The Airplane Thread

[Llarry]

A look at the calendar reveals that it is Tomcat Thursday, so here's a photo of an F-14B of FITRON 32 "Fighting Swordsmen" trapping. VF-32 was one of the few Tomcat squadrons to get F-14B and F-14D aircraft with the much better F110 engine.

A minor footnote: I will be moving from my llama farm to a house in town in several weeks. It's likely that the resultant chaos will take me off-line for a bit so I will be missing in action for a while. Fear not... Tomcat Thursday shall return!

[sygazelle]

Originally Posted by Llarry

A look at the calendar reveals that it is Tomcat Thursday, so here's a photo of an F-14B of FITRON 32 "Fighting Swordsmen" trapping. VF-32 was one of the few Tomcat squadrons to get F-14B and F-14D aircraft with the much better F110 engine.

A minor footnote: I will be moving from my llama farm to a house in town in several weeks. It's likely that the resultant chaos will take me off-line for a bit so I will be missing in action for a while. Fear not... Tomcat Thursday shall return!

Good luck with your move. Hopefully you will be able to go back and visit the farm if you like. New chapter. Go forward!

Thanks for all of your airplane posts. This thread is awesome thanks to you.

[asianF22]

Piaggio P.180 Avanti

[Lady Jane]

Originally Posted by asianF22

Piaggio P.180 Avanti

FIFY.

[M-technik-3]

Israeli F-16I with conformal tanks to free spots and 4 Rampage missiles. F-16 is no longer nor has been a light weight fighter in years. Wonder what a I model weighs with all the fuel tanks and weapons

[asianF22]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

FIFY.

LUL, I thought i proof read it...

[asianF22]

some BTS, before tomorrow’s air show…

[ezaircon4jc]

Originally Posted by asianF22

Piaggio P.180 Avanti

I used to love working those! They climbed like homesick angels! They'd get up and out of Dodge quickly and FAST! They are a controller's dream... TRACON & tower controllers anyway.

[Llarry]

A pair of "enemies" in formation. An F-14A of Naval Reserve squadron VF-301 and an A-4F adversary aircraft of VFC-13.

There were four USNR F-14A squadrons which long ago went away as budgets were cut.

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by Llarry

Here's a comparison between the Vought F-8 Crusader -- the first truly supersonic U.S. Navy/Marine fighter, which first flew in 1955 -- and the Vought A-7 Corsair II -- a design derived from the F-8 but optimized for the attack mission, which first flew in 1965. The A-7 took the basic design of the F-8 and:
-- Shortened the airframe to allow more aircraft on the crowded decks of aircraft carriers
-- Replaced the afterburning J57 engine of the F-8 with a fuel-sipping non-afterburning turbofan
-- Modified the wing for additional fuel capacity and subsonic flight
-- Added more wing pylons for carrying weapons or external fuel
-- Substituted attack-oriented radar for the fighter's air intercept radar

In the late 1980s, the U.S. Air Force, which had purchased the A-7D variant attack aircraft based on the Navy A-7 design, explored making the A-7 back into a supersonic aircraft. The Air Force's YA-7F was a prototype for a lengthened A-7D with a slightly taller tail and an afterburning F100 engine (as used in the F-15 and F-16). The YA-7F first flew in late 1989 and was a casualty of the end of the Cold War. The A-7Ds were phased out and their mission was assumed by the F-16 Viper. Just two YA-7Fs were converted from A-7Ds and are now just museum exhibits.

[flybigjet]

Originally Posted by Llarry

In the late 1980s, the U.S. Air Force, which had purchased the A-7D variant attack aircraft based on the Navy A-7 design, explored making the A-7 back into a supersonic aircraft. The Air Force's YA-7F was a prototype for a lengthened A-7D with a slightly taller tail and an afterburning F100 engine (as used in the F-15 and F-16). The YA-7F first flew in late 1989 and was a casualty of the end of the Cold War. The A-7Ds were phased out and their mission was assumed by the F-16 Viper. Just two YA-7Fs were converted from A-7Ds and are now just museum exhibits.

Here's a pretty famous A-7 patch.

Yes, the Guard Bum's actually got away with wearing it-- it was a slightly different time.

I'd crack up every time I saw one.

R.

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by flybigjet

Here's a pretty famous A-7 patch.

That patch reminds me that I failed to mention the A-7 Corsair II's unofficial nickname: SLUF (Short Little Ugly F****r). Nobody *ever* called it the Corsair II. Had the A-7F ever seen service, I don't think anyone would've continued to call it a SLUF, particularly if they had replaced the round nose radome with something pointy.

[Llarry]

Carrier-based aircraft, like any other aircraft, occasionally encounter difficulties of one kind or another in flight. Poor weather conditions or mechanical issues can interfere with the successful completion of the mission. An aircraft can run low on fuel and suffer a malfunction in the refueling probe.

At its most serious, such situations can result in the loss of the aircraft and crew -- or perhaps a search for surviving crew.

Depending on where the carrier is operating, an aircraft that cannot land back aboard the ship can divert to a nearby airfield. Sometimes there is no suitable divert airfield location and the aircraft must be recovered aboard to avoid loss.

Under those circumstances, a large barrier can be erected in the carrier's landing area. A landing into the barrier may result in damage to the aircraft, but that is preferrable to the loss of the aircraft.

Modern U.S. Navy carriers have two such barriers that can be rigged if the normal arresting cables are insufficient. Here are two illustrations of a barrier engagement:
1) An A-7 SLUF a split-second before engaging the barrier.
2) An F-8 Crusader after engaging the barrier. After a landing into the barrier, the landing area will be unavailable until the aircraft can be moved out of the way and the barrier unrigged. If there are other aircraft in the air, there may be anxious moments as fuel supplies dwindle. Note that in the photo of the F-8 it appears that the airplane landed with landing gear up and on the right side just aft/below the national insignia, the emergency generator/hydraulic pump is deployed.

[Llarry]

Tomcat Thursday!

[Llarry]

In a sign of the impending retirement of the U.S. Navy's manned SIGINT aircraft, all Lockheed EP-3Es have returned from overseas to their home base at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington.

[Lady Jane]

Originally Posted by Llarry

In a sign of the impending retirement of the U.S. Navy's manned SIGINT aircraft, all Lockheed EP-3Es have returned from overseas to their home base at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington.

A tidbit of information on the P3/CP140. The engines were the same as the C-130E/H. but mounted on top of the wing. One reason was ground clearance. The other reason was that the exhaust was important to keep this stubby rigid wing flying. It was SOP to shut down one during those 10–14-hour maritime patrol flights to conserve fuel. But losing two of them, made the aircraft hard to control.

Growing-up, my parents often hosted backyard BBQs. Not only the Fighter communities but also VP. And as a child, I was privy to a lot of F bombs on the subject.

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

It was SOP to shut down one during those 10–14-hour maritime patrol flights to conserve fuel. But losing two of them, made the aircraft hard to control.

On my 1973 flights in the earlier EP-3B SIGINT aircraft, the aircraft were far heavier with all that electronic equipment, and we usually flew 10-hour missions. We did not shut down engines unless there was a problem. There frequently seemed to be a problem and on one mission that I flew, we lost two engines and had to reduce altitude. For the SIGINT mission, altitude is critical: The higher the altitude, the farther your systems can "see."

[Llarry]

Every two years, Chinese aerospace companies hold a trade show and air show at Zhuhai. The 2024 show is on now. I don't follow Chinese aviation very closely, but here are some photos...

-- People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) Z-21 helicopter (an improved version of the Sikorsky H-60)

-- PLAN carrier-based J-15T Flanker fighter. The J-15T is equipped for catapult launches and arrested landings. To my knowledge, the Russian Navy Flankers all used ski jumps for takeoffs.

-- Y-8 Antisubmarine aircraft/maritime patrol aircraft

-- J-35A prototype 5th-generation fighter (the '75' on the tail commemorates the 75th anniversary of the founding of the PLA)

[Llarry]

The largest piston aircraft engine ever built in the United States was Lycoming's XR-7755. The -7755 was a liquid-cooled radial engine with 4 banks of 9 cylinders each. It was intended to power a very heavy bomber, which became the Convair B-36. But in the event, the B-36 was powered by six Pratt & Whitney R-4360 air-cooled engines. The XR-7755 never flew.

[flybigjet]

Originally Posted by Llarry

Every two years, Chinese aerospace companies hold a trade show and air show at Zhuhai. The 2024 show is on now. I don't follow Chinese aviation very closely, but here are some photos...

-- People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) Z-21 helicopter (an improved version of the Sikorsky H-60)

-- PLAN carrier-based J-15T Flanker fighter. The J-15T is equipped for catapult launches and arrested landings. To my knowledge, the Russian Navy Flankers all used ski jumps for takeoffs.

-- Y-8 Antisubmarine aircraft/maritime patrol aircraft

-- J-35A prototype 5th-generation fighter (the '75' on the tail commemorates the 75th anniversary of the founding of the PLA)

Yeaaaahhhh-- absolutely no industrial espionage going on in their aircraft design there!

R.

[E92_William]

The DC-8s are back from the dead. Never though I’d see one come out of Roswell after the post pandemic rush in cargo demand. But here it is. OB-2231P

[3.0L]

Originally Posted by flybigjet

Here's a pretty famous A-7 patch.

Yes, the Guard Bum's actually got away with wearing it-- it was a slightly different time.

I'd crack up every time I saw one.

R.

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