facilities to provide better value to our customers and shareholders," said Phil Condit, Boeing chairman and chief executive. "These actions are in addition to ongoing initiatives to improve productivity and reduce costs," Condit said in a prepared statement. Boeing acquired the aerospace and defense operations of Rockwell in December 1996 and merged with McDonnell Douglas on Aug. 1, 1997. (Recent report says up to 20,000 may be laid off. Jim) -------------------------------------------------------------------- Bankrupt Pan Am may become charter-only carrier MIAMI - March 20, 1998 09:01 a.m. EST -- Unable to find a multi- millionaire investor to come to the rescue, Pan Am Corp. is ready to give up the idea of resuming scheduled service and instead scale back and become a charter carrier. Pan Am conceded defeat in the cash hunt Thursday and asked a bankruptcy judge to pull the plug on a $60,000-a-day life-support system at a hearing scheduled for Friday. The grounded airline has been paying the money on seven aircraft leases with the hope that a bailout would allow it to resume scheduled service a day or two after getting fresh money. But three potential investors have fallen through since flights were canceled Feb. 27, and U.S. Bankruptcy Judge A. Jay Cristol is anxious to stop what he repeatedly has called the "bleeding" at Pan Am. Cristol had suggested shrinking Pan Am to a charter operation, and a proposed business plan would allow Pan Am to generate a profit from charter flights on the three planes it owns. Pan Am may try again to become a full-fledged airline "after the company has re-established itself in the marketplace as a healthy, soundly managed, charter-only operation," but no time soon, said Paul Singerman, attorney for the creditors committee. In the three weeks since Pan Am's shutdown, 1980s corporate raider Carl Icahn, high-tech millionaire Milan Mandaric and bank- ruptcy investor Rothschild Recovery Fund have come and gone from investment talks. Pan Am began flying in 1928 and went bankrupt in 1991. Investors bought the name, and a new low-priced carrier resumed flying with the familiar blue-globe logo two years ago. Before shutting down last month, Pan Am was carrying 5,000 pas- sengers daily to 14 cities in Florida, the Northeast, Midwest and Puerto Rico. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Boeing to close out Oak Ridge defense work By Frank Munger, News-Sentinel Oak Ridge bureau OAK RIDGE -- Boeing will phase out defense-related work at its Oak Ridge plant over the next couple of years, which could eliminate about 100 jobs, the company announced Friday. Oak Ridge officials, however, said they hope to avoid any lay- offs by building the plant's production of commercial airplane parts. The Oak Ridge plant currently employs 966 workers. "Boeing in Oak Ridge is looking at this change as an opportunity to gain additional commercial work which supports our strategic plan," Fred Eckler, general manager of the Oak Ridge facility, said in a prepared statement. The changes are part of a national "organization realignment" an- nounced this week by Boeing, which is based in Seattle. The corpora- tion announced it would eliminate 8,200 jobs over the next two years, mostly in California, and is planning to shut down some facilities, continuing the fallout from the merger with McDonnell Douglas and acquisition of aerospace operations from Rockwell International. Under the new structure, Boeing's Oak Ridge plant will report to the Boeing Commercial Airplane Group instead of the Boeing Informa- tion, Space and Defense Systems. The plant's workload has grown in recent years, with 90 percent now involving parts for commercial airplane parts. The Oak Ridge facility manufactures instrument panels and pilot consoles for Boe- ing's entire family of airplanes. Amy Jones, a Boeing spokeswoman, said the Oak Ridge plant has hired about 250 workers in the past couple of years. Jones said eliminating 100 jobs would be a "worst-case scenario." Defense projects, which are being phased out, varied over the years and currently constitute about 10 percent of the workload. Jones said the plant recently completed a contract that involved modifications to 100 Cruise missiles. Other defense-related projects include work on the Airborne Warning and Control System and the Avenger air-defense system. === --- DB 1.39/004487 * Origin: Volunteer BBS (423) 694-0791 V34+/VFC (1:218/1001.1) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F3T00007 Date: 03/21/98 From: JIM SANDERS Time: 12:07pm \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: Aviation history 22 November 16, 1959. Air Force Capt. Joseph W. Kittinger, Jr., after ascending to an altitude of 76,400 feet in Excelsior I, an open-gondola balloon (setting three unofficial altitude records on the way), makes the longest free-fall parachute jump in history (64,000 feet) in two minutes, fifty-eight seconds at White Sands, N.M. December 1, 1959. A new enlisted grade E-9, chief master serg- eant, is created. December 11, 1959. Dudley C. Sharp becomes Secretary of the Air Force. December 15, 1959. Maj. Richard W. Rogers regains the world speed record for the US, as he pilots his Convair F-106 Delta Dart to a speed of 1,525.6 mph at an altitude of 40,550 feet at Edwards AFB, Calif. December 15, 1959. Maj. Joseph Rogers sets the recognized ab- solute speed record of 1,525.965 mph in a Convair F-106A at Edwards AFB, Calif. December 30, 1959. The first US ballistic missile-carrying sub- marine, USS George Washington (SSBN-598), is commissioned at Groton, Conn. January 25, 1960. In what is billed as the "first known kill of a ballistic missile," an Army MIM-23 HAWK antiaircraft missile downs an unarmed MGR-1 Honest John surface-to-surface unguided rocket. March 22, 1960. The Civil Aeronautics Board reports that slightly more than ten percent of revenue passenger miles flown in scheduled domestic operations during 1959 were flown by pure jet aircraft. March 29, 1960. The Naval Weapons Station Annex at Charleston, S.C., opens. It will provide a final assembly capability for UGM-27 Polaris sea-launched ballistic missiles and also a capability for loading them on submarines. April 1, 1960. The RCA-built TIROS 1 (Television Infrared Obser- vation Satellite), the world's first meteorological satellite, is successfully launched from Cape Canaveral Missile Test Annex, Fla., atop a Thor launch vehicle. April 4, 1960. Project Ozma is initiated at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory at Green Bank, W.Va., to listen for possible signal patterns from outer space other than "natural" noise. April 22, 1960. A federal court of appeals upholds a Federal Aviation Administration order that automatically grounds pilots over sixty years old. May 1, 1960. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) pilot Francis Gary Powers, flying a Lockheed U-2 reconnaissance aircraft, is shot down over the Soviet Union near Sverdlovsk. He is captured and later put on trial for espionage. The incident creates an international furor, and a superpower summit scheduled for later in the month is canceled. In 1962, Mr. Powers will be exchanged for Soviet KGB agent Rudolf Abel. May 20, 1960. The Air Force launches from Cape Canaveral Missile Test Annex a Convair HGM-16 Atlas ICBM that carries a 1.5-ton pay- load 9,040 miles to the Indian Ocean. This is the greatest distance ever flown by a US ICBM. May 21, 1960. The last World War II era North American B-25 Mitchell is retired from active Air Force service at Eglin AFB, Fla. July 20, 1960. The first underwater launch of a Lockheed UGM-27 Polaris ballistic missile is successfully carried out from USS George Washington (SSBN-598) off Cape Canaveral Missile Test Annex. August 16, 1960. At an altitude of 102,800 feet over Tularosa, N.M., Air Force Capt. Joseph W. Kittinger, Jr., makes the ultimate leap of faith. In the four and a half minutes between stepping out of the balloon's open gondola and opening his parachute, he free falls 84,700 feet, reaching a speed of 614 mph. Captain Kittinger lands unharmed thirteen minutes, forty-five seconds after jumping. This the highest jump and longest free fall ever recorded. September 21, 1960. Tactical Air Command formally accepts the first Republic F-105D Thunderchief all-weather fighter in ceremonies at Nellis AFB, Nev. The aircraft will not officially enter service until the following year, when deliveries to Seymour Johnson AFB, N.C., begin. October 1, 1960. Ballistic Missile Early Warning System radar post at Thule, Greenland, begins regular operations, part of chain of three planned installations to warn of air or missile attacks on North America over an Arctic route. January 12, 1961. A B-58 Hustler piloted by Maj. Henry J. Deutschendorf, Jr., sets six international speed and payload records on a single flight, thus breaking five previous records held by the Soviet Union. On January 14, another B-58 from the same wing breaks three of the records set on January 12. January 24, 1961. Eugene M. Zuckert becomes Secretary of the Air Force. January 31, 1961. A chimpanzee named Ham is launched atop a Red- stone booster from Cape Canaveral Missile Test Annex in a test of the Mercury manned capsule. February 1, 1961. The first Boeing LGM-30A Minuteman ICBM is launched from Cape Canaveral Missile Test Annex. It travels 4,600 miles and hits the target area. This is the first time a first-test missile is launched with all systems and stages functioning. February 3, 1961. SAC's Boeing EC-135 Airborne Command Post be- gins operations. Dubbed "Looking Glass," the planes and their equip- ment provide a backup means of controlling manned bombers and launching landbased ICBMs in case a nuclear attack wipes out conven- tional command-and-control systems. April 12, 1961. The Soviet Union stuns the world with the first successful manned spaceflight. Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin is not only history's first spaceman. He is also the first person to orbit the Earth. May 5, 1961. Cmdr. Alan B. Shepard, Jr., USN, becomes the first Project Mercury astronaut to cross the space frontier. His flight in Freedom 7 lasts fifteen minutes, twenty-eight seconds, reaches an altitude of 116.5 miles, and ends 303.8 miles downrange. === --- DB 1.39/004487 * Origin: Volunteer BBS (423) 694-0791 V34+/VFC (1:218/1001.1) --------------- FIDO MESSAGE AREA==> TOPIC: 196 AVIATION Ref: F3T00008 Date: 03/21/98 From: JIM SANDERS Time: 07:15pm \/To: ALL (Read 0 times) Subj: News-100 Cause of chopper safety hazard eludes Army BOSTON -- March 21, 1998 10:06 a.m. EST -- Several months after it restricted flights of UH-1 helicopters, the military says it is unable to find the source of a potentially catastrophic mechanical problem, The Boston Globe reported Saturday. Nonetheless, the Army and National Guard have decided to continue to operate the helicopters, despite predictions that gearbox fail- ures are likely to occur more than once a month. "It amazes us that they are continuing to let us fly," a Massa- chusetts National Guard pilot told the newspaper on condition of anonymity. "I have never seen a situation where they are predicting engine failures and they continue to operate the aircraft." The choppers, nicknamed Hueys, have a history of gearbox problems that were blamed for some near disasters last year. Pilots reported the engines would speed up while the gauges dropped to zero. According to a Feb. 24 memo obtained by the Globe, there were 22 "mishaps" related to the so-called N2 gearbox between August 1996 and January 1998. None resulted in a death. "Since November, several additional N2 failures have occurred," the memo states. "At current (operational) tempo an average of 1.25 to 1.5 mishaps per month can be expected to occur." So far, neither the Army nor the National Guard has come up with a solution to fix the gearboxes. The memo says it may be up to a year before any repairs are begun and three years before all Hueys are fixed. The Army and the National Guard in November ordered nationwide restrictions on the aircraft, including bans on night flying, flying over mountains and water, and operations such as firefighting, ex- cept for lifesaving operations. Massachusetts went a step further by restricting the choppers' flight patterns and barring them from within 35 miles of Boston. Bob Hunt, spokesman for the Army Aviation Missile Command at Redstone, Ala., said a safety team reviewed options that include banning the helicopters altogether. "The Army has looked at the situation and believes the flight restrictions currently in use will be adequate to ensure the safety of the operators," he said. "Should anything change they will change the status of those flight restrictions." ------------------------------------------------------------------- Blown tires blow schedules at Washington-area airport WASHINGTON - March 21, 1998 10:01 a.m. EST - The main runway at Washington's Ronald Reagan National Airport was closed Friday when a Delta Air Lines plane blew two tires after landing and came to rest just inches from the end of the tarmac. No one was hurt and the 113 passengers aboard the MD-80 aircraft were taken by bus to the terminal, airport spokeswoman Tara Hamilton said. The incident occurred around 6:10 p.m. EST, during one of the busiest periods at the airport. Hamilton said after the baggage was unloaded, the plane probably would have to be towed. "Delta flight 1418 from Atlanta landed safely," she said. "After landing, two tires were blown and the plane is on the very edge of the runway." ------------------------------------------------------------------- Washed-out runway might have contributed to deadly plane collision CORONA, Calif. -- March 21, 1998 09:48 a.m. EST -- The deadly collision between two small planes occurred while one pilot was circling the city while he waited for repairs on a runway that had been partly washed away by recent El Nino storms. Perry Armstrong, 56, a veteran flight instructor based at Corona Municipal Airport, was awaiting the scheduled 5 p.m. reopening of the airport's lone runway Thursday when his single-engine Cessna hit a twin-engine Cessna carrying two men. All three men died as the planes crashed into a large house and 12 condominum units. No one was hurt on the ground, but several homes were damaged by fires ignited by the crashes. "It may not have happened if normal operations were in effect," said Roger Conway, chief flight instructor at Armstrong's training school. Corona's runway was closed for most of Thursday so crews could build a wall to divert water from the runway. The victims on the twin-engine Cessna were Lee H. Hunter, 49, also a flight instructor, and David Jay Cash, 56. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Four killed in plane crash NEW LEBANON, Ind. - March 21, 1998 08:48 a.m. EST -- Four people were killed when their plane crashed behind a residential area here, authorities said. Indiana State Police troopers said the plane went down Friday evening in this town about 30 miles south of Terre Haute. The victims' names were not released. Authorities said they were from the Aurora-Downers Grove suburbs of Chicago. Steve Fortner said he saw the plane nose dive into the ground while he sat on his back porch. "The noise came out of nowhere," Fortner told the Sullivan Daily Times. "It went straight into the ground and exploded." Fortner said he went to the scene and saw a man sitting in the pilot's seat in the burning plane, but flames prevented him from attempting a rescue before the plane exploded. === --- DB 1.39/004487 * Origin: Volunteer BBS (423) 694-0791 V34+/VFC (1:218/1001.1)