NORTH AMERICAN

F-100 SUPER SABRE .

Peter E. Davies with David W. Menard

1:)~(1
The Crowood Press
 Acknowledgements
First published in 2003 by This proj ect was given life by the enthusi-
The rowood Press Ltd as m of some of the men who flew or fix ed
Ramsbury, Marlborough the ' Hun '. Aircr w from many stag s of the
Wi ltshire SN8 2HR a ircraft' hi to ry gave gen erously of the ir
m mories , ex p ri ences and records. S imi -
www.crowood.com larl y, a representati ve se lection of the
equ ally vita l ma intainers who kept the air-
craft operational were keen to pass on
their insights and impress io ns. They are
© Peter E. Dav ies 2003 owed a real debt of gratitud e for en abling
this book to offer an unu uall y th orough
A ll rights reserved . No part of this publication and detailed ana lysis of the F-l OO's ch ar-
may be reproduced or transmitted in any form acter and ro le.
or by any mea ns, electronic or mechanica l, Above all, I am indebted to Dav id W.
including photocopy, recording, or any Menard: 'Mr F- 100'. After sp nding a third
information storage and retrieval system, of his long USAF career with th e S uper
without permission in writing from the abre he has continued to expand his
publishers. unique collection of information and pho-
tographs concerning the aircraft. I was
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication delighted when he offered to 'ride hotgun '
Data on the project and I h ave welcomed his
A cata logue record for this book is ava ilable guidance and overview throughout. Many
from the British Li brary. of the images reproduced in these pages
come from David's collection. Particular
ISBN 1 86 126 577 8 thanks are also due to Batur Avgan, Steen
H artov, C larence Fu and Jean -Jacques Petit
for making possible a comprehensive and
detailed accou nt of the F- l OO's 'fore ign' ser-
v ice for the first time in a book of this kind .
This book h as a lso benefited from the
significant contributions from the fo llow-
ing F-100 ve teran pilots, maintainers and
historians: George Ac ree, Lance Barber
(Wings Over the Rocki es Museum) , Maj
C urtis Burns, Mi ch ael Benolkin, CMGT
Mike Bilc ik, J. E. T. C lause n, John C lari -
ty, Son er Capoglu, Ton y Cassan ova , Troy
C larke , Larry Engesath, Jac k Engler,
Robert Fantho rp , Mehm t Findikli , Jerry
Geer, Maj Dick Ga rr tt, o l Bruce Go ld,
o l To m Germsche id , Dr John G rigs by,
Lee H oward , Lt Co l Van H a ll, Lt Co l
Ro n ald H erri ck, Jea n -Pierre H oehn,
C hris H obson , Co l Art John son , Co l
Mike Kulczyk, Lt o l Allen La mb, ColT.
G. Lancaster, Thomas E. Lowe, Sgt Bob
Macavoy, John J. Mae ne Jr, Sgt Jay
McCarthy, Maj A lex Martin, Co l William
Mc Do na ld, Maj R y Moore, David M r-
phew, Maj Willi am 'Moose' Mosel y,
Gary Noph sker, CMSGT Rich N ewel l,
A I N e ubecker, Rod o nnan, William
Po tts, C h arles Penley, Larry H. Recten -
wald , MaJ Donald L. chmenk, St v
Sopko, Ed Sa nde liu , Ri cha rd S uch ,
Eve re tt prous, Pete r Schinkelsh oek,
T gt N o rm Tay lor, o l R on ald Thurlow,
To n y Thornbo ro ugh , MSgt O tto U e be l,
SSgt H ank Valentin e, gt Leo van
Ove rsch elde, Joh an va n d r W ei, Peter
Vand erhoef, Joe Vin cent, SSgt Bobby
'Orville' Wri ght, Ve rn Wagn e r, Brig Gen
Dav id 0. Willi ams Jr, Wa i A. Yip.
 Contents
Introduction 4

1 FAST AND FIERY 5

2 SWO RDS UNSHEATHED 20

3 WORLDWIDE WARRIOR 48

4 VIETNAM WARHO RSE 82

5 ON GUARD 11 6

6 UNDER FOREIGN FLAGS 133

7 SON OF A HUN: THE F-107A 151

Appendix I F-100 Statistics and Performance 155

Appendix II F-100 Units 158
Appendix III F-100C/D Nuclear Weapons Control Procedures 167
A ppendix IV F-100 Losses in South East Asia 168
Appendix V Preserved, G round Instructional and Displayed F-100 A irframes 170
Appendix VI QF-100 Conversions 171

G lossary 172

Index 174

1

In the summer of 2000, an angular, glinting
shape blazed through the wide blue skies of
Indiana, its bo ld markings and po lished
metal surfaces procla iming th at it was no
du ll , grey twenty- first century warplane. lt
wore the extravaga nt red and white decor
of the 353 rd Fighter-bomber Sq uadron
(FBS ), a unit that flew F-100 S uper Sa bres
(although not this one) fo r thirteen yea rs
fro m 195 7. A closer look would have
revea led that this F-100F (5 6-3948) also
bore a tiny US civilian registrat ion
(N20 11 V ) for its owner, Dea n 'Cutter'
utshall, based at Fort Way ne, Ind iana. Its
military ca r er had begun in 1957 at the
U SAF Missile Deve lopment Test Cente r
at Ho lloman A FB and ended with th e
Turkish A ir Force, wh ich it had served
since A ugu t 19 74.
ee ing its pro ud plumag qui cke ned
the pu lses of man y who reca lled the days
when USAF figh te r units dev ised such
dazz ling displays of squ adro n hera ldry and
the F-100 was th e harbinge r of a new era
of supersonic flight. A who le generati on of
fi ghter pilots had the ir supersonic initia-
t ion in the aircraft and savoured the enor-
mous boost in performance and capabil ity
compared with the F-84s and F-86s that
man y of them had prev io usly flow n.
When their supremacy within the US
armoury declined, many Super Sabres were
passed on and gave the same excitement to
the pilots of four other air forces. While
most aircrew enthused, there were dissenters
who considered the fighter unforgiving and
ove r-demanding. Land ing the F-100 was
popu larly described as a 'controlled crash'
and one severely disenchanted pilot wryly
suggested that its optimum mission was sta-
tic d isplay! However, the inev itable attri-
tion while at the base of the supersonic
learning curve (and in some of the fore ign
a ir forces) was vastl y outweighed by the
Introduction
F-100's formidable reputatio n in the Viet-
nam conflict. For ove r ix yea rs it was
A merica's 'heavy artill ry' in South Viet-
nam, fl ying incred ible numbers of combat
miss ions with the reliability of a jeep and
accuracy that made it first ca ll fo r forward
air controllers (FA s). Many units scored
miss ion to tals, fl igh t safety records and
availabil ity rates that we re the en vy of
squadro ns with newer, mo re 'fragile' types.
Before that t ime, the F- 100 had pio-
neered the cone pt of global de ployment of
tact ica l aircraft , using the recently deve l-
oped asse t of inflight-refu elling. Super
Sabre units regularly too k up ha rt-noti ce
nuclea r alert duti es at bases aro und the
wo rld, fl ying thousa nds of mi les to do so .
This book descri bes how No rth A meri-
can Av iatio n (N AA ) des igned a day fight-
er th at was th e first U S serv ice aircraft
capable of supe rsonic peed in leve l flight.
The compa ny also des igned in to it an o rd -
nance delive ry capabili ty that enabled
Tact ica l A ir Command (TAC ) to use the
F-100 as its standard nuclear bomber for
several yea rs until later types like the
F-105, F-1ll and F-4 graduall y took ove r
and refined the tact ics deve loped by S uper
Sabre pilots.
To a publi c that was generally unaware
of th s Co ld War strategies, the S uper
Sabre was better known as a spectacular
performer in the Thunderbirds aerobat ic
tea m. Fro m 1956 until 1963, crowds
throughout the wo rld were treated to thun-
d rous d isplays in whi ch th e a ircraft 's 'ca n-
non shot' hard -ligh t afterburner featured
pro minently. When the Republi c F-105 8
proved to be an un viable successor, the
Thunde rb ird tepped in to F-l OOs once
aga in and fl w them for another fi ve yea rs.
In Vietnam, in additi on to serv ing as the
USAF's main 'ground pounder', the F- LOO
(or 'Hun' to its pilots ) laid the foundations
4
for other essential elements of modern air
warfare. The techniqu s of airborne sup-
pression of enemy air defences (SEAD)
were first establish d by a select group of
aircrew fl ying W ild Weasel F- 100Fs aga inst
the surface-to-a ir mi ile (SAM) threat in
No rth Vietnam. O th r F-1OOF fl ye rs
deve loped th e high -speed FAC miss ion
that is a lso now established as a prim ary
compo nent in the conte mporary battl e-
field scenari o.
Th e F-100 first fl ew in 1953 - half a cen-
tu ry ago- at a t ime when exc it ing new air-
craft des igns we re an nounced every few
mo nths. A lthough it was the first of the
Century erie of fi gh te rs, it so ldi ered o n
far longe r than an y of its successors in that
innova ti ve seri s of aircraft , apa rt fro m a
small number of F-104 Starfi ghter . With -
in twen ty yea rs of the F-l OO's first fli ght,
supersonic travel at tw ice the Super
Sabre's top speed had become available to
commerc ial airline passe ngers, and tac tica l
fi ghter had become mu lt i-mission , all-
wea ther mac hines. Many of the pil ots who
had served in the USA' twenty-e ight
F-100 Wing had grad uated to that new,
sophisticated generation of fighters bu t the
F-100 sti ll remained a 'first love' and a
defining ex peri ence for them.
To its groundcrews, the Hun was an a ir-
craft with a few we ll -defin ed vices bu t it
was also the las t of the ' mechani cs' aircraft .
Line- rep lacea ble units and comp lex
av ionic beca me the dominan t features of
th e nex t breed of fighters. After the Cen-
tury Se ries and the F-4, designers began to
think of fighters th at were n't 'hard to fi x'.
Conce ived in respo nse to the Korea n
W ar, the F- 100 fo ught in three other con-
fli cts. Today, the survivo rs of the breed sti ll
resemb le the first: menac ing, sil ve r fish
with gaping mouths, cruising thro ugh the
empty blue expa ns s, st ill hungry for prey .

Th e USAF's Century Seri es fi ghter ,
beginning with the North America n Avia-
tio n (NAA) surface-to-a ir mi il e F-100,
we re innovative, extremely ex pen ive and
v ry uccessful programmes that gen rated
o me of the most important a ircraft des igns
of th 1950s. Several, like the o nva ir
F-102 and Lockhe d F-104 , wer tru ly rev-
o lu t ionary. Others, including the F-100
and Republic's huge F-105 Thunderchief
volved mo re d irectl y fro m ea rli er des ign
within the ir respective companies.
From 1948 , NAA had eq uip ped the
U AF with the F-86 Sabre. A tru ucces-
o r to the compan y's classic P-51 Mu tang,
th F-86 appeared just in tim e to give the
U AF a cla imed victory-to- loss rati o of
8 :1 in th e ski s over Korea. For many pil ots
it provid ed the first ex peri nee of swept-
wing jet fli gh t and it beca me th e first jet-
powered equipment fo r man y of the
wo rld 's a ir forces, serving sev ral of th em
we ll for over a quarter of a century.
By 1949, th e ga lloping pace of technica l
innovation in av iation made a upersonic
ve rsion of the Sabre a vital U AF require-
ment. O n 26 Ap ril 1948, AA test pilot
CHAPTER 1
Fast and Fiery
-~----
---- -·--
·-------
George . W lch h ad taken the prototype
XP-86 through the sound barrier in a shal-
low dive, making it the first Western com-
bat aircraft to beat that mythi ca l limit. 1n
the U A, on ly the rocket-d ri ve n Be ll X-1
resea rch plan bad already ac hi eved super-
soni c speed when huck Yeage r had shown
that such a thing was possible o n 14 Oct-
ober 1947. (There is a rea l possibility that
Welch actu ally exceeded the speed of
sound earl y in October 1947, slightl y
before th 'offi cial' event.) Earl ier attempts
had cla imed the li ves of several test p ilots
includ ing Britain's Geoffrey de H av ill and.
A tea m led by AA's Vice Pres id ent
(Enginee ring) Ray mo nd H . R ice h ad
a lread y ex plo red the poss ib ili t ies of sus-
ta ined supe rsoni cs in lev I fl igh t. They
soon rea li zed that me rel y improv ing tb
F-86 wou ld no t be e no ugh . A new des ign ,
based o n a far mo re powerfu l en gine th an
the ]47, wo uld be n eeded. Two innova-
t io ns were soon pec ifi ed: a n in c rease in
wing and ta il sweep to 45 degree and an
afte rburning en gine fo r grea tl y in creased
thrust. The opt io n of u ing a seco nd ary
rocket moto r, as used in th e Oassa u lt
5
- -·.':.:..7""_ _
__......_ --
- ·~
--
A pair of F-lOOA-5-NAs positioned to show the
difference between the original vertical stabilizer
(left) and the shortened version on 52-5773.
David Menard Collection
M irage 1 o r a unde r Ro S R-53, was
rejected in favo ur of a large ax ia l ( rat he r
th an ce ntrifuga l) turbi ne with thrust
a ugmenta ti on grea ter than the sh o rt
afterburn er used in the F-86 0. Ea rl y te ts
with a modified F-86 sh o wed that th e
'45' win g a lo n e co nferred ve ry limited
improve m nt in hi gh -speed fli ght.
C lea rl y, a n entire ly new fu se lage with
mu h lower d rag h ad to be design ed. A n
ax ia l fl o w tu rb in e wou ld a llow that fu se-
lage to be muc h limm r fo r hi gh -speed
fli ght, wh e reas a large ce ntrifuga l e ngin e
such as the proposed Pratt and Whitn ey
(P& W) )48 wo uld have needed a fat,
draggy fusel age .
NAA projected an Advanced F-860 in
A ugu t 1950 as insurance aga inst prob lems
with the on va ir F-102 and an Advanced
F- 6E the fo llowing yea r, both of which
were found inadeq uate by the U AF ln

Power for the Super Sabre
NAA had a variety of potential powerplants for the
F-100 from its inception . The earliest proposals were
for an up-rated Allison/General Electric IGE) J35 offer-
ing 9,0001b l4.000kg) of thrust compared with 5.6001b
l2.540kg) or the J35 variant that had powered early
Republic F-84 and Northrop F-89 fighters. GE also sug-
gested a developed. afterburni ng version of their J47
las used in the F-86 Sabre) yieldi ng 13,0001b l5.900kg)
of power. This in turn led to the GE XJ53 that was sup-
posed to blast out a mighty 21,0001b l9,500kg) of mili-
tary thrust. but never left the drawing board.
At first. the most logical choice seemed to be the
12,0001b l5.500kg) thrust Westinghouse J40. under
development for the USN's A3D Skywarrior. F4D Skyray
and F3H Demon. The insuperable technical challenges
posed by thi s design led fina lly to the selection of a
new P&W engine. the JT3 that had been under devel-
opment since 1948 by Andy Wil lgoos to powerthe Boe-
ing XB-52 bomber. It first ran in June 1949 and rapidly
progressed to thrust figures beyond 10,0001b l4.550kg)
- the first turbojet to achieve such a performance
Under the design leadership of Leonard S. Hobbs it
became. as the J57. the vita l component for many US
military jets in the 1950s. powering the B-52. U-2. KC-
135. F-101. and F-102 and the Navy's A30 Skywarrior
and F40 Skyray. Civilian JT3s powered enormous num-
bers of Boeing 707s and DC-8s.
P&W's engine. the only government-funded item in
the early stages of the F-1 DO programme. pioneered the
use of a 'split' !two-spool) sixteen-stage axial-flow
compressor with nine low-pressure and seven high-
pressure stages. The two spools were mechanically
independent and cou ld rotate at different speeds. This
arrangement allowed for higher pressure ratios than
previous engines but it also improved specific fuel con-
sumption considerably. P&W chose an arra ngement of
eight lconel can-annu lar burner chambers developed
May 195 1, came the much more promising
NA-180 'Sabre 45'. Bu ilt around the new
P&W ]57-P- 1 delivering 15,000 lb
( 6,800kg) maximum thrust, the des ign
offered Mach 1.3 top speed, a 580nm com-
bat rad ius at 23,700lb (1 0,750kg) gross
combat we ight and four new 20mm guns
for the air uperiority mission . At first, NA-
180 was to have been a radar-equipped
interceptor to follow the F-860, but this
ro le eventually passed to the F-102A. In
any case, the NA- 180 design team wanted
a large a ir intake in the nose to feed a con-
trolled air mas to the ]57 engine, preclud-
ing a big radome insta llation.
T he USAF expre ed a strong interest
but wanted fu rther rev i ions and a signifi-
cant number of prototypes (eventually to
include two rea l prototypes and ten 'pro-
duction test' a ircraft) so that development
of th e potent ial fighter wou ld be rapid. A
large order was in pro pect, driven by a new
FAST A D FI ERY
from a system used in th e earli est German and British
jet engines. Each can held six burners. with coo ling air
passing along the outside and thro ugh a hole in the
centre of each can.
In the B-52. extra take-off thrust of around 2,5001b
l1.150kg) per engine was generated by the use of wa ter
injec tion for brief periods. A supersonic fighter clearly
needed more than this and P&W (with NAA) advocat-
ed a long. integrated afterburner section to give a more
massive boost. For the F-1 DO. a structure 20ft 16m) long,
weig hing 5,0001 b l2.300kg) was added to the 14ft
143m) length of the J57. It added 5,8001b l2.650kg) of
kick to the 10.2001b l4.650kg) mili tary thru st of the J57-
P-21 used in most Super Sabres. F-100 pilot Charles
Weid inger described it as 'the blackest. ugliest after-
burner nozzle in aviation hi story'.
An afterburner was de rigueurfor virtually all take-
offs to avoid 'excessive ground roll and slow accelera-
tion rates'. It was supposed to ignite withi n two sec-
onds of selection on the throttle control. and a pilot
would have had little doubt of this as he was pressed
hard against the back of his seat by a sudden thru st
augmentation of over 50 per cent. Unlike the after-
burners added to later engines such as the J79, the F-
lOG's afterburner was an 'all or nothing' unmodulated
burst of blazing energy. However, it enabled the aircraft
to fly a 4g sustained turn until the fue l ran out. Com-
pared with later fighters such as the F-15, that could
boast a power-to-weight ratio of 1:1. this was not so
impressive. but in the mid-1950s it was quite an
achievement for a fighter like the F-1 00 at 20,0001b
l9,000kg) in 'clean' configurati on to achieve even half
that ratio.
The J57 rapidly became an extremely rel iable power
source. Any problems in the F-100 installation were usu-
ally associated with incorrectly functioning afterburner
nozzle 'eyelids'. causi ng surges or compressor sta ll s.
urgency that deri ved from the burgeoning
conflict in Korea. M iG-15 jets had been
encountered from November 1950 and the
USA F became painfu ll y aware that its best
fighter, the F-86, had been virtually
equalled by the Sov iet Union. By January
195 1 NAA had begun design work on the
Sabre 45 and November of that year
brought a USAF contract for two proto-
types and 11 0 production aircraft. O n 7
December 195 1, the design was awarded
the des ignation 'F- 100'. A lthough no one
could fo resee it at the time, thi nomen-
clature, on ly te n yea r afte r Pea rl H arbor,
fo rtuito usly hera lded a who le generation
of advanced fighter designs: the Century
Series. Sadly, it was also to be NAA's thi rd
and final production fighter.
The decision to go ahead represented an
act of faith in its assumption that produc-
t ion could beg in wh ile the various phases
of acceptance test ing were still in progress.
6
The parallel supposition that no majo r
alteration wou ld be needed to the des ign
as a result of the comp letion of te ring wa
also a calculated risk. Fo r subsequent Cen-
tury Series programmes, such as Convair's
F-102A, thi approach became known as
the Cook- raigie plan after the two
USAF ge nerals who in tiga ted it. USAF-
app roved des igns could thereby be put
straigh t into production using definitive
tooling and jigs rather than relying on the
trad iti onal length y pr ce of hand -build-
ing a series of prototypes that grad ually
evo lved in to the production des ign. The
inevitable minor modifications were to be
made on the production line without
impeding the rap id acceleration of the
productio n li ne to peak output, u ing large
stocks of components th at would have
already been stockpiled. lt was obviously a
high -risk strategy and in the case of the
F-102 it meant a major redes ign of both
delta wing and fu elage after prod uct ion
had begun when t t h w d that the air-
craft was incapab le of supersoni flight in
its original form.
Some early changes were made to the
Sabre 45 at the initial mock-up stage after
a USAF inspection in November 195 1.
The hydraulic systems were routed epa-
rarely to red uce battle damage risks and
ammunition for each of the four guns was
increased from 200 to 275 rounds. A
we ight sav ing of 60lb (27 kg) came from
deleting the tailskid and a further 400 lb
(1 80kg) were lost when the USAF
dropped the requirement fo r se lf-sea ling
fuel tank .
NAA had in vested in a uper oni c wind
tunnel in 1949, enab ling the company to
test aerodynamic models at speeds up to
Mach 5.25. This was used throughout
1952 to refine the F-100's configuration.
Perhaps the most important change was to
the horizontal tail slab, which was moved
from an F-86-style position at the base of
the fin to a locat ion low on the rear fuse-
lage with consequent improve ment in sta-
bili ty and control at high angle of attack.
A drag- red ucing ex tension to the fuse lage
pu hed the gap ing oval air intake 9in
(23cm) further forward and flattened it,
wh ile its edge were 'sharpened' to mooth
the airflow at the intake lip , th reby
increas ing max imum speed by 50mph
(80km/h). The elongated cockp it canopy
wa fa ired into the fuse lage behind it, mak-
ing vi ibility for the pilot slightly inferior
to that in the F-86. H weve r, downwa rd
visibili ty (even in th e later two- eat F-
 FAS T AN D FI ERY

o l 'Pete' Eve rest, who stood to ga in a

couple of beers fro m We lch who had bet
him that the F-100 wo uld go uper onic on
it ma iden flight. The proto typ I apt
ahead of the ' Dog Sabre' until W elch cut
his afterburner to allow Everest to catch
up. Then at 35,000ft (10,700m) he en-
gaged afterburner once mo re and within
two minutes the F-100 had exceeded
Mach l. Pete Eve rest got his beers and
Welch made a second leve l-supersonic
fligh t later the same day.
The pro totype went on to fl y 100 hours
in its first six weeks, demo nstrating exce l-
lent servi ceability. Minor rudder flutter
was cured by in ta iling h yd raulic damp r
and th e aircraft's rolling and pitching
dynami c stability was exp lored. In other
YF-100A 52-5754 at the USAF Academy in April1963. Stevens via David Menard Collectio n fligh ts, Welch and NAA pilots Joe Lynch
and Dan Darnell flew high-speed d ives,
taking the YF-100A to Mach 1.44 at it
fas te t. U AF pilot fr m Wright Air
D ve lopm ent m er (WAD ) c uldn't
wa it until th forty- three Phase l fli ghts fo r
the manufacturer's test programme were
over before getting the ir hands on the YF-
100A. Pete Everest fl ew it within two
weeks of th e ma iden flight and unoffic ial
Phase II (U AF) test ing bega n soon after-
wards. Understandably, there was also a
desire on the USAF's behalf for reassur-
ance that there were no defect that were
not r vea led in Pha e I, given that pro-
duction aircraft wer already tarring to
take shape at NAA: Inglewood plant.

Bucks for Bangs

A lthough the a ircraft emp loy d relat ively
conventional technology and structure
compared with some of the later Century
The first Super Sabre, photographed on 21 April1953, a little over a month before fi gh te r , sett ing up production for a new
its first flight. There are many external differences from the F-100A production uper o nic fighter required an en rm us
configuration, particularly around the rear fuselage and vertical stabilizer contours. in ve tm nt by NAA. The backgr und fo r
David Menard Co llection
th e seri es was in itself cos tl y, relying on
th e data generated by the X-1, X-2 and D-
100F) was unimpeded by the wing. A pitot deta il ed drawing for the production 55 -2 resea rch a ircraft that explored th e
tube ex tended 5ft (1.5m) forward from a F-1OOA. YF-1OOA 52-5 754 was comp leted bound aries of supersonic fli ght. o n truc-
pos ition below the intake , providing a ir on 24 April1 953 , we ll ah ead of its 26 Jun e t ion of th e F-100 needed mass ive invest-
pressure data from a po int w II away from dead li ne and trucked to the AFFTC at men t in machinery and forging pro esses .
airflow disturbance around the airframe. Edward AFB to be instrumented and pre- N ew li ghtweight materi als, such as tita ni -
At the same t ime, the thickness/cho rd pared for it t t programme. um , prov ided increased strength - in
rati of the vertical tail and slab tail plane Earl y on 25 May, '754 was towed out to 1953- 54 NAA used 80 per ce nt of the
were cut by half to a mere 3.5 per cen t. Rogers Dry Lak a nd test pi lot George shee t t itanium produced in th e U A. A
With the revised mock-up appro ved o n 'Wheat ies' Welch (who had shot down greater propo rti on of components were
26 August 1952, the U AF increa ed its four Japanese aircraft during the December machine- mill d fo r the F-100 than for an y
F-100 order to 273 units and constructio n 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor and ano ther prev ious N AA a ircraft . Au to mati c milling
of the first YF- 100A proceeded apace. fourteen and a ha lf later in WWII) lit up led to simpler structures too : the F-86 wing
A P..:s des ign department turned to th the ]57. Flying 'chase' in an F-86D was Lt stru ctura l box had 462 co mponents and

7
FAST A D FI ERY

Another view of the unmarked YF-100A-1-NA on

21 April1953. Three days later the aircraft was
complete, including a long instrumentation boom
on the upper intake lip. David Menard Collection

YF-100A-1-NA 52-5754 is prepared for another test

flight as George 'Wheaties' Welch (on the crew lad -
der) discusses a cockpit item with lt Col 'Pete'
Everest. David Mena rd Collection

8
 FAS T A D FI ERY

ove r 16,000 faste ne rs whe rea t h in te-

gra ll y stiffened F- 100A wingbox used o n ly
36 pa rt a nd 264 fas te ne rs. Th e wing used
skins made fro m meta l sh ee ts th at we re
tape red fro m root to tip ( like th e F-86 's)
but a lso mach ined in to int gra ll y t iffe n d
upper a nd lo we r ski ns fo r the first tim e o n
a ny figh t r. Th fu se lage sides were each
made fro m a ingle a ll oy sheet, fo rmed in a
mass ive stretch press a nd a se mbled to-
get he r li ke a gia nt mode l kit. A t t he fro nt
of thi truct ure was the sini ste r, hungry-
looking a ir in take .
However, th e F- 1OO's c hosen miss io n
made it a less expe nsive project th a n most
of th e la te r Cen tury e ries type . Th e d c i-
sio n to make it a day fighter m a nt t hat no
sea rch rada r was fitt d (apa rt fro m th e
sma ll gun -lay ing se t squeezed into t he
uppe r surface of the in ta ke ) so t he upe r
Sa bre beca me t he last U figh te r to date
with an intake in the ex tre me no e. Th
ove ra ll sim pli c ity of t he a irc raft's av io nics
a nd a rm a me nt repre e n ted a cost sav ing
compa red wit h the co mpl x sy te ms
req uired , fo r exa mple, fo r th e a ll -wea th e r
Test pilot George Welch with the first Super Sabre. He took '754 for its first flight on 25
F- 10 l B, F-102 a nd F- 106. Ho wever, t h e
May 1953. David Menard Collection F- 100 h ared with t hose figh te rs th e en o r-
mo us R&D bill fo r ad va nc ing th e US a ir-
c raft industry to the po in t wh ere it could
prod uce a ra nge of ground brea kin g de ign
like th e Ce ntury Se ri es je ts.

Wings and Wires

Most of t he innovati ve struc ture in the
F- 100 was des igned to add ress th e pro b-
le ms o f makin g t h a irc raft supe rsoni c,
stab le in bo t h lo w a nd h igh -speed fli ght,
capa ble of a safe land ing speed a nd re la-
tivel y ma noe uvrable. Experi nee d ictat d
th e use of inboa rd a il ero ns to avo id th e
'contro l reve rsa l' eff ct that could occur
whe n th e aerodynami c loads im posed by
o utboa rd a ile ro ns made thin, h igh -speed
wings tw ist. Late r designs t nded to u e
spo ile rs instead. The a ileron were p w-
e red a nd ve ry sensitive to pilot- induced
contro l move me nts. The use of a sim ple,
two-sk in wing struc t ure in iti a ll y prec lud ed
t he fitt ing of. tra iling-edge fl aps, tho ugh
these we re to ap pea r o n th e rev ised wing of

YF-1OOA '754 on take-off for another engineering

test flight with a single instrumentation boom. The
bulge at the rear of the fin tip is a fuel vent. David
Menard Collection

9

Hun's Teeth : The M-39 Gun
The Super Sabre's main armament was the M-39 gun.
tested in F-86F Sabres in Korea as the T-160 and put
into production at GE's Pontiac Division in 1953. It fired
about 1,500 electrical ly detonated 20mm rounds per
minute. with 200 rounds per gun. allowing around eight
seconds of firing. The M-39 was one of the F-1 OO's most
effective innovations and it also equipped the F-1 01 A
Voodoo. later F-86H Sabres and (as the M-39A3), the
Northrop F-5. Probably it would have found other uses
but the M61 Vulcan 'Gatling' gun entered service while
advanced variants of the Pontiac gun were under devel-
opment and became the standard gun for many of the
next generation of US combat aircraft. On several occa-
sions consideration was given to installing the M61 in
later-model F-1 00s. but its four M-39s were invariably
thought adequate for the ground-attack role that
became the Super Sabre's main task.
The weapon was based on the German WWII
Mauser MG-213C. a totally new design using a
revolver-type cylinder to fire its shells. giving a consid-
erably increased rate of fire. Post-war. other manufac-
turers adapted the design. In the UK, the Royal Small
Arms Factory produced the Aden Mk.4 and the French
made the DEFA 552 cannon. both weapons using 30mm
ammunition and firing at about 1,200 rounds per minute.
The designers of the M-39. working to contracts at
the Illinois Institute of Technology, opted for a smaller
20mm calibre to give a higher rate of fire. M50-series
ammunition was fed from a belt (from the left or right
side) into a five-chamber. gas-operated revo lving cylin-
der and from there to the barrel(with right-hand twist
rifling) situated at the six-o'clock position relative to
the cylinder. Each 3.56oz (101g) projectile departed
from the gun at around 2.850ft l870m) per second muz-
zle velocity. The weapon was 6ft l1 .8m) in length and
weighed around 1781b IBOkg).
A later version. the Ford Aerospace Tigerclaws.
improved the basic system - increasing the rate of fire
to 2.300 rounds per minute, reducing the weight by 20
per cent and doubling 'endurance life' to 10,000 rounds .
In the F-100. ammunition was supplied from four
magazines. situated two each side of the cockpit in
close proximity to the pilot. Although the usual limit
was 200 rounds per box to prevent cooking-off of
rounds. some Super Sabres IF-1 000-1 to 0-15. 0-35. 0-
40) could carry 257 per magazine. The F-1 OOF's two M-
39 or M-39A 1 guns were limited to 175 rounds each
and many aircraft wou ld have carried fewer rounds for
training sorties. In the F-1 OOF. the gun barrels tended to
vibrate in their blast tubes. causing mild buffeting. The
weapons were manually charged before the aircraft
rolled out for take-off; automatic charging from the
cockpit was not allowed for. Loading the ammo was an
all-manual task.
the F-1000/F a hydraulica ll y operated
su rfaces that could be low r d to a 45-
deg ree full -down position in about ten sec-
ond u ing a fl ap handle nea r the th rottle
control. Some aircraft had an intermed iate
20-degree pos ition fo r use at take-off or for
inflight- refuelling, though th is position
FAST A D FIERY
Armourer Richard G. SUch. with the 431 st Muni-
tions Maintenance Squadron (MMS) based at Tuy Hoa
in the Vietnam War. recalled:
It took me seven seconds to load 200 rounds in a
magazine. Most of the other guys on my crew
could load them just as fast. We loaded HEI [high
explosive incendiary] 20mm shells only - we never
loaded tracer for our F-1 OOs. Our squadron had the
best firing rate in South East Asia and we rece ived
a commendat ion for this. We only had a 5 per cent
dud rate over the millions of rounds we loaded.
Expended ammo links were retained in compartments
adjacent to the guns but the cases were ejected
through tubes flush with the lower fuselage with
enough force to prevent damage to the underside of the
aircraft. The four guns were mounted virtually upside-
down in compartments vented by slots in the fuselage.
Their barrels were housed within the blast tubes and in
single-seat F-1 00s they could be fired as an upper or
lower pair or all together.
A gun compartment purging system drew air from
the main air intake duct through automatic doors to
clear explosive gases from the compartment during fir-
ing. The doors opened when the pilot squeezed his trig-
ger to the first detent position (which also initiated the
gun camera) and continued to admit air for five seconds
after firing ceased. If the purge doors failed to open
automatically, a micro-switch prevented current flow-
ing to the gun-firing circuits. Another micro-switch neu-
tralized the gun circuits once it sensed the aircraft's
weight on the nose landing gear and a separate ground
fire switch. protected by a safety-pin. had to be oper-
ated before the guns could be fired . In flight. the lower
speed limit for gun fi ring was 250kt to prevent a build-
up of gases in the gun-bays.
When static gun testing was required. all hatches
for the guns and ammo bays had to be removed to allow
adequate ventilation. Venting of the gun-bay in flight
was vital as a build-up of gun gases during long bursts
of firing cou ld cause an explosion in the bay. Gun seal
problems did occur and these affected F-1 OOOs of the
481 st Tactical Fighter Squadron (TFS) during their 1965
deployment to Vietnam. During a mission to relieve
troops in contact. Capt Joe Reynes. having made long
strafing attacks on enemy troops, heard a loud explo-
sion from his aircraft during the final pass. Looking out
at the wings he saw that both gun-bay doors had blown
off from the fuselage and impaled themselves on the
inboard stores pylons each side. Although one door had
jammed the left leading edge slat and fuel was leaking
from the wing, he managed to make a safe return to Tan
Son Nhut AB.
could be set on any flap-equippe I F-100 by
u ing the flap-p siti on circuit breaker.
F-1 OOA/ mode ls had o n! y the Kruger
lead ing edge wing slats for use in low-
speed flight and manoeuvring. This sys-
tem required no hydrau lic or electrica l
power; the slats were operated imply by
10
ae rodynamic loads on the wing. Each
lead ing edge had five slat sections: two
outboard and three inboard, sliding up
and down their guide rails independently.
When the outboard sections we re closed
the inboa rd sections stayed open 2
d grees, prov id ing an aerody namic slot to
en hance stab ili ty. In no rm al fli gh t the
slats would be up (or closed) except on the
rar occa ion that F-100 perated at
v ry high altitudes where a rodynam ic
loads we re reduced. At lowe r speeds,
depending on the angle of attack, the slats
wou ld drop partially or fu lly open to
reduce th ta il ing peed, nab le b tter
turni ng mano uvrab ility or increase li ft
for take-off. A similar system was used on
late r-mode l F-86s and the A-4 S kyhawk.
The slats were simple and reli ab le. Minor
prob lems could be rectified by clean ing
th guid e rail with a rag but occa iona lly
the ro ller b aring needed changing. At
wor t, th guide rail o r !at might need
re-a li gning to stop them from jam ming, 'a
rea l Pandora's box' accord ing to main-
tainer Joh n C larity.
A one-p iece, powered and gea red hori-
zontal stabilizer was located at the base of
the rea r fuse lage and like the a ilerons it
wa activated by two independent, irre-
v r ible h ydra uli c y tem . Aer dynamic
load cou ld not be tran mitted back to the
pilot via th control tick o an artificia l
'fee l' sy tem wa incorpo rated in each con -
trol system, using string- loaded bungees. It
provided awa reness of the loads that were
be ing placed on the a irframe via the flying
control and pr vented the pi lot from
acc identall y overload ing it.
The same system was also used to trim
the a ircraft in place of traditiona l trim tabs.
Trim was effected just by altering
th neutral position of the pilot' control
column via trim witches on top of the co l-
umn to give optimum stick and peda l
forces. A separate take-off trim button on
the pilot's left panel repositioned the artifi-
cial feel y tem to th take-off p ition. To
prov ide the correct take-off trim position
for the hori zontal stab ilizer, a white triangle
symbo l appea re I on the rear fu elage and
groundcrew had to check that the tabilizer
wa aligned with it. F-lOOs gen ra lly had to
be hand-flown all the t ime: trimming for
hands-off fli ght was barely possible.
Production F-1 OOs had a stabilizer with a
mere 3.5 per cent thickness/ch rd ratio
although the fir t production F-1 OOA was
te ted with a 7 per cent unit in ca the ta-
bilizer fluttered du ring te t on 8 December

A short-tail F-lOOA-5-NA receives attention during AFFTC's accelerated Phase VI
flight test programme. USAF pilots and maintainers participated in this 552-hour
series of service tests. David Men ard Collection
1953 when the a ircraft was required to
reach Mach 1.45 at 35,000ft (10,700m).
As the system matured with the experience
of test flying, it incorporated pitch damp-
ing to neutralize pitch osc ill ation ind -
pendentl y from inputs from the pilot's
'stick'. This system cut out when under-
wing loads other than 275 or 335gal drop
tanks were carried. Both damp ing y t m
were activated by buttons nth pil t's left
ho rizontal panel and n ither sy rem could
be engaged du ri ng ta ke-off or land ing,
which prevented the systems inadvertent-
ly signall ing excessive fl ying control inputs
in the case of a system fa ilure.
The powered rudder, like each of the
ailerons, was built in two sections that com-
bined together in operation. In the case of
the rudder, the division was chordwise with
a hinged jo int. Production aircraft had flut-
ter damp rs fitted to the rudder and
hydraulic, e lectrically controlled yaw
dampers acting upon the rudder control
valve in aircraft that were not equipped
with an autopilot. The F-l OO's rud ler wa
uch a powerfu l control urfac that it
enabled the a ircraft to perform a complete
360-degree roll without the use of ailerons.
All the main fl yi ng controls were oper-
ated by a pair of independe nt, simultane-
ously operating 3,000psi hyd raul ic systems,
FAST AND FI ERY
-~ •... ·"' J' . -
each with it own engine-operated pump
and each upplying half the power req uire-
ments of th fl ying contro l actuator units.
The rudde r drew powe r from the Number
2 h ydraulic system, though it was later
coupled to the ut ility system. Power on the
N umber 2 syste m could be mainta ined by
a ram-a ir turbine (RAT) if the engine
failed. The RAT's intake door, insid e the
main engine intake duct, then opened to
feed air to the small turbine unit. A nother
doo r, situ ated on the fuse lage pine behind
the cockpi t, al o open d to ex haust this
airflow. Th e RAT ould be energized by
ex ternal airflow at speeds dow n to 150kt,
prov id ing sufficient pressure in the contro l
systems to ma intain very ba ic operatio n.
In less favourable ituatio n where any sort
of manoeuvrab ility wa nece sary, ejecti o n
wa usua ll y a safer option fo r the pilot,
bea ring in mind th at an F-100 with a
'frozen' engine and landing g ar extended
could glide fo r only abo ut 25 miles ( 40km)
fro m a tarring a lt itude of 30,000ft
(9,000m).
A large 'barn doo r' speed brake extend-
ed from the flat, ce ntra l lower fu e lage.
Hydrauli ca ll y operated by two actuators,
this surface could open and close within a
couple of econd . It could be ex tended at
any peed, alth ough a r lief valve prevent-
77
ed it fro m opening at very high speeds
(above 500kt) to prevent damage. The
brake wa availab le to slow the a ircraft in
all flight r gim s or on approach , albe it
with an increase in buffeting.
Hydraul ics powered the land ing gea r
too, ex tending or retract ing the three units
in abo ut seven econds. During testing,
that cycling tim e could be reduced to le
than fou r seconds by increas ing the pres-
sure in the system to 5,000ps i. Each ma in
wheel had hydraulic, multi -disc brakes
with an anti -skid ys tem. The du al-whee l
no -gear had a tee ring unit, which acted
as a shimmy damper when steering was not
engaged. An electrically actuated tail-skid
extended and retracted simultaneously
with the landing gear. O peratio n of the
underca rriage wa via a hand le with an
unmi takeab le ' land ing whee l'- haped tip,
on the left auxili ary pane l in the cockpit.
Landing gea r positions were shown by
indi cators in ea rly a ircraft and later by the
conventional three gree n lights. A black
and ye llow emergency hand le wo uld lowe r
th g ar if the normal syste m ma lfu n -
ti ned, with an mergency ac umul ator
up plying hydraulic pres ur to lower th e
nose-gea r. If thi accumu lator had been
u ed, a r d meta l rod protruded from th
fu se lage at the left of the nose- whee l we ll.
Pushing the rod back in re-set the nose-
gear hydraulic selector va lve. An 'emer-
gency up' button allowed the undercar-
ri age to retract, bypass ing th 'weight n
wheels' switches and enab ling the gear to
retract while the a ircraft was on the
ground. In practice, onl y the nose-gear
would actua lly fo ld up in that (hopefu lly
un like ly) situat io n. Pilot had various
aud io warnings if the landing gea r was not
ex tended with the aircraft below l O,OOOft
(3,000m) and 205 kt. On take-off, this sys-
tem wou ld not cut in whil e the engin e was
in afte rburner.
Super Speed
The first production F- l OOA (52-5756)
with NAA se nio r engineering test pilot
George Welch at the contro ls, made its
publi c debut o n 29 October 1953 hav ing
left the producti on line on 25 Septe mber.
Welch dr ve th aircraft th rough the
sound barrier for the Press, breaking some
windows and leav ing mo re than one
reporter rather breathless. C lea rly the new
fi ghte r was ready to give its manufacturers
a shot at the ultimate public ity too l of the

'754 received a good polish for its world speed record flight on 29 October 1953.
Record -breaker Lt Col ' Pete' Everest, then Chief of th e Flight Test Operations
Laboratory at Edwards AFB , poses with the aircraft. An alternative instrumentation
boom arrangement is evident here. USAF via David Mena rd Coll ection
time - success in an intern atio nal speed
record attempt.
LCDR James Verdin, project pilot on
the US 's Douglas F4D-1 kyray, had sur-
prised the F-100 tea m by taking his de lta
jet to 75 2.9 mph over a 1.86 mile (Jkm)
course, beating recentl y set records by
Brita in 's eville Duke and Mike Lithgow.
With the SAF's honour on the line, Pete
Everest fl ew F-lOOA '75 4 at 75ft (23m)
altitude over the alto n ea, reaching
755mph (1,247km/h) over a 9.3 mile
(15km) course on 29 October. It was
enough to secure a new record for the F-100
and on one run Everest exceeded 767mph
FAST A 1 D FI ERY
(1 ,23 4km/h), Mac h 0.97, faste r than the
F4D-l 's best. However, it wa the las t
record to be flown at such risky altitudes,
alth ough in A ugu t 196 1 aU cr w fl ew
a r cord -brea king F4H-l Phantom flight at
902. 769mph, never exceeding 125ft (3 8m)
above ground level. By that time , F-100
pilots were practising nuclear strike fli ghts
across Europe at a ltitudes of SOft (15m) or
lowe r, but the next F- 100 record fli ght wa
conducted at 35 ,000ft ( 10, 700m) where
Co l H. A. Hanes reached 822 mph
(l ,322 km/h) in an F- l OOC on 20 A ugust
1955 . It was the wo rld 's first supersoni c
speed record , flown by an operational fi ght-
12
er. Less th an a yea r late r, Peter Twiss
pushed the speed margins up spectacularl y
by hitting 1, 131.76mph in the Fa ir y De lta
2 research a ircraft off the coa t of the UK.
Phase II
The fo rty-three fli ghts in th e manufactur-
r's Phas I tests were made by George
We lch and two o ther AA pilots. Maj
Ge n A lbert Boyd fl ew the first offic ia l
USAF F-100 sortie on 11 Augu t 1953 and
th e seven-stage, U AF Phase II trial ran
fro m 3-17 September.
In a ll , thirty-n ine fli ghts were made by
project pi lot Pete Everest and six oth er
USAF pilots including C huck Yeage r.
Whil e the tea m pra ised the uper abre's
ove rall performa nce in the ir twenty ho urs
of demanding te ring, th re we re a few
r ervatio n . Visibility over th e nose was
tho ught to be poor at high angles of attack,
low speed hand ling was cri t ic ized and
some pilots we re unhappy abo ut the fight-
er's longitudinal stab ility at high p eel .
Yeager went as fa r as to say, 'That airp lan e
just isn 't stable. You can't fl y formation
with this thing'. Everest id entifi ed the
prob lem a an ve r-sensiti ve contro l ys-
tem with roll and yaw coupling and a ten-
dency for th left wing to drop suddenl y
wh en near sta lling speed . Directio nal sta-
bility appea red to deterio rate most when
th e a ircraft wa test- fl own with under-
wing fu el tank . The probl ems onl y
b ca me appa rent when the SAF pilots
wrung the jets o ut harde r than th ey would
be used in norm al se rv ice life, but they
were difficulti es neve rth eless ~ r a poten-
t ial combat a ircraft. Ever st was also
unhappy abo ut the combin atio n of high
landing speeds and slow control responses
at lower speeds: no prob lem fo r an 'old
head' like him, but a potenti a l di saster for
the inexperi enced. 1:-1 wanted the release
of the a ircraft to USAF squadro ns to be
de layed unti l remed ial acti on could be
taken.
atura ll y, NAA defended the ir new
product strenuo u ly, as d id man y of the
U A F se rvic pil ots. Bob Kemp, th e chief
project enginee r, was receptive to many of
the pil ot ' re ervations about the new a ir-
craft. At Welch's suggesti on (acco rding to
C huck Yeager) a number of oth r USAF
fighter jocks w r in vit d in to check out
th F-100. Pr di ctab ly, the ir response to
the upersonic, afterburning beast was
enthu ia tic. Dutch Kindelberger visited

Making its first take-off from Los Angeles international airport en route to Edwards
AFB, the second F-100A-1-NA 'roasts the runway' . USAF via David Menard Collec tio n
the Pentagon to play down wh at he took
to be min or criti c i ms of the a ircraft by
some of the Phase ll testers. His v iew won
the day with U AF commande rs, who
were in any case eage r to see the presti-
gio u F-100As perched on the ir fli ght-
lines . The cycle of prod uct ion and de li very
went ah ead while five phases of th accep-
tance tests were still to be completed. The
initia l batch of 11 0 F-100As was to be fo l-
lowed by two further orders bringing the
total to 203 .
The urgent need to de live r F- l OOs and
introduce a who le n ew gen ratio n of pi lots
to modern fighter combat tacti cs ca used
AA to seek a s cond product ion source
for the F-l OOC and subsequent F-100 D.
O n 11 October 1954, it wa announced
that the fo rme r Cu rti s-Wri ght plant at
Co lu mbus, Ohio h ad b en chos n and
Super Sabres followed Fj Fu ries off the line
at thi , NAA's Co lumbus Di vision. One
batch of twenty- five F- 100 -10- H air-
c raft merged before F-l OOD product io n
bega n there, with Block num ber also
using an'- H' manufacturer's cod suffi x
rath r than the '-NA' of Inglewood air-
c raft. In fac t, wh en F-100 product ion
ended at th 2,294 th machine, the tota l
ame to only 25 per cent of the number of
F-86 and FJ fighters deli ver d - NAA had
hop d for a much bigge r run.
O n 29 eptember 1954, the 47 9th
Fighter (Day ) Wing (FDW) wa act ivated
at George AFB using sixty of th F-100A
that had already left AA's lngl wood
FAST AN D FIERY
plant. The Wing h ad operated F-86 F
Sabres and it 4 6th Fighter (Day)
Squadron (FD ) rece ived it first n w air-
craft wh en its o mm and r, Lt Co l M. G .
Long, landed Tac ti ca l A ir Command's
(TAC's) first F- l OOA (53 -154 1) at
George . ln natura l metal fini sh with USAF
insignia on the nose, FW-541 bad the
abbrev iated ve rti ca l tab ilizer of earl y
F-1OOAs. Reduc d in h igb t, aspec t ratio
and rudder span compared to the YF-
l OOA's, the rev ised fin saved a little we ight
'FW' buzz numbers first appeared on the F-100A's nose, then on the rear fuselage but
heat from the afterburner quickly obliterated them . Finally, they were painted on the
centre fuselage where they stayed until1965. F-100A-10-NA 53-1538 was used by the
USAF's ARDC . David Menard Collection
73
but it wa to ca use major prob lems in that
it unexp cted ly red uced the fi ghter's
'weathercock' stab i Iity factor.
The 4 79th made the most of th eir new
steed's performance in training. At this
time, th U AF's day fighter capabil ity was
still dominated by sixtee n F-86 W ings and
a dozen with R publi c F-84Fs. Geo rge's
three supersonic hot-rod units were the
place to be. Howeve r, the ir Comm and r
strongly emphas ized safety and sought to
build a o und t chnica l support base for the
new jet. Aft r the Korea n War many
enli sted me hani cs returned to better-pa id
c ivi lian jobs, leav ing th still -ex panding
U AF short of personne l. Ope rat ion Tool-
box wa launch d to prov ide ski lled ma in-
ta in ers for aircraft li ke the F-100.
ad ly, the S uper abre's s rv i e initia-
ti on took plac aga inst a bac kgro und of
acc idents as the test programme continued.
With tragic irony, the worst of these took
the life of George Welch. He wa ched-
uled, on 12 October 1954, to p rform the
fina l t st in a series that wou ld take the
fi ghter close to the limits of its structura l
endurance in a manoeuvre that combined
max imum g and max imum Mach number.
Flying th e n inth productio n F- lOOA (5 2-
5764) We lch attempted to tak the a ir-
frame to it load limits of 7.3g by pull ing
o ut of a steep supersonic dive at 23,500ft
(7 ,200m). Hav ing fai led to reach th exact
parameters o n his first flight, he repeat d
the te t later that morning. He rad io-
ch eked with AA's Palmdale Fligh t Test
 FAST A 1 D FIERY

Centre that he was about to comm nee the

dive over the Rosamond Dry Lake, Mojave
- and then no more was hea rd from him.
The a ircraft was seen to explode at
20,000ft (6,000m) and two parachutes
were sighted, one of them the braking
chute with part of the rear fuselage ti ll
attached to it. O n the other parachute was
the fata lly injured Welch, his body lacerat-
ed by debris from the d i integrating F-100.
The accident invest igator began an
ex haustive analys is of the myriad tiny
pieces of wreckage and interviewed 170
witnesses. The crew of a B-47 tratojet,
returning fro m the practic range at
Sa lton Sea, had ob erved th fatal dive as
th e F-100 arced over from 45,000ft
( 13 , 700m) and then came apart at less
th an 20 ,000ft (6,000m).
Among the fragments wa a mall cine
camera, part of the test instrumentatio n. It
had been focused on the aircraft's left hor-
izontal stabi Iizer and its last few frames of
film showed the shadow of the F-1 OO's ver-
F-100A-5-NA 52-5775 with Nellis AFB's CTAF emblem on its tail. This aircraft was also tica l fin pass v ry rap id ly ove r the
used by the WADC at Wright Field as an EF-100A in 1954. At that time it had the short tailplane. Combined with some alvaged
vertical stabilizer. Norm Taylor Coll ection film from an oscillograph in the cockpit
recording control forces and pos itions at
the t ime of the disaster, th is ev idence
showed that the aircraft had entered a
supersoni c side-slip that ma ively o ver-
stressed the airframe and tore it apart. The
F-100A had co mparative ly short fl ying
surfaces and a long, heavy fuse lage, with it
principal ax is of manoeuvre running from
no e to tail. It had entered a supersonic
pullout and the aerodynamic l ad then
moved to other axes , causing the aircraft
to roll and exacerbating the yaw that had
already been present th roughout the d ive.
It is also po sible that the structure of the
two- ection aileron , who e upward-mov-
ing pa nel mov d furth er than the down -
ward-mov ing ections, caused uneven drag
across the wings and added to the yaw. A
the yaw wo rsened with an increas ing angle
of attack during the pu llout the vertical
tabilizer was unable to prov ide adequate
directional stab ility and the aircraft could
no longer be controlled.
A lthough Welch's F-100A h ad been
pushed beyond the parameters of normal
ervice fl ying, th accident triggered severe
pr blems for the programme. With over sev-
enty aircraft in service and ma product ion
under way, a rapid solution was urgently
needed. A lthough the U AF had officially
accepted the fighter, NAA wou ld have to
The 140th F-100A nearing completion on the Los Angeles production line. bear part of the burden of any modification
David And erton Collection via David Men ard that might be deemed nece sary after an

14
 FAST A 0 FIERY

Slick Chicks
tronics bay were installed there instead. The voltage
regulator and some other electrical control panels
moved to the left-hand ammunition bay. In the cockpit
there were changes to the side consoles to remove the
armament control panel and add controls for an airborne
navigation system that continuous ly computed the air-
craft's position using data from the F-1 DO's own sensors.
An MM-2 attitude gyro replaced the equivalent Type J-
8 model and a pedestal mount. installed on the cockpit
floor between the pilot's legs, held the camera controls
and an emergency drop-tank release lever. Another han-
dle on the right-hand forward cockpit rail operated an
emergency system to open the external doors on the
camera bays.
Although two of the cameras were mounted horizon-
tal ly, using angled mirrors to acquire their imagery, the
forward fuselage would not accommodate the five cam-
eras without modification. It was therefore deepened
!primari ly between Stations 80 and 267) with a pair of
boxy 'jowl' fairings incorporating motor-driven. protec-
tive doors for the optics. There were new doors. and pan-
els extending the ammunition and electrical bays out-
The RF-100A 'Slick Chick'. This aircraft was lost in a crash near Bitburg on
board of the original fuselage mould line by about 5in
October 1956. via Larry Engesath
l13cm) each side.IFor their earlier RF-86F recce variant

Although the 36th FDW initiated the F-1DO air superior-

ity/ attack variants into United States Air Forces in
Europe IUSAFE) service. the first Super Sabres in USAFE
were in fact a trio of highly secret spy planes; the RF-
1OOA reconnaissa nce Huns. In the early 1950s, the USA
needed aircraft that could make deep, high-speed pen-
etration flights over Soviet territory to investiga te its
burgeoning defence build-up, particularly its interconti-
nental ballistic missiles IICBMs).
Wh ile Clarence 'Kelly' Johnson at Lockheed went to
work on his U-2 design to meet the need in the long
term, NM responded to a USAF request to equip six F-
1DO As with five Chicago Aerial Survey cameras each -
two split-vertical36in l91cm) K-38s, a pair of tri-camera
K-17s and a prime-vertical. tri-camera K-17C. While not
as advanced as the Hycon 'B' cameras under develop-
ment for the U-2. these instruments could resolve
images of gol f balls on a grass course from 53,000ft
l16,200m) altitude. The aircraft needed an optical
viewfinder Iabove the instrument panel in place of the
A-4 gun sight) to sight its cameras. a speed of 530mph
l853km/h) at 53,000ft to evade the defences and an
endurance of 51/1 hours. This view emphasizes the twin bulges for the camera installations and the sway-braces connecting
The F-1 OOA had only just entered production at the the inboard pylons to the fuselage. via Larry Engesath
time, but the USAF's late-1953 request was urgent and
a seven-man NM team directed by Don Rader was
given a mere three weeks to modify the new fighter as the standard 275gal 'supersonic' tanks. In order to NM used similar but smaller bulges in the side-panels
a camera-ship. The M-39E guns were removed to pro- squeeze the last few miles. an extra 30gal of fuel were of the F-86F to squeeze in a very cram ped camera array.)
vide the obvious locations for two cameras. with two pumped into the fuel venting system through a new The RF-1OOA's camera viewfinder used a metal tube pro-
more in the ammunition bays and one in the right-hand filler cap on the upper dorsal fairing, providing just jecting through th e engine air inlet to a small window
expended ammunition compartment. Their associated enough JP-4 to start the engine and taxi to take-off beneath the nose. Flying at such an altitude required the
electrical heating and control equipment wen t in the withou t cutting into the main fuel supply. F-1OOAs could pilot to wear a pressure sui t as a back-up to the cockpit
left-hand expended ammunition bay. The aft electronics not be refuelled in flight and in any case tankers could pressurization, with consequent cockpit modifications
bay !behind the ammunition boxes) was used for an not have accompanied them on their dangerous over- and the 51/1 hour endurance parameter meant a big
extra 830gal fuel tank. To provide further range, inboard flights . increase in the gaseous oxygen supply.
pylons !similar to those on the F-1 DOC but with extra The gun sight radar was removed and the AN/ARN- A final structural modification was a pair of bolt-on
sway-braces attaching them to the fuselage) were fit- 6 radio compass. fuel control amplifier. main power 12in l30.5cm) wing-tip extensions !taking the span up to
ted and plumbed for 200gal fuel tanks to complement inverter and battery equipment displaced from the elec- 38.8ft/ 11 .8m) to help with the altitude requirement, an

15
 FAST A D FI ERY

Slick Chicks (Continuecl)

2

4 GENERATOR VOLTAGE R'f:GULATOR

POYIER CONTROL PANEL
GEUCRATOR FIELD CONTOOL RELAY
(LECTRICAL CONTROL PANC_L

5 IIMGE COMPCN!JkTION NOTOR

6 (}.\( AGE NCY oo.AKE ACCLMJLATOR AIR fltLER
VALV[, AIR. GAGE AND OU.\\P VALVE

7 OXYGEN fiLLER

2 REMOVt fAIRING FOR ACC[~S TO 8 SPLIT VERTICAL AND AIR CONDITION ING
SURfACE CONTROL5 . EQUIPMENT
J TRJ OBLIQUE CAN'IERA 9 CAMlRA R[fltlC.ERATION [,QUIP11 ENT

12

LA.HRAL AC t:f:l[ HC:"'ETER 14 A-Z AHPL IFIER

2 P.T· }I3/ARC· 5+ RlC! IV[R - TRA NS H'IT ;ER 15 MA - l TRUE A IRSPEED COMPUHR XMTR
J f · IH INVERTER. 16 JY.TTE~\'
4 R~IOI /AR.N -6 RECEIV£R. 17 AM-916 AS N - 6£lE'CT RONIC CC.Ilnlol Ai'1PLI F/ E"R.
5 RT- al /APX· O t([C E IVER- T RANS Ht T':'fR. 18 RAV IO F'USE' BOA ;.sSE11Gl Y
6 AC C£LE:ROM E T ER AM?Lif"IEP. 19 OPTICAL VIEW FttJDER
] YAV DAMPER P0v.' £R ~UPPL'f 2Q CAHERA CONTROL PEDE STAL 14 15
8 CP·IBa ASt-1 - 6 COMP'UfER 21 I.KC.HOTO R,..
9 PILOT'S HJ5TRUH E NT PA.NEL. 22 SPLIT VERTICAL CJ.HERA.S
1Q FUEL VENT FILLER 13 TRI VERTICAL CA."t.ERft.

l0 TRI OBLIQiiE CM1Cii:A.S 23 TP.I V£J:TIC.lL CAM ERA 11 FUEL FILLER 14 SPLI T \'EP.TICAL CMI ERA

11 fUEL GAG!: ANPLIF"IER 24 C.v1£'V, All!. CCI-: 01TIC:trN C: EQU I PMENT ~j 2 HYORt.UU( SYSTEM 15 TEMPrRATURE SfN.S I NG p,uL.B

12 HE CTR::c CAY fl.'!.:.. CE•.L

COHPA'\TMEIIT
~QER~~-y ~et~~t~~i'~. ANO fVEL ' IMACiE l10TION C0f'1PENS A TIO ' !
.t /MAC£. HOTIO U COH:'ENSATION GAGt A.M.Pt.lft[R
13 YAIJ DAMPER AHfliFIE:'R. r -tc;tA-tKO-oo.al

These NAA drawings give an idea of the camera and equipment layout in the RF-100A.

addition that wou ld appear on production F-1OOAs

together wi th the extended vertical stabilizer also used
on the RF-1OOA. The wing was also strengthened inter-
nally to take a pair of drop tanks on the inboard pylons.
All RF-1 OOAs had the J57-P-39 engine.
The half-dozen selected F-1 OOA-10-NAs were re-
built wi th a great deal of skill and improvisa tion. The
project. code-named Slick Chick on 7 December 1954
and conducted with great secrecy, involved aircraft 53-
1545/48, -1551 and -1554. The serials are important
since the aircraft frequently bore fal se serials (such as
53-2600) duri ng service to confuse the opposition.
Known unofficially as RF-1 OOAs. they we re always sim-
ply F-1OOAs on USAF records to thicken the security
blanket.
With flight testing completed by mid-1954, pil ot
training was initiated and the 'Slick Chicks' were hand-
ed over to the USAF in spring, 1955. Three were des-
tined for use in the Pacific area with the 6021 st Reece
Squadron at Yokota where they arri ved on 2 June 1955.
The others were shipped to the UK aboard USS Tripoli
and then flown from Burtonwood to Bitburg, West Ger-
many on 16 May 1955. Their parent unit was the 7407th
Support Squadron (SS), already flying RB-57 A spy-
planes out of Rhein Main AB.
Detachment 1 of the 7407th SS, commanded by Maj
RF-100A 53-1551 cleaning up aher take-off before delivery to the 7407th SS in West Germany. via Larry Engesath
Bert E. Dowdy, began test flights with its 'Chicks ', part-
ly to ascertain that the use of continuous afterburner
for more than the recommended fifteen minutes was

76
 FAST AN D FI ERY

possibl e. The J57 -P39 engines were also 'tweaked' to
give 16.0001b (7.250kg) thrust. Later. they were
replaced with the up-rated J57-P21 engines of prod uc-
tion F-1OODs. but th e Detachment reverted to the 'Dash
39' model (since it gave better performance above
40,000ft/12,000m) until the 'Dash 21A' was refitted
once aga in in 1957. Detachments were made to
Furstenfeldbruck. Rhein Main and Hahn in West Ger-
many, and (al legedly) lncirlik in Turkey.
In all, Detachment 1 flew over BOO mi ssions. many
of them high-speed dashes over the border to photo-
graph Soviet mi ssi le installati ons. Speed was the 'Slick
Ch icks' only defence and pilots frequently encountered
anti-aircraft fire and attempted interceptions by Soviet
fighters. Like their SR-71A successors they were there
and gone before the defences cou ld respond effective-
ly. There were no losses over hostile terri tory but 53-
1551 crashed 15 miles (24km) north of Bitburg in Octo-
ber 1956, probably due to a mechanica l fault, with only
213 flight hours on its record. The pilot ejected suc-
cessful ly. It was replaced by an F-1OOC (55-27 11) for
training purposes. During one missi on the pi lot
remained in afterburner for almost thirty minutes to
avoid Soviet interceptors. ca using such severe heat
damage to the aft section of his aircraft that a new rear
fuselage section had to be bolted on.
When Detachment 1 was shut down at Bitburg on 1
July 1958, the RF-1OOA had already been superseded by
the higher-flying Martin RB-57F and Lockheed U-2A/C.
Improvements in Soviet air defences made the relative-
ly heavy, unmanoeuvrable RF-1OOA too vulnerable.
However. the loss of Gary Powers' U-2 in May 1960
showed that even the stratospheric Lockheed design
was not immune to a new generation of Soviet surface-
to-air mi ssiles (SAMs) and better fi ghter tactics. The
two surviving RF-1OOAs plus the two remaining from
those based at Yokota (53-1548 was lost on 23 June
1955) were returned to NAA's Inglewood plant in June
1958 and all four were transferred under MAP to the
Republic of China Air Force's (RoCAF's) 4th Reconna is-
sance Squadro n where they remained unti l late 1960.
All were subsequently scrapped.

urgent examinat ion of the F-100' stabili ty
pr blems. Project pilot Jack impson was
one of vera! USA F pilots who had already
expressed grave reservations about the
hort tail. O n a N ovember 1954 gun ight
test, impson 's F-l OOA entered a nose-right
ya w during a pli t-S manoeuvre and end d
up going almost sideways at transon ic
speed. Metal fro m the right side of the ver-
tical stabilizer was torn away.
The bas ic 'fix' agreed upo n wa simple:
a 26in (66cm) increase in wingspan and a
ta ll r vert ica l stabil izer with 27 per ent
greater area. ln effect, this meant a return
to th taller, higher a pect ratio fin used on

ro6

Three of the new breed of 'Mach Busters' step to their jets at George AFB. On the left is Col Foster l. Smith who later
became a USAF Maj General. The line-up of 436th FBS F-100As has the squadron's 'Mach Busters' tail insignia. Scalloped
intake designs in squadron colours and 'speed lines' behind the squadron emblem were added later. David Menard Collection

17

/ in t grated . The nex t day, Maj Frank
' ~ . ·· "
\
' seconds before the S uper Sabre smas hed
.\
A whole generation of fighter pilots experienced the new world of supersonic flight
as they progressed from their T-33A trainers to the new F-100A. USAF
th e YF-l OOA. It h ad been abbrev iated on
ea rl y prod ucti on a ircraft to save we ight
and d rag. This in turn mea n t red uced
rudde r area since the fu el ve nt above the
rudde r had been moved lower o n th e fins
of ea rl y F- l OOAs . A ll seventy sq uadro n
F-100A had to be modi fied, p lus 108 at
va ri ous stages of produ ction . George's F-
100As we re gro unded from 11 ovember
195 4 unti l ea rl y February 1955 and th e
modifica t ion programme cont inued in to
May of th at yea r. The first modified a ir-
craft was the th irty- fourth ff th lin e, an
F-lOOA- 10-N A , but aircraft in th latter
pa rt of prod ucti on Block 20 we r the first
to hav th e changes incorporated during
production. Other improvemen ts incl ud -
ed at thi s stage were a retractable ta il - ki d
(fro m F-l OOA 52-5 766 onwards), a ya w
damp ing y t m (from late Block 15
F-100A ) and pitch clamp ing (B lock 20).
From the 167th a ircraft onwards the ]5 7-
P-7 was replaced by the -39 va riant,
though there was no thrust increase.
Desp ite all this, Dutch Kindelberger
joined Douglas A ircraft's designer Eel He in -
mann at the Whi te House in December
1954 to receive the highly pri zed oilier
Trophy. AA's share of the awa rd recognized
the F-100 as represen ting 'the greate t
FAST AND FI ERY
achi ve rn nt in aviation in America'. The
modifications had in any case greatl y
improved the F- 100's handling characteris-
tics and would eventually almo t r move the
risk of pilot- induced oscillations.
U nfo rtunately, th di fficul t ies pe rsisted .
A strike at NAA's Los A nge les facto ry seri-
ously d isru pted production from October
to December 1953, and there we re further
acc idents. O n 8 Nove mber, shortl y after
W elch's cras h , A ir dr . D. teph enson,
ommander of th e RA F's Centra l Fighter
Establishment, was kil led wh en the
A very rare shot of an F-100A-20-NA used by the 323rd FBW for transition to the F-1000 at
Bunker Hill AFB in 1956. The markings (a squadron colour band in red, blue or yellow
with black check borders) were desi gned by Maj Bill Dillard, the original leader of the
48th FBW Skybl azers team in their F-84G/F-86F years. David Menard Collection
18
F- 100A (53- 153 4 ) he was eva luating at
Eglin A FB su ra ined lo s of contro l
through pil ot-induced oscill ati o n and el i -
Emo ry ejected from F- l OOA 52-5 771 afte r
loss of con tro l d ur ing a Phase IV gunnery
test. In all , six losses and two fa ta liti es pre-
ceded the U A F' dec ision to ground the
fleet whil e the structural mod ifications
w re ca rri ed o ut.
In February 1955, AA test pil ot
George F. S mith became th e first man to
survive a supersonic bale-out: all th e mo re
rema rkab le since he was dressed in Lev is
and a ports shirt. He had ag r eel to give
production a ircraft F-100A 53- l 659 its
in iti al fli ght during a ch ance visit to the
fac to ry o n hi s day off. A t 35,000ft
(1 0, 700m) a minor h ydrauli c fa ult locked
th e control co lumn as the a ircraft entered
an uncommanded di ve . S mi th a ppa rentl y
ejected at 7 Omph (1 ,255 km/h) - just fi ve
into the sea, landing n ea r a Sea Sc ut ve -
el. H e had a ca talogue of internal injuri es
and lost nea rl y 28lb (1 3kg) in weigh t as a
result of the co lossal air pressure o n ejec-
t io n but, he lived to fl y aga in .
By the end of 195 5 all the productio n
F- 100A had been deli ve red , and in Sep-
te mbe r th e 4 79th FDW fin all y reach ed
init ia l op rational capab ili ty (!OC) at
George A FB. Other F-1OOAs h ad arri ved
at Ne llis AFB (52-5 76 1 was th e first visi-
to r in A ugust 195 4) fo r th e use of th e
3595th ombat rew Tra ini ng Wing
( TW) and fo r R& D wo rk within that
unit. F-l OOA served with A ir Mate ria l
o mm and and other test uni ts, but the
most ex t nsive use of the surviving USAF
exa mples was to be in the three A ir
ationa l G uard un its: the 152 ncl Figh te r
 FAST AN D FI ERY

lntercept ion Squ adron (FlS ), A rizona

ANG (M ay 1958- unti ll 969), the 11 8th
FBS Conn cticut A G (mid -1960-Janu -
ary 1966 ), and th e 188th Figh ter- bo mber
Squ ad ro n (FBS) New Mex ico ANG
(April 1958-ea rly 1964). O f the 203 F-
100As acce pted by the U SAF o nl y those
at George AFB served with a front-li ne
Wing. Fifty were lost in acc idents and ove r
half the tota l productio n run (1 22 F-
1OOAs and four RF-1OOA reconnaissa nce
va riants) was eventually transferred to the
Ro AF. By the end of 1955, the U AF
had air ady dec ided that the F-100 was
better suited to the fighter-bo mber ro le.
Proj ect H ot Rod, fl ow n at Eglin AFB by
A ir Proving G round Comma nd pilots,
fo und shortco mings in th e F-l OOA's oper<
ational capability that made it less than
idea l fo r the air supe ri ority ro le. Four yea rs
later, a similar decision was made concern-
ing the Lo kh edF-104A intercepto r after
o nl y a yea r's se rvi ce with A ir Defense
~ ,.l l
Command (ADC ). It had another sho rt
'• .
USAF caree r as the F-104C fighter-
' . . ·~\· ~ ........................
~~~­
bomber, also with the 479th TFW after it
A neat quartet of F-100A-10 and -15-NAs on the prowl. The lead aircraft (53-1589) later
flew with the Republic of China AF after service with the Arizona ANG 's 152nd TFTS ceased F-100 operations and wa th en
and it was preserved as '0218' at Taiwan's National University. John Mae ne Collection shifted to the ex po rt market. How v r, in
USAF se rv ice th F-100 was to prove one
of the most enduring and effective attack
aircraft it had ever possessed.

450th FOG F-100C-5-NAs on the ramp at Foster AFB . FW-775 is the Wing Commander's aircraft with fuselage bands
complementing the red. white and blue tail colours. Da vid Menard Coll ec tio n

19
 CHAPTER 2

Swords Unsheathed

,,

11 .:;t77"·r
. (

F-100C-1-NA 53-1777 was lAC's first F-100C, delivered on 14.July 1955. It took part in the 4 September 1955
Bendix Race from George AFB to Philadelphia, averaging 610mph (980km/hl on the 2,325 mile {3,740kml
journey with Col Carlos Talbott as pilot. The aircraft was later lost in a crash at Foster AFB. John Maene
Collection

F- lOOC
Mo r th an a few disenchanted fighter
pilot have ob erved that beca use the
hea vy hand of S trateg ic Air Comm and
(SA C ) ru led the USAF in the 1950s and
earl y 1960s, fi ghter aircraft were all too
qui ckly turn ed in to bombers. They also
point to the scort fighters (like the F-101
Voodoo ) that were originally intend ed to
pro tect SAC's fleet in flight and the
interc pto r whose ma in task seemed to
be to pro tect A bomber and miss ile
install at ions. There were certainl y insuf-
fi c ient 'pure' air uperio rity fi ghters
between the F-86 Sa bre of the earl y 1950s
and the mid -1970s F-15 Eagle to satisfy
fighter pi lot from the dogfighting trad i-
ti on , and th e F- 100 was no exception
after it was re-roled from a defensive to an
offensive miss io n .
Following a comparatively short run
of F- l OOA a ir uperiority fighter , the
USAF wanted a new ver ion , the F-100 ,
with a substantial attack capability to
replace its nuclea r-capable but under-
powe red Republic F-84F . Beneath the
evolving 'bi g sti ck' of the nucl ar triad of
intercontinental ball istic missile (I BMs),
bombers and submarine- based missiles,
trat gic planner required a tactica l layer
of re po n e that was based closer to the
acti on than SAC's airba es. Thi would
enable smaller nuclear and conventi onal
weapons to be directed very rapidly at, for
exa mp le, a ov iet armoured advance into
We tern Germany. Fighter-bomber a ir-
craft for thi s role required high speed at
low altitude to avoid counter-a ir defences,

20
 SWO RD S UNS H EAT HED

and ad quare range to give the ir pilots a

chance of omething better th an a one-
way miss ion . At first this mi ss ion fe ll to
F-84 and some F-86 units.
The F-100A's range wa in ufficient for
th ta k and the only place for mor fu el
wa in the wing, a 'dry' structure in the
ori gina l F-100 design. No rth Ameri an
Av iati on (NAA) had already condu ted
feasibility studies for a 'w t' wing (givin
th quivalent range ex tension of two
2 75ga l tank ) during the F- lOOA design
ph ase. lnJul y 1953, thecompany wasasked
for furth er wing redes ign to include
strength ening for extra to re pylon ,
bringing the total to three each side. The
inboa rd py lon could only accept stor
ho rt enough to allow the undercarr iage to
retract behind them. These pylons were
bo lt-on installat ions, lacking the explos ive
jettisonable facility of the F-lOOD pylon .
Th rede igned wing had lea k-proofing
An early F-100C-1 -NA pre-delivery. The 'US Air Force' stencil remained on the tail -fin ea lant injected into all pars and bo ltho les
of most F-100As. F-100Cs and some early F-100Ds. John Mae ne Coll ection in th fu el-r ra ining areas of the structure.
These tanks added 422gal, which made a
to tal of 1, 189gal of internal fue l includ ing
the fo rward, intermediate and aft fus lage
tank sect ions. A ll were refu e lled via a n w
Factory-fresh F-100C-10-NH 55-2724, one of the twenty-five F-100Cs built at NAA's single-po in t receptacle low on the left fuse-
Columbus, Ohio facility as preparation for its use as a second source for F-100Ds. lage behind the wing- root and ~ d to th
Braking parachute doors beneath the rear fuselage are open. This aircraft was later ngine through a mall (1. 6ga l) in verted
used by the Thunderbirds team. John Ma ene Collection

21
 SWO RD S UNS HEATHED
( added inboard benea th the right wing as
\\ _-
The F-100C concept gave the Hun a primary fighter-bomber capability and the third
aircraft, 53-1711 was used to test its maximum ordnance-carrying muscle. Triangular
sway-braces are fitted to the inner sides of all pylons, the largest attaching the long
inboard pylon s to the fuselage . David Menard Collection
The F-100's original standard drop tank was the NAA Type 111275gal 'banana ' tank
with integral pylon. 53-1710 was the second F-100C-1-NA used for Phase II tests at
AFFTC. Edwards AFB and it won the Mackay Trophy with a record speed of 822mph
(1 ,322km/h) on 20 August 1955. John Maene Collection
22
fl ight tan k (allowing short peri ods of nega-
t ive g flight) within the centre fu el tank. A
detachabl infligh t- refu ell ing probe was
another range ex tender. At first th is was a
sho rt, stra ight, tubu lar installation that
prov ided p ilots with some rea l prob lems in
operational use when they tri ed to insert it
into the tra il ing fu el-line 'bas ket' be hind a
tanker aircraft . Col Tom Germscheid flew
F-lOODs with this short probe at Ca nnon
AFB in 1957:
lt was virtua ll y imposs ible to see the end of the
pro be from your norma l cockpit pos itio n . You
could ge t a glimpse of it if you squ inched your
head fo rward aga inst the upper right side of the
canopy but it was almost impossible to fly the
t ight format ion requi red fo r refu e lling fTOm this
pos ition. Th e result was that you had to guess
and estimate where the probe was . Yo u wo uld fl y
up to the d rogue and stabilize about lOft back
fro m the basket, then make vertica l and lateral
adjustments in you r pos itio n , stab ili ze aga in and
then advance the th rottl e to give you a pretty
good overtake on th e basket. Yo u had to h it it
with pretty good acce leration to engage the bas-
ket latch. Often , turbu lence around th e a irframe
wo uld cause the basket to move . Yo u wo uld look
for the fu el hose to 'snake', when you hi t the
basket. lf you didn't see it snake as yo u adva nced
the last ten o r so fe et you had pro bably m issed
the drogue and the basket was pro bably beating
up you r wing-s lats o r the fuselage sides. If you
just hi t the lip of the basket it wo uld do a loop
and hit the canopy or the top of the fuse lage . We
had a number of shattered canopies during refu -
el ling. O n a practice refuel li ng near Cannon
A FB a refu elling d rogue beca me enta ngled in an
F- IOO's hori zonta l sta bilize r. Th e drogue hose
broke and an inerti al ree l zapped it back into the
tanker's refu elling pod, igniting a fire o n the
tanker whose nine crew membe rs successfu lly
ba il ed o ut. The F- 100 jock pa inted a KB-50 sil -
ho uette on the side of his bird.
If you hi t the basket with too much acce lera-
t io n you would ove rshoo t and bend the probe or
even tear it off the F- 100. A rou nd 1958 NAA
ca me o ut with a mod ificat ion to ex tend the
probe abo ut 4ft, moving the contact po int with
th e d rogue fo rward and into less severe turbu-
lence. It was somewhat eas ier to see the length-
ened pro be from the cockpit. Later, they put a
bend in th e probe, raising the t ip up about 3ft.
Yo u could then see it from the cockpit o ut of
your periphera l vision and th is made refuelling
a pi ece of cake.
O ne th eo ry h as it that an accidenta lly
b nt probe gave pilo ts the id ea that it
 WORDS UNS HEAT HED
wo uld be eas ie r to se
' kinked' ve rsio n.
Wheelus-based F-100Cs of the 7272nd FTW initially wore dramatic red and yellow
markings, replaced by the more formal dark blue bands (as seen here I and then by a
simple Wing patch. Author's Collection
lnflight-refuelling was the key to the F-100's success as a 'global warrior' . F-100C
54-1830, flown by a 322nd FOG pilot, has made a successful connection using the
original, short refuelling probe. USAF via David Mena rd
23
a d e li be rat ly
O ur KB-500 ta nkers' rop speed was around
250kt, no t far fro m o ur stalling speed when
loaded up. Th e KB-SOD had th ree drogues- two
o n the wings and o ne ta il pod: that was defi-
nite ly th e eas iest pos iti on to refuel fro m. Wing
tur bu lence from the tanker ca used the wing-
mo unted drogues to become pretty evas ive.
Whil e at anno n I partic ipated in a tes t fo r
refu e lling F- IOOs off a KC-97, SAC's prim ary
refue ller at the t ime. A drogue o n a short hose
was attached to the end of th e KC-97 's 'fl ying
boom', and we mere ly had to fl y in to pos ition
a nd the boomer wo uld 'fl y' th e d rog ue o n to o ur
pro be. Piece of ca ke!? A lmos t - the prob lem was
lack of tanker airspeed. Th ey had a hard time
reaching 200kt. We had ro descend to around
I O,OOOft to refu e l. Wh en we go t loaded up with
fu e l o ur ang le of attack wo uld increase and we
ran o ut of po wer to hang o n the boom. We
wo uld ca ll, 'Tobogga n ' and the tan ker started to
descend , th us reduc ing our angle of attack.
Th en we wo uld stay o n this descent course until
we gm o ur full load of gas. This was the precur-
sor to late r refue lling fro m the KC- 135 S tra-
to tanker, whi h was a piece of ca ke.
 SWORDS NS I-I EAT I-I ED

An additiona l range booster was th

'buddy' refuelling system, developed by
NAA in rough ly the same timeframe as
Ed H e inemann ' simi lar system for his A -4
Skyh awk. This system, the first fo r a super-
sonic fighter, was cl ea r d fo r the F-l OOD
but not used operatio nall y.
ther innovations for the F-100
included improved yaw and pitch damping
systems resulting from F-1OOA experience .
These gy ro-based stabili z r could be acti-
vated fro m the cockpit. A hyd raulic ac tu-
ato r and bungee 'fee l' device were insta ll ed
at the base of the ve rtica l sta bi lizer. Earl y
F-100 s were stil l limited in rate of ro ll to
200 degrees to avoid 'ba rrell ing' .
The original J57 -P-7 ngin was
rep laced by the ]57-P-21 from the 10 1 t
production a ircraft fo llow ing the fir t test
fli ght of this powerplant in an F-lOOC in
September 1955. An interim ] 57-P-39
vari ant was used in some of the ea rli er F-
lOOCs. Th e 'Das h 2 1' and the later J57 -P-
21A (used in the F-lOOD) upp lied
10,200 lb (4 ,650kg) of sea- leve l tatic
thrust at military thrust and about
16,0001b ( 7 ,250kg) with afte rburner,
improv ing th e F-I OOC's high -a ltitude
peed by 35 kt a nd knocking 10 per cent off
its time to climb to 35,000ft (1 0,700m) .
At that altitude it wa the fa test uper
Sabre, clocking 795kt in an air uperi ority
configuration and beat ing the heav i r Checking the straight refuelling probe on a 322nd FOG F-lOOC, crewed by S/Sgt Fields.
F-1OOD/F by 20kt. The pylon (to the leftl is for a bulky 450gal tank. David Menard Collection
Avi onics comprised AN/ARN -2 1 tacti -
ca l air nav igati on (TAC AN), AN/AR -6
radio compass, A /ARN -3 1 lL ,
AN/APX -6A (later AN/APX-25 ) identifi -
ca tion, fri end o r foe (IFF) et and AN - though the most usual under-wing load was to drop tanks after cl imb-out to altitude. A
AP - OA radar ranging for the A -4 gun - ac tually a pair of275 ga l fu e l tanks. furth r lim itation was that guns could n t
sigh t. The M-1 bombing system (late r A lthough the n w inboa rd to re py lo ns be fired with empty fu el tanks on the
supplemented by an MA-2 low altitude (Wing S tation 55) were meant to ca rry inboa rd pylons.
bombing system (LABS), inve nted by Maj range-stretching 200ga l type 1V fuel tank , F-100 , D and F models h ad a further
John A. Ryan) controlled deli ve ry of the F- these had an adve rse effect on longitudinal et of py lon o n the outboa rd wing stations
100 's max imum bomb load of 5,500lb stability. Instead, a pa ir of bulky 45 0ga l (STA 155) fo r ordnance up to 750lb
(2,500kg) and this could include nucl ea r type 11 or 335ga l type Il l tank could be bombs o r 200ga l tanks, though th e latte r
weapo ns. Progre sive update programmes used in plac of th tandard 275gal AA were se ldo m carried. External ordn ance
equipped some F-l OOC with a Minneapo- type Ill 'supersoni c' tanks o n the interme- and ta nks apa rt from the 275gal pattern
lis- Honeywell MB-3 autop ilot and , ten diate wing pylons (Wing Station 106). h ad some inevitable negative effects on
yea rs after the vari ant ntered ervice, c lus- The type 111 335ga l va riants were simp ly the F-100' tabi lity. In pilo t A lex Martin's
ter bomb un it ( BU) and a ir intercept mis- 275ga l tank with a 28 in (71 c m) plug in op ini o n, 'The 275gal tanks were so com-
sile (AIM) -9 idewinder capability for the the ir fo rward ection for the extra fue l. mo n you ba re ly noticed them after a while
surviving exa mple in Air N ational G uard If the big 45 0ga l 'bags' (mainly u eel on but the 450ga l ferry tanks, rocket launch -
(ANG) units. Tactica l Air Command F- l OODs) without interna l baffl es were ers etc. were worse. But if you n eeded to,
(TAC ) squad ron F-100 s never rece ived hung on the intermediate py lo ns, they had one punch n the jettison button and yo u
the TO IF-OOC-563 update to enab le th m to be fully fuelled or totally emp ty. Other- were clea n' .
to fire th AlM -9. H owever, F-l OOCs were wi se, fu I lo bing to and fro could unbal- Don chmenk, who fl ew the F- 100
clea red for MK seri es bo mbs up to 2,000lb an e the aircraft bey nd it cg limits during extensive ly in Europe and Vi etnam, noted
(900kg), high veloc ity aircraft (rocket) take-off. Pilot we re in any ca e in tructed that, 'Inboa rd stores made the a irp lane
(HVA(R)) projectiles and chemica l tanks, to use internal fuel for take-off, switching "squirre lly". lt wasn 't too bad with

24

..!
F-100C-20-NA 54-1921 of the 7272nd FTW at Wheelus AB was one of the
high-speed target tug aircraft provided for gunnery training of USAFE squadrons.
Author's Col lection
inboard, intermediate and outboard stores
but it wa bad with in board store o nl y,
which was an unusual load'.
F-lOOD
Further deve lopment of the des ign in
respo nse to TAC requests in May 1954
brought about the F- l OOD variant, in
wh ich the ' D' could have stood fo r 'defin -
itive' since it was the fin al and princ ipal
single-seat production version . A tota l of
SWORD U SHEAT H ED
l i
r·
[' e .
I.
I .
_L __
1,274 were manufactured after th run of
476 F-100 sand 203 F-100As. The first
production F-lOOC flew o n 17 January
195 4 with A l White in the cockp it fo l-
lowing the first flight o n 1 Marc h 1954 of
a 'dry wing' prototype (F-lOOA 52-5759)
th at tested tb other F-100 systems. The
first fli ght of 53- 1709, the initial F-100 ,
could have happe ned earli er a it was r ady
in mid-October of th e previo us year.
Delays re ulted from the series of F-l OOA
accident . Producti on of the C mode l was
comp leted in Jul y 1956 and by that time
25
the proto type F- lOOD had fl wn (24 Janu -
ary 1956, pil oted by Dan Darn II) and D-
model uper Sabres began to ap pear on
the flight lines of the 405th Fighter-
bomber Wing (FBW) at Langley AFB,
replacing Repub li c F-84Fs.
Externall y, the F- l OOD had the same
fuse lage length as the F- 100 , but
f increased fin he ight added 4in ( l Ocm) to
the overa ll length mea urement. There
was extra verti al tail ar a, taking the
o verall he ight fro m 15 .3ft (4.7m) to 16. 2ft
(4 .9m) and a larger fa iring was add d
above th e rudder to bouse an A /APS-54
tail warning antenn a. Th e increased
he ight gave slightl y mor ar a to the rud -
der, wh ich reta ined the xtern al-ribb d
structure of most F- l OOA/C rudd r . Mo r
obvious when see n in plan form was the
change in the wing' rea r outline to incor-
porate inboard , trailing-edge flaps. An
increase in overa ll combat we ight to
30,000lb ( 13,600kg), about 1,200lb
(550kg) mo re tha n the F-100 , m ant
th at the prev iously flap-less wing would
not have all wed a a ~ landing speed. ln
an a ircraft wh e landing characterist ics
had already been de cribed by some as a
' ontro lled era b', it was vital to prevent
an increase in to uch-down peed
Getting Down
onv rting to the F-l OOD in 1957, To m
Ge rmsche id found that the new jet was:
... definite ly a ha llenge to land. Approach and
land ing speeds were hi gher than previ ously
experienced in F-84s and F-86s. Approach in
the F- 100 was generall y around 175kt ind ica t-
ed. Th e fl aps defini te ly made the F- l OOD ea ier
to land th an the F- IOOA and mode ls. A lmo t
everybody tended to add a few knots for the wife
and kids. Landing visibility was no t very go d
once you started the fl are and go t the nose up.
The tend ency was to fl are too high , e peciall y at
ni ght and reach sta ll speed wh ile ti ll 50ft in the
air. T his resulted in a very finn t uch -down ,
often leadi ng to a 'po rpoise' (o r 'J. .')and a ir-
craft damage. I reca ll a W ing ommander at
Pumping LOX into a 506th TFW F-1000. The yellow
paint on the intake of this 458th FBS aircraft is
peeling away, revealing the red of a previous owner,
probably the 457th FBS. Col M. Kul czyk
 SWO RD S U SHEATHED

Early 21st FDS markings are painted on Maj Pete Fern andez' F-lOOC 54-2096. They included blue and white bands
and the squadron insignia. David Menard Collection

hrs and landing as it was getting ligh t. This last-

ed until we got a new commander!

T he F- l OO's fa irly heavy windshi e ld fram-

ing was an inev itable consequence of the
constructi on methods ava ilable at the
time, and although it prov ided strength for
emergenc ies like that it d id tend to add to
the land ing problems by re trict ing fo r-
ward visibili ty on ap proach . The basic
to ughness of th e F- LOO a irfra me was
shown on ano ther occas ion whe n a 20th
Tact ica l Figh ter W ing (T FW) F-l OOD
landed at Wethersfie ld with its nose-gea r
locked in the 'up' pos ition . A ccord ing to
Tom Ge rmsche id:

The touch-down area of the runway was foa med

but unfortunate ly the a ircraft fl oated over the
A sparkling bare-metal F-lOOC-1 -NA (53 -17391 of the 334th FDS, 4th FDW at Seymour- foamed area and landed beyond. The pil ot d id a
Johnson AFB in 1958. Squadron markings are blue. Author's Col lection good job of lowering the nose to th e runway
where it slid on the pi tot boom fo r seve ral thou-
sa nd feet before com ing to a top on the cen-
treline. Damage to thi s bird was limi ted to a
Cannon AFB rounding our h igh on a night dur ing the sli de. T he word qui ckl y spread tha t replace ment pi to t boom.
land ing, getting in to a 'porpoise' and shearing the 'O ld Man ' rook the barri er with h is teeth !
off the no e-gea r. He slid the length of the run- As a result of th is venture, th e Wing was Even with a ll three land ing gea r members
way on his nose and stopped with the barrier restr icted from landing at night. We got our in place, a n MA- l emerg ncy barrier
cable aga inst the canopy, whi ch he had ra ised 'night-time' by raking off at about 0300-04 arrestment could be injur ious. If th e

26
 SWO RD S NS HEAT HED

The F-1000 introduced a revised wing to include trailing-edge flaps. Ailerons were moved further outboard as a result.
Wing fences were absent from early F-1000s such as this one. The 'USAF' lettering was in Insignia Blue IFS15044).
At the base of the tail-fin is a small opening for the drag chute cable connection . David Menard Col lection

F-1000-70-NA 56-30571eads a line-up of 388th TFS,

312th TFW aircraft from Cannon AFB en route to the
Far East on 30 August 1958. The squadron, led by
Col Arlie Blood, used yellow markings on noses and
tails. MA-2 APU vehicles are connected ready for
engine start time . USAF via David Mena rd

27

1 - - -- 38.8'- - -- i
1957 general arrangement drawing of an F-1000. USAF via John Maene
canopy wa I t o r open, the upper strap of
the barrier could slide over the no and
into the cockpit. Pilot were advised to
lea n forward into the windshi eld to pre-
vent the strap from throttling them. l t was
also standard practice to bl w off all ex ter-
na l fue l tanks before taking the barri r.
Col Art Johnson commanded the 309th
Fighter-bomber Squad ron (FBS ) as it con-
verted from the F-84F Thunderstreak, 'an
easy aircraft to Ay. With the wide gear legs
itwasap i c ofcake to land'. heckingout
in the F-lOOA and F-100 at eorge AFB
in 1957, he found little difference between
these two variants and th F-lOOD in clea n
configuration:
There probab ly wa n't a noti ceable difference
in sta lling peed between them with the fl aps up
on the D but th ere was a significa nt difference
SWORDS U ' SHEAT HED
Wing Ar ea . . . . . . . 400 sq ft
Aspe c t Ratio . . . . . . . 3 . 72
~ J' UT" I (Gal)
with the fl aps down for land ing - sort of li ke
night and day. We didn't use fl a ps ~ r take-off o
any difference there would be due to the extra
weight of th e F- 100 0.
The ex tra wing-root chord of the F-lOOD
becau e of it Aaps changed th spa n-w i e
airAow over the wing and req uired ingle
wing fen e to be fitted above the wing
nea r the out r end of each a il eron. The e
were factory- fitted to F-lOODs and F-
l OOFs, though some early 8th TFW a ir-
craft were not at first equipped with th e
fences.
The F-100 pilot' manual pecifi d
180kt for fin al approach and touch -down
at 150kt with 22,500lb {10,200kg) gross
we ight. F-lOOD touch-down figure were a
little lowe r: 190kt was a more typical
approach speed. H owever, a Maj urti
28
Wing Section . . . . NACA64A007
M. A. C. . . . . . . . . . 142. 65"
• Auxili ary - Used In - fli ght refu eling - O i l (Gal)
Burns observed, 'Th e figur were all te t
pilot stuff anyway. For fighter pilots Aying
the airplane speed is life'. According to Lt
Co l Ron Herri ck, 'one ki ller was the fli ght
contro l system o n the flare to landing with
the engine at id le. lf you made a vio l nt
pitch correcti on o n or be~ re the to uch-
down it could resu lt in a violent ending'.
After runway contact was successfu lly
established, the braking parac hu te was
need d to ki ll the knot . lt prov ided v ry
rap id dece leration , causing the pilot to
'hang in hi traps'. In th F-1 OOC, a land-
ing run without the chute took a ll of
5,500ft {l ,700m) using moderate (70 per
cent) brake pressure, no wind and a dry
runway. Use of the chute red uc d thi s to
4,300ft {1 ,300m) a ltho ugh , as C urtis
Burn found , 'Th F-100 we Aew had a
relative ly unre li able drag ch ute. My

L 01109 TA.'"': YU'F.1.. QU..U."Trn'
GAG!: T£9T 8UTTON' •
2. DROP TA!O< nJFJ.. QtlA!Io"nTY
OAC}:£ •
I. OAAC C:Ht.rrS I!A•.'o/OLE
4. AC LOADllol ET•n
'- DC t.OADM£'J'£R
8. Mlllii'ID..£1MDICA'l'ON LICKTS•
'f.f i'EClAL ll'OIUO nfflJCATOil:
"tGwr
&. OI-l OOMlJ.IJ'/0 IYST£M t'H'OlCA ·
TOn UGKT •
t. ).(A$ttR CA!Jn(m L.!Oltl"
10. IICAOOIO e.':Ut(Xr'OR
U. TRICiC"tll SAI'Ii:TY SWI'l'CH
12. A T'TTlVDB L'"DICA TO!!:
U. AT'TlTL"O£I:'miCAT'0.!1 PAST
~HtiC11otl BIJ'M'ON
l4 . CUU IMDIC AT'OR LIVRT8
IJ, P'llU· AND OV'ERJ IEAT·WARN ·
INC SY8T&MS tt..-r DIITTOH •
1e. f'IR£· AM!) OVIJUtU.T- WAJlH·
U<Ol.JCin'S
t7. BY'ORAULIC PRI'..SSIJR£ <lACE
ULOCTOR SWm;H
ll. Tti:JtX·AMl)-.SLIP INOICATOR
It lfY1)1lAUUC PR WU: GAO.C
10 ACC£L£ROMJ!:T1U~
2L on. PR.USUUCACS
F-1000 front cockpit panel and key. USAF
F-lOOD COCKPIT ••• LEFT SIDE
TYPICAL
I. CUtCUIT·DlUAJCEn PA.'l£1.
:1. CONSOLE n..oc:>DLIGHT
3. ANT I-G SUIT P ~uRE-REGULATING VALVE
t . CAMERA SH\TT'T£R SF:LEC'l'OR Swrt'C H
~. SPARE !..AMPS
!. Sl'EED DllA!a; EME RGENCY DUMP L£V£R
7 . EMERGENCY RAM-AIR LEVER •
1. CONSOLE YLOOO LIGUT'
9 . SIG HT SELECTO R UHTT
10. AL TI1ol£1'tR CORRIX:110N 'CAIU>
11 . TIIROrM..E
l!. 1"HUNOERSTOIW LIGHT
U. viD/0 n .A P HANDLE
14. TltnO'l"TL& FRIC T IO.'< LEVE R
Cl . P'J..AP EMEitGENCY SWITCH
16. RAO!O FREQUENCY C ARD
n. CONSOL& FLOODLIGHT
18. nlROTTt..& ZEL GRIP •
19. INSTRUM£,._'T PANEL FLOODLICIIT
F-1000 left side cockpit panel and key. USAF
SWORD S U SHEAT HED
F-lOOD COCKPIT. •• RIGHT SIDE NAVS AIRPLANlS
T.O. 11"-1000- l SoctJon 1
"
lL VB.RT1CAL VBLOCrTY
!NOICATOR
32. f'l!tL QUAHTTI'Y CACil:
(PORWAKD TANK)
33 COIJHU L'IDICA TOR
S4, TACAJ,' IV. NOli n."OPCATOR
35. !..ADO fUC.EASI! TllO:R
lS. llXLitF COI'ITA!Nl!:B
37. POOTWARM.CKL8VtR •
')8, TAP'1Dt8H L STAND-DY I'N:n'RUMENT O."V£RTER SWITCH P.A.~£1.. 16. T'li'UNOE".RSTORM l.JCrtT
39. L"' I"LICifT CO~'TROI.. T!Wr£M
PAN&L
a. CONSOL! PI..A)OOLJCtcT l'l . ldAPCAS-6
J. INST-.w.r&NT PANEL P"LOOOLIOKT lJ. lNTERPHONE SWli'CH
tO. IJPEC:l.AL n'ORZ \r.'II.OCK HAl"'· 4. LIQI1ID OX'YCEN QUAJ.'T ITY CAGE til. CffiCUJT-llR.EAKER PANBLS
0LB Oil IJPEC lAL!I'TOR& BMER•
1$, NA.V IGA'T'fON COr.tP UTEH • 20. CONSOLI AUt Olm..B'N
G!:NCY .JE'M'lSON I:IM'"Dt.4 2L TRP nMER OR COCX PIT PRESSUil£ .ALTlTUD E
41; SPitC IAL STOIU: UNI..OCk I. STAJ'l"O...OY COMPASS CORRECT IOS CARO
WOICA TOR LlCJ[T • 1. CONSOl...¥ FLOOOLJC!rt INO ICJ\'l"OR
<42, 'E XT ERNAL LOAO OII:ROII:NCY I. LJGII TlNC COP:TROL PANEL :21. S1J' CONTROL PANE.L
U . LA.BS R&L&ASB LICHT ,11M''T'UIO!'-r IIANOLII: t. CA.'tOPY lHT£It..~L MAh'"UAL J.lMERGB!'CY 13. J:Y F CONTROL PA.'I£:1.
U . TACIIOidl:ttR 24. TACAN CONTROL I•ANCL
43 , RAOIO Mlr.GNtrriC QIDICATOfl Rf:l.£A.SB H.A.'WL£
2-4. EXHAUST TC,.S'EIUt.'rUKE (l,A(;.C
4i . AL~ET£H 10. CtX: t.::J»IT 11Tn.ITY LICJJT 25. RADIO COidPASS CO~TROL. PANEL
l$. E:NGrtiV. PAF..SS:UR.K J\A'nO G).(;E
2& l.ANt>tNO GnAR E~..lEJtGO<CY
45. STAND-OY ATTtT\lPf.: INOICA · 11. AN/A.PN-102 CONTROL l'A.'lEL 2G . J-4 CO M.PASS CO~ T ROL PMIEL
TOII (TY'PI!: J ..fOR Z rti C II VCI)
LOWt:JUNC IIANDI..£ U. fi.>IGHT CONTROL I!:M.ERGJW'CY IIYDJU.ULIC 27. C.A.'lOPY ALTBJL'IA'l'E &J.I"EitCEI'ICY liAXDLE
l7 LAOS OIVE-AN'D-ROLL -4&. TACAN O."DDCATOR LJCRT Jlln>1P L F. Vl::R 2&. t'AVS COMPUTEK COSTR:OL tN"DfCATOR
41 . CLOCK
IXDICATOA U. CO~SO L E FLOODLIGHT 29. OXYCl:-1~ REGIJ"l.ATOR PANEL
U . AutSI>££0/ MACJt JNI) A't'OR
24. Fut:L I"LOW lXOICA TOR
41. COMMA!Io'l) RADIO It&~
lt.. Mil COIU>rnONING AN"O PltE.sSUR.lZ.ATIOS CONTitOL 30. ELECTRICAL CO~TROL PANEL
lS PI.I2L QUA.l 'fTlTY (;.toG£ TesT PANEL 31. INDICATOR AND CAUTlON LJGHT P AX&L
UVTT()t: C HA.'{NiL L'~DICATOR
15. OUN SJGllT GROUN'D TesT PLUG
XI, PVEL QUANTITY GAGC • $OMit AU'tPLI.."'&S
(TOTAL TANKS)
F-100F rear cockpit panel and key. USAF
f-1000-20 THROUGH F-1 000-30, F- 1000-45,
AND LATER AIRPLANES
THROnLES
._l-Milfl lUCTllCilo.l O.G!HG IIIJr!OI'I UiO
l.&II YI.U ICAlGUOCAGlNG W"I"TOfol
•When th e re ar th rott!• Ia .., o ., ed
o v t boo rd from 0'" o r UU.•, o
1• l•o•• 1oleno id reu o ch t h •ld !e
.,,. d o ff• to,onlh•f •o n!! hr o lll•.
lh i•~ r .., l ii..,., Yi ngboth! h rotl! ou
l"t o. o o o vl of, ' " • OP'' pooltlon.
• f ront Jl r lp •nly ~ o n b • ro l o!e cl fo r
li<ght ..,on u OII,..,nJI!ng l '"f>"i"9· 1ooded
to f y ll ~o un l~tr do d< w he p o • !l to n).
XI. C ANOI'Y SWITCH
21. CONSC>Lli': PLOOOL.rGtlT TIIROTTLI PATHS
2l. C ANOJ7Y-NOT-LOCKE0 CA11riOS LIGHT
13. ARRESTING HOOK l\EL£ASE BtrMON •
'U. L ADS YAW-ROLL CiTRO CHECK Btm'ON
ali. LANDING GEAR CONTROL PA!•ISL
2CI. J>OO't AIH CONTROL L£VER
27. ENCDo"E AJ'Io'D PLIC HT CONT ROL P.'V'EL
l&. AGM-120 MISSILt CONTROL PANBL •
N. CO M."lo'!IJ\'1) nADIO CON TR OL P.U."'ln.
30. EXTSJ{HAL LOAD AUXILIARY RELBJ..SE DU'MO,._"S
U. AU'tOVD..01'CONTROL PANEL ··-~~--"''
~ - THiOltlf - ~~
32. ARMAMENT CONTROL PAN EL THROTTLE PATMS
-
-----· ·-------------
33. GROUl\'D FmE SWITCH
~
AIRPLANES CHA NCED
S4. CONSOLE AlR OUTLETS BYT. O. U'-100-7%3
35. A1M-Q8 ?.USSIJ..E CONTRO.L PANEL •
31. STRIXE CAMERA TIME R li ADIHG!Jott.Onu
·~
37• .PYLON LOAOIJ'lO S.ELRCTOR SWITC HES fOUOW(N(lT.-OtlU
• SOW"£ AIRPLANES
·~
F-1000 throttles and key. USAF
29
 SWO RD S UNS H EATH ED

lATERAl AND
LONGITUDINAL
TRIM SWITCH - - - - : r " - - - ; - :
EJECTION SEAT IYPIUJ.

80MB
BUTTON

RADAR
REJECT
BUTTO N = - - - - - - - - - - . - ,

NOSE WHEEL STEERING

BUTTON (GROUND ONLY)

AUTOPILOT EMERGENCY
DISCONNECT SWITCH LEI/Ht-----J

• Not operative
in rear cockpit

NOTE
Aflet hcu•darips "'" rol\ed, e lthtr • •
t..thejectioll""'l lrig. .•srnoylto
......_,..,,.. ... ,...,.,.u ...,,,,...,,.,..,,;,

HANOGitiP 14JUO TO fUU Ul' P'OSITION-CANOf'Y

f i lED, SfAT EJtCTJON TliGGEit COCICro FOR fil iNG
°Chec.kr-volbefoooflit.hl
; P-JOOP PRON'T COCKPIT ONLY

STICK t lOla AlRPLANBS

GRIP
F-1 000 stick grip. USAF F-1000/F ejection seat. USAF

F-1000-20-NAs 55-3503 and -3507 (later used by the Thunderbirds) refuelling from an AFFTC KB-500 tanker in fair weather
conditions . In less favourable weather this could be a far more demanding task. Da vid Menard Col lec tion

30
 SWORD S UNS HEATHED

Many F-lOODs were 'cocooned' in protective coating for the sea journey to PACAF units and this had to be removed by Japanese
civilian employees using high-pressure water lances. Here. 55-3563, its panel joint-lines sealed with tape, gets the treatment at
Kizaruzu AB . David Menard Collection

impress ion is that it fa iled in about one in
a dozen landing '. Occasiona lly, the diffi-
culties arose fro m the sleight-of-hand
needed to deploy the chute. Bobby Wright
crewed F-1OOCs fo r the 136th Tactical
Fighter quadran (TFS ): 'The chu te han-
d le was designed so that the pilot had to
inve rt h is hand to deploy the chute and
then reverse hi s hand to twist the hand le
and re lease the chute from the a ircraft. It
was qu ite poss ible to screw up and eject the
chute too early' . Ro n H errick recalled the
F-100 as, 'qu ite sporty on landi ng, with the
not-too- trusty ant i-skid and a drag chute
that had abo ut twe nty mods to it operat-
ing sequence so that you could never
assume that it wo uld wo rk' .
Sometimes it was preferable to avoid
using the brake chute, as A lex Martin
explained: 'When on cross-country missions
and a quick tum-around was needed we

31

F-1000-20-NA 55-3545 emerges from 'de-cocooning' before delivery to the 8th FBW at
ltazuke AB . David Menard Coll ection
shaved the touch-down speed (normally
14 150kt in an F-l OOD) , held the no e-
gear up and didn't d ploy the drag hute'.
Th parachute was stored in a compartment
in the lower rear fuselage. rew chief Rich
N ewell recalled that it was 'always fun lying
on your back in the snow or rain putting the
chute in to the plane'. When the packed
chute p pped out through its pring- load d
retaining doors, a cable, attached to it and to
a hook in another compartment at the base
of the fin's rear edge, was yanked out of a
recessed channel through a row of mall ,
spring-! aded, ta inl steel d or plac d
vertically on the rear left fus lage, ju t ahead
of the exhaust nozzle. C rew chief Jack
Engler recalled the system as 'a rea l pain to
rig, with over 40ft of heavy steel cabl , bell
cranks and turnbuckle for ten i ning'.
Packing the chute into its compartment
meant facing 'all the soot, o il and corrosion
that was pre ent under the engine' . Dave
Menard xplained the techniqu thu :
'In tailing a drag chute meant lying n your
back and shoulders, using your~ et to hold
SWORD S SHEATH ED
the chute in po ition while the pin w r
in tall d and then clo ing the doors with
your hoe whi le ev t-ything in your trouser
pockets dropped out!' However, in Vietnam
combat Jack Engler found the system 'gave
us little trou ble. I don't ever remember one
failing to deploy, th ugh ll ,OOOft ru nways
gave the drivers om p ace of mind too'.
An electrica lly improved drag chute control
system was te ted for the F-100 but not
adopted.
F- lOOCs had to be flown all the way
down, with a light fl are o ver th runway
thr ho ld a power was cut to idle. The
lack of any ignifi ca nt aerodynamic brak-
ing put a heavy load on the mu lti-pad disc
brakes, which many pilots considered to be
barely adequate ~ r th F-100 g nera lly.
Braking had to be kept a light a po sible
to prevent ov rheating of brakes and tyres,
leading to possible tyre explosion. For the
F-l OOD/F the flaps had to be rai ed imme-
d iate ly after t uch-down to increase the
load on the landing gea r and improve
brake effic iency. According to C urtis
32
Burns, the first generation anti -skid brak-
ing system was:
... no t as reli able as we would h ave li ked ...
had an anti-skid fail o n me o nce, blew a tyre and
swerved off the ru nway at Landstuhl. I was
lucky, as the land ing gea r d idn 't fa il. At least
o ne squad ro n mate had an anti -skid failu re,
blew a tyre, departed the runway and wiped the
landi ng gea r off.
A lex Martin po inted out that 'most expe-
rienced pilots didn't turn on the anti-skid ;
they could do better manually. H owever, it
d id help th yo ung or 'clanky' to avo id
lo king the brakes and blowing a tyre'.
The Hytro l anti-skid system used a three-
legged 'spider' dev ice attached to the
wh l hub and tran mitring whee l-spe d
data from the wheel rim to a se n or in the
ax le. This enabled the system to even up
the braking pressure on both wheel and
preve nt exce ive braking. Lee H oward ,
later an F- l OOD pilot in Vietnam, found
that it was 'never an accepted tandard to
exceed the recommended landing speeds.
Th e o ld bitch was too hard to stop with the
correct numbers, but just don't get slow!'
No fighter can be free of pr blem and
vic issitudes, and in many respects th F-100
was already a safer and more dependable
steed than man y of its contemporaries.
Lacking the persistent unreliability of the
earl y radar-equipped jets and the poor
manoeuvrability of other entury erie
fi ghter-bombers, it was soon forged into
TAC's princ ipal strike fighte r. Its early
pi lots quickly learned to manage the air-
craft's habits and generally avo ided the
areas where it could 'bite' them, th ugh thi
ometimes had to be done th hard way.
S ince the F-100 era there has been time to
focus on reliabili ty, safety and ease of oper-
ation in designing fighters. In the 1950s the
emph asis was on speed, innovation and
keeping w ll ahead of the opposition.
In t nns of quipment, the F-lOOD ini-
tially carri ed the same radio, radio compass
and IFF equipment as the F-lOOC and a
slightly updated TAC AN . Additional item
t enhance its fi ghter-bomb r ro le in luded
a new centrelin hardpoint (from the 184th
aircraft) that could take a Mk 28 Special
tore (nuclear), an MN -1 practi ce muni-
tions dispenser or a camera pod.
The ejecti n eat wa impr v d to give
z r -a ltitude, minimum a irspeed ej cti on
with a ballisti c rocket catapult providing
7,5001b (3 ,400kg) of thrust. It included
automati c pilot-seat separation and an

The first two-seat Hun, 54-1966, converted from an F-lOOC-20-NA and designated TF-lOOC. An F-lOOD vertical stabilizer
was one of the modifications. John Ma ene Collection
MA-6 auto matic-open ing safety be lt in
place of ea rlier manual model . H owever,
ejection at altitudes be low 2,000ft (61 0m)
was still d iscouraged and l0,500ft
(3 ,200m) remained the recommended safe
minimum to allow for any equipment ma l-
function. In the F-l OOD , eject ion wa ini -
tiated by sq ueez ing one or bo th of the
independent triggers located beneath the
'tiger triped' hand les on the sides of the
seat, after first ho lding the canopy switch
at 'open' until the can py broke away. If
the transparency stayed put the dri ll was to
press the head aga inst the headrest, tuck in
the chin and eject through the canopy.
orm ally, the pilot had to release his
hand -grip im m diately after ejection a
the seat-be lt re lease was supposed to trig-
ger one econd after the seat blas ted out.
Manual r lea e wa provided as a back-up.
The seat wa sometime needed very
suddenl y. Ron Herrick had t ject fr m an
F-lOOD when hi s stabilizer suddenly went
full y 'no d wn' at lO,OOOft (3,000m) . H e
managed to acquire limited contr l, u ing
on ly throttle and roll control. The accident
is thought to have been caused by a bo lt
that retained the tabilizer contro l valve
working loo e after its fibre I ck nut had
been replaced with a caste llated type short-
ly before the flight. Another pi lot, Mike
Ryan , had a similar experi ence at Foster
SWORD S SHEATHED
AFB wh n hi tabil izer sudden ly forced his
aircraft into a negat ive 'g' div . Both pilots
ejected safely, Mike on to terra firma and
Ron Herrick into 12-foot seas from which a
fishing boat plucked him in the nick of
time. The F- lOOD' seat was electrically
adjustable, unlike those in the F-100A and
which , according to Ron , 'Were manual
and would cca ionally 'botto m out' vio-
l ntly at a critica l t ime'. H wever, unlike
some pilots, he found the at quite com-
fortable and the cockpit 'trem ndous for it
day, but the longer one sa t in it the tighter
the qu eze. The eat cushion and survival
kit wer well de igned and a quantum
improvement over the F-86 where yo u at
on the emergency oxyge n bottl and li~ -
raft with no cu hion! '
Hun for Two
T he final producti n F-100 b came ome
of the most useful and ver at il up r
Sabres. The F-1OOF emerg d, perhaps
belated ly, in response to the high accident
rate incurr d during the early years of train -
ing. In the first 100,000 fli ght hours, the
F-100 had ninety-five maj or accidents, th
wo r t record for a principal US supersonic
type. Howev r, only six in volved fatalities
compared with eighteen for the Lockheed
33
----- --
F-104. Like the other Century Seri es two-
eater (apart from the TF-102) the F-100F
required a tand m econd c ckpit but littl e
other major tructural change. O verall
length increased by 3ft (1m) and fuel
capacity was not reduced. Max imum take-
off we igh t increased abo ut l ,OOOlb (450kg)
to 39,1 20lb (17,750kg). Th delet ion of
the upper pa ir of guns helped to re tore the
cg since single-seaters usually fl w with
e ither full ammunition or equivalent bal-
las t for thi purpose. O rdnance was li mited
to around 5 ,OOOlb (2,300kg), 2,000lb
(900kg) less than th F- l OO D. A minor d if-
ference was that the F-1OOF's pil t tub wa
electrically heated to prevent ic ing where-
a the eq uiv alent part in the F-l OOC/D wa
heated by bleed a ir pip d in 'microbo re'
tubing from the engine.
Design tudies for the F- l OOF began in
May 1954 and NAA volunteered to con-
v rt an F-100 (54-1966) at the company's
expense to the dual-cockp it onfiguratio n.
The USAF responded with an o rd r for
259 'TF-1 00 '. The modified a ircraft was
fir t flown on 3 Augu t 1956 with A l
White in its front at, which in ervice air-
craft wa intended for the student pilot. It
ach ieved super n ic speed in leve l flight.
This prototype had the F-lOOD- tyle ta il-
fin but reta ined the 'flap! s ' wing. even
months later, the first produ t ion F-l OOF

took to th a ir, fl own by AA te t pilot
G age Mace o n 7 March 1957. Th le
'TF- lOOC' crashed a month later during a
spin test but NAA pilot Bob Baker
punched out uninjured.
The U SAF wanted its two- ea t Hun to
reta in th eir combat capability, alb it in
reduced quantity. The ordnance load st ill
included prov ision on the centre line
pylon fo r a nuclea r bomb and the wing sta-
tions wer unchanged, though the two
remaining gun each had twenty-five
rounds less than those in the F- l OOD.
Operat ional tra ining units at !lis AFB
began to r c iv F- l OOF atthee nd ofM ay
1957 , and 3"3 9 exa mpl e w re deli vered
before product ion end ed in 1960, fo rty-
five of them for export. There was a corr -
ponding reducti on in F-l OOD product ion
to a llow for the USAF two-sea ter . A
belated attempt to re- instate production
was projected in 1964 with AA's unsuc-
cessfu l plan to a llow the build ing of a fur-
th r 200 two-seat F-l OOs (with Ro lls-
Royc ngines ) und er licence in France.
By 1958 , most operat ional squadrons
had a couple of F-l OOFs for continuation
F-1000 and F-lOOF jets on the NAA production line. David Menard Co llection
SWORD S ' SHEATH ED
tra ining, familiari zatio n fli ghts and all th e
other support jobs. Don Schmenk
in tructed in both the T-33 and F-lOOF,
find ing th latter 'a little mo re chall enging
to land from the rea r seat since forward vis-
ibility was a little more restricted, though
I don't reca ll hav ing an y prob lems'.
De pite the belated introd uct ion of the
two- ea ter, th e acciden t rate in F-100
training rema in ed high and more than 25
per cent of F-1OOFs were eventually lost.
Mods and Rockets
The U SAF's urge nt need fo r F- 100s world-
wide meant that batche of a ircraft were
accepted for service wh il e further deta il
deve lopmen t continued rapidly, and
equ ipm nt update were therefo re made
ad hoc o n the pr duction lin e.
By 1962, the standard of equipment for
success ive batches wa so va rious that a
fl eet-wide programme ca lled Project High
Wire wa in tituted to induce some stan-
da rdi zation (many arl y F- l OOD, for
examp le, ca me off the lin without
34
id ewind r ca pability). O ffi c ia ll y it com-
prised two simu ltaneous operatio ns, first to
rewire th e aircraft to a common standard,
seco nd to provide heavy ma in tenance and
in p ct and repa ir as nece ary (IRAN) so
that r levant upd ates could b in corporat-
ed. The F-100 was the first US AF a ircraft
to be maintained by the IRAN method,
whi ch became standard pract ice for later
types like the F-4 Phantom ll. It reduced
overhaul tim s and costs, keeping mo re
a ircraft ready on th e ramp.
The rewiring operation was ex tensive
and included stripping and replacing all
wiring in th cockpit to a common scheme.
Cost ing over US 150m, High Wire ran
from Ap ril 1962 unti l June 1965, taking
each F-1 00 out of service fo r ar und two
months. In vitably, the situ atio n was not
simp le and not all F-lOOC/0/F airframes
w nt th ro ugh the process though around
700 wer riginall y lated fo r r work.
Those that did had the ir production Block
nUinbers 'wound on' by o ne digit - for
example, F- lOOF-1- A became F-lOOF-2-
NA. In ome cases, special modifications
t ill appli ed onl y to li mited number of
 SWORDS U SHEAT HED

The definitive F-100F first flew on 7 March 1957 and 339 were produced. Perhaps the most versatile Hun variant, it was used as a conversion trainer, SEAD aircraft,
FAC platform and regular strike aircraft with VIP transport as a supporting role. John Mae ne Col lection

35
 SWORDS U SHEAT HED

1 RADAR ANTENNA
NORTH O.ME RICAN AVIATI ON
'2 NOSE RADAR A ND RADIO SAY AIRPLANES CHANGED BY T.O. lf-100·782 AND -798
F·IOO F
3 UOUIO OXYGEN CONVERTERS
4 EJECTION SEA TS
S OMNIDIRECTIONAL ANTENNA
6 RAM· AIR TURBINE
1 RETRACTABlE TAIL SKID
8 DRAG CHU TE COMPARTMENT

9 UHF ANTENNA
10 FUEL VENT OUtlET

11 SPI.InERRUODER
TWO· POSIJION EXHAUST
NOZ'ZlE
13 Sl tlGlE·SURFA CE
CONTROLlABLE
HOR IZONTAl
STABILIUR

14 AERODYNAM IC FENCE
IS INTEOR.Al WING FUEl CEll 1. DRAG CHUTE RANDLE
A!RODYNAMICALLY EXTEN DED W ING SlATS 1. CLOCK
S. AIR3PEED/)1ACH fNDTCATOR 30. LABS llEL.&AS.E LJC.UT •
17 AilERONS 4. AC LOAD mT£R 2.l TACUOME'TER
30
$, READING INDJCA TOR 2.2. EXliAUST TEwPERAT\IRE GAGB
18 WING flAP 0. DC LOADMrrER 23. ENGINE PRESSURE RA TJO GAGS

~F)~
19 AFT AJSELAGE fUEl CEll T. MAST&R CAUTION LlGHT 24. "L.\.88 DIVX-AND- ROLL
I. M-1 BOMBfNO 8YS'TRM INDICATOR
J1
_j_ 20
21
INHRMlDIATE FUH CEll
JS 7 ENGINE WITH AflER8URNER
t.
10.
CIDICATOR LIGHT •
SPECIAL STORB INDICATOR
L.IGIIT'
W"Di'08CREEN MANUAL EMERI-
11- - - t.
2$. F UEL FLOW tNOICA'I'OR
26. FUEL QUANTITY GAGE TEST
U'I'TON
21. FUEL QUANTITY GAGS (TOTAL
fU SElAGE rORWARO FUEl CEll
GENCY R%L.EASE KNOB TANKS)
23 BATTERY U. ATTITUDE INDICATOR 28. FUEL QUANTITY GAGE
11. LA.BS YAW-ROLL GYRO {FORWARD TANK)
SPE£0 BRAKE CUECX D uTTO:: • 29. VERTICAL VEl.oOCITY rNDfCA TOR
13. A'MTI'UOE INDICATOR FAST 30. TACA....- RANGE DlDJCATOR
15 GUN AND AMMUNITION COMPARTMENT
E.REC'MON BlJTI'ON SL FOOT WAJL\Ilm LEVER •
16 AIR BLAST DEFLECTOR 14. FOU:- AND OV"BRU.&AT-WARNlNG 32. COCKPrr PRESSURE AL'ITI'UDE
LIGBl'S INDICATOR
27 M -39 GUN 15. ffYDRAULK: PRESSURE GAGE 33. COURSE INDICA TOR
28 STE~ABLE NOSE GEU SELECTOR SWITClt 34. RADTO MAGNETIC INDICATOR
ll. TUJ!N-ANO-Sl...IP INDICATOR 35. .ALTIMETER
29 ElECTRICAllY OPERA T£0 HINGED CANOPY n. KYDRAUWC PRESSURE GAGB 36. STAND-BY ATTITUDE INOJCATO.R
ll. ACCELEROMETER 37. TACA.N lNl>ICATOR LJGHT
30 GUN SIGHT li, On. PRESSURE GAGE
31 PilOT-STATIC BOOM • So~ a.irplanN
l
·'
General arrangement drawing of F-lOOF. USAF via John Maene F-lOOF rear cockpit panel and key. USAF via John Maene

F-100F-16-NA 56-3930 in the standard TAC acrylic silver finish that was applied from January 1960 onwards. Small flashes
of unit identity persisted, such as the patch of colour on the tail of this aircraft in 1966. Peter M. Bowers vi a Jo hn Maene

36
 SWORD U SHEATHED

Early 308th FBS markings on F-lOOD 56-3361 consisted of yellow flashes on the nose and a yellow panel with a two-digit
ide ntifier, SAC-style on the tail. Joe Vincent Co llection

the in creas ingly powerfu l weapons systems

(in lud ing tact ica l nucl ar d vice ) being
developed in the ov iet U ni n. NAT
jets required up to 10,000ft (3,000m) of
clea n, FOD-fr e runway to take off with
the ir own retaliato ry nuclea r weapons, a nd
ev n a han e hit on th 2 to 3 per ent f
an a irbase's area that comprised active
runway cou ld de lay a strike mi ss ion
beyond the po in t where it would serve an y
purpose. While some d igners turned
th eir atte n ti on to adva ncing the ve rti a l
take-off and landing (VTOL) techno logy
th at led to the BAe H arri er and eventu al-
ly to th e Lockheed Martin F- 5, others
ught quicker solutio ns. Esse nti ally, the
idea was to dispe rse the USA F's nuclear-
capable F- l OOD fo rce so that a ircraft could
be launched (literally) witho ut runways .
W hen the F-100 was first co nce ived,
n ucl ar delivery was the preroga tive of
Seen here in its later service with the 524th TFS, 27th TFW. F-lOOF-21-NA 58-1227 was heavy A bo mbers. Howeve r, rap id
flown by General Blair as Excalibur4, the first single-engined jet to cross the North advanc s in reduc ing the size of nu lea r
Pole during Project Julius Caesar in August 1959. Later, it became one of the first four bombs wh ile simultaneously increas ing
F-lOOF Wild Weasel SEAD aircraft. David Menard Collection the ir po wer by up to a hund red fo ld meant
that fig hter-portable weapons we re ava il -
a ircraft. One of these was the zero- ! ngth beca me increasingly awa re of the vu lnera- able by 195 7. A yea r late r, TA revea l d
launch (ZEL) capabil ity adaptatio n that bility of the ir airfi elds in Western Europe, that it had tested the AA zero- length
app li d on ly to the last 148 F-l OO Ds off man y of whi ch we re located qu ite close to system and intend ed to eq uip a ll F-100
the prod uction line. the ov i t Bl oc' borders. Th eir runways Wings with ZEL-capable aircraft and
In the mid -1950s, strateg ic planners wo uld have been fir t-cho ice targets for launchers.

37
 SWO RDS UNS H EAT HED

With a ingl Mk 7 'n uke' on it left

int rm d iate pylon and a 275ga l tank o n
the oppos ite side, a ZEL F- l OOD had a
mass ive Rocketd yne M-34 solid rocket
booster attached to hardpoints beneath it
rea r fu se lage. It was then mo unted on an
angl d ramp and its pilot cl imbed up a haz-
ardously tall ladder to his cockpit. With
the landing gear extended and engine in
afterburn er th e rocket wa fir d, adding an
extra 130,0001b (59,000kg) of thrust, over
eight t imes the fi ghter's normal power.
The F-100 leapt into the air in a 4g climb.
Fo ur seconds later, with the fighter at
275kt, the giant firecracker burned out
and was jettisoned. O n return from his
miss ion , ass um ing it had been a two-way
trip, an operat ional pilot would have had
to locate a uitable runway or eject.
Two F-lOODs (56-2904 and 56-2947)
were sui ta bly mod ified for testing at
AFFTC. NAA's Al Blackburn bravely
conducted the initial blast-off in '2904 on
26 March 1958 and went on to comp lete
sixteen fli ghts. A noth er four we re made by
Capt Robert F. Titus (later a Vietnam Mi G
killer) . O n one of Blackburn's launches
56th TFS groundcrew at Myrtle Beach AFB remove the crew boarding ladder from the big M-3 4 hung grimly on to the air-
F-100F-16-NA 56-3952, with a centreline pylon attached. This aircraft was later operat- craft's ta il, making a normal landing
ed by the Turkish AF. Norm Taylor Collection

One for the modellers: the variety of metal tones is evident on this 'plain Jane' F-1000-65-NA. In later service it acquired
camouflage and the 'HS' codes of the 612th TFS, 37th TFW. It crashed into the sea after a CAS mission near Da Nang AB
on 21 October 1967, killing its pilot Capt Joseph Hemmel. Davi d Menard Coll ection.

38
 SWORD S U SHEATH ED

imposs ible as it dangled several feet below

the F-1OO's ta il sect ion. Blackburn had to
take to his parachute while '2904 pan-
caked o n to the de err. The other ZEL F-
lOOD, '2947, passed in to TA se rvice , fl y-
ing in Vietnam with the 615th TFS as
Linda Bird. Joe Vincent, who reca lled fl y-
ing other ZEL-capable F- l OODs in Viet-
nam, n ted that they still had a fo lding,
spring- loaded throttle extension hand! ,
painted black and ye llow, that prevented a
pi lot from acc identally pu lling back on the
thrott! . Don Schm enk enl arged o n this:

T h e h andl es were held at th e fu ll thro tt le pos i-

t io n like the N avy uses fo r ca ta pul t launches w
prevent th e transverse g fro m th e launch ca us-
ing a loss of power when you needed it most.
W hen you adva nced the th ro ttl e to ful l power
you could wra p your fingers around the handle
with your th umb beh ind the th ro ttle.

ZEL t st continued until late August

1959, in luding a launch fr m a pec ially
hardened sh It r at Ho llo man AFB. A
Luftwaffe F-1 04G was also ZEL-tested at
Edwards AFB after West G e rmany showed
an intere t in the project.
Variou sto res configuratio ns were tested
o n the F-lOOD includ ing 200ga l tanks on
the inner pylons. It was found that a ZEL
Hun could be attached to its ramp and pre-
pared for a mission inside 2' /z hours and
that launchers could be made sufficientl y
mobi le t be moved by road. Even so , logis-
t ica l problems and overall cost brought this
innovative and spectacular experiment to

ZEL F-1000-60-NA 56-2947 blasts off from a shelter

designed to resist an atomic attack at Holloman
AFB on 26 August 1959. A Blue Boy Mk7 shape
appears beneath the left wing. NAA test pilot AI
Blackburn made the flight. USAF via Ron Thurlow

56-2947 poised on its launch vehicle, shows the

attachment of the Rocketdyne booster unit and
the elevating cradles to support the main
undercarriage. The problems of entering the
aircraft's cockpit in this position are all too
evident. Col D. Elmer

39

an end and the USAF eventually turned its
attention to vari ab le geometry aircraft
with short-fi ld performance and 'rough
terrain' underca rri ages . O ut of this line of
thought ca me the G D F-11 1.
ne ma ll but impo rtant modificati on
retr fitt d to F-100s under High Wire was a
simple, spring stee l arre ting hook under
the rea r fu selage. Thi hook wa retained
in the 'up' position by an electrical sole-
no id , and once rel a ed it could not be
ra ised aga in in the air. Howeve r, o leno id
fa ilure on the ground wa not unknown
and for groundcrew the hook could
become, 'potentia l energy just wa iting to
fa ll on some ca rele oul', according to
crew chi ef John C larity. The a ircraft'
brake pa rachute could be unreliab le, and
damage to chute- less F-100s that ran out of
runway had been considerable. Pilots were
supposed to depl oy the chute at speeds
be low 150kt (Skt below the normal land -
ing speed), avoiding over-robu t u e of the
chute hand le to avoid acc identa l j tti on-
ing of the pa rachute. With the tailhook,
an emergency landing could be made with
a BAK-6 o r BAK-9 cable arresting system
engaging th e hook at landing speeds up to
170kt and nea r-max imum landing weight.
In practi ce, it was preferable to jettison
ex tern al fu el tanks to reduce th at weight.
Ong ing updates to the F-100 con tinued
throughout it career, including the insta l-
lation of Minn apolis Honeywell MB-3
autop ilots in the cockpits of 65 F-100 /D
aircraft by mid- 1958. This system incorpo-
rated link to the pitch and yaw damping
(stability augm ntation ) systems and
added H OLD option for altitude, h ad ing
and attitude to be maintain d automatica l-
ly u ing a 'chick n-head' switch on the left
horizon ta l pan l. An mergency disengage
switch was located on the main contro l
column. The autop ilot could n t be us din
training at a lt itudes below 200ft ( 60m) in
ca e of a 'hard over' fa ilure, as there would
be insufficien t altitude to effect a manual
recovery. O ne of the autop il ot' main func-
tion wa to operate in the LAB weapon
deli v ry mode so that an 'auto LABS' pu ll-
up, bomb deli very and rollout to recovery
altitude could be s leered.
O ther updates included improv d
brak with auto matic anti-skid and a bet-
te r o il d i tributi on system. The origina l
undstrand constant speed drive ( D)
used the same o il supp ly as the engin . If
th e unit fa iled and dumped o il this mea nt
that the main o il supply to the engin e
wo uld be drained too. Meanwhile, Pratt
SWORD S U SH EAT H ED
Bull pup
Other modifications to the aircra ft gave sixty-five
F-lOODs the ability to fire the Martin (Marietta) AGM-
128 (GAM-83A) Bullpup command-gu ided, air-to-
ground mi ssile. Conceived during th e Korean War as a
means of attacking inaccessible targets in mountain-
ous terrain, this 5701b (260kg) rocket-propelled weapon
cou ld deliver a 2501b (115kg) warhead at a 12,000yd
(1 1,DOOm) range at speeds up to Mach 1.75. Sui tably
modified F-1 ODDs could carry two missiles on their
inboard pylons. Guidance was visual; the pilot could
see two smal l flares attached to the missile's tail fins
that increased in brilliance as range from the aircraft
lengthened. Course-correcting signals were transmit-
ted to the Bullpup's cana rd stabilizi ng fins from a pulse
control system and antenna in the F-1000 after the mis-
si le's booster rocket had accelerated it to its 'flight'
speed in a three-second burn.
Bullpup-capa ble aircraft had a small missile control
panel on the left cockpit side-panel including a minia-
ture, cube-shaped 'joystick' which gave simpl e 'up,
down, left, right' signals. Once the missile had gone
ballistic. the commands would most often be 'up' sig-
nals to keep it in flight. Launch was initiated by switch-
ing the mi ssile control swi tch to READY and selecting
one of the two missiles. The missile launch was then
set to GUIDE and the missile was fired (from altitudes
up to 25,000ft/7.625m) using the normal gun trigger.
Once the mi ssi le's motor had burned out, the F-100 pilot
used the flares on its ta il to guide the rapidly rol ling
Bullpup to its target. Some pilots found that the bright-
ness of the flares tended to obscure their vision of the
target. maki ng attacks on small targets such as ve hi-
cles more difficult. Good visibi lity was required for a
successful attack, which made the missile a lair-
weather weapon. Also. its fairly smal l warhead meant
there was little point in firing it against reinforced tar-
gets. To guide the missile, a pilot had to hold his main
control col umn with his right hand and manipulate the
missile joystick with the other, leaving him no hands to
manage that other crucia l device. the throttle handle.
The other disadvantage was that the F-100 had to fly
and Whitney (P& W) continued to
improve the reliabili ty of the ir ]57 engine
with changes to the fuel pump and valves
to reduce the cases of fl ameout and after-
burner lighting difficulties. There had
been cases of F-100 engine explos ions on
take-off a the fuel/a ir flow passed th ro ugh
a 'null ' po in t at abo ut 200kt causing a
build-up of vapo ur in th e rea r fuselage.
This was so lved by the sim ple expedient of
d rilling seven small holes in a line across
the under ide of the fu elage.
The fin a l U A F batch f tw nty- nine
F-100Fs (5 8- 1205 to 58- 1233) had an
improved AN/A N-7 nav igation comput-
er, PC- 212 Doppler radar nav igation sys-
te m (RADAN) and mod ified flaps to give
40 degrees defl ction rather than the usual
40
straight and fol low the Bullpup's course, thereby expos-
ing itself to ground defences. As Joe Vincent remarked,
That was not a very wise thi ng to do for adding Oak
Lea f Clusters to your Longevity Ribbon '.
Although training on the Bullpup was cond ucted
enthusiasti cal ly at Luke AFB from 1960 to 1966 (using
a Martin simulator to reduce the cost of live firings) it
had been dropped by 1969 apart from bri ef coverage in
the conventional weapons syllabus. Better weapons
were on the way, but this early experience with the
Bullpup enabled the development of a later generation
of stand-off missiles such as GBU-15 and AGM-130.
For the F-100, Project High Wire increased its range of
cleared ordnance to include, for example, later models
of AIM-9 Sidewinder (AIM-9E/J) and around twenty
types of CBU dispensers, increasing the F-1DOD's range
of weapons to around seventy-five types. SUU-7I As
were the initial CBU dispensers to be clea red for the
aircraft. referred to as CBU-1/A or CBU-2A/A. depend-
ing on their contents. For ferry flights with empty can-
isters a nose-cone could be fitted to reduce drag.
In Vietnam, the AGM-128 was used on occasion in
the early stages of the war. Pilots of the 481 st TFS on
a 1965 temporary duty (TOY) to Tan Son Nhut AB fi red
several to maintain the ir qualification with the system
but they found the wea pon unreliable. In most firings it
went ball istic and missed the target. 1st Lt Peter Van-
derhoef was one of the pilots:
I remember we all got to fire a Bullpup one time down in the
Delta, south of Saigon. None of us were scheduled to hit a
tight target and it was probably fortunate because mine
went ballistic as did most of the others. which gave us a
slick 5001b bomb that cost the price of a Cadillac- around
US$5,000. The only thing we were able to hit with it was
the ground.
Other units had better luck wi th the mi ssile, but it had
virtually disappeared from F-100 bases by 1967 though
a total of 1,944 of the missi les were fired during the
wa r by an assortment of aircraft.
45 deg rees. A lthough the gy ro tabiliza-
t io n in the Doppler system was thought by
some to be hard to keep in wo rking o rder
the aircraft were u eful. A ccording to A lex
Martin :
W hen we had to deploy as a unit the Comman-
der wo uld ge t o ne of th e F- 1OOFs with the
quad ron N a vigatio n Officer aboard a nd lead
th e gagg le. Wh en we rece ived a couple at Kad e-
na I remember a lot of ru nning them a round the
Far East includi ng Australi a, fl ying dignitaries
around and d ing so me free advert ising for
o rth Ameri ca n Avi at io n !
A num ber of F-l OODs had a similar nav i-
gation system insta lled in an aft electron-
ics compartment in the lower rea r fu selage,

Yellow markings adorn F-lOOC-1-NA 53-1762 of the 336th FDS Rocketeers, 4th FDW in this squadron line-up. Co l D. Elmer vi a David Menard
parallel with th e lead ing edge of the
ta ilplane. This area was cooled by a small
bleed-air operated turbine or by ram-a ir
th ro ugh an intake in the lower leading edge
of th v rti ca l tabi lizer. These F-l OOD,
known as NAYS (Doppler navigation sys-
tem ) aircraft , had an AN/APQ -102
Dopp ler radar subsy tem to prov ide con-
t inu us ground- peed measurement and
dri ft in fo rm at io n , and an AN /A -25
dead-reckoning co mputer. The latter ca l-
culated dead -reckon ing problem using
data from th Dopp ler radar and th tan-
da rd J-4 compass, contro ll ed fro m the right
hori zontal pane l. The system gave the
pil ot a form of 'great c ircl ' nav igat io n ,
upervi ed via two panel on hi right hor-
izo ntal conso l and four instrum nt on
the ma in front pane l.
Sabre-Toothed Tigers
Whil e AA ho ned their 'S up r Swo rd' ,
the U SAF continued to train and deploy
SWORD S NS HEAT HED
new F-100 W ings. F-100A and models
provided pilots at Luke AFB with super-
sonic experience , while Korean War MiG-
ki ller Bruce Hinton led five squad rons and
a Fighte r Weap n chool at N ellis AFB
under the auspices of the 3595 th Combat
C rew Training G ro up (CCT G ) unt il June
195 8. Ne llis had rece ived its first F-100
(5 2-576 1) on 21 A ugust 195 4. Many pilots
ca me fro m F-84 and F- 6 un its, incl ud ing
Tom G ermsche id, who reca lled:
I graduated from ingle-e ngine jet pilo t training
and got my 'wing ' in Dece mber 1956. Fo llow-
on assignmen ts were granted accord ing to cia s
stand ings. T he F- l OOs were just comi ng in to the
in ventory at th at time and a ll of the top-stand-
ing graduates were hoping for an F-100 sloe.
Unfortunate ly there were none for our c lass,
just se vera l fo r the F-84F and F- 60. I grabbed
one of the F- 4 F slots in ce it looked more like
a fighter than anyth ing e lse that was offered . I
went to Luke A FB for a th ree- mon th checkout
and in itial combat crew tra ini ng. I en joyed the
course very much and got my 'Mach busters' pin
47
after po in ting the 'hog' straigh t cl own with full
power from about 40,000fc. The instruments
flu ctu ated a bit as the a irspeed hi t about Mach
0.98. I guess I passed th e Mach but I d idn 't stay
around long enough to chec k!
Fo ll ow-on ass ign men ts were aga in given
accord ing to cl ass sta ndings. T h is time there
were a bunch of F-100 slots and I quickly
jumped on one of them and went to Ne lli s in
Apri l 1957 to check out in the F- l OOA. T his
was a fabu lous ti me. Th e F- 1OOF had not ye t
en tered the in ventory so everyth ing was single-
sea t. This time we could bust the Mach stra igh t
and level, o r maybe in a sligh t cli ve, in a clea n
bird. Most of our fli gh ts were in clea n configu-
ra tion [no stores ca rri ed].
Coming to the F- 1OOA afte r fl ying the F-84 F
was like st rapp ing a l 5,0001b ro ket on your
1501b ass and blasti ng off. Everyone was
impressed with the afterburner take-offs. T he
burn er was lit after starti ng th e take-off ro ll as
the brakes would not hold the bird in after-
burne r - maybe a sign of poor brakes. It was
a lways a rea l ki ck in the bu tt when the 'a.b.' li t.
T he start of format ion take-offs was always

The vital MA-2 mobile air starter unit was the preferred method of starting up an
F-100. The alternative cartridge start (available in most F-100Dsl produced toxic fumes
that required the pilot to wear his oxygen mask. Col Art Johnson
interesting a it wa difficu lt to get th e after-
bu rners on all bird in the fo rmation to light at
the same time. Formation Lead would give the
predatory hand signa l for afterburn er and th en
nod hi s head forward . At night he would ca ll
the ignal over the radio . As a wingman I quick-
ly lea rned to he irate a microsecond or so before
strok ing my burner on take-off a it wa very
awkward if your burner li t before the formati on
leader' and you found yourse lf out in front. A
good Lead a lways retarded his engine a couple
of per ce nt from ful l rpm and th at way you
wouldn't fall behind if you r bird was not as fast.
When afterburner was engaged by mov ing
the throttl e outboard , fuel pre sure cau ed the
engine exhaust nozzle 'eyelid ' to open. n the
j57 they were either open or c losed; there wa
n intermedi ate pos ition. Occas ionall y they
fa iled to open or close properl y and if they failed
to open when afterburner was selected you got a
vio lent compressor stall. If they fa iled to d oe
when afterburner was de-se lected you had a big
los of th ru t, wh ich happened more often than
fail ing to open in th e first place. I lo t a Flight
Leader (Warren Emerso n) and his back- eater
in an F- lOOF at C an non AFB when they lost
afterburn er at lift-off and th e eye lids stayed
open. Th e procedure for lost afterburne r was to
bring the throttl e inboard immedi ately to close
the eye lids when you recognized that th e a.b.
had gone out. That F- l OOF crew either didn 't
identify the problem soon enough , or th e eye-
lids fail ed to c lose for some other reason. In any
SWO RD S U SHEATH ED
case they cou ld n't get enough alt itude to cl ear a
boxcar gra in bin off th e end of the run way. T hey
migh t a lso have saved themselves if they had
jettisoned fu el tan ks sooner.
N ormall y, afterburner was d isengaged after
we got the bird cl eaned up a nd reached climb
speed. sing afterburner rea ll y guzzled up th e
fu el, though I reca ll one fli ght in a clea n F-
l OOA at elli where we did a max perfor-
mance take-off and cl imb to 40,000ft in after-
burner a ll the way. I was impressed. In -fli ght
opera ti on of th e afterburn er was a lways exc it-
ing in bo th F- lOOA and D. If your angle of
a ttack was too h igh you often got a good com-
pressor sta ll. Th ere was a loud bang and your
feet were oft en knocked off the rudder pedals.
A large fireba ll would be see n out of the ta il of
your bird. It was especially spectacular a t n ight.
I a lways gritted my teeth a little wh en se lecting
afterburn er in manoeuvring fli ght. If it fa iled to
light you left a fu el vapour tra il behind your a ir-
c raft. This would quickl y give awa y your pos i-
ti on dur ing A M la ir combat manoeuvring] if
you were not oth erwi se in sight o f your adver-
sary. We sometimes used this tact ic to help get
th e fl igh t jo in ed back up wh en we los t sight of
each other. o met ime we wo uld ask the gun -
nery target-dart tow ing F- 100 to mark his posi-
ti on in this way if we couldn 't spot him.
C urtis Burns added:
O ne irritation in afterburner use at alt itude is
42
that if you were nea r, but not necessarily in the
contra il level , going into afterburner would lay
a coup le of hundred feet of white conden arion
that was very visible to a potential target.
Th e acce leration wa significan t [50 per cent] but
th e effect on aircraft attitude was easil y handled.
O ur train ing allowed us to anticipate and react to
it in the same way we d id to openi ng th e speed
brakes, dropping the gea r or lowering fl aps. We
even had occas ions where we would go int after-
burner whi le in close formati on.
When a pair of F- 100s took off, a pilot
wo uld be very aware of the penetrating roa r
of hi wingman's afterburner, though cut-
t ing in his own a.b. made li ttle difference
to hi c ckp it no ise leve l. (A bigger long-
term n i e probl em came from the MA-2
starting unit whi ch , in Ron H errick's opin-
ion , 'ruined many people's ea rs before they
rea lized it'.)
The F-1OO's peed and accele ration
under 8 to n of thru t were a revelation to
many pilots coming from F-84F Thunder-
streaks. Art Johnson:
The F-84F was not exactly a great air-to-a ir
intercepto r. I remember one miss ion wh ere we
were on alert to intercept a fl igh t of SAC B-4 7
tratojets as they passed near. It to k so long to
get to the ir a ltitude th at we never did get with-
in firing range . The intercept was a tota l bust.
The afterburner made all the difference in
the world be tween the F-84F and the F- 100. We
were uddenl y in fi ghter pilot heave n with no
worri es about rake-off roll di stances.
Pil t oon l am d to tame the F-1OO's
less attracti ve habit too. In a hard turn ,
part icularly to the left , ngin to rque
could exace rbate inertial coupling and
ca u e th e aircraft to enter a ro ll into the
oppo ite direction. Combined with the
a ircraft's natural adverse yaw cond iti n
this could make an F-lOOA in a high-g
turn udde nly tumble out of'contro l. The
standa rd recove ry technique wa to
release the st ick pressure and I t th air-
craft fl y out of the situat ion. S nap ro lls,
abrupt manoeuvres and extreme yaw
angles were off lim its fo r a ll F-100 m d l .
Accord ing to A rt Jo hnson, ' pin w r
prohi bited and we were to ld that no one
had eve r recovered from a sp in in the F-
l OOF'. A lex Martin , at ellis in 1956- 57
reca lled that in general:
The F- l 's fl ying characteristics were good.
Remember, most pilots transitioned from the F-
84, F-86 or T-33 so the ones from the F-84

Four 20mm guns were the F-100's main armament in air-to-air combat and they were important weapons for later
air-to-ground missions, including flak suppression. Here, an F-100C has its guns boresighted on a target screen at
Nellis AFB in June 1957. Peter M. Bowers via David Menard
thought, 'Wowl' The F- 6 pilots were more
impressed with the kick in the rear you got fro m
hi tting the afterburner. You could fly the F-86 or
T-33 with your feet on th e floor. ot so with the
Hun , e pecia ll y at slow speeds. It was honest, let
you know when sta lls were imminent and like
the F-86 it wou ld fl y itse lf out of a sp in if you let
it go. At slow speeds in ACM the bird turned
be t with the rudder peda ls, keeping the stick
centred so you didn't get drag from the wrong
ail eron.
Manag ing a high -pe rfo rmance figh te r
like th e F- 100 witho ut the sophist icated
fl y- by-w ire co ntro l syste ms of co ntempo-
ra ry jets required the sea t-of-th -pants
techni q ue and inst incts of an ea rli er
g nerati o n of fi ghter pilots plus the reac-
tio ns needed to cope with a ve ry complex
cockp it and events h appe ning at upe r-
so ni c speeds.
SWO RD S U SHEAT HED
/---------------
1
Gunfighters
In the days before a ir-to-a ir missile tech-
no logy took over th a ir combat arena,
prowe in air-to-a ir gunnery and ACM
rema ined the princ ipa l index of success in
the fig hter pilot 'world . The F- l OO's M-39
guns were later supp lemented by the guid -
ed a ir rocket GAR-8 (AIM-9B)
S id winder miss il e but trad it iona l a ir-to-
air and air-to-ground gunnery occupied
much of the combat tra ining time. Desp ite
its occas ionall y unce rta in d irect ional sta-
bility in manoeuvring flight, the F-100 wa
a very strong contender in this area and it
guns were to be a powerfu l air-to-ground
weapon du ring its exte nsive combat ca reer
in outh East A sia. Tom Germsche id:
The F-1 00 was a good and fun gunnery platform.
A long with th e pitch and yaw dampers th e ta ller
43
vertica l stab il izer on th e F-lOOD made it a more
stable machine. The dampers, wh en work ing
properl y, were a big help. G unnery scores were a
funct ion of two things: the skill of the aircrew
and the bores igh t and harmon ization of the
20mm guns. Stab le air conditions al o helped .
Everyone foug ht to be on the 0600 air-to-ground
miss ion! That's when the record score were
racked up. Turbulence around cl ouds or even in
clear a ir wa definite ly a factoring air-to-a ir suc-
ce s. uccess on th e 'rag' or 'dart' target was often
like WW I or WW II . If you could pre in close
enough without getting a foul or eating a piece
of the da rt you got good scores.
A ' rag' was a 30 x6ft (9x l. m) nylo n
me h banne r with a bu ll 's-eye marking,
to wed behind a T-33 o r F-1 00 o n the end
of a 1,200ft (365m) cab le. Th e A/A3 7U -
5 (o r U- 15) tow- targe t 'da rt' co nsisted of
a la unc her attached to t he F-100's left

F-1000-65-NA 56-3002 Bad News, fitted with AIM -9 rails and a pair of HVAR rockets on each one. The 'saddleback' fairing is removed and
perched on the aircraft's spine, the usual pre-flight location. David Mena rd Colle ction
outboard py lon (Wing S tat io n 155 ) and a
stee l/ny lon cab le ree l o n th e right o ut-
boa rd py lo n . In the cockpit the sw itcho l-
ogy fo r C BU o rd nance and the stand ard
'bomb button' contro lled the system and
jettisoned it if necessary. The light-
we ight, dart- haped target and it tow line
could be lower d to th e ground after use
o n a 14ft (4.3 m) di a me ter parachute fo r
recove ry and re- use so that th e F-100
could land witho ut it. The ta rget could
be laun ched from the ai rc raft at abo ut
200kt and re leased to th e gro und at
175kt in stra ight and leve l fli ght. O nce
the target was dep loyed , th e tow F-100
could fl y at peed up to 475kt. If the tar-
get fail ed to separate fro m the F-100 at
the end of a gunnery sess io n, a landin g
with the dart in tow was poss ible,
altho ugh the da rt would shatte r o n con -
tact with terra firm a.
At Nellis AFB, an Instructor Pilot (IP)
usually took three students for a ir-to-a ir
gunnery training. Each would arc towards
SWOR DS SH EAT H ED
--
the 'rag' ta rget from a distance of about
3,000ft (900m), opening fire at
800- l ,OOOft (245-JOOm) range from a 30-
degree closing angle and then pu lling up
and away to allow the next pilot h is shot.
In time-ho no ured mann r, each pilot'
shell w uld leave a d i tinctively co loured
paint-trace on the ta rget and hits were
counted later.
Firing the guns with radar ranging for
the A -4 ight in volved a eri es of setting-
up processes, not least of which was allow-
ing a warm -up time of up to fifteen min-
utes for the radar and gun sigh t. The gun
cam ra and gun sight filament were
switched on and the rheo tat adjusted to
the correct leve l of brilli ance. A sight
function se lector control was then set at
GUN and the ta rget speed sw itch was
adj u ted to allow forth relati ve speeds of
the target and th e attacking F-1 00. The
sight was then uncaged, the ca mera switch
set to 'bright', 'hazy' o r 'du ll' and the trig-
ger switch to GUNS/CAMERA. The next
44
--
job wa to et th e W ING PAN lever to
co rrespond to the size of the ta rget so that
manual ranging could be used if th e radar
went down . O nce the target was in clear
ight, the electri ca l 'caging' button wa
pressed to stab ilize the sight reticle and
target tracking cou ld then begin . The idea
was to hold down the caging button and
continue tracking a point so me di tance
ahead of the target at a d istance that
approximated to the 'lead' that the gun
sight would allow for in aiming the guns at
the moving ta rget. An indica to r light
ca me o n at the lower left of the A-4 sight
mounting to show that the rada r had
locked on to the target. The caging button
was then released , and assuming that th e
ta rget could be tracked smoothly, the pilot
could open up with his primary armament.
It was important to remember that firing
the guns at supersonic speeds could cause
the F-100 to shoot itse lf dow n. lf a
manoeuvre in combat req uired the pilot to
push his aircraft' nose down lightly after

Sidewinder
When F-1 00s carried air-to-air missiles they were usually
AIM-98 Sidewinders or slightly later variants. From 1957
the USAF acquired the USN's SW-1A (MM-N-7A) as the
GAR-B (guided air rocket). re-named AIM-98 in June 1963
under the standardized designation system. It continued
in service until1968 when it was replaced by the slightly
modified AIM-9E and then the AIM-9J in 1972.
The General Electri c (GE)/Ford AIM-98 was a pas-
sive. in fra-red hom ing mi ssile. 9ft (2.7m) long and
5in (13cm) in diamete r. Its range was limited to 2
miles (3.2km). though later models were effective at
up to 11 miles (17.7km). The 1Olb fragmentation war-
head was borne on its brief. 20-second fli ght to the
target by an Ae rojet rocket motor and detonated by
either contact or proxim ity fuses. The 1551b mi ssi le
was mounted on the inboard pylons of the F-1 00.
either singly or in paral lel pairs hung from a Y-
shaped double launcher. The same launcher cou ld
take an AIM-9 on one 'arm' and on the other a TDU -
11 / B 5in HVA rocket th at could be fired from a single
tube seconds before the AIM-9 to act as an infra-red
target for th e missile . Each TDU- 11 / B had four track-
ing flares on its aft sectron to provide a heat-source
target for the Sidewinder's uncooled PbS infra-red
seeker.
'Moose' Moseley. an IP at George AFB. 1959-61.
made one of his squadron's earliest Sidewinder firings
Sidewinders were new and had seen little use. We had
some 'cold carry' missions to listen to its [infra-red[ IR-
activated tone and I had one live firing to qual ify. I
tossed a 5in HVA(R) with tail flares out yonder at 30
degrees nose-up and fired a 'snake' [AIM-9] as the tar-
get neared the horizon. A kill. But nobody wanted to go
fight someone with them.
F-1OOC 54-1794, fitted with the taller F-1GOD-style tail
fin was one of six F-1OOCs used to test the Sidewinder
installation. F-1 OODs 54-2138, -2144 and -2 145 were
the first to be modified for Sidewinders. which were
introduced on the Inglewood line at aircraft number 184
(55-3502)
fir ing, he also had to remember to tum
slightly to one side in order to avo id in te r-
cepting his own shell as they slowed down
in flight and began to head for the ground
on the same trajectory as the fighter.
When the F-100 did enter combat ev-
eral yea r later, it ai.r-to-air firepower was
hard ly ever needed but the guns were to be
a major asset in countless attack on
ground targets. As USAF fighter
quadra n progress ively converted to the
F-100, air-to-ground ski lls were also
tra ined exte nsively as part of a full sy llabus
of combat skills. Tom Germscheid:
There were some inc id ents too :
Abou t once a year each squad ro n wou ld dep loy
ro Ne ll is AFB for air-ro-a ir tra in ing. Th e
month-lo ng deploymen t was a lways a great tim e
SWO RD S UNS HEATH ED
Sidewinders were aimed using the A-4 sight with a
fixed reticle (caged) and the missile's fam iliar 'rattle'
tone let the pilot know. via his commun ications ampli-
fier. that its seeker head had picked up a target. A cock-
pit panel with four lights showed which missile was
selected. or unfired, and a missile master switch that
was previously set to STANDBY to supply electrical
power to the missi le, was switched to READY when the
target was in range. The AIM-9 was fired with a press
of the usual trigger on the pilot's contro l co lumn and
this also cut in the gun camera. A 'station by-pass' con-
tro l selected the next avai lable missile or by-passed a
dud. and a 'safe launch' button could salvo all missi les.
unarmed and unguided, in an emergency.
In train ing, live Sidewinder shots were compara-
tively rare but practice 'lock-ons' could be made with
the radar sight and missile seeker head. On one trag ic
occasion this caused the loss of a SAC B-52 bomber;
ironically the F-1OO's only confirmed air-to-air shoot
down in USAF service. The 188th TFS. New Mexico Air
National Guard was th e first ANG unit to receive Super
Sabres when it transi tioned to F-1 OOAs in 1958. 1st Lt
James W van Scyoc was fl ying F-1 OOA 53-1662 on 7
April 1961. runn ing practice intercepts from Kirtl and
AFB on a 95th BW B-52B. On his sixth simulated
Sidewinder launch, van Scyoc's fighter suddenly
launched its No.2 AIM-9B and it impacted on the lett
inboard engine of the mighty bomber. Aboard the B-52B
(53-0380 Ciudad Juarez) the pilot. Capt Don Blodgett,
felt his aircraft lurch to the left as his cockpit caught fire
and the lett wing separated. Fragments from the
Sidewinder killed the two navigators and a stud ent
electronic war offi cer (EWO). The rest of the crew man-
aged to escape though most were injured A Board of
Investigation inquiry conc luded that a cracked plug in
the F-1 GOA's missile firing circuit had al lowed moisture
to enter, bypassing the 'sa fe' No.1 missile and some-
how triggering the second one.
Although the AIM-9 was the F-1OO's principal mis-
si le, the Hughes AIM-4B (GAR-2) infra-red missile,
used by the F-1 01 Voodoo and F-1 02 Delta Dagger. was
evaluated on an F-100.
and something we looked forwa rd ro - great fl y-
ing and Las Vegas had a lot to offe r ro the boys
from th e high pla ins of New Mexico. Si nce
there were more pilots than airplanes in a
squadron some wo uld dri ve the ir ca rs there, or
get some of the grou ndc rew to drive o ur cars to
Las Vegas so we would have whee ls while we
were there. O n the Ne ll is ranges we could q ual-
ify in all th e a ir-ro-a ir events: 20mm on the
'rag', 20mm on the manoeuv ring da rt and
GAR -8 S idew inder miss il e. We also did a lot of
ACM as we ll as some a ir-ro-ground. We
though t we had the world by the taiI.
O ne of the students cl ipped about3ft off the ver-
t ical stab ili zer of h is F- 100 when he hi t a cab le
45
used to haul o ut bat manure wh ile he was fl ying
down in the Grand Canyon. A no ther F- 100 col-
lided with a commerc ial airliner at30,000ftover
Las Vegas.
Art Johnson noted that his sq uadron , the
309th FBS at George AFB, on ly loaded
100 ro unds in each gun (usually in just two
guns) for this kind of tra ining and fo r
Weapons Meets , 'mostly to keep from
burning out the gun barrels premature ly' .
Ground targets on the range for gun pass-
es were the standard 20x 20ft ( 6x6m) can-
vas spreads with a bull's-eye marking.
Attacks were usua lly low-angle strafe pro-
files in a l Odegree dive.
In 1958, Tom Ge rmsche id grad uated
from Nelli AFB to the 4 29 th TF , 4 74th
TFW at Cannon AFB (then known as
C l vi AFB) where he p nt the nex t four
years. The Wing wa till tran iti ning to
F-l OODs with the sq uad ron's ye llow and
black decor on the ir tails.
We went to the NAA factory at Pa lmda le, al-
iforni a and picked up o ur new F- LOO Ds. The
27th TFW (formerl y 3 12th TFW) was also sta-
ti oned at Cannon/C lov is from 18 February
1959. After the 474th got their F-LOOs the 27th
transitioned roo. We had about 200 Huns on
the Can non ra mp by 1958. A bunch of us new
2nd Li eutenants who had been thro ugh the F-
LOOA cou rse at Nellis had more time in th e F-
100 than most of the old heads who were tran-
sitio ning from the F-86 H . We tho ught we were
big stuff, although in reality we were an acc i-
dent wait ing to happen. We lost a lot of birds in
the first couple of years, mostl y to pi lot error: a
lot of d um b things.
O ther F-100 class graduates went to the
4 79th Wing (the world's first supersonic
fighter Wing) at George AFB, the 4th
TFW at Seymour-Johnson AFB, and the
45 0th FDW at Foster AFB to fl y the F-
l OOC; or to F-l OOD squadrons at Myrtle
Beach (354th TFW, commanded by
WWII and Korean War ace Francis
Gabreski) , England AFB, Loui iana
(366th TFW and 401 t TFW) , Langley
A FB's 405th FBW, the 31st FBW at Turn-
er AFB, Georgia (later at George AFB as a
re- numbering of th e 413th FBW) , or the
506th FBW at Tinker AFB, O klahoma
commanded by Col Joseph L. Laugh li n,
which briefly owned F-lOODs from ep-
tember 195 7 to December 1958.
At Ca nnon AFB aircrew used the Mel-
rose range for 'air-to-mud' training. As
Tom Germscheid exp lained:
 SWORDS U SH EATHED

Showtime
In the late 1950s, with F-100 units adopting
ever more eye-catching paint schemes, the
rea l showplace for a quadran ' talents was
a Fighter Weapons Meet. Art]ohn on orga-
nized and participated in his unit's Fight r
Weapons Team at the 1958 competition.
T h ey won the world's first all-supersonic
fighter Tactical Fighter Weapons Meet at
George AFB and then went on as T AC's
representatives in the World C lass Fighter
Weapons Meet at Ne llis AFB in O ctober.

We were sti ll a nuclear bo mb Wing and h ad

The 31st FW Weapons Team at Nellis AFB in 1958. Left to right: Lt Bud Holman, Maj
Chuck Horton, Col Gordie Grahm (team leader). Maj Art Johnson and Capt Walt Bruce.
Squadron colours appear on the speed brake of 56-3196 as well as on its nose and
wing tank . Five of the Wing's aircraft were painted in this scheme for several weeks .
Col Art Johnson
Con venti onal weapons events included low-
angle strafi ng, d ive bombing with a 45-degree
d ive angle, skip bombing, 2. 7Sin FFAR [folding
fin a ircraft rockets] (30-degree d ive) and Sin
I-I VA rockets. uclea r event in cluded 'over
the shou lder' [nuclear delivery] ( T ) which
wa our primary deli very meth od. We ca lled
these 'idiot loops' and we did millions of them.
A good ya w damper was a great asset in 'over-
the-shoulder' deli very. Th ere was a lso high -
angle dive deli very (60-90 degrees from about
25,000ft) and leve l retarded nuclear delivery
from about 2,000ft.
On of the training dev ices carried by the
F-1 00 was the MA-3 trip le- mounted rocket
launcher. arried on th outboard pylons,
these could each take three HVA ingle
ro unds or three pods of Mk-4 2. 75in FFAR
(totalling forty-two mi siles).
We generall y fired one rocket at a time from the
trip le tube, simulating the firing of fifty 2. 7S in
rockets. The accuracy of a single rocket was very
questi onab le. So metimes one of the three fo ld -
ing fins would not deploy and the rocket would
go wild. I gue s they figured that if you dumped
fifty of them in one hot you were bound to hi t
something. They were des igned for a rmoured
vehicl es , radar and commun ications, vans, e tc.
The triple rocket launchers were somewhat
high -d rag, espec iall y when empty and they lim -
ited th e F- 100 to Mach 0.8 below 20,000ft.
An alternative rocket launcher was the
ninet en- hot LAU -3/A and one could be
hung on each utboard pylon. A iming of
all rockets was done with th e A-4 sight
and an intervalometer fired one rocket
each tim the bomb button was pressed, or
sa lvoed rocket from pods. For bombing
practice, a dispenser wa u ed that could
also launch FFARs.
The SUU-20/A dispenser, which carried four
2. 75s and six 2S ib practice bombs or imulated
retarded bombs ('beer cans') or any combination
of the two types of bombs, grea tl y reduced the
drag and permitted high-speed manoeuvring
such as ACM after a bomb ing mission. The bot-
tom of this dispenser had doors that opened and
clo eel to simu late arm ing a nuclear store. The
doors often malfunctioned , sticking in either the
closed pos ition (wh ich meant an aborted mis-
sion) or open , wh ich restricted where you could
fl y with a hung bomb. They later came out with
a low-drag dispenser [M N -1 or MN -1A] without
the rocket tubes and doors.
squadrons on constant alert at a irfie lds in G er-
man y, armed with Mk 7 nuc lear weapons
th rough to the end of 1958. However, we a! o
trained for the air-to-a ir mission and bo th skip
and di ve con ventional bombing. The 1958
Meet included simu lated nucl ear and conven-
tiona l miss ions, with LABS and M- l. toss bomb-
ing attacks. Ai r-to-ai r included supersoni c fir-
ing aga inst dart ta rgets towed by oth er F- 1OOs
and subsonic aga inst 'rag' targets. A ll the F-
lOOD mode ls were equi pped with LAB de liv-
ery gyros and th e automatic LA BS fea ture using
the autop ilot (whi ch was not too reliable wh en
I fl ew the birds). 1 did better in th e Weapons
Meet using manu al LABS. N one of our F-lOODs
had S idewind er capability in 1958 . The F- lOOD
W ings, such as Gabby Gabreski's wing at Myr-
tl e Beach had not been equipped with LABS or
nucl ea r delivery hardpo ints. They had a strictl y
conventiona l mission , a lthough they were later
given the nuclear miss ion as Gabby and all his
pil ots ca me down to Turner AFB to go th rough
th e Spec ial Weapons delivery cour e I taugh t
for th e Wing. [Gabreski 's Wing converted to the
F- lOOD in 1957 . His personal a ircraft was F-
l. OOF 56-3 69.]
O n bombing and gunnery miss ions we wou ld
strafe and skip-bo mb at SOOkt at low level,
which at e levations like Las Vegas gave us a
pretty fas t ground speed. Th e standard entry for
a LABS nuclea r attack wa SOOkt in afterburn -
er, on the deck be low 500ft. Yo u needed th e
afterburn er to make an lmmelmann from th e
deck with that 3 ,0001b ' Blu e Boy' dummy ver-
sion on the Mk 7 nuclear weapon plus an ex ter-
nal tank on the other wing. We a lso needed the
afterburner to go above Mach 1 in a ir-to-a ir
gunnery. Mach 1. 2 was about it for th e F-100 in
leve l fli ght.
In the 1958 Weapons Meet at eorge l. ended
up in a ti e for first place with my team-mate,
Walt Bruce. They dec ided to have a fl y- ff
aga inst dart targets to settle it th e next morning.
I flew the miss ion in an F-100F with General
Wey land in the back seat. 1 don't recall whether

46

Brand new F-1000-85-NHs await collection from NAA's Columbus, Ohio factory. This was the last block of F-100s
produced there . Allen T. Lam b
Walt fl ew his regular F- LOOD. I had shot gunnery
in the F- LOOF before but this was not my regul ar
bird fo r th e Meet. I managed to embarrass myse lf
by mi. sing th e targe t, with th e Commander of
Tactica l Ai r Command in my back seat! Maybe
the guns were not h armon ized righ t or maybe I
just screwed up. l didn't blame it on th e F- ! OOF
as l never noti ced much d ifference in the way
they fl ew compared with the single-sea ter.
The dart targe t m iss ion [at the Weapo ns
Mee t] was a o ne-to o ne affair. It was not poss i-
ble to attack a dart with the tow-plane in
stra igh t fl igh t wi thout endange ring the tow-
plan e. Each attacking figh ter had a chase plane
from N ellis who told the tow plane when to in i-
tiate evasive manoeuvres . The chase pi lot was
also a judge who dec ided if th e airspeed of the
SWORD S U ' SH EAT HED
• •
attacking F- 100 was supersoni c o r withi n the
prescri bed area . A foul in an y respect garn ered
a ze ro for th e m iss ion . Th e tow plane first went
in to a superson ic divi ng turn wh ile the attacker
fired at the dart, then in to a cl imbing turn whi le
the attacker manoeuvred for a second pass a t a
lower speed , but not less than Mach 0 .9. A h it
on either of the passes was a win fo r the mission
- not as easy as it sounds. T he dart was not a big
radar target for th e A -4 ranging gun sigh t and
not a large area to hi t. Howeve r, after a bit of
experience you neve r m issed one.
The wisdom of honing thes ski ll wa
emphasized a few years later when F-100
pilots were po ised to attack real targets in
uba during the Miss ile C risis of October
47
'
I
./ I
•I
II
1962. Among them was Lt Co l Dav id 0.
W il li ams (later a Brigad ier G eneral), who
led the 524th TFS, 27th TFW from an-
no n AFB to McDi ll AFB , Florid a where
the whole Wing at cockp it alert during
N ovember of that year:
Each fli gh t of four F- l OOs was assigned a Sov iet
m issil e site for its targe t, or a Sov iet a ir defence
in tallation . Each aircraft carried two napalm
can isters on the in board stations and two LAU-
3 rocket pods o n the outboard stations with
n inetee n 2. 75 in FFA Rs in each pod . Fo rtunate-
ly, diplomacy succeeded or there wo uld have
been a rea l blood bath and G od knows where it
would have led .
 CHAPTER THREE

Worldwide Warrior

KB -50J tanker pilot piles on the knots to stay with a trio of 354th TFW F-lOODs feeding
from its three hoses, September 1958. David Menard Coll ection

Pacific Alert
The F-1OO's tact ical nuclear ro le and it
inflight-refu ell ing kit, all owing up to three
refu elli ngs per miss ion , made it the first
figh ter to be capable of deploy ing the
n uclear deterrent virtually anywhere in
the wo rld at 12-hours not ice. The wo rld
situat ion in the 1950s and early 1960s
provided plenty of occas ion on whi ch
that show of ultimate strength was
required. For F-l OOC/D pilots that meant
a lot of t ime away from home base.
Fl ying fro m C lov is A FB fro m 1961 to
1964, A lex Martin reckoned to be on tem-
po rary duty (TOY) for 27 0 days a yea r.
Befo re that, he spent four years at Kadena
A B, O kinawa with the 18th Tactica l
Fighter Wing (TFW) , beg inning in 1957
just after it had convert d from F-86F
Sabres. The Wing had stood alert during
the Fo rmosa C risis in Febru ary 1955 and as
the tension continued it r -estab lished
itse lf on upe r Sa bre . In 1958, as Com-
munist C hines pressure continued, other
F-100 units moved to Taiwan including
the 511 th Fighter-bomber Squ adron (FBS )

48
 WORLDW ID E WA RR IO R

fro m Langley AFB that did a TDY at

C hing C huan AB. Two squ adrons of the
354th TFW at Myrtle Beach spent thr e
months at Kadena support d by F- l Ol C
Voodoos. For th e 18th TFW the plan was
to start a:

qu ick suike' a len area at Kadena where

strike-ready pi lots and nucl ear-arm ed aircraft
would be ab le to launch aga inst studi ed, pre-
plann ed targe ts within fi ftee n minutes. T hi s
fl edgli ng operat ion was honed ove r th e yea rs,
but at first it in volved a tax i-a round on a prac-
tice scrambl e every day with a 'nuke' on boa rd.
T hat got changed. I remember some of the
nuclea r weapons started to dr ip high explos ive
as we sa t on hot concrete in mid -summer. Th ey
fi xed this by putting an um bre ll a over the
weapons to keep them shaded. Twe lve aircraft
were o n the a lert pad during th e normal DEF-
CON [defense condi t ion ). A ll mainl and targets
we re memo rized (w ith alte rnate targe ts) and
this was tested regul arl y, as we ll as the authen-
ticat ing procedu res. During O Ris [O perati onal
Readiness Inspect ions) we would launch with
the Blu e Boy shapes and th e rest of th e fl eet
woul d load up and fl y to 'go/no-go' poi n ts and
authenti cate. The re were se t max imum times
fo r eve ryth ing. It wo uld dr ive the oppositi on
nuts when the ir secret agents reported our
launches and sa w us all fan ning out towa rds th e 8th TFW F-1000-20-NAs at ltazuke AB where the Wing converted to Super Sabres at
coast ca rrying 'nukes' (simu lated of course ). the end of 1956. David Menard Collection

We'd orbit, get abo rted and sa il home. A lert
pilots would come on duty, pre- fl ight th ei r F-
lOODs, set a ll the switches to 'go', have th e
power uni ts hooked up [to start the engines) and
the ir persona l gear in the cockpit. Then th ey'd
go to the alert shack that had beds and a
kitchen. They could get off the wrf in fi ftee n
minutes eas ily; close r to ten was norma l.
Yokota in Japan also hosted F-100 depl oy-
ments inc luding O perat ion Mobile Zebra
in Nove mber 1957, when sixteen F-l OOCs
and the same num ber of F- lOODs made th e
sixtee n-ho ur flight from George A FB.
Wh ile the nucl ea r wea pons themse lves
w r shad d by um brellas, a de vice of on ly
marginall y grea ter pract ica lity wo uld have
protected the pilots on nuclear miss ions.
Instead, a wh ite fla h shi eld, pu ll d for-
ward over th in te rior of the cockp it
ca nopy, was th e on ly ava ilable protection .
Ma inta iner John C larity viewed this con-
traptio n ironi ca ll y as :
... a rea l pac ifier to th e pilots on a mi ss ion with-
out likelih ood of rewrn . T hi s piece of jun k
Alex Martin (l eft) and Roy Moore. Alex Martin would supposed ly preserve them from the ther-
mal and li ght forces which would have overtak-
en th em as a result of a bom bing tech n ique tha t
left them too close to the 'ground zero' they had
just created. The system was so shodd y it had no
place in a mach in e prepa ring to destroy a large
pa rt of the planer.
Th e hood was insta ll d so lely fo r therma l
protecti on , as exp los ive force was no t
thought to be a problem that would affect
pilots. The max imum yield for F-100
de livery was set at one mega to n.
Fo r Roy Moore, fl ying F- l OODs with the
80th Tactica l Fighte r Squad ro n (TFS ), 8th
TFW Headhunte rs fro m ltazu ke AB,
nuclear alert was a lso a req uire ment for his
Wing's area of responsibility in South East
Asia and it ca rri ed its attendant hazards.
In the ea rl y days of ca rrying nuclear weapons on
figh ter aircraft there we re no controls, i. e. the
pil ot, if he got airborne with a 'nuke', could drop
it a nd deto nate it. The powers that be we re con-
cern ed that one man cou ld have tota l contro l of
so muc h destruct ive power so th ey started
thrash ing around, looking for some way to con-
tro l the pil ot even after he was a irbo rne with the

49

The 18th TFW's attractive arrowhead insignia used red, white and blue segments (top to bottom). Individual
squadron colours were painted on the nose - in this case yellow and black for a 12th TFS F-100F-20-NA
with 200gal tanks inboard. David Menard Colle ction
weapon. In 1958 a lock hand le was install ed in
the cockpi t that had to be pu lled before the
weapon could leave the a irpl ane. (Th ere mu t
have been a nuclear 'training hape' [Blue Boy]
inad vertentl y dropped somewhere ?)
When locked, the handle did prevent any-
thing from be ing jettiso ned or re lea ed
from the ce ntreline and l ft intermed iate
(Type 8) py lon.
The first attempt to control the pi lot in fli ght
was to put a co mb inat ion lock on that 'specia l
store' handle that had to be un locked and
removed before the ha ndle could be pu ll ed.
That all sounds like a grea t idea: the pilot could
ge t a irborne with the nuclea r weapon but actu -
al control of the weapo n could remain in th e
hand of cooler-headed fo lk on th e ground.
Th ey could radi o h im the combin ati on to th e
lock if they dec ided tha t the right thing wa fo r
him to delive r the bomb on targe t.
The probl em was that the specia l weapons
handl e in th e F- 100 was just about level with
the top of your boots. To see th e num be rs on the
WORLDWID E WARR IOR
r:W·003
combinat ion lock it was necessary to bend over,
well be low the level where you could ee the
instrument panel. To try and fl y th e pl ane with
your head below your knees is to know instant
vertigo . It was almost, but not qu ite imposs ible
to work the combinat ion lock and main ta in
control of the a irplane. I wa never able to do it
in le than fifteen minutes and th at was with a
great dea l of risk to myse lf and the a irp lane. The
system didn 't stay in force for long. PAL (per-
miss ive action link) enabling wa perfected
omewhere around 1959 and with that system
they would rad io you with a four o r five-digit
code to enter into the PA L keyboa rd.
The F-100 was by no mea ns alone among
1950s figh ter in hav ing a cockpit th at wa
le than u r-friendly. Howev r, tra ining
and experi ence were great compensators,
as Maj C urtis Burns exp lained:
We u ed to do everything by touch , because
when you are flyin g t ight wing pos iti on it's not
too wise to look down in to th e cockpit. To
change th e U HF radi o channe l, for exa mpl e,
50
you merely had to take your hand off the throt-
tle and move it about I in to the right on the
left-h and conso le to turn the channel sw itch,
counting the channel numbers up or down from
the one you we re on to the channe l you were
ch anging to .
The Headhunters initially fl ew Block 15 F-
l OOD with MA-2A low-a ltitud e bo mbing
system (LABS) , a yaw/pitch damper and
no centreline pylon. Lt C ol Ronald Her-
rick referred to them as:
. ha lf-assed Ds because they had some F- LOOC
systems. T h is caused a proble m in PAC AF
[Pac ific A ir Force] when the Mk 28 nuclea r
store was introduced and the Block 15 aircraft
were se nt all ove r PACA F and eve ntually
replaced. T he Thunderbirds tea m used some of
th em (after repa in ting in team o lours) on a Far
East tour, wh ile theirs were in IRAN [i nspect
and repa ir as necessa ry], bu t d idn 't take them
back to the S tates. NATO coun tries also got
earl y 0 mode ls. The rest of the 8th Wing {35 th
and 36th TFS ) had Block 20 a ircraft.

In September 1963, a group of 523 rd TF
pilots led by Lt Col Dav id 0. Wil liams col-
lected a batch of 8th TFW F- l OODs from
ltazuke and ferried them back to McClel-
lan AFB for High Wire update .
The nuclear prio rity dominated F-100
tra ining in the Pac ific area and reduc d
the time available for traditional tact ics.
A lex Martin:
In keeping with the nucl ea r mission we did li t-
d e ACM [a ir comba t manoeuvri ng], few con -
venti onal del iveri es and mostly we were into
T ['over the shoulder' nucl ea r de li very].
A ir combat training was also red uced
b ca us :
Budgets were be ing cut and we d idn't want to
lose a ircraft o r pilots doing crazy stuff like
ACM. Of cour e, we did o ur o wn! The upper
levels of USAF comm and were rarely figh ter
jocks, mostl y ex -SAC [Strateg ic A ir o mm and]
and they fo rgot wha t a fi gh ter pil ot needs to stay
sharp, even if there i an occas io na l loss.
Ten years later, this was a philo ophy that
was to cost the USAF dea rly in the Vi et-
nam conflict.
At Kaden a most F-100 pilots got in
20-25 flying hours per month, flying o r-
ties of P/4 hours on average. There would
be an hour's briefing before a miss ion and
at least thirty minutes afterwards. 'We used
Roy Moore Ueft) after giving a check-ride to the senior officer of the Royal Thai AF in
F-100F 56-3813, still in 72nd TFS decor with a red tail flash. The unit became the 510th
TFS in spring 1959 with purple markings. Roy Moore
WORLDWIDE WARRIOR
a bomb ing range o n Ta iwan and one nea r
lark AB. Th re were just enough sorties
to keep us o mbat- ready in conventi onal
ordnance del iv ry including 2.75in roc ket
firing, dive and skip bombing and gunnery.'
on ver io n to the first batc h of F- l OOs
in PA AF was a fa irly arbitrary process in
some cases. Ron Herri ck reca lled his first
F- lOOD fli ght in th e day before F- l OOFs
were ava il able:
At that tim e I was three years o ut of pil ot tra in -
ing and I had been a T-33 instructor. W hen I got
to ltazuke they were in the process of converting
to the F- 1000 from the F-86F. I was the only one
who had gone through ellis to check out and I
beca me a guin ea pig. The F-86 was still there
and they gave me unrestricted access to go chase
my e lf around the sky. After about thirty ho urs
o n the F- 6 ! went th rough ground school on th e
Hun and was then briefed for hours. Th ey final-
ly sa id I was bri efed eno ugh and off I went. Th e
afterburner was a rea l ki ck with a cl ea n bird. The
o nl y real surprise was turn ing from the base leg
to fina ls for landing as no one had remembered
to tell me abo ut the lg buffet so I got a ri bbing
about my large landing patterns.
Life in a Pa ific F-100 quadron had its
moments of light r lief fro m the grim bu i-
ness of nuclear alert.
At lark A B in ! 959 the re was an on -go ing
competition with the 509th Fl . We buri ed a
57
bomb in the fron t yard at the ir ps build ing
with a sign to let them know wh ere the bomb
had come from. They glued a large beer-adver-
t ising sti cker on the drop tank of one of ou r
planes. O ne of ou r pilots, Wayne A bbott h ad a
bad landing and got o ut O K but hi s F- lOO D was
a tota l loss from fi re and th e rema ins were
moved to the sa lvage ya rd. Th ey took the
bu rned-out F- 100 remains and spread them
across the big parade fie ld in front of Thirteenth
Air Force Headquarters. Th ey did a ve ry con-
vi nci ng job so that people on the wa y to work
the next morning were con vi nced that an F- 100
had made an emergency landi ng on the parade
fie ld during the night. ince some ve ry heavy
equi pment was necessary to handl e the F-l 00
carcass it was clea r that more than a few men
were in volved in perpetrating thi s joke.
A large number of man -ho urs we re wasted on
some of these practica l joke and the Wing Cdr
fin all y put an end to them after the 509th broke
in to o ur Ops bu il d ing one night and moved
eve ryth ing other than the c lass ifi ed afe on to
the roof of the bu ilding. Each item was placed
directl y above its proper loca tion in the build-
ing below.
In 195 7, Roy Moore beca me o ne of the
first 80th FBS pilots to transition to the F-
lOOD, a proce th at the en t ire 8th TFW
accomplished without los ing a ingle a ir-
craft or pilot.
I had th ree fli gh ts in the single-sea t F- lOO D and
beca me an Instructor Pi lot after my third fli gh t.
I suppose we didn 't have much cho ice since
there were no pilots in the squad ron with F- 100
time. We transiti oned the whole squad ron
[from the Republic F-84G] without losing a
pla ne o r pilot th o ugh . l think we d id lose one
nose-gea r strut when a pil ot made a b ard land-
ing and tri ed to force the pl ane back on to the
runway.
While at lark AB, Roy took a flight of
four F- l OOFs to Bangkok:
... to give VIP rides to members of the Tha i
Government and military, including the top
gene ra l in the a rm y and even the King's concu-
bin e- the fi rst fe male pilot in Tha il and . They
resc inded all fl ying restri ctions wh ile we were
there and in fact encouraged us to 'boom' the
a irfi eld at ve ry low alt irude, a lthough th e F-100
was d ifficult to keep at supe rsoni c speed at sea
level. I don 't know why we d idn 't brea k a lot of
glass, but I neve r hea rd any comp la in ts.
O n one fli gh t I was to ld to fl y non-stop from
C lark AFB to Bangkok without infligh t-refu-
elli ng. We had to file a flight-plan to go around

The F-lOO's principal nuclear weapon was the 1,60Dib
Mk 7 store. though in 1956- 57 some bases still had
l ,lOOib Mk12s left over from their F-86F/ H days. The
wea pon was 151/2ft (4.7m)long with a 301/2i n (77.5cm)
diameter and a varia ble 'yield' of 2- 60KT. For compari-
son, the Mkl Little Boy used at Hiroshima yielded 13KT
(the equiva lent of 13,000 tons of TNT). Mk 7s could be
ca rried beneath the F-1ODC/D/F or F-101 A/C Voodoo. or
smal ler aircraft like th e F-84F/G and AD5-N. Detonation
cou ld be set for 'airburst' (timer or rada r) or 'contact'
(with the ground). The bomb cas ing had three stabili zing
fins. the lower one being retractabl e to enabl e the
weapon to be carried under a fighter.
Summary of f -100 Atomic Weapons Armament Differences
Model LABS Type Nuclear
Weapon
F-1DOC (early) MA-l Mk 7
F- 1DOC (late) MA-2
Mk7
F-1 ODD (early) MA-2 Mk 7
F-1 ODD (late) AN/AJB-1B Mk 7, 28, 43, 61
F-l OOF AN/AJB-5A Mk 7. 28. 43, 61
Early F-1 DOCs: F-1OOC-1-NA. -5NA.
Early F-1 ODDs: F-1OOD-1-NA- -15NA, -35NH. -40NH.
Late F-l OODs incl uded: F-1OOD-20-NA - -30-NA, -45NH- -55NH, -65NA - -75NA, -80NH, -85NH, -90NH .
Mk 7 airburst could be set via an internal timer that
began to run when the bomb was released. Radar fus-
ing used one of two settings, selectable from the cock-
pit. with the bomb's internal radar reading the required
altitudes for detonation. The Mk 28 and Mk 43 co uld be
set for airburst using a radar altimeter fuse only for
ground contact detonation. The Mk 43 also had an inter-
nal timer for 'laydown' mode, a delayed detonation on
the ground. The Mk 61 used airburst (radar control led).
ground contact or laydown detonation.
MA-l LABS had only the vertical gyros and the
switches for LABS operation were on top of the instru-
ment panel. It had no low-altitude drogue delivery
(LADD) ca pabi lity and was very difficu lt to use for OTS
delivery. MA-2 LABS added yaw/roll gyros.
Late F-1ODDs and F-1OOFs cou ld also carry the Mk28
(B-28) we ighing 1,9801b (90Dkg) with variable yie ld of
1MT and the possibility of free-fal l or parachute-retard-
ed delivery (contact or airburst). This was replaced by
the Mk 43 (B-43) we ighing 2, lOOib (950kg) and contain-
ing a 1MT warhead. Its l 21/2ft (3.8m) shell of 18in
(45cm) diameter had a steel nose-spike inside a nose
casi ng to sEScure the bomb in position for a 'ground-burst
laydown' detonation. For the laydown option. the nose-
cone separated immediately after release due to the
parachute deployment slowing the weapo n.
All these devices were later supplanted by the tacti-
ca l B-61 'Silver Bullet' (1966). but by then the F-lOO's
Tactical Air Comma nd (TAC) nuclear role had passed
mainly to later types such as the F-4 Phantom, F-1 05
Thunderchief and F-111 Aa rdvark .
F-1DOCs and early F-1ODDs carried the Mk 7 only on
their left intermediate pylon, which had the requ isi te
WORLDW ID E WA RRI O R
Special Stores and LABS
release and control wiring. A counter-bala nci ng 275gal
tank appeared on the opposite intermediate station,
often with a 200gal tank on each of the ou tboard and
inboa rd pylons too. This was known as the nuclear '1-E'
configuration and it tended to cause asymmetry prob-
lems in flight that Curtis Burns equated to 'borderline
instability' . Landing wi th all the external tanks still in
place produced some interesting trim problems because
of the asymmetric drag. On later F-lOODs and the
F-1OOF, the fuselage centreline hardpoint could also be
used for a 'specia l store' (nuclear weapon) or a practice
bomb dispenser.
Early F-1ODDs were identified by the main landing
Carriage Station/ Pylon
Left intermediate
Left intermedia te
Left intermediate
Left intermediate/centreline
Left intermediate/centreline
gear doors hanging vertically when open. The later, cen-
treline pylon aircraft had doors that did not open so far
and hung at an angle. Production aircraft with the cen-
treline pyl on had a provis ion to inhibit speed brake oper-
ation when a store was loaded on the pylon. The speed
brake was later modified wi th a larger cutout to al low
speed brake operation wi th a store in place.
The Mk 7 weapon had its own T-270 control panel in
the cockpit and the later weapons used the T-249 and
variations. The usual bomb button on top of the control
stick, with proper armament switch selection. rel eased
the 'nuke' . To jettison, the JEniSON button was used
to release all stores and then all pylons in sequence.
Three AUX JETI buttons cou ld jettison stores without
jettisoning their pylons. Pylon jetti son was on ly possible
on the F-1OOD/F; those on the F-1DOC were bolted in
place.
A T-63 Blue Boy(so-called because of its colour) train-
ing shape duplicated the aerodynamic cha racteristics of
a Mk 7 but compri sed a 6001b (270kg) concrete core
inside the bomb casing. More often, standard 251b BDU-
33 practice bombs would be used for training. These
were carried in a dispenser or individually on a B37K-1
rack that could take four bombs. Similar training shapes
were available in limited quantities for the later
weapons.
Two main methods of nuclear delivery were available.
LADD used parachute-retarded , delayed action bombs
(such as the Mk 28 RE) in a 200ft (60m) above ground
level (AGL) approach wi th a pull-up to 45 degrees to
release the weapon so that it ended up over the target.
The escape was made by rolling inverted and manoeu-
vri ng to a 45-degree dive to the deck. This delivery
52
required an identification point (IP) short of the target.
The distance was then used to convert to two time para-
meters in seconds. The first time (PULLUP TIM E) was the
time at 500kt, indica ted (KIAS). from the IP to the initia-
tion of a pull-up to a 45-degree climb. The second time
(RELEASE TIME) was the time from the start of pull-up to
weapon release. The pull-up signal was via the A-4 sight
and the green weapon release light extinguishing.
Weapon release was indicated by the green RELEASE
light and the A-4 sight illuminating .
A LABS delivery allowed the F-100 pilot to toss his
nuclear weapon at a target up to 10 miles (16km) ahead
of him. or the OTS delivery. He then made a half-l oop at
4g and accelerated away from the bomb's trajectory at
maximum speed, putting as many miles as possible
between his aircraft and the impact point. Afterburner
wou ld be needed for this though it was rarely used at
low altitude at other times because of its enormous
appeti te for fuel at low leve l. The long-range require-
ment for most of these missions would not have
allowed the pilot enough fuel to return to base. Instead,
he was provi ded with map references for a safe area
where he could bale out and be recovered.
The most common variation on the LABS delivery was
the more usually-employed OTS release where the pilot
overflew the target at about 5,00Dft (1,500m). ascer-
taining that it was th e correct one and then pulling up
into a 4g lmmelmann. The bomb was released as the F-
1DO passed the correct degree setting (pre-set on the
ve rtical gyro). Two release angles cou ld be set. The
armament control panel wi th the AJB-1/5 LABS equip-
ment on the left console had a MODE SEL switch, which
determined the release function. The LABS equipment
was controlled by the MODE SEL switch, offering LABS,
LABS ALT or LADD settings The LABS option could be
set for any angle of release. whereas the LABS ALT
could only be used for OTS. In practica l use. the LABS
setting was to offer an alternative release setting for a
different aircraft weig ht at the release point.
LABS/ LABS ALT release was control led by the vertical
gyros as long as the pilot kept the bomb button pressed
down. As the bomb ascended in a long arc to
15,000-20,000ft (4,600-6,000m) before fa lling on its
target, the Super Sabre pil ot had a chance to dive for the
deck and run from the detonation. The autopilot.
installed mainly to enable F-1OOs to fly long transits to
deployments, could be coupled to the MA-2 or AJB-1
systems to give an Auto-LABS delivery. Project Green
Door in May 1957 introduced fi eld modifications to
improve the Auto-LABS system and the autopilot.
Ron Herrick set up and taught at the PACAF Nuclear
School at ltazuke AB, Japan for three years. After that
he was Officer in Charge (OIC) of the Nuclear Weapon
Training at Luke AFB. He received his training at Sandia
Laboratori es as a Nuclear Delivery Instructor. He also
flew 1,200 hours in the F-100, fol lowed by 200 comba t
missions in F-4D Phantoms. He explained in more detail
what was involved in an F-1DO OTS LABS mission:
LABS was activated by the MODE SEL switch on the pilot's left
console. This in tum activated the vertical gyro (which had the
appropriate release angles on it) and also displayed (after

uncaging) roll and pitch information from the LABS vertical
gyro 011 the LABS indicator. If the gyro had not erected proper-
ly lin 13 seconds) the 'cage' button on top of the throttle was
used tocage the gyro properly. When it had stabilized the pilot
released this button, uncaging the gyro. Next, SPECIAL
STORES was selected on the ARMAMENTSELECTOR switch.
During the loading process. the pylon load panel was set.
Next. the release lock was unlocked. When over the tar-
get the pilot pushed the bomb release button on top of the
stick. selected afterburner and went from 1g to 4g in two
seconds. The LABS indicator horiwntal needle now regis-
tered g-forces and the vertical needle showed yaw and roll
(from the yaw/roll gyro). This was held caged by a single
pin and the gyro was uncaged at pull-up if the wings were
level. The pilot simply had to hold the two needles centred.
Another detail was provided to assist the pilot. When he
depressed the bomb release in LABS All or the timer indi-
cated 'pull up' in LABS. the horizontal needle (if kept cen-
A rare view of a 72nd TFS F-1000-25-NA at Clark AB with its red markings
outlined in white . The unit was re-designated the 510th TFS in the spring of 1959.
Lt Col A. L. Olman via David Menard
the southern tip of Viemam, but because the d is-
tance wa too great fly ing that route we went
direct across orth Vietna m. I never knew
wh ether this was an in te ll igence-ga theri ng fli ght
or n t, but I suspect there was a 'spook' sitting
off-shore recording all the radar act ivity as we
crossed . We had no na va ids at Bangkok and on
another fli gh t we we re below 6001b of fue l when
we loca ted the run way. \XIe landed two planes in
one dir ction and two in the opposite d irect ion
at the sa me ti me. We just kept to the right sid e
of the runway and passed in the middl e!
Roy even encountered a UFO on o ne of
his training flights out of lark.
WORLD WI DE WA RRI O R
tred) would program one to four 'g' within two seconds
At about 145 degrees pitch angle, as determined by the
vertical gyro. the horiwntal needle indicated a relaxed 'g'
command and the pilot continued in an lmmelmann. diving
to the deck to go like hell. For successive runs he had to
cycle the MODE SEL switch in stra ight and level flight.
Col Tom Germscheid was involved in an early Auto-
LABS tra ining initiative while he was with the 429th
TFS. 474th TFW
It was called Project Randy Boy. using the autopilot to per-
form an automatic OTS manoeuvre, release and escape.The
autopilot on the F-1OOD was shaky at best. However. for this
project they really had them peaked up. You could approach
the target or predicted offset point at 1.000ft in autopilot.
Afterburner was selected shortly before the pull-up point. At
the pull-up point you would hit and hold the pickle button.
I was on a fl igh t alone in an F- lOOD a li ttle
before dark at 35,000ft when I noticed a ligh t
a lmost level but sligh tly be low my alt itude. It
was heading in an easterly direction and if nei-
ther of us had changed course it would have
passed to my right abou t half a mile away. Th ink-
ing th at the light was anoth er F- 100 in the area
I planned to jump h im fo r a li ttle ACf (air com-
bat tactics) rra ining. I lit the bu rn er and dipped
the nose slightly ~ r max imu m acceleration. I
easil y went superson ic and started a sha llow turn
towards the ligh t, which was now almost north
of me and sli ghtl y above. As I bega n my tu rn the
light sta rted a left turn away from me. Th ere was
never any visible a irframe, just a steady, whi te
53
trying not to put any pressure on the stick that might disen-
ga e the autopilot. The aircraft entered a 4g loop with the
autopilot keeping the wings level and the yaw damper keep-
ing the ball centred. At about 120 degrees of climb the
weapon automatically released and at 130 degrees the bird
rolled out of the lmrnelmann and entered a 45-degree dive.
It pulled out at 1,000ft. heading back out from the target.
Great idea when it worked - which was not too often.
LABS equipment in the early aircraft with sensitive air-
speed indicators used a constant release angle. The air-
speed was varied to accou nt for temperature. pressure.
altitude and aircraft gross weight. Later aircra ft. includ-
ing th e F-100 used a constant 500 KIAS ru n in speed and
varied the release angle. This was due to the relatively
hard-to-read Mach/speed indicator. LABS was also
installed in the F-86H Sabre and in contemporary British
aircra ft such as the Scimitar and Sea Vixen.
ligh t, not unu uall y bright. By the time I wa in
trail with it, it began a tO-degree climb and
acce lerated at an unbe lievab le rate. tarried by
the extreme speed I turned my IFF [identifica-
ti on, fr iend or foe] to EMERGE C Y and ca lled
the C lark radar station. They repli ed immedi -
ately and I asked if they had an air raft at my
twe lve o'clock. They rep lied that there was
nothing on the screen other than my emergency
squawk. I had viewed the ligh t through the F-
IOO's ca n py and all wi ndshie ld panels and I
have no reason to believe that I was watch ing a
reflecti on, a sta r o r anything other than a fl ying
object f some kind.
lark AB beca me home to the 72 nd TFS
F- l OODs from Jul y 1958, supervised by th e
6200th A ir Base Wing. Re- num bering of
the 1uad ron as the 51Oth TF was effec-
t ive fro m April 1959 and it jo ined the
newly activated 405th FW at th Philip-
pines base. The Wing had prev iou ly
fl own F-l OODs at Langley A FB fro m late
1956 un t il the summer of 1958 with the
508th, 509 th, 5 1Oth and 5 11 th FB
q uadro n . Reacti vated at lark in Ap ril
1959, it includ ed onl y one F- LOOD
sq uadron , the SlOth. In due course, this
unit jo in ed the J rd TFW upo n lea ving
PA AF in March 1964 . The squadron's
sty li h and unusual purp le no e chequers
and bird insign ia we re among the most
attrac tive F-100 co lour schemes.
Roy Moo re became the un it's Sq uad ro n
Maintenance O fficer. One of his innova-
ti ons in thi ro le was to find a non-regula-
tion use fo r damaged 450ga l drop tanks.
He rescued one of the large, d raggy tanks
fro m the dump and asked the 't in bend ers'
at lark to cut a 20x36 in (50x90cm)
pi ano- hinged door in its side. Th ey then
 WO RLDW I DE WA RR IO R

Another rare shot of a 72nd TFS F-1000-25-NA from Clark AB . This Hun has a Mk 7 Blue Boy nuclear shape
under its left wing. Its crew appear to be re -installing the ejection seat. David Mena rd Coll ectio n

loaded the modified tank with six 501b

(23kg) bags of rice and test-fl ew it t
super o ni c speed and 6.66g. This proved
th at the tank could 'eas ily carry a ll the lug-
gage and souvenir goodies for a flight of
fo ur a ircraft' during off- base visit ! Roy'
luggage tank wa oon detected during an
inspection and cons igned o nce aga in to
the sa lvage ya rd . Some F-100 sq uad rons in
Europe produced rather more ini t r-
looking luggage pod by modifying dummy
Mk 7 nuclea r 'shapes'.
From Kadena, training somet imes
in vo lved orne A M sorties with hi n se
N atio nalist F-86 from Ta iw an and 'shoot-
ing th rag' with guns. O n gunn ry orti e
A lex Martin reckoned th at 'Most could
score more consistent! y using manua l
ranging with the A -4 gun ight than by
using radar ranging' . Bombing practi e
also placed him among those who had
Standard TAC decor on a 354th TFW F-1000085-NH, 56-3383.1t was lost in a landing reservatio ns about the Auto-LABS system
accident at Phan Rang AB in October 1970. A Smith and autopilot generally.

54
 WORLDW I DE WARR IOR

The autopilo t wa notorio usly terrible. In te n

year I ca n 't remem ber fi ve times I got to use it.
To get be tte r accuracy in the nuc lear O T S
de live ry they tied th e a utopi lo t with th e LABS
a nd th e auto pilo t would do your loop fo r you,
releasing the bo mb at a predetermined etting.
Thankfull y th ere wa a 'padd le' e me rge nc y dis-
connect switch at th e fro nt o f th e co ntro l col-
umn th a t kic ked it off. O n m y first trip to the
ra nge with it the da mn thing pitc h ed do wn and
I found myse lf a t SOft altitude.

A Ithough the F-1 OO's safety record steadily

improved in service there were inev itable
lo n 30 Jun 1959, F-lOOD 55-3633
took off fr m Kadena on a functiona l
check fli ght when at 1,200ft (365m) the
engine compartment fire warning light
started to glow on the pilot's fr nt pane l.
A A lex Martin ex plained, this r quired
an in rant r po n e: 'The F-100 has a fuse-
lag fue l tank that all the others feed in to
and it is nestled next to and around the
Laden with a pair of 450gal tanks. F-1000-90-NA 56-3345 (the penultimate F-1000) engine. With a fi re yo u don't foo l around ,
winds up for take-off. Two dark blue alar markings on the tail and dark blue nose or ... Boom! ' The pilot jetti ned two
bands indicate the 416th TFS. 21st TFW at Misawa AB. Lt Col E. V. Wel ls via David Menard empty fu el tank and a practice b mb unit

On your wing, F-1000-50-NH 55-2902 of the 21st TFW, Misawa AB with big 450gal tanks . Da vi d Menard Collection

55
 WORLDWIDE WA RRI O R

in to the sea and pull ed back o n the throt-

tl e. The wa rning light went out and the
Super Sabre turned back towards Kade na,
but a large explos ion shook the a ircraft.
A ft r re-d irecting his a ircraft out to sea ,
th e pilo t pun ched out 5 mil es (8km) off-
shore. Tragica lly, th e fighter swung back
ove r the coast, its drag chute re lea eel and
ope ned and in a chance in a tho usa nd it
smashed in to a tin y village and schoo l.
Seventeen di ed and 169 were injured as
twenty-seve n bu ildings were de troy d.
A lex Martin sa id 'We were all devas tated.
No matter how mu ch we tri d to do it was-
n't enough and it was another barb fo r use
by the po litic ians wh o wanted u off th
island '.
A I o in Japan was th 21 t TFW at Mis-
awa AB. A tivated in Jul y 195 , the
Wing's two sq uadro ns, the 416th and
53 1st TFS, transitio ned from the F-84G a
th e 80th TF Headhunters had do ne. Fl y-
ing th e F-l OO D, th e 2 1st TFW was deacti -
vat d o nly two yea rs later. Its squadrons
then became part of the 39th Air Division
at Misawa until 1964 when th y moved to
the control of the J rd TFW at Englan I
An RF-101 C snapped Little John (foreground). the 53 1st TFS commander's jet with AFB, Louisiana with the 90th and 51 Oth
other red-a nd-white marked squ adron aircraft over northern Japan in 1961. Little John TFS. The fo llowing yea r, th qu adro n
was re-named Schatze //the following year. FW-809 and -782 were both to become were bac k in th Far Eas t, sho uldering a
Vietnam War casualties. David Menard Collection major share of the a ir action at the start of
the Vi etnam War.
Du ring its tim e at Misawa, the 21st
TFW was noted for its 'named' F-lOOs,
with ni ckn am lik Ooh-Ha, The Gambler
and Little John on the ir silver noses. In
1962 a to ne-clown edict removed all indi -
vidua lity from PA AF markings and a
sim ple PA AF insignia app a recl on th e
j ts' ta il instead. TA C had a lready
ord ered the glorious squadron plum age
that adorned mo t F-100 to be removed.
Fro m January 1960 o nly the TAC patch
va ri ed th e ir il ver surfac s, though small
qu adron patches sur vived in some
instances.
While four F-100 Wing and numero us
other Detac hments fl ew over a qua rter of
a milli o n ombat sorties in the Vietnam
War, continental SA (CONU )-based
Wings continu d to p rform sentry duty at

Susan Constant(54-1753). leader of the London to

Jamestown anniversary flight. Type II 450gal tanks
are carried . The aircraft was later put on display at
the Air Force Museum. USAF via Ron Thurlow

56
 WORLDW I D E WA RRI O R

NATO Knights
The first USAF unit to rece ive th e
F-100C, the 3 22nd FOG at Fos ter AFB,
Texas, mad one of the arli est F-100
deployments to Europe when it fl ew to
S idi S li mane, Morocco on 19 September
1956 in Exerc ise Mobile Baker , and thence
to Landstuh l in W est G erman y. It was the
first of many such trans-A tlantic deploy-
ments. Within a few years these lengthy
transit flights became routine for F-100
cr w and ther were o me spectacular
pub! ic demonstrati on of the F-100's lo ng-
range capability.
O n 13 May 1957 , six F-lOOCs from the
45 2nd Figh ter (Day) q uadran (FD ),
32 nd FOG at Foster AFB, l d by 54-1753
Susan Cons cant comm emorated the voyage
of the Jamestown settlers 350 years previ-
54-1823 was another of the 422nd FDS Jamestown anniversary flight F-100C-15-NAs. o usly by fl ying from London to the site of
Named Discovery, it flew the Atlantic with 54-1754 Godspeed and 54-1753 Susan th first English settl m nt on orth
Constant(all named after the original settlers· ships). It later served with the Arizona Ameri ca n so il. Three of the uper Sa bres
ANG . David Menard Collection went on to Los A nge les , a to tal fl ight time
of 14 ho urs 5 minutes , at an ave rage speed
oth er Far Eas tern bas s. Among them too k part in O perat ion ombat Fox, with of 477mph (767km/h).
were Ai r N at ional Guard (A G) units. F-1050, F-40, F-102A and RF-101G A we k later Maj Robinson Risner
F-100Cs of the 127th TFS, Kansas ANG Detachm ents from other base after N orth (! at r to command an F-105 unit in Viet-
and the 166th TFS , O hi o ANG deployed Ko rea se ized the in tell igence-gath ering nam) fl ew o ne of the U AF's newly
to Kunsan AB, South Korea on 4 July ship USS Pueblo and a USN EC- 121M acce pted F-100 Fs from N ew York to Pari s
1968 , remaining th ere for thirteen months fro m VQ-1 was sho t down by o rth for Project EurOJ)a, fo llowing C harles
with the 354th TFW. Th ese squ adro ns Ko rea n MiG -17s. Lindbergh 's route. The aircraft (56 -3 730)
was then deli ve red to the 20th Figh ter-
bo mb r Wing (FBW) at RAF Wethers-
field, UK, late r se rving with th 50 th TFW
and se vera l AN G squadrons before go ing
o n perm anent d i play at the U SAF Acad-
emy. Robinson Risn r, who had mean-
while become a Brigad ier G nera l, th n
ded ica ted the F-100F, which st ill bore the
name /)irit o[ St Louis ll that it had carried
fo r much of its se r v ice li~ .
The first single-engined jet a ircraft to
c ross the No rth Po le made the ir fli ght on
7 A ugust 1957. F-100F-20s 58- 122 7 and
-123 2 with ligh twe ight Do pp ler nav iga-
tion systems (NAYS ) comp leted th is ve n -
ture in Operation Julius Caesar , with Co l
Titus in '232. A ll these flights bo re the
vita l underl ying message for po tenti a l
ad ve rsaries that TAC co uld deploy a very
significant stri ke force anywhere in th
./ wo rld and ve ry fas t .
Brig Gen Robinson Risner flew 56-3730 to Paris in May 1957 (taking 6 hours 37 min-
O f all the globa l ca lls upo n the Supe r
utes) to mark the 50th anniversary of Charles Lindbergh 's first, non-stop solo crossing Sa bre's superio r strike power, none was
(33 hours 39 minutes). Lindbergh himself was due to fly in the rear seat of Spirit of St. more urge nt than the Co ld War sce nari o
Louis II (seen here with a replica of the Ryan original) but fell ill on the day. This in Eu rope. F-100Cs became the first supe r-
F-100F went on to fly with the 20th FBW, 50th TFW, Colorado, New Jersey and Ohio so ni c attac k a ircraft in Western Europe
ANG before Risner dedicated it at its display position outside the Air Force Academy. when the 36th Figh ter (Day ) W ing
It carried its Spirit name throughout most of its career. David Menard (FDW) rece ived its ini tial deli ve ries on 12

57

A tight diamond formation of Skyblazers in 19611ed by F-lOOC-25-NA 54-2009. USAF
Part of the light relief from Cold War duties was the
spectacular Skyblazers aerobatic team. Founded by the
36th FG late in 1949, the team had moved to the 86th
FBW at Landstuhl in 1952. then to the 48th FBW at
Chaumont, flying F-86Fs. ln October 1956, the 36th FOW
resumed responsibil ity. Capt (later General) Wilbur 'Bi ll'
Creech who had previously flown F-84s with the Thun-
derbirds, founded a new team with F-1 DOCs.
After practice sessions from Sidi Slimane and a
change of markings to a 'stars and stripes' tail design,
the team put on its first shows in 1957, giving forty dis-
plays in Europe. The crowd-pleasing use of afterburner
was much emphasized and sonic booms were included
in the early displays. These usually involved a 'clover
leaf from a partial loop, a 'fleur-de-lis' from a steep
climb, a formation inverted pass, a diamond and a final
'bomb burst' which engaged the burners as the team
departed over the crowd. The final manoeuvre was usu-
ally a high-speed, low-altitude cross over.
Leadership passed to Capt J. W. Armstrong and then
to Capt 'Pat' Kramer from May 1960. The team contin-
ued unti I the 36th TFW converted to the Republic F-
1050, which was not thought to be suitable for use by
the team. Lt Col Gordon 'Horse' Scharnhorst recalled his
days flying on the left wing of the formation :
WORLDWIDE WARRIOR
Blazing Swords
The team received a couple of modified vertical
stabilizers from NAA !North American Aviation]. They were
built to withstand the continuous stress from the way a
pilot flew in the 'slot' position. He was way up in the 'slot'
and very shaJiow, so that the vertica l stabilizer was receiv-
ing constant vibration from the leader's exhaust. The whole
'razorback' top of the fuselage from behind the cockpit to
the vertical stabilizer was black from that exhaust. Need-
less to say, we never used the burner while in diamond for-
mation!
Leo van Overschelde, who was one of the Skyblazers'
maintainers, noted that the new stabilizers were
skinned with stainless steel and that there were other
modifications to the F-1 DOCs:
We had an oil container for the smoke in the ammo bay and
a pump for that smoke system in the gun-bay with a toggle
switch in the cockpit. We also trimmed the engines 'hot';
about 2 per cent above data plate speed. On tour we didn't
carry a spare engine with us but the 36th FBW could fly in
engine parts such as fuel control systems, or an afterburner
unit. We had a spare F-1 OOC but that was usually the one in
100-hour inspection.
58
F-1 OOC maintenance involved 50- and 100-hour inspec-
tions. At 50 hours we changed fuel and oil fi lters and did a
general inspection. For the 100 hours we took ali inspection
panels oft and went through everything. There was a 1,000-
hour limit at which new instaiiations of engine and after-
burner would be made and a 5,000-hour inspection at
Depot level.
The Skyblazers aircraft were kept very clean and pol-
ished and we had a couple of painters, though I helped to
paint the aircraft. In the ground crew we helped one anoth-
er. Almost everyone could pack a drag chute. I was an
engine specialist but I could install radios, change a tyre or
'crew' the aircraft. We traveiied to all shows, mainly in a C-
130 or C-119, taking our own MA-2 starter unit, coloured
smoke, extra drag chutes. tyres, etc. The pilots had a rou-
tine for getting into their aircraft, though not as elaborate
as the Thunderbirds. They trained all the time when we did-
n't have a show. Sometimes the pilots would stay and help
us the night before a show. Occasionally the fuel control
system on the engine would fail due to trouble with a
bleed-valve governor. Also, a hydraulic pump would give up
once in a while. I used to change them from inside the
intake, which was faster than 'pulling' an engine though it
required some good handwork with the wrenches. We
sometimes had trouble with the nose-wheel steering too.

The first concern was safety. Sometimes pilots would pop
a rivet but not too often. I remember only two accidents and
neither was the pilot's fault.
One of these involved the loss of F-1DOC 54-2006 when
'Horse· Scharnhorst was returning to Bitburg from the
second practice flight of the day on 7 August 1959
I had no al titude control. but did have aileron and rudder. I
had to eject and the helicopter from Spangdahlem picked
me up and I did get to beer cal l. The next morning we
departed at 0730 hrs for France to fl y several weekend air
shows.
F-100C 54-1980 was the Skyblazers' 'slot' aircraft. hence
the sooty tail . It was assigned to Capt John Clayton,
who is possibly the pilot who has popped the aircraft's
drag chute before the lyres hit the runway. Da vid Menard
Collection
March 1956. The ommander, Co l John
A. Brooks, h ad led hi Wing's conversion
from the F-86F at S idi S limane AB in
French Mo rocco, where the 45th FDS,
316th AD had rece ived F-100Cs ea rlier
that spring, and for aro und a yea r it ex ist-
ed to convert Un ited States A ir Forces in
Europe (USAFE) unit to the F-100. S ub-
seq uently, transiti on took place at
Wheelus AB , Libya. C urtis Burns was
among those pilo ts:
Several of us who were new to th e 36 th Figh ter
Da y W ing [T FW aft er 8 July 195 8] took gro und
schoo l co nd ucted by A ir Tra in ing Command
Flying Training Derach menr. A ll the fly ing
instruct ion (about 29 ho urs in th e F- LOOC ) was
cond ucted by my lnsuuctor Pilo t [IP], 1st Lt
Ford S mart, an o ld head with the 53 rei FDS who
had in itia lly fl o wn F-86s. A ll tact ica l fighter
pilots have to ma inra in profici ency in a ir-to-
ground skills and we wou ld q uali fy at W h ee lus
o r at the Fre nch A ir Force base at C azeau .
Do n Schmenk enlarged upon the gunnery
aspect. Fo r a ir-to-ground practice in the
1960s, u ing a 15 -degree di ve angle:
We starred to fire sho rt bursts abo ut 3,500fr our
and had to cease fire abou t I ,500ft from the tar-
get o r be 'fouled'. We o n ly carr ied 100 ro unds
total and the gun didn 't have a lo t of clisperse-
men t. We a lso had to q ua li fy in a ir-to-a ir sem i-
an nuall y. Th e o n ly place where we could do this
was W hee lus. We launched in staggered fli gh ts
W O RLD W I D E WA RRI O R
of two, just beh ind the targe t-tow a irplane so
th at when th e fi rst two were clo ne firing the sec-
o nd two were in place to con tinue. A ga in, we
carr ied on ly 100 ro unds per gun. Everyone
ca ll ed off target with a 'h it ' whether you
tho ugh t yo u had h it it or no t . Th e fo urrh pilo t
tr ied to shoot the dart targe t off so that it went
in to the Med iterranea n and everyone qu ali fied .
If it was no t shot off th e last two pil o ts had to
escorr th e tow plane back to W hee lus where the
target was d ro pped para llel with the run way and
then 'scored' . T h e th ird pilo t fl ew o n the wing
of the to w aircraft and N um ber 4 fl ew fo rm at ion
with th e clan to see that it didn 't d ro p too low
and get d ragged through the trees. Fl ying fo r-
marion o n the clan was interesting as a sho t-up
dart was nor a lways aerod ynamica ll y stab le.
At the tim of transiti on to the F-lOOC,
the 36th FDW had no 'spec ial weapons'
tas king. Its Zu lu A lert a ir uperio rity ro le
carried over fro m th F-86F days and in
wartime it would have in tercepted enemy
intruders or strafed them on their a ir bases.
Ess nti ally, it had to prov ide a ir cover for
TAC and SA bo mb ing attacks. C urtis
Bu rns:
We spent almost 100 per cenr of o ur rime d ur-
ing the FDS clays making in tercepts , in itiating
'bo unces' and defend ing aga inst o th er figh ters
bo unc ing us, except d uri ng gun nery qualifi ca-
tio n where we practi sed grou nd-strafing and
o ther a ir-to-gro und ski lls. I never fired an
H VA( R) [h igh ve locity a ircraft rocket] or
59
2. 75i n rocketfro m an F- 100. Even as a TFS, a ir-
to-a ir scores en ta iled the most prest ige.
In A C M pract ice aga in t NATO F-86s,
there were glimp es of the problems to be
faced in the nex t decade by U S pilots in
Vietnam aga i.nst the similar MiG -17.
T he to ughest adversa ri es who h ass led regularl y
were the R A F Sabre Mk 6s, simply because if
they sa w us they could turn inside us. We had to
use surprise and keep o ur Mach up, but they
were tough to get o n gun camera film . If we
slowed cl own and turn ed with them they could
eat o ur lunch . French Mysre res and S upe r Mys-
reres were easy meat as were RC A F C F- 100
Ca nucks. O ther USA FE F- l OODs were usuall y
easy mainl y because they ca rried 450ga l and
did n't do as mu ch air-to-a ir manoeuvring. I
never encountered any RAF Hun ters [also rated
by some F- 1OOC pilots fo r their t igh t turns].
O nce I was fl ying a t 35,000fr above o vercast
when an RA F G loster Javelin po pped o ur of the
cl oud-tops a bo ut a m ile away and I O,OOOfr
be lo w; pro bably runn ing a rad ar inrercept o n
me. After a littl e burner and a 270-degree turn
I made a superson ic, six o'clock guns pass o n
h im .
RAF Hunter pilots reckoned they could
turn inside the F-100 qui te ea ily but they
were severely limited by the ea rl y Hun ter's
fuel capac ity, which could easily be expend-
ed inside 25 min utes with high-speed flight
at low altitude. Hun pilots would merely
 WOR LD W I DE WA RR I OR

A Dart target mounted on an F-100 for take-off. The notch in the Dart was to clear the aileron. An automatic tow reel handled
the armoured cable alter release in the air. Both cable and Dart were dropped for recovery before landing. Co l Art Johnson

Candy-striped F-100D-30-NA 55-3739 of the 366th TFW attracts an inquisitive crowd. The Wing flew Huns from England
AFB from late 1957 to early 1959. Still with the 366th TFW on 25 July 1966 after it reactivated at Ph an Rang AB, this
Hun was lost on one of the 615th TFS's earliest Vietnam missions but its pilot, Capt G. J. Farrell, was rescued . David Menard Collection

60

Standard TAC decor on a 354th TFW F-1000-85-NH with landing gear and flaps down. On 13 January 1967, this fighter
and its pilot, Capt Morvan Turley j352nd TFS) were lost during a napalm strike from Ph an Rang AB. David And erton
Collection via David Menard
keep their distance with afterburner and
wa i t~ r the Hunte rs to run out of fue l.
A lex Martin recalled this kin I of train -
ing a :
... mainly WW II tactics; splits, yo-yos, 'up the
rea r' stuff. Th e RAF and Ca nadi ans were the
best, though the RA F Li gh tn ings see med to
have litt le fue l capac ity. A ll you had to do was
keep them at bay and then snap pi ctu res as they
went for home. The Germans we re stodgy and
hard to entice into a few turns.
Ther wa much mph as is, in planning
tac tics, on the F-lOOC's supersoni c perfo r-
mance, illustrated con vincingly wh en the
first arri va l fo r Bitburg's 23 rd FD made a
WORLDW I D E WARRIOR
high -speed run ae ro th base , smashing
US$30,000 of window and rada r tubes.
There was even d iscussio n of using the
supersonic boom as a weapon aga inst en -
sit ive enemy insta llat ion , and in peace-
time pilots regularl y fl w sup rsoni c over
land. C urtis Burn :
In Western Europe in the 1950s the re were no
restri ct ions o ther than the common-se nse guide
' Do n't boom c lose to the ground since it brea ks
out many windows and the authoriti es start
questi oning th e usua l suspects'. Th ere was an
occasional br iefin g that uc h-and -such an area
had a mink farm and th e owner would appreci-
ate it if we didn't overfl y it at SOft or, of course,
'boom' them intenti onall y. During my tou r at
61
Landstu hl in th e late 1950s, as we ll as my post-
Vi etnam tou r at Ra mstei n and pangd ha lem we
heard a lmo t daily at least one supersoni c boom,
or 'boom boom' as most fi ghters drag two shock
waves ove r the ground.
In one demonstration of the F- 100 '
pow rs as an in terceptor, two Bitbu rg a ir-
craft were on the ta ils of four F- 6Fs at
32,000ft (9,750m ) on ly fo ur minu tes from
whee ls ro lling. The F-86s too k off fiftee n
minu tes ah ead of the S upe r abr . Haw-
ve r, without afte rburners, the F- l OOs'
lim b wo uld have taken mo re like fo ur-
teen minutes . Each F- 100 consequentl y
used fo ur t imes as much fuel as an F- 6 fo r
the fli gh t.

Victor Alert
The chang for F-100 /0 un its including
the 36th W ing to 'TFW' status occurred in
July 1958 at a t ime when nuclear deterrence
was the basis of all military strategy towards
th e ov iet bloc. It added another nuclea r-
capabl Wing to th arsenal and brought
about a change of tact ics forth pilots.
In fact, they had adopted a nuclear role
slightly ea rlier. The Lebanon risis in
mid-June 1958 took four squadrons of
354th TFW F-lOODs to lncirlik AB fro m
20 Jul y to late October 1958 as part of a
co mpos ite A ir Strike Bravo force. It had
also triggered a fu ll SAC alert cond ition
fo r U AFE W ings incl uding the 36th, so
preparations for the nuclea r miss ion were
well in hand. C ur tis Burns:
Seve ra l monrhs before lhe change-over we
sta rted ground traini ng and bomb deli very
[raining, wilh OT S and dive bombing al lh e
poslage-slamp sized range al iegenburg,
Bavaria. Al lhe sa me lime we started praclising
low- leve l nav iga lion at about SOft above the
highest obstacle, fl ying at 360kt lAS. We made
up slrip-maps wilh a tick marked for every 6
mile (or each minu le of fl igh t). This made for
easy nav igation and adjustmem of ground -lrack
for an assigned time-ove r-targel [T OT ].
Miss ions were planned against simulated
targets, often in the South of France and
F-lOOD-85-NH 56-3439 during a 31st TFW visit to lncirlik AB for Exercise Quick Span in
1959. USAF via David Me nard
WORLDWIDE WARR IO R
f
I
/
Crouching tigers. A group of 457th FBS pilots at NAA's Columbus, Ohio plant to collect
their first batch of F-lOODs in 1957. That year the parent 506th FBW transitioned from
F-84Fs as a SAC unit to become a TAC Wing and the 457th was the first of its three
squadrons to get Huns. Left to right Capts Ronald X. Soli is, Robert Butler, unknown,
Us C. E. A. van Duren, Max Templin and Allen T. Lamb. USAF via All en T. Lamb
usually 'on the deck'. Pilots often had a C urt i Burns:
'sheph erd' pilot in another F-100, fl ying at
h igher altitude sligh tly ahead of them to We had no establ ished routes fo r th e 'Lo- Lo'
warn them of building or other obstacles missions. We would pick a typ ica l tact ica l ta r-
in th e flight path or changes in terrain. get, such as a ra il road ya rd , airfield or bridge at
aboul the sa me range as our targels ' in lhe East' ,
plan a ro ule avo idi ng all likel y defended areas
and fl y iL A fler a whil e th e squadron bu ill up a
num ber of planned routes, bul we usua ll y
planned our own because lhat is wh at we had to
do on NATO exerc ises and O R is. I distinctl y
remember th ree praclice rou tes. O ne of lhe first
I planned was fro m Landsw h I pretty we ll
straigh l w Bremen a irport. Without contacting
th eir wwer or anyone e lse I ca me in over lhe
midd le of the a irport al 500kl, pu lled up into an
lmme lmann and qui ckl y departed lh e area. In
those days we could do a lmost anyth ing we
wanred in Western Europe.
O ne amusing aspect of th ese low-leve l n ain-
ing missions was that the TFWs based in Ger-
man y mosd y plon ecl and fl ew Lo-Lo routes in
France and the French -based Wi ngs (before de
Gaulle pu lled oul of NATO) mosd y flew routes
in Ge rm any. The ben efi cial effecl of this was
that when a 'buzzing' report on , say a ye llow-
tai led airp lane ca me im o USA FE HQ from a
loca tion in France USA FE ops would send lhe
report clown wa ll the bases in Fra nce and if lhe
alleged buzz ing inc ident happened in Germany
it was sem w the Wings there for invesliga tion.
62
 WORLDWID E WARRI OR

Precise formati on-keeping by the 35th FBS on 31 Ja nu ary 1957 so on after tra nsition to the F-1000 at ltazuke AB .
Nose stripes were added later. USAF via Davi d Menard

Wh en th e reporrs came back with a nega tive

resp n e it was a umed that the guilty pil ot was
Fren h , Be lgian , Du tch or RAF a nd the matter
was dro pped.
O n another Lo- Lo miss ion my Squ adron
omm ander gave me a bridge target in South-
ern France. I planned the route to avo id a ll fea-
tures on the ground that were likely to be
defended . We liked to use the old castl es on the
map as turning poi nts, fi guring th ey wouldn't be
defended by an ti-a ircraft fire, so I made a turn
over a ca d e omewhere near Avigno n . I hit the
'ta rget' exactl y on tim e and tho ugh t I had fl own

The full 493rd TFS yellow and white markings on

F-1000-45-NH 55-2822. Some wear and tear is
apparent. a reminder of the hard work that these
elaborate schemes created for maintainers. The
nose 'vee · was added in 1959. Wing -tips were
painted in yellow/white/yellow stripes. M/Sgt Mike
Bilcik

63
 WOR LD W I DE WA RR IOR

F-1000-55-NH 55-2934 in 81st TFS markings at Toui-

Rosieres AB in 1959 after a 30-day TOY to Wheelus
AB . Markings were yellow with black stars and
include the squadron patch and a yellow 'wrench '
on the nose to show the crew chief's name. Pilots'
names appeared on the other side . David Menard

F-100C-20-NA 54-1922 of the 36th TFW (probably

22nd TFS) at Memmingen AB. This Hun went on
to fight in Vietnam with the 136th TFS, New York
ANG until it was shot down close to the
Cambodian border during a napalm attack.
David Menard Co llection

F-1000-70-NA 56-3025 in the red markings of the

417th TFS during a 1959 visit to Wheelus AB .
David Menard Collection

64
 WORLDWIDE WARR IOR

a model profil e. W hen we got back my Com-

mander chewed me o ut fo r thirty minutes
beca use I had fl own at 50ft directl y over th e
Po pe's summer pa lace. I was d umbfo unded.
Hell , I didn't know the Pope had a pa lace in
France, let alone where it was . But the Com-
mander d id beca use he was a Ca tho lic !

Huns on the Run

A noth r F-100 deploy ment had arri ved at
Landstuh l ea rli er in 195 . O n March 22,
the 457th FBS departed Tinker AFB,
O klahoma with twenty 'red tail' F-l OODs
and headed fo r Langley AFB. Col Mike
Kulczyk gave an idea of the log istics
invo lved in these who le- quadran tran -
fer to Eur pea n bases:

T he bas ic package was eigh teen airplanes; sev-

entee n F- 1OODs and o ne F- lOOF with two spares .
Sa turd ay evening and Sunday were devoted to 494th TFS red stripes extend from the nose, along the spine and across the tail of
Super Sabre 56-3250. This 1958 scheme also included red/white/red wing-tips.
'crew rest' and bri efing. Everyone was so keyed
M/Sgt Mike Bilcik
up that damn li ttl e crew rest was generated. The
gaggle launched at 0600 o n Monday in fli ghts of
four, with a single fli gh t of two. The first inflight-
refuelling took place o ver Bermud a and the sec-
o nd at 500 m iles east of Berm ud a, both from KB-
50j tankers. S ince the F- 1OODs were equ ipped
with non- refue llable d rop tanks these ran ks
cou ld no t be pressuri zed for fue l transfe r until
afte r the second refue lling. This caused some
constern ati on fo r a couple of the guys when the
ex terna l tanks d idn't begin to fe ed in itia lly when
turned o n, but a ll th e tanks eventuall y d id feed .
A ll aircraft landed safel y at Lajes Field in the
A zores, 4'/l hours after take-off.

T he ir transatlantic migration continued

with a 2 1/2 hour fli ght, without refu elling,
to ouasse ur AB in Morocco and from
there to West German y. At Landstuh l
they established four F- lOODs on Victor
A lert in the south -west d ispersa l area with
four aircraft fro m the 'ho t' 50th TFW
from Toul-Ro ieres in France. The 50th
TFW had converted to the F-100 0 a yea r
previously and fl ew F- lOODs untill 966. In
Sep tember the 457th FBS personnel were
replaced by others from the 45 th FB at
Tinker AFB and the uper abres'
quadran markings wer changed from red
to yellow for the rest of the T OY, whi ch
ended in March 1959 with the de-acti va-
tion of the 506th FBW.
Am o ng th F-100 units dep loyed fo r
t he L ban o n C risis wa th 474th TFW
which , like the 3 54th TFW, made the
lo ng fli ght to lnc irlik. The Ca nno n-
In typical German weather, a yellow-tail 53rd TFS F-lOOC-20-NA sits ready on Zulu
Alert with the 36th TFW. via Mike Benolkin
based Wing ro tated its fo ur sq uadro ns
through the Turki h ba on three-
mo nth TOYs, itting a lert with Mk 7
nucl ar wea po ns. Al ex Ma rtin was
amo ng th ose at lnc irlik :
We deployed a a squad ron and set up th e same
qu ick-str ike area as else where with the sa me
ru les but just different targets to memo ri ze. We
were in pl ace when Pres ident Kenn edy was shot
and went up to a higher DEFCO state .
At lnc irlik th ere were still th e 'boxes to
fill ' to ke p up the tra ining req uirements,
including a ir-to-a ir gunnery. O n one of
these Roy Moore discove red an unusua l
psycho log ica l phenomenon in imulated
combat:
I was Fligh t Lead with Capt Lukers o n my wing.
Fl ying 'combat spread' fo rmat io n he wo uld be in
a posit io n to ro ll in on the dart target as I
cleared from the fi rst pass. O ur aircraft were

65

USA FE F-100s made extensive use of the range facilities at Wheelus AB . This trio was
photographed over north Africa in 1958. David Menard Collection
configured with 275ga l extern al tanks and it
was normal to use external fue l before attempt-
ing to fire on a dart. W ith a heavy aircraft it was
extreme ly d ifficult to score a hi t. I roll ed in on
the target and th en t ime seemed to slow almost
to a stop. I seemed to have minutes to bring the
'pipper' to bear on the target. I doubt if I fi red
more than twenry rounds before seeing fl ake of
alumi n ium fl ying from th e dart. The actual ti me
between ro lling in and breaki ng away over the
dart wa probably not more than eigh t or ten
seconds. I was so impre sed with this illusion
that I r ported it to the USA F R&D en ter.
Among the pleasures ofTDY was the C lo-
vis (Cannon AFB) Wing's li beral policy
on weekend cro s-country flights for
'R&R'. C rews at lncirlik could extend
these as far as UK ba es for 'training' pur-
poses. Prior to its departure, the 354th
TFW had been asked to d i play its skill on
the range rather more publicly in a
demonstration for Pres ident J. F. Kennedy
in Florida. A lex Martin was one of the
pilots selected for thi :
O ur wing had a hand-pi cked fli gh t of four
respon ible for d ive-deli very of SOOib G P [gen-
eral purpose! bombs and strafing. It was won-
derful; every targe t timed to the second with a
narrati ve scri pt. President Kenned y ta lked to us
in the hangar afterwards. Every Washington
d ign itary, mi li tary and Congressional, fi lled th e
spectator stands. I remember rolling in to fi nal
approach , arming my guns and bombs and
thinking, 'Wow!'
WORLD WIDE WARR IOR
Prestigious assignments like this could
lead to some embarrassing situations too,
as Roy Moore found when he became IP
for the 16th AF Commander whi le h e was
wlth the 40l st TFW at Torrejon AB in
Spain. The General always liked to fl y in
the front seat of an F-1OOF while Roy, in
the back, acted as navigator, radio opera-
tor and 'General's A ide':
O n one fl ight we were returning to Torrejon at
nigh t after a long day of visits to other install a-
tions. Th e G enera l was fl ying th e F-1OOF
th rough the letdown and was on fin al approach
wh en he drifted fa r be low th e fli gh t path . I let
him know he was gett ing dangerously low and
he acknowledged but con tinued to go low. As
an IP I had a lways given a p ilot every opportu-
nity, short of crashing the aircraft, to co rrect his
own mistakes, but as the scrub vegetation was
a lmost touching the underside of the a ircraft I
to ld him I would take control. He replied
sharpl y, ' I've got it!' To avo id land ing hort of
the ru nway I physica lly overcame the G eneral
an d took over the a irplane, added power and
made a safe landing. He was sil ent th roughout
the ta xi, parking and shut-down and I was furi-
ous but th ere isn 't any way for a young major to
cha t ise a rwo-star general.
Later, G en Le Bailley apologized and the
two men became long- term fr iend .
Another crisis took Cannon F-1OOD to
C hambley in France when construction of
the Berlin Wall began in summer 1961 and
re-supply aircraft in the Berlin Corridor
66
were harassed. Roy Moore was in the first
aircraft to land:
For so me reason th e N umber l and 2 in our
fli gh t d idn 't land at C hambley so our F- l OOF
was th e first plane to land . The airfi eld had not
been used in years and weeds had grown up
through the cracks in the runway. O ur aircraft
was knocking down ta ll weeds as we landed .
Alex Martin pointed out that during this
tense period the rules of engagement were
simple:
If anything po in ted its nose at you or any of our
aircraft th ey were fair game. W h at a letdown.
wh en Intell igence sa id that nothing had moved
on an y of the opposit ion's airfields since the
arri va l of the F-100s 1 idewinder were loaded
on our birds at C hambley. I ca n sti ll remember
the distinct ive hum th ey made when they were
checked on th e ground with a fl ashlight to see
if th eir tracking [seeker h eads] worked.
This standoff with the Soviets continued
for three months until ANG F-84F units
relieved the F-1OODs in October 1961.
Peacetime deployments of this kind
were not without risk. The technology of
inflight-refu elling was till fairly young
and the distances involved were vast for
single-seat fighters, as Tom G ermscheid
reca lled:
O ne of our bigge t cha llenges for refu elling in the
early days was find ing the tanker. With no search
radar we reli ed on ADF [automat ic direct ion
finding]. We just transmi tted a radio signal by
hold ing down our U HF button. The tankers had
an ADF receiver and it would give us a heading
to fl y and jo in them. There was no way of telling
distances and often we would fl y pa t each other
without visual contact, especially if weather was
invo lved. When that happened there was always
a lot of fl oundering around, trying to manoeuvre
your fli gh t of four to find the tanker. Sometimes
it would turn back towards the fligh t and again
we'd pass with no visual contact. We always had
a couple of thousand feet altitude separation.
The pucker factor goes up exponentially when
you're over the A tlantic and the gauge is nearing,
or past minimum divert fuel and you st ill haven't
seen the gas station 1 O n the first deployment of
F- lOOs to Turkey from Myrtle Beach in July 1958
on ly four bi rds out of a squadron of twenty-four
arri ved [at the righ t base] safely. Several aircraft
and crew were lost.
When contact wa made with a tanker
there was st ill the physical ch allenge of

Yellow and black stripes distinguish this Bitburg 53rd TFS F-lOOC. David Menard Collection
taking JP-4 aboa rd from a KB-50 or KC-
97. A lex Martin:
T hat 2ft-funne l on a SOft hose would play
'c rack the whi p' whil e you were fl ying at a slow,
sloppy speed try ing to stick your probe in to it
before you ran out of fuel. Th en there was no
guara ntee that the fu el would transfe r. Th ey
changed the 'basket' from a solid ca n to meta l
mesh in an a ttempt to stabili ze it more. O n my
test flight I stuck the probe through the mesh
A USAF test pilot goes over F-100 spin recovery techniques with Lt Allen T. Lamb
Iright) of the 506th FBW. USAF via Allen T. Lamb
W O RLDWID E WA RRI O R
and couldn 't ge t it out: the hose would stretch
like a rubbe r band. A fte r my fuel leve l started
to drop and no one had a better idea l took a
deep breath and pu lled bac k on the power. T he
hose broke loose from the tan ker and I fl ew
back with it bea ting up the ta il of my F- 100.
C rack d canopies or windshields were also
possible cons qu ences of co ntact with a
'wild' basket.
67
Booms at Bitburg
As it changed from FDW (and Zulu A lert)
to nuclear TFW (Victo r A lert) status, the
36th TFW was reduced to three sq uadrons.
The 22 nd and 23 rd TFS were at Bitburg
and th e 53 rd TF remained at Landstuhl ,
across the auto bahn fro m Ramste in with
which it was combined at that stag to
beco me Ramstein/Landsruh l AB. urtis
Burns:
Th at was qu ickl y abbrev iated to Ramstuh l A B,
wh ich we fighter pilots qui ckl y referred to as
'Sheepsh*t A B'. I do n't know whether higher
authori ty go t wind of that inglorious ni ckname
but the base was soon re- named Ramste in. Th e
Wi ng's fo urth squadro n , the 46 lst FDS, based at
Hah n A B was d isbanded with many of the pilots
transferri ng to other squad ron withi n the 36th
TFW.
The 46l st FDS C O's F-100C was 54-2000
and the tradition of a Triple Zilch
aircraft for the wing command er was con-
t inued by the 20th TFW with 56-3000.
A fifth squ ad ro n, the 32 nd FD /TF
flew its F-1OOCs from oesterberg AB, 200
mi l s away in Ho lland, from 15 A ugust
1956 until it cam under Dutch control in
1959. The squadron had arrived with the
insigni a red 'Arctic' marking used in tran-
sit from the USA, but green and white
trim oon appea red on the noses and fins
fo llowed by red, white and blue stripes on
the vert ical stabilizer f it F-100 s when
the sq uadron was contro l! d by the 86th
W ing. Early in 1960, Soest rb rg bega n to
 WO RLD WIDE WARR IOR

to figh ter outfits', in C urtis' opinion.

Col Walter B. Pu tnam succeeded Col
John Brooks as the Wing's commander.
urtis Burns remembered him as:

A leg nd and a hard-crusted commander who

d id n't rake any sh*r fro m anybod y. He was n ick-
named ' Boo m Boom' but no r ro h is face. Man y of
rhe 53 rd TFS pilors alleged that he got his ni ck-
name fro m h is habit of a lways hav ing an F- 100
schedu led fo r h im late afternoon on Fr idays. He
would d rag a son ic boom ov er the 36th T FW HQ
at Birburg just as rerrea r was being played and the
fl ag was being lowered at 1800 hrs.
A t that t ime the loss rate in F- l OOs was st il l
very high and test pil ot Bo b Hoover came o ver
to US A FE ro show all the pilots that th e H un
was easy and safe ro fly. Hoover d id th ings with
rhe F- l OOC that I d id n 't th ink poss ibl e, let
alone safe. ' Boom Boom' was livid . H e sa id that

-------- ___ --
the W ing pilo ts had roo many d ange ro us tricks

.
alread y without learning so me mo re from a
co mpany test pilo t!
_.- ,_
~-------
legendary NAA test pilot Bob Hoover demonstrating how to fly an F-100C low,
When the 36th TFW 'went n uclear', Col
slow and safely in October 1958. This 'max performance' demo was for the benefit Putnam drew up a plan based on a 24-hour
of pilots at the world's first all -supersonic USAF Tactical Fighter Weapons Meet. USAF alert, with armed F-l OOCs and pilots
via Ro n Thurlow briefed for up to 100 targets behind the Iron
C urta in. Frederick 'Boots' Bless (later a
USA F Major G eneral) objected to the idea
of single-seat aircraft with th e ever-present
possibility of engine failure or other
mechanica l defic iencies fl ying around with
nuclear weapons aboard in all weath ers. He
displeased his 'Wing King' by haring these
thoughts with him. Despite this, he was
eventually given command of the 32nd
TFS and threw himself into the task of
improving its unimpress ive readiness rates.
Blesse even resurrected the dist incti ve , Dis-
n y- based wolf's head insignia (fro m the
squadro n's W W ll pas t) that the Soester-
berg unit carried for the rest of its ex istence.
As members of a T FS, pilots had to
focus increasingly o n the grim business of
LA BS nuclear d livery. urt i Burns lab-
o rated on th e wa y rhos A rmageddon tac-
t ics were appli ed in the European scenario:

F-100F-10-NA 56-3826 in full 50th TFW markings on 26 March 1962. Perched on the Whenever th e assigned target was with in th e
wing is Oave Menard, who had joined the 'Mach Busters' club in this aircraft the fue l/range capab il ities of the F- l OOC with three
previous day. David Mena rd Collection d rop tanks and the l 800 1b weigh t of a Mk 7 we
preferred ro plan and fl y a low-level profil e robe
transition to the F-102A Delta Dagger. 'which would have b ught a hell of a lot of under their radar coverage. We wo ul d fl y at
A lthough the squadrons were so dis- glass and fu rni ture in West G rmany in 360kt unti l we reached th e IP and then push up
persed and there was very little transfer of 1957' accord ing to C urtis Burns. Each the speed ro SOOkt at about SOft altitude . ver
personnel between its far-flung bases, the squadron was resp nsible for its own main- the target im pact po int we would plug in the
36th TFW st ill had its periodic 'wing dings' . tenance befor the A -inspired, W ing- burn er and start a 4g lmmelmann . LA BS gave a
At one of these th 53 rd TFS share of glas based maintenance procedures were intro- d isplay, very much like an I LS disp lay. If we kept
and furni ture breakages was US$ 195 , duced in 1960 - 'a bad system when app lied the ve rtica l and ho rizo ntal need les crossed in

68
 WO RL DW IDE WARRIOR

the middle o ur fli ght trajectory was pe rfect

(except for wind correction, fo r wh ich we had
to adjust our pu ll-up point).

LABS then released the w apo n in th

usual way, all ow ing it to rise to abo ut
20,000ft (6,000m) befor plummeting to
its detonat ion as the F-l OOC sped away.
Bombs were u uall y fused so that an in te r-
nal rada r fu se detonated them at abo ut
1,500ft (450m) , exp lod ing with the bot-
tom of the fireba ll just above ground leve l.

The requi red effects of th e bomb we re heat,

This shot shows how the F-1000/F's modified airbrake cutaway fitted around an MN-1
store with the 'speedboard' extended . M/Sgt Ray Petru sch via David Menard
blast and rad iation, but not fal l-out from pick-
ing up a lot of d irt that red uced the oth er th ree
effects. We could also se t the bomb fusing in the
F- 1OOC's cockp it for a ground detonati on ,
which most of us ex pected would be used if we
got shot down at altitude ove r enemy territory.
O ur proced ure was to arm the bomb after c ross-
ing in to ommu ni st te rri tory. I was targeted on
a coup le of targets that were too dista nt to be
reached at low a ltitud e and I had to plan a
cruise-c limb fligh t to the target , dropping fu e l
tanks as they emptied. In that case I wo uld have
had to deli ve r the weapon by d ive-bombing,
with the bomb still fused to exp lode at th e des-
igna ted heigh t above gro und.

LAB train ing in the USA took man y

pilots to the G il a Bend gunnery range for
a fa irl y un comfo rtable ride . Ron H errick:
'Do ing 500kt at 200ft over the desert in
summer gave quite a bumpy ride. O ne
learned to t ighten the houlder straps rea l
good!' Nuclear 15- minute a l rt requi red
pilots to become surp risingly close to the
fea rfu l w apo ns they carried, even to the
ex tent of inserting the Uran ium 235 cores
in to the ir own Mk 7s.

Th e nuc lea r weapons mainten ance spec iali st in

The nuclear radiation shield in the F-100F cockpit. USAF
the bomb dump didn't have enough t im e to
load up a ll the weapons so o ur sq uad ron ma in -
ten ance people loaded th em on the a ircraft and
we pil ots were responsibl e for gett ing th e U235
core, wh ich was kept in a 'birdcage' fo r sa fety.
We instal led it into the bomb befo re we went
and took it back to the locked storage room in
Squad ron Ops after we went off sta tus. O ur F-
lOC s had no ca pab il ity to delive r the
weapons, or fl y the routes, at nigh t so we were
not on Victor A lert the whole 24-hour period.
The core, a nuclea r sphere about the size of a
shot put but a lot heav ier, was consta ntl y
decay ing and produ c ing neutro ns, but not
enough to approach criti ca lity. But if you took
two of the sph eres and banged th em together
you would get a blue flash and you wou ld be

69

The Thunderbirds, seen here with F-lOODs, flew Super Sabres from 1956 to 1969 with a brief
period on the F-1058 in 1964. USAF
To North American Indians the Thunderbird was a
gigantic, legendary eagle-like bird that could confer suc-
cess in battle and a happy life to those it favoured. Light-
ning streamed from its eyes and huge thunderstorms
fil led the sky when the creature fought with its enemies.
The USAF flight demonstration team that has bor-
rowed the Thunderbird's name-and image for half a cen-
tury formed on F-84G Thunderj ets in May 1953, pro-
gressing to swept-wing F-84Fs in 1955 and then F-100C
Super Sabres after the fi nal Th understreak show on 19
May 1956. As the world's first supersonic aerobatic
team, the 3600th Air Demonstration Flight was a guar-
anteed showstopper. A move from Luke AFB to Nel lis
Air Training Command (ATC) base accompanied the
change of aircraft and nomenclature to the 3595th Air
Demonstrati on Flight (changed once again to 4520th Air
Demonstra ti on Flight when TAC took over Nellis). Sev-
WORLDW I D E WA RR IOR
Thunderbirds
eraI of the earlier pilots stayed on, includmg the leader.
Maj Jack Broughton. Capt Ed 'Lucky' Palmgren and Bill
Ellis.
Changes were also made to the aircraft and to the
show rou tines. The F-1 OOCs each lost their autopilot,
gun sight, gun camera and rada r. The ai rcraft flying in
the 'slot' position had a stainless steel leading edge to
its vertical stabilizer and the VHF antenna moved from
the fin to a position under the nose. UHF radio was fit-
ted and the rear fuselage tank could carry either 'ferry'
fuel or smoke oi l for air shows. Gun ports were !aired
over and the nose radome area was replaced by sheet
metal.
As for the show, the opening move became a maxi-
mum power take-off together with a solo pass during
which Capt Paul Ross cut his engine in and out of after-
burner to provide a loud series of pyrotechnics. With the
70
show organizers' permission he wou ld also do a super-
sonic pass. unti l thi s was banned by the FAA. Liberal use
of afterburner in diamond formation passes was a big
success with audiences. as was the 5g, 360-degree turn
and the ve rti cal bomb-burst.
Maj Robby Robi nson replaced Maj Broughton for the
1957 season and the team added Canada, Puerto Rico
and Bermuda to the twelve countries already visited. a
total that would rise to forty-five by 1966. The F-1OOCs
gained their distinctive Thunderbird design on the
underside of th e aircraft the following year and the Out-
standing Unit Award decal to add on the aircrafts'
noses. Their initial batch of F-1 OOCs were completed
and decorated in record time for the 1956 season
F-100C55-2724 was fi rst to arrive. followed by 55-2723
(Broughton's Thunderbird One lead aircraft) 55-2725,
-2727, -2728, -2729. The team also used 53-1718, -1740;
54-1860, -1882, -1969; 55-27 17, -2730, -2732, -2733.
For the team's 1959 tour of PACAF bases the 18th
TFW hastily repainted six of their F-1 000-15-NAs (54·
2281, -2285, -2287, -2292, -2295, -2299) for th e team's
use and modified them as far as was practicable. Maj
Bob Fitzgerald led the team in displays at bases in
Japan, the Philippines. Taiwan, Korea and Hawaii .
The team also acquired an F-1OOF to replace its trusty
T-33A and it continued to devise innovative stunts such
as the 'dual solo' in wh ich two aircraft took oft and
ro lled in opposi te directions as soon as their wheels
were in th e we ll s. This was followed by an opposition
pass in afterburner.
1963 was the last season on F-1 OOCs bu t it was
marked by the fi rst Thunderbirds visit to Europe, during
wh ich displays, led by Maj Ed Palmgren. were given in
nine countries. In 1964 the team switched to exten-
sively modified F-105Bs. each around 1O,OOOib
(4,550kg ) heavier than the F-1OOC but offset partly by a
better power-to-weight ratio . Six shows into the sea-
son, a major accident grounded the team and prompt-
ed an immedia te return to Super Sabres. A batch ofF-
100Ds was suitably adapted and painted up by May
1964. The aircraft had the High Wire updates including
cranked refuelli ng booms. In all. th irteen aircraft were
used from 1964- 68 (55-3506, -3 507, -3520, -3560,
-3561' -3582, -3606, -3708, -3737, -3754, -3776,-3779,
-3791) though serials were not displayed after 1965.
The practice of polishing alternate afterburner 'eyelids'
was also standardi zed but cannon ports remained
open. Lt Col Ralph Maglione led the 1965 team on a
Caribbean tour, followed by a second USAFE base tour
when twe nty-two demonstrati ons were given in twen-
ty-seven days. A sixteen-day deployment to Latin
America completed a total of twenty-three countries
visited and 121 shows flown in 1965. The team's
1,OOOth demonstration took pl ace in Michigan that
summer. Maj Neil Eddins. slot pilot in 1959, returned to
lead the Thunderbirds in 1967. Operation Big Wing II
involved another European tour. ending in Pari s. From
there the team flew 7,000 miles (11 .300km) with seven
infl ight-refu el lings to appear at the USAF Aca demy,
Colorado Springs.
The year was marked by a spectacular escape by Tony
McPeak when his aircraft (55-3520) suffered a structur-
al fa il ure during the tea m's show at Laughlin AFB. Texas
 WORLDW IDE WARR IOR

on 21 October. During a solo pass with rapid aileron

rolls. the main wing box failed and the wings folded
upwards. Fuel from the punctured forward fuse lage tank
deluged through the engine and it exploded, blowing off
the nose of the aircraft ahead of the cockpit With fire
entering the cockpit, McPeak made a hasty decision to
eject, losing his helmet and getting dragged by his para-
ch ute in a 30kt crosswind when he landed close to the
crowd. He survived to fly again with the team but the
aircraft all needed reinforcement to their wings around
bolt-holes near the main landing gear mounts where the
fatigue cracks had occurred. Fati gue fa ilure was also
responsible for losses in Vietnam at that time and a
major programme of wi ng-box strengthening was
begun soon aherwards.
The Thunderbirds flew their last F-100 show, the
47 1st on the F-lOOD, at Nellis AFB on 30 November
1968. In 1969 th ey received eight F-4E Phantoms and
aher initial train ing on the F-1ODDs they switched to
'regular' camouflaged F-4Es before opening the 1969
season in wh ite Phantoms at the USAF Academy.
One of three F-100Fs used by the Thunderbirds between 1960-68. It has the same rear fuselage
pipes for formation smoke as the single-seaters. Author's coll ection

F-100C 55-2728, one of the original six F-100C-10-NHs used by the Thunderbirds A similar view of the Skybl azers scheme for comparison. F-100C 54-2009 was flown
and flown by Maj Ed 'lucky' Palmgren, the leader in 1963. Gun ports were by the team leader, Capt (later, General) Bill Creech in 1959. David Menard Colle ction
!aired over and the intake painted red for the first12in of its interior
surface. The Thunderbirds image was applied to the undersides of the aircraft
towards the end of 1958. USAF

dead in six weeks. The birdcage, made of a lu -
min ium ru bes with a crad le [cy linder] in the
centre to ho ld th e sphere, would ph y ica lly sep-
arate two adjacen t spheres of U235 or plu toni -
um by about 2ft, enough to create a safe sepa-
ration. l a lway though t it was rea ll y n uts for us
to hand le nuclear spheres beca use in my prev i-
us ex peri ence at th e Fighter Pil ots' Nuclear
Schoo l at Nellis A FB in 1955 th ey trea ted
'nukes' like the Ho ly Gra il. In the 36th W ing
at that time it was no big dea l though.
Ron H errick was adamant that d iffere nt
proced ures applied in PACAF and TAC
squadrons where no pilots would normally
have hand led the nuclear cores.
Frenc h Fo ils and Englis h
Epees
By the summer of 1957, the USAFE bu ild-
up of F-1OOs had almost reached the
planned eighteen-squadron leve l a F-84
and F-86 units transit ioned to the new
fighter.
In the UK, the 20th FBW at Wethers-
field and Woodbridge relinquished its F-
84F T hunderstreaks in 195 7. The Wing
Co mmander, Co l Raymond F. Toliver,
ca lled a special 'Sabre Day ' to acq uaint the
loca l popu lat ion with the new, noisy F-
lOOD. The 79th TFS at Woodbr idge was
the first to convert and the base rece ived
an F-1 00 simu lator and a n ylon barrier-
arresting system. France continued to host
everal U SAF Wings including the 48th
FBW Statue of Liberty Wing at haumont
and the 49th FBW (formerl y 388th FBW)
at Etain-Rouvres, both of whi ch pro-
gressed to th F-l OOD in 1956-5 7. At
Toul-Rosier , the 50th TFW traded its F-
86Hs fo r F-1OODs in 195 7. This was a time
of unu uall y eye-catching squad ron co lour
schemes as F- 100 un its adopted marking
increas ingly remini cent of medieva l
knights in armour. At C haumont, Col
S tanto n R. mith led the 48th FBG for
over two yea rs in his mu lti-coloured
F-1000 'W ing Shi p' 56-3262.

71

A classic shot of a 20th TFW Hun in post-1961 markings. This aircraft ended its service with the 122nd TFS of the ANG
and was then converted into a QF-1000, meeting its end on 12 November 1987 after a hit from an AIM -9M during its
sec ond NOLO flight. via Tom Germscheid
The first twelve years of o l mith '
ca reer are a r minder of how rap idl y the
SAF had mo v d from the p iston era to
supersoni cs. After graduating fro m West
Po int he became a fl ying in tructor in
1941 , fl ew P-40s in north ern Burm a in
1943, P-47sa nd P-5 1s up to 1947 and then
th e [ - 0 S hooting tar. After a to ur with
SA he comm anded the 49th FG in
Japa n, beca me Director of Operati ons at
FEAF HQ in Tokyo during the K rea n
War and finall y landed the 'Wing King'
job at haumo nt o n supersoni c F-1OOs via
th e Imperi al D fence o llege in Lo ndon.
From mid - 1956 , the 4 th Wing convert-
ed to the F- lOOD at h aurnont with the
a irfield at Brienne- le C h ateau as a termin de
dispersion fo r its 492nd FBS . It had been
named tatue of Liberty Wing in Jul y 1954
by the r idem of haumont in recogni -
tion of the man y Americans who had given
their lives in the liberation of France. The
eli tincti on of bearing both a number and a
n ame rema in unique to the 4 th Wing.
A the first USAFE F-l OOD Wing, the
48th wa r ponsible fo r evolving strike
WORLDWID E WARR IOR
FW·sas
tacti c and procedures for the aircraft in
the Europea n theatre. Fro m Ma rch 1957 it
began training on inflight-refue lling with
the KB-50] tankers of the 420th Air R fu -
el li ng Sq uadro n (ARS ) at RAF Scu lthor-
pe, UK . By September of that yea r, the
techni que had become uffic ientl y fa mi l-
iar to enable a group of eighte n 493rd
FBS mac hines to refuel fro m KB-50s n
ro ute to a Weapons Detachment at
Wheelus AB. They rep laced the 492nd
FBS at Wh eelu , where it had completed
its qualificatio n in gunn ery and weapons
de li very on the range .
It was the Wing' ro le as USAFE repre-
sentatives at the 1958 W illiam Tell M t
that triggered a blaze of candy-stripe colours
on it uper abres. The 494th FBS
reworked its mod t r d pan I on the verti-
ca l stabiliz r in to unmi abl red and white
stripes extend ing to the noses and wingtip
of the Wi lliam Tell jets. n retu rn to C hau-
mont, Col Smith elected to extend the
scheme to the other quaclrons in the Wing,
using their own colours, during the last few
months in France. The revised colours
72
/ '
1r-s-Jsa 9 . ·
appea red on the High Wire F-lOODs that
replaced ome of the o lder S uper Sabre at
haumont, alth ugh all the Wing' aircraft
w nt through IRAN at Getafe, pa in and
some w re transferred to the A rmee de I'Air
in 1958. Among them was 54-2 165, which
became '11 -ML' with Escadron 2/11 and was
eventually put on static d isplay at th Amer-
ica n A ir Mu eum , Duxford. Mich ael Bil ik
work d on th F-100 at C haumont in 1959.
It was what I wou ld ca ll a ba re necess ities base,
eve n by th e standards of the day. There were
o nl y three sma llish hanga rs fo r the emire Wing
so hanga r pace was alwa ys at a premium . There
was no alert area and some po rtio ns of the fli ght
line were st ill covered with [WW II) PS P
[pierced stee l plank ing], tho ugh we d idn't park
a ircraft on this. Th e ba rracks were 'o pen bay'
with app rox imate ly fifteen pe rsons to a bay. Yo u
definite ly had to get along with on e anoth er in
a situatio n like that. There wasn 't much hous-
ing fo r married pe rsonn el and no t ma ny 'lo wer
ranks' were all owed to bring fam ilies over.
Th ere wasn 't a lo t of interaction with the loca l
community because of the language ba rri er. The

By 17 September 1960 the 48th TFW had moved to RAF lakenheath and adopted new
markings, as seen on this 492nd TFS F-1000-90-NA. Autho r's Collection
base was about miles from C haumont and few
singl e airmen could afford ca rs. At weekends
many of the guys wen t to Paris.
On anoth er French base, the 49th TFW
entered the fas hio n stakes with a co lour
scheme based on a li ghtning bo lt. It was
ac t ivated at Eta in-Rouvres AB on 10
Dece mber 1957, absorbing the F- l OO Ds
and markings of th e 388 th FBW - an F-86
unit ( 1954- 56 ) that r turn d to the USA
and later fl ew F- l OOCs, then F-105 Thun -
derchi efs.
At Toui -Ros ieres , the three squadrons
of the 50th TFW flew F-l OODs for abo ut
two yea r , hav ing moved in from H ahn ,
West Ge rm an y in Jul y 1956 with F-86Hs.
In the fo llowing yea r it con verted to F-
lOODs. Training routines were simil ar to
those establi shed by the C haum ont Wing
with period ic visits by who le squadro ns to
Wh eelus for armament practi ce camps.
It was th re that the 388th F8W ex pe-
ri enced an unusual air-sea rescue of o ne of
its pilots. 1st Lt H erdis S . C lements too k
off from Whee lus in F-l OOD 55 -3660
bo und for Eta in, but engine fa ilur fo re d
him to ej ct o ver th sea ho rtl y aft r-
ward . A Malta- based RAF hackleton
crew locat d him and drop ped an infl at-
able raft . ne of the SA -168 A lbatross
amphibians operated by the 58th AR at
Wheelu landed be icl lement , who e
raft had by then bee n to ed fo r four hour
in an ft well. Thi hea vy ea defeat d
W O RLDW I D E WA RRI O R
three take-off attempts by the SA -168 and
the las t was aborted when a metal cy linder
from the life raft damaged one of th e
amphibian 's elevators. ln time-honoured
fa h ion , the SA -168 set c ur e fo r a sea
voyage to th e nea rest base at 8i zerte in
Tunisia. A fter ha lf an hour of seasickness
and buffeting, the sa lt-encrusted aircraft
was met by HMS Bi1mingham and
lements was taken aboa rd toge ther with
the 388 th F8W Fligh t S urg o n. The A lba-
tross crew ploughed o n for ano th er five
hours through the waves , until the ir a ir-
craft was taken in tow by a French destroy-
er, arri ving at 8 izerte earl y the next da y.
A -16 were on th sce ne aga in in
March of the fo ll owing yea r wh en another
ngine failu re !aimed the 49th TFW's F-
lOOD 54-2250 as it headed bac k to
Whee lus AB from the El U ot ia bombing
range. Thi time the pil ot was rescued
without in iclent, although a simil ar
attempt in Augu t 1960 wa fru trat d
when F- lOOF 56-38 77 fro m the 49th TFW
cras hed offshore . A s the A lban o s cr w
moved in for a pick-up, the on-shore
breeze carri ed the parachutes of both F-
100 c rew members back over the beach
and th y landed safe ly a ho re.
Whee lu wa al o th e c ne of a lucky
escape invo lving two v isiting F-l OO Ds of
the 40 1st TFW at To rrejo n. O n 29 O cto-
ber 1968, a pa ir of its F- l OODs arrived bac k
from a miss ion . The flight leader's brakes
failed as he powered down the runway.
73
Tra iling sparks and smoke, he ran into his
wingman who had landed first and slowed
clown . Fortun ate ly, the wingman wa able
to stop hi damaged up r abr and clam-
ber out but the lead a ircraft ro lled on fur-
ther with fl ames gradually spreading over
it. Lt C o l Lye ll , fly ing an HH-43 rescue
heli copter, used his rotor to fan the flames
away fro m the left side of the F- l OO D o
th at its pilot could escape unscathed.
The 40 1st TFW had reactivated as a
TAC W ing on F-86s at England AFB, tran-
sitioning to the F-l OOD in 1957 and
deploying to Homestead AF8, Florida dur-
ing the 1962 uban Miss ile risi . O ne of
its squadrons, the 613rcl TFS , transferred to
Torrejon in spring 1966 taking the Wing's
title to th e Spanish base . The Wing then
picked up the 307th and 5 rd TFS wi th F-
lOODs (unde r 16th AF control) until it
transiti oned to the F-4 Phan to m in 1970.
Red Richard
The F-l OOD's ass umption of a nuclear ro le
soon proved into lerable to Ge neral
C harles de G aulle. ix months after he wa
e lected leader of France it beca me cl ar
that he wanted the remova l of a ll Ameri -
ca n nucl ear-ca pable a ircraft fro m his
country (partl y as the first stage in estab-
lishing France's own nuclea r deterrent
force ). In pra ti ce, the French-based F-
100 sq uadrons would have flown to for-
ward ba s in West G rman y in an emer-
gency. There, if those bases st ill had
runways , the jets wo uld have bee n loaded
with 'nukes' and launched aga inst their
targets. A request by U SAFE to establish
Victor A lert pad in Franc wa met by a
cl mand from d G aull e th at he should
give permi ssion for aircraft to b laun hed
fro m th em.
The consequent decisio n to reloca te
t he U AFE aircraft enta iled the re loca-
tion of the three F-l OO D Wing and
affected a to ta l of 225 a ircraft a nd 5 ,300
p rsonn I fro m 10 Jul y 1959. haumont's
r -deploy ment b ga n fi ve day lat r wh en
the 48th TFW began its transfer to th e
fo rmer SAC base at Lakenheath, UK. Th e
nearby base at Mildenh all was also con-
sid ered as a new F-100 l ca ti on. The 'Lib-
e rty Wing' wa fu lly operat io na l a t Laken-
hea th by 15 Janu ary 1960, its first a ircraft
having arri ved o n 5 January after the con-
structio n of a lert shelte rs. Mike Bilcik was
a mo ng th e las t to leave C haumo nt, wh ich
reverted to stand-by status.
 WORLDW ID E WARRIOR

a ign ed to the newest A/3C on the team was to

wab out the engine intake with a rag soaked in
JP-4 after the eng ine was removed for mainte-
nance . Nobody wanted to ride next to him on
the bus that evening!
Th e F-100 was a fa irl y easy aircraft to work on
and it gave good service. A good crew could per-
form an unscheduled engine change and have
the aircraft ready for fl igh t in a few hours. The
engine and fuselage had quick disconnect poi n ts
for most of the fluid lines, savi ng time and effort.
Th e engine was leak-checked and the trim run
was completed before the aft fuselage was re-
insta ll ed. I loved d ing those checks from the
cockpit, especiall y lighting the afterburner. Thi
wou ld give you rea l kick in the pa nts even with
the a ircraft tied down at the mai n gear mounts
with cab les or chained to th e test pad.

F-1000 55-3683 flown by Lt Tic Loitwood in December 1962. Tom Germscheid

John C larity hared that plea ant reco llec-
tio n:

There was such a sense of powe r. The F- 100

Th e infrastructure at Lakenhea th was we ll -suit- concept, r placing squadron-ba eel arrange- wou ld pull aga inst th ose cha in and ride up on
ed to our need and everything, such as mainte- ments. Fr m then on all aircraft carried the its whee l chocks. At night the fl a me from the
nance docks and shop equ ipment from C hau- red, yellow and blue colour of the three afterbu rner wou ld reach out into the darkness
mont wa moved there. There were some slight based squad rons, the 7th, 8th and 9th TFS. and project a fiery ta il co loured blue, ye llow and
adaptations req uired but nothing major. When I For those who, like Troy Iarke, kept orange for about 20-30ft.
fl ew fro m haumon t to Laken hea th I rode in a their aircraft fl ying, the dai ly r utine went
C- 124 aircraft that was also ca rrying a maximum on much as it had in France. Trained on F- rew chief Bobby Wright added, 'When
load of 20mm ammun ition. It was so heavil y lOOs at Amarillo, C larke specialized in we went into afterburner it got a little
loaded that it was unable to climb above 7,OOOft inspection of a ircraft under the Period ic scary becau e the no e would dip way
for th e entire journey. Good thing there aren't Maintenance plan . down with the power thrust and you ju t
any mou ntains between France and the UK! hoped li ke he ll the cable wouldn't break!'
I loved wo rki ng on the F-LOOD and in Periodic At Lakenheath, John C larity was crew
The other French-based Wing also had to we perfo rmed all the requ ired maintenance and chief on 48th TFW F-l OOD 55-2834.
find new homes. The 49th TFW removed checks plus working out inspection write-ups Fre h from po ting in Florida and Texa , he
to pangdahl em in West Germany, dis- uncovered during maintenance. The fi rst job found the Engli h climate a r al deterrent.
placing the l Oth TRW's RB-66s to no les
than three UK bases : Alconbury, Brunt-
ingthorpe and helve to n. At Toul
Ros ieres, the 50th TFW packed up and
returned to Hahn in the German Eife l area.
Toul Ros ieres was used bri efl y by F-84 unit
during the Berlin C risis and by the 'no n-
nuclear' RF-4 of the 26th TRW fo r a few
months in 1966 before Gen ral de Gau lle
decided to oust the remaining U AF units
from his country under Operation Freloc.

Sword Sharpeners
At Spangdah lem the 49th TFW settled
down to two more year on F-100 before
preparing for the arrival of the mighty F-
105 Thunderchi ef ea rly in 1962. Its distinc-
tive squadron c lours were changed soon Start-up time for F-1000 56-3300 from the final production block. Its markings
after the mov wh n, in 1960, the USAF comprise the red nose and tail bands of the 9th TFS, 49th TFW as seen at Toui-Rosiere
introduced the c ntralized maintenance AB in summer, 1959. David Menard

74
 WORLDWID E WARRIOR

Most days were overcast , damp and chill y. Obv i-

ously the e were excell ent days to go to a pub
and it by a fire . But if you had to repair some-
thing o utside or in a hangar, such as a tyre or an
engine change at the end of the day it could be
miserable. Imagine starting a tyre change with
darkness setting in at 3.30pm . wh en you have
already been o utside most of the day. Your uni -
form is probab ly damp and uncomfortable.
When I arrived at Lakenh eath the barracks were
the same ones used in WW II . The heat was
piped from an outside source seve ral blocks away
and hot water for showering was limited. For the
first month after l arrived in N ovember I would
go to bed wearing my entire Air Fo rce issue of
clothing including a 'horse-blanket' dress coat
and still I shi vered myself to sleep!
The a irc raft didn 't seem to not ice the damp-
ness and co ld a mu h as the per o nnel. When
wo rk was needed it seemed to get do ne quicker
than in th e southern USA. De- icing the a ircraft
was sometimes necessary and at times fog can-
Lt Tic loitwood's jet, 55-3683, seen through the rather restrictive windshield of
ce ll ed fl ying so we wo uld find o urselves in the
Col Tom Germscheid's aircraft. Tom Germ sc heid
Rod and G un lub just off the fli gh t line. For
me, inspecting and repairing th e carbo n-dark-
ened inside of the a ircraft:' tai l ection was the

The Boss Bird F-1000, 55-3668, in highly polished metal finish, carried a full set of 20th TFW insignia in 1958, as did
the oft-illustrated 56-3000 Triple Zilch for an earlier wing commander. David Menard Collection

75

A 36th TFW F-IOOF-10-NA on the taxi strip at Husum AB on 12 June 1960. Kropf/Luftwaffe
via David Mena rd
Jim Wilson 's 77th TFS F-1000 closing in from the darkness in June 1961 .
Tom Germsc heid
wo rst jo b. My hands were covered in carbon and
wo rking in a dark hanga r added to a medi ca l
syndrome kno wn as 'seasonal di sorder ca used by
light deprivatio n lead ing to depress io n '. No
wonder I fo und the pubs such a welco me sight!
j ohn would have been de lighted to see the
48th FW's spotl es Phase Dock hangars
WORLDW I DE WARR IOR
forty years late r, with their white-painted
fl oors and well -lit ar a for wo rking on F-
15 Eagles .
Engli h weather also tend ed to do minate
the live of 20th TFW pilots at Wethers-
field and Woodbridge, where they began to
f1 y F-100 in th umme r of 1956. Tom
Germscheid had b en fl yi ng the aircraft in
76
th cloudles ski a round Ca nnon A FB
previo usly and his eagerl y awa ited posting
to USA FE in April 196 1 was at fir t blessed
with pleasa nt weather.
Flo wers were blooming everywhere. I tho ught I
was in parad ise and it d id n 't even ra in for my
first few days in the U K. I soon discovered that
sunn y cl ay were not the no rm fo r Essex.
Beca use of the foul wea ther and lo w ce ilings the
2 th TFW had esta bli shed a spec ial in -theatre
tra in ing programm e to ho ne the instrument fl y-
ing ski lls of new ly a ignecl pi lo ts. Th ose of us
fro m sunny places li ke N ew Mex ico rea ll y need -
eel thi s and soon fo und th at it w uld pro ba bly
save o ur li ves many times o ver. Training was
cond ucted in an F- 1OOF, usuall y in actual
weather conditi ons and culminated in a full -
blo wn annua l instrument check.
lee o n the run ways wa ano th r occupa-
t ional hazard, and Wether fi ld came up
with its own atte mp ted so lution.
A jet engin e was mo un ted o n some Lype of
tra iler with its ex haust canted do wnwards. It
was th en fired up and towed slo wl y d own th e
icy ru n way in an a ttempt to me lt the ice. I
thin k the final result was a runway with ice
smooth eno ugh fo r lymp ic skating! O ne t ime
Lt 'Ti ck' Lo itwood and I launched o n a cross-
country fli ght the day after C hristma . We got
to S pangdah lem and it started to sno w. We
were weathe red in fo r several d ay but fina ll y
got a irbo rne to Bitburg, a bo ut 25 m il es away,
where we enj oyed erm an N ew Yea r celebra-
ti o ns. Th e wea ther in England was also bad and
th e runways we re coa ted with ice. It was about
te n days before we were able to ge t back to
We thersfi e ld.
In 1960 th ere wa a little light re lief fro m
the cl imate, at least fo r the groundc rews.
F-l OOs we re u uall y tarred on home base
with the MA-2 ('M a Deuce') turbine in a
sepa rate piece of ground eq ui pme nt, using
an air hose, rather than the ca rtridge-s tart
y tem. The hose was plugged in to a recep-
ta le unde r the fu elage behind the ma in
gea r we ll . n of the ro utine jobs fo r
gro undcrew was clea ning out insects and
other a irborne debris from the a ir intake
with a ] P-4 impregnated rag he ld by a
ma intainer who had to sli ther deep into
the maw leading to the engine. Th is expe-
ri ence was made mo re exc iting by the
prospect of ra m-a ir ble d do r uddenl y
opening up insid e the intake. Bu t there
was worse in store for the uninitiated , as
j ohn C lari ty descri bed:

A 79th TFS Tiger squadron F-1000 leaves for a training sortie with an under-wing practice
bomb dispenser. USAF via Tom Germ sc heid
Practica l jokes o n 'newby' ma intai ners incl uded
sending the guy clown the intakes and then
starting the MA-2 turbine that was already
hooked to the plane, giving the ill usio n of an
imm inen t engine tart. T he new guy wo uld usu-
all y travel backwa rds o ut of that 25ft in take at
rocket speed.
T OYs somet imes got us out of the cold. We
spen t a mo nth at W heelus AFB and fou r weeks
in Turkey. I loved working on aircraft in those
places, but we also went to no rthern Germ any
and Av iano in the footh ills of the A lps in winter.
Oth er dut ies could take a ircrew off-base
fo r lo ng periods. To m G e rm sche id a nd Lt
Bob Ed ney were sent to G e tafe, nea r
Mad rid, to c ll ect a couple of F- lOOD and
ferry the m to th USA. Afte r a week wa it-
ing fo r th e airc raft to leave the IRAN
process a t G tafe , th e two pilots we re
delayed wh ile the wea t her over t h e
A tla nti c e ttled do wn . Finally, they ma n -
aged to jo in a fli ght of 48 th TFW F- l OO D
and successfu ll y d live r t he a irc raft to La n -
gley AFB. T he ntire proce took a lm ost
six weeks.
A mo ng th e first pil o ts with Maj 'S kin -
ny' lnni ' 492nd FBS Mad Hatters to tra ns-
fe r to Lake nh ea th wa huc k Ho rne r, late r
to beco me the a rc hi tect of t he U a ir
effort in Desert Storm. H i ca r e r was
a lm ost end ed o n his fin al fligh t from th e
base in 1963 afte r a three-yea r to ur. Du ring
a imul ated ni ght attack o n a Fre nc h a ir
base h is F- l OOD dumped t he fluid fro m it
prima ry a nd utility h ydra uli c syste ms. He
WORLDWID E WA RRI OR
had suffic ie n t fligh t cont ro l po we r to
ret urn to La ke nheath, o n ly to find the base
virtually closed by t hi c k fog and no gro und
contro lled in te rcept io n (GC L) ava il able.
W ith warn ing li ghts glow ing in the cock-
pit a nd fu el a lmost gone, H o rne r managed
to find the run way a nd pu ll ed off a safe
la ndi ng in fog so dense th at t h an nda nt
fire t ruck a lm ost ran into his a irc raft.
Lakenhea t h 's prima ry mi ss io n was st ill
nuc lea r ale rt, with a Mk 7 o n t he left py lo n
un til 1966 whe n th e ce ntr line py lo n was
used with conseque nt alle viatio n of th
asymmetric fli ght trim . Th is pylo n was vir-
tu ally a pe rm ane nt fixtu re o n F- lOODs
(apa rt fro m Bl. ock 1- 15, 35 and 40 airc raft)
fo r a nuclear weapo n or prac t ice bomb di s-
penser.
By 1966 many F- 100 un its fro m U
bases h ad d ployed to o uth Eas t A ian
bases lea ving U AFE W ing witho ut the
usual re li ef o n Vic to r A lert fro m T OY
units from t he S tates. In add it io n, t he 4 th
TFW was responsibl e fo r ro tat ing
quadrons to Ita ly a nd Turkey fo r nuclea r
ale rt. Rang practice in Turkey fro m lsmir
a nd lncirli k was held o n th e Ko n ya ra nges .
Wh ile o n ale rt at t h ese bases h alf of each
squadro n wo uld go to Whee lus fo r gunne ry
camp , swapp ing pl. aces midway th ro ugh
t he o n -mo n t h to ur with th e half th at was
stand ing nuc lea r a le rt. Fo r gro undc rews,
ale rt often mean t:
Lo ng days, usuall y in ra in o r snow, lunch from a
box on the fli gh t- lin e and remi nders of the rea l
77
purpose of o ur 'c lu b', i.e. nuclea r gloom and
doom - no o ne wins. At Lakenh eath I usuall y
'crewed ' my own a ircraft. Each a ircraft had the
name of the crew chi ef on th e side and general-
ly the plane and I stayed togethe r inc luding
T OYs. I occa io nally went TOY with ano ther
a ircraft if I sw itched with another crew ch ief
who preferred staying at home in Lakenhea th .
Ve ry occas io nally, there we re back-sea t
ride in a n F- l OOF Jo hn ma naged to wa n-
gle a fligh t to Avia no , l. ta ly aft er 'a lo ng
ca mpa ign of pub lic re lati o ns a nd n agg ing' .
The flight was exactly what I expected and the
ex hilaratio n began with the engin e start and
term inated with shu t clo wn. I fo und the fli ght
insightful ; all th e systems we ro utine ly checked
in a robot ic fashio n sudden ly ca me into service
as the a irplane prang to li fe . Its spirit was
im pressive; the g- fo rces, the peed, the visio n of
the ground be lo w you o ne min ute and above
your head th e nex t minute - it wa mo re than
my MGB sports ca r could eve r prov ide fo r me.
My closest expe ri ence wo uld be the sheer free-
dom and joy of movement you get when skiing
the steep, deep, light powdery snow high in the
Rocky Mo un ta ins.
Away on the Range
Do n Schm e nk fl ew with t he 494th TF
from 1966 a nd too k pa rt in man y TOYs
from La ke nh em h .
We were req uired to mainta in currency in sev-
era l weapon de li ve ri es eve ry six months,
includ ing strafing, lo w-leve l skip bomb ing, dive
bo mbing and rocket firing. Laydo wn, LAOO
and O T S n uclear de liveri es were a lso trained.
At Whee lus we a lways ca rri ed the SUU-2 1 d is-
penser o n the cen tre line pylo n con ta ining two
BOU-33 a nd fou r Mk 106 (simulated high-
drag) prac tice bombs with smo ke marking
charges.
A ryp ica l ra nge sortie wou ld sta rt with a simu-
lated n uclear 'laydown' pass fl own at 500kt and
500ft agl with a Mk 106. ext would be a LAOO
(timer-re leased nuclear weapon) also using a
Mk I 06. The last 'nuclear' pass wou ld be an O T S,
releasing a BOU-33. This deli very used a 500kt
run-in at 500ft min imum altitude pull ing up into
a 4g lmmelmann . Sk ip bomb ing was do ne with
Mk 106s at a IS-degree clive angle (the sa me
angle as fo r strafing) at around 350kt. A 'fo ul' was
ca lled if you descended be low I ,500ft . We di ve-
bombed at a 30-clegree angle with b mb release
at abou t 3,5 ft. Rocket launching used the sa me
parameters. It wasn't po ibl e to perform all these

F-1000 55-3652 heads a 20th TFW line-up for an early morning range mission from
Wheelus AB. June 1961 . Tom Germ scheid
tasks within one sortie. The equencing for the
SUU-2 1 was critica l. To quali fy in the dive-
bombing event you had to d rop two qua lifying
bombs. Th i meant you couldn 't do an OTS
deli very in that o rtie if you needed to dive-bomb
for qua li fication purposes.
UK-based F- lOOs used range fac ilitie at
H o lbeach, Wa infl eet and Jurb y (off the
Isle of Man) . Tra ining of this kind was
no t without ri k e ither. O n sea ranges
like Jurby, pilots ran the ri k of bird-
strikes, diso ri entation t h ro ugh poo r vi i-
bi lity, uncl ea r ho ri zons o r 'ta rget fi xa-
t ion '. Two Lakenheath F-1OOD
(55-2844 on 24 Ju ly 1969 and 56-3217
on 30 January 1970) cras hed in to the sea
off Jurby, o n acc id ent co ting the life of
o ne of Don's sq uad ron mate . Eleven of
the Wing's a ircraft wer lo t between
1968 and 1971.
The 20th TFW tended to use the Ho i-
beach range in The Wash or Jurby, shared
with the RAF. To m Germ heid took a turn .
as Range Officer at both locati ns.
The targets at Ho ibeach were a seri es of towers
sitting o n py lon . At low tide the pylons were
visible and at high tide ju t the tops of the tow-
ers. Mi ss ions to the jurby range often included
a low-level ro ute in cod and wher we could go
down to 50ft a ltitude. Th e wingman would
rema in h igher, looking o ut fo r o bstacles and
other air o rne traffic. Bird were always a haz-
ard and we had a few strike .
WORLDW I DE WAR RIOR
O ne of them may we ll have cost the life of
apt P. L. Barwick whose F-1 OOD sudden-
ly entered a div at l w altitud over the
Jurby range on 30 Ju ly 1970, I av ing him
no t ime to eject.
N uclear strike involved ex tended low-
leve l ro ute flying just as it did for West
G rmany-ba ed F-100s. Don chmenk:
Low leve l fli gh ts were a blast. We fl ew a ll over
Europe at 500ft agl and 360kt. We tra ined to fly
low-level and de liver a nuclear weapon on the
ground within two minutes of a designated time.
If the o ld War had turned 'hot' each F-
100 pilot would have flown so lo to his a ll o-
cated target using pure time and d istance
navigation.
We carried target folders with tic-marks and lines
d rawn on them. We had no fancy navigation
equipment li k today's folks. The biggest threat
would have been running into another of your
own aircraft. Any air oppositi on would have
been dealt with on an ind ividual basis. If the
whistle had blown there would have been so
many airplanes headed ea t that we could have
fo llowed each other. I am sure that targets were
multi -tasked [more than one strike for each].
There was one contingency plan that I heard
about where just one aircraft would have been
launched with a 'nuke' to 'get th eir attention' , so
to peak! I would not have wanted to be that guy'
To m Germsheid was impressed by the
78
sen e of 'freedom of the air' over Europe:
In th e late 1950s fl ying ove r Europe was large ly
unrestri cted . Yo u could fl y almost any place at
an y a ltitude o r airspeed. G rab a map, d raw up a
route and go . Air traffi c contro llers on the on -
tinent often spoke little or no English so there
was little commun icat ion with them, especially
over France. We used a range in France and a
typica l mission invo lved departing Wethers-
fie ld in a two- or fou r-ship formatio n with a
climb to about 25,000ft, homing in on the BB
beacon (which could be picked up fro m a lmost
anywhere in the Europea n area ), starting a
descent over the hannel and u ing dead reck-
oning to level o ut at 500ft at a po int over
France. Ente ring French a irspace we would try
to con tact French a ir ttaffic control but usua lly
got no reply or omething in French . We would
give a positi on call and press on. If th e winds
were different than predicted it was often a
cramble to find o ut exactly where you were
when you broke o ut under the usual overcast.
We had to meet an a igned T OT (with in+/-
two minutes ) for o ur first bo mb impact o we
couldn't waste too much time fumbling around
to get orientated. We th en approached th e IP at
500ft , adjust ing ai rspeed to make the T O T. The
fir t delivery was a lways a LABS (over th e
sho ulder) and if the ceil ing wa high enough we
wou ld then execute other types of nuclear o r
conventiona l delivery.
A t 'b ingo' fuel, the flight wou ld jo in up
and head for home, us ing the BBC London
'homing signa l' once aga in.
N o one rea lly considered that the BB would
pro bably have been off the ai r in a real war. We
usuall y made an ADF approach to Wethersfi eld
with a radar vector to A (gro und controlled
approach]. We had a couple of old Briti h GCA
controllers at Wethersfi eld who were exce ll ent.
They had been in the business since radar was
in vented! It was always comforting to hear that
accen t when letting down through the soup,
knowing th at the ce iling wa right at minimum
(around 200ft) a they could ta lk you down to
cement in zero-zero conditions with the greatest
of ease.
Wether field pil ts also used the Rad io Car-
oline off hor pirate rad io hi p a a useful
nav igation 'b aeon'. Accord ing to Tom
Germscheid, the pilots found it 'great sport
to tune our ADF to this station and home in
on it for a low pas ver the ship. A few times
ou r activitie got broadca t over the air'.
During the uba n Mi il ri i of
Octobe r 1962 a 'covert al rt' status wa

An AGM-128 Bullpup missile departs from its launch adaptor on an F-1000-25-NA. The encouraging results achieved
in test firings such as this one were seldom replicated in combat. David Men ard Collection
initi ated at Lakenheath and Wethersfield.
C rews were called in to duty by te lephone
and a number of tactica l nuclear force
(TNF) F-l OOs were armed and schedu led
to co-ordinate with RAF Th or miss il es.
F- lOODs wou ld h ave led the attack with
nuclear bombs and then Thors would have
hit the same target . Key targets such as
East Berlin were targeted with two Thor
and an F-100 strike. At the height of the
emergency, DEFCON 2 was reached and
F-100 pi lots were in their cockpits with
MA- 2s plugged in ready to roll.
Dur ing Victor Alert at Wethersfield,
each quadran kept four aircraft on alert.
Tom Germscheid :
The a lert pad was on the north side of the run -
way, away from the rest of the base. Each bi rd
was in a 'soft' metal she lter that was open at each
end. The area was surrounded by high , chain -
link fencing and barbed wi re and each shelter
had an armed guard. During my time all aircraft
were loaded with Mk 28 nuclear weapons of var-
ious yie lds, depending on the ass igned target.
The aircraft usuall y stayed there about two
weeks. They were starred up every day and all
systems were checked. If a malfun ction was
WORLDWIDE WARR I O R
detected a replacement airc raft wo uld be towed
in to the area and parked nex t to th e shelter. A
Mk 2 was brought from the bomb dump and
loaded on to its centreline station, then the 'bad'
aircraft was down loaded and the 'good' one
towed into the shelter.
A ircrews and crew ch i e~ were required to
rema in on the pad twenty-four hours a clay. We
usuall y stayed on alert for th ree to fi ve days at a
time. We had four fli gh ts in each squadron and
each flight was responsib le for Victor A lert one
week per month. Each fligh t usuall y had about
eigh t pilots ass igned to it and the squadron had
to prov ide four fli ght members to be on th e pad
at all t imes. Marri ed crewmembers liked to get
off alert for the weekends and holidays while
bache lors liked to have Saturday nights off to
head for London. The 55th TFS bachelor main-
ta ined a fl at in Radcliffe Sq uare, London that
wa the site of man y great festivit ie . Food on the
alert pad was some of the best on the base. The
cooks went all out on holidays such as Thanks-
giv ing and rea lly prepared feasts. The on ly thing
lacking on the alert pad table was the wine!
We pa sed away the time on alert by read ing,
watching mov ies, ping-pong, poo l and poker or
taking naps to get ready for London. We also
spent time studying our targets and attack
79
routes. The Wing or h igher HQ would occa-
sionally spring surprise tests on a lert crews. If you
didn 't have the answers you could be decertified
and taken off al rt. We were also subj ected to
simu lated launches. At an y time of the day or
n igh t th e wing or HQ could sound the alert siren
and we would scramble to our a ircraft, simulate
a starr an d ca ll in on th e U HF radio that we were
ready to tax i. This took around 7-8 minu tes. We
had to be able to ge t airborne in 15 minu tes.
Awakening from a dead sleep, getting into a
fligh t suit, boots, jacket and g-suit from the top
bunk bed of a small four-man trail er in the clark
was a lways very challenging and in teresting.
O ur boots had zippers to fac ili tate the process
and it wa so mewhat comica l to watch half-
dressed pil ots runn ing to the ir planes wh il e try-
ing to pull up th e zippers. A few tim e we got to
perform th i drill in several inches of snow.
Don Schmenk was the Target Officer for
the 494th TFS:
As uch I had to deve lop low-level practice routes
in Turkey. I used a National Geographic 'Lands of
the Bible' map as a guide and plotted the routes
over as many poin ts of interest as l could find.
Schmenk's tours! Back in the UK we fl ew a lot of

20th TFW pilots watch the wing-tips as they close in for this pose. via Tom Germs cheid
close a ir suppo rt fli ghts in to the buffer zone
berween East and \Vest G ermany aga inst armo ur
and troops in contact, using simulated high -d rag
bombs, strafing and napalm passes.
D ploym nts to NATO 's northern flank
in No rway w re also on the menu and Tom
G ermscheid went with th e entire 55th
TFS to Fles land AB.
T h e base is built in to the side of a mountain and
th e ai rcraft taxi in to the mounta in a nd park
th ere. Se rvic ing and maintenance, sleeping
q uarte rs and mess ing fac il ities are a lso insid e the
mo un tain. It was very im press ive . We also took
a fl ight of four up to Boda A B, above the Arct ic
C ircle and stayed a couple of days . It was sum -
mer and st ill light when we headed ho me fro m
th e bar at abo ut 0400 .
Don Schmenk's squadron also participated
in two Polar Express exercises in Norway.
These were AT O exerc ises in conju ncti on
with No rwegian , Dutch and Ge rman pilo ts. We
ope rated out o f Bodo, orway and fl ew with F-
104s and F-84s o n many lo w-leve l sort ies. O n
o ne the 'targe t' was a battleshi p in a fj o rd . Spec-
tacular! O n ano ther exercise in the U K I was
launched o n an ai r-to-ai r sortie with two A IM-
9 miss il es o n each in boa rd pylo n and no ranks.
I reca ll it being a v ery unsta ble a irplane. I'm
glad the RA F Ligh tni ng fighter I was supposed
WO RLDWID E WARRI OR
· n~·OO\
to mee t d idn 't sho w up. Wea ther was a probl em
in trying to stay current in weapo ns delivery in
the U K. I remember returning fro m a night refu -
e lling sorti e and bei ng the o nl y o ne [of th e!
e ight aircraft that landed at Laken heath . Th e
o ther seven went to Upper Heyforcl because of
th e bad weather.
A I o in U AFE from 195 9 to 1962 wa
Kor an War ve teran Lt Col David 0 .
W ill iams. After prev ious experi ence of the
P-40, P-47, P-5 1, F-80 , F-84E/G /F and
F-10 1A/C Voodoo, he had checked out on
the F-100 in huck Yeage r's 306th TFS at
G eorge AFB in 1958. In U AFE he was a
member of th e Tacti cal Evaluatio n Tea m,
k eping a close eye on training and r ad i-
n ss by fl ying the F- 100 with virtua ll y all
the USAFE F-1 00 units and those visit ing
Europe on deployments. The nuclear
strike miss io n was paramoun t, although , as
he reca lled:
We di d keep some pro fi c iency in con vent io nal
weapo ns de livery such as strafing and cl ive
bo mbing. Ve ry li ttl e ae ri a l refu e ll ing was con -
ducted , un less one could encounter a KB-50
tan ker from RA F cultho rpe o ver the han ne l
o r ove r some sui table area of the U K. A t that
t ime USA FE F- l OOs d id n't have the 'ben t'
probe or refue llable 335ga l d rop tan ks whi ch
TAC was enjoying. In my view, o utsid e of the
High W ire modi ficatio n programme the ben t
80
pro be and 335ga l ta n ks were th e grea test
improvement to th e F- 100 ever made .
The 20th TFW, based at U pper Heyford but
prev iously at Woodbridge and Wethers-
field, had no monopoly on good weather
either. Co l 'Lanny' Lancaster reca lled:
I was a t Wood bri dge fro m o vembe r 196
then moved to leyford in December 1969. A t
Woodbridge the 79 th TFS was a sepa ra te unit
with th e pa rent 20th W ing and the o th er two
sq uad ro ns (55th and 77th TFS ) at Wethers-
fie ld. I be lieve we were the last 'separate' TFS ,
d iscounting the 3 2ncl TFS at Soesterberg who
were pure a ir defence pukes [pilots]. W h at I
remember most abo ut 'Woody' was the wea th er.
I thi nk I fl ew fi ve ti mes in four mo nths. O ur
princ ipa l miss io n was n ucl ear a lert. The three
sq uad ro ns rota ted so that o ne month in three
you pulled alert d uty a t ho me. Th e next month
you would be off alert so that you co uld do co n-
t inu atio n train ing at ho me, then the third
month yo u wo uld be T OY fo r nuc lea r a lert and
gunn ery tra in ing. The TOY itself was div ided :
two weeks at e ither Aviano or C igli and two
weeks a t W hee lus - o ne of the bes t gun nery
ranges ever beca use, unless th ere was a sto rm ,
the wi nd was never mo re th an about Skt.
For Tom G rmsch id, at Wethersfi ld
with the 20th TFW fro m A pril 196 1,
Wh ee lus was also memorable fo r its O ffi -
ce rs' C lub.
The food was good and often first-cl ass enter-
ta inment was brought in fro m the o n tinen t.
Spi rits could be purchased ve ry cheaply, espe-
ci all y Scotch, tho ugh they were ratio ned in the
U K. There always see med to be plenty of rat io n
coupons to bring a few bo ttles home to Weth ers-
fi eld. O ne n igh t the 20th TFW C-47 landed
after a return fl ight fro m W hee lus and the C us-
toms O ffice r (who had been suspic io us of thi s
activity but had never ca ught anyo ne ) was there
to greet it. Al l hell bro ke loose when he d iscov-
ered about twenty cases of Scotch o n board .
A lot of good-natured rivalry took place
between the va rious TOY units. T he Re public F-
lOSs were fa irl y new to Europe. T here was a
large, wooden F- 105 mode l d isp layed fro m the
ce il ing behind the bar and so mehow a lemon
alwa ys seemed to get impaled o n the pito t tube
of this model. Ano ther h ighlight was the bea u-
t iful wh ite beach and cl ea r blue wate r. A ll the
pale- faces fro m England wo uld hi t th e beach as
soon as we landed and de briefed. By the time th e
sun went clown most were fri ed wi th a good sun-
burn. T he cockpit harn ess and pa rachu te straps
were mighty painfu l the next day' O ne un it

This sixteen-ship flypast led by F-100Fs was flown at Misawa AB in November
1963 as a tribute to President J. F. Kennedy, murdered in that month. David Menard
Collection
commander issued an edict that anyone who got
too burn ed to fly the nex t day would be sent back
to Wethersfield on th e next shuttl e plane. M is-
sio ns were sho rt; genera lly about an hour.
A lmost everyone got to fl y twi ce a day and occa-
siona ll y three times- a fighter pilot's paradise.
The Libyan Ai r Force ( in wh ich Lr Col G hadaf-
fi was an F-86 squad ro n commander) used the
same range as the USAFE aircraft for weapons
de livery.
T he fli ghts fro m Wethersfield to Whee lus
were a lways enjoya bl e. We fl ew in fou r-shi p
fl igh ts co nfigured with an S UU d ispense r on
the centreline, 275ga l tan ks on th e intermed i-
ate stations and ZOOga l tan ks inboard. If we had
a ta il wi nd compo nent of about 65 kr we could
make th e tr ip non-stop. A 'bingo' fuel point was
ca lcul ated fo r coasting o ut ove r Monaco. If any-
o ne ca ll ed 'bi ngo' the fli gh t wou ld di vert into
Aviano and usua ll y remai n ove rn ight.
On one uch diversion Tom was l adi ng a
fl ight of four and hit thu nderstorms and a
1,200ft (365 m) ce iling.
We decided to break in to two-shi p eleme nts for
a rada r vector to the fi eld fo r a VFR [visua l fl igh t
ru les] landing. About the time l sta rted do wn
with my e lement Av iano radar went do wn . I
climbed back on to p and dec ided we wou ld
WORLDW IDE WARR IOR
make single-ship AD F let-clow ns. I started do wn
first and at about l S,OOOfr my Hun was struck by
lightn ing. It was q uite a fi reba ll and I could rea l-
ly sme ll the ozone. My first th ought was that I
had an exp losion of some kind so I auto matica l-
ly retard ed th e throttle to id le.
When I managed to open my eyes and look at
th e instrument panel, severa l cautio n ligh ts were
on and the engine ga uges were un winding. I was
sure the engine had fl amed o ut. After a couple of
seconds th ings stabil ized , I advanced the th rot-
tl e and the engine began to spool up aga in. I had
lost severa l instrum ents including my heading
indi ca tor, ADF and UHF radio . l went to emer-
gency squawk on the IFF and in itia ted a cl imb
back above th e cl ouds where I spotted my wing-
man and jumped o n to hi s wing. He led me down
to an uneventfu l landing though I d id not ice
that it rook more than norma l power ro keep the
beast fl yi ng. Upon climbing o ut of th e cockp it I
could see why. The fro nt ends of both 200gal fu el
tanks had blo wn off and they looked like torpe-
do rubes. The mnks were empty at the time of
the lightni ng strike but the fum es igni ted, caus-
ing the ex plosion. Lightning had a lso struck the
tip of the pi rot tube, ex it ing through the rudder
and tak ing a 3ft section of rudder with it. A ll
a lo ng th e fuse lage there were burn marks as if
someone had run an arc- we lder alo ng it. I had to
stay with my stricken bird at Av iano fo r two
81
weeks whil e a maintenance crew fro m Weth ers-
field patched it up, tho ugh they never d id get the
magneti c compass to po in t in the righ t d irec-
tion. Col Roya l Baker, 20th TFW CO, who had
been my umber 3 o n the fl igh t in to Aviano,
authorized me to fl y single-ship to W heelus in
VFR conditions. U nder normal circumstances
we never crossed the 'Mecl' single-shi p.
Tom also reca lled thaton23 Janu ary 1963,
the 20th TFW suffered a loss that also
affected many loca l res idents:
The Wing's Deputy Commander, Co l Wendell j .
Kell ey rook off in an F- 1OOF to do an instrument
checko ut fo r another pilo t, lst Lr Pau l Briggs . At
30,000m the aircraft suffered a compressor fa il ure
and o l Ke lley tu rned back for Wethersfi e ld with
m inimal power. As it approached th e airfi eld
another ex plosion caused the engine to seize up.
At 4,500fr and 6 m iles fro m the runway [he]
abandoned h is approach and hi s attempts to re-
start the ]57. He then steered the F- 100 away
fro m a series of loca l vill ages includ ing Gosfi eld ,
the communi ty in which he and his fam ily had
become popu lar and active res id ents. He ordered
1st Lt Briggs to eject as the aircraft reached
l ,SOOft and ve ry sho rtl y afterwards it crashed
with its pilo t into a fi eld close to the Kell eys'
home. A memori al service in the vill age later
pa id tribute to o l Kell ey's se lf-sac ri fice for the
safety of the commun ity.
In November 1969, the 20th TFW
moved to RAF Upper Heyford , rep lac ing
the 66th TRW who e RF-4 transferred
to Zweibrucken (17th TRS) and Shaw
AFB (18th TRS). The 79th TFS moved
in from Woodbridge first, fo llowed by the
two Wethersfie ld units in May/June 1970.
For t he first tim ince 1952, th 20th
TFW was conso lidated at a sing! base.
T he W ing's aircraft had worn ca mouflage
pa int since 1966, includ ing 56-3000
Triple Zilch, which had prev iously been
the spectacularl y-decorated Wing King
plane. Howeve r, the res idency was short-
lived and the 20th bega n conve rsion to
the F-111 E on 12 Septembe r 1970, its las t
two F-lOOs departing on 12 Febru ary the
fo llowing year. Wethersfield, relegated to
a d ive rsion base, beca me tempora ry home
(with M ildenha ll ) to the 4 th TFW in
1971 while Lakenhea th's runways were
improved in anticipat ion of th e a rriva l of
F-40 Phantoms for the Wing. De li ver ies
of the F-40 began in January 1972 and
th e la t uper abr s (F-l OOF 0-63850
/876/884), l ft the ba eon 15 April1 972,
ending USAFE F-100 operati ons.

Vietna01 Warhorse
27th TFW F-1000-21 -NAs, armed with napalm, head out for a mission over South Vietnam. T/Sgt Alb ert Doucet via Davi d Mena rd
Parry and Thrust
When F-100 S uper Sabres made their first
deployments to a combat area in April
1961 with the move ment of ix 51 Oth Tac-
t ica l Fighter quadran (TF ) a ircraft to
Thailand, th Sup r Sabre wa still Tactica l
A ir Command 's (TAC's ) main fighter-
bombe r. The first operat ional Republic F-
105Ds (it in te nded successor) had recent-
ly entered rvi ce with the 4520th
Combat C r w Training Wing { CTW) ,
and in U nited States A ir Forces in Europe
(U AFE), th e 36th Tactica l Fighter W ing
(TFW) bega n to convert to the new
Thund erchief in May 196 1, fo llowed by
the 49th TFW. At that t ime, the U AF
planned to re- quip fourteen TA Wings
with F-105 0, rep lac ing the majority ofF-
100Ds with the faste r, all -wea ther jet that
had beaten orth A meri ca n Av iation'
( AP:s) F-107 A fo r production orders in
CHAPTER4
195 7. Later in 196 1, Pres ide n t J. F.
Kennedy's ad ministration reduced that
number to e ight F-105 Wings. The others
stayed with th F-100 unti l October 1964
when F-4 Phantom !Is b ga n to app ar
on flight-lines. For the fo ur TFWs th at
were to fight the greater part of the ' in
country' air war in Vietnam, the F-100 was
to be their teed for up to ten more years.
A lthough, like the F-105, it was a strike air-
craft built for an essentially nuclear defence
strategy, it would prove to be adaptable to a The Buzzards of Bien Hoa (510th TFS). Bru ce Gold
very d iffer nt kind of warfa re.
As the situation in South East As ia pro-
gressively dete rio rated from 1960 onwards, Muang airport n 16 April1 96 1 in respon e
there were numerous small 'flag- wav ing' to the loss of a 4400CCT C-4 7 electron-
F-100 dep loyments to Tha iland and C lark ic intelligence (ELINT) aircraft to Pathet
AB throughout the earl y 1960 , including Lao anti-aircraft artillery (AAA). The
brief periods of Victor A lert in Formosa and F- 1000/F s xtet officiall y pro vided air
ha rt vi its to Da Nang in South Vietnam. defence for the Thai capital. Thai dep loy-
O ne of the e, peration Bell Tone, took a ments increased to sq uad ron size in 1962
Detachment of 5 1Oth T FS Buzzards to Don with: the 428th TFS; the 474th T FW,
82
 V I ET A I WAR HORSE

weapons delivery, dart target firing qua lifica ti on

and night ai r refue lling which we could not
accompli sh at Takh li.

After a majo r TAC Operati o nal Read in ess

Inspect ion (OR!) in July 1964, whi ch the
27 th T FW passed with fl ying colo urs, the
522nd TF was des ignated as th Wing'
'Alpha' squadron.

This meant that if there was a req uireme nt for

the Wing to deploy a fighter squadron fo r an
unschedu led miss ion anywhere in the world we
we re 'it' and we had to be fu ll y cocked , loaded
and on a short tether.

Th e next stage in esca lat io n wa a

r sponse to in reased North Vietnamese-
inspired insurgency in Laos . In January
1964, th US Jo int C hi efs of S taff r com-
m nd ed th e bo mbing of No rth Vietnam
and gro und operations in Laos. By May of
th at yea r Pathet Lao fo rces occupied the
Plaine des Jarres and o n 6 June a VFP-63
RF- A on a Yankee Team recce fli ght wa
hot dow n in that area. An F-80 from VF-
This line -up of F-lOODs was at Da Nang from August to November 1964, detached from 111 , escorting ano ther RF-SA, was lost o n
the 401st TFW at England AFB via Clark Field . F-1000-31 -NA 55-3724 has 19-shot LAU- 7 Jun e. The dec ision was taken to hit back
3/A FFAR launchers, each weighing around 5001b (225kg) loaded. White t ail caps for
at the Pathet Lao AAA sites responsible
these pods stand behind each wing . David Menard Collection
for th e e hoot-downs. Eight F-1000 of
the 6 15th TFS, 401st TFW re-dep loyed
whi ch flew in to Takhli Roya l Thai Ai r In May 1964 we redeployed with o ur F- IOOs from C lark AB (where they had just arri ved
Force Base (RTAFB) in mid -May; the to Cannon AFB via air refuelling with stops at on temporary duty (TOY) to Da Nang in
430th TFS in September; and fina ll y the Guam and Hickam AFB, Hawa ii. O nce back at South Vietnam. Col George Laven , fo r-
522 n I TFS in December (a ll from the Cannon we made extraordinary effo rts to ca tch merl y command er of the 4 79th Fighter
32 nd AD at Can non AFB). These three up on a ll o ur training requ irements such as Day Wing (FDW) te n yea rs prev iously,
phases of Ope ratio n Saw Buck gave each
squadron's pilots a ninety-day rotatio n at
Takhli but used the same e ightee n F-lOOs.
Lt ol Dav id . Wi lli ams command d the
522nd TFS Detachment at Takhli in the
spring of 1964.

Du ri ng o ur stay the re we part ic ipated in

EATO [South East A ia Treaty rga ni zat ion l
fl yi ng exercises with Thai Air Force units, the
Roya l Australian Air Force's 77 Squadron and
RAF units from Si ngapore. During the Exerci e
the King of T hailand visited our orga ni za t ion
and I had the opportuni ty to prese nt h im with a
memento of the o cas ion.

This F-1000, 55-3559 assigned to Capt Paul

Phillips, made a successful barrier engagement
after landing without brakes or hydraulics. Peter
Vand erhoe f

83

Loading a BLU -1 napalm bomb from an MJ-1 munitions loader on to an F-100D's out-
board pylon . The requirement to deliver napalm from straight-and-level flight at only a
few hundred feet of altitude caused many combat losses. Norm Taylor Coll ection
led the first combat miss io n o n 9 June.
Ea ch a ircraft ca rri ed a pa ir o f nineteen -
hot 2.75 in roc ket pods and fo ur 500 lb
g n ra l purpose (GP) bombs. Bad weath -
er and diffi ul ty in find ing the KC- 135
tankers im peded the miss io n , but Laven 's
fli ght probably succeeded in damag ing a
Pathet Lao defensible pos ition . A second
fli gh t of F- lOODs had in advertentl y
bo mbed the jungle som 25 mi les (40km)
away fro m the ass ign ed ta rget. The e ight
fi ghters returned to Da Na ng v ia Udorn
RTAFB, end ing the first F-100 combat
mi ss ion .
The 6 15th TF was also the first
F-100 uni t to r spond to the G ulf of
To nkin incident on 2 A ugust 1964 . Ten F-
lOODs were d patc hed from C lark AB to
Da Nang, followed shortl y after by oth er
from the 6 12th TF and the 6 14th TF
Lucky Devils comm anded by Lt Co l C regg
o lan. David W illi am rece ived orders on
4 A ugust to deploy the 522 nd TFS to
lark AB the fo llow ing day, and thre
ce lls of six F- l OOs plus spa res launched
ea rly on August 5, arriving at lark in th e
midd le of a loca l typhoon.
It was the wo rst weather I h ave ever encoun -
tered during approach and land ing in my entire
ca reer. We penetrated and landed in formation
by pairs under TACAN [tactica l a ir navigation]
and GCA \g ro und contro lled approach] control.
V I ETNA M WAR HORSE
• BAR CA P missions and had at least two air refu-
Rain was com ing down so hard I could not see
the ru nway wh n I reached minimums, but at
the last second I was able to acquire the high
in tensity yellow approach ligh ts and continue to
touch -down. Water on the runway must have
been at leas t 4i n deep because when I looked
back to ascertain that my wingman had
deployed hi s drag chu te I could hardl y see him
beca use of the 'rooster ra il ' of water hoot ing up
over his a ircraft from my own landing gear. We
rema ined at lark AB for about a week and were
then directed to dep loy six F- 1OOs to Da ang
AB and another six to Takhli . I led th e six bi rds
to Da ang and sent my O ps O fficer, Maj Bob
Buss with the other six to Takh li.
At Da ang th 522 nd TF crews operat-
ed alo ngside th 6 15th TF 0 tachment
comm anded by Maj Dave Ward. As David
Williams recalled:
Ou r mission was to prov ide armed escort for RF-
LOL photo reconn aissa nce aircraft flyin g over
South Vietn am and Laos. We were au thorized
to ex pend ordn ance onl y if we, or the RF-l Ol s
were fired upon. O ur ordnance load for the
escort m ission was two LAU-3 pods and a fu ll
load of 20mm a mmo. Occasiona lly we carri ed
AG M- 12 a ir-to-ground missil es. ur other
tasking was to prov id e BA R A I for E M
[e lectronic coun termeasures] and other types of
high -a lti tude reconnaissa nce mi ions up in the
far reach es of the ul f of To nkin , between
84
North Vietnam and the h ine e island of
Hain an. We had long-duration stat io n times on
ellings per sorti e. Ou r ordnance was a fu ll load
of20mm and two A \M-9 [air in tercept! miss il es.
Fro m ea rly ept mber 1964, David
Williams opted to deploy the entire 522 nd
T FS to Da ang, including the six aircraft
that had previously gone to Takhli. They
co ntinued to fl y recce e cort and BAR-
AP mi ion .
O n BARCAP we had good rada r coverage and
direction fro m Panama, the GC I \ground con-
tro ll ed interception] site atop Mon key Moun-
ta in , north -east o f Da Nang. We had very few
h ea ds- up ca lls o n bog ies [Mi Gs] and no
engagements. Occas ion all y we wou ld sigh t
contra ils ove r land but they never ventured
o ut over th e G ul f.
The detectio n of M iG -17 Fresco- A figh t-
er at N o i Bai AB near H ano i on 7 August
brough t demands fro m the Pacific A ir
Force (PACA F) commander for strikes
aga inst this new threat by Da Na ng F-l OOs,
but this plan failed to ge t ap prova l fro m
W as hington. Th e 428 th TF Buccaneers
returned to Takh Ii RTA FB on a 1964 TOY,
and two yea rs after F- l OOs began opera-
ti ons in the area, the first S uper Sabre
shoot-down occurred. Four F- l OODs were
sent to fl y combat air con tro l ove r recov-
ery of down ed aircrew (R s AP) for a
Roya l Lao t ian AF T- 28 pilot on 18 August
after a U H -3 4 rescue heli copter was also
bro ught down. An F-1000 (56 -3085 ) took
a hit whi le strafing enemy AAA ite and
th e pilot, 1st Lt A rnie lark of the 522 nd
TF , ejected safel y o ver Thail and. It was
the first of 242 F-l OOs (1 9 co mbat and 44
operationa l) to be lost du ring th e Vietnam
conflict with the deaths of eighty- even
aircrew. Two were killed ove r th north of
Vietnam, fiv beca me prisoners of war
(PO W s) and five wen t missing in action
(MIA), but fourteen were rescued.
The F-l OOs held up well under th diffi-
cult climatic cond itio ns of uth Eas t A sia
but there were inevitable techni ca l prob-
1 ms. David W ill iams:
During the monsoon season the rail -cone 'eyelids'
often fa iled to open properl y when afterburners
were lit for rake off. Th is resulted in an over-tem-
perature condi tion for the ]57 and a 'hard ligh t'.
We ca lled C lark A B to send us a P& W [Pra tt and
Wh itney] technica l expert. After h is inspections
he informed me th at gunk from the con rant rai ns

Armourers work on the M39 guns of an F-1000. The F-104 Starfighters in the
background indicate Da Nang as the location. Norm Taylor Colle ction
was form ing on the eyelids, causing them to stick
together instead of opening properl y. He cleaned
them all up and used some kind of graphite lu bri -
cant, thereby improv ing the situation but not
e limi nating it altogether.
In response to the increas ing threats to US
a ircraft, PAC AF gradua lly establ ished a
compl x search and rescue (SAR) net-
work. It had one of its earli est work-out
on 18 November 1964 when another Da
N ang F-l OOD was fa tally damaged wh ile
escorting a Yankee Team recce flight. Capt
W. M. Martin's 613th TFS a ircraft too k an
AAA hit whi le strafing gun pos itions that
had fired on an RF-10 1. H e ejected, but
had d ied from his injur ies by the t ime res-
cu rs arrived. In all , fo rty-two a ircraft were
in vo lved in the attemp t, includ ing a flight
of newly introduced F-l OSs that d mo l-
ished the offending AAA site. In a simil ar
AAA suppress io n miss ion in the Mu G ia
Pa o n 19 February 1965, F- l OOD 55 -3 783
wa hi t and the 613 th TFS command ing
officer (CO ), Lt Co l Bob Ronca, was
killed. The 613th TFS had been econded
from the 40 l st TFW (then at England
AFB) to Da Nang a few weeks before. It
remained at Da Nang until Jul y 1965, los-
ing three more a ircraft, another pilot
killed and a third captured by th N orth
Vietnamese du ring the next ph ase of the
war, including O peration Barrel Roll and
the early stages of Rolling Thunder.
V I ET A M WAR HORSE
Rolling Huns
The first strike in O peration Barrel Roll
wa on 14 December 1964, one of a series
of limi t d trikes aimed at N o rth Viet-
name A rm y ( VA) fo rces in Laos near
the border with North Vietnam. O n this
occas ion, eight F-l OODs fl ew combat a ir
patrol to counter enemy air defe nces
(M iGCAP) for F-lOSDs carrying 75 0lb
bombs, AGM- 12 Bullpups and cluster
bomb unit C BU -2A o n an armed r con-
naissance with an RF- l Ol C for BOA pic-
tures . A veh icle on an 'underwate r
briclge'was attacked with six bombs, all of
wh ich mi sed. Attacks o n secondary tar-
gets wer fr u trated by low cloud , and no
enemy oppos iti on wa encoun te red. O n a
similar mi ss ion o n 21 D c mb r, four
428th TFS Huns were unab le to find the ir
target und er dense ju ngle cover and were
lucky to e cape some intense AAA fire.
The Da Na ng F- lOOs began to draw the
fl ak suppression miss ion, attac king a heav-
ily defended bridge at Ban Ken o n the cru -
c ial Ro ute 7 on 13 January 1965. The main
strike was by sixteen F-1OSs wh ile two
fl ights of Super Sabres flew a 'wall' inl ine
abreast, de luging the thirty AAA pos i-
t ions with C BU -2A ca nisters. They made
repeated strafing passes and Capt Ferguson
was shot clown while making his fifth run
against the guns. In another flak suppres-
io n miss ion on 8 February 1965 , twenty
85
Da Nang a ircraft successfully pound ed the
defences around an NVA barracks at C hap
Le in North Vietnam, backing up six A -1
Sky raider bombers. A ltho ugh the F-lOO's
20mm gun were ffecti ve aga inst AAA,
pilots were to suffer numero us losses in the
dang ro us business of c lose- in du elli ng
with flak sites .
Afte r six Barrel Roll miss ions, a rev iew
conc lud d that th operat ion had bee n
l ss than eft ctiv . Th pr ssure was
st pped up with O perati on Flaming Dan,
the first major strikes inside No rth Vi et-
nam, which bega n on 7 February 1965 . By
that t ime over 150 F-105 0 had be n
ass igned to PA AF W ings. The Republic
j t coul d ca rr y twice th F-l OO D's bomb-
load 50 per cent fas ter (part icularl y at low
alt itude ). It was inev itab le that F-105
units would take the burden of str ikes
aga inst the increas ingly heav ily defended
targets in No rth Vietnam. F-lOSs soon dis-
placed F-l OODs on TOYs to Takhli and the
62 4th Wing (Prov isiona l) was estab-
li shed with Thund erchiefs at Ko rat
RTAFB. In add itio n, the 23 rd TFW began
a two-squadron, e ight-month TOY at Tan
Son N hut AB. The F-100 sq uadrons
in creas ingly supp li d fi ghter over and
flak suppress io n for F-105 strikes .
After two brief phases of O peratio n
Flaming Dan, President L. B. Johnson initi-
ated Operation Rolling Thunder on 2 March
1965 with a major attack (Rolling Thunder
5) on an ammunition dump and a naval
base in No rth Vietnam. It drew on most of
Da Nang's F- 100 assets including the 613th
TFS and recently deployed 53 1st TFS. T he
428th TF (which replaced the 522ncl TF
at Da Nang from late Novembe r 1964) sup-
plied fighter cover for the strike on Quang
Khe naval base.
ln all , forty S upe r Sabres accompan ied a
fo rce of fo rty- five Korat F- l OSs . The Huns
shared flak suppress ion with fifteen F-
l OSs, fl ew Mi GCA P with o ne fli ght,
weather recce and R sCAP. M iGCA P air-
craft carried A l M-9B miss iles wh ile the
fl ak suppressors were each armed with two
pods of 2.75in roc kets and a pa ir of 750 lb
bombs. No strike F-l OSs wer lo t as the
fl ak suppressors we re ve ry ffect ive aga in t
unex pected ly fi erce defences, but fi v up-
pressors went down. In three ca es th ey
were hit on repea t passes at the sa me tar-
get. Two F-l OODs were lost - one was
Takh li-bas d and its pi lot , LtJ. A. C ullen
(fly ing 56-3 150), was recovered from the
sea by an H U- 16. The other, a 613th TFS
a ircraft (55 -2857) was hi t during a pass
 V I ET AM WA RHO RSE

481st TFS four-ship on initial approach to Tan Son Nhut AB . Nearest the camera is Capt Stephen Dvorchak's 56-3063
The Shadow (based on a MAD Magazine character). '548 was assigned to 1st Lt Tom Tilghman and Pretty Penny is
flying as Number 2 to the leader's '604. Peter Va nde rhoef

aga inst the guns. The pilot, 1st Lt H ayden

] . Lockha rt evaded captu re fo r a week
before becoming the first USAF pilot to be
captured in North Vietnam. H e remained
a POW for eight years.
T he ca mpaign resumed on 15 March
with Rolling T hunder 6, a U N attack. For
Rolling T hunder 7 the tactics changed.
Armed reconna issance of road and ra il
ro utes was added to the ' listed' targe ts.
Dur ing April 1965 over 1,500 combat sor-
t ies were flown over North Vietnam,
roughly half by USAF a ircraft. Rolling
T hunder 9A on 3 April brought the first of
many assa ults o n the rece ntly completed
H am Rong (Dragon's Jaw) road and ra il

Panels are off this 481 st TFS F-1000 for peri odic
inspection, but the extended 335gal tanks remain in
pla ce . Peter Vanderhoef

86
 V I ETNAM WAR HORSE

A econd attack on the bridge too k

plac th n xt day using forty-e ight F-105
bombers (but no Bu llpups) and a seven-
stro ng F- l OOD ResCAP. The 41 6th TFS
ilver Knights, newly arrived from lark
AB in a Sawbuck ompos ite A ir Strike
Force d ploym nt, prov ided the Mi G AP
fli gh t that orbited above the fli ghts of four
F-105Ds as they dived to lay the ir 7501bs
bo mb n the ' Dragon's Jaw' .

MiG Kill(?)
Green Flight of ResCAP F- l OODs, armed
with rock t pods and 20mm included Capt
Don Ki lgus. They took up station just off
the coast to the south -east of the target
area , orbiting in case they were nee led to
cross the coa t and cover a r scue attempt.
As the F-100 wung north they were met
head-on by a pa ir of MiG-17s, which used
Pete Vanderhoef examines a flak hole in the slat of his aircraft, the only damage he
suffered in 130 combat missions. Peter Vanderhoef
their superi or tu rning performance to pu ll
in behind two elements of G reen Flight.
The Americans took violent evas ive acti n
bridge at Than Hoa, on ly 70 miles intercepted USN VF-211 F-SE C rusader and engaged the MiG . Don Kilgu (Green
(1 12km) from H ano i. Lt Co l Robinson attacking another bridge in the Th an 2) ~ llowed one of them in a n ar-verti a!
Risner coordinated a force of twenty-o ne H oa area. Lt dr pence Tho ma 'F-8 wa dive fr m 20,000ft (6, 100m) firing a suc-
F- l OODs support ing sixtee n F- l OS s and a se t o n fi re by Pham Ngoc Lau of the 92 1 t ce ion of 20mm bursts at the VPAF jet. He
pa ir of RF-101Cs. Ten KC-135A were Fighte r Reg im ent but Tho mas manag d saw a flash on the MiG's right tail -plane and
also requ ired. S ixteen of the Thund r- to recove r to Da N ang. T he MiG s then some debris but at 7,000ft (2, 140m) he was
chiefs ca rri ed Bu llpups and the others had withdrew with out encou ntering th e unable to focus hard on the target as he
750lb bombs that, on th is occas ion, were F-100 MiGCA P o ve r the USAF strike. struggled to hau l his plum met ing F-100 out
almost as ineffective as the missiles aga inst
such a 'hard' target. Two F- 100 flew ahead
of the strik force on a wea ther recce
fl ight, report ing over 5 miles (Skm) visi-
bili ty. In view of the huge and rap id
in crease in North Vietnamese AAA
defences, anothe r seven F-1OODs jo ined
fifteen F- 105 Ds as fl ak suppressors. Four
S idewinder-armed F- l OODs formed the
MiGCAP fli ght and e ight with 2.75 in
rockets served as ResCAP. Once aga in the
uppre sors kept the defending gunners
busy, preventing losses to the bombers but
the cost was another a ircraft from the
6 13th TFS . 1st Lt George C ra ig's F- l OOD
(55-3625) took a hit on its econd pass and
mashed into the gro und before the pilot
could eject.
A ltho ugh t he MiG C AP was no t c ha l-
lenged by Vietnamese People's A ir Fo rce
(VPAF) fighters, 3 Apri l also marked the
fir t VPAF combat mis io n. The F- lOOD
weather recce fl ight had been detected o n
North Vietnamese radar and an attack o n Capt Joe Reynes' F-lOOD had an explosion in its gun compartment during his first
the H am Ro ng bridge was antic ipated mission after a previous bail-out (on 20 September 1965 from 56-3177 during a CAS
later in the mo rning. Two fli gh ts of MiG - mission}. Trapped gun gas blew off the gun-bay doors and they impaled themselves on
17s we re launch ed fro m No i Bai a nd his inboard pylons; one each side. Peter Vanderhoef

87

of its d ive. However, he and other pilots in
the flight were pretty sure the MiG had
b en fatally damaged , though no fire o r
crash were een . Don painted a kill marking
on his F- lOOD (55 -2894 Kay Lynn) but the
lack of conclusive ev idence meant that he
was only credited with a 'probable' kil l.
Meanw hile, the four MiG AP F-l OODs
(Pw·ple fli ght) led by th e 41 6th TF CO Lt
Co l Emmett L. Hays, o rbited 60 miles
(95km) to the north, covering the pre-
sum d ro ute of an y MiGs th at might have
approached th strike fo re . Hay ' wing-
man , Capt Ke ith Conno ll y, aw fou r 92 1 t
FR MiG -17s led by ap t Tran Hanh di v-
ing towar Is Zinc fli ght of F-105 Ds. He
ca lled a warning but the Thud drivers did -
n't rece ive it and pres ed o n. Tra n H anh
closed to 1,300ft ( 400m) and fired a II th re
of his heavy canno ns at F- 105D 59- 1764.
Th blazing Thunderchief cras hed, killing
Capt Jame Mag nu o n of the 55th TFW.
H anh and hi wingman , Pham Gia ng,
di ved away s uthward whil e a econd
MiG- 17 e lement led by L Minh Huan
fired at Zinc fli gh t leader Maj Frank Ben-
nett's F-105D (59-1754), causi ng major
damage . The wounded Thud got Bennett
out to the coa t for a ba ilout, but he
drowned before rescuers could be brought
in. Hays and Conno lly engaged afterburn -
er and closed to within idewinder range
of the MiGs. Conno lly got a good 'growl'
from his A lM -9B and fired but the miss il
pa ed just above the leading MiG 's right
wing. Purple fli ght then witch d to gun
since the alerted F-105 pilots had gon
into afterbu rner and an A lM-9B could
a ily have found the wrong target. ln fact,
Purple fired another miss ile late r but it
fa iled to find any ta rget. Th MiG man-
aged to evade the less nimble F- lOOD
with some strenuous manoeuvring, caus-
ing onno lly's bursts of gunfire to miss
also. ha rt of fue l, the MiG pilots headed
ho me. Iro n ica ll y, three of the ir number
including Le Minh Hu an and his wingman
Tran Nguyen N am fa iled to return. The
Vi tnamese a sumed that they had been
sh t down by U S fighters, giving fu rther
credence to Da n's claim, but when n
USAF claim was made, the VPAF attrib-
uted the losses to their own AAA.
In its first and onl y encounter with
MiGs, the F-l OOD was perce ived as inade-
quate for th a ir superiority task. In fa ir-
ness, the skirmish highligh ted many of th e
problems that were to take most of the war
years for USAF pilots to solve. Poor commu-
nications, unhelpful rules of engagement,
V I ET AM WA RH ORSE
inexperience in hand ling the rather limit-
ed A IM -9 B and unfamiliarity with VPAF
tactics all put the F-100 pi lots at a d isad-
va ntage, as did the a ircraft's lack of Flying
Boom-type air-to-air refue lli ng capab ili ty.
However, it was decided that they would
not ge t a second chance to prove the ir air-
craft as a dogfigh te r, partly because the
U A F was keen to put its newe t figh te r,
the F-4 , in to actio n. The first F-4 s
entered the war on April 4 when the 45th
TF detached from McDill's 15th TFW to
Ubon RTAFB and flew Mi AP fo r all
u ce sive Rolling Thunder trik in place
of F- lOODs. Its first MiG kills (th e first con-
firmed kills for USAF fighters) did not take
place until 10 Jul y 1965 when two Mi G-
17 were c la im d , though the VPAF
deni ed these lo es. A lthough there wo uld
be many ma r F-100 missio ns over orth
Vietnam, none encountered MiG oppos i-
ti on and no uper Sab res were lost to
enemy figh ters.
After a tran ~ r to the th TFW a
D puty W ing ommander h r Ope rations
fl ying the F-4D Phantom (and scoring one
of th e last MiG kill s of Operation Rolling
Thunder) Lt Co l Dav id W illiams was we ll
placed to prov ide a te lling co mparison of
the Super Sabre with its successor.
I had experi ence of fl ying the F-40 aga inst both
the MiG - 17 and MiG -2 l over orth Vietnam. I
feel confident that the F- 100 wo uld not have
fared we ll in the MiGCAP ro le against either
MiG model. I fo m1ed this opin ion because I do
not be lieve the F- lOO could turn wi th either of
th e MiGs, could not cl im b with them and could
not out-di ve or o ut-run the MiG -2 1. The F- 100
suffe red fro m a low thrust-to-weigh t ratio and in
a hard turn the a ircraft wo uld shudder, approach-
ing a stall even with th e lead ing edge slats
extended. The airspeed wo uld then bleed off
qu ickly, leaving the pi lot in a terri bly vulnerable
position for air-to-a ir combat. Another problem
I noticed in fl ying ACT [air combat tactics] was
that one cou ld experience hard compressor stalls
in the )57 when attempting to se lect afterburner
while in a nose-high angle of attack. O n one such
attempt I experienced a compressor stall so v io-
lent that fire exited both the nose intake and
ta ilpipe simultaneo usly, as verified by my wi ng-
man. It shook the rudder pedals so hard that l
temporaril y lost my foot contact with them. Such
an event in a ir-to-a ir combat could spoil a pil ot's
clay if he were, for instance attempting to brea k
in to a hostile attacker. T he F-4 was successfu l in
fi ghting MiG s large ly because of its high thrust
from d ual ]79 engines, its rapid acce lerati on to
supersonic speed, its good radar and its radar
88
guided A IM-7 parrow miss iles. The F-100
lacked all of these features.
In Country
Fo llowing the initial F-4 dep l yment to
Ubon , PACAF rap id ly increased the I han-
tom pre ence in the wa r area. Four
squadrons of the th TFW Wolfl)ack arri ved
at Ka rat from A ugust 1965 and the 12th
TFW et up business at Ca m Ranh Bay at
the nd of the yea r. At Da ang, the 35 th
TFW were re-organized in Aprill 966. The
366th TFW Gunfighters tran ferred from
Phan Rang and repl aced the 35th TFW,
which in turn moved (in name onl y) to the
n w base at Pha n Rang to control three
squadrons of F- 1OOs from 10 Octobe r 1966.
In June 1965, Lt Co l Hay ' 41 6th TF
had moved out to Bien Hoa for a month
before returning to England AFB. In
D c mber 1965, the 41 6th moved perma-
n ntl y to Tan Son N hut and then rejo ined
its paren t 3rd TFW at Bien Hoa in June
1966.
O f the other quadro ns fr m the pio-
neering 1964 ompos ite Air trike Fo rce,
the 6 14th TFS and 522 nd TF stayed until
November 1964 and the 613th TFS until
Jul y 1965. This left the 6 15th TFS, effec-
t ive ly based at C lark Fie ld, which
rema ined at Da ang un t il it mov to
Phan Rang and 366th TFW contro l on 16
July 1966.
Super Sabre City
Phan Rang wa o ne of the new bases that
were rap id ly constructed to accommodate
the huge increase in the US a ir ca mpaign
in 1966. Like the others at Phu at, Tu y
Hoa and Bi n Hoa it had a l O,OOOft
( ,OOOm) cane r te run way with paralle l
tax iways and parking apro ns of AM-2 o r
pierced stee l planking (P P) matting. At
the height of the confli ct, Phan Rang
accommodated 140 S uper ab res.
From 20 March 1966, th e 366th TFW
under Co l George Weart contr !led three
F-1000 /F squadrons: the 6 14th, 6 15th and
352 nd TFS of which th e fir t two were ex-
Da ang uni t . The 352nd TF jo ined the
366th TFW fro m l 5 A ugust 1966 and
rema ined at Phan Rang until the end of
July 197 1 when F-1 00 operatio ns in th
area ceased. The 6 14th TF returned to
actio n at the ba eon 18 epte mber 1966
and the 6 15th TF arri ved on 16 Jul y of
 V I ET A M WA RH O RSE

The nose of F-1000-31 -NA 55-3797 is already covered in mission marking s as it awaits yet another comb at sortie
with the 416th TFS from Bien Hoa AB in July 1965. Minimal squ adron markings compris e a small gre en tail-strip e.
Several of the squadron 's Huns had crew names displayed in red und er the windshield as seen here.
David Menard

that yea r. T hese two squadrons also stayed
unt il 3 1 July 197 1. Th fin al unit at Phan
Rang was Detac hm ent 1 of the 6 12th T FS,
established to fl y the specialist M i ty
F-l OOF FAC miss ion fro m May 1967.
From 1 October 1966, a 'nameplate'
exchang with th 366th TFW put the
35th T FW in charge of these sq uadro ns
and a pair of B-5 7 Canberra uni t . Later
add itio ns to the crowded base were an
RAAF anbe rra Sq uadro n , the 8th Spe-
c ia l perat io ns Sq uadron (SOS ) with A -
3 7B Drago nfli es and the 120th T FS, Co l-
orado A ir Nationa l G uard (ANG) wh ich
flew F- lOOCs with the 35th TFW fo r a yea r
from Aprill 968.
South -west of the coastal Phan Rang
base and close to Sa igon was Bien H oa,
wh ich beca me home to the 307th TFS
fro m the 3 1st T FW at Ho mes tead AFB in
Ju ly 1965. lt was jo ined for a six- month
T OY at the bas by Ca nnon AFB's 429th
TF . Both sq uad rons, under the 652lst
T FW, operated aga inst targets in the south
of Vietnam a nd Laos. T he 307th T FS fl w
ove r 3,500 sorti es witho ut loss. T he 429 th
T FS racked up a sim ilarly mass ive to ta l but
lost two airc raft and the ir pilots on A
sort ies. It was then dec ided to transfer the
complete 3 rd TFW from England AFB to
Bien H oa, and the 307th TF was then
rep laced by the 53 l st T FS , which took
ove r its aircraft. Fro m Nove mber 1965 , the
3 rcl TFW, commanded by o l Ro bert
Ackerl y, grad ually moved its squad rons
into the bu y base, beg inn ing with the
SlOth TFS Buzzards . By February 1966, it
a lso had the 53 1st T FS and 90th T F Pair
o' Dice in place at Bien Hoa, eventually
d isplac ing the 30 th T F Emem ld Knights
to Tu y Hoa after th ir 1966 T OY. T he base
rap id ly expanded its accommodat io n and
maintenance facil it ies to dea l with over a
hu nd red S upe r abre and the ir crews. By
m id-1966, the Wing had flown 13,000
combat sort ies, ave rag ing on a clay for
each of the based F-l OOs.
A th ird base was so ugh t for th e F-100
fo rce that was expand ing so rapid ly that at
the heigh t of the war on ly five TAC F-100
sq uad ro ns rema ined in the U SA. Q ui Non
was in iti all y earmarked for deve lopment,
but in February 1966 the Red Horse con-
struct ion teams moved in to Phu at, a
coasta l site to the east of Ple iku and the
most no rtherl y of the Super Sabre bases. It
was on ly thirty m inu tes from North Viet-
nam by F-100. T here, the 3 7th T FW wa
established o n 1 Ma rch 1967 with th
4 16th TFS Silver Knights (from Tan Son
N hu t via Bi en Hoa ) and, from February
1968, the 355 th TFS, the last F-100 un it
to deploy to Vietnam. Phu Cat a lso hosted
the Misty FAC Detachment of the 6 12th
TF between Jun 196 7 a nd April 1969.
Th 174th TFS, Iowa ANG dep loyed to
the bas for a yea r from May 1968.
An even bigge r concentrat ion of F-1OOs
was assembled at the fourth base, Tu y H oa,

89

Cartridge start time for this 481st TFS Crusader at Tan Son Nhut AB. F-1000 55-3569, assigned to Capt William
Carrothers, already bears an impressive tally of mission marks. David Anderton Collection via David Menard
Tan Son Nhut near Saigon became the base for the
481 st TFS Crusaders. one of the four 27th TFW
squadrons. Following one of its regu lar TOY assign-
ments to Misawa, the unit was put on secondary alert
status in response to the Gulf of Tonkin incident. It
deployed on 12 June 1965 in Operation Two Buck 76
with eighteen F-1OOs via Hickam AFB and Clark AB. The
deployment was conducted in such secrecy that staff at
Clark were unprepared for the arrival of the F-100s and
their attendant KC-135s and C-130s on 14 June. A week
later the squadron moved on to Tan Son Nhut, making
the last of nine aerial refuel lings in the 9,213nm flight
from Cannon AFB. However. six aircraft led by David
Williams (who had joined the squadron whi le awaiting
a posting to the Air War College) were sent to augment
the F-1 DO units at Da Nang. After a week of MSQ and
forward air controlled (FAC) attack missions, these air-
craft rejoined the rest of the squadron at Tan son Nhut.
Crusaders were the fi rst tactical jet fighters to fly from
the busy base, operating alongside B-57s, RF-101 s and
A-1 E Skyraiders. Of its th irty pilots only four had previ-
ous combat experience though their commander, Lt Col
Harold 'Hal' Comstock. had flown P-47s with Zemke's
Wo/fpackduring WWII. His score of seven German air-
craft was featured alongside the copious Vietnam mis-
sion scoreboard on the nose of his F-1 DOD (55-3604).
The Crusaders began flying close air support (CAS)
missions by day and night plus rapid response tactical
air strikes. though a number of pilots were not qualified
for the Night Ow/missions. 1st Lt Peter Vanderhoef was
among those whose first real night fl ight was a napalm
VIET AM WAR HORSE
Crusaders at War
attack on road traffic in total darkness. He calculated
that his napalm drop was made at about 1Oft (3m) above
ground level (AGL) since he was suddenly aware of
trees on both si des of the road being lit up by flames
above his aircraft's altitude.
One particularly successful mission was the relief of
a Special Forces Camp at Bu Dop on the night of 19 July
1965. It was the first of many F-1 DO missions to re lieve
beleaguered USSpecial Forces instal lations. Capt Norm
Turner and 1st Lt Don Watson repeatedly attacked Viet
Cong (VC) machine-gun positions in dreadful visibility
below a 500ft (150m) cloud cei ling. Their FAC. Capt Hal
Howbower. was able to steer in a C-123 flare ship to
provide some assistance and the two F-1ODD pilots (fl y-
ing 56-3613 and 55-3528) were able to repel the VC's
attempt to infiltrate the camp. Both men were awarded
the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) for the mission.
Sadly, Don Watson didn't live long enough to rece ive his
medal. His F-1 ODD (55-2837) was shot down on 31 July
during a napalm attack on a VC headquarters position.
Five of the squadron's original eighteen Huns were shot
down by the end of the deployment on 27 November 1965.
Among them was F-lOOD 56-3177 piloted by Capt Joe
Reynes On 20 September. a day when seven US fighters
were lost. Joe was flying ona CAS sortie near the Mekong
Delta.The aircraft took ahit and started venting fuel prodi-
giously. Pete Vanderhoef was on his wing as they climbed
to 20.000ft l6.000m) to exit the area.
He was dumping JP-4 in a sheet about a foot wide from the
underside split line of his plane and we decided he had best
90
leave it before it lit off. Everything happened in slow motion
just like the book said. Joe floated down as I watched his
bird fly way out to sea. His autopilot must have been work-
ing, which was unusual. I called in all kinds of cover and
stuck around until the company arrived.
A Huey rescue helicopter took Joe back to Tan Son Nhut
where he chose to air a grievance to the Base CO. While
he had been on the ground. awaiting rescue there had
been:
... unidentified folks moving around and Joe was armed with
our wonderful Navy reject .38 revolver. six rounds of ammu-
nition and a survival knife. Because we were a 'rotational'
squadron. expected to be on base for three months. we
were the tailend of the supply chain. There were PCS [per-
manent change of station! airmen working in thepost office
at Tan Son Nhut that carried Combat Masterpeice .38s with
all the ammunition they wanted.
Joe had been given whisky by the Huey crew and some
more was supplied by the C-130 crew who took him
back to base. Pete Vanderhoef described the outcome:
The Tan son Nhut Base Commander came out to welcome
him home. along with all the 481 st guys. Joe seemed sober
until he recognized the Base CO and in a rather unsubtle
manner he asked why non-combatants were receiving all the
survival gear and those of us who were exposed to combat
every day couldn't even get a box of .38 calibre shells for our
side-arms. I seem to remember two or three of our Squadron
members carrying Joe oil to the infirmary 'to be checked'
(read 'separated from the Base CO'). The next day we were
no longer at the end of the survival gear supply line.
For Joe, the next mission almost cost him another bail-
out when his gun-bay door was blown off in a gun-gas
explosion (see page 87).
'Hal' Comstock was assigned an unusual mi ssion
when he led a four-ship escort for the less-than-popular
US Secretary of Defense. Robert McNamara. on a July
inspection tour of bases in South Vietnam. During the
flight the F-1OOs were cal led upon to bomb and strafe a
VC command post while McNamara looked on at a safe
distance from his T-39 Sabre liner.
1st Lt Thomas E. Lowe was Intelligence Officer wi th
the squadron. organizing the pre-flight briefings that F-
1DO crews received about ninety minutes before take-off
and debriefing them after each mission. Every evening
the squadron received a 'frag' order for the following
day's operations and began planning for missions
against 'suspected VC concentrations' or 'VC headquar-
ters·. indicated by map grid references. Aircraft and
pilots were assigned by the Squadron Operations Officer
whi le ordnance type. radio frequenc ies and times-over-
target (TOT) were also settled. Tom Lowe commented on
the high fai lure rate in the ordnance suppli ed to them:
During the first month's combat the M117 7501b GP bombs
with M163 fuses were used in quantity and the squadron
was plagued with many duds on their missions. Most of
these bombs were of Korean War vintage. When the new

Another view of '569 on an earlier four-ship napalm strike before nose art was painted on Crusaders aircraft. David Anderton Collection via David Menard
Mk82 streamlined bombs became available the dud rate
dropped radically.
There was also a shortage of ordnance. denied official-
ly but evident to the people flying the missions. 'For a
short time. flights of 481 st TFS F-1ODDs were sent out
on missions with each airplane carrying only one bomb.'
Pete Vanderhoef flew 130 missions during the deploy-
ment. 20 per cent in support of troops under attack. 20
per cent on known VC positions with no 'friend lies· in the
area. and the rest were 'toothpick' missions where. 'we
dropped bombs in the dense jungle on a spot chosen by
a FAG that he thought might contain a VC position. They
were called "toothpick" missions because we converted
large trees into tooth-picks with 7501b bombs' . Early in
which was located to the south of Phu Cat
and also on the sandy coast. Work bega n
in June 1966 and AM-2 temporary run -
ways we re in place fo r the first F-l OODs of
the 308th T F Ememld Knights wh en th ey
arri ved on 15 November. It was the first of
five F-100 uni ts to share the base unde r the
auspices of the 3 1st T FW, whi ch had pre-
viously sent some of its sq uad rons to Bien
V I ETNAM WAR HORSE
the war. he was among the pilots who began to sense
the way in which Washington's micro-management of
the war minimized the effect of the combat effort and put
airmen in unnecessary danger.
Every mission had to be personally approved by President
Johnson and SecDef McNamara. By the time they sent it
back to Viet Nam everybody knew what it was so the VC
were either gone or ready for us. We had one mission
where there was a village on a north-south road with a
small river running through from east to west. We were
told to hit the north-east quadrant but were explicitly told
not to drop anything on the south-west quadrant because
there was a meeting of a dozen VC and NVA Generals
there! We did as we were told.
Hoa on T DY . It too k up r sidence at Tu y
Hoa from 25 December 1966, bringing it
306th and 309th sq uad rons to jo in the
308th. A fourth sq uad ron , the 307th TF ,
had returned to th e USA at the end of
l 965 and ev ntua ll y jo in ed the 40 l st
T FW at Torrejo n, Spa in to replace one of
its uni ts that had d ployed to PACA F. The
re-constituted 3lst W ing was established
97
In its six-month TOY (extended from three months) the
sq uadron dropped 5.665 bombs including 155 Mk 82
Snakeye retarded wea pons. The Crusaders were
among the fi rst USAF units to use this type of bomb.
Over South Vietnam, descri bed by one pilot as 'one big
gunnery range', the squadron also fired an incredible
1,597,145 rounds of 20mm high explosive/incendiary
(HEll. Each shel l cost US$2.45 in 1965 dollars. Of the
twenty-n ine pilots who originally deployed, twenty-
one flew over 1DO missions. They logged 1,000 hours
of combat flying in the ir first thirty-four days of battle
and 2,000 hours by 6 September, averaging thirty sor-
ties per day.
unde r o l James Jaba ra, one of twe lve
Korea n War aces who later commanded
F-100 sq uad r n , until hi death in a car
a c ide nt whereupon o l Raymo nd Lee
ass umed comm and. Late r add it io ns to th e
W in g we re th e 355 th TFS (moved from
Phu Cat) and the much-trave lled 41 6th
TF Silver Knights, both in May 1969. A
pa ir of ANG q uad ro n , the 136th T FS,
 V I ET A M WAR HORSE

Rolling out of its revetment at Bien Hoa AB, F-1000-61 -NA 56-2920 has the 'CE' codes
of the 510th TFS Buzzards and Snakeye bombs. Some of the squadron 's aircraft later
received nicknames, such as Buzzard of Bien Hoa (56-3087) flown by Capt Ronald
Fogleman who later became USAF Chief of Staff. Norm Taylor via David Men ard

ew York AN G and the 188 th TFS, ew

Mex ico A NG jo ined the W ing from
May/Jun 1968 on a o ne-year T OY.

Life on th e Line
Despite ve ry attempt to make the new
bases secur , th y were inev itably exposed
to V attac k, most frequentl y d uring the
Jan uary 1968 Tet offensive when twen ty-
thre US and Vietnamese A F bases were
h it. At that t ime, forty- five miss iles were
fired at Bien Hoa, de troying F- l OOD 55 -
568 . A n F-l OOF (56-3923 ) was wrecked
at th base , three others damaged in a sim -
il ar raid on 17 Febru ary and two more were
burned out at Phan Rang in Janu ary 1969.
F- 100 E M technic ian A l N eubecker
ex peri enced a V base attack at Tuy Hoa .
The SUU -7 dispensed a variety of CBU-1/46 series bombs containing BLU -s eries
sub-munitions for anti -personnel. fragmentation or smoke . The ordnance was ejected
rearwards from a combination of the nineteen tubes, with springs and air pressure I w as asleep when the sa pper attack started but was

through the front of the dispenser providing the required force. A fully loaded SUU -7 awa kened by the explosions. That morning we went to

could weigh up to 9001b (410kg) . Pete r Vande rhoef see the destruction and I aw in the revetments a lot of

92

615th TFS armament personnel re-arm F-1000-31-NA 56-3307 at Phu Cat AB on 7
March 1971 . A detachment from the 35th TFW at Ph an Rang AB was sent to Phu Cat to
suppress VietCong activity around the base . Norm Taylor
ashes and only landi ng gears left . Guys told me they
shot all seven sappers dead as they headed fo r the fuel
ra nks. An autopsy was done and the y we re all on heavy
drugs.
Fuel at the coastal bases was mean t to be
piped in d irectly through lines that con-
nected to fu el shi ps off shore. In practice,
thes pipes we re frequentl y sabotaged. The
Phu Ca t pipelin was out of act io n most of
the t ime and fu el had to be brought in by
other mea ns.
Per onnel soon got hard ened to the
almost nightl y r ck t or mortar a sa ults o n
the ir bases. A t Phan Rang, fuel sy re m
mechanic Bob Macavoy quickly learned to
tell the difference between the loud bang
of a rocket landing and the dull thud of a
morta r round , 'The "gooks" nev r tried to
get us, they were always after our eq ui p-
ment so we felt so mewhat secure near our
tents or barracks'.
Fo r pil ots there was the con rant threa t
of small -arms fi r on tak -off o r fin al
approach fro m a VC sni per hidden in the
undergrowth near the base with a rifle or
light machine gun . 1 t Lt Tomkinson's
Sl Oth TFS F- l OOD (S6-3269) was hi t on
approach to Bien Hoa in March 1968 and
he ejected as it cras hed a mile from the
V I ETNAM WA RHOR SE
base. Maj G.]. Butler of the 61Sth TFS
took a small -a rms hit as his F-l OOD (SS -
29 14 ) climbed away from Phan Rang in
june 1968, fo rcing him to ba le out. Th
following month another F- l OOD (SS -
2900) was hit in th sa me way and the
conseq uent loss of fu el fo rced th pil ot to
make an emerge ncy landing in whi ch the
aircraft crashed .
On many occas ions F-100 pilo ts took off
and attacked troops or suspected gun posi-
t ions within sight of their base, almost a
soon as they had retracted the ir landing
gear. O n one such miss io n, Capt Roland
Obe nland was shot down while making a
napalm d rop on a t roop concentrat ion
on ly S miles (8km) from Bien Hoa .
A ircraft on the bases were initially pro-
tected by 12ft (3 .Sm) high ARMCO
reve tm ents, but after the 1968 offensive
most bases rece ived 'wonde r arch' shelt rs
of corrugated steel she lls with an 18in
( 4Scm) concrete core. Over 3 70 were con-
tructed by the end of 1969.
Fo rth hund reds of maintainers tasked
with keep ing up the sort ie rates at each F-
100 base , the war could get dangerously
close. Hank Va lentine 'crewed' fo r the
3S2 nd TFS at Phan Ra ng in 1967- 68. O n
one occas ion he was sitt ing in th cockpit
93
of an F- l OOD as it was towed to the no rth
end of the runway, wa it ing to cross to th
engine tr im pad between the runways.
We had no radio. Whi le sitting there, checking
for aircraft landing, we looked back up the fligh t
line and no ted that the lights were out o n the
base. Then we started hearing pings and popp ing
no ises and we saw some tracer bullets north of us
but thought nothing of it. After the Line C h ief
came and told us to head back we understood the
reason fo r the noises and blackout. O n retu rn to
the revetment we noticed a ho le in the Coleman
tow- tractor, ano ther in the F- lOO's intake and one
under the ejection sea t that I had been sitting in.
Hank went thro ugh the eight-week F-100
maintenance course and joined the 3S2 nd
TFS.
My train er was S/Sgt Edwards and the first day
he left me alone with 'his' aircraft I found o ut
how com piica ted th e plane was. I fo rgot to
check the utility reservoi r and the plane ended
up abort ing. I learned a grea t dea l when S/Sgt
Edwards got back' A ircrews were the first pri or-
ity, tho ugh we h ad some crews who tho ugh t th e
a ircraft was go ing to fl y itse lf. I remember one
pilo t who used to come o ut to the a ircraft and
cl im b in the cockpit witho ut d o ing a walk-
around check. We cured him by strapp ing hi m
into an F- 100 with no engine and onl y 'fo ur
pointed' [th e rea r fuselage was connected to the
rest of the a ircraft by four bo lts wh il e the engine
was removed to be worked o n]. A second
gro und crew member held the starter A PU [aux-
ili ary power unitl hose undernea th the a ircraft.
When th e pil ot d id n 't ge t an y rpms he was a li t-
tl e uptight and reported us to the commande r.
Need less to say, he started do ing wa lk-a rounds
after that. T he F- lOO was a pl ane that a c rew
chief could ground ve ry easily. If a pil ot go t too
cocky we wo uld crack o ne of the hydrauli c 'B'
n uts in the whee l well [a bo rt ing the m ission].
Fortunate ly, we didn 't have to pull these nasty
pranks very often.
Dave Menard recounted the tale of a
maintainer who was a:
... sort of 'hippy G l' who wo re his squad ro n
patch o n the top of his fati gue hat instead of on
his shi rt. O ne day, a pil ot was pre- fl ighting a
Hun when he no ticed a pudd le of o il in the
afterburner ta ilpipe . The umber 6.5 bearing
was kn own to lea k o n th is a ircraft so th e pilo t
asked th e G I where th e oil was from. He stuck
hi s fi nger in to the pudd le, tasted it and ye ll ed ,
'Texas!' Boy, d id he ge t a rea ming fo r th at, but
it ro ll ed right off him .
 VIET AM WARHORSE

gunshi ps at the base, each of whi ch took

50,000 rounds on a daylight sor1ie.
O ne of the gunners on the Jet-ass isted
AC- 11 9K variant was Everett pro us who
had pr viously do ne a to ur at Bien Hoa in
1968- 69 on an F-100 weapo ns crew.

I was an Mj - l 'jammer' dri ver. Th e MJ -1 he ld

Pilot Thad Crooks with his napalm and M117-armed F-1000-56-NH 55-2914 of the
615th TFS at Phan Rang AB. On 18 June 1968. this aircraft was hit by small-arms fire,
seconds after it was airborne from Ph an Rang , caught fire and crashed . Its pilot, Maj
G. J. Butler ejected 10 miles from the base. Joe Vincent Coll ec tion
Guns, Bombs and Gas
Among the busiest peop le on a wartime F-
100 base were the armourers, feeding up to
200 ro und of yellow-ba nded HEP 20 mm
shells into each of the four magazines fo r
an F-l OOD's M-39E guns. As R ichard Such
of the 43l st Mun iti ons Sq uadro n put it:
O ur F- lOOs really liked to strafe. I noti ced a lot
of them that were shot up pretty bad ly but they
still made it in OK and went out again as soon
as th ey were repa ired. Th ey weren't the fastest
planes aro und but th ey d id what th ey were sup-
posed to do; th ey del ivered the goods right o n
target. Th e 20mm was sent to us in meta l ammo
cans. We received de li very from the A rm y and
from huge amph ibio us veh icl es ca lled LARKs
th at a lso delivered o ur napalm. O ur Munitio ns
Sq uad ron was asked to attend Commander's
C al l every month. The pilots sho wed movi es of
the ir attacks and I was quite impressed with the
accuracy of their strafing and bo mbi ng runs.
We had a grea t base at Tu y Hoa except in th e
evening when we got shelled. It see med like we
got hit every night but I never knew of anyone
getting hurt. We lived in meta l buildings and
when a mo rtar ro und went off it fe lt like yo u
were in a tin can. Th ere were hobby shops, a
mo vie th ea tre, a church and all kinds of sports
facili t ies and the sea was like bath water. The
hea t was so intense, ave raging l55° F o n th e
fli ght line where the F- lOOs were. Yo ur boots
wo uld literall y melt walking on th e PS P sur-
faces. Th e 20mm group worked the ir butts off
and I'm glad we put in so man y ho urs as th e t ime
went by much faster. The bo mb crews didn't
work ha lf the ho urs that we d id but they had
free time to think abo ut home . I couldn 't have
h andl ed that.
The ame armourer ' workload was signifi -
cantl y incr as d by th ir additional work
arming the four GAU-28/A guns in the
hard-worked 7l st SOS AC- 11 9G 'Shadow'
An F-1000-51 -NH atTuy Hoa AB with the 31stTFW before the application of tail codes.
Joe Vincent
the bomb in a cradl e and a good dr iver could
lin e up the bomb so pe rfec tl y tha t it went right
up to the F- IOO's pylon and cli cked into the
bo mb hooks. Most of the t ime we were never
rushed to load the planes. We had four-man
wea pons crews and were assigned five a ircraft
during a twel ve-ho ur sh ift. O nce the planes
we re gone ove r by maintenance we wo uld do
o ur thing. Th e armament electron ics had to be
checked first to make sure all the systems were
fun ctiona l. We 'prepped' and loaded the ca n -
nons, th en we loaded the bombs. The 'jammer'
was a very stable vehicl e, but it could slide on
we t pave ment if you drove too fast and hit the
brakes. We didn 't use them to load ex ternal fu el
ranks. Bomb preparation and load ing was as safe
as the crews do ing the work. Th e fu ses were
installed before the bombs were loaded , with
nose and tail fuses on a lmost all bombs. The
ra il -fuse ensured detonation if the nose fa iled. A
wire ran from the nose- fu se fi ns to the back of
th e bomb. Wh en th e pi lot dropped an armed
bo mb th is wi re wou ld pu ll o ur of the fu ses and
stay on th e a ircraft 's pylon, a llowing the fuses to
arm. If a bomb had to be dropped 'safe' for some
reason the bo mb wo uld release with the wire
attached and it wo uld not detonate .
O nce, wh en loading napa lm th e bo mb dump
sent us some outdated WP (wh ite phosph oro us
ign iter). T his ca me in sea led ca ns th at you
opened with a key li ke a can of mea t. I opened

94
 V I ETNAM WARHOR SE

o ne and it sta rted smoking. We had cans of

water always ava ilable so I dropped th e th ing in
and ca ll ed o ut to th e ordnance sq uad. A guy
picked the WP o ut of the water and sa id ,
'The re's nothing wrong with this', as it started
smo king aga in . T hey did n't do ubt o ur ca lls after
that. O n ano ther occas io n a ma intainer wa
backing a vehicle and hi t a bo mb square o n th e
no e. My crew was about fifty feet away and we
hit th e gro und, fo r a ll the good that wo uld have
done. The bomb fl ew off its stand and fell o n the
gro und but luckil y it wasn 't fused. O rdn ance
dropped thi way was a rare event but rath er
wo rrying, particul arl y where BU was con -
cern d as it was th ought to be unstabl e.

An incid nt th at t uck in Eve re tt's m mo-

ry invo lved a scra mb le by two Bien Hoa
ale rt pad F-1OOs .

The first F- 100 took off but the second got up to

take-off speed and d idn 't leave the gro und. The
Richard G. Such and his colleague Geno Randolph (seen here in July 1969) filled
pilo t dep loyed the drag chute with little effect.
endless F-100 ammunition cans with yellow-banded 20mm HEI in this 431st MMS
ext, h e dropped his tail hook as he went pa t
building at Tuy Hoa AB . Rich ard Such

The 416th TFS was allotted 'HE' tail codes as seen in slightly asymmetric format on F-1000-26-NA 55-3620. It also
carries a large 'Nite Owl' zap on its nose, a souvenir of a visit to Ubon RTAFB in September 1968.1n the background
is a 'BE' coded 390th TFS F-40 from the 366th TFW. AI Picciri llo via Da vid Men ard

95

Here, 20mm ammunition cans are being refilled in a Phu Cat AB revetment for VZ-coded F-1000 56-3307. By March
1971 many F-100Ds had the nose-mounted RHAW blister. Norm Taylor
us at about ! OOmph with on ly about a hundred
feet of runway beyond where we were stand ing.
The hook grabbed the chain arresting gear,
dragging each 1OOib link out to its limit. The
last stopping device was a net barrier across the
very end of the runway and that came apart like
nothing, but the F-100 stopped anyway. Being
the kind of people we were we went running to
the aid of the pi lot, instead of running for cover
since the plane was loaded with napalm. The
tyres were smoking and most of the rubber was
gone. Apparently, a maintainer had 'lost' a
screwdriver that had jammed the aircraft's con-
trol column, preventing take-off.
In addition to the ceaseless flow of
weaponry (j ust one squadron, the 120th
T FS, dropped 14.3 million pounds of
bombs, 5.6 million pounds of napalm,
423,000 rockets, 227,000lb (103,000kg) of
CBU and 1.8 million 20mm rounds in a
one-year deployment) the F-1 00 force
needed enormous quantities of JP-4 fue l.
Managing the aircrafts' fuel systems was
the job of specia lists like Bob Macavoy
VIETNAM WARHORSE
who was at Phan Rang in 1967-68.
O ur fuel systems shop was segregated due to the
hazardous nature of our work. O ur repair pad was
covered by AM-2 and when an aircraft was on
the pad for repair the area was roped off and no
one ever entered the area without our permis-
sion. We had two men dedicated to the repa ir of
drop tanks, which were constantly shot up, leak-
ing or had bad filler valves. I worked the mid-
night to noon shift six days a week. I spent most
of my time with an impact screwdriver and ham-
mer, pounding on the upper-surface wing screws,
which were notorious for leaking. A lert aircraft
were kept filled with fue l and when the sun was
high the fuel expanded and leaked out around
the screw heads. Sitting on the hot metal skin of
an F-100 in 100+ degrees temperature, swinging
a three-pound hammer, meta l to metal, was not
much fun.
The fuel system components on the F-100
were better than most of the aircraft I worked on
and there wasn't much trouble-shooting to do.
Drop tanks were the biggest pain, fo llowed by
the inaccess ible wing fue l pump and the main
96
fue l cell. It was kind of spooky to descend into
the air intake to disconnect the supports for this
cell. Most of the components such as filler
valves, dump valves and probes had long service
lives and rarely failed but it seemed that we
replaced the forward lower fuel cell most often
because it took the brunt of VC bullets. Almost
all my 'souven ir' bullets were removed from that
section. The lower aft fuel section caused the
biggest pain for crew chiefs because for us to
replace it they had to remove the tail section,
which they hated to do.
Check Engine, Brakes and
Tyres
Jay McCarthy was an F-100 crew chief at
Tuy Hoa from October 1968. He explained
the complexities of rear fuselage removal
to tackle engine repairs. It was a charac-
teristic the F- 100 inherited from the F-86
Sabre and shared with aircraft like the F-
84 and F-105.
 F-100A-15-NA 53-1572, used by AFFTC/AROC.
Pete r Sc hin ke lshoek Collection

RIGHT: Flying for the 31st FBW team at the October

1958 Fighter Weapons Meet at Nellis AFB was
F-1000-30-NA 55-3722. 1t carries a Mk 7 Blue Boy
nuclear shape and a counterbalancing fuel tank on
the opposite wing. Practice bombs are hung on its
centreline pylon. The Blue Boys lower fin extended
when the weapon was released. Col A. H. Johnso n

BELOW LEFT. F-100C-25-NA 54-2076 representing the

435th FBS, 479th FBW at a Fighter Weapons Meet.
USAF

BELOW RIGHT: Col Art Johnson took this photo of

wingman Capt Walt Bruce's F-1000 from his own
(FW-146), en route to the Nellis AAFB Meet in 1958.
Col A. H. Johnson
 A pair of 333rd FDS F-100Fs led by a 336th
FDS F-100C, ·all from the 4th FDW, which flew
F-100s from 1957 to 1960. Col D. Elmer via David
Menard

F-100F-15-NA 56-3923 in 306th TFS colours with its

own version of "The Firepower Team' marking on its
tail. The two-digit number system was unrelated to
serial numbers. F. Street via David Menard

Huns from the 474th TFW, displaying the markings

of the 478th TFS (F-1000-60-NA 56-2934) and 429th
TFS (F-100F-10-NA 56-3911 ). T. J. Cress via David
Menard
Complete with a personal shamrock crew panel,
this F-1000-1-NA (54-2130) was aiming for good luck
as a Fighter Meet contender. F. Street via David Menard

Early F-1000 deliveries to the 18th TFW lacked wing

fences, including 55-2837. This aircraft became an
early casualty of the Vietnam war when it crashed
during a night napalm attack on 31 July 1965 with
the loss of its pilot, 1 Lt Don Watson. F. Street via David
Menard

The 458th FBS's yellow version of the 506th FBW scheme

makes an eye-catching addition to F-1000-45-NH 55-2849.
Lt Col D. Nicho ls via David Mena rd
ABOVE: At Kadena AB, Okinawa the 18th TFW's 12th TFS flew F-100s from
1957, including F-100F-15-NA 56-4002. F. Street via David Menard

RIGHT: A gleaming 77th TFS F-1000-25-NA (55-3664) piloted by Dale

Hughes in July 1961. Col Tom Germscheid

F-1 000-46-N H 55-2798 of the 492nd TFS, 48th TFW

makes an interesting modelling possibi~ ity with its
weathered camouflag e. Pete r Schi nkelshoek Col lection
F-1000-51-NH 55-2901 Colleen, armed and ready to launch with a load of finned
napalm. Joe Vincent

ABOVE LEFT: With 180 mission markers covering its

nose, this 307th TFS F-1000 is armed ready for
another CAS sortie from Bien Hoa AB. In six months
during 1965 the unit flew 3,502 combat missions
without loss. USAF via David Menard

ABOVE: Dale Hughes edges F-1000 55-3652 closer to

Tom Germscheid's camera for this August 1961 por-
trait. Col Tom Germscheid

LEFT: F-1000 56-3264 has the unique purple squadron

decor of the 510th TFS, 405th FW, seen here at Clark
AB in 1961 . USAF via David Menard
ABOVE: A pair of 614th TFS F-1000s
returns to Phan Rang AB from an August
1970 combat mission. Unusually, the
nearer F-1000-31-NA carries a triple
ejection rack (TER). Sgt P. Seel, USAF via ·
David Menard

mr: A 'shotgun' (cartridge) start for a

308th TFS Emerald Knights F-1000-86-
NA 56-3456 in its revetment at Tuy Hoa
AB. Using 'litter' callsigns, the unit
deployed to the base in November 1966
from Bien Hoa AB, remaining at Tuy Hoa
until October 1970. T. B. Barnes via David
Menard
LEFT: F-100C-2-NA 53-1725 soaks up the Turkish sun as its pilot pre-
pares to taxi out. It has the 'bent' refuelling probe, arresting hook
and other High Wire updates. Saner Cap oglu

BELOW LEFT: f-1000-11-NA 54-2204 in the 1976 markings of EC.2/11 at

Toul Rosieres. This aircraft was moved to RAF Woodbridge BDRF
after retirement. Author's Co llectio n

BELOW:F-1OOA-20-NA 53-1697 with others from the RoCAF's 23rd

Squadron at Chiayi AB. Cla rence Fu

G-782 (F-1000-40-NH 55-2782) spenttime with the 405th FBW and

31st TFW before joining Esk. 730 in Denmark in August 1961 . 1t
remained with this squadron for most of its Danish career
before a further transfer to the Turkish Air Force in 1981, where it
completed its thirty years of military service in May 1986. David
Menard Coll ection

Groundcrew at Phan Rang AB check a 'cart start' on 'VZ 923' of the 615th TFS. Car-
tridge burnout time was 13-20 seconds and only two such attempts could be made
within a 60-minute period. Joe Vincent Collection
It would come as no surprise to any of us when
arriving to begin our shift to find one or more
birds with their ass-ends removed for any num-
ber of reasons. The ones that galled me most
were those incidents when an over-zea lous pilot
would hard-land his F-100 and push the tail skid
through the aspirator in the tail-pipe. Auto-
matic engine change! That meant aft section
removal and a case of beer for the crew chief of
the plane from the pilot for causing the damage.
So while the crew ch ief (the guy who got all the
day-shift glory, very little maintenance, all the
take-off and landing work and his name paint-
ed on the canopy below the pilot's) is throwing
down the Budweisers back in the hooch, we
night owls fix his plane ! Taking off the aft sec-
t:iOntOo\a few guys and it involved unbolting
( the fuselage at four points. We had to remove or
uncouple hydrau lic lines, electric cables [via
quick-disconnect cannon plugs] and other
assorted wires. Then the engine hoist would be
bolted on to the top of the fuselage near the sep-
aration point and it would be adjusted to lift or
lower the engine when the aft fuselage was
removed. Then the engine was worked on.
The aft section was then lowered on to a
specially designed trolley fitted with
hydraulic jacks to ensure clean separation
from the forward fuselage .
Any engine change required the jet to be taken
to the trim pad for initial testing after the engine
was re- installed. Initial engine run-up was under-
VIETNAM WARHOR SE
taken with the aft end still off the plane in case
the engine didn't check out at that stage. If all
went well the F-100 would be towed back to the
revetment area and the aft section would be re-
installed by the same bunch of 'grunts' who
removed it. This time the labour was a little more
problematic and took longer. Then the aircraft
would go back to the trim pad for a final check.
We kept our fingers crossed because if it didn't
check out- off came the rear section again. We
got pretty good at this game to the extent that
each of us became a specialist on an area of the
aft section. Mine was the right, upper panels.
John Clarity:
... pulling the aft section was fairly straightfor-
ward and almost fun because it was impressive
to break the plane in two and because it meant
working with a group of chums on a light-heart-
ed, predictable job. It could be a laugh. Engine
o il leaks could sometimes be stopped by 'chug-
ging' the engine through compressor sta lls
which might re-seat the bearing sea ls.
Engine maintenance occas ionally in-
volved dealing with afterburner nozzles
that didn't open far enough for an effect ive
'light up'. This caused a regular post-flight
check item known as 'keying the eyel ids'.
Jay McCarthy:
This was done in the fuel pits after the pilot tax-
ied in. Prior to engine shu t down we'd pop off a
97
small panel that was part of the huge belly panel
beneath the plane and we had to reach up and
locate a 'key', several inches long, in the engi ne
bay. Turning th is key opened the afterburner
eyelids and we did this a few times to ensure
proper operat ion and also after an engine
change on the trim pad. With the engine set at
100 per cent military thrust the eye lids would be
keyed and what a noise it would make! You
could hear the thrust differential both before
and after 'keying' and it was always done just
seconds before the engine technician hit after-
burner.
The large belly panel (panel 48) was
attached to the tail-hook mount.
'Installing it', H ank Valentine recalled,
'required what seemed like a thousand
screws and it was a pain'. It was also an area
where the 'fixers' had to deal with leaks
from the aircraft's systems. John C larity:
The more the aircraft sat idle the worse the
insidious leaks became. If you flew the machine
every day you would experience fewer of these
problems. They appeared near the ma in belly
panel around the gang drain where fluid drains
from various systems were grouped for exit from
the aircraft. Usually the leaks wou ld stop while
the engine was running and seep slow ly while it
was parked. However, if a leak continued in
flight it would develop an ugly series of grey
streaks along the underside of the aircraft,
which was as about as attractive as a four-year
old with a snotty nose. This stain ing required
the crew chief to chase the ev idence constantly
from the underside of the F-100 with his handy
rag and JP-4, a very ava ilable solvent on the
line. We were quick to call the plane out of ser-
vice if there was a potential mechanical prob-
lem, but prior to this a crew chief would strug-
gle to keep his ship as tidy as possible as a matter
of pride.
Apart from attention to its hydraulic sys-
tems, maintainers generally found the F-
1OO's brakes and tyres the most persistent
cause of furrowed brows. According to
Hank Valentine: 'Sometimes you would
wonder if the brakes would ever cool
enough to h andle. They were made of
magnesium and felt as if they would ignite
if used h eav ily'. Richard Newell, a crew
chief with the 113th TFW ANG, found
himself working at Phu Cat on 355th TFS
aircraft from July 1968:
.. . we landed at 3pm, were shown to our barracks
and reported for work at 6am the next day. Our
activated G uard troops (who had operated F-

A napalm-armed 308th TFS F-1000 leaves its revetment at Tuy Hoa AB . 56-3287
crashed on 30 June 1970 after its pilot lost control during a CAS mission and ejected.
David Menard Collection
t OO /F models with the I 2 1st TFS or LJ 9 th
TF ) had never bee n used w the F- 1000 . It did-
n't ta ke long for them to fi gure out the cl iff; r-
ences: mo re accumulators, d ifferent ma in land-
ing gea r doors, fl aps and cockpit, but the a ircraft
were in pretty bad sh ape when we got there.
A tyre change was a bea r to do on an F- 100
as you had to d isassemble the a nti-skid and take
off the brake to ge t to the tyre. T he brake had
to be one degree off centre when you re-assem-
bled it and if it wasn 't qu ite righ t it wouldn't go
ba k toge ther. Many a c rew chi ef c ursed the
brakes and tyres on the F- 1oor
John C larity:
Tyre changes could take a fast mechanic twen-
ty-five minutes but many mere morta l would
truggle for almost two hours. Th e brake
required remova l and th e brake hoses and
wiring had to be threaded though the axle.
C hanging a Boe ing 747 tyre was ea y when
stacked up to an F- 1oor
Tyre hang s in Vietnam were more com-
mon because of the frequ ency of fli ghts;
two missions a day for mo t aircraft. Jay
McCarth y:
... changing an F- 100 tyre beca me an art form
and one guy could do it with no problem. A ll
you needed was an axl e jack to get the tyre off
the ground. T he toughest part was removing th e
V I ETN AM WA RH O RSE
brake assembly, whic h wa qui te heavy. Bu t we
had fun and co ntest to ee who could comp lete
a change in the shortest t ime. A n ything to pass
the t ime!
N ose-gea r tyre changes were rare. Th e ma in
gear tyres had a seri es of d im ples th roughout
their surface, indented in to the ru bber about a
quarter-inch. W hen th e tyre wore clown so the
d imple was gone it was close to tyre-changing
t im e. As they rea ll y started to wea r, red fa bri c
thread ing would appea r in the worn areas. At
times , especially at n ight, you could co lour the
red fa bri c over with a bl ack crayon and maybe
th e pil ot would ge t foo led on hi wa lk-a round.
This fake-out could get another couple of land-
ings out of the plane but it could also get you a
ton of troub le if d iscovered. I heard that state-
side F- LOOs had main-gea r tyre changes after a
set numbe r of landing , but not in 'N am.
N o doubt the crew who named 355th TF
F-1000 55-3 749 Blood, Sweat and Tires did
o with feeling! On arrival in Vietnam, Jay
was ass igned to the night maintenance
shift for the 306th TF , coded' 0'.
We were picked up a t our hooches every nigh t
at about 1745 to b gin a shi ft that would take us
to 0600 the fo llowing morni ng. Twe lve hours
on , rwelve off, six clay a week. N igh rs on the
fli gh t lin e were normall y hot, steamy and often
in monsoon cond itions. Turni ng an F- 100
around was a breeze. W hen I first got to Tuy Hoa
98
I pent about a week on th e day sh ift . A fter a
mi sion the pi lots would taxi their plane d irect·
ly to the fu el pits; h uge JP-4-fill ed bladder .
Hav ing single-point refu ell ing made the refu-
ell ing effort easy. A ll you had to do was hook up
the nozzle and let th e fue l fl ow. The drop tanks
had to be topped off by hand .
A post-fl igh t in pecti on was pretty much the
ame a a pre- fl ight and dependi ng on the
ex tent to wh ich the pilot found problems with
the plane you'd put her back to bed in the revet-
ments. For ma intenan ce- related engine starts
we weren't allowed to use the starter cartridges
but were forced to use the 'Ma Deuce ' [MA -2
A PU]. Engine run-up checks were conducted
on a norm al bas is by the crew chief and pilot
and w ulcl consist of a seri es of hand-s ignals to
check nose- whee l steering, land ing lights,
brake , fl aps, speed-brake, fligh t contro ls etc.
W heneve r I could I voluntee red for A lert
duty. Two F- IOOs were normall y 'cocked and
hot' in their revetmen ts so that when the A lert
horn ounded , all th e pilot had to do was jump
in th e cockpit, tart the engine, taxi and take
off. They were fu ll y loaded with 'ho t' [armed]
ordnanc Armed A ir Police guarded those
planes. A lert status reli ved you from the
steady, knu ckl e-busting work do ne n ight after
nigh t and afforded the opportu nity to stay in the
air-condi tioned A lert shack, pilots on one side
and crew chiefs on th e oth er. A t midnight a
cook ca me to make us breakfas t. Th ere wa no
doubt that the A lert horn would sound: it was
just a quest ion of 'when'.
For Dick N well , at Phu Cat with the
'HP' -coded 355th TF , the day u ually
began with a check on the miss ion and the
name of the pilot.
This was always n ice to know as with some
pil ot you could always guaran tee they would
find omethi ng to 'write up' about your aircraft.
You would spend hours trying to find the prob-
lem and it ended up be ing 'between the h ead-
set'. But as crew chief you could never ay the
pilot wa wrong! You h ad to check it out until
there was no doubt in your mind that the a ir-
c raft was afe for fli gh t.
N ext you would check the fuel load req uired
fo r the mission and the weapons to be loaded.
Most of all you would check your take-off t imes
and how many time you would have to turn the
a ircraft around during t he sort ie period . Before
you could start your pre-fl ight (PR) you h ad to
get your too l kit, ' intake sui t' and tyre gauge ,
al o a cloth to c lea n the canopy and some lean-
er to go with it. Rags were al o needed to wipe
down the aircraft before fli gh t. Th e Ba ic Post-
Fli gh t (BPO ) and PR were norm all y completed

A red fin-tip and crew name panel plus 'CP' codes identify this as 531st TFS Ramrods F-lOOD 55-2881, which was assigned
to Dleg Kormarnitsky in 1970. David Menard Collection
together. Th ere was servicing to do a lo ng with
th e inspect io n includ ing oxygen , tyres, accu-
mul ators, etc . If there was nothing that needed
repair you could ex pect to spend two ho urs or
more ge tting the a ircraft ready for fl ight.
~we had the pilot's wa lk-around, strap-
ping him in and starting up. T he crew chi ef
checked fli ght contro ls and ta ke-off trim , looked
for leaks and made sure all panels were secure.
Befo re tax i the pilot showed his pins to indicate
that the seat and canopy were armed . T hen it
was off to th e ' last cha nce' inspectio n at the end
of the runway to check again for lea ks, loose pa n-
els and cuts in the tyres befo re rake-off.
Jack Engler's F-l OOD (55 -3806) gave him
li ttle tro uble as its crew chief.
This airplane fl ew two o r three combat sorti es
per day whil e it had my name under the wind -
scree n. The onl y time it missed two days was
when it was in the paint hanga r getting a new
ca mo uflage coat. lt was unusua l for an F- 100 to
V I ET NA M WA RH O RSE
fl y so many 'wr ite- up free' times. So me minor
d iscrepanc ies ca me up but the 'gigs' were fixed
d uring post-fli gh t inspection . She was fuell ed ,
loaded with ordnance, cocked and ready fo r
anoth er mission .
ne of th items o n the pre-flight list fo r
pilots was a thorough check of the wing
slats. Maj Dick G arrett:
T hose aerodynami ca ll y- retrac ted slats had a
nasty habit of deve lopi ng sticky ro ll ers, caus ing
one wing to have an ex tended slat and the oth er
wing to have the sla t retracted . Thi s usua lly
happened at slow ai rspeed (or high g's) and high
angle of attack and th e Hun would snap roll in
the d irect ion of the re tracted slat.
Battle Dress
On of the more obvious signs of the F-l OO's
ass umption of a war ro le was the adoption
99
ofT. 0. 1-1-4 outh East Asia camouflage
from late 1965 onwards. om of th first
camouflag d airc raft wer for the Sl Oth
TFS . They arri ved at Bien H oa in early
N ovember 1965 and absorbed that unit's
silver-finished F-l OOs as we ll. Super Sabres
had entered battle in the ove rall ilve r
acryli c lacquer that replaced the bare
meta l scheme of early F- l OOA/Cs. The sil-
ver scheme was similar to the finish app lied
to TAC's F-105 flee t in 1962 under Proj ect
Look Alike. It was mixed fro m a gallon of
clear lacquer to a ga llon of thin ner and
tw lve ounces of alu minium pas te. The
intention was to seal the a ircraft's seams,
preventing mo isture from seeping into
e lectro nics o r causing corrosion . 'Vietnam
camouflage' used two shades of matt gree n
(F 3407 9 and FS3 41 02 ) with tan
(FS3021 9 ) in an upper-sULface pattern and
light grey (FS3 6622 ) o n the undersides.
S mall black se rials were carried on the ver-
tical stabilize r as the o nly distinguishing

feat ure, but from 1967 two- lett r codes
id entified each Wing by a common first
lette r and a econd I tter to d note the
squadr n (for example, ' E' fo r the Sl Oth
TF of the 3 rd TFW). 12in (30cm) d igits
showed the ' las t three' of the serial.
Many PACA F F-l OOs a lso acqu ired new
nicknames on the ir noses, restoring a little
of the colour that was lost with the
rem va l of the original squad ron schemes
unde r the TAC regulation 66-12 in 1960
and in USA FE with the introd uction of
ca mouflage . A t Lakenheath, where the
last sil ver F-lOOD (55-2807) was camou-
flaged in March 1968, John C larity felt
that th wa rpa int was a retrograde step
ae theti ally:
When I acqu ired 'my' a ircraft (55 -2834) he wa
meta ll ic with the squadron emblems front and
back; a rea l eyeful. Sh e was pretty flashy. Late r
they ca moufl aged her and she lost much of her
grandeur. he looked Iike a piece of G I issue, all
business and about as am acti ve as a jeep.
The pr va l nt vi w of nickname and
nose-art va ri d acco rding to th ta tes of
th wing comm ander and 7th AF po lit ics
o n the subj ect. Man y names had qu ite
complex origins. For examp le , Jack
Engler's Rotunda neaker deri ved fro m a
slightly ove r-weight, sneaker-wearing g -
go dance r in a New York clu b. 'Th e name
bounced around in ide my head and ome-
how got stenc illed o n the starboard side of
the nose of 55-3806. O n th e port sid e
appeared Dee's Delight, de ri ved fro m the
wife of the pilot , Maj 'Kas' Kastilan , bu t
this was replaced by a repeat of Rotunda
Sneaker after th e Kas t il ans separate d ur-
ing hi to ur of duty.
Nose-a rt in Vietnam was actua ll y made
po sible initi all y because squ adrons on
TOY had a deg ree of se lf- management
denied to them while th ey we re under
Wing-ba eel contro l in the U A. While
U A F po li cy fo rbade ind ivi dual markings
under this system , o nce a sq uadro n had a ir-
c raft spec ifica ll y ass igned to it fo r a T OY
th ose a ircraft and personnel came under
the contr l of the qu adron comm and er.
O ne f th fir t F-100 unit t dep loy to
outh As ia wa th 48 1 t TFS whose com-
mande r, Lt o l 'H a l' Comstock, e lected to
d corate his F-100 with his wartime ki lls
and skull no e-a rt. O n arri va l at Tan on
N hut inJun 1965 he a igned each of h is
ighteen F-100s to ind ividual pilots {with
o m of the thirty pilots sharing a Hun)
and des igned a gree n triangular marking
VIETNAM WAR HORSE
/ I
/ I
The pilot and crew chief of 56-3379 of the 352nd TFS on 10 March 1971 during a brief
deployment to Phu Cat AB . Ginny Lee, the crew chiefs young lady, could only be
honoured in this covert manner within the Wing's 'artwork rules' at the time, exiling
personal decoration to wheel wells, panel interiors and other 'invisible' locations.
Norm Taylor
for th a ircrafts' tail . Capt 'Chad ' Dvor- by a irbo rne fo rward air cont rol! r (FA -
chak th n got 1 t Ltjim Kempton to paint A ), ofte n to dri ve back enemy atta ks on
Th e Shadow on hi s F- 100's nose, prompting troops in contact (TI C).
Kempton to name his own a ircraft Lickity A n FA would mark the intended ta r-
St)lit. 1st Lt Peter Va nde rhoef helped Jim get with a smoke rocket and gui de in a pa ir
Kempton with th artwo rk and then of F- 1OOs fo r bomb, napalm or BU pa -
named the a ircraft h hared with 1st Lt es, possibly requesting on ly one item of
Ge ra ld alo me l retty Penny (after o rdn ance on each pa o that a iming or-
alo me's wi~ ). Th two pilots extend ed recti ons could be made. trafin g passes
th ir art ga ll ry to oth er squ adron F-100 were then customarily ca lled in, with th e
includ ing Wh y No t?, T he Mormon Meteor , FA reporting results. Ass uming th at no
The Back Forty, Mr. Magoo, Hot Scuff, da mage was susta ined by the fighters, th e
Casanova, Snoopy, My Little Margie and mi ss ions wo uld th en conclude with a fa ir-
others. Severa l other Vi tnam-based F-100 ly sho rt ho mewa rd fligh t and a de briefin g.
units conti n ued the tracl it i n. Th e return journ ey occas iona lly prov ided
the opportun ity for a li ttle va riety, as Maj
Dick Ga rrett re membered:
Big Guns
O ne of th e o lder heads (actuall y a new major)
Wh ile the new paint- chem was perhaps attac hed to the 4 16th TFS took me under h i
an aestheti c d isappo in tm en t in Europe it wing and liked to use left-over fue l at the end of
idea ll y suited the 'mud mov ing' role that a trike miss ion to teach me some of the T h un -
F-100s were required to pe rform in Viet- de rbirds manoeuvres out over the South C h ina
nam. O f the 360,2 3 c mbat sorti e fl own ea . He was a fellow by th e name of Tony
by Huns (more than any other type and Mc Pea k [formerl y a Thunderbi rds so lo demon-
more than the type's illustrious ancestor, stration pilot and later USAF C hi ef of raft] .
the P-5 1 in WW ll ) the majo rity were ve ry
simi lar 'tax i rank' missio n in support of imil ar miss ions were flown by nu me rou
ground troops in South Vietn am o r Lao . U M and U A F F-4 Phan to ms bu t they
Pil ots were usually guided to the ir targets we re considerab ly outnumbered by th
100
 V I ET N A M WA RH O RSE

r gular airbo rne arti llery prov ided by the

F-100 force. A lthough the miss ions were
g nerall y over the less well-defended
Route Packs they were far from safe. Of the
242 Huns lost, 189 were shot down over
South Vietnam or Laos. O f these, 11 6
went down during 1968-69, the 'bombing
pause' yea r o ver N o rth Vietnam.
Joe Vincent f1 w 280 combat sorti s
with the 309th TFS from October 1969 at
Tuy Hoa. The coastal base had its own
inherent prob lems due to a continuous
25kt cro wind over th runway, ome-
t imes from the north-we t but ve ring to
the oppos ite direct ion.

We had nine or ten Huns run off the sid e of the

runway or get a 'wingti p' on land ing. O ne [1 st
Lt Roger Oisrud's 'S O 392' Turtle Mountain
Express ] had the nose complete ly torn off wh en
it ran off th e run way immed iately after touch -
clown and dug into the sa nd. An oth er ('S P 782'
fl own by Capta in Co leman of th.e 355th TFS]
F-1000-31-NA 55-3806 of the 90th TFS, 3rd TFW ('CB' codes) in 1969, named Rotunda
Sneaker. On the nose door is a squadron Pair o' Dice emblem. Ja ck Eng le r
was blown sid eways off the run way as he fl ared
fo r rouch -down. He went round agai n onl y to
get beh ind the power curve and in to the class ic
'Sabre dance', but pan-caked in on its be ll y.

Pretty Penny was shared by 1st Lt Jerry Salome

!left). husband of the real Penny, and Pete
Vanderhoef, seen here with their crew chief.
Sharing a plane was quite usual for junior officers.
Pete recalled doing the artwork with some 'black
spray paint, 3in masking tape and a 2in pocket
knife to cut the outlines·. This Hun survived until
21 May 1967 when it was hit during a fifth napalm Another example of artwork by Pete Vanderhoef (left) was the leprechaun painted
pass on a 531st TFS mission near Bien Hoa AB . on an F-1000 flown by Capt Paul Cohagan, the 481st TFS Maintenance Officer.
Peter Vanderho ef Peter Vand erh oe f

707
 VIETNA M WAR HORSE

~05360~
--

Lt Col Harold Comstock fires 2.75in FFARs at a target in the Mekong Delta. This aircraft, 55-3603, was lost in a strafing attack on 6
November 1966 after passing to the 416th TFS at Bien Hoa AB . USAF via Peter Vanderhoef

Joe watched the Hun 'dancing' do wn Run -

way 3L for 4,000ft (1 ,220m ) 'with his
afterburn er blowing a plum e of sand h igh
in the a ir. It wa la loming back and forth
li ke an Everg lad s water kier'. apt Don
Coleman was lucky in th at his ta il -hook
lodged in a ho le in the PSP matting and
dragged the a ircraft dow n on to the ground
befo re it could crash into the sea. 'H e
squ eez d th contro l tick so hard that he
depressed th e trigger and got gun -ca mera
fi lm of the las t 150ft of the slide.' Joe and
other pilots watched the wild ride on fi lm
later, noticing the F-l OO's pito t boom
'fl opping abo ut like a wet nood le'.
A lthough both pil ots and the ir aircraft
were recove red, the ' abre dance' was a
hazard associated with the F-l OO's sensitiv-
ity to control inputs at low a irspeed that
'Har Comstock's 55-3603 with the skull nose art and seven Luftwaffe kill s, as
was by no means confined to less experi -
di spl ayed on hi s P-470 during WWII , plus 117 Vietnam war mission marks. Pete enced pilots and it occurred from the ea rli-
Vanderhoef painted the skull and groundcrew added the iron crosses on this former est stag s of F-100 fl ying. Lee H oward wit-
Thunderbirds F-1000. Pete r Vanderhoef nessed one 'class ic abre dance' fro m a

102

Pete Vanderhoef's 'own' F-1000-91 -NA 56-3285 Pretty Penny, armed with a pair of Bull pup missiles.
Peter Vand erhoef
d istance of 200-3 00ft (60-90m) while in
training at Luke A FB that resulted in the
death of an Instructor Pilot (I P) with 5,000
ho urs exp ri ence. The phenomenon co uld
be acci.deotally induced by over-rotation
on take-off causing a stall, or by in adequate
po~e r on final approach resul ting in an
inabili ty to acce lerate without losing
h igh t. In e ither case, th e aircraft's angle of
attack suddenl y increased and it osc illated
from side to side in a macabre, balletic
motion before stalling and crashing. At
least two other losses were attri buted to
pi lot erro r on landing: F- l OOD 56-33 77 at
Tuy H oa and 56-3283 at Bien H oa, killing
the pilot. Experienced pilots could be
caugh t out by the aircraft's challenging
low-speed handling, perhaps at the end of
an xhaust ing mission. Capt James V. Daw-
son was returning from a morning strike on
16 July 1969 and executed a 'go around' at
Tuy Hoa while his wingman landed first.
A ll was well as he began his turn into final
approach with land ing gear down but he
V I ET A M WA RH ORSE
had to increase his bank to a teep angle to
avoid overshooting the run way. The
mobile contro l officers adv ised him to 'take
it aro und aga in ' as they watched heavy
exhaust smoke appea r from his aircraft,
ind ica ting a sharp powe r advance. At the
same t ime the a ircraft's right wing dropped
as the aircraft stalled, the canopy was jetti-
soned and the F-100 plunged in to the sea a
mil e off the end of the runway before Daw-
on could eject.
Weather was a fac to r in some accidents
and conseq uentl y in shaping tac tics for
pilots like Joe Vincent:
We fl ew almost ex clu ive ly two-shi p m iss ions
d uring my tOur. That was d ue tO a te rrible acci-
den t recovering a four-sh ip du ring a heavy ra in -
stOrm and a weather d ivert. T he 'fix' was tO fl y
two 2-sh ip tO target , ten minutes or so apart.
That evolved into end ing just two-sh ips.
The acciden t cost th live of two N ew
Mexico A G F-l OOC pilots, Maj Bobby
103
-- ~-=~:::=:--==::::- .
. · ·~
I
N ld and apt M itchell Lane, wh pr b-
ably co llided when d iverted from Tuy H oa
to amh Ranh Bay on 4 January 1969.
In Maj Dick G arrett's est imation , the
be t miss ions were fro m the a lert pad in
support of troops in con tact. Th e w re
very often with a ' oft' load of 'snake and
nape' (S nakeye M K 82 S E and napalm).
Usua lly some of o ur grunts were ca lling for AS
beca u e they were tak ing fire, o theta k wa tO
get a good 10 on the bad guys' positio n, separate
the good from the bad and ro ll in with your
'shake 'n bake' ord nance combo with as many
passes as fuel and ordnance wo uld support. I've
seen t imes when he licopter FA wo uld fl y righ t
ove r the enemy position, getting the sh *t shot
o ut of h imse lf, just tO drop a smoke grenade on
their c ran iums so that we could have a good
'mark'. Th e 0-2 and 0- l Bi rd Dog FACs we re
no less resourcefu l and daring when it ca me tO a
Tl situat ion. I'd use every drop of ga l had tO
stay on stati on as long as l could in order to help
these guys ou t, the n divert to the neare t U

airfield . T he opportunity d idn't prese nt itself
often , but wh en it did you knew that your plane
ticket over to 'Nam had just pa id for itse lf.
Inevitab ly, the nature of the war mea nt
that man y of the targets wer imprec i
'suspected' arms clumps, supply co ncentra-
tio ns or ve hicl pa rks and th e rea l results
of F-100 strike were often impossible to
confirm on the ground . In many cases the
main damage may well hav b en to tr e
(F-l OOD 55 - 681 rece ived th ironi c ni ck-
name Tree urgeon) but for pil ots the a im
was profe sionalism in de li vering their
ordnance exactly where req uired.
After his tour with U AFE, Don
chmenk jo ined the 308th TF Emerald
Knights, usually fl ying 55-3580 named
Mary Jane (after his wife ) on o ne side and
arol Anne on the other. He flew 215 mis-
sions without taking a single hit from the
opposition, though there were some near
misses. O n one mission over Lao , Don was
giving another pi lot a Fli ght Lead ch ck:
After we ca me off the ta rget the FA C asked if
we had ti me to check out a truck that he had
spotted . ow, we were told that any uuck th at
you found in th e clea r in day light was probab ly
put the re to sucker you in to a trap. I didn 't say
anyth ing as the Fligh t Lead accepted the
requ est. O n his fir t pass , sure enough a quad 50
AAA site opened up on him. I looked back to
where I though t th e gun wou ld be, and there it
was. Th e truck was indeed a trap a nd we used
th e rest of our ammunition on the gun.
O n another mission over Laos we arri ved
over th e target, a barge that wa anchored in
the Mekong at a bend in the river. As we arrived
another fl igh t of F- 1OOs we re sti ll on th e targ t
so we went into an orbit to allow them to finish.
I not iced what appeared to be puffy clouds in
the area. After the FAC briefed u I a ked h im
for the altitude of th e cloud that I had
observed . He rep lied, ' Do you mea n the fl ak
bursts?' I was so flu stered that I forgo t to arm the
prope r switches and th e bomb didn't re lease on
my fi rst pass. I saw the gunfire on that pass:
streak of whi te coming up from the gun, go ing
righ t past th e canopy. This d idn 't make the sec-
ond pass any eas ier and I saw the wh ite strea ks
aga in. I lea rned that severa l days late r another
F- LOO was shot down in th e a rea. The pil ot
descri bed the tactic that he had used and it was
exactl y what I had done. You might ay that the
gunners wen t to schoo l on me.
un could b hidden in the most inac-
ces ib le places. O n an August 1966 mi s-
io n, four 612th TFS F-l OODs from Phan
V I ETNA M WA RHOR SE
Rang were directed by a FAC to hit a posi-
ti on in a tree- line near a Vietnamese vil-
lage. A s the first two Huns dived to lay
C BU -2A in the trees they came und r
heavy fire from th e vill age into which the
VC had retrea ted when th ey sighted the
fighters. While th e second e lement of
F-100s dropped 75 0 lb napa lm ca niste rs on
th e pos iti on, the FAC asked permiss ion to
trik the village and in particular a solid -
ly built church fro m which most of the
AAA was seen to rise. Despite continued
failure to get permission fro m th e loca l
Province C hi ef to attack this unusual
AAA emplac ment, the FA r luctantl y
cl ar d the Huns for strafing passes th at
fin all y silenced the gunners. Don
Schmenk ex plained that in th ese relative-
ly low-risk areas:
... tactics were at the d iscretion of the Fl igh t
Lead , depending on the threat. We could do
pretty much what we wanted, based on the sit-
uation at the ta rget, most of wh ich were 'sus-
pected enemy locations'. To spread out the
im pact we made mul t ipl e passes . 'Out of coun ·
try', which in our case was usuall y Laos, we usu·
ally limited ourse lves to two passes and onl y
strafed if th ere were troops in contact. ' In coun·
try' (South Vietnam) we used 30-degree d ive
bomb pas e ; 'out cou ntry' we used 45-degree
dives. Mo t of us considered ambodia the
same as Vietnam fo r tact ics.
Cambodian Incursion
O n one of the ea rliest miss io ns into Cam-
bod ia , atta king an ammuniti on dump,
Don discovered that the defences were
unex pected ly form idable:
The FA rold us rhar there were no bad guys in
the area so we fl ew pretty much a 'gunnery par-
tern ', dropping a bomb at a rime and making
severa l passes with the guns. O n rhi pa rticular
day my a ircraft wa ca rrying an aft -looking cam-
era, the sort th at rook movie pictures of where
you had been. It was the onl y time I ca rri ed such
a ca mera. everal days later when the film was
bei ng put on to my persona l roll of film the
techni c ian stopped me and asked me wh at were
those strea ks that he kept see ing on th e fi lm. I
looked at it and could ee noth ing o he sent the
fil m over to Inte ll igence. They returned it later
and sa id the strea ks were B-40 rockers, one of
whi ch passed between th e tra iling edge of my
wi ng and the leadi ng edge of the horizontal sta·
bil izer, a distance of about 8ft. They also count·
ed some th irty to fo rty other rockets that were
704
shot at me on that pass. I ca n't hel p wondering
how many other tim es th is sort of thing hap-
pened and I never knew about it.
Lee Howard arri ved in Vietnam in Sep-
tember 1970, ju t after Pr idem Nixon
autho rized clande t ine bo mbing of Ca m-
bodia to attack the enemy's 'safe have n
and mas ive tore house, all secure from US
air attack'. H e was impres eel by the oppor-
tunities this offer d:
We got so me grea t targets over th ere and the o ld
heads were ecstatic. They fi nall y got to h it
something of substance instead of bu ring trees.
Th ere were no big guns over there, it was most·
ly sma ll -arms fire wh ich , of cour e, could cook
your goose with the 'go lden BB' but by and large
the AAA threa t didn 't create a problem earl y
on .
Ou r norma l loads were napa lm and high -drag
[Snakeye] Mk 82s. The most interest ing and
demandi ng miss ion I fl ew (other than haul ing
slick Mk 82s at nigh t, wo rking und er fl ares ) was
one with a BU load , fl own in conjunction
with the Ranch 1-land.s . We laid C BU down
ahead of the - 123 Bs that were de-foliating
[spray ing herb icide]. The obv ious purpose was
to keep the sma ll-arms fi re at bay wh ile the
' 123s lumbered through , low and slow. T he tim-
ing and co-ordination of the CBU wa extreme-
ly im portant.
We strafed on almost every miss ion , espec ial-
ly in Cambodi a and the Hun wa an exce ll ent
platform if the guns didn 't jam. W hen work ing
th e tra il up in Laos and 'bad guy country' we se l-
dom used the guns as we were speci fi ca ll y cut·
ring roads. O nl y on a A R mi ion or an unusu-
al eventwouldweger'down and d irry ' uprhere.
It was generall y 'one pass and haul ass'.
C BU offered the chance of wide ordnance
cove rage aga inst an imprec i ely located
target and delay d act ion munitions to
keep heads down wh ile th e F-lOOs contin-
ued to wo rk a target. Joe Vincen t:
We usuall y deli ve red the CBU-49 ju t like a Mk
117 (7501b) bomb , u ing a 30-40-degree d ive
bo mb pass. It had radar fu ing and th e clamshell
casing would ope n we ll above th e ground , sca t-
tering th e bomb lets out in a 'doughn ut' pattern .
Sometimes we would deli ver two in ripple pairs
mode with a half-second between them o that
th e doughnu t patterns wou ld ove rlap for com-
pl ete coverage of the target.
By that stage of the war an increa ing
number of CAS sorties were being allotted
to F-4 Phantoms but FACs often prefe rred

Bien Hoa AB, with F-100Dsinop en revetments and shelters under construction to
protect them from VC rocket and mortar attacks. Bruc e Gold
F-100 pilots for tackling prec ision strikes
becau e they were able to d r p from lower
altitudes for greater accuracy. Lee Howard
reca lled how 'We prided ourse lve on
be ing far more acc urate than the F-4 "sta-
ti on wagon" fo lks. We often worked with -
in 50 metres of "friend li es" and occas ion -
ally closer'. The F-4's prod igio us appetite
for fue l, howeve r, was a d isadvantage.
O n o ne mi ss io n we were abo ut 285 m il es fro m
o ur Ph an Rang base and ho ldi ng to get o n a
targe t 60 m il es off the end of th e runway a t Da
Nan g, h o me of th e 366rh T FW G unfighters F-
4Es. We were abo ut third in lin e fo r the trike,
pati entl y wa iting and wa tch ing our fu e l ga uges
when a fli ght of G unfighters checked in
demanding to be pur o n th e sa me tr ike
beca use they were 'Texaco' [sho rt of fuel] .
After a ll, they had a ll of 60 m il e to go to ge t
ho me! Th at sa me fl ight fea tured a fo ur-shi p of
VNAF [5 l 6rh FS) A -3 7B Dragon fli es whi c h
ca me over th e ta rge t and d id a 'mi n i B-52 sky
puke' righ t th ro ugh o ur ho lding pattern. Fo ur
stic ks of Mk 82s through o ur fo rma ti o n defi -
n ite ly go t o ur attenti o n !
Flares and Flames
In the ceaseless war aga in t the movement
of troop and materi als along the
labyrinthine Ho hi Minh Tra il compl ex,
7th AF attempted to d vise better way of
V I ETNAM WARHORSE
interdicting those ro utes at night when
most move ment too k place. While elec-
tronic se nso r and infra-red (IR) imag ing
were rap id ly evo lving, the sta ndard
method used by USAF, US and USMC
pilots was to illuminate potentia l ta rgets
with flares. U sing the SUU-25 series, a
500 lb (225kg) d ispense r ho lding eight
Mk 24 flares, F-100 'day attack' pilots
would rei ase the 25 lb flare ove r th e tar-
get area. Each fl are burned fo r 3-4 minutes
at 2 mi llion candl epowe r, illuminating a
large area but also revea li ng the attacking
aircraft to ground defences. The lighter-
weight SUU -40 was al o u ed.
Don Schmenk described a fl are and
napa lm two-shi p mission ove r a target
south of Sa igon:
I dropped two fl are over the target, did a tight cir-
cle and put a napalm o m b o n the ground to make
it easier for my wingman. We were a long way
from Tuy l-loa and were getti ng short of gas so I
told him to d rop all four of h is Lm -finn ed napa lm
canisters on one pass. [BLU-2 7 and -3 2 series fire
bo mbs were available with o r without stabil izing
fins.] I fo llowed him do wn to drop my last napalm
when the sky li t up! I just knew I had lost my
wingman' N apalm was dropped in a IS-degree
clive at 400kt, about I ,000- 1,500ft above the
ground , leav ing little time for mistakes at that
peed so close to the ground. This was parti cular-
ly true at night. I gave a ca ll to my wingman and,
much to my relief, he answered. When the un-
705
finn ed napalm came offhis a ircraft the bomb col-
lided with each o ther, detonating on contact and
cau ing the exp losion I had witnessed. It was a
spectacular sight but no th ing to compare with the
reli ef that I felt upon hearing his vo ice!
We were acute ly aware of th e po tenti al fo r
vertigo when wo rking under fl ares so we took
ca re no t to get compl acent at nigh t. We used
fl are t hat we dropped ourse lve o r from o ther
air raft such as th e C- 11 9, C-47 or - 130. We
also used aircraft with large search lights th at
illuminated the ground and somet im es they, or
FA , would drop 'log markers' that burned o n
the ground wi th a high intensity to mark the
target. A sca ry aspect was th e possibility of run -
n ing into a fl are th at had fa il ed to igni te o r
bu rned o ut befo re reaching the ground.
Vertigo caught J e Vincent out on h is
fl are-dropping checkout fli ght.
I d ro pped a fl are and then a ' nape' that ex plod -
ed brightl y in my rea r-view mirror during my
pull -off. T h is was the first nigh t- tim e weapon
deto natio n I'd seen. As I watched the pretty
fireba ll I inadvertentl y ro ll ed a lmo r in verted.
My IP, Di ck Rung, to ld me to 'reco ver'. Imagine
my sur pri se when !looked back inside the cock-
pit to see ISOdegrees of bank. T he no e wa sti II
above the hori zon , but not fo r lo ng. It wasn 't so
much no t knowing which way was up as be ing
depri ved of the no rmal day- time inputs th at
keep you situat io n-aware.
Th e a lternative to fl are wa to b mb in
tota l darkne . O n one mission Joe made a
d ive attack without illumination, even
from moonligh t.
It was mo re disori enting, roll ing in fo r a 0-
degree pa fro m 8 ,000ft above th e targe t and
rel eas ing fro m 3,000fr in complete d arkness
than th e low-angle passes I made under fl ares. It
was almost an instrument manoe uvre. Wi th no
d isce rni ble ho rizon you had to devote mo re
tim e inside th e cockpit, pay ing attention to
bank angle (a criti ca l input to the bo mb release
parameter ), dive angles, airspeed , e re. than you
d id in da ylight o r with fl ares . Most of my nigh t
mi ssio ns were Skyspo r; straight-a nd -leve l at
20,000fr like a B-52 with a good controll er guid -
ing yo u and ca ll ing for bomb release .
The e mi sion were d irected from one of
seven M Q-77 ombat Skyspot sites that
were established in the area by Jun 1967.
Designed to guide B-52 Arc Light mi ions
via a transponder in the bomber, ky pot
was described as 'G A without th glide-
path' in that it gave the pil ot an exact

Millie's Moose with a previous serial presentation showing through its badly worn
·ss· squadron codes. J oe Vin cent
course to his target and a ignal to release
bombs. For tact ical aircraft like the F-1 00 it
allowed reasonably accurat bombing at
n igh t or in bad weather, although a Jo
po inted out, 'four 7501b bombs don't com-
pare to a BUFF's [B-52 bomber]load but l did
get cred it for a gun position destroyed one
night on a "sky puke" [Skyspot] mission'.
The e raids were essentially for harass-
ment rather than pin-po int accuracy and
'both the V and the Hun pilot were
harassed by them !' Maj Dick G arrett, who
fl ew F-100 kyspot miss ions with 416th
TFS reca ll ed:
... bombing mon keys in the tree . W hat a waste,
o r at least it see med that way. It was the big
GCA in the sky, straigh t and leve l from
I ,OOOft o r so and pi ckle on the con troller's
command . A llo wing for winds, inte l 'lag' and
sleep deprivatio n it was a miracl e if the bombs
eve n hi t the war zone. Combat Skyspo t was
commo n fo r n igh t a lert pad mi ss io ns when
there wasn 't much go ing o n in the war and you
were an 'as et' ju t waiti ng id ly by.
The MSQ system was also used by U AFE
F-l OOs in the early 1960s for prac t ice
nucl ear deli ve ry.
N ight mi ss ions were flown fro m the
al rt pad too in emergencies. Bruce G o ld
and Larry Peters, fl ying F-l OODs Buzzard
0 l and 02 , were scrambled from Bien Hoa's
5 1Oth T FS pad on 27 September 1968 .
Bruce G old (who ret ired as a U SAF
olonel) described the mission:
V I ET r A M WAR H ORSE
It was ea rl y eveni ng and we we re surro unded by
large th understorms. The weather made fly ing
cond it io ns 'mandatory', i.e. no flyi ng un less it
wa abso lu te ly necessa ry to save A meri can lives.
We fl ew in to th e n igh t, th rough the storms, to
the aid of element of the Fir t Brigade, fourth
Infan try Division who were pinned down under
heavy enemy weapons fire on a ridge stretch ing
between two high mountai n peaks. T he mission
was flow n witho ut fl ares or other means to illu -
mi nate the targe t. Th is requ ired us to 'trol l' for
enemy fi re to he lp ident ify fri end from foe. We
had to de liver ordnance, in very c lose proxim i-
ty to fr iend ly forces, from very undes irable axes
of attack.
The weapon (napalm and 500 lb nakeye
bombs) were deli vered preci ely on ta rget
with devastating effect on the enemy
forces, which evidently withd rew, allowing
evacuation of wounded U S forces and
ex traction of the r mainder. T he Buzzard F-
lOODs recovered at the nea rest US base,
Phu Cat. Both pilots were awarded the il -
ver Star for 'outs tand ing airmanship and
conspicuous d isregard for their own safety,
saving the live of man y US force on the
ground'.
Combat Mods
Th F-100 fleet received few updates
and mod ifications during its Vietnam yea rs,
though ome re-work was needed to
compen ate ~ r th enormou num bers of
706
missions flown. After cracks were d iscovered
in the wings of some aircraft, a 4g limit was
impo ed, limit ing dive angles. As F- l OOs
went through inspect and repair as necessary
(I RAN) at th Taiwan facility, their wing-
boxes were in pected and re-built o that
th e aircraft could pu ll th max imum 7.33g
aga in . A few jets carried the ombat Doc-
umentation Camera Pod on the ir cen tre-
li ne pylon thou h it wa a very 'draggy'
installation. More common was the small-
er KB-18 stri ke ca mera in tailed during
IRAN under the port fuselage, level with
the wing leading edge. This V-shaped fair-
ing enclo ed a revo lving prism, prov id ing
wide-angle imag alo ng the aircraft' later-
al ax is that were reco rded by a ca mera as
70x 200mm high-resolution photo . A
number of Block 50 NAV F- l OOD
ente red combat but most had the Doppler
navigat ion system (NAVS ) equipment
removed by 196 - 69 as it proved unrel i-
able . Th y were not alone in hav ing the
small a ir scoop in th fin lead ing dge: this
was standa rd on all PAC AF F- lOODs
except the earliest models deployed in
1960--6 1.
A more urge nt add it ion to U S tactica l
aircraft was necess itated by th emergence
of the A -2 Dv ina surface-to-a ir m issile
( AM) threat. The first sites were
b erved aro und Hano i and H a iphong in
Ap ril 1965, th ugh th pre u med pre ence
of Russ ian or hinese technic ians ruled
out pre-e mptive str ikes . S ignals from their
StJoon Rest target acqu isit io n radar and Fan
ong target-tracking radar were detected
and stud ied from Ju ly 1965 onwards by
RB-66C EUNT a ircraft and Rya n Firebee
dro nes . This data enabled US electro ni cs
contrac to rs to deve lop effect ive counter-
mea ure equi pm nt, but by then the first
of 205 U a ircraft to b lost to N orth Viet-
namese SAM had been destroy d. On 24
July 1965, Capt Roscoe Foba ir (a fo rm er
WW ll B-17 crewman ) and Capt Ri chard
K irn (POW and F-100 pi lot) we re part of
a four-ship F-4 AP F-105 trike when
three SA -2s w re aimed at them, hitting
th eir a ircraft (63- 7599 ) and killing Fobair.
Ke irn once aga in beca me a PO W.
A lthough top prio rity in fitt ing EC M
equ ipment went to a ircraft operat ing over
orth Vietnam, a programme wa ini t iated
to re- instate the radar homing and warn ing
(RHAW) system for the F-100 that the
Bend ix Corporation had proposed earlier in
1965. In fact, the U SAF had tested the
QR -253-2 homing system, designed to
c unter it own Hawk missiles, in F-l OOFs

F-1000 56-3048 with a 309th TFS badge on its fin tip and Tuy Hoa AB in the
background. Joe Vin cent Collection
at Exerc iseGoldfire in 1964. Data from this
trial was put alongside proposals from Ben-
dix and App lied Technology Inc. (AP I) a
few days after the first F-4 loss. The even-
tual outcome was Project Wild Weasel 1,
using a few RHAW-equ ipped F-100Fs to
'sniff out' SAM sites . H owever, the
AN/APR-25 (V) RHAW and AN /APR-26
launch warning rec iver (LWR) d ve loped
for that programme were a l o in tailed in a
num ber of F-1OOD a irframes. These a ircraft
were identified by antenna installations
beneath the air intake li p and at the rea r of
the fin above the rudder. Each housing h ld
a pa ir of mall, spira l an tenna , each one
po inting 45 degrees each side of the nose or
tail to give 360-degree coverage. In the
cockpit a circular, 3 in (7.5 cm) cathode ray
tube ( RT) scope d isplay was in tall d
above th e I ft of the front coa ming (above
the drag chute handle) and hawed the
direction of threat emiss ion sources. A
threat-warning light panel below and to the
right of thi replaced the A LM-9 indicator
d isplay. These square light gave an indica-
tion of the type of radar threat: AM (in
th ree frequency bands), a brigh t red
LAU C H light warn ing of an imminent
SAM launch, AAA or a irborne interc pt
radar. For the majority of F-lOOD mis ion
the eq uipm nt, if fitted, wa reassu ring but
inesential. oF-lOO wa hitby a AMand
there we r omparati vely fi w rada r-con-
tro lled AAA sites outside North Vietnam.
Joe Vincent kept his RHAW switched on
but rece ived no SAM indications, even
close to the o rth Vi tnamese bard r;
'There was an AAA DEFEAT butto n at th e
right of the d isplay fo r silencing AAA
warnings if you were in such a high threa t
area that the AAA warning could distract
you from th more thr atening AM wa rn -
ings'. A udio noise warn ing could al o be
relayed to the pilot's head et.
For the groundcrew, th e arri val of E M
gea r in troduced ano the r job: testing the
syste m every time maintenance was done.
A I Neubecker counted that among his
duties as an ECM tech at Tu y Hoa:
We had a ye llow test box whi ch we se t at differ-
ent frequ enci e and wa lked around th e aircraft
while someo ne was in th e cockpit looking at th e
CRT scope with the head-set on to see if the
correct visua l and aud io signals appeared in
accordance with what we we re se nd ing fro m the
box. We could imu late different threa t fre-
quencies and a SAM launch. The red
LAU C J-1 light was at th e pil ot's eye level and
he couldn't miss it. l also worked o n a couple of
C - 130 'ferre t' a ircraft, loaded with e lec tronics,
that fl ew close to enem y pos iti ons so that we
cou ld update th e frequenc ies.
Wild Wease l 1
AP I, th e Pa lo A lto-based co mpan y t hat
uppli ed the APR-25/26 we re co ntractors
fo r a program me that was to produce a
who le new spec ies - the 'Wi ld Wease l'
suppres ion of enemy deli nces (SEA D)
a ircraft . T h compan y had pionee red
ligh tweig h t, interna lly mounted se lf-
protection fo r th e Lockheed U- 2 (one of
the first SA-2 victims in May 1960 ). As
107
we ll as providing similar eq uipment for
tacti ca l fighter li ke the F- 100 (which
had li mited ca rri ag space fo r QR -seri es
'add-on ' jamming pods), th e ir ECM fit
was seen as a way to neutra lize the miss il e
sites by detecting and a ttacking them
using the sa me a ircraft. trike a ircraft
could protect them elve t o me ex te nt
by u ing pod li ke th e ALQ-71 o r ALQ-
8 7 and fl ying in a se t 'pod' formatio n to
max imize the effect, or by re lying on ja m-
ming a irc raft like the Dougla EB-66. Ide-
a lly though , th e miss ile sit and radar
r quired bo mb to put th m p rm anentl y
off the a ir.
At the 3 August 1965 meet ing in the
wake of the fir t loss to a AM, a com-
mittee led by Brig Gen K. . Dempster
examined E M propo al from Bendix
and AT!. Two week later it reco mmend -
ed insta lli ng RHAW equ ipmen t in sever-
a l F-100F-20 a irc raft under Project Ferret
(late r changed to Wild Weasel since Ferret
had a lready been used fo r anot her pro-
ject ). Th e Block 20 a irc raft we re cho en
beca use th ey had rece ived the AN/ASN -
7 dead reckoning compute r and PC-2 12
Dop pler radar nav iga ti on ystem spec ifi d
fo r PAC AF u . Thi could be r moved to
prov ide spa fo r the EC M fit without sig-
nifican t we igh t change. Proj ect Manage r
John Paup chose the AT ! installation and
the firm was give n a con trac t. The riva l
Bendix syste m was later adopted by the
USAF and U N as the AN /A P -107 and
widely used.
Initially known as the Vector IV, the
APR-25 gave warning of S-, C- and X-
Band radar ignals. The second system was
introduc d a the WR -300 launch wa rn-
ing rece ive r, developed in fort y days from
23 September 1965 and adopted by the
USAF as the A /APR-26. lt was a tuned
crystal rece ive r to detect A -2 guidance
signals in th L-Band and meas ure the
increase in intensity as miss il e launch
ap proac hed. For the Weasel F-100Fs,
another compo nent was added , an IR-133
pa noram ic rece ive r to pi ck up, analyse and
ide ntify -Ba nd emi ion at longe r range .
lt also provid ed d irection-finding capab il -
ity to locate SA -2 sites. A mpli tude-based
'sp ikes' on the rear cockpit C RT gave ind i-
cati on to with in a couple of degrees to
show wh ether the threat was to the left or
ri ght of the F-l OOF's trac k. A large r spike
of the left would show a stronge r sign al o n
that side and vice versa. The rear-sea t
e lectronic wa rfa re office r (EWO) had to
d irect his pilot so that the two spikes

The pilot of this 615th TFS F-1000 is about to de-plane without a ladder at Phu Cat AB after a 28 February 1971 mission.
His F-1000-21 -NA (55-3508) survived the war, served with the Indiana ANG 's 163rd TFS and was finally destroyed on
9 November 1989 on its thirteenth NOLO flight as a QF-100 target. Norm Taylo r
appea r d equa l and the aircraft head ing
towa rds the site. Th problem wa that it
didn't show whether the signals ca me
from ahead of the aircraft or behind it.
Yawing the aircraft would a lter th e spike-
length o that, fo r exa mple, yaw ing right
shortened th e left spike, how ing the ite
was behind the Hun . EWOs a lso had to
listen for the buzz of mi ss ile gu id a nee
rada rs and the lo w groan of ea rl y- warn ing
radars on his headse t. Tra ining enab led
them to distinguish individua l radar ide n-
titi es in this way.
Flush , sq uare lR-133 anten nas appeared
on the fuse lage sides in line with the
canopy bow and under the aircraft
ben ath th front cockp it. One aircraft
(5 8-122 1) had a different arrange ment of
peri odic (azimuth/e levation) antenna in
place of the IR-133 set imilar to th o e
later used on F-105G and F-4Cww a ir raft.
Additio nal eq uipment includ ed a KA-60
pan ramie camera to photograph AM
sites and a standard TA Midgetape 400
record r to provide tapes of rada r emis-
sions fo r later tud y. Th e IR-133 contract
V I ET AM WARHORSE
was negotiated from 27 August 1965 on a
30-day production ch d ule fo r th e first
uni t and 45 day for the econd. AT!
rece ived ontract ~ r 500 APR-25 and
APR-26 units on 19 September 1965 .
During the latter part of 1965, tactics
were evo lved for what was to become a
vita l component in U trike over North
Vietnam. U ing strobe indications from
the IR-133, the F-l OOF wa steered
towards a site until it could be visuall y
identified. The Wease l wo uld then make
an initia l attack with LAU-3 rocket pods,
~ ll owedup by bomb and roc kets from an
accompanying Iron Hand flight of thr e or
fourF-1 05.
Four low-hours Das h 20 F-100 Fs were
modified for the programme; 58- 122 1,
-1226, -1227 (a Project]ulius Caesar/Har-
m n Troph y aircraft that flew ove r the
North Po l in 1959) and -123 1. Later,
three replacement aircraft (5 8- 1206,
-1212 and 1232) were similarly converted
but also equipped to launch the AGM-45
hrike anti -rad iation miss ile. They
retained the standard F-l OOF des ignation
108
(rather th an EF-100F) as part of the thick
cloak f ec recy surrou nding the pr ject.
A ircrew we re fo rbidden to keep the ir u ual
di ari e . ecurity was so tight th at one
trainee pilot was dismissed within hours of
mentio ning to a girlfriend that he was
invo lved in a class ified proj ect.
The fi r t fo ur a ircraft wer deli v red to
Eglin AFB in eptember 1965 after in iti al
test ing at Edwards AFB. Five volu nteer
pilots were drawn from several F-100 units
and an ini tial batch of EWOs ca me from
B-52s, with a late r batch from EB-66
units. After initia l ind ctrin ation at
NAA they train e I int n iv ly at the Tac-
ti ca l Air Warfa r Center at Eglin , u ing
simulated EW threa ts. Lt Co l James Krop-
nik was the ir first CO, but he expressed
serious doubts about the proj ect and wa
replaced by Maj Garry A. Willard, who
wa dua l-qua lified in the F-100 and F-105.
C rews tra ined as pa irs, initi at ing a bo nd
that was to become an essenti al feature of
Wild Weasel operations for decades. Capt
A llen Lamb, one of the first pi lo ts, com-
mented:

309th TFS F-100Ds on the tanker for another Steel Tiger CAS mission with M117
ordn ance. J oe Vi ncent Collection
There was no trai ni ng to speak of for Wild
Weasel !. It was 'cut and paste' to see if it wou ld
work. We did ru n against the SAD [surfa ce- to-
air defence system] at Eglin w check the accu-
racy of the eq uipment. Then we wen t to war to
see if it wo uld rea lly wo rk . Each crew di d its own
thing.
In co mbat he used his EWO's IR-133 to
prov ide steering until they were close to
the site.
I wo uld ff-se t so that the site did n't th ink we
were homing in on them. O nce I had two rings
or mo re o n the scope I wo uld use the Vector IV
to look fo r the site o n the ground but I wo uld
sti ll get the readi ngs from the EWO as, in so me
cases, there was more th an o ne site.
apt Ed andeliu ag reed that there wa no
r a l way to train for the W asel miss ion at
that tag . He was the only TA EW
assigned to the project at its initi ation , the
rest coming from SA C, where this special
ski ll wa much more in ev idenc . ' A had
abo ut 85 per cent of the el ctronic warfare
equ ipment and EWOs. TA 's 15 p r ce nt
was spread between the 9th TRS (RB-66s)
and th TA EU NT ce ll , with a few sca t-
tered arou nd in numbered A ir Force H Qs
and Wing HQs.' Ed was on RB-66 , with
2,000 hour of xperi enc on the type,
wh n he r ce iv d orders from 12th AF
dated 25 eptember 1965, to 'proceed to
L ng Beach , California; Eglin AFB and
places within or without th U ... on a
100-day TOY' (l ater amended to L60 day )
with ac e to cla sified materi al 'up to and
including T P SECRET du ring the TOY'.
V IET A M WA RH O RSE
Th ere was no mention of Wild \'>:/easel or
wh ether or not I had volunteered for th e pro-
jec t. Wh en I got to AA , Long Beach th ey
sho wed me a couple of F- l OOFs that were
stri pped clown and in th e pro ess of bei ng con -
ven ed to the TAC proje t configurat ion ,
whi ch at tha t time was ca ll ed Mongoose. Th ey
still had n 't dec ided on the fin al confi gurat io n .
In fact th ey were trying to insta ll an A /A PR-
9 uni t in the rea r cockpit with tu ne rs in a mod-
ified fue l tank under th e wi ng. I'm glad that one
didn't work o ut. I a rri ved at Egli n A FB on 4
October 1965. The o ther crewmembers and the
a ircraft arri ved shortl y thereafter with the
equ ipment configured the way we were going to
deploy it in So uth East Asia (i.e. the AP R-
25/2 6 anci iR- 133 ). At Eglin we tra ined against
th e SADS I and 2 syste ms, fl ying o ut over the
ul f and the n acq ui ring th e signa l to vector the
pil ot over the target with vo ice co mmands. We
were all train ed EW O s so the rece ive rs were a
pi ece of ca ke. The acq uisiti on of the signal was
bu il t in to th e eq ui pment, along with the audio
computer, generated fro m the para mete rs of the
AM or A AA th at ca me in to the rece iver.
' D/ Fing' [es tabli sh ing the di rection of the sig-
na l[ took a min imu m of effort to master. The
A PR-25/ 26 prov id ed relative bea rings. W ith
practi ce you could interpret signal amplitude
and get q uite go d at estim ating range. When
yo u went right over the site the signal's amp li -
tude wo ul d get extremely long and switch from
360 degrees to I 0 degrees, giving yo u a posi-
t ive ind icati on that you had passed righ t over
the site. At thi time yo u wo uld try to pick up
the site visua ll y. EW wo uld fl y ched ul ed
miss io ns with the ir se lec ted pil ots and th en at
the debri efing they wo uld share the ir experi -
ences and techni ques a mongst the other
109
crewmembers and Eglin staff th at were respo n -
sible for putting toget her the tacti cs we wo uld
use in o uth East Asia. During this peri od they
changed the name of th e project to Wild
Weasel.
On 21 N ovember, the four aircraft fl w in
grea t ecrecy to Ko rat RTAFB via H awa ii,
arriving at Ka rat o n 25 o vember, only
eighty-four days after the fir t a ircraft wa
converted . They became a new uni t , th e
6234th TFW (Wild Weasel De tachm nt)
under the control of the 3 8th TFW. First
to arrive were C apts Ed White and Ed
andelius. 'We wer the advanced party.
When w arrived we wer kept bu y brief-
ing all of the F-105 aircrews and p ra-
ti n personne l on the equi pment in the
Wea el a ircraft and th tact ic w had
deve loped back at Eglin.'
On 1 December 1965, the unit fl ew its
fir t co mbat mission, with Maj Wil lard
and apt Truman Lifsey in 58- 123 1. Ini -
tia ll y, the ir effort yielded no direct results
as Vietnamese radar operato rs learned to
close down the ir radars to prevent the
Wease ls acqui ring them. 'We had good
EU NT on the SAM sites', recall ed Ed
ande li us, 'but with the abili ty of the
AM units to pick up and m ve at ho rt
noti ce we had to re ly on our own equip-
ment.' ome missions were flown with EB-
66Cs to compare the signals they rece ived
from the emitters. Much was learned abo ut
radar emission , and effective tac t ic were
devised to keep th F- lOOF, fl ying at 400kt
from be ing over-run by the faster F-105 .
Capts John Pitchford (ex-2 7th TFW)
and Bob Trier in 58-123 1 were scheduled
to lead AJJple fligh t on 20 December, a
trike by twelve F-l OS s nea r Kep airfield.
A fo ll ow-up attack was l d by anoth r F-
100F fl own by Maj Bob chwartz, the p
Officer and Capt Jack Donova n with
another e ight 'Th uds'. As 58- 1231
approached the target over hea vy cloud
cover it was hit in the rea r fu elage by
AAA and th h ydraulic syst m on
fa iled, putting the jet in to a steep d ive.
A lthough both m n ejected, Bob Tri er was
hot by NVA m ili tia when he tried to res ist
capture . Pitchford was hit in th arm but
he survived fo r over seven y ar as a POW.
After that, th Weasels continued with
unchanged tact ics, flying Iron Hand attacks
and carrying the ir own bomb after unsuc-
ce fully xperimenting with timed napalm
ca nisters to mark targets for the F-1 05 .
LAU-3 pods were still carr ied as a very
effective weapon, particularl y for snapshot

Capt Allen lamb and his EWD.Capt Jack Donovan at Koral RTAFB in December 1965. Al len T. Lamb
The new Wease l tactics yielded their first success on 22
December 1965. Capts Allen Lamb and Jack Donovan
flew F-1 OOF 58-1226 as Spruce 5 with four F-105s for a
Rolling Thunder attack on Yen Bai rai lyard. Jack Dono-
van was the originator of the phrase that became the
unofficial motto of Weasels from then on. His response
when he first realized the nature of the Weasel mission
for which he had volunteered was what Allen Lamb
called. 'the natural response of an educated man. a vet-
eran EWO on B-52s. upon learn ing that he was to fl y
back-sea t to a self-absorbed fighter pilot while acting
as flypaper for enemy SAMs'. Abbreviated on many
Weasel patches ever since to 'YGBSM' his comment
was. 'You gotta be sh**tin ' me !· (Capt Ed Sandelius
commented that. as far as he knew. Jack said the same
thing regarding ju st about everything!)
On 22 December thei r mi ssion was to probe enemy
defences until they got a response from a SAM site. At
around 100 miles (160km) from the target. Donovan's
vector IV picked up a Fan Song transmission. Allen Lamb
pushed his speed up, started homing in on the site and
transm itted a 'Tallyho':
I kept the SAM at around 10 o'clock so he wouldn't get the
idea I was going after him. When I could. I dropped into shal-
low valleys to mask our approach. Now and again I'd pop up
for Jack to get a 'cut'. This went on for 10 or 15 minutes.
After breaking out into the Red River Val ley I followed the
strobes on the Vector IV and turned with the river alongside.
The IR-133 strobes started 'curling off' at 12 o'clock. both to
the right and left on the CRT and I knew we were right on top
VIET AM WARHORSE
First SAM Site Kill
of him. I started climbing for altitude and Jack kept calling
out SAM positions literally left and right. The right one
turned out to be a second site. I was passing through 3,000ft.
nose high and I rolled inverted while sti ll climbing to look.
Jack started calling the first site to the right. I said it was to
the left because I could see it below. 'Right'. he said. left!·
I said. look outside'. I said. Jack did and saw that we were
inverted so the signals from the left and right antennas were
reversed. He agreed! I rolled in to line up on the site but
came in way too low.
Art Brattkus, fl ying F-105D Spruce 4. reca lled:
We were moving smartly up the Red River on radio silence
when up ahead I saw Allen pop up and then roll in. way too
close to the ground. I thought to myself that he was going to
mark the target with hisaircraft and that the Old Man would
be pissed. I was Flying Safety Officer!
Lamb opened his attack:
My rockets hit short but as I pulled off there was a bright
flash.! must have hit the oxidizer van for the SA-2 1iquid fuel
motors. I called out the site and the F-105 Lead [Spruce 11.
Don Langwell said that he had it. He went in and Spruce 2
(Van Heywood) came after him. firing rockets.
From Donovan's viewpoint:
... when AI and Jack first ID'd the site and got us pointed in
I saw that it was covered up to look like part of a village. In
110
the middle of my first pass I did see a few wheels under
what appeared to be brushhuts. We fired HEAP !high explo-
sive/armour piercing! rockets that. in retrospect were prob-
ably the absolute best ordnance for that site. The vans and
other structures appeared to jump in the air when the load
of rockets hit. I remember I didn't get any ground fire until
the second pass and after that there weren't any significant
parts of the target that were not fully exposed and hit. I
remember AI calling that the site had gone off the air.
Lamb observed that 'We all broke the cardina l rule : "one
pass. haul ass" to assure the kill. I came back around for
a second pass in front of Art Brattkus (the F-1OOs were
agile birds!)'. Art added, 'I spotted a structure that was-
n't burning yet and threw some rockets at it. pulled off
to the right to get out of Al's way and damned near hit
another Thud'. Lamb then went down beside Spruce 3.
Bob Bush (later killed on an armed recce with the 421 st
TFS) and Art. who were hitting AAA alongside the Red
River. 'On this pass I strafed the control van and he went
off the air. Each of the Thuds came round again. expend-
ing all their 20mm ammunition.' As Spruce 4, Art was
last man off the target. 'As I pulled out I saw several
SAMs und er their camouflage and threw all the rest of
my rockets in their direction'.
Al len Lamb:
Jack Donovan was now calling out the second SAM site
but we had nothing left to hit it with. We really blew away
the site we did hit.
There was a USO show with Bob Hope that day at Koral
and we made a fly-over with the F-100 leading and two F-
105s on each wing. A number of people down there knew
that meant we had made a SAM kill and they left the show
early to celebrate.
In all, Spruce flight fired 304 rockets and 2.900 rounds
of 20mm. Although the use of Wild Weasels could not
be mentioned in the Press. all six Spruce crews received
the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) for thi s first SAM
site ki ll. After another twelve missions. Jack Donovan
returned to Nellis AFB to help establish the Wild
Weasel School.
Allen Lamb was credited with two more kills. The
second was with Capt Rick Morgan and the third was on
a Rolling Thunder strike as Lead Weasel with Capt Frank
O'Donne ll (who later had a major part in evolving the F-
4G Advanced Wild Weasel as Test Project Officer). The
mission. Frank's first. included some interesting compli-
cations. Allen Lamb:
After the strike I was exiting and a Thud pilot from Takhli
had been shot down just 17 miles from Hanoi. The Sandies
ISAR cover] were trying to get to him but a SAM site was
lobbing missiles at them. I went back in with just three
Thuds and homed in on the site. The weather was hazy
with only 2- 3 miles visibility. We missed the radar van but
the Thud pilot on Guard frequency was saying the Viet-
namese were coming up the hill to get him. I went back in.
solo and strafed the van. taking it off the air. SAR were then
able to get he pilot out. I received the Silver Star for this
mission three years later.

An F-100F refuelling during a Wild Weasel mission to North Vietnam . Ed Sand eli us
attacks aga inst softer radar targe ts. The
Weasels flew at altitude below 500ft
(150m) , u ing terrain masking when poss i-
ble but sti ll exposing their F-l OOs to AAA
and small arms fire. Ed Sandelius explained
that they were all daylight sort ies; 'Without
radar none of the F-100 miss ions were flown
at night. The F-lOSs had terrain avoidance
radar but they on ly flew the day missions
since they wanted to be able to see any mis-
sile launches'. A lso, missions tended to use
two Weasels. Allen Lamb:
Weasels on ly went in if the str ike was in Route
Pack VI and we had one Weasel before the str ik-
ers and a second about twenty mi nutes in to the
strike or when the first Wease l was at 'b ingo' fu el
or had expended its ord nance. T hey would let us
tro ll [for radar sites] wh ich was better th an being
with th e stri kers. Tactic were d ifferent for each
Weasel, based on the mind-set of each crew.
C rews tended to 'swap off' pilo ts and air-
craft as Ed recalled, 'We flew whatever was
available. There wa a stand ard cockpit
set-up with very little d ifference between
birds'.
AM evasion tactics, developed by
these fi rst Weasel pilots, were based on a
diving turn into the miss ile's trajectory,
breaking away as late as poss ible so that the
missile could not correct its course. A llen
Lamb taught th is tactic to the first
F- lOSF/G Weasel classes in 1966 wh ile he
V I ET NA M WA RH O RSE
worked on Wease l adaptations of the F-4C
Phantom (using an F-4D to test the equ ip-
ment).
Early in January 1966, Gen Dempster
opted to u e the more powe rful F-l OSF as
the ba i of the next phase of Wi ld Weasel
development as the F-l OOF Detachment
ended its eva lu ati ve process later that
month. Howeve r, the Huns remained in
place unti lll July 1966 and continued to
fl y miss io ns over No rth Vietnam. O ne of
the F-l OSF/G 's main weapons was the
Texa In truments AGM -45 Shri ke, an
anti -radi atio n miss il e developed for the
U SN between 1958 and 1964. O perating
independently of the aircraft' detection
systems, the l Oft (3m) long mi ile guided
itse lf to a ho t ile radar emitter, destroy ing
it with a 145 lb fragmentation warhead.
The F-l OOF Wild Weasel Det at Korat
rece ived Shrikes in March 1966 and Maj
Don Fraizer with EWO Marshall Go ldberg
made the first U AF combat firing (a pos-
sible kill ) on 18 April aga inst a Fire Can
AAA tracking radar near Dong Ho i. Fur-
ther Shrike launches were made, each one
in the restricted area aro und Hano i known
to pilots as 'the Holy Land' , which needed
spec ific permis ion from Wa hington.
C learance for one of Fraizer's missions
involved him in a telepho ne conver ation
with President Johnson in per on. ne
reason for this and for the d lay in award -
ing Capt A llen Lamb's ilver S tar was the
177
a sumed presence of 'round eyed' (i.e.
oviet) technicians at the AM ires.
Shrike-ca rrying F- l OOFs (the three
replace ment a ircraft rece ived after Febru -
ary 1966 ) often carried LAU-3 pods on
the ir outboard wing stat ions as we ll.
In total, the Weasel Huns destroyed
nine AM ite and forced many other to
shut down during Rolling ThundeT trike .
There was one other combat loss among
the sixteen F- 1OOs lost ove r N o rth Viet-
nam. F- lOOF 58- 121 2 was hit by AAA on
an Iron Hand near Vinh on 23 March ,
ki lling Capts C lyde Dawson and Don
C lark. F-l OOF 58- 122 1 suffered an engine
fail ure after compressor stalls on a fami l-
iarizat ion fligh t o n 13 March. The F-1OOF
crew had rapid ly d ve loped pio neering
tact ics that remained effective for the F-
l OSF/G crews who began to arri ve in Thai-
land on 28 May 1966. The APR-25/26 and
IR-133 systems were installed and expand -
ed in th e F-105 conversions and in th
ub quent F-4 W ild Wease l 4 pro-
gramme . In A llen Lamb's opinion the F-
l OOF was not far short of the F-l OS F/G in
its suitability for the Weasel mission .
A lthough it lacked the Thud's raw peed ,
it was mo re manoe uvrable and its biggest
shortcoming was probably that it didn't fit
into the Air Force's inflight-refu elli ng
arrangements. Afte r 1966 it was the on ly
type operating over North Vietnam with-
out the standard boom-type refu elling
receptacle and it was too d ifficult to pro-
vide KC- 135 tankers modified wi th drogue
attachments. Funds were never prov ided
to con vert the F-100 to the boom system.
As they withdrew from battle, half of the
original batch of F- lOOF Wease ls had been
lo t and the returning aircraft had systems
that had suffered consid rably from humid-
ity, corros ion and wiring problems origi-
nating partly fro m the speed with which
the original conversions had to be made.
However, AT!' 'yellow box' te ter could be
u ed pre-flight to en ure that everyth ing
wa working. Steve Sopko was one of the
two techni cians working on the original
Weasel systems at Korat in 1965 :
The fie ld tester was N i ad battery powered and
not onl y tested the A PR-25/26 but we also used
it to check th e IR- 133 panorami c rece iver and
the later ER- 142 version [used in the F-l05F].
Ted Phill ip and I used it for both pre-fli gh t and
post-fli ght inspecti ons, which was not a requ ire-
ment but we d id both for our own peace of
mind . We used it for wa lk-arounds and for a
d irect feed {by cable inputs ) in to the pre-a mps

Capt Allen T. lamb serving with the 353rd TFS at Myrtle Beach AFB in March, 1963. On
the 28th of that month he survived a supersonic ejection from an F-1 00. Allen T. Lamb
in the no e o r tai l fo r se nsitivity checks when
troub le-shooting antennas, cab les, diodes or
pi lot/EW O write-ups.
Misty FAC
From 1964 to 1969 FAC- A directed the
ordnance of countless strike flights on to
targets in South East A sia. Incredib ly, only
even of the fragile, low- fl ying 115mph
(1 85km/h) essna 0- 1 FAC aircraft were
lost, though six pilots were kill ed. Fro m
1968 they were supplemented by the more
capa ble twin -engined Cessna 0-2, though
ten of th e were lo t. ln an attempt to
V I ET AM WAR HORSE
increase th e FAC's surviva bility ove r high-
risk areas, particularl y North Vi tn am and
the DMZ, 7th A F advocated the use of
two-seat fast jets. A lthough the F-4C was
the obvious cho ice fo r speed and o rd -
nance-carrying, the F-100F was more eas i-
ly ava ilable at first. F-4Cs were u ed later
for operations ove r Laos.
Maj George 'Bud ' Day, an F-84 pilot in
the Korea n War, was given respo nsibility
for orga nizing the F-100 F Fast FAC
Deta hment under th e cod name Com-
mando Sabre at Phu Cat, beg inning on 28
June 1967 after an initi a l trial peri od at
Phan Rang from 15 May. H e was given six-
tee n pi lots and four F-100Fs. The more
7 72
popular nam was Misty FA , baed o n
th ir Misty all- ign wh ich was in turn
inspired by Mrs Day's love of th Erro l!
Garner song. Tri al miss ions were flown
over the re latively safe Route Pack 1 and
then moved t higher-risk areas. The unit
was ass igned t the 3 7th TFW as Det 1 of
the 612th TF , u ing F-100F fro m other
units, no tably th ' HE'-cod d 41 6th TF .
The a ircraft rece ived no spec ia l modifi-
cations fo r the FAC role. ' lt was nice to
have operat ional RHAW gea r, but not an
abort item', reca ll ed o l 'Lanny' Lancast-
r. The onl y' pecial eq uipme nt' in the rear
cockpit was a good set of maps and a 35 mm
camera with a telephoto lens. Armament
was u ua lly two seven-shot pods of 2.75
white phosphorou marker rocket and
11 0 rounds in each 20mm gun . Both occu-
pant of the FA F-100 were qualified
pilot and in mission planning they
xchanged role , fl ying the a ircraft or
loca ting targets and contro lli ng trik
fi ghters. Th e pilots were volunteers and
initia lly the 'entry requi rement' was twen-
ty-five combat miss ions and 1,000 fl ying
hours. A number were fo rm er 0-2 pilots.
Amo ng the 142 pilot who went through
th programme we re two future U AF
hiefs of Staff, Ronald Fog l man and
Merrill 'To ny' McPeak, who later com-
manded th e Detachment. O n o ne mission,
the two men fl ew in the ame aircraft.
Dick Rutan , late r to fl y the fragile Voyager
non-stop aro und th world , was also a
Misty pilot.
By the t ime Col Lancaster jo ined the
Detachment in 1967, entry req uired fifty
combat miss ions. T he task had expand ed
fro m FA duti es to cover Res AP, photo
reconn aissa nce and contribution to th
anti -SAM effort. Hazardous ResCAP mis-
sions comprised abo ut 30 per cent of the
total in 1967- 6 with the F- l OOF taking
charge of the rescue effort on site, keeping
the oppos iti on at bay with it guns and
managing the SAR resources to the best
effect.
I think the bas ics were we ll -defin ed when
arr ived and didn 't change much. With some
coord ination with 7th A F we estab lished a pri-
ori ty system fo r ou r tasks [and target types]:
I) Search and rescue. Duri ng my to ur I was fo rtu-
nate that we successfu ll y recovered every single
crewman that made it safe\ y to the ground after
an ejection . We did lose three Mist-y pi lots du ri ng
the tour. O ne aircraft and both crewmen si mply
d isappeared and were never found. O ne crew
 V I ET A M WAR HORSE

ejected but the front-seat pilot was a fata li ty -

we're not ure what happened .
2) Active AAA. We beca me ve ry, very effective
at d iscouraging AAA from shooting at us and
we were abl e to persuade 7th A F to prov id e th e
strike asse ts to get the job done, espec ial ly after
the bombing halt north of RP II fre ed the Tha i-
land- based figh ters to trike in our areas.
3) Arti llery sites: we often sea rched for them in
and above the DMZ but I don't reca ll finding any.
If found , they would have had a very high prior-
ity because they were causing the Marines fi ts .
4) Tanks.
5) Wate r-born e log istics craft i. e. boa ts of any
kind . Usually these were sa mpa ns but the occa-
siona l motor-boa t was found . We a lso got seve r-
a l very large ba rges but were never sure whether
th e e we re in fact pon toon bridges or whether
they ca rri ed stores since we never saw them
loaded or in position to act as pontoons.
6) Bridges.

Idea ll y, th a ircraft operated in pair o n

Ed White and Ed Sandelius with Wild Weasel F-100F 58-1226 at Koral RTAFB. r ad recce sorti es with one a ircraft ea r h-
Ed Sandelius ing for targets whi le the other refu e lled o n

With plain TAC markings giving no clue to its unit, this rocket-armed F-100F-16-NA refuels over Vietnam in 1965.
Maj George 'Bud' Day and Capt Corwin Kippenhan were flying this aircraft on a Misty FAC sortie when they were
shot down during a search for a suspected SAM site. David Menard Collection

773

SS 255, 309th TFS (red/yellow). Joe Vincent
Collection
SP770, 355th TFS, black outline. Jo e Vincent
Co llec tion
306th TFS Soul Sister(red/white). Joe Vincent
Col lection
The Blue Meanie (blue/white). Joe Vincent
Collection
V I ETNAM WARHORSE
The Little 1 (red/yellow). Joe Vinc ent Collection
Booby's Tub (Agnez in background). 308th TFS
(white). Joe Vin ce nt Collection
Teg o' My Heart, 306th TFS (white). Joe Vincent
Col lec tion
Ray's Hell, 306th TFS (red/white). Joe Vincent
Collection
174
Lucky Lindy II, an F-1 OOF-6-NA of the 309th TFS.
Richa rd G. Such
The Rapist, F-100F-11-NA 56-3827, 309th TFS . Richa
G. Such
the tanker. For Lancaster, thi wa , 'alwa
the des ired co ncept of ope rati ons as lo1
as we had suffic ient aircraft ava ilab
There was nothing "typ ica l" about Mi ~
miss io ns, except when the weather w
ve ry poor. Then all y u did wa tn
aro und looking fo r ho les to poke th ro ugl
With up to four tanker 'fills,' a mi i(
could last up to six ho urs. Pil ots lea rned
'jink' con tantly to avo id ground fire a1
they kept the ir peed up to aro und 4501
Mo t mis ion invo lved fli ght time o v
North Vietn amese defence .
Inev itably, o rbiting ov r mall ar as
low altitud e to identify targets exposed tl
M i ty cr w to unu ua lly high risks fr
ground fir . In all, thirty-four a ircraft we
lost between August 1967 and May 19
with seven pi lots kill d - th 0 ta
ment's loss rate was the highest for an y
100 unit. ln all cases where the cause v.
known , shoot-downs were attributed
AAA ( u ually 3 7mm) o r sma ll-arn
sometimes whil aircraft were trafi
ground targets. Two a ircraft and tho
crews va ni shed witho ut trace. Maj Mi
McElhano n and Maj John Overlock fa il
to appea r a des ignato r aircraft for a tri
o n 16 August 1968, and th ir F-10

(56-3865) was presumed hot down. O n 1
N ovember 1969, Lt Col Lawrenc Whit-
ford and 1st Lt Patri ck Ca rro ll never made
the ir pl ann ed tanker r ndezvous and the ir
F-100F (56-3796) was never seen aga in.
Maj Don S ibson and Capt Snyder had to
eject from 56-38 78 while contro lling an
attack on a SAM ite nea r Dong Ho i o n 30
Dece mber 1967 , as did o l H ardy and
Capt Dave Jenny who led an attack on a
SAM battery o n 5 Jul y 1968. A ll four
pi lots were recovered.
Of all the Misty FAC casualties, the first
and most famous was the heroic survival of
Maj G eorge 'Bud ' Day. On 26 August 1967 ,
he and Capt Corwin 'Kipp' Kippenhan
were leading an F-105 mission ('Bud ' Day's
139th) in search of another SAM ite near
Thon Cam Son. Their F-100F (56-3954)
took a hit at 4,500ft (1 ,3 70m) over the tar-
get and the crew ejected 2 miles (3 km)
short of the coast. Kippenhan was picked up
by an HH-3 E hel icopter but Day was
caught. During the ej ction he broke his
arm badl y, suffered a damaged knee and was
virtually blinded in his left eye by his flail-
ing oxygen mask. He was quickly captured
and tied up in a ho le in th e ground. Escap-
ing from his two VC guards, he survived for
twelve days in the jungle, sustaining further
injuries from a US bomb that fell near him.
He evaded thirty-two VC patrols and man-
V I ET ' A M WA RH O RSE
aged to nav igate, without a compass, to
with in half an hour of freedom. Wandering
semi -delirious into another VC patrol he
was injured by gun shots and re-captured,
spending six year of ex tr me hardship and
torture in the 'H ano i Hilton'. (During all
that time S/Sgt Bobby 'Orville' Wright, his
former crew chi ef when Bud flew F-lOOC
54- 1903 with the l36th FlS, and his family
of eight all wore POW bracelets until his
release. Bobby, known a 'Tiger' by Bud Day,
was one of many who prayed forth prison-
er' afe return.) Following the end of his
ordeal in 1973 (one offour Misty POW s to
return from Hanoi) Bud was awarded th
Medal of Honor, one of only twelve award-
ed to US airman during d1at war.
The Misty FAC Detachment was fina lly
replaced by F-4 units in May 1970 and the
Detachment reverted to the 61 2th TFS as
F-100 operations in South Eas t Asia ended
on 3 1 July 1971. It had moved to Tu y H oa
o n 14 Apri l 1969 for the final stage of its
operations. Use of the F-4 for the miss ions
had gradually evo lved beginning with a
programme code- named Stmm y FAC and
managed by the 366th TFW at Da N ang. It
wa followed by a similar Wolf FAC initi a-
tive at Ubon. The 388th TFW bega n Tiger
FAC operations in March 1969, fo llowed
by the 43 2nd TRW which used teams of
F-4Ds and RF-4C (Falcon/Atlanta ) air-
115
craft . The F-4 uffered from poorer rear-
cockpi t visibility than the F-100F and
horter lo iter time, but F-100Fs were get-
ting sca rce as r tirement approached. Com-
mando Sabre pilots checked o ut the first
batch of F-4 Stormy FA s at Phu at.
According to Lancaster, 'It was a mirror of
our training programme. O ne of their guys
ca me to Phu Ca t and flew fi ve miss ions in
my back seat, then I flew one in his "pit"'.
Once again, the F-100 had pionee red
major new combat techniques and then
stepped as ide to let more modern a ircraft
develop them further a it returned to th
USA for a quieter life in AN G units.
S umming up his impress ions of th e
F-100 in both 'hot' and cold war, Lt Col
Dav id 0 . William (later to become a
Brigadier G en ral) fe lt that the a ircraft
was probably employed in the proper roles:
It was a good, stab le weapons delive ry platform
in the con ven tiona l weapons role, as it was
empl oyed fo r a ir-to-ground attack in South
Vietna m. Duri ng the heigh t of the Cold War it
was the best, most ava il ab le and most ready tac-
t ica l nucl ear weapons deli very platform we had
in the USAF in ventory. T hankfu lly, we never
had to prove its prowess in that role, but I'm also
thankful that we at least had a we ll -tra ined,
ready F- l 00 nucl ear strike fo rce to prove a cred-
ible de terren t when we needed it.

New York ANG F-100Cs replaced their silver finish with camouflage and 'SG' tail codes when they flew with the
31st TFW at Tuy Hoa AB. Author's Collection
Asian Action
W orking close ly with the thi rtee n regular
USAF F-100 squadro ns in Vietnam we re
four A ir N at io nal G uard (A G) units.
They won uni ve rsa l pra ise for the ir effec-
t ive ness including a glowing tr ibute from
Gen George S . Brown, 7th AF Comm an-
der, 1968- 70. A mong th ight ANG
sq uadro ns ca ll ed to active duty after the
Pueblo inc ident in January 1968 was the
120th Tac tica l Figh ter Squadron (TFS ),
Co lo rado ANG, the first to take its Super
Sabres to Vietnam. An F-lOOC/F squadron
since January 196 1, the 120th ar ri ved at
Phan Rang AB o n 3 May 1968. Fi ve days
later, after famili ari za ti on fli ghts with the
resident 35th Tact ica l Fighter W ing
CHAPTER 5
On Guard
(TFW) Instructor Pil o ts (IPs), the
squ adro n fl ew th e first of 5,905 combat
sort ies . Many of the squad ron's ma inta in-
ers worked on the F- l OODs of other 35 th
TFW units. The squad ron was the first in
the ANG to fl y combat as a uni t sin ce
WW ll and the sudden change in lifestyle
was a shock fo r its pilots who were mainly
'week day' airline pilo ts, ca ll ed to d uty at
24-hours notice. Bob Macavoy reca lled
that, 'When the 120th TFS arri ved at our
base in Aprill 968 I remember them be ing
sb *t sca r d for the first couple of weeks,
speciall y when we we re mo rtared at night.
T hey ran into th e bomb shelters while the
rest of us regulars stood o utside to watc h
the morta rs hit the flight-line' .
116
Th e squad ro n fl ew fo r nea rly nine
months of combat, ave raging tw nty-four
sorties a day, wi thout loss until Capt J. E.
O 'N e ill had the dubious honour of being
in the last of the 569 US a ircraft to be sho t
down in 1968. His F-100 (54 -1973) was
damaged by ground -fire on a clos a ir sup-
port (CAS ) miss ion and he had to eject
short of Phan Rang. A lmost at the end of
the deployment , Maj C lyde Se iler was the
120 th 's only casua lty when he was ki lled
on another C AS miss ion nea r Song Be
C ity. Se il er, a fo rmer M isty fo rwa rd air
co n tro ller (FAC ) pil ot, was pulling up
fro m a str ike attack when the wing of his
F-100 sustained a structural failu re. Co l-
orado's 'VS'-coded F-1OOCs scored th e

The New Mexico ANG 's spectacular markings appear on this F-lOOA (53-1737) which has also been updated with a
tail hook, inflight-reluelling probe and silver lacquer fini sh. Peter Sch inkel shoek Colle ction
best statistics in th e 35 th TFW for opera-
ti on al readin ess (86 .9 per ce nt), munitio ns
reliability (98.8 per cent) and fo r th e num-
ber of missio ns flown .
The 174th TFS, Iowa ANG, fo rmerl y
Repub lic RF-84F fl ye rs, wer also alerted
afte r the Pue blo affair and then deployed
to Vietnam on 14 May 1968, arriving at
Phu Cat afte r a 12 ,000- mile (1 9,310km)
fli gh t. Lt Co l Go rdon Young's a ircrew
(also predominantly a irline pi lots) co m-
plet d 563 combat miss ions in th e first
month of the ir o ne-yea r temporary duty
(TOY). Like the Co lorado G uardsmen,
th ey lost one pilo t in a shootdown ; 1st Lt
Warren K. Brown (54-2004) , down ed at
the sa me targe t as a 612th TFS F- l OO D
on ly nin ety minutes prev iously. It was a lso
th first F-100 lost in Vietn am. By th e
end of the ir to ur th airmen fro m S ioux
C ity, Iowa had comp leted 6,359 miss ions,
delive ring a mounta in of o rdnance includ -
ing 154 to ns of 2.75in rockets, almost 2
million rounds of 20mm and 3 mi llion
po unds of napalm.
0 GUA RD
Tuy Hoa welco med the 188 th TF ,
New Mex ico ANG in june 1968, the first
overseas dep loy ment fo r th e unit th at was
a lso the first ANG F-100 operato r. It had
traded its original F-l OOAs fo r F-100C/Fs
in spring 1964 . Th e Vietnam dep loyme nt
invo lved twenty- two 'SK' -coded a ircraft
and some ve ry experienced p ilots, most of
whom h ad ove r 1,000 h ours on the type .
Like man y ANG squadrons, the ir high ly
exp rienced ma inta in ers soon fo und
th mse lv s in supe rvisory pos itio ns with-
in th e parent Wing's support o rgani zation .
The ir superb ly mainta ined Huns ave raged
ove r e ighteen so rties daily during the ir
yea r at war and th e ir p il ots ea rned o ut-
stand ing reputations fo r acc urate o rd -
nanc de li very in support of t roops in co n -
tact. The 'Ench ilada A ir Fo rce' fl ye rs with
'Taco' ca ll signs were mu ch in demand for
difficul t CAS miss io ns. The inev itab le
cos t was fi ve a ircraft , two lost in a mid -a ir
coll isio n, two to an ti-a ircraft art ill ery
(AAA) and ano th e r in an op rati ona l
mi sh ap.
777
Jo in ing the New Mex ico men at Tu y
Hoa was the 136th T FS, New York ANG
from N iaga ra Fa lls, also with F-lOOC/Fs.
Rocky's Raiders (late r, New York's Fines t)
was part of the larg st and longest-estab-
lished gro up of ANG av iation un its. Its
hi story was rooted in 1943 as a P-5 10 unit
within the 8th A ir Fo rce . With th e NY
ANG it had flown some time-ex pired F-
4 7 Ds, 'They had granu lar co rro io n prob-
lems and could o nl y fire the inboa rd 50 ca l
guns' , crew chi ef Bobby Wri ght reca ll ed. ' l
think if we had fi red a ll e ight guns th
damn wings wo uld have fa llen off! '
After that, it was back to Mustangs, then
Lockh eed F-94Bs and F-86 H Sabres before
the F- l OOCs bega n to arri ve in 196 1.
When the squadron ve ntually transi-
t ioned to the F-10 1B Voodoo in June 1971
it had logged ov r 50,000 hours in F-100s
including 10 ,200 combat hours (5,500 mis-
sions) ove r Vietnam. Maj Franklyn McKee
fl ew the squadron's last F-100C (54-1 78)
to S ioux C ity on 13 A ugust 197 1 fo r anoth -
er two yea rs of service.

Rocky's Raiders at War
Flyi ng 'SG'-coded F-100Cs out of Tuy Hoa with the
136th TFS. New York ANG, Va n 'Sky King' Hall com-
pleted 229 missions with one of the most hi ghly rega rd-
ed Super Sabre units in Sou th East Asia.
Tuy Hoa was the biggest fighter base since WWII, with 125
Huns from three USAF regular units, the New Mexico ANG
and 'New York's Finest'. We were commanded by l t Col lav-
erne 'Dusty' Donner for the whole tour 11 4 June 1968- 25
May 1969). There were six months for training before we
deployed including a water survival course at Homestead
AFB plus live ordnance and 'night owl' training, also in Flori-
da. Then there was 'snake school' !jungle survival) in the
Phil ippines alter we deployed. We went non-stop to Hawai i
on the way over; nine hours in the cockpit with no auto-pilot,
wearing a poopy suit and taking seven air-to-air refuel lings
including three or four at maximum gross_aircraft weight.
That was real fun!
All the Air Guard units had the F-100C, the 'sport
_model', with a final approach airspeed of 183kt. It had no
flaps and was faster and more manoeuvrable than the F-
1OOD. While the 'Dcould carry wall-to-wal l napalm, the F-
lOOC could be loaded with two 'napes' outboard and two
high-drag bombs inboard. We had to drop the napalm first
Iboth tanks together) and then the bombs. The F-1ODDs
weapons system al lowed one pilot to drop his bombs and
open up the jungle before his wingman !allowed up with
some napalm. Cluster bomb units ICBUs)came later in the
second part of our deployment but it wasn't popular. If you
couldn't find a target CBU was jettisoned into the ocean.
never brought home.
Half of the missions were up in the Northern Route
Packs, including the Mu Gia Pass and the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
There were big guns up there - real flak. We always went
as four-ships on those missions, carrying four 7501b bombs
each. Very few night missions were flown. They required a
FAC. fighters and a C-130 flare-ship all running around in
the same sky together. They took forever to sort out and by
then any bad guys were long gone, I'm sure.
The only fatality was Capt 'Jake the Snake' L'Huillier,
shot down duri ng his second attack pass in 54-1912 on
a mid-morn ing mission against a Viet Cong IVC ) stor-
age area near Than Ba. Jake bailed out but his chu te
didn't fully deploy and he died in the rescue hel icopter
on the way to Chu Lai .
1st Lt Mike Laskowski in 54-1775 was hit in similar cir-
cumstances on 2August but rescued by a 37th ARRS heli-
copter. 1st Lt J. J. Thun was hit and baled out of 54-1922
near the Cambodian border on 23 August. 1st Lt Roberts
managed to fly his F-100C 154-1931) some distance to Da
Two of the eight ANG F-100 uni ts that
were alerted on 25 ]anuary 196 were sent
to Kunsa n, Korea instead of South Vietnam.
The 127th TF , Kan sas ANG (with F-
100Cs since converting fro m the F-86L in
1961) and the 166th TFS, O hio ANG (for-
merly a U AF-gained F-84F unit at Etain)
combined to b come the nucleus of the reg-
ular 35 4th TFW at the Korean base until
June 1969. The Kansas ]ayhawks briefl y
0 GUA RD
Nang after being hit on climb-out from Tuy Hoa, only to
bail out over the sea. The fifth loss involved 53-1713 ithe
fi fth F-1DOC and an ex-Edwards AFB test aircraft) after
engine failure on 8 August. In proportion to the huge num-
ber of missions flown these losses were relative ly light.
Most of the missions were in support of troops in contact,
flown by Alert crews. Each squadron had two birds on five-
minute Alert 24 hours a day with 'soft' loads of napa lmand
smal l, high-drag bombs. We used LITIERcal l-signs and had
'Rocky's Raiders' and 'Peace is our Profession, War is our
Hobby' on the nose-gear doors. The regular squadrons did-
n't see the humour in this. We called the regulars 'DARTs'
!dumb-ass regu lar troops) and they called us 'FANGs'
lf***ing Air National Guardsmen). The big diHerence
between us was that we made our mistakes together and
everyone in the unit got better each day. The regulars were
always having to train new guys. We went back to WWI I
stuH: I had my ·awn' aircralt 154-1893) and my crew chiel,
Bernie and I used that F-100C95 per cent of the time. This
was great lor morale. I never really looked at the plane dur-
ing the pre-fligh t walk-around, just the weapons. If Bernie
said it was ready, then it wast We partied hard with our
enlisted men - the regulars couldn't do that. We deployed
together and stayed together. The Tacos' !New Mexico
ANG) were good 'sticks' too and great drinking buddies. We
worked six weeks, then ten days off and the leave could be
taken anywhere m the world as long as you were back in
time for the next two to take theirs. I made it ito) Hawai i
three times, Australia once and Taiwan many times. We
would go to Cam Ranh Bay and hitch rides on ANG cargo
planes. No wonder the DARTs didn't love us!
War, as witnessed on an Air Force base, was the most
focused thing I have ever seen except pilot training: thou-
sands of folks doing only one thing and that was putting the
pilots in their seats and launching them. The whole thing was
about numbers: sorties. bombs, commission rates, etc. For
the pilots it really was easy except for that small part where
someone was trying to kill you. There was a tremendous
sense of detachment from the world. It took ten or twelve
days togeta letter, and then we wouldn'twant to get any bad
news because we couldn't help. Life just consisted of, when
do I get up? When do I fly? When can I have my first drink?
Vietnam is one of the most beautiful countries in the world
But on the other hand, I remember talking to a young
West Poin t graduate on a night Alert, half an hour before
his night checkout fl ight. He was married with a kid; had it
all. later, I went out for a cigarette and watched him take
off, screw up his join-up with the Fl ight l ead and kill him-
self against a mountain. Just another day.
adopted 'BP' ta il -code and one aircraft
acquired a spectacular hark mouth. The
166th T FS, one of four F-100 squadron
assigned to the O hi o AN G, flew Super
Sabres longer than the other units in the
Wing, acquiring F-100 s in 1962 and
replacing them with F-1000 in 1971 until
phase-out in 1974. lt too rece ived a tail -
code ('BO' ) at Kunsa n. The 354th TFW
had been an F-1000 Wing at Myrtle Beach
118
fro m late 1956 until it was effecti vely dis-
mantled in mid-1968 and moved 'on paper'
to Kunsan to replace the 4th TFW and act
a parent wing for the two F-100 squadrons.
Tasked with air defence of South Korea,
the two squadrons suffered bad ly fro m lack
of spare parts fo r the ir aging F-100C (all
available spares hav ing been channelled to
the Vietnam units ) and consequent declin -
ing readiness. They also lacked the all-
weather capability needed for effective a ir
defence in that environment.
Two other AN G squadro ns moved to
Myrtle Beach to establish a Replacement
Training Unit (RTU) for F-100 crews. The
11 9th TFS, New Jersey AN G was divided
up in March 1968 , mo t personnel go ing
to Myrtle Beach whil e the r t were di -
persed to Ko rea or Vi etnam. Half of it
pilots were transferred to the 355th TFS at
Tu y Hoa (after mov ing fro m Phu Cat in
May 1969 ), which beca me, in many
respects, the fifth Air G uard F-100 unit in
South Vietnam. This situatio n continued
until June 1969 when the 11 9th returned
to N ew Jersey control and began conver-
sion to the Republic F-105B. The other
half of the Myrtle Beach RTU ca me from
the 121 st TFS, Oistrict of Columbia AN G
which prov ided the core of the F-100
Combat C r w Training Sq uadron , coded
'XB'. Lik the New Jersey unit, the 12l st
TFS completed its role as an F- 100 'school'
in June 1969 and return ed to state control
fortran ition to the F-105 Thunde rchi ef.
Back in the USA
Air G uard F-100 squadro ns bega n to
return homeward in the summer of 1969 as
part of the initial redu ction of US fo rces in
Vietn am. For the 120th TFS , return to
Buckley AN G B, Colorado on 30 April
1969 m ant two more years o n the veter-
an F- l OOC before updating to the F-100 0
and subsequently to the LTV A -70 Cor-
sa ir in A pril 1974 after thirteen years on
Huns. Their F-1000 /Fs wore the promi-
nent red wildca t's head marking that had
been pa inted on the nose-gea r doors and
vertical stabilizers of their 'VS' -coded F-
100Cs in South Vietnam.
An even lo nge r track record could be
cl aimed by the 174th TFS with sixteen
years o n F-1OOC/0 and F Super Sabre
before it too beca me an A -70 outfit in
1976. As well as the S ioux C ity Squadron,
the Iowa A NG included the 124th TFS at
Des Moines, which exchanged its F-84Fs
 0 GU A RD

F-100F 56-3786, newly arrived at AMARC from the

Ohio ANG 's 166th TFS in 1974. Autho r"s Collection

The 119th TFS New Jersey ANG adopted 'XA' tail

codes when called to active duty with the 113th
TFW at Myrtle Beach AB in 1968. Ken Bu chanan via
John Mae ne

Another immaculate New Jersey ANG F-100C-6-NA.

This Hun also passed to th e Turkish AF in 1974.
David Mena rd via John Maene

11 9
 0 G A RD

Standard New Jersey ANG markings appear on this F-lOOC-6-NA, which has the 'swan neck' refuelling probe and
335gal tanks. '782 later joined the Turkish AF. David Menard via John Ma ene

for F-100Cs in April 1971 and then

F-lOODs in 19T before jo ining the' or-
sa ir ll lub' in January 1977.
As the first ANG unit to take aboa rd the
F- 100, th 188th TFS had long xperi nee
of the F-l OOA/C and F and it stuck with the
battle-p rove n C models through to 1973
before taking on A-70s. Towards the end of
the ir ca reers, everal F-100 s sloughed off
their worn ca moufl age for a smart new coat
of A ir Defense Command (ADC) grey
pa int and a rev iva l of the black and yellow
chev rons and sunrays that the F- 1OOA 'hot
Huns' had once worn. The New York ANG
136th TFS, having received an O utstand-
ing Unit Awa rd in January 1970 fo r its war
service , stayed in F- lOOCs until Aprill 97 1
and then received its first F-101 B/F
Voodoos the fo llowing month, mov ing to
ADC control as a resul t.
Wh en th e two Ko rea n-deployed
sq uad ro ns returned, the 127th TF re-
F-lOOC-2-NA 53-1747 of the District of Columbia ANG's 121st TFS also has High Wire dep loyed to McConnell AFB in Ju ne
updates. The red 'design' on the nose is actually an intake cover. Peter Schinkelshoek 1969 . In the spring of 197 1 it traded its F-
Collection lOOCs fo r F-105Ds as a Tactica l Figh te r

72 0

A 110th TFS Missouri ANG F-1 00F attracts viewers in 1966. Some of the unit's F-100s had red nose and tail mark ings.
Peter Sc hinkelsho ek Collec tion
Train ing Squad ro n (T ITS ). Its fo rmer
partner sq uadron at Kunsan, the 166th
TFS, took o n a batch of F-100 0 /Fs two
yea rs after its return to Lockbourne AFB
and fl ew them until the end of 1974 when
it beca me yet another A -70 operato r.
O hio was one of the largest A N G F-100
Groups with four of its five fl ying
sq uadro ns hav ing used the F-100. At Tole-
do airport the 112th T FS fl ew F- l OO Ds
between October 1970 and summ er 1979 ,
absorbing some of the aircraft that were
returned fro m Vietnam-based un its as they
upgraded to later types. Earlier in 1970,
the 162nd T FS at Springfield also got F-
lOODs to replace its F-84Fs and then
rece ived A-70s in Ap ril 1978. The ir
fourth un it, the 164th T FS at Mansfie ld -
Lah m airport flew the F-l OO D for on ly
three yea rs fro m February 1972 and then
changed compl rely to -130s, provid ing
logistical support du ri ng DeseTt Stom1.
O hio's fift h sq uad ron was a mu ch-need d
A ir Refuell ing Sq uadro n (ARS ).
0 GUAR D
A second F-100 TITS was established
withi n the A rizona ANG using the 152 nd
TFS. In 1958, it beca me one of the three
A ir G uard units to rece ive F-l OOAs, the
other two being the 188th TFS and the
118th T FS, Connecticut ANG . ln
1965- 66 bo th the 152nd TFS and 11 8th
T FS began a period fl ying the F-102A
Delta Dagge r as A DC-ga ined squadrons,
but by the summ r of 1969 the A ri zona
squ ad ron had reverted to F- l OOC/Fs as a
TITS, graduating to F-l OO Ds in] uly 1975.
It then beca me the hard -worked RTU fo r
A ir G uard A-70 traini ng in 1976 and for
a tim shared duties on both types un t il its
Ia t F-l OO D were ph a ed out in March
1978. Connect icut pilo ts gave up t h ir
F-102As over th e summ er of 1971 and
began a long pe riod of F-100 0 /F 'owner-
shi p' that ended with the introd uct ion of
th A- l OA 'Warthog' in mid - 1979.
In all , twenty-six A G squadro ns fl ew
S uper Sabres. Two other states operated a
pair ofF-100 sq uad rons. The Ind iana ANG
72 7
113th TFS at Terre Haute xchang d F-
184Fs for F-1000 /Fs in S ptemb r 197 1,
shortly after the 163 rd TFS Marksmen at
Baer Fi eld . Ind iana Super Sabres deployed
to RAF Lak nhea th in April 1976 for a
two- week exercise. Both units trad d up to
Phantoms in 1979, receiving some of the F-
4C W ild Wease l IV aircraft in de- modified
form. Massachusetts was the other state
protected by a pair of F- 100 sq uadro ns; the
10 1 t T FS fro m May 1971 and the 13 1st
TFS from] une of that yea r. A rap id change
of policy mea nt re- training the 101 t TF
on the F-106A Delta Da rt a yea r later while
th 13 1st continued until ] uly 1979 before
'MA' -cod d A- lOAs took over the flight-
lines.
A lso, upgrad ing to F-4 s at that t ime
was the 184th TFS, A rkansas ANG Flying
Razm·backs, whi ch had flown F-100 0 /Fs
out of Fort mith airport since the summer
of 1972. Michiga n's 107th TFS , prev ious-
ly an RF-10 1 Voodoo user (l ike the 184th
T FS ), got its upe r Sab r s in June 1972
 0 G A RD

and A -70s took ov r six yea rs later. Fur-

ther no rth, in Sioux Falls, the ! 75th TFS
Lobos of the South Dakota ANG relin-
qu ished an ADC role on F-102As to fl y F-
100 0/Fs from May 1970 un t il it too
acq uired A -70s in 1977 .
In the o uth , the G eorgia, Mi ouri,
Texa , O klaho ma and Louisiana Air
G uard units all controlled single F- 1000/F
units in the late 1970s. Mi s uri 's ll Otb
TFS had previou ly fl own the F-100 ,
beginning in A ugust 1962 after a lo ng
period o n F-84Fs. The ir F- lOODs appea red
from r gular U AF uni ts at the end of
1971 and stayed un t il the start of 1979.
G eorgia's 128 th TF had six yea rs on F-
lOODs fr m spring 1973 and then t ok
o ver a batch of F-105 , whil tb K ll y
AFB-ba ed Texa ANG q uadra n, the
182nd TF , managed e ight yea rs
(197 1- 79 ) on F-lOODs before a lo ng peri-
This neat 19751ine-up of 124th TFS,Iowa ANG Huns has F-1000 56-3034 in the
od on the F-4C. Its easterly ne ighbo ur, the
foreground . Peter Schinkel shoek Col lection
O klaho ma A G took on F-100 0/Fs in
1973 in place of lu mbering -124 trans-
po rts, fl ying th m until Ju ly 1978. AS
Another beautifully kept F-lOOD. This 131st TFS, Massachusetts ANG Hun returns from New O rl eans was the base for Louisiana's
a training mission. Coloured tail bands were applied to many of the unit's aircraft 122nd T F F-1000/Fs from late 1970 until
before and after tail codes were marked up in 1979. Author's Collection April 1979. The Coonass Militia later

722
 ON G ARD

A challenging model diorama subject. A 163rd TFS, 122nd TFW Indiana ANG F-1000 in deep periodic maintenance.
David Menard Collection

123
 ON GUA RD

A rear view of the same Indiana ANG Super Sabre with the tail section slid off. The engine afterburner section
was supported by an interim mount, fitted to the top of the fuselage just forward of the point where aircraft 'split"
into two. David Menard Collection

became the first A G sq uadron to rece ive

the oph isticated F- 15A Eag le.
The las t ANG F-100 mi io n was flown
by an Ind iana ANG pilot, 1st Lt Wil li am
Lay ne of th e 113th TFS in 56-2979 C ity of
Terre Haute. It was also the fina l USAF F-
100 mi ion , though Br ig Gen Frank Het-
tlinger, Comm ander of th 122 nd TFW
had the honour of fl ying the 23-yea r o ld F-
l OOD to the Military Aircraft Sto rage and
Dispos iti on Ce nter (MASDC ), Ar izona
as 'FE627' . lt re ma ined there unt il its con-
ve rsion to a QF- 100 target d ro ne and
destructio n by an A IM-7F miss il on 2 1
February 1983 d uring its third target
fli gh t. At that tim e it had ove r 5,000

The Indiana ANG Hun's tail on its special handling

vehicle . Although this aircraft's ANG badge has
worn off, the yellow tail band remains. The Indiana
logo was later changed to yellow also. David Menard
Coll ection

124
 0 1 GUARD

Po lice all aro und us. We we re to ld no t to lea ve

th e aircraft and we had two o r three po li ce with
weapo ns d rawn surrounding each F- 100 . Even
the Base Commander a rrived on the scene . We
were rold ro board a bus and taken off ro a
hangar. Abo ut an ho ur later some Maj o r to ld us
to rake a ll our A 7 and MA 2 po wer uni ts and ge t
the aircraft started fo r a bu nch of offi cers (no r
o urs) ro move th e Hu ns. The I 36th TFS was
famo us immediate ly and th e messes were
buzz ing fo r seve ral days with sro ri es of the Ban-
d its of H ickam stea ling F- 1OOs .

Joh n Mae ne and his ew Jersey squadron

Another F-100F. this time from the 182nd TFS, Texas ANG in 1976, with its state name in
'Old Western ' script on a red band. Author's Collection
hours of fli ght on its servi ce reco rd includ -
ing several yea rs of USAFE se rvice. A
n um ber ofF- LOO pi lots could boast even
longe r periods of fligh t t ime , 5,600 ho urs
be ing the USAF hi gh -t im e record he ld by
Dick Sa lazar. For many othe r pilo ts who
moved on to more user-fri endl y jets, the
F- LOO neverthe less remain ed a favourite
memory: the a ircraft on which they rea lly
learned to fly fighters .
Air Guard units were quite often as ked
to deploy over long distance fo r exercises
or TOYs. In August L963, th ew York
ANG took part in Swift Strike Ill at
McG hee-Tyson AFB in Tenn essee. One of
the uni t's biggest deployments pre-Viet-
nam was TrojJic Lightning to Hawaii in
August 1965, the first Pac ific cross ing by
an ANG tactical fi gh ter quadran. On
arri va l, ome cultural d ifferences betwee n
regular USAF and ANG pract ices caused
a few misunderstand ings, as Bobby Wright
remembered:
participated in peration Gold Rush IV in
May L967, when a dozen F- l OOs flew non-
stop from A tl antic City to Elmendorf AFB
for ten days. Tenn essee ANG KC-9 7s were
po ted to th e A laskan base to refu el the
Hun wh ile they practi ed air defence and
AS miss ions. Standard tra ini ng loads for
th ese missions were two 335gal fu e l tanks
with either 2. 75 in rocket pods or practi ce
bombs outboa rd, o r inert 500- or 75 0 lb
bombs inboa rd and outboard.
proceeded ro th e active runway in single fil e
with the ca nopies open. Th e contro l rower O nce or twice a year a fl are rocker and inert
operato r spo tted us and wanted ro kno w what in A IM-9 were hung on the F- IOO's left inboa rd
hell a bunch of no n-comm iss io ned personn el pylo n. Th e pilot fired the rocket, wa ited a few
were do ing in th ose birds. Air Fo rce regulatio ns seconds and then fired the S idew inde r, like
sa id specifi ca ll y that o nl y o ffi ce rs could taxi air- shoot ing fish in a barre l.
craft. O ur lead man, a Tech Se rgea nt, tri ed ro ummer ca mps took the JA C to places
exp lain that we were licensed ro do it but the lik e Cape Cod , courtesy of the Ma sachuserrs
to wer would n 't buy th is and ro ld us ro shut ANC. We lived in o ld WW II ba rrack with the
down engi nes immedi ate ly. Befo re we knew it Rhode Island ANC marching band coming
there was a bunch of vehic les and A ir Force thro ugh at an ungod ly hour afte r a great party

We fl ew in a C- lJ O from N iagara Fal ls to Ca li -

fornia ro read y o ur birds fo r the second leg of th e
journey to Hawa ii , and then resumed our own
journey ro H ickam Fi eld, Hawaii. Upon being
assigned ro o ur lovely WW II wooden barracks we
were bri efed to rake our aircraft to a designated
sire some d istance fro m th e main base, as we
wo uld be using li ve ordnance o n ou r missions.
Mov ing the aircraft was ro utin e ro us because
District of Columbia ANG F-100Cs were camouflaged by 1970 when this later shot of
we were li ce nsed, as fu ll -ri me tech n icians, ro
53-1747 was taken . Two years later it was in the Turkish AF. Peter Schinkelsh oek
run up and tax i th e birds. We fired them up and
Coll ection

725

S/ Sgt Bobby 'Orville' Wright looked after an F-1DOC for
the 136th TFS from 1963 to 1967. His Hun, 'one hell of
a performer'. earned him Crew Chief of the Month as it
did for two of his successors. He explains the routine for
getting the F-1 DOC ready to go.
In winter I would first remove the protective cover over
the canopy. Then we'd check the afterburner 'eyelids' . We
used to push them into the open position on the flight line
and cover them over. This retracted the actuating pistons
and protected them from the weather. When a pilot went
into afterburner and the eyelids didn't open he got a
tremendous engine 'chatter' (I did this once in a simulator
and it scared the cr·p out of me!).
Then the in-flight refuelling boom would be checked.
On practice missions many came back with this boom
sticking straight up in the air. It was made of aluminium
and could not stand much abuse. Pilots were very embar-
rassed when they returned with it in this condition. We
didn't straighten them out and I saw several in the bone-
yard but the rule was 'remove and replace'.
Capt Allen Lamb asserted that accidentally bent booms
were the inspiration for the later. cranked boom that
pilots could see more easily when refuell ing than the
original straight model. The probes were made of tapered
aluminium pipe with a wall thickness that was greater at
the rear of the tube where it attached to the wing.
Next we'd check the pitot static boom and the spring-
loaded clasps that held the wing slats in the retracted
position. The slats would often extend when the F-100
was in the in-flight refuell ing position due to the low
speed and high angle of attack. Going under the aircraft
we would remove the red-pa inted, metal landing gear
down locks.
The next chore was to fill the liquid oxygen (LOX) can-
ister from the LOX cart. There was no way of measuring
the LOX and it was just fed in until you got a steady
stream of overflow. This job required us to wear a rub-
ber apron. face shield and heavy gloves. We put a metal
pan on the ground to collect the excess LOX, which
boi led off very rapidly. It was a very dangerous chore
and one had to be extremely careful.
Refuel ling the bird was done through the single-point
receptacle on the left side of the fuselage, supplying
fuel to the wing cells and the f01ward and aft fuselage
cells. Drop tanks had to be filled by hand. The total
capacity for the aircraft was 17,9331b, sufficient for 2
hours 20 minutes (with drop tanks).
The 'wet' wings would weep fuel frequently but that
wasn't a serious hazard. We would inject sealant when
needed but it wasn't very frequent. We would remove
old P2 or P3 screws, inject the sealant and replace the
screws. Most of this was done as a routine part of peri-
odic inspection.
Fuel pumps in the wheel wells were checked for prop-
er opera tion. We had to crawl down the air intake and
look at the first-stage turbine blades for any nicks or
cracks. If there were cracks over 1/Bin deep the aircraft
would be grounded for engine remova l and inspection
at the engine shop. Inside the intake was a shield
(called a 'dog peeker') that covered a hydraulic pump
0 G ARD
Keeping Them in The Air
and when the pump failed it was a real bitch to change
because of the confined space. I did that chore many
times on hot tarmac and that ain't no fun.
All tyre pressures had to be checked and corrected if
necessary: 231 psi for main gear tyres and 175psi for
the nose gear tyres. Landing gear strut pressure had to
be 3,000psi. lyres were checked for 'bull's-eye' chafes
caused by too much yaw on landing peeling the tread
from the casing and showing the layers of different
coloured cord underneath. When red appeared the tyre
had to be changed. Young pilots (or hung-over ones)
would leave with brand new tyres, make one landing,
score a 'bull's-eye' and have to write it up on the form.
They knew the crew chief would be annoyed because
changing a tyre was a big job. Each tyre change
requ ired an anti-sk id check by two people and a very
rigid inspection. Safety wiring of nuts and bolts was an
art and had to be done so that the wires were pull ing
bolts tight all the time. Wheel assemblies also housed
the disc brakes that were as heavy as hell. The number
of land ings per tyre would be judged by the type of
landing-strip surface. In Florida some of the old run-
ways were made of crushed coral and tar, which was
highly abrasive.
F-1DO tyres cou ld take some abuse. as John Maene, a crew
ch ief with the 177th TFG. New Jersey ANG recollected:
One freezing morning our unit was in the middle of an
ORI (Operational Readiness Inspection( and we were
doing our final inspections before letting the weapons
crews arm the bombs and cannons. The last F-1OOF(just
out of periodic inspection with new tyres) had an
Inspector in the back seat observing the mission. Its
crew taxied on to the active runway, ran up the engine,
checked all systems. released brakes and rolled for-
ward. hitting 'burner as they accelerated to take-off
speed. Suddenly, someone announced over the radio
that the Hun had blown a tyre and we wondered how
this could have happened with new tyres.
By the time the maintenance truck arri ved at the point
where the aircraft had successfully engaged the arrest-
ing cable the firemen were trying to push the still-run-
ning bird back off the cable. Finally, the pilot shut down.
His brakes and tyres were dangerously close to blowing
after the aborted take-off. but the puff of smoke that
someone had thought was a tyre blowing out was actu-
al ly the jettisoned drag chute package hitting the run-
way. Water had frozen in the F-1 OOF's pi tot tube pre-
venting any airspeed indication. The pilot aborted
take-off, dropped his tail hook and instead of deploying
his drag chute he accidental ly jettisoned it. The good
news was that the maintenance men were cleared of
any wrongdoing. (The pitot system had to be purged
with dry compressed air by instrument special ists if any
moisture was discovered when the pitot drain plugs
were pulled.) The first time you personal ly installed a
drag chu te and launched your bird your anxiety level
went up several notches when you saw your particular
F-100 in the landing pattern. Our base had a small ri se
partly blocking the view of the active runway and I had
to wa it to see the aircraft appear the other side of the
ri se to make sure the chute had deployed.
126
Bobby Wright's pre-flight continued with a check of the F-1OO's
static fluid leaks.
Aircraft perform better the more they are flown. The F-1 OOC
hydraulic system ran at 3.000psi. using 5606 hydraulic fluid
(the aircraft's oil was 58508e synthetic grade). When the
system wasn't under pressure many static leaks appeared.
This wasn't really a problem. but convincing a pilot of this
point during his walk-around inspection was a pain. We
would wipe up all the evidence under the bird when we
saw the pilot approaching and if 'greenhorn' pilots made an
issue of it we would say, 'Are you going to fly this thing or
pull a Duality Control Inspection on it?'
The preparations continued with unfolding and locking
the pilot boom and then installing the drag chute.
This was a hell of a job. especially for short guys like me.
You had to lie on your back. balancing the chute on your
feet and stufi it into the hopper, close the door with your
feet and use a 15in screwdriver to close and lock the fas-
tener. I used to wait until the bird was refuelled before I
did this because the landing gear struts would compress.
bringing the back end of the Hun closer to the ground so
that my short legs could reach the drag chute compart-
ment. A red flagged safety cable was attached to the
chute and the pilot had to pull this on his walk-around.
We made a visua l inspection of the wheel wel ls, look-
ing for any chafing of hydraulic lines and cables. If any
was detected we separated the lines with a leather chafe-
pad. The 'saddle' access door on the upper fu selage.
behind the cockpit, was removed to inspect hydraulic fluid
levels. Using the A7 external electrical power generator
we'd do an instrument test and a radio check with the con-
trol tower. Then we would connect the MA 2 air turbine
compressor hose to the lower rear fuselage ready to start
the engine. The pilot made the walk-around check, remov-
ing safety flags from the drop tanksand drag chute. We then
helped to strap him into the cockpil
John Maene:
Nonmally, pilots would position their helmet and oxygen
mask on the top centre of the windshield. I once strapped a
pilot in and assumed his helmet wasdown on the right hand
circuit breaker panel, out of my view. After all the straps
were tightened he reached for his helmet. realized he had
totally forgotten it and asked me to go and get the 'missing
flight gear'. Good thing he wasn't scrambling that day.
Communication between pilot and crew chief cou ld pro-
vide some semantic problems once they went beyond
the normal 'semaphore' routines too. John Maene
explained:
A new ruling came down that any F-100 running its engine
on the flight line had to have its navigation lights on to
warn ramp personnel to stay away. My 'mentor', TSgtWil-
fred Hickerson saw that a pilot hadn't done this and tried
banging on the aircraft's wingtip to get the pilot's attention
while he also pointed at the un-illuminated nav light. The
pilot merely looked confused. Next. 'Hick' started rapi dly
blinking his eyes while he continued to point at the light.

When that too failed he finally climbed up the ladder to the
cockpit and yelled at the top of his lungs as he pointed at
the pilot's navigation light switch.
Some ground crew initiatives lay well outside the gu ide-
lines. as John described:
Before one simulated 'strafing of enemy positions' near
'friendly troops' some smart-ass came up with the brilliant
idea of putting several rolls of toilet paper up in the Huns'
speed brake wells. As the aircraft approached the friend-
ly troops the pilots deployed their speed brakes. bombing
the troops with streaming rolls of toilet tissue. Needless
to say, the Army boys really weren't amused.
In the final stages before flight, the eng ine wou ld be
started, using an esta blished seri es of hand-s ignal s to
communicate with the pilot. The crew chi ef woul d then
clamber on to the fu se lage and peer into the 'saddle-
the night before, waki ng us up with bad
. headaches. We got even a few clays later when
so meone strung ai rcraft safety wire aero their
route causing the first few rows of ba nd member
and the ir instruments to wind up in a big pile on
the ground, cu rsing and ye lling.
There were more seri o us se tbacks too,
particularl y as pi lots tra ined fo r the ir
forthcoming outh East A ia depl y-
ments. In 1965, a New Yo rk pi lo t was lost
as a r ult of 'target fi xat ion' during an
air-to-ground del ive ry, and two co ll id ed
ove r Lake O ntario in an a ir combat
manoeuvring (AC M) exerc ise. o trace
of e ither th e pilo t o r the ir a ir raft was
ev r found .
An attractive ADC grey colour scheme and original F-100A-style markings were used
in place of camouflage on several188th TFS F-100Cs in 1972, towards the end of their
service. Pete r Schinkelshoek Coll ection
ON G A RD
back' access area to check that the hyd raulic pistons
operating the rudder were working properly when the
pilot moved the rudder pedals. The saddleback was
then replaced and latc hed down . Bobby Wright
explai ned:
We would then remove al l external gear, wind up the sta-
tic line and secure it into the nose-wheel door. Just before
removing the chocks the pilot had to show us the two red
safety flags from his ejection seal. Chocks were then
pulled. the pilot was guided off his parking position with
a salute and he was on his way. When a crew chief signed
his name to an aircraft form to say it was safe and ready
to fly it was kind of a sacred thing because we took great
pride in our job. The F-100 carried the requisite Form 781
!stored in the cockpit or in a vent hole in the 20mm bay
when the aircraft wasn't on a combat or gunnery mission)
to record all 'write-ups' by pilots or maintainers. A red
dash on the form indicated the need fo r routine mainte-
An active ANG F-100 squadron was
just as bu y a a regul ar unit. John Mae ne:
We had two rows of F- 100 facing each other as
Flights A and B, comprising rough ly twenty-two
F-LOOCs and two F- IOOFs [the normal comple-
ment of two-seaters in an F- 100 unit]. Each Hun
had a Crew Chief and at least one Ass istant. They
personall y serviced their aircraft except that
sometimes a lower-rank maintainer from each
flight would have a da il y work-list of wh ich birds
needed to be 'LOXed'. A couple of trucks con-
stan tly patrolled the flight line relayi ng requests
from crew ch iefs via radio to tl1e various mai nte-
nance shops (av ion ics, engine, hydrauli , sheet
metal etc.). At regular hours on a progre ive basis
the aircraft had preventative maintenance per-
127
nance. Ared diagonal meant non-critical scheduled main-
tenance and a red 'X' meant the aircraft could not fly until
the problemwas solved. In the ANG, a dropped pencil in
the cockpit or the smal lest nut or bolt astray meant a red
'X'. This wasn't always done in regular units.
The 136th TFS inherited its F-1 DOCs from a Bitburg-
based Unites States Air Force in Europe IUSAFE) Wing
and Bobby was not impressed by the state of the aircraft
on arrival. 'As we disassembled the aircraft we removed
bags of FOD.·
Forms 210 and 211 were used for sma ll er jobs like
tyre changes. Work cards would be available in the
unscheduled maintena nce docks and for 50 or 1OOhr or
later inspections. In the New York ANG a crew chief
cou ld work alongside th e programmed mai ntenance
personnel as his aircraft went throug h deeper mainte-
nance. However. hi s work had to be inspected by a
mechanic who was generally a rank above himself.
formed. For example, the j57-P-2 LA engine had
a time between overhauls (TBO) of 200 hours.
Although the F-100 fleet r c ived few
update during it ANG years there was on
very practical mod ification to the engine in
many F-l OODs, Fs and a few F-l OOCs th at
o lved its earlier afterburner probl ems. The
o nvair F-102A Delta Dagger u ed the
sa me ba ic engine in its j57-P-23A form
with a more reliable afterburn er nozzle
arrangement using actuating rods. F-102s
equipped twenty-three ANG sq uadrons
from 1960 onwards, but all had been retired
to the A ero pace Maintenanc and Regen-
eration Center (AMARC) by October
1976. As Dav id Menard explained:
The original afterburner eye lids on the )57-2 1
drove our engine troops crazy as they wou ld get out
of alignment and this affected the th rust. We built
special tools to push them back into the correct
shape. On bases wi th F-102sour engine maintain-
ers asking if they could use the afterburners from
them fo r F-1OOs and the idea g t shot down every
time. Then an Arizona G N got permi -
sian from his commanding officer [CO! to fit one
and try it out. erring F-102 afterburners from
AMAR was a snap and it worked just grea t, as
pred icted by regular USAF troops. The NCO got
aU $20,000 bonus for 'his' idea !
F-lOOs erved in ANG squadrons for
twenty-o ne years until November 1979. In
that yea r, ten of the twenty-s ix ANG
unit that had u ed F- l OODs relinqui h d
the ir a ircraft and the Hun enter d the
final stages of its career in the USA - as a
target drone for its more potent fi gh te r
successors.
 ON GUA RD

A 103rd TFG, Connecticut ANG F-lOOF-2-NA (56-3732) on a visit to Ramstein AB , 1975. Two years later, it crossed the
Atlantic again on delivery to Turkey. Author"s Collection

An impressively tidy parade of 124th TFS F-100Cs. This unit was one of two within the Iowa ANG to fly F-100s and both
transitioned to the F-1000, 1971- 74. Dougla s E. Slowiak via David Menard

128

F-100C 54-1873 of the 4758th DSES from Biggs AFB, landing at Howard AFB in the Canal Zone in July 1969.
S/Sgt D. Rankin USAF via Ron Thurlow
Fiery Final Flights: QF-100
The use of fu ll-scale ae rial targets (FSAT)
to give pilot rea listi c mis ile firing expe-
ri ence had bee n we ll established with the
conversio n, betwee n 1973 and 198 1, of
215 QF-102A and PQM-102A/B De lta
Dagge rs in Project Pave Deuce . Sperry
ON GUA RD
Flight Systems had removed the weapon
and fi re cont ro l systems, sea t and co ntrol
co lumns fro m the ex- ANG F- l02s and
installed a se lf-destru ct mechani m and a
data link pac kage that fitted o n to the
ejection seat rails. Thi s y tem fed infor-
mation from a ground-based co ntro l sta-
t ion to the aircraft's engine and fli ght co n-
729
tro is, enab li ng it to perform like a pil oted
fi ghter, or better (8g turns we re possible).
The Pave Deuce drones w r destroyed at a
prodigious rate between 1975 and 1982,
nece itating a replace ment type before
the F-106 De lta Dart became ava ilab le fo r
th e purpose in 1986.
Sperry re e iv d a contract in March
1982 to carry out similar con v rsio ns to ex-
AN G F-100s in storage at MAS DC. An
initi al batch of nine trial a ircraft was pre-
par d at the c mpany's Litchfield airport
fac il ity in Ari zona. The first two, F-lOODs
56-3 414 '092' and 55-36 10 '093 ', were des-
ignated YQF-l OODs and reta ined cockpit
controls so that pi lots could evaluate the
data li nk system . The nex t three were QF-
lOOD , convert d to the U AF' tandard
no li ve operato r nboa rd (N O L ) config-
urat ion, fo llowed by a similarl y appo inted
JF-100F 56-3744 was used by WADC to fly through
thunderstorms during Project Rough Raider. Sensor
probes extend from modified 275gal tanks. Its
orange/red decor needed frequent repair due to
weather attrition. Davi d Menard Colle ction
 ON GUA RD

QF-100 F (56-3 984). This aircraft and the

second N O LO con version (55-3669 )
crashed on take-off after un-piloted fli ght
began at Tynd all AFB on 19 N ovember
198 1. Thr e QF- lOODs (conversions 09 -
100 ) were for a US A rmy r q uirem nt fo r
multi-target m iss ions.
Dro ne conversion invo lved the insta lla-
ti o n by perry of a comm and/tel metry
y tern ( /T ) that could decode signals
fro m a remote contro l tatio n and c nvert
th em into data for a newly installed air-
craft flight contro l syst m (AF ) o r
'bra in'. The AFCS a lso relayed back in fo r-
mati o n fro m th e QF-l OO's onboard sen-
or . ontrol inputs could be made to
op rate th e arresting hook, braking chute,
speed brake and landing gear as w ll as pri-
mary flight, engine and fu el contro ls. AFCS
al o relayed a 'comm and de truct' ignal if
th miss ion had to be terminat d in an
emergency but there was also a back-up
F-100F 56-3746, delivered to AMARC from the 113th TFS at Hulman Field, Indiana UH F receiver for this terminal situ ation. A
awaits conversion to OF-100F configuration in 1979. It expired on 8 October 1970 on its smoke-emission system (simi lar to the one
eighth unmanned drone flight. Author"s Coll ection provided for aerobatic demon u·ation

-----------
'231 ' is from the Flight Systems OF-1000 conversion batch, using F-1000 55-3679 ex-Louisiana ANG. This very weathered
Hun eventually succumbed to an AIM -9M missile on 23 October 1987. Serial and code application on red/orange bands is
typical . Author"s Collection

730

One of the most distinctive F-100 schemes was used by AFLC's F-1000-20-NA 55-3511
at McClellan AFB in 1964. The SMAMA (represented here by a group of its pe rsonnel)
lettering was in red over a yellow alar while the rest of the airc raft was red and wh ite
with black cheat lines. The magnificent '511 , used by AFLC as a pattern aircraft, later
went to war w ith the 308th TFS at Tuy Hoa and was shot down on 28 December 1969.
Norm Taylor Collection
aircraft) was in ta iled so that the QF-100
cou ld prod uc a visual 'ID' if req uir d.
ln order to increase the u ful life of ach
exp nsive drone, AAMs with inert war-
heads could be fired at it, and a digital
D ppler system (DIGIDOPS) with four
en r at the aircraft's nose, tail, and above
and b low the fu elage measured the 'miss
d istan e' of any missil pa ing with in 200ft
( 60m) of the QF-100. Pilots could then g t
a theoretica l kill while the QF-100 lived
on. Ordnance py lons cou ld also take fue l
tank, lectr ni c counte rmeasures (EC M)
pod and chaff/fl ar dispensers to make the
intercepting fi ght r jock' job hard er. A ll
a ircraft could be de-con verted to piloted
configuration if requ ired, with o r without
the AF engaged. Under re mote control,
the QF- 100 could be fl own sing!y or in a fo r-
mat ion of up to six aircraft (in mann d con-
figuration) to simulate multip le th reats.
N t all QF-l OOs had the drone format ion
contro l sy t m (DFC ) needed for th i
m d and, in practice , the usual number for
N L formation mode wa two aircraft.
ON GUARD
In unmanned mode, two contro llers
we re needed fo r each QF-100, one for
pitch and throttle contro l and the other
fo r ailerons and rudd er. A mobile contro l
station nea r the run way manag d launch
and recove ry but the rest of each miss ion
was 'flown' from a fixed ground stat ion.
ontrollers rel ied entire ly on data from
the QF- lOO's sensors without an onboard
TV camera link like the ones used in the
USN QF-4N/S Phantom programme. Fo l-
low ing the batch of nine tria ls a ircraft,
Sperry converted another 89 QF-1OOD
(convers ion numbers 10 1- 189) and two
QF- l OOF (501/2) dron es fo r use by the
82nd Tac ti ca l A ri al Targets Sq uadron
(TATS ), 475th Weapons Evaluation
Gro up at Tyndall AFB, Florida . Some were
used by the 82 nd TATS Detachment at
Ho lloman AFB.
T he FSAT programme then passed to
the Flight Systems lnc. (FS l) d ivisio n of
Traco r at Kern Coun ty airpo rt, Mojave.
The fi rst (55-2863 '20 1') of 169 QF-100D
(20 1-369) and ~ rty-one QF- l OOF
73 7
(370- 41 0) conve rsio ns was de li v red to
Ho ll oman AFB o n 28 S ptember 1985.
Th e programm e continued unti l Decem-
be r 1990 when Program Manage r Larry H .
Rectenwa ld had to terminate the contract
fo r th U AF sin e Me le llan AFB was
already g aring up to engage with the QF-
4 I hanto m drone programm e. At th at
stage, fo urteen aircraft w re sti ll in var ious
stages of con vers io n and eleven of them
(QF- l OOF '411-42 1') were returned to
AMAR ( ix fl w, five were trucked),
given n w MA D seri als and tor d a
possibl e display items for U AF or other
museums. Other AMARC a ircraft prov id-
ed spares fo r the FSAT programme.
Th li fe of a 'drone Hun' wa usually
ve ry brief, most ending in blazing showers
of debris ove r the sea afte r a hit by an
A lM-7 or A IM -9 m i sile during th e ir first
three o r fo ur flights. Eighty- ight were
destroyed o n the ir first OLO fli ght and
twenty-four e ither cras hed during a mis-
sion or had to be destroyed after a tec hni -
ca l fa ilu re. H owever, a few survived up to
fifteen fli ght before being na iled by a mi -
sile. Larry R cte n wa ld noted that to ward
the end of the programme:
We were ave rag ing fourteen shots at a drone
before it was killed . Engi nes were a prob lem as
j 57 part were sca rce. Some engines were rated
for very fe w hours of running time. I wa buyi ng
parts from countries like Turkey and ermany to
put the QFs in flyin g condition. O ne item that
was rea l sca rce also was vertica l stabilizers. Afte r
th e programme was finished I got a ca ll fTOm
S upply at Me le llan and I went down to their
wa rehouse where they had found n ine brand
new stabi lize rs! A ll the Q F- IOOs re-bui lt whil e I
was managi ng them could be fl own by a pilot
[r ather than O LO] just by fli pp ing a switch .
They had to be this way so that they could be
delivered to Tyndall or Ho lloman. The aircraft
were accepted by the USAF after they arri ved at
th e bases after being ferri ed in by Tracor pilots.
QF-100s played a ro le in the AMRAAM
programm e. QF-100D 55-2877, ex- 110th
TF , fell to an AMRAAM fired head-o n
from an F- l 6A ove r White Sa nds Miss ile
Range on 17 September 1985.
The drones retained their basic Vietnam
ca mouflage, often severely faded after a
decade in AMAR 's sun-baked storage I
with Day-G io red horizontal and vertica l
stabilizers and bands in the same colour on
the nose and wing-tips. Serial numbers
appeared on the vertica l stabilizer and con-
ve rsi n numbers on the nose in white. In
 ON GU A RD

some cases the insignia of former ANG

owners could stil l be seen. ln action, th y
continued to demo nstrate considerable
structural strength, returning on several
occasions wid1 shredded tail control sutfaces
or even mis ing a horizontal stab ilize r.
F l also flew e ight F-lOO D/Fs for the US
Army at Ho lloman AFB in 1992 in con-
nect io n with H aw k mi ss il e d ve lopment.
Fo ur were ex-QF-100s, though not all had
been conve rted, and the rest came from
AMARC F-100F stock. An F-100D and
ix ex- Roya l Danish AF F-100Fs were also
ope rated by F l, some of them to tow
high-speed DART targets fo r USAFE
units. A lso, three ex-Turkish AF F-1 00Cs
were obtained in 1989 as poss ible drone
co nver ions but were sold o n to priva te
co llectors when that proj ect was dropped.
A further batch of F-1OOFs was used by the
N417FS (TF-100F 56-3842). a former Danish AF example, seen in 1997. Auth or's US Army for an und isclosed project for
Colle ction which th ey retained USAF serials along
with the ir 'Army' marking and some QF-
100s were bo ught by th e US Army fo r
St inger missile development.

F-100A 53-1688, the only civil registered F-100A, owned but never flown by Flight Test Research of long Beach, California. The N100X registra -
tion was actually used by a learjet at the time . Peter Schinke lshoek Coll ection

132

Under Foreign Flags
113 Filo's early yellow Karsan (pirate) markings enhance this F-1000-10-NA, delivered to the Turkish AF in 1959.
Turki sh Air Force/Sa ner Capoglu vi a David Menard
A lthough th F-100 never came close to
the success of its F-86 forebear in the export
market, it served for a con iderable time
with the four foreign air force that operat-
ed it. The first to do so wa the Arm ee de
!'A ir in France, wh ich flew F-1000/Fs for
over twenty yea r . Many examples of the F-
l OOA went to the Republic of C hina A ir
Force (RoCAF). The Roya l Danish Air
Force (RDAF) also used F-100 D/Fs and
the larg st foreign user of all , the Turkish
Air Fo rce (THK), absorbed 2 70 exa mp les
of the F-100 /D and F.
Armee de l'Air
As the fir t 'foreign' user of the F-100,
France r c ived eighty-eight F-lOO D
and fourteen F-100Fs (including thirteen
CHAPTER 6
F-100s that were bought d irectly by the
French government) . The first wa rece ived
at Luxeil AB in th winter of 1958 and the
last F-100 fli ght was made in December
1978; an Arm y cooperation flight in the
Fr nch protectorate of Djibouti.
The 11th Escadre de C ha e, fo rmerly an
F-84G unit, was the first to receive Hun ,
some of them ea rl y ex-48th Tacti ca l Fight-
er Wing (TFW) aircraft already based in
France. T hey ca me to the unit via inspect
and repair as necessary (IRAN) in Spa in
and the fir t F- lOOFs fo r quadro ns EC 1/11
Rousillon and E 2/11 Vosges st ill wore
USAF 'FW' buzz- number . A gr up of 11 th
Escadre pilots went to Luke AFB at the
beginning of January 1958 for F-100 indoc-
trinatio n, returning in May. T hey were
mightily impressed by the Hun with its
'P.C. ' ('po t combustion' or afterburner),
733
capacious cockpit and outstand ing intercep-
tion capabi lity. on version of th Escadre at
Luxeil - t auveur took eighteen months
and was omp l ted by the end of 1959.
Nex t to tran it ion was the 3 rd Escadre
wh ich , like the 11th , had sent F-84Fs to
RAF Akrotiri during the uez crisis. It
first S uper abres arrived at R ims- ham-
pagne in January 1959 to b gin re-equip-
ping E 1/3 Navarre and th n EC 2/3
ChamfJagne with twenty-fo ur aircraft in
each squadron . They were de livered by
USAF ferry pi lo ts and refu e ll ed en route
by KC-9 7 tankers. Transiti on was com-
plete by th e end of January 1960 and EC
l/3 (ye llow squ ad ro n co lour) was in actio n
from late 1959 in the A lge rian ca mpaign ,
fl ying ground attack sorties aga inst targets
in eastern Algeri a from Re ims and refu -
ell ing at lstres on the return leg.
 UN DER FORE IG FLAGS

F-1000 54-2212 of EC 1/11 Rousillon, which flew F-100s from 1 May 1958 unti110 October 1975. This aircraft became a
gate guard at RAF Sculthorpe, and later at RAF Upper Heyford in the markings of 56-3000 Triple Zilch. David Menard

The newly equipped squadrons

dep loyed to the G unnery Li ve Tra ining
unit at Cazaux, south-west of Bo rdeaux for
armament practice with eleven aircraft
fro m EC 2/3 (red squ adron colour) and
thirteen fro m EC 1/11. They ga ined profi -
c iency in a ir-to-a ir and air-to-ground gun-
nery, napalm, roc ket and Mk 25 bomb
delive ry in a tota l of93 7 sorties.
The 3 rd Escad re moved to Lah r in West
G erman y on 10 June 196 1 whil e the 11th
E cadre transferred to NAT O Base 136 at
Bremgarten, West Germany at the same
tim . This move co inc ided with the
ass umpt ion of nuclear strike status, using
Mk 43 atomi c weapons, as part of the 4th
A llied Tactical A ir Fo rce. A ircraft had the
same weapo ns and fuel ta nk configuration
as the ir U SAF Victo r A lert counterpa rts
except that French pilots never offi c ia lly
flew with actu al nuclea r w apon and mis-
sio ns with 'tra ining shapes' were very rare
54-2267 of EC 1/11 visits Hahn AB in 1960, before the applic ation of fuselage codes. too. Mostl y, the F-100s fl ew with 'simu lat-
Thi s aircraft's entire fourteen -year career was spent with the 11th Escadre de Chasse, ed' nucl ear weapons, i.e. empty py lons on
ending in 1977. Davi d Mena rd low-a ltitude bombing system (LABS ) and

134

The EC 1/3 Navarre badge is painted on the nose of F-1000 -15-NA 54-2247, seen here
on a low-altitude strike training sortie in the early 1960s. via J. J. Petit
skip-bo mbing miss io ns ove r the Bodensee
rang at 'T BA' (tres basse altitude- ve ry low
altitude ). EC 2/11 was the first to ac hi ve
readiness in the strike role on 20 May 1963
and it established a two-a ircraft alert,
guard ed by US personnel.
Th e French squadrons thus beca me
fu ll y integrated in to ATO' nucl ea r
strategy without h av ing to upload U
nuclea r weapons on French so il. Afte r
1967, EC 3/11 Huns we re fitted with
infl igh t-refue lli ng probe (the cranked or
'swan neck' va ri ant) to practi e refu elling
fro m C- 135F tankers with hose and d r gu
ex tensions to the ir Fl ying Boom refu !l ing
syste ms. A nnee de l'A ir F-1 00s too k part
in AFCENT Tact ica l A ir Meets, fl ying
strike, cl ose upport and low-leve l nav iga-
tion sorties in 1963 at Rh in Hop ten and
in 1964 at C h aumon t.
W h en Genera l de Ga ulle took France
out of NATO, the F- l OOs left Lahr and
Br mga rten, wh ile USAF un it were oblig-
ed to lea v French ba e . The 3 rd Escadre
relocated to Nancy-Ochey in pte mber
1967 after beg inning transition at Lahr to
the Mirage lli E. After a brief ex tension of
the ir tay at Bremgarten, the lith Escadre
moved to To ui -Rosieres, an A merican -
bu ilt base , between Jul y and eptember
196 7. Twenty F-l OOD and four F- l OOFs
from the 3 rd Escadre were absorbed to
UN DER FORE IG FLAG S
form a new squadron, EC 3/11 Corse .
There was a l o a change of ro le, as the F-
100 beca m part of France' FATac (Force
Aerienne Tactique) with a con ventional
miss ion in volving close a ir support (C AS)
\
The last F-100s assigned to ESC 31eave their base at lahr in January 1966. 3-JV (56-
40091 was later issued to EC 2/11 , then 3/11 and finally 1/11 while the 3-JV code was
also used for a time by 56-4008. Here, '009 carries the insignia of 2/3 Champagne. It
was returned to USAF charge as 11 -ES and scrapped by the end of 1977. via J. J. Petit
735
and ground attack. Their secondary air
defence task included protection of the
Berli n a ir corridor.
E 3/11 became the F-100 O perat iona l
Con v rsio n Un it (OCU ) and after 1967 it
incl uded tra ining fo r infl ight-refue lli ng as
part of its syllab us and fo r overseas in ter-
ven tion including 'polic ing' mi ss io ns in
Dji bo uti terri to ry from Apr il l 970. Prior to
that it had flown uccessful simu lated anti -
shi ppi ng trikes aga inst th U SS aratoga
with e igh t a ircraft in December 1969 (du r-
ing Lafayette exerc ises in Mediterranean
a irspace) and ac h ieved exce llent scores in
the 1969 AFCENT G unnery Comp ti-
t io n . In N ove m ber 197 1, three f 3/11'
a ircraft took part in a th ree- mo nth eva lu-
ati on of th e type's res istance to the d iffi-
cult cl imati c condi t ions in th e French pro-
tectorate o f Djibo uti, bordering the G ul f of
Aden .
In 1973, orth Ame rica n Av iat ion
(NAA) propo ed a tructural str ngthen -
ing programme fo r thi rty of the Escad re's
o lder F-lOODs, o mp rising strengthening
of the wi ng box and skins, and ma in fuse-
lage longe rons. The work was ca rried out
at the SN LA S fac ili ty at C hateauroux,
continu ing into 1975. At th e same time, a
three-to ne USAF-style ca mo uflage ( u ing
Iight r hade of tan and gr n with blue-
grey under ides ) was app lied to th e fl eet
between 1972 and 1976. Toul rece ived its

Still in bare metal finish , an EC 1/11 F-1000-15-NA cuts through some typical European
we ather. David Menard Collection
-----~~==-- ~--=--------.
F-lOOD 54-2269, still in its EC 1/11 colours, at RAF Lakenhe ath on 23 May 1976. 1t was
displayed on the gate there as '54-048'. On the tail is the insignia of GC lll/6-5e
Escadrille. G. Pennic k via David Mena rd
first ca mouflaged Hun (54-2160/11 -ET)
o n 23 June 1974.
O n 1 June 197 , EC 4/11 j ura formed in
Djibouti , drawing pilot and two a ircraft
fro m each of th e oth er unit with an ex tra
pa ir of F-lOODs and an F- I OOF from 3/11.
It took ove r the name and in igni a previ-
ously used by EC 3/11 Jura and a :11 ission
DE R FO REIG N FL AGS
/ Toul's base commander and o ne of the
in vo lving a ir defence and e con for recon-
naissance fli gh ts that had begun in
December 1972 .
E 3/11 bega n con version to the
S EPECAT Jag uar in February 1975 , after
36,704 fl ying hours on F-100s. E 1/ 11
a lso moved to the Jaguar after it Ia t F-100
fli gh t o n 100ctobe r 1975. E 2/11 con-
736
tinued with F-100s un til 25 June 1977,
wh n it too transit ioned to Jaguar . At
th at time , the 11 th Escadre had comp let-
ed 205,000 F-100 hours. I Bo ichot ,
origin al cadre of pilots to convert to the F-
100 at N ell is AFB, made the las t F-100
fli ght from the base in 54-2 131/11 -MJ on
11 May 1977.
EC 4/11 con tinued on with the remain-
ing Huns in Djibouti, replac ing EC 1/2 1
(fly ing AD-4 Skyra ide rs) in Janu ary 1973.
Mi ions from Dji bo uti 's Base A eri enne
1 8 shared a runway with the republic's
a irport and sought to protect th e fl edgling
sta te from incursio ns by communist-
inspired insurgents. The squad ro n's initi al
strength of seven F- lOODs and an F-100F
(for one Flight, SPA 158) was soon
increa ed to fiftee n a ircraft and a cond
Flight, PA 16 1, wa added. B tw en
March and Jun e 1978, the aircraft
acq uired some of the mo t spectac ul ar
shark-mo uth markings ever seen on war-
planes and one o r two rec e pods (on the
inner wing pos iti on) were decorated with
eagle heads based on the nose decor of
498th Bo mb Squadron B-25Js in WWII.
O n 24 May 1978, Lt Co l Salmon led
eleven F-100s in fo rmation over Djibouti
to ce lebrate th quad ron' 10,000 hours of
uper Sabre fl ying. Its fina l fli ght wa
made o n 12 Dec mber 1978 and EC 4/ 11
was deactivat d at the end of that yea r,
concluding ove r twenty yea rs of F-100 fl y-
ing by the Armee de l'A ir. Under the
terms of MAP, th urviving fo rty F-100
w re returned to USAF charge at RAF
Sculthorpe where they w re e ither
scrapped or donated to muse ums. O thers
stayed as decoys at Dj ibout i AB. O ne air-
craft, 54-2 165/11 -ML from E 2/ 11 had
pr viously served with the 49 rd Figh ter-
bomber Squad ron (FB ), 48th Fighter-
bomber Wing (FBW) at haumont from
1957 to 1959 before being passed to EC 1/3
at Re ims as 3- IG. After nearly two yea rs of
torage at Scultho rpe it was donated to the
Duxford American Air Museum and d is-
played as an aircraft of the 352nd TF ,
35th TFW during the Vietnam War.
Republic of China Air Fo rce
In 1960, the RoCAF on Taiwan beca me
the on ly operato r of the F-100A outside
the USA. The aircraft were supp lied in
response to the sporad ic confl ict between
ommunist C hina and Taiwa n , ini t iated
 --

Pilots from the Republic of China AF walk out for another training mission. Both jets have the origin al three -digit
code and USAF buzz numbers. F-100F-15-NA 56-3968/001 and 56-3987/005 were among the first batch of two-sea ters
to be delivered. '001' was later displayed at the RoCAF Museum. Clarence Fu

in August 1958 by artil l ry attac k o n the
Natio nalist-he ld island of Q uemoy. A ir
battles over the Formosa Straits betwee n
RoCAF F- 6Fs and Communist MiG- 15s
and Mi G- 17s had resulted in los on
both id , but princ ipally to th mainl and
MiGs. AIM -9 B idewind r mi siles were
fired by the Sabres o n 24 September 1958,
the first use of a ir-to-a ir missiles in combat.
Communi t C hina th en procla imed th
imminent in vas ion of Quemoy, mov ing
large force in to po itio n pposite the
i land , as a prelude to th e 'li berati on' of
Taiwan.
The RoCAF's three Wings of F-86 F
Sabres and two Wings of F-84Gs were
thought to be inadequate ~ r a potential
conflict of that magnitud , d pite th
pre ence of U aircraft ca rri ers and
USAF F-l OODs of the 51 1th TFS and
354th TFW at C hing C hu an , Ta iwan and
at Kadena AB respective ly, plus other
USAF units in the area.
Between February and May of 1960, the
U A sup pli ed eighty F-1OOA to eq uip
thre sq uad ro n: the 2 1st (red ), 22 nd (ye l-
low) and 23 rd (blue) of the 4th Gro up . Of
these the 23 rd was later reass igned to th e
11th G ro up at Hsin chu AB, which had
a lready rece iv d thirty-fiv aircraft for it
17th Sq uad ron . The latter unit transi-
ti o ned at C hi ay i AB with th 4th G ro up
and returned to Hsinchu as the 41 st FBS.
There it wa jo ined by the 42nd FBS, with
its distinctive red fla h markings and a
qu adron of F-104A tarfig hter . The
third Hsinchu -based unit wa the 48th
FBS that used nose- marking imil ar to
those of th e U AF Thunderbirds team. A
d isplay at ung Shan airpo rt, Taipe i o n 6
December 1959 included a fifteen-a ircraft
'anchor' ~ rmatio n with the Ro AF
Thundert igers F- 6 a roba ti c tea m. Th e
48th FBS was the last unit in the world to
fl y the F- l OOA when it fin all y phased out
its aircraft on 5 September 1984.
The first RoCAF Super abres to arrive
were six F- l OOF- 15- As (56-3968, -77 ,
-7 , -79,-87, -88, numbered 00 1-006 afte r
de li ve ry) in A ugust 1958 fo rth 4th FBW.
USA F Ca pts Max Jesperson and Robert
Prec iado with 1st Lts Duane Mi ll, Robert
ameron , teve Braswell and Bob John -
ton made th e ~ rry fli gh t fro m alifornia
and tra ined the fir t batch of nine RoCA F
instructors. Mea nwhile, ma inta iners
I arned the subtl arts of tending the birds,
including the unique tri ck of lying on the ir
backs to push th e d rag chute co mpartment
doo r shut with the ir fe t. They al o added
th ir own techni ques including a new
d vice fo r towing an F-100 with a fl at tyre.
From th is fi rst batch of F-l OOFs, three
were lost in fata l acc idents by 1976, one
was scrapped and two li ved on a museum
ex hibits. An ther e igh t two- eater (F-
l OOF-5-NA, -10-NA and -15- A va ri -
ants) were de li ve red includ ing 56-3808,
which arri ved in USAF ca mouflage rather
than the silve r lacquer of the other a ircraft.
When the first four F-l OOAs fro m the
init ial batch of fiftee n were fl own into

137
 UN DER FOREIG FL AGS

F-100F-15-NA 56-3979 with an early serial/code

presentation incorporating the original USAF buzz
number and the designation 'F-100004' above the
serial. It served the Republic of China AF until 4
August 1960 when both its crew had to eject. David
Menard Coll ec tion

3979 \I

23rd Squadron F-100As with blue trim. 53-1539 was

one of the JF-100A-10-NAs used by ARDC until its
transfer to the Republic of China AF where it flew
with the 48th Squadron as '0104'. David Mena rd
Col lection

C hi ayi AB, Maj Roy Moore was se lected as

Fli ght o mm ander for the de livery fli ght.

When we rook the planes o n fro m C lark A B to

C hi ay i, th e C hinese pilots were deligh ted and
as exc ired as we had been wh en we upgraded
from the o ld F-84Gs to F- l OOs at Kadena. Their
squadro n commander was a slightl y over-we igh t
majo r who felt compelled r say 'Thank you'
and th rew a pa rry fo r the de live ry pilots. S ince I
was the Flight Commande r I wa the ranking
A meri can and was seared at rhe V IP table
besid e rhe majo r. The enrire q uadro n wa in
attenda nce; so meth ing over ZOO enlisted men
and offi cers. I lea rned rha t it was a custom fo r
each ind ividual to sa lute both th e Commander
and the Ho no ured G uest (me). Thro ughou t the
evening, at rather sho rt interva ls, a squad ron
member would approach the om mande r, bow
slightl y and say 'Gombay'' He wou ld then drink
about an ounce of rice wine. Th e Commander
re ponded similarl y and then the man wou ld
bow to me and repea t the perfo rm ance. Th e rice
win e glass was the size of an o rd inary sh o t gla s.
I empti ed mine fo r the first lot of sa lu tes before
the Major info rmed me that it was nor necessa ry
for me to consume the enti re d rink at each the to tal to 11 8. This att ri t ion batch ca me verti ca l stabili ze r with the later F-1OO D
sa lute. The warning ca me too late and by the fro m A ir Nat ional G uard (ANG) uni ts mode l inc luding A /APS-54 tail -warning
end of the eve ning I had defin ite ly consum ed a including the 11 8th TFS Co nnect icut radar. Th is change app lied to all but four
lor of wine. Whatever the amo unr, I was in des· A G, 15 2nd TFT Arizona A G and a aircraft (53- 1569, -1581, -165 1, -1 662 )
perate shape the nex t morning with the worst sing! exa mpl (53- 15 2) from the ! 88 th that kept th e ir origina l ta ils on delivery
hangove r I' ve ever had in my life. Fo rtun ate ly TF New Mex ico ANG. They were fro m the Ae rospace Maintenance and
we we re returned to lark A B in a C-46 Base 'cocooned' at McC lellan AFB and shi pped Regeneration Center (AMARC ). O ne of
upport Fligh t aircraft. to Taiwan . A ll ex-ANG F-100As passed to these (53- 158 1 '0302' ) was eventuall y put
th e RoCAF rece ived High Wire updates, o n d isplay at the C hung C heng Institute of
The other sixty-five F-l OOA from the first pushing the ir Block numbers up by one cience and Techno logy. Th e aircraft
batch of eighty were transferred to the digit, for example: 53- 1606 was an F- r ce ived id wind r capability including
Ro AF in 1960. Inevitably, attrit ion of 100A- 16-NA . the tw in A IM-9 8 launcher adapter.
the e 'hot' early Huns neces itated anoth- A ll RoCAF Huns rece ived ex tensive GAM -83 A (AG M-128) Bull pup mi ss ile
er deli very of a ircraft, and thirty-e igh t updates of whi ch the most obv ious ex ter- launch co ntro ls and eq ui pm ent were a lso
mo re w re upp lied in 1970- 71 , pushing nall y was the replacement of the original insta lled for ca rriage on the in boa rd

138
 py lons. The e py lons bad 'stub' adapters
attac hed under the wing th at made them
different in app arance from the standard
F-lOOD variant. They could also ca rry
A IM-9s, bombs, UU -2 1 practice bomb
dispensers or napa lm. O utboa rd py lons
were not fitted but tail hooks {w ith a tr i-
angular guard fa iring to avo id accidental
engagement of the hook) and a rad io com-
pass were installed. The 'fl apless' F- l OOA
wing was retained and it continued to
de mon trate its basic strength though
ome a ircraft eventually needed externa l
tructura l strengthe ning of the ir fuse lages.
O ne F-lOOA (53- 16 10 '0113 ') managed to
recover with its right wing virtuall y
removed after a mid -a ir coll ision to a po int
just outboa rd on the mid -wing py lo n.
A lso supp lied to the RoCAF were the
fou r sur viving 'S lick C hick' ca mera-
equipped RF- l OOAs: 53- 1545, -46 , -47,-
Red lightning flashes and the 2nd Wing insignia decorate this F-lOOA-11 -NA 53-155 54, coded '5645, -646 , -647, -648 respec-
of the 41st Squadron. Its previous owner wa s the 118th TFS, Connecticut ANG. ti vely. Codes appea red above the s rial on
Clarenc e Fu the ta il rather than on the fu selage as o n

F-lOOF-5-NA 56-3733/0013 wore USAF camouflage for part of its service career with the Republic of China AF, as did
56-3808/0014 and two others. They operated from Hsinchu AB. Clarence Fu

739

A 23rd Squ adron line-up with F-100A-20-NA 53-1685 (ex-4520th CCTW) to the fore . This
aircraft crashed on 25 March 1980 but its pilot ejected safely. Clarence Fu
the F-100A . Th first was de live red in
ece mber 195 8, the others arri ved on 1
January 1959 via Yo kota. They we re oper-
ated by th e 4th Squadron at Taoy uan AB
in fu ll RoCAF markings includ ing six et
of blue/white st ri pes on the rudder. USAF
markings and buzz- numbers we re used for
the delive ry. The ir period of RoCAF ser-
vice was actuall y little mo re than one yea r.
Poor readiness rates mea nt that th ey
a ll egedl y flew no operat io nal reco nna is-
ance miss ions before be ing phased out in
December 1960 and scrapped. They were
replaced by Mc Do nn II RF-10 1A
Voodoos und er Operatio n Boom Town and
these had a much mo re active ca reer, over-
fl ying mainland hina for about six yea r .
Attr iti on of the F-100s was generall y
high with forty- nin a ircraft cl troyecl in
accid ents and twent y-five pilots kill ed. By
1970, there were onl y suffi cient opera-
ti onal aircraft to equip two sq uad ro ns with
ighteen aircraft each , a situati on that wa
improved by de li very of the attri t io n batc h
of thirty-e igh t x-ANG F-100A. When
the type was ph ased out th r maining a ir-
craft were scrapped although fourteen
were retained fo r gate guard , G 1A or mu e-
um use inc luding 53 -1929 '010 1', the first
F-100A on th e RoCAF roster. It became a
ga te guardi an at C hi ay i AB.
A n unorthodox proposa l for the use of
surplus F-lOOAs ca me fro m the C hung
UN DER FO REIG 1 FLAGS
Shan Institute for Science and Techno lo-
gy, whi ch advoca ted con ve rting them in to
explosiv -packed 'c ruise miss ile ', aimed
at ommunist targets fro m zero length
launch (ZEL) -type launchers. Fo rtu nate ly
perhaps, thi s plan was suppressed by the
U Gove rnment but it symbolized the
determin ation of an Air Fo rce, some of
whose F- l OOs bo re the 'nose art' sloga n
'Lea rn co mbat ski ll s and kill the Commu -
ni t bandit !'
Royal Danis h Air Force
For the Danes, the F-100 replaced the
Republi c F-84G that had equi pped two
Wings, at Karup and krydstrup, each with
three squadro ns of twen ty-fiv e a ircraft.
ne sq uadron, Esk 726, con verted to the
F-86 D in 195 and Esk 728 went to the
RF-84F. The RDA F needed a figh ter-
bo mbe r for its NATO responsibilities
in the Baltic Sea area and was offered
twenty F-100 D/Fs in 1959 under MAP
Proj ect Centurion. RDAF pilot K. . S .
Thorkeldsen had already eva luated th e F-
100 in 1957 and reported favo urably on it.
In August 1958 a nucl eu ofE k 727 pilo ts
and mainta in ers was sent to Myrtl e Beach
to train after furth er demonstrat io ns of the
a ircraft by the 48th TFW at haumont.
The fi rst three F-100F- 15-NAs arri ved
740
on 22 May 1959 (5 6-40 15, -18, -19)
traight off the product ion lin e via Robins
AFB, Lang! y AFB and C hatea uro ux with
U AF pil ots in the cockp it . The fo ll ow-
ing yea r th ey rece ived 'GT' codes in place
of the ' FW' buzz numbers used initi ally, but
reta ining the las t three of the seri als. A
d i tinctive red nose fl as h was also add ed
ov r the silve r fin i h . krydstrup estab-
lished a receptio n unit for US AF A ir
Materiel Command personnel to intro-
duce the new fighter and establish log isti-
ca l support.
F- l OODs bega n to arrive o n 30 May
when seven fl ew in, fo llowed by four on 4
June and another q uartet a week later. The
Huns were fresh from IRAN having served
in a va riety of U SAF units. Wh en the las t
two F-l OODs in the batch fo r Esk 727 flew
in on 18 June the unit had nin x-48th
TFW F- IOOD- 10 and F-l OO D-15 -NA
S uper Sabres and three Block 15 a ircraft
from the 49th TFW plus anoth er aircraft
d irect from the USA. Twelve Huns were
ava ilable fo r the officia l ceremo ny at Vae r-
1 eon 12 June when Gen Tage Anderson
handed th em over to the squadro n.
Another three ex-49 th TFW F-100D-40-
N l-ls fo llowed in September 1959. Of
those twenty Huns, e igh t were eventuall y
passed o n to the Turkish A F in the ea rl y
1980s. A ll of the o thers were lo t in acci-
den ts, mostl y in the 1960s.
Acceptance and wo rk-up of the first
RDAF squad ron over an e ightee n-mo nth
period occurred without mi hap. The
sq uad ron ass umed ve ry much the sa me
mi ss ion as it had fl own in th F-84 cl ays:
C AS and anti -shipping with a second ary
a ir defence tas king. The aircraft rece ived
some modifi ca t io n for RDAF ervice,
in clud ing th e install ation of th Martin -
Baker Mk-DESA ejector sea t. F- l OO D G-
192 (54-2 192 ) was flown to Mart in -Baker
at C ha lgrove via Bri ze No rton for con ver-
sio n on 28 Aprill 960 and all a ircraft sub-
q uently rece ived the seats under Mod.
/F-100/133. RDAF Hun a lso had
AN/ARN -2 7 tacti ca l air naviga t ion
(TAC AN), mod ifi ed UHF radi os and
APW-11/A P -54 radar. Later updates
fro m ctober on wards included AGM-12
Bu ll pup provi io n, a Decca Ro ller Map
Type 1664 y tem and the very acc urate
SAAB BT-9J bomb sigh t. Test firing of the
Bull pup took place in June 196 and the
mi sile continued in use well into the
1970s. The RDA F a lso experimen ted with
trip le ejection rac ks (TERs) on the
in board pylons fo r e ither two M 117 bombs

F-1000-40-NH 55-2779 flew with the USAF's 405th FBW, 31st FBW and 50th TFW before
transfer to Esk 727 on 29 May 1961 , then Esk 730 in 1964 with dark blue and white
markings. It was supplied to the Turkish AF in 1981 and written off on 26 April1983.
David Menard Coll ectio n
or three LAU-3/A rocket pods. At about
the sa me time , the fl eet was sprayed with
coa ts of SM/67 o live gree n (F 140 79)
pa in t in place of the origina l silver lacquer.
atio nal markings wer reduced from
900mm to 45 0mm diam ter on the wings
and the 700m m fu selage round Is were
a lso halved in diameter. From ovember
1976, the Huns bega n to rece ive the ALR-
45D/APR-3 7D RHAW system mounted
in wing- tip pod with the antenna at each
end of the pod . ALR-45D was a radar-
warn ing unit and A PR-3 7D gave ind ica-
t io n of a host ile miss ile laun ch. Wing- tip
navigation lights were moved to the outer
urfaces of th e pods, AN/ ARC- 159(V)8
UHF rad io were adde I in 1976 and o ne of
the final loca l ' mod ' was th e insta llation
of the LINDA ' ' U nderwater Locator
Beacon.
By that time, there had been a consid -
erable increase in th e RDAF F-100 fleet
following th decision in 1960 to equip
two more squadro ns with the type. Esk 725
at Karup was the second unit fo llow d by
Esk 730. The ir a ircrew were se nt to the
U A for tra ining and thirty-e igh t new a ir-
craft were ordered, thirty-one F- lOODs and
sev n two- ea ters. The first three F-l OOFs
(GT-976, -78 , -82 ), all new a ircraft, land -
ed at Karu p on 26 January 1961 fo r Esk
727. As usual, USAF ferry pilots made the
transatlantic flight but two Danish officers
were al o aboard . The F-l OOFs were used
DER FO REIGN FLAGS
lea k in the engine compartment. Th e next
batch of F-l OODs arri ved on 13 March
fro m IRAN at Getafe and G-283 (ex-8th
FBW) was handed over a the first F- l OOD
fo r Esk 725 on 13 April 196 l. Thi jet
se rved until 198 1 when it was transferr d
to Turkey. A s the squadron bu ilt up to fu ll
strength, three of its F-l OOFs were
returned to Esk 727 to help with th e con-
ve rsio n of the nex t sq uadron, Esk 730.
F- l OODs G-1 44 and G-78 1, delivered on
12 June 196 1, completed Esk 725's com-
plement of sixteen single-sea ters and three
F-l OOFs. The majori ty were Block 15 air-
craft from the 8th FBW in Japan with a few
more ex-48th FBW too, including 54-
2132, a very ea rly Block 1 F- lOOD.
Esk 730 completed its transition from the
F-84G qui kly and it was e tablished n the
supersonic jet by 3 July 196 l. The process
was facilitated by the use of the F-100 simu-
lator at RAF Wethersfield, though the gen-
erous alloca tion ofF-l OOF helped too. O nly
one F-l OOF was lo t during the tra ining of
the th re uni ts: T-978 usta ined a p wer
failure and the Danish pilot and his USAF
to con ve rt Esk 725 until it rece ived its o wn instructor ejected as the Hun entered a fl at
seven F- 100 Fs on 20 March 196 1 and its spin. The squadron's F- lOODs, with neat
F-84Gs were then pas ed to E k 730. The green and white trim on their noses and fins,
fi rst loss also occurred in March when G- were based at Skrydstrup. Most were ex-
22 1 (54-222 1, an ex-48th TFW machine ) United States Air Force in Europe
crashed after an exp los io n fo ll owing a fu e l (USAFE) aircraft though ix originated
/
...
·~ ~
~.~(
Esk 727 used glossy red markings on its silver F-100s including a red flash on the
RHAW fairing . This F-1000-5-NA was delivered to the 48th FBW at Chaumont AB in
1957, moving to RAF lakenheath in 1960. After two years with the Danish AF it was
written off in a mid-air collision with 54-2300. It is seen here at Hahn AB on a NATO
exchange in April1961, piloted by the appropriately named Arthur E. Huhn. David
Menard Coll ection
141
 U DE R FO REIGN FLAGS

from the 3 1 t TFW at Turner AFB via

rework at McCI llan AFB.
The three sq uadrons soon bega n to par-
t ic ipate in ATO co mpet itio ns. Esk 725
wo n the 1963 AFNORTH even t and th
1965 Bull's-Eye competition. H owever, th
/ heavy attritio n that plagued the RDAF F-
100 fl eet b gan to mount up, with four loss-
es in 1962, fiv in 1963 and another three
in 1964. From then until 1969, two were
lo t annua lly reducing the to tal to only
thi rty F-lOODs and seven Fs out of the orig-
inal comp l ment of fifty-e ight a ircraft.
Four F-l OOD had crashed after mid-a ir
c llisio ns, five as a result of engine fa ilur
and four when they hi t the ground during
low-a ltitude fligh t. 54-2199 was lost
through an unusual maintenance fa ilure
when a loose panel in the air in let flew off
and jammed itse lf against the front of the
F-100F-15-NA has its 'last five' (86978) serial digits beneath the Danish fin flash in its engine. Compressor problems grounded the
1961 scheme. In August 1968 it was written off after engine compressor failure caused who le fleet in 1966, requ iring all Block 40
by a 20mm ricochet during a strafing run . David Menard
a ircraft with newer, less trouble o me J57s
to be poo led at Karu p for use by all three
On a visit to RAF Coltish all on 19 September 1970, F-1000 54-2222 of Esk 727 (ex -48th
uni ts. After overcoming th ese problems
FBW) is rapidly losing the gloss from its overall, locally manufactured paint so that it th ro ugh adjustments to the engine and
is close to FS 34087 in shade. G. Pennick via Da vid Menard fu e l system, the earlier a ircraft then faced

------ - - - - -

142
 NDE R FOREI GN FL AGS

S krydstru p. Fligh t safety im prov d, with

no serious mi shaps until 1976 whi ch
brought three Esk 73 0 F-l OOF cras hes (two
with co llapsed nose-gear o n landi ng) and
GT-892 ofE k 727 (ex-Iowa A G) which
la ted on ly five fl yi ng ho ur in RDAF er-
vic b fo re crashing afte r ngin e fa ilu re. A
Spectrographic il A nalysis Programm
(SOAP) revea led further engin e problems
which meant that all J-5 7s had to go
through the analysis before and after every
m i sion . Two further era h in 1977 were
a lso attrib uted to mechani ca l defect (run -
away trim in o ne ase and crack in the
fuel control system in another) and
length y ground ing orders were imposed.
Th decision to ord er G neral Dynami c
F-16As had bee n made, but it mean t that
the S uper abres had to so ldi er on un til
1982 when deli veries of the new figh ter
could be completed. Losing thirty-five out
of s venty-two F- lOOs had giv n the a ir-
This TF-lOOF-11 -NA 156-3908) had extensive Vietnam War service with the 416th TFS,
craft a poor reputat ion in the Danish
37th TFW at Phu Cat AB, the 35th TFW at Phan Rang AB and the 31st TFW at Tuy Hoa
media by 197 despite the fac t that on ly
AB after seven years at Cannon AFB . In Esk 727 service it acquired ALR-450/APR -370
RHAW wing -tip pods. It ended its days as a gate guard for Skrydstrup AB.
two more were wri tten off before the type'
Au thors Collec tion withdrawal. ne of thee, T-961 , u -
tain d a co llaps d nose-gear n land ing
but th aircraft was not repa ired.
th sa me fat igue prob lems that had affect- rece ived ea rl ier. Some had F-102A type Towards the end of its twenty years of
ed U SAF Huns in Vietnam. A ircraFt were afterburn ers fro m the Proj ect Pacer Trans- RDAF service th e remaining sq uadrons
restricted to 4g manoeuvr and a major plane con v r io ns and th i app lied to a d ivided into two sections, one transition-
rework programme wa in tigated at Karup number o f F- l OO Ds Fro m 197 o nwards. ing to th D F-16A while th e other (Esk
From 1970 to 1972 to replace under-w ing In 1974 , a ll thre F-100 uni ts, Esk 727, 730- 100) continued to fl y Hun . The last
kins with heav ier ga uge part and re in - 73 0 and t he F-100 OC U , wer based at fli gh t took place on 11 A ugu t 1982 and
forced wi ng boxes (M od/F- I 00/320 ).
With a reduced fleet, no pros pect of
replacements fro m the A (due to Viet-
nam requirements) o r fro m France, th
RDAF turn d to the SAAB F-35 Drak n,
rdering fo rty- ix a ire raFt in 1968. Esk 725
was d isba nd ed and its F-100s d istributed
to the other two units. Th e intention was
to replace all F-100s with Drakens but
fund ing wa insufficient, and in 197 1
De nmark elected to kee p its rema in ing
Huns fl ying in to the ea rl y 1980s. Howev-
er, co ntinued losses th ro ughout the ea rl y
1970s (three in 1970, two more in
1972- 73 ) had reduced F-100F numbers to
five , insuffic ient to main ta in effect ive
o n versio n tra ining at bo th bases . Four-
teen add it io na l F- 100F- ll -NA and F-
l OOF-16-NAs we re o rd ered, six fro m
MAS DC storage in August 19 73 and
ano the r e ight selected from AN G
sq uadron s. T h ey we re del ive red betwee n
March and June 1974, eq ui pped wit h
Mart in-Baker seats from redund ant RF- Baggage pods on the inboard pylons of F-lOOF-16-NA 56-4019 suggest a shopping
4Fs and labe lled 'TF-100F' to d ist ingui sh trip abroad . Thi s aircraft had a long career with the Danish AF 11959-1981). Author's
them from th e non-High Wire F- l OO F Collecti on

743
 UN DER FOREIG FLAGS

Pilots of Esk 730 line up with TF-lOOF 56-3826 at the end of its Danish service in summer, 1982. Earlier, it had spent seven
years with the 36th and 50th TFWs in USAFE and had combat time with the 31st and 35th TFWs in Vietnam. In October
1982 it became a nicely wrapped 'present' for Flight Systems Inc. before it was written off in July 1994. David Menard Colle ction

some of the remaining aircraft w re
returned to US charge via RAF Sculthorpe
fro m 24 March 19 1 and many were
scrapped there. Twenty- two were trans-
ferred to the Turkish A ir Fo rce and six
F{rF- l OOFs went to Flight y tem Inc
(FS l) (56-3826, -842, -844 , -9 16 -9 71 ,
-996). Two (56-3870, -3908 ) guard d th e
gates at Skrydstrup in southern Denmark
an_d 56- 92 7 went to the Danish Av iation
M'u eum. Fifty-e ight F-16A/Bs subsequent-
ly equipped fo ur RDAF squadrons fro m
January 1980, taking ov r fro m F-100 the
tas k of patro lling th No rth a and Balti c
where much of the Sov iet Fleet would have
passed through in the event of a conflict.
Turk Hava Kuvvetleri , the
Turkish Air Force
F- lOO fl ying in the Turki sh A ir Fo rce ended
on l ove mb r 1987 when 13 2 Filo at
Kon ya traded in its las t Hun and bega n
con ve rsio n to the F-4E Phantom [[. It was
the las t squadron anyw here to operate the
F-100 as fron t- line equipmen t and one of
the nine THK squadro ns that rece ived
Hun betwee n 6 October 195 , when th e
fir t F-l OOF-15-NA (56-3998 ) arrived, and
27 January 1982. The final batch included
ex- Danish A F F- l OO Ds 54-2222, -2262,
55-2 77 1 and F-l OOF 56-40 19 (via RAF
Sculthorpe) . THK owned far more F- l OOs
than any other air force o utside the U SA
with 270 deliveri e in a to tal of fo urteen
MAP program . O f these, 111 were F-
lOOCs in two d ifferent MAP programs, 106
F-l OODs (three d ifferent MA P programs)
and 53 F-l OOFs (n ine MA P programs).
ln 1958, nine F-l OOFs and fo urteen
F-lOOD were delivered , beginn ing se rvice
with 111 Filo at Eskisehir, th e first F- 100
unit. The fo llowing yea r another thirty-
two F- l OO Ds and two F- l OOFs arrived ,
enabl ing the replacement of 113 Filo's
F-84G Thunderj ets with S uper Sabres
during 1959-60. Very lim ited delive rie of
Huns (only three F- l OO Ds and a pair ofF-
l OOFs in 1960, with two more two-sea ters
in 1962 ) mea nt that no further squadron
transitions could be made untill 962 when
11 2 Filo was re- formed at Eskisehi r, draw-
ing a ircraft fro m the other sq uadro ns. Pre-
viou ly, 112 Filo had fl own F-84Gs at
Ko nya A B, having moved there as 192 Filo
in 1958. The re-format ion of this third
squ ad ro n meant that 113 Filo could trans-
fe r to the newly equ ipped Erhac AB
(establi hed in Malatya fro m 26 Novem-
ber 1962 ) in A ugust 1963, where it was
renamed 171 Filo in 1972.
Turkish F-lOOs became involved in com-
bat after the long- running tensions between
the G reek and minority Turkish populations
in C yprus flared up in 1964. G reek Cypriot
National G uard units and EO KA militan ts
unexpected ly attacked Turkish villages at
Mansura and Koccina in the north of the
island, causing civilian casualt ies. The next
day, 8 A ugust, Eskisehir-based F-1OOs of 111

744

USAF lettering still shows on these newly accepted TUAF F-1000/F Super Sabres. Buzz numbers from former service
w ere also retained for a while . Turki sh AF/Soner Capoglu via David Menard
Filo and 112 Filo, with 113 Filo from Adana
AB and th F-84Gs of 161 Filo took off in
the early morning. They crossed the
Mediterranean at 165ft (SOm) altitude to
evade the British radar site at Dikel ia and
attacked G reek ypriot positions in the
Koccina area. apt ngiz Topel's 111 Filo
F-100 crashed while attacking a G reek
as ault craft off Erenkoy and although he
ejected safely over Peri steronori b was cap-
tured and killed by G reek Cypriot forces on
12 A ugust.
Because of the shortage of F- l OOs (at
lea t e igh t of the sixty- four delivered up to
1962 had crashed by 1965 with th e loss of
five pilots ) 11 2 Filo bad to 're-convert' to
F- 4Qs (ex- Luftwaffe F-84FQs) by 19
ctob r 1965. The a rriva l of a batch of
sixt en High W ire F-lOODs and a pa ir ofF-
1OOFs in 1969 en a bled the squ adro n to
revert to the Hu n in De ember of that
yea r. In the sa me mon th , 182 Filo (origi-
na ll y a Diya rbakir-based squ adron that
had moved to Erhac AB on 25 Janu ary
U DER FOREIG N FLAGS
1963 ) replaced its F(RF-84Fs with F-100s.
A further batch of twenty ex-USAF F-
lOODs and two F-100Fs arri ved fo r the
THK during 1970. In the early 1970s,
Turkish F-1 00 units sta rted to be recog-
n ized as be ing among the best in southe rn
Europe. The F-1OOs of 111 Fil o out-pe r-
formed the combin d talents of Ita ly,
G reece, the U N' VW-3 A-7 Corsairs
and the F-4E Phanto ms of the 353rd TF
Black Panthers in pract ice miss io n on the
Osmani ye Range during the 197 1 Best Hit
competitio n.
In 1972 furth er d liveries included thir-
ty-s ix F-lOOCs, with anoth er forty-seve n in
1973 and more in 1974. They were mostly
High Wire ex-A G a ircraft quipped to a
standard close to the F-lOOD. As a resul t of
the e new d li ve ries, 113 Filo and 182 Filo
at Erhac rece ived new F-l OOs in 1972,
renaming themselves as 171 Fi lo and 172
Filo respective ly. At th sa me time, a new
113 Fi lo was formed fro m 114 Fi lo at
Eski sehir AB to operate four tee n RF-84Fs
145
and eigh t F-84Fs, while 182 Filo was creat-
ed from 183 Filo at Diya rbakir AB and
received TF/F-102A De lta Dagge r . Th n
181 Filo replaced it F-84Qs with some
n wly arr ived F-l OOC/Fs in 1972. At that
po int, 11 1 Filo had e ighteen F-l OOD/Fs on
strength wh ile 112 Filo absorbed a batch of
F-l OOCs to boost its squadro n tre ngtb. In
another ro und of change during 1974, 13 1
Filo and 132 Filo exchanged their F-84F/Qs
for F-l OOC/Fs at Kon ya AB, which eventu -
ally became the last base to use the Hun in
the late 1980s. This pair of squadro ns also
took on the majority of the ava ilabl F-
1OOFs and began to serve as a tra ining unit
on the type.
Ju ly and August 1974 we re also time
when THK F- l OOs saw ex tensive combat
follow ing the G reek overthrow of A rch-
bishop Makarios and consequently
increased danger for the Turkish resident
of Cyprus. In a deteriorating situation many
Turkish villages were attacked and th
Turkish Govern ment d c ided to instigate a
 di rect interve ntion on 20 Jul y. To ease the
operation , the squadrons based at
Oiyarbakir, Erhac, Merzifon, Etimesgut and
Konya were placed under the command of
the 2nd Tactica l A ir Force at Oiyarbakir.
This force included six squad rons of F-1OOs
113 Filo pilots prepare to taxi out for a mission from Eskisehir AB . The squadron trans-
ferred to Erhac AB in August 1963 as 171 Filo. David Menard Co llection
(111, 11 2, 13 1, 132, 171 and 172), two of
F-104Gs (141 and 19 1) plus the RF-84Fs of
184 Fila to support operations over Cyprus.
Some of the F-1OOs from 171 Fila and 172
Fila were moved to A ntalya A B and the
rest of their aircraft were tra ns~ rred to
lncirlik AB in Adana, together with the
Oiyarbakir-based 181 Fila .
In the ea rl y morning of 20 July 1974,
Turkish A rm y and Marin e units went
ashore at a beach in Karaoglanoglu, west of
Ky renia, in order to protect the Turkish
popu lati on . F- l OOs took off at 0600 hours
and we re engaged in m iss ions to neutrali ze
G reek Cyp ri ot National G uard pos iti ons
on the northern Cyprus coast. Betwee n
20-23 July (the first stage of th interv n -
t ion) the THK comp leted 733 sort ies and
lo t twe lve a ircraft, e ight of them F-l OOs .
Two F- 102As, an RF-84F and an F-104G
also fa iled to return. A ltho ugh no F-100
pilots were ki lled , a 184 Fila RF-84F pil ot,
1st Lt llker Karter, was hit by an ti-a ircraft
artillery (AAA) over Trikoma and killed
on July 20. Two F-100 loss s (55-3756 of
171 Fila and 55-2825 of 111 Fila) we re
caused by engine failure, the fo rmer cras h-
ing at lncirlik on Ju ly 20, and the other at
Manavgat-A ntalya the fo llow ing day. Two
were hit by AAA: F-100C 54-204 2 fro m
Roundels have replaced the square-format national insignia on these F-100Ds, some 132 Fila over Ovac ik, Cyprus and F-1000
of which have been camouflaged . Bombs and 2.75in rockets are loaded on '245. Turk ish 54-2238 fro m 172 Fila on 22 July near
Air Force/Saner Capoglu via Da vid Men ard N icos ia (its pilot, Capt Reca i U nhanh ,
eject ing sa ~ ly). Another F- l OOC (54-

746
 U D ER FORE IGN FL AGS

Re-arming is in progress on F-1000-56-NA 55-2910 during a visit to RAF lakenheath in May 1970. The nose undercarri age
often made a useful prop for the gun-bay doors. Norm Taylor Co llection

2083), cras hed into some barriers on take-

off at S ivrihi ar AB.
In a trag ic inc ident, Turkish jets mistook
the Turkish Navy' ea ring' lass destroyer
T. C. G. KocateJJe ( D-354) for a imilar-
looking Greek vesse l and sa nk it with
750lb bombs on 21 July. F-100s from 111
Filo and 11 2 Filo at Eskisehir, others from
18 1 Filo fro m Adana with seve ral 141 Fi lo
F-104Gs from Murted AB, Anka ra took
part in the attacks on th e shi p in which
fift y-four sa ilors died. In the ea rl y morning
of 21 Ju ly, the vesse l T. . G. Maresal Fevzj
Cakmak rescued an F-100 pilot, 1st Lt
Sad ik Du lger, who had b n hot down
over Cyprus the previous day. Iro nica ll y, Lt
Dulger had to witness the ent ire attack on
the KocateJJe from his po it ion on the Cak-
mak nex t to the stri cken destroyer.
After the invas ion, the G r eks were per-
suaded by US d iplomacy not to r tali ate.
However, Turkish F- l OOs were in act ion
aga in during as cond phase of the conflict
after the no rthern outskirts of N icos ia
were taken by Tu rkish fo rces in ea rl y
F-100F-15-NA 56-3946, one of the Turkish AF's 1969 delivery batch , being prepared for A ugust , fo llowed by Famag usta in an oper-
towing . Norm Taylor Coll ec ti on ation in which no a ircraft are known to

147

Close communication by hand signals between a 111 Filo crew and the crew chief of F-100F-15-NA 56-3957 . Turkish AF/Soner Capoglu
have been lost. An armi tice was agreed on
16 August and the island was then parti-
tioned into Greek and Turkish areas,
though THK units remained on fu ll alert
for veral mo re weeks. By the time ten -
sions increased aga in in 1987 over disput-
ed o il explorati on territo ry, Turkish F-l OOs
were being retired.
Turkey started to rece ive F-4Es in late
1974 and on 10 October 1975 the F-l OOs
of L12 Filo were replaced with the newly
arri ved Phanto m . 171 Fil o fo llowed in
1977 with 11 1 Filo and 172 Filo in 1978.
However, deliveri es of F-lOOs also contin-
ued with another fifteen ex-USAF a ircraft
in 1977- 78 and twenty F- lOODs, with a
pa ir of F-1OOF fro m D nmark in 198 1 and
early 1982. The fo rm r Dani h Huns
reta ined the ir Martin Baker DB-SA ejec-
tion s at and other RDAF modifica tions.
182 Filo beca me the last THK unit to con -
vert to the F-100 when it replaced its
delta- wing F-102A fighter in 1980. By
1983 onl y four THK units had Huns: 18 1
Filo (15 F-l OODs, 5 F-l OOFs); 182 Filo (15
F- l OOC/Ds, 5 F-lOOF ); 131 Filo (15 F-
lOODs, 15 F-l OOF ) and 13 2 Fil o (20 F-
lOODs, 5 F- lOOFs). After 18 L Fil o and 182
Fi lo comp leted the ir re-equipment in
March- Apri l 1985 with ex-RCAF C F-
UN DER FOREIGN FL AGS
104s, the Konya- based 13 1 and 132 Filos
were the o nly Super Sabre operators and
they reta ined the type until the end of the
F-100 era in 1988. It is known that fro m
1986 to 1988, th irty-fi ve F-100 /Ds and
twenty F-1 OOFs were used by th e two
squadrons, both of which had reverted to
the ro le of Weapons (OCU).
Three ex-THK Huns (F-100 54-209 1,
F-l OOD 55 -2888 and F-100F 56-3 948)
were sold to FS I and fl own to Mojave, a l-
ifornia on 5 August 1989, all three of them
rema ining airworthy in 2002. H owever,
the fina l destination fo r almost all THK
Huns was the Ankara junkyard where
they were so ld to scrap merchants and
melted down.
Turkish F-100s generally retained their
USAF ca mouflage, though earl y examp les
arri ved in bare metal. While orne of the
former Danish aircraft were repainted in
USAF ca mouflage, most retained their
overall fad ed o live-gree n scheme and even
their Danish buzz num be r (F-1 00D-40-
NH 55 -2768 still bo re it Danish ide-
number G -768 when it was scrapped in
A nkara in 1990) . Colourful unit markings
were worn on silver aircraft, with 'FW'
buzz numbers and squar -format Turkish
insignia, which were repl aced by roundels
748
in 1972. Towards the end of the 1970s,
code app ared on the fuse lage . The most
common practice was in the fo rm of fo ur
thin black digits with white outlines, the
fir t denoting the ma in jet airbase where
the aircraft wa stationed. The next three
number were the 'las t three' of its serial.
Thus, '3-732' o n an F-100C denoted 53-
1732 from the 3ncu Ana ]et Ussu (3 rd
Ma in Jet A irbase ) at that date.
evera l Turkish pilots flew more than
1,000 hour o n F-1OOs, with Brig Gen Erol
Ozg il clocking up 2,153 hours. Dur ing the
thirty years of the Turkish F-100 era at
least forty-two F-100Cs, thirty-three F-
lOODs and twenty F-1 OOFs are known to
have bee n lo t: almost a third of the fleet.
A total of fo rty- nine pilots were killed,
most of them yo ung lieutenants. Of the
267 delivered, twenty-four were still pre-
e rved in 2002 .
[Turkish A. F. ectio n compiled by Batur
Avgan © 2002 with reference to:
O le Niko lajsen, Turkish A viation History,
Vol II (2002 ); C umhur Ercleniz, F-100
(200 1); Johan van cler Wei, Bu lent Yil -
mazer, Lance Barbe r (' abre' ) and Marco
Dij kshoorn, Marco (2002 )]

The following is an account of a 1979 close air support
(CAS) mission by an Esk 727 pilot, J. E. T Clausen. One
of the squadron's more experienced pilots. he had over
900 hours on the Hun. 'Craven' was the Esk 727 call-s ign
and 'Mission 340 1' was the ca ll-sign used for this mis-
sion within an exercise.
'Yes. yes. affirm', I stutter while my eyes are wandering
around the landscape.
'From the farm, one nautical mile to the south-west. a
small wood. Do you see the small wood?'
'Tally-ho! ' I shout as I am pulling the nose over the hori -
zon only to point it downward again at the wood using the
correct dive angle. 'Mission 3401 in dummy.'
'You are cleared'. shouts the Forward Air Controller
IFAC)
The bombsight is lined up on a tank in the fringe of a
wood. plus a bit to the west to compensate for the wind.
Press the trigger, power and pull off. Whoops, that was a
bit low and God. how I sweat behind the oxygen mask. Now
it is time for some info to my wingman who is approaching
from the east: 'Number One is off to the west'.
Now the FAC is guiding Number Two towards the target.
'OK, I got you visuaL Come 10 degrees to the right. Do you
see the red-roofed farm at your 12 o'clock? From the farm,
1nm to the south-west...' etc. as before.
'Mission 3401. nice attacks. Go back to IP3C and I have
some new targets for you.' Yeah. yeah. that's easy for him
to say. Right now I only know I am somewhere over the
western part of Jutland and my wingman is 2 miles (3km)
behind.
Before this mud-moving climax is reached, a long period
of preparation has passed. We met that morning in the
squadron briefing room where I received a time hack at
0800 and a 'Good morning' from the Squadron Duty Oper-
ational Officer (Duty-Ops). Today there are no penalties for
the moneybox as everyone was in the briefing room on
time. According to the briefing, the weather was OK and
there were just the usual NOTAMS and active danger
areas. Bird intensity was 'One', just perfect for my low-
level. FAC-controlled mission in the Army training area at
Oksboel for the first pass. After the commanding officer's
(CO's) usual words of wisdom it was time to find out who
should pay for coffee. Duty-Ops drew a line on the black-
board and each of us, seated in our chairs. attempted to
guess how long it was in 1:100.000 scale. Good training for
a fighter-bomber pilot. Fingers stretched. eyes squinting,
everyone made their guess. Lady Luck (disguised as Duty-
Ops) measured the correct distance and the loser. the guy
whose guess was farthest off. was found.
Now for mission preparation. We had better hurry so that
we can meet our time-over-target (TOT). My Number 2 is
given the necessary line-up information: engine start time.
aircraft tail numbers. parking, configuration, etc. The Ground
Lia ison Officer (GLOI is asked to get his briefing ready and
assist in planning the mission. We pull out the relevant
NATO and national Standard Operational Procedures (SOPs)
covering the exercise. study the air task closely, decipher
coding to real aircraft frequencies and waypoints. check the
pilot qualification table to see if this mission could add some
of the necessary check marks. and copy master navigation-
al charts prepared by the pilot responsible for this exercise.
Contact Points (CPs) and initial points (IPs) from the air task
UN DER FOREIGN FLAGS
F-100 CAS Mission, Danish Style
are plotted both on the low-level navigational chart
(1 :500,000) and the target maps (1 :100,000) and the highest
obstacles are highlighted.
Number Two is putting the finishing touches to the nav
charts while I am doing a bit of smart planning: weapons
del ivery tactics and parameters (we are carrying a simu-
lated weapons load of four Mk 82s and a full load of
20mm). bingo fuel states. formation types. 'silent' take-off
procedure. air combat tactics if we are jumped by hostile
aircraft. etc. How time is going byt We had better get the
briefing started. A quick check with Duty-Ops to see if
there are any last-minute changes. Yes, I have to fly anoth-
er plane that is parked at the other end of the air base.
Great! Another five minutes lost.
The briefing . The GLO begins with his situation
overview Then I brief the 'domestic' stuff like parking,
silent taxiing (without contact to Air Traffic Control). for-
mation take-off. departure. etc. then on to the essential
part: countermeasures if we meet hostile aircraft. tactics
in the attack phase and not least, flying safety aspects in
the tougher parts of the mission. Questions? Fine. Off we
go, but first to the Duty-Ops desk to sign the authorization
sheet. Sh't! Two new pages of information that must be
read before the next flight. An ultra-quick scan convinces
me that they are not relevant to this mission. but I make a
mental note to read them more thoroughly after the mis-
sion. Remember to sign out or penalties are due.
lime to change clothes. Luckily there is no need for
immersion suits as the water temperature is above 1o•c. I
grab my helmet and oxygen mask. Oh no! Another delay.
The Life Support guys have changed my oxygen mask so I
have to check it before flight. I plug it into the 1950s-vin-
tage test box and take a couple of quick breaths: 'shyy-haa.
shyy-haa'... yes, it works. Now I need to find the crew chief
in a hurry or I will not make it to my agreed silent taxi time.
Luckily, he is outside the building, ready with the aircraft
log and a set of car keys. Did I remember everything? Hel-
met. gloves, line-up slip, navigational charts and the secret
'pilot information file' (PIF).
At last we reach the aircraft. A quick walk round and
then into the 'office'. My crew chief has already put my hel-
met on the edge of the windscreen and the ejection seat
shou lder straps hang out over the cockpit sides. This is ser-
vice! A couple of firm kicks on the brake pedals produce
the expected howling noise. An enormous black cloud from
the auxilliary power unit (APU) indicates that it is time for
engine start-up. Taxiing begins at the agreed time- only
just -and there on the other side of the runway I can see
my wingman appearing. Finally things look right.
After a green light from the tower, we line up and with
my circling index finger I give the order to run up the
engines. My wingman is nodding to indicate that engine
values are in the 'green' and he is ready. I nod deeply to
indicate brake release and we are rolling. Well airborne. I
'fishtail' the F-1 00 a bit, using the rudder to loosen up the
forma tion. Finally, it is time to enjoy all that work we did
on the ground.
Heading due north and soon the Jels-lake- our depar-
ture point- should appear. Yep, there it is. Is the stopwatch
wound up and ready? Yes. we are ready to start timing. I
am rocking the wings to indicate to my wingman that the
watch should be activated. Hack. The watch is running and
the speed is close to 420kt - 7nm per minute. I re-check
149
using the AN/APN-153 Doppler navigation system (NAVS),
the engine pressure ratio (EPA) indication and the airspeed
indicator. I also make the necessary corrections for wind at
500ft (150m). as forecast by our meteorologist (the patho-
logica l liar). Our altitude is 600ft (180m) indicated. Tactical
Air Command (TAC) approved the 500ft and I have added a
bit to compensate for the field elevation. At the next way-
point we have agreed to check in on our squadron fre-
quency and thereby we terminate the silent departure pro-
cedure. Until now we have been listening in on Channel14
(local tower) in case Air Training Command (ATC) should
want to contact us for flying safety reasons.
Right now we have a few minutes to let our souls catch
up because all we have to do is navigate on 'time and
heading', just like Charles Lindbergh I In twenty minutes
we will go 'feet wet' over the North Sea where. according
to the exercise brief. we might meet hostile fighters in the
shape of good old Danish F-104 Starfighters.
'Mission 3401. Manual 313. 6. Go.' We change to the
common frequency where we have to transmit blind that
we are coasting out into the North Sea area with two air-
craft at low altitude. What next? Will we be required to say
when we reach the next waypoint? Those air defenders
only know the date anyway: the rest they will get from the
ground controlled interception (GCI) station.
Speed is now increased to 450kt and my wingman is
right where he is supposed to be - line abreast at a good
distance since the weather is clear. Down to 300ft (90m)
and keep scanning 360 degrees for fighters. At intervals
we also look upwards because the air defence pilots love
to make hit-and-run attacks, diving at high speed, calling
'Fox two' and climbing again as fast as the 'wingless won-
der' [F-104] allows.
Aren't those smoke trails at 5 o'clock? 'Craven Red.
Break right. Bogies 5 o'clock, slightly high, about 4 miles
(6km[.'
Plug in the afterburner. Careful not to overstress the air-
craft. KA-POW! Great. No compressor stalls this time.
Nose over the horizon, not down in the waves. 'Tallyho! '
my wingman shouts and the dogfight is on. 'Camera ont '
Hopefully, we will be able to shoot some pictures with the
sight reticle on an F-104 canopy. In this clear weather we
have no problems picking up a smoking J79 engine at long
range, so the air defence pilots didn't get the advantage of
surprise this time. We manage to meet the enemy head on
and at our speed they don't manage to catch us before we
have left the fighter engagement zone.
Back in a sensible formation. we set course towards the
coast. Now we have to find out where we are. After a bit
of dog fighting, the F-1 OO's compass shows whatever takes
its fancy until we have flown straight and level for some
time. Well . the sun is over there so the coast must be in
that general direction. We use the TLAR principle: 'That
Looks About Right' . Great. There is the Cheminova factory.
Then our next waypoint is slightly to the south near Bovb-
jerg lighthouse. A masterpiece of navigation!
'Red Two. What is your fuel state?' Now both fuel
gauges and compasses should be steady again and as
accurate as possible. Good. we have enough fuel for at
least two attacks in the Oksboel area. Another time hack:
approximately 420kt and a 20kt wind from the right gives
us a heading of 165 degrees to match the track on our nav-
igational chart. Now it is time to change to the ALD/FAC

frequency to get a briefing. If we have a "rear briefer" on
this frequency he will already at this early stage be able to
give us some overall guidelines before we contact the FAC.
If not. we will have to make do with the information from
the Air Task and the GLO briefing.
Now it is time to get organized in the "office·. Pull out the
relevant maps and fix them under the clip on one knee. The
PIF is wedged in between the canopy and the left-hand rail
and the others go on the right side. My right kneeboard is
reserved for notes from the FAC briefing leach pilot has his
own system. almost with clothes pegs to keep all the
papers organized). I am happy that I know my USAF Map
Folding Manual by heart.
We are approaching Ringkoebing and it is about time to
contact the ALD. This is mission 3401. on time. over."
Crackle. crackle. After the mandatory authentication pro-
cedure he tells us to contact Whitecliff on one of the coded
air task frequencies and fly to IP B4. leaving it asap. "Red
Two. Go offensive." All he has to do now is hang on and
keep a good lookout to warn me of other aircraft or towns
we can't fly over because I hide my nose in the low-level
chart. IP B4 .... IP B4 ... where is it? Ah. it"s a small lake. OK .
After the next waypoint we go directly south. Fine. then we
don't have to make any stupid 360-degree turns while we
set everything up. They aren't too healthy close to hostile
territory anyway.
"Red Two. Manual 314. 1. Go."
Whitecliff. Whitecliff. Mission 3401.1P B4 in three min-
utes." No answer. Typical! We climb a bit to let his
advanced walkie-talkie reach us. Contact at last. I am now
flying the Hun with my left hand whi le the right is busy
making notes - a sweat-provoking kind of flight that only
right-handed CAS pilots get to experience.
UNDER FORE IGN FLAGS
F-100 CAS Mission, Danish Style (cont.)
"From IP. .. Icrackle crackle) ... heading...lbuzz crackle) ... 174.
Four minutes 30 seconds ...lcrackle whine buzz) ... target
consists of ... column of tanks standing next to a wood.
camouflaged."
At least the footsloggers didn't dig the tanks in. 'Two.
Are you ready?' Perfect. Here we go. 'Two, you may take
spacing." Now he has to distance himself from me so that
he doesn't fly into the cloud of fragments from the bombs
and the target that I will pretend to cause in a short while.
The IP is to my right at 1 o'clock; a small lake. A time hack
and down to 300ft 190m). The adrenaline is pumping
through my body and time flies. Speed: 450kt. How is the
camera set? I have to take my oxygen mask off to see any-
thing at all. Who designed this cockpit, where some of the
bunons are positioned almost behind your back? After this
acrobatic achievement I check airspeed and time: 1 minute
10 seconds.
'After 1 minute 30 seconds you will pass a paved road
with a smal l windmill. From that windmill look to your 2
o'clock about 2nm and you will see a red-roofed farm .. ."
and we are back to the point where the pi lot's thumb firm-
ly presses the pickle button and the bomb load leaves the
aircraft directly towards the 'hostile' tanks. For the sake of
training, we make a second attack, this time from another
IP and then it is time to leave Oksboel. Just after the last
attack I see the FAC in my peripheral vision. He was risk-
ing his life a few kilometres from the tanks - within firing
range. But those are the FAG's conditions.
'See you in the Officers' Mess for happy hour?'
'Yes. I'll be there." I recognize his voice as one of the
Reserve Officers flying for Scandinavian Airlines.
After our in-flight report has been submitted to HOwe
set course for the Blaavandshuk lighthouse and make a
150
friendly call to the Range Safety Officer at the Roemoe air-
to-ground range. We have both fuel and time for an airfield
attack. I had better inform Duty-Ops so that he can warn
the rest of the squadron over the tannoy. Last time, one of
our crew chiefs got pissed off when my afterburner lit
exactly over the squadron maintenance hangar when I
passed, unannounced, at low altitude.
Inadvertently, he got up and his head hit the airbrake on
the aircraft he was servicing. It cost me an apology, coffee
and a doughnut. After getting clearance from the tower I
call my wingman in close and assign the south-western
squadron dispersal area as his aim-point while I 'take out'
our own squadron building . Luckily, the guys got some good
decibels and the afterburner lit at exactly the right time.
That is a bit of an art, garnished with a good helping of luck
to make it light at the right time, if at all.
After this team-building exercise we join down-wind
directly and manage to touch-down before reaching mini-
mum fuel; 1OOOib l450kg). Unfortunately the headwind is
too weak to avoid using the drag chute. My crew chief
prefers not to install a new chute if it can be helped as it is
a cumbersome system and prone to failure in operation.
We taxi in, debrief with the crew chief, sign the manual
and get out of sweaty flight gear. Quickly, we have to send
a supplementary mission report to Tactical Air Command,
Denmark, develop the film with F-1 04 kills and ground
attack results and then debrief with my wingman. the GLO,
Outy-Ops and ATC before the next mission: an exercise
with the Navy. That means a new Exercise Order, master
chart, airtask, etc. l grab a sandwich, find my wingmen and
it's full speed ahead with the planning.
 CHAPT ER 7

Son of a Hun: The F-107A

,- .- -

F-107A 55-5118, the first aircraft, with a 500-gal centreline tank containing flight-test recording gear and fire extinguishing
equipment. Unlike the other two aircraft it had its 'F-107A' logo behind the cockpit. Davi d Menard Collection

North Ameri ca n Aviatio n (NAA) pro-
posed a number of improved ve rsions of
the ir out tanding n ew fighter but on ly
one, the F- L07 A, proceeded beyond the
outline stage. Most version invo lved m i.n -
imum change to the a ircraft in order to
reduce too ling and production cost . For
exa mp le, the F-l OOK wou ld h ave been an
F- l OOF with the up-rated and more re li-
able ) 57 -P-55 engine. The F-l OOL wo uld
have given the F-1000 the sa me trea t-
ment. ATO air fo rces, seeking a low-
cost, upers n ic re place ment fo r their F-84
and F-86s were offered the F- l OON with a
implifi d electron ics package.
A more serious proposa l involved
replac ing the J57 with a Ro lls- Royce RB-
168-25R Spey tu rbofan, as used with qual-
ified success in the F-4K/M Ph anto m. T he
engine could h ave been produced in its
A ll ison TF-41 va riant with afterburner.
Th is change of power-p lant wa uppos d
to offer 30 per cent better range with a 50
per cent improvement in o rdnance load
and up to lO,OOOft (3,000m) extra ce ili ng.
Improved take-off d istances and rates of
cl imb were also li ke ly. At thi time, Ro ll -
Royce a lso suggested 'Speyed' F-8 C ru -
saders and F-104 S tarfi ghters, but in 1964
the F-1OOS (fo r S pey ) proposal wa
th ought to have rea l po tential fo r th
European market. The French were seen a
custo mers fo r up to 200, based o n the
F-lOOF and li cence-built in Fran e for the
Armee de l' Air and then for fo llow-on cus-
to mers. Sad ly, this sugge tion never
advanced beyond initi al pape rwo rk.
More prom ising sti ll we re projects that
sought to increase the F- lOO's interception

75 7

Sharing the ramp with the fifth F-lOOA (in engineering test flight colours) is the Number 3 aircraft, 55-5120. Its nose logo reads
'North American F-107A'. The F-107A Air Staff Project Officer, Brig Gen Coberly, described the fighter's performance a 'quite
incredible for that time period'. David Menard Coll ection
and all-weath r capabili ty. Th F-100]
wo uld have h ad a sea rch and trac k rada r
insta llation and might have attrac ted
Japanese interest. Befo re that , the F-1001
was suggested a an intercepto r with air-to-
a ir rock t pa ks replacing its guns. H ow-
ever, the most im portant of all these pro-
ject was the first: th e F- 100B. This
b came the fo und ati o n ~ r th F-107 A,
trul y a 'Super' up r abre .
NAA rece ived USA F requ ests for stud -
ies of an improved ve rsion of the F-100
ea rly in 195 , before th e F-1OOA fir t flew.
Arou nd March, th e compa ny d rafted th
A-2 11 (F-1008) , initi all y a fas ter, ligh ter
day-fighter capa ble of Mach 1. with a
th inner wing, area- ruled fuse lage and a ]57
engine up-rated to 16,000 lb (7, 250kg)
thrust with a n w conve rgent/d iv rge nt
engine nozz le. It might h ave h ad dual-
whe I 'rough-field' main landing gear and
no prov ision fo r under-w ing fuel tan ks.
Thi s all had to be mod ified when Tac tica l
A ir om mand (TA ) i ued n w demands
featuring a powerfu l a ir-to-a ir radar. In
response, AA des igned a pointed nose
rado me above a b ifurcated F- 6D-sty le
SON OF A HUN: T HE F- 107A
'chin ' in take , but this caused a irflow prob-
lems fo r the release of wea pons, 'semi -sub-
merged' in an innova tive 'trough ' bay
und r the fuse lage. The re-design of june
1953, known internally as the F- 100B l,
fea tured a retractable inflight-refu e lling
probe and a re-appea rance of drop ta nk .
By Octob r the mode l num ber NA-212
had been allotted and a mock-up was com-
menced together with stud ies of variable-
area a ir inlets that eve ntua lly I d to th a ir
intake be ing pos iti oned abov th fuse-
lag . Th loca t io n was chosen to prevent
a irflow interfe rence with o rdn ance
dropped from the centreline stat ion , a by
Novembe r 195 the compan y was empha-
sizing the type' pote ntial as a fi ghter-
bomber with a ir-superio rity ca pabil ity.
Probably NAA had a lready decided to
co mpete unofficially with R pub lic'
306A des ign, the figh te r-bomber propo al
th at eventu ally beca me TA 's F-105
Thunderch i f. Republic had rece ived a
contract dated 25 September 1952 for 199
F-105As, altho ugh at that stage the air-
craft bore little resemblance t th e eve n -
tual F-1 05 B pr ducti on mode l and AA
752
were aware of the type's protracted and
troub l some development proce s. AA
even began stud ie of a nava l NA-2 12 ver-
sion , the 'Supe r Fury' to fo ll ow its FJ Fury
serie . U AF interest in the F-100B/Bl at
that stage was ac tua lly minima l and the
interceptor programme was cut bac k. How-
ever, in April 1954 AA became aware of
renewed interest in a figh te r-bomber
r q uirement and it began work on beefing
up the A- 212 for th is mi ss ion. n 11
Ju ne 195 4, NAA rece ived a contract for
thi rty-three cop i sofa fi ghter-bomber that
wa ti ll ca ll ed F- 100B, although on 8 July
th e des ignati on was officially ch anged to
F- 107 A to refl ect the aircraft's sub tantia l
d iffe rences from the basic F-100. Three
proto types were initiall y ordered (55 -
511 8 , -5 11 9, -5 120) with nine service test
a ircraft to fo llow.
A lthough it was essentiall y a new
design, the a ircraft retained th ba ic F- 100
wing with six h ardpo ints and lead ing edge
lats, but it was positio ned mid-way up the
fuselage. Fligh t control was achi ved by
spo ilers above and below each wing.
Inboard fl aps, sim ilar to tho e eventually

The second aircraft has the Sandia 'Shape 27' special store on its centreline saddle tank . Although they are no emphasized in
this view, 55-5119 had the same red markings as the other two F-1 07 As. David Mena rd Coll ectio n
installed on the F-1000 , were introduced
but with bound ary layer control to reduce
land ing peed by up to 25kt. An F-100- type
horizonta l stabilizer was used but the
en larged verti ca l stabilizer incorpo rating
th e A N /APS-54 RWR rose a lmost 20ft
( 6m) from the ground and wa 'a ll mov ing'
above a po int ro ughl y 2ft (0.6 m) above
the rea r fuse lage . Defl ecting 3 degrees l ft
and right ( 6 degrees with the underca r-
ri age down) it prov ided powerful 'rudder'
control and later appeared in mod ified
fo rm on the company's A3J Vigilante
des ign. A new augm nted longitudinal
co ntrol sys tem (ALCS , n icknamed
'Ali ce' ) was includ ed. Essentially, it was an
ance tor of fl y- by- wire co ntro l systems.
The F-1OO's rather inconvenientl y placed
airbrake wa rep laced by two units ex tend -
ing fro m the bulky rear fuse lage, but the
S01 OF A HUN: T HE F- 107A
four-M39A 1 gun bas ic armament was kept
and moved further up the fu se lage sides.
A n F-100-style nose land ing gear was
accompan ied by newly designed main
landing gea r member ex tending from the
fu se lage , aga in like the later A3] .
C rucially, the ]57 was replaced by Pratt
& Whitney's (P& W) much more powerful
) 75-P- 11 at almost 24,000lb (ll,OOOkg)
thrust with afterburning, upplied by
around 2,000gal of inte rnal fue l. A new
N AA/USAF XMA-12 fire-control system
(N orth American Search and Ranging
Radar: NA R) was specified and installed
in the second F-107 A although its flight
test ing under Phase Ill of the programme
was never completed. lt prov ided low-a lt i-
tude bomb ing system (LA BS ) delivery of
the electrically fused 10,000lb (4,550kg) of
ex ternal ordnance and control of gunnery.
753
A TX -28 (B-28) nuclear store could be car-
ried semi -recessed in the open fuse lage bay
or on an adapter that doubled as a 250ga l
fuel tank. Th is weapons installation was
thought to be less troublesome for high-
Mach bomb deli very than R public's sta n-
dard internal bay.
A large , clamshell cockpit canopy
opened vertically, rising 28 in (7 1cm) - only
when the engine was turned off! - to allow
the pilot to squeeze in and out. everal ejec-
tion tests fro m the fi rst aircraft reassuringly
showed that the NAA ejection seat could
propel the pilot pas t the intake at all speeds
without being sucked in.
Production de ign bega n on 1 May
1955 , and the first a ircraft fl ew on ly eigh-
teen months later on 10 September 195 6
with NAA pilot Bob Baker in contro l. lt
achieved Mach 1.03 in a d ive on the first
 : TH E F- 107A
F-107A Statistics
Wingspan 36 58h (11 15m)
Length 6081h(1853m)
Height 19.54h (5 95m)
Wing area 367 .02sq h (34.96sq m)
Weights
empty 25,1441b (11.405kg)
gross 41,537 1b (18,841kg)
Internal fuel 1,260gal, supplemented by a 500gal belly tank and
drop tanks on the wings
Armament Four M-39 20mm guns with 200 rou nds per gun.
Power One P&W YJ75-P-11 turbojet at 15,5001b (7,000kg) military thrust and
23.5001b (10,500kg) thrust in full afterburner.
Fire control system NAA/Autonetics XMA-12 with air-to-air and air-to-ground modes using an
Autonetics R-14 radar. The system was later adapted as the XMA-S for use in
the Republic F-1 050 .
Cruise speed 588mph (956km/h)
Maximum speed 890mph (1,432km/h) at sea level
1.295mph (2,083km/h) at 36,000h (10,970m)
Service ce il ing 53.200h (16,215m)
Maximum rate of cl imb 39,900h/min (12, 161 m/m in)
Combat range 788 miles (1 ,268km)
Ferry range 2.428 miles (3,907km)
flight and wo uld have gone faste r but for zoom climb tests that showed it could
engine gearbox problems. At the conclu- cl imb at Mach 1 in both normal and zoom
sion of the flight, Baker touched down at cl imbs. A l White flew weapons tests in the
almost 200kt using half- flaps rather than second aircraft, including LABS drops at
the u ual 45 -degree po iti on and had to peed up to Mach 1. 2 and centreline 'spe-
make a landing roll of no less than cial stores' drops at Mach 1.87. Later tests
22,000ft (6,700m) when the d rag-chu te with the T X-28 sto re took the speed
failed to deploy. The aircraft ran on into beyond Mach 2 at 35,000ft (1 0,700m)
the dried mud section of Edwards AFB's with clean weapons separatio n.
runway, hit a ru t and broke off its nose NAA's hopes were raised on 8 March
land ing gea r. The normal landing run with 195 7 by A ir Defense Command 's (ADC )
chute and fu ll flaps was later fo und to be a expressed inte rest in a rocket-armed F-
more comfortable 3,600ft (1 ,100m). 107B varian t. However, this became acad-
Repaired by 1 October, 55-5 11 8 resumed emic when TAC made clea r that it want-
testing and on 3 Novemb r J. . Roberts ed the F-105 as its nex t aircraft, a decision
flew it to Mach 2, the main obj ective of that was made we ll before Phase II tests of
the thirty fligh ts comprising Phase I of the the F-107A were finished. The six addi -
programme. Pha e II (3 December 1956- tio nal F-107 A that NAA had anticipated
15 February 1957) used the second aircraft bui lding w re ca ncel led.
on thirty-two fli ghts to test bas ic p rfor- 0 chnica ll y, there seemed littl e to
mance and handling. Rates of climb of up choose between the two des igns. The F-
to 30,000ft (9 ,000m) per minute at sea 107A had shown earl y promise of be ing an
lev I were recorded. The aircraft handl ed unusua lly capabl and reliabl a ircraft that
very we ll and was eas ier to trim and more fu lfi lled all TAC's requirements rather
stable than the F-100. Joining for the than simpl y a 'banker' for TAC aga inst the
Phase Ill tests wa the final a ircraft (55 - fa ilure of the F-105 . Duri ng flight te t ing,
5120), incorpora ting an automatic vari- the F- 107A had shown far few r develop-
ab l a ir in let duct (VAID), which mental prob lems than the F-105 and in
incr ased the volum of'free strea m' air to mid -1956 there see med a rea l poss ibility
the engine by 30 per cent and gave much that the Rep ublic fighter would be can-
improved perfo rmance at high altitude. celled in favo ur of the F-107A. Pos ib ly
Mea nwhil e, '11 8 was used for a eri e of Republic was favo ured politica lly since it
754
had no other work in prospect, or because
its des ign included a spec ialized interna l
nuclear weapons bay that might enable
TAC to preserve its nuclea r capab ility in
the face of increas ing domination by
S trateg ic A ir Command (SAC ) influence.
After cancellation of further work on
the F-107A in March 1957,55-5 11 9 con-
tinued it serie of weapon t t . The other
two aircraft were passed to NACA's High-
Speed Flight Installat ion at Edwards AFB
fo r continuation testing of their innova tive
de ign feature including th VAlD y tem,
all-mov ing tail and ALCS. Valuabl e data
resulted which helped in the later develop-
ment of types such as the XB- 70A bomber,
R-7 1 and a new generatio n of fighters
including the F-15 and F-16. Th third air-
craft was equipped with a side-st ick con-
tro ller in place of the conventional 'joy
stick' to prove th e concept fo r the X- 15A
resea rch vehicle. 55-5 11 8 became 'NA A
207' but it fl w very little and was soon
ca nnibalized to keep ' 120 fl ying.
O n 1 September, Scott Crossfield expe-
rienced trim-setting prob lems that pre-
vented him from getting ' 120 airborne.
The aborted take-off blew the nose- whee l
tyres and o n the run-out the left brake and
tyre overheated , ca using a fire that dam-
aged the aircraft befo re a fire- truck could
be brought up. The a ircraft was beyond
economica l repa ir and it ended its clays on
Shepard AFB' fire dump. The other two
F-107 As wer returned to USAF charge
on 3 June 1960.55-5 11 8 ended up at Pima
County Museum after spending many
years dete riorating in outdoor storage and
'119 was placed in the A ir Fo rce Museum
at Wright-Patte rson AFB.
A lthough TAC ga ined a valiant work-
horse in the F-105 it also lost an exception-
al aircraft in th F-107 A. In common with
most NAA des igns it was significantly
ahead of its t ime. ln the earl y 1950s, the
company was the fo remost U defence
co ntracto r. Its cl terminati on to remain at
the fo refront of development led it into
some technica lly bri ll iant bu t enormously
costly projects including the Mach 3, mis-
ile-a rmed F-108 interceptor and the
extrao rdinari ly advanced XB-70 Va lkyrie
bomber. A lthough the company in its
restructured North American Rockwell
form went on to produce the B- 1B bomber,
th e ca ncellation of the F-107 A took it out
of the fi ghter business.
 APPENDIX I

F-1 00 Statistics and Perfor01ance

YF-100 F-100A F-100C F-1000 F-100F

W ingspan (ft/in) 36' 7" 38' 9" 38' 9" 38' 9" 38' 9"
Length (ft/in ) 46'3" 4 7' 1" 4 7' 1" 4 7' 1" 50' 4"
(fuse lage, exclud ing pitot boom)

Height (ft/in) 14' 5" 15' 4"* 15' 4" 16'2" 16' 2"

Wing area (sq. ft) 376 385 385 400 400

Weight (lb/kg)
empty 18, 135 (8,226 ) 18, 135 ( ,226 ) 19,270 (8, 740) 20,638 (9 ,36 1) 2 1,712 (9 ,848)
combat 24,789 (11,244) 24,996 (11,338) 28,700 (13,0 18) 30,061 (13 ,635 ) 3 1,41 3 (14 ,248)
gross 28,56 1 (12 ,955) 28,899 (1 3,1 08 ) 36,5 49 (16 ,5 78) 38,048 (17 ,258 ) 39 ,122 (17 ,745)
Engine XJ57-P-7 ]57-P-7/P-39 J-5 7-P-2 1 ]57-P-2 1/-2 1A J57-P-21/- 21A
Thrust (lb/kg)
mil 8,700 (3,946) 9,700 (4,400 ) 10,200 (4,630) 10,200 (4,630) 10,200 (4 ,630 )
afterburner 13,200 (5,990) 14 ,800 (6 ,700 ) 16,000 (7,25 0) 16,000 (7,250) 16,000 (7, 250 )
Max . sp ed (kt)
at 35,000ft ( l0,700m) 634 740 803 765 760
Stalling speed (kt) 139 138 146 147 157
Serv ice ce iling (ft/m) 52,600 (16 ,000) 44,900 (1 3,700 ) 38,700 (11, 800 ) 39,600 (1 2,000 ) 3 ,5 00 (11,7 50)
Rate of climb (ft/ m min) 23,800 (7 ,250 ) 21,600 (6,600) 19,000 (5 , 00 ) 18,5 00 (5,600 )
ombat radius (m iles/km) 358 (575) 572 (920 ) 520 (835 ) 508 (817)
Ferry range (miles/km) 1,294 (2,080 ) 1,95 4 (3 ,145) 1,995 (3,210) 1,66 1 (2,670)

*(F-100A with 'short' vertica l stabilizer was 13' 4")

F-100 Production
Listed in order of serial allocation.
Type/Block Quantity AF Serials Construction Numbers
YF-100A 2 52-5754/-5755 (Model) NAA-1 0- 1/2
F-100A- 1-N A 10 52-5756/-5765 N A -192- 1/ 10
F-100A-5-NA 13 52-5766/-5778 NA- 192- 11/23
F-100A- 10-NA 40 53- 1529/-1568 NA- 192-24/63
F-100A- 15 -NA 40 53-1569/-1608 NA- 192-64/ 103
F-100A-20-NA 100 53- 1609/- 1708 NA-192- 104/203
F-100C- 1-NA 70 53-1709/- 1778 NA-21 4-1/70
F-100 -1-NA 30 54-1740/- 1769 NA-217- 1/30
F-100C-5-NA 45 54-1770/- 1814 NA-217 -3 1/75
F-100C-15-NA 45 54-1 15/- 1859 NA-21 7-76/120
F- 100C-20-NA 111 54-1860/- 1970 N A -217 -121/23 1
F-100C-25-NA 15 0 54-1971 /-2 120 NA-217-232/38 1
F-100 -10-N H 25 55 -2709/-2 733 NA-222 1/25

155
 F- 100 STAT I ST I CS AND PERFORMANCE

F-100D- l - A 12 54-2 121/-2132 A-223-1/12

F-l OOD-5- A 19 54-2133/-2151 NA-223- 13/3 1
F-l OOD- 10-NA 70 54-2152/-2221 NA-223-32/101
F-100D-15-NA 82 54-2222/-2303 NA-223- 102/183
F-100 -10-N H 25 55-2709/-2733 NA-222-1/25
F-l OOD-35-NH 10 55-273 4/-2 743 NA-224-1/10
F-100D-40-N H 40 55-2744/-2783 NA-224-11/50
F-l OOD-45 -N H 80 55-2784/-2863 NA-224-5 1/130
F-lOOD-50-N H 45 55-2864/-2908 A-224-13 1/1 75
F-l OOD-55- H 46 55-2909/-2954 A-244- 176/221
F-IOOD-20-NA 100 55-3502/-3601 NA-223- 184/283
F-IOOD-25- A 100 55-3602/-3701 NA-223-284/383
F-100D-30- A 113 55-3702/-3 14 NA-223-384/496
F-100 D-60-NA 60 56-2903/-2962 A-235-1/60
F-!OO D-65-NA 60 56-2963/-3022 NA-235-61/120
F-100D-70-NA 120 56-3023/-3 142 NA-235- 121/240
F-100D-75 -NA 56 56-31 43/-3 198 NA-2 5-241 /296
F-100D-90-NA 14 56-3199/- 346 NA-235-297/444
F-100D-80-N H 28 56-335 1/-3378 NA-245- 1/28
F-100D-85-N H 85 56-33 79/-3463 NA-245-29/113
F-100F-1- A 15 56-3725/-3739 NA-243- 1/15
F-100F-5- A 30 56-3740/-3769 A-243-16/45
F-100F-10-NA 150 56-3770/-3919 A-243-46/195
F-100F-1r- A 100 56-3920/-4019 NA-243- 196/295
F-l OOF-20- A 29 58- 1205/- 1233 NA-255- 1/29 (MDAP)
F-l OOF-15- A 9 58-6975/-6983 NA-261- 1/9( MDAP)
F-l OOF-15-NA 6 59-2558/-2563 NA-262- 1/6 (MDAP)

(F-100A- 10-NA53- 1545/- 1548, -1551 a nd -1554 were modifi d to RF-100As.)

Sub-totals
YF-1OOA/F-100 205
F-l OOC 476
F-lOOD 1,274
F-lOOF 339
Total production: 2,294

F-lOODs equipped with NAYS (Doppler Navigation System)

All FY58 F- l OOFs eq uipped with AVS.

F- 1OOD-55/ 90
-2 795,-2837,-2845 ,-2849,- 2853,-2855/6,-2861,-2863,-2 65,-2870,-2878/9,-288 1,-28 3,-2 89,-2892,-2901,-2903/4/5,-29 17,
-3502, -3508, -35 12, -35 16, -35 1 , -3521/2, -3525, -352 , -3530, -3532, -353 4/5, -35 41, -3543, -35 45 ,- 549, -3550, -3553, -3555,
-3558/9, -3560, -3562, -3564, -3566, -3568/9, -3570, -3572/3/4,-3576, -3580/1/2, -358 1, -35 5, -3586, -3587, -3589, -3590/1/2/ ,
-3595, -359 , -3600/1/2/3/4/5/6, -3608, -3611, - 613, -3615, - 61 /9, -3620, -3622/3, -3625, - 628, -3630/ 1/2, -363 4, -3639,
-3640/1/2,- 647, -3650,-3653,-3740,-37 45,-3762-3765/6,-3780,-3782,-3784/5,-3793 , -3803/4,-3806,-3809,-38 11/2/3/4.

F-l OOD-56
-2903,-3259,-3263/4/5/6/7,-3269,-3270,-3270,-3272/3,-3275/6/7/ /9,- 280,-3282/3,-3285/6/7,-3320,-3324,-3326/7/8/9,-3330,
-333 1/2/3/4/5/6, -333 /9, -33 40/1, -3 43, -3 45/6.

156
 F- 100 STAT I STI CS A D PERFORM ANCE

ENGINE J57 -21 A Willi AfTBIIUINEI

MAIN DIFFERENCES TABLE AC D.KTaiCAL

I'OWDSOUICI
THI& NVIItlBIS
F-100 SERIES
MMAMINT FOUl GUNS AND MISSIW

STAITta I'NEUMATIC

DllOP TANKS TWO 27S-GAUON

INTIINAL FUll RJSB.AGE

URIIUNG GRAVTTY TANK RU..c;
PIIOVISION5

NO
OXTGIN STSTIM GASEOUS, Willi D-2 lfGUI.ATOI
AUTOPILOT NO

THIEE INVIIIlBIS
FOUl GUNS AND VARIOUS COMaiNAnONS OF EXTERNAL
MMAMINT LOADS INCLUDING lOMaS- lOCKETS AND MISSILES
MOUNTED ON IEMOVAILE "LONS.
STARTII I'NEUMATIC

DllOP TANKS TWO 275-GAUON AND/ 01 COMaiNAnON Of

:zoo..GAUON (TWO 33S-GAUON ON SOME AIIP'I.ANES)
INTtaNAL FUR RJSELAGE AND WING
IIFUIUNO l'lllSSUIE TTPE (SINGLE-POINT AND
PIIOVISIONS All IEFUB.JNG)
FLAil'S NO
OXYGEN STSTIM LIQUID, Willi D-2A IEGULATOI
AUTOI'ILOT NO

ENGl . .
AC WCRICA&. ONE --~IVIN AC GINEIATOI
I'OWDSOUIICI Willi ONE STAND-BY -
FOUl GUNS AND VARIOUS CO-NAnONS Of EXTIINAL
LOADS INCLUDING IOMIS, lOCKETS, AND MISSILES
MOUNTID ON FOICE EJECTION PYLONS.
STAIITDI CAITIIDGE AND PNEUMATIC

TWO 275- GAUON, TWO 450-GAUON 01 TWO 33S-

DllOPTANKS GAUON AND/01 CO-NAnON Of 20D-GAUON.

INTtaNAL FUll RJSB.AGI AND WING

IDUIUNO PIESSUIE-TTPE (SINGLE-POINT AND All

PIIOVISION5 IEFUB.JNG)
YES
OXYGEN SYSTIM LIQUID Wllll MD-I IEGULATOI

AUTOPILOT YES

ENGl . . J57 -21A Wllll AflRMMNO

ACRECRICAL ONE ENGINI~IVIN AC GENEIA TOI
I'OWDSOUICI Willi ONE STAND-BY INVBilBI
TWO GUNS AND VARIOUS COM&INATIONS Of IXlBINAL
MMAMINT LOADS INCLUDING IOMIS, IOCKm, AND MISSILES
MOUNTED ON FOICE EJECTION PYLONS
STAITII CAITIIDGI AND I'NEUMATIC

DllOP TANKS TWO 275-GAUON TWO 450-GAUON 01 TWO 335-GAL-

LON 'AND/01 COMaiNATION Of 200-GAUON.

INTtaNAL FUR RJSILAGI AND WING

IIFUIUNO PIESSUIE-TTPE (SINGLE-I'OINT AND
PIIOVISIONS AlllfRIBlNG)

FLAil'S YES

OXYGEN SYSTIM LIQUID Wllll MD-I IEGULATOI

AUTOI'ILOT YES
F - 100-1-00-1

757
 APPENDIX II

F-100 Units
20th TFW Victory by Valor From F-84F to F-1000 /F, 16 Jun e 195 7
USAF F-100 Units Based: RAF Wethersfield and RAF Woodbridge , UK
55th TFS (blue) Fighring Fifty Fifth
3 rd TFD F- 1000 /F from Ju ne 1964 Moved to RA F Upper Heyforcl , UK, 1 June 1970.
Based: England AFB, Louisiana 77th TFS (reel) Gamblers
90th TFS (light blue) Pair o' Dice Moved to RAF Uppe r Heyford , UK, 1 Jun 1970.
Deployed to Bien !-loa A B, RVN, 8 Feb 1966- 3 1 Oct 1970. Transi- 79th TFS (ye llow) Tigers
ti onecl to A-37B. Bas cl: RAF Woodb ri dge, UK
416th TFS (blue ) Silver Knights Moved to RAF Upper 1-leyford, UK, 15 Jan 1970.
From 2 1st TFW, June 1964. Deployed to : Da Nang AB, RVN , March
1965; Tan Son N hut AB, RVN, Nov 1965-Jun e 1966; 3 7th TFW, Phu To F-1ll E fro m ept 1970.
at AB, RVN , 15 Ap rill 967; 3 1st TFW, Tu y !-loa AB, RVN, 28 May
1969 (coded SE). Non-operat iona l from 5 Sept 1970. To 4403 rcl TFW,
England A FB, 23 Sept 1970. 21st TFW From F-84G to F-1000/F, late 1958
SlOth TFS (pu rple ) Based: Misawa AB, Japa n
F-100 0 from March 1964. Depl oyed to Bien !-loa AB, RVN , 10 Nov 416th TFS (blue ) Silver Knights
1965. Inacti vated 15 Nov 1969. 531stTFS (reel)
53 1st TFS (reel)
From 2 1st TFW, June 1964. Deployed to Bien !-loa AB, RVN, 8 Nov Trans iti onecl to F-1000 from Jul y 1958 . Deactiva ted Jun e 1960, bo th
1965. lnactivatecl 3 1 Jul y 1970. squ adrons reassigned to 3rd TFW.
307 th TFS
TOY from 3 1st TFW to Bien Hoa AB, RV , Jul y- N ov 1965.
308th TFS 27th TFW F-1000 /Ffrom Feb 1959
Assigned to 3rd TFW, Bien Hoa AB, RVN, 2 Dec 1965-15 Nov 1966. Based: Cann on A FB, New Mex ico
Reassigned to Tu y !-loa AB, RVN, 15 Nov 1966. 4 8 1st TFS (gree n)
T OYs to Takh li RTAFB, Tha iland, 1963; Misawa AB, Japan and Kun -
Codes used at Bien !-loa: C B (90th TF ), C E (5 1Oth TFS ), C P (53 1st sa n AB, Korea, 1964; Tan Son N hu t AB, RVN, 27 Jun e 1965-1 Jan
TFS ) 1966. To F-1llE late 1969 . ln acti va tecl 3 1 A ug 1973.
522nd TFS (red) Fh·eballs
Saw Buck Ill TOYs to Takhl i RTAB, Tha iland , 13 Dec 1962- l June
4th FDW Fro m F-86 1-1 to F- 100C, early 1958 1963, TOY to Da N ang AB, RVN (6 aircraft) and Takhli (6 aircraft),
Based: Seymour Johnson AFB, North aro lina 14 A ug 1964, the n Da Na ng (whole squadron) until6 Ma y 1964.
333 rd FDS (reel) Lancers TOYs to Misa wa AB, Japan, May 1965, C lark AB, Philippines, late
33 4th FDS (blue ) Eagles 1965. To F-111 A, 1972.
335 th FDS (gree n ) C hiefs 523rd TFS (blue )
336th FDS (ye ll ow) Rocketeers Reassigned to 405th TFW, Nov 1965.
5 24th TFS (ye llow) Hounds of Heaven
Transit ionecl to F- 105 B from 16 Jun e 1959. Flew F-100 0 until March 1969. To F-111 0, 1972.

8th TFW A ttaquez et Conquerez
F-1000 /F, late 1956
Based: ltazuke AB, Japan
35 th TFS (blue)
36th TFS (red ) Flying FiencLs
80th TFS (ye llow ) Headhunters
From F-84G and F-86F to
3 12th TFW renumbe red 27th TFW, Feb 1959. 18 aircraft Oet main -
tained at Takhli , RTAB, May 1962-May 1964, red uced to 6 aircraft,
Feb 1963. 27th TFW became F-100 RT U, l Jan 1966. Flew last regular
USA F F-100 mission, 19 Jul y 1972 (56-3333).
Coded from Jul y 1968 : C A (48 1st TFS ), CC (522nd TF ), C D (5 24th
TF ).
Common base code CC used from 1972.

To F-1050, May 1963, then F-4C via re-clesignati on of 32ncl TFW as

8th TFW, 1965. 3 1st TFW From F-84F to F-1000 /F, micl - 1957
Based: Turner A FB, Georgia
18 th TFW From F-86 F to F-1000 /F, 195 7 306th TFS (gree n)
Based: Kadena AB, Japan 307 th TFS (red )
12th TFS (ye llow/b lack/ye ll ow ) Bald Eagles 308th TFS (ye llow)
44th TFS (blue ) Vampires 309th TFS (blue )
67th TFS (reel) Fighting Cocks
A ll a ir asse ts transfe rred to 35 4th TFW, Myrtl e Beach from 15 March
To F-1050/F from Oct 1962. 1959.

758
 F- 100 UN ITS

3 1st TFW F-1000/F from 15 March 1959 22nd FDS (red)

Ba eel: Geo rge AFB, Ca liforni a To F- 1050/Ffrom May 1961.
3 06th TFS (red) 23rd FDS (blue)
Inact ivated 28 Sept 1970. To F- 1050/Ffrom May l96l.
3 07th TFS (blue) 53 rd FDS (ye llow)
TOY to Bien Hoa AB, RVN, Jun e 1965. A ircraft left for use by 53 1st Ba eel: Landstuh i/Ramstein A B, Wes t Ge rm any
TF . R ass igned to Torrejon AB, Spa in , Ap ril 1966. To F-1050 from May 1961.
3 08th TFS (green ) Emerald Knights 46l st FDS (black)
TOY to Bien !-loa AB, RV , Dec 1965- Nov 1966. Reassigned to Ba eel : Hahn AB, West ermany
4403 rd TFW*, 15 Oct 1970. 0 activated ov 1959.
309th TFS (yellow) 32 nd FDS (gree n)
Reass igned to 4403rd TFW*, England AFB, 5 O ct 1970. Based: oesterberg AB, th erl and
To F/TF- l02A with 86th FIW, 1960.
Win g formed by a 'paper' transfer on 15 March 1959 of as et ofTFW,
retai ning markings and colours of 4 13th TFW. Moved to Homestead Wing also respon ible for kyblaze rs Flight Demonstrati on Tea m
AFB, mid- 1960, dep loyed to Tu y Hoa AB Dec 1966- 15 Oct 1970, tak- 1956- 196 l. A ircraft then passed to 50th TFW. Like o th er FDWs and
ing 306th, 30 th, 309th TFS. Fo ll owi ng units ass igned at Tu y Hoa : FBWs, W ing became a TFW after l Jul y 1958.
355 th TFS
15 May 1969- 30 Sept 1970, then to 354th TFW with A-70 o rsa ir ll .
4 16th TFS Silver Kn ighrs 3 7th TFW Act ivated as F- 1000/F unit, 1 Ma rch 1967
28 May 1969- 5 ep t 1970, th n to 4403 rd TFW* , England AFB, 23 Based: Phu Cat AB, RVN
ept 1970. 416th TFS Silver Knights
136th TFS New York ANG Rocky's Raiders Assigned 15 April l967-2 7 May 1969, then to3 l stTFW, Tu y Hoa
14 June 1968-25 May 1969. AB, RVN.
I 88th TFS New Mexico ANG Enchilada Air Force 7 35 5th TFS
May 196 - June 1969. Assigned from 354th TFW, 3 Feb 1968- 15 May 1969, th en to 3 1st
TFW, Tuy Hoa AB, RVN.
Wing transferred to USA 'on pape r', 30 Oct 19 70. Aircraft passed to 612th TFS, D et 1
va ri ous ANG uni ts. (M isty FA ). Fro m Phan Rang AB, RVN, 8 Jun e 1967- 13 Ap ril 1969 ,
Codes used at Tu y Hoa: SO (306th TFS), M (308th T FS), SS (309th th n return ed to Phan Rang.
TFS ), P (355th TFS) , SE (41 6th T F ), SG (136th TFS), SK (1 88th 1 74th TFS Iowa ANG
TF ). As igned from 14 May 1968- ll May 1969 .
* 4403 rd TFW was a Prov isional W ing at Homestead AFB that han -
dled F- 100 unit retu rning from outh Ea t Asia and passed th eir air- odes used at Phu Cat: H E (4 16th TFS), l-IP (355th TFS ), l-I S (6 12th
craft on to A G un its. Returning squadrons were assigned for about a TF ), HA (I 74th TF ).
yea r, the 41 6th TFS being the last und er its co ntrol.

45th FDS (black/ye llow/black) F- 100C/D train ing and transiti on for
35 th TFW F-1000/F from ct 1966 U AFE units from March 1956
Based: Phan Rang AB, RV Based: id i limane AB, French Morocco
352nd TFS
Act ive 10 O ct 1966-3 1 July 1971. F- 100Cs passed to 36th FDW, Bitbu rg AB, and 7272 nd FTW, W h e lus
612th TFS , D et 1 AB. Replaced by F- LOODs. Deact ivated 8 Jan 1958.
HQ squad ron using F- JOOF in Misty FAC ro le lO ct 1966-8 Jun e
1967 and 14 April1 969-3 1 Jul y 197 1. (At Phu Cat AB betwee n these
elates. ) 48 th FBW tatue de la Liben e Fro m F-86F to F-1000/F, late 1956
614th TF Lucky Devils Based: C haumont AB, France
Act ive 10 Oct 1966-3 1 Jul y 1971. Reas igned to 40 1st TFW, Torrejon 492nd FBS (blue) Bolars
AB, pain . 493 rd FBS (yellow) Roos ters
615th TFS 494th FBS (red) Panthers
Active 10 O ct 1966-31 Jul y 1971.
I 20th TFS W ing transferred to RAF Laken hea th , UK by 15 Jan 1960 as 4 th
Colorado ANG (F-l OOC). Assigned 30 Aprill968- 18 April1 969. TFW. Transitioned to F-40 from Feb 1972.
odes used at La ken hea th from Ma rch 1970: LR ( 492nd TFS ), LS
W ing became F- 100 unit thro ugh exc hange of designati on num bers (493 rd TFS), LT (494th TF ).
with 366th T FW, Phan Ran g AB wh ile 35th TFW was at Da Nang AB
in O ct 1966, hav ing ini tiall y form d there in April 1966. 366th th en
became an F-4 W ing at Da N ang. 49th FBW Tutor et Ultor F- 1000/F from 10 Dec 1957
odes u eel at Phan Rang: VM (352nd TFS ), VS (6 12th TF ), VP Based: Etain -Rouvres AB, France
(614th TF ), VZ (615th TF ), V (] 20th TF whil e Det l, 6 L2th 7th FBS (blue )
TF was at Phu Cat). 8 th TFS (ye llow) Black Shee/J
9th TFS (red) Iron Knights

36th FDW From F- 6F to F-1OOC, 1956 W ing activated by re- numberin g 388th FBW. Moved to Spangdahl em
Based: Bitburg A B, Wes t G erm an y AB a 49th T FW, 1960. onve rtecl to F- 105 0/F from Oct 196l.

159
 F-1 00 NIT S

50th FBW Masten of the Sky From F-86 H to F- 1000/F, 1957 W ith 386th FBG we re:
Based: Toul Ros ieres A B, France 552nd FBS
lOth FBS (blue ) 553 rd FBS
S l st FBS (ye llow) 554th FBS
417th FBS (red) At Bunker Hill from late 1956 until A ug 1957.

W ing transferred to Hahn AB from 10 Dec 1959 as 50th TFW. on-

ve rted to F-40 from Oct 1966 with 8 l st TF receiving F-4Cww. 354th FBW/ TFW F- 100 0 /F fro m ea rl y 195 7
Based: Myrt le Beach A FB, South Carolina
352 nd TFS (ye llow)
57th FWW (formerly 45 25th FWW) F- 100 0 /F 1960, Oct 1969 TOYs to Phan Rang Bay AB, RVN , 15 A ug- 10 Oct 1966 with 366th
Based: Ne llis A FB, evada TFW; and1 0 Oct 1966-3 1 July 197 1 with 3 1st TFW.
4536th CCTS 353rd TFS (reel) Black Panther
Transiti oned to F-4E 1970 and designati on passed to an A-70 unit.
65th FW from late 1969 when W ing became 57th FWW. Inac tiva ted 355th TFS (blue)
3 1 Dec 1969. Attached to 37th TFW, Phu at A B, RVN , 3 Feb-15 Ma y 1969 and
oded WB from Oct 1969. 3 1st TFW, Tu y !-loa AB, RVN, 15 May-30 Sept 1970.
356th TFS (g reen ) Green Demons
Transitio necl to F-4 by Nov 1967.
72nd TFS (red) F-1000 /F 1 Ju ly 1958-9 Apr il1 959
Based: lark AB, Phili ppines W ing took over F-1000 /Fs fro m deactivated 3 1st FBW, 1957. Deployed
squadrons to pain, 1ra ly and Japan. Became 35 4th TFW, Ju ly 1958.
Forme rl y 41 8th FBS May-Jul y 1958, squadron co ntro lled by 6200th Squ adro ns reass igned to other un its by Jun e 1968 and it moved 'on
ABW. Re-des ignated Sl Oth FBS with 405th FBW, 9 Apr il1 959. paper' to Kun sa n AB r plac ing 4th TFW as con tro lling unit for two
113rd TFG F- 100C/F, 26 Jan 195 8-9 Apr il 1959 ANG F-100C/F squ ad rons:
Based: Myrt le Beach AFB, outh Ca rolina 127th TFS Kansas ANG (red )
119th TFS New Jersey ANG 5 Jul y 1968-10 Jun e 1969. Returned to Kansas State co ntro l 18 June
To F-10 1B, June 1970. 1969 and tra nsitioned to F-105 0 /F 1971.
121 TFS Distri ct of Columbia ANG 166th TFS Ohio ANG (blue )
ToF- 105 0 /F,Ju ly 1971. 5 Jul y 1968-lO Jun e 1969. Return ed to O hio State contro l, 19 Jun e
HQ Flight, DC ANG 1969. To F- 100 0 /F ov 19 71.

ailed to active service during the Pueblo risis at And rews A FB. Codes used at Kunsan: BO (I 27th TFS ), BP (166th TFS ).
Transferred to Myrtl e Beach .
odes used at Myrtle Beach: XA (11 9th TFS ), XB (12l st TFS ), XD
(HQ Flight) . 366th FBW From F-84F to F-1000/F, late 1957
Based: England AFB, Loui iana
389th FBS (reel)
312nd FBW From F-861-1 to F-1000 /F, late 1956 390th FBS (blue)
Based: ann a n AFB, New Mex ico 39 l st FBS (ye llow)
386th FBS (red) 480th FBS (green)
38 7th FBS (blue) Deactiva ted earl y 1959 as 366 th TFW. Reactivated at Da Nang AB,
388th FBS (ye ll ow) RVN , Ap ril1 966, mov ing to Phan Rang AB, RVN, 20 March- 10 Oct
477th FBS (gr en ) 1966 co ntrolli ng:
352 nd TFS
Win g became 3 12nd TFW, l July 1958. Re-design ated 27th TFW, Feb 15 A ug- 10 O ct 1966.
1959 6 14th TFS Lucky Devils
18 Sept- 10 Oct 1966 .
615th TFS
322nd FDW From F-86F to F- 100C, mid-1955 15 May-10 Oct 1966 .
Based: Fos ter AFB, Texas W ing to Da Nang AB to fl y F-4 and F-100 sq uadrons passed to 35 th
450th FDS (red) TFW co ntro l, Phan Rang AB.
45l st FDS (yellow)
452nd FDS (gree n)
388th FBW From F-86F to F-1OOC/F, late 1956
First TAC W ing with F-100 . De-activa ted late 1957, aircraft passed Based: Etain -Ro uvres, France
to 4th FDW and 36 th FOW. 56 1st FBS (ye llow )
562nd FBS (b lue)
563 rd FBS (red)
323rd FBW (323rd FBG and 386th FBG) From F-86F to Wing re- numbered 49th FBW, Dec 1957. 388th TFW reactivated at
F-1000 /F, A ug 195 6 McConne ll A FB, 1 Oct 1962 with one squ ad ron:
Based: Bunker Hill AFB, Ind iana 560th TFS
W ith 323 rd FBG were: Tas ked as a train ing and proficiency squ adron . To F-1050 mid-1963
453rd FBS (red) when Wing (includ ing 56 1st, 56 2nd, 563rd T F ) react iva ted on F-
454th FBS (blue ) 105 0 /F 388th TFW in acti va ted once aga in , Feb 1964. Rep laced by
455th FBS (ye llow) 23 rd TFW before reacti vating at Ka rat AB, 8 Ap ri l 1966 with F-
ome F-100As used ini ti all y. Deactivated summ er 1957 . 1050/F to replace 6234 th TFW.

160
 F- I OOU ITS

401 st TFW aelum Arena Nostrum From F-84F to F-1000/F, late 474th FBW From F-86H to F- 1000/F, late 1957
1957 Based: ann on AFB, New Mex ico
Based: England A FB, Louisiana 428th FBS (blue) Buccaneen
612th TFS (blue) Smaming Eagles T OY to Takh li RTA FB, Thailand 18 May-3 ept 1962 . T OY to Da
T OY to Da Nang AB, RVN, Sept-Nov 1964. Activated as Det 1, Na ng AB, RVN from Nov 1964 (using 522nd T FS assets) and Takhli ,
612th TFS with 366th TFW, Phan Rang AB, RVN, 15 May 1966 then A ug 1964-March 1965.
with 5th TFW, Phan Rang from 10 Oct 1966 ; 37th TFW, Phu Cat 429th FBS (ye llow ) Black Falcons
AB, RVN 8 June 1967, returning to 35th TFW, Phan Rang, 14 April TOY to 625 l st TFW, Bien Hoa AB, RVN, lJ July- Nov 1965.
1969- 3 1 Jul y 1971. To F-4E in 1971 with 307th T FS asse ts and reas- Attached to 3rd TFW, 2 1 Nov- 16 Dec 1965.
signed to Torrejon AB, Spain . 4 30th FBS (red) Tigers
613th TFS (yellow) Squids TOY to Takhli RTA FB, Thailand, 3 Sept- 13 Dec 1962.
T OY to Da Na ng AB, RVN, Nov 1964- Jul y 1965. Reass igned to Torre- 47 8 th FBS (green)
jon AB, pain, Ap ril 1966. To F-4E 1970. Deactivated late 1965, reactivated on F-11 1A Jan 1968 with 428th ,
614th TFS (red) Lucky Devils 429th , 430th T FS.
T OY to C lark AB, Philippines and Da Na ng AB, RVN, N ov 1964. To
35th T FW, 18 Sept 1966. Tran it ioned to F-4E 197 1.
61Sth TFS (green) 4 79th FDW From F-86F to F- lOOA, late 1954
T OY to C lark AB, Phili ppines and Da Nang AB, RVN, June 1964 . To Based: George A FB, Californi a
Phan Rang AB, RVN with 35th TFW, 10 Oct 1966. 434th FDS (red )
43Sth FDS (green)
When Wing transferred to Torrejon AB it had only the 61J rd TFS but 436th FDS (yellow)
added: 476th FDS (blue)
307th TFS Added from 8 Oct 1957.
From 3 1st TFW, Bien Hoa A B, RVN, April 1966. To F-4E 1970.
3S3rd TFS Black Panthers Fi rst TAC F-100 un it. To F- 100C/F by 1956, then F- l04A, 1958.
From 354th T FW. To F-4E 1970.

S06th FBW From F-84F to F-1000/F, Sept 195 7

405th FBW From F-84F to F-1000, late 1956 Based: Tinker A FB, Oklahoma
Based: Langley A FB, Virginia 4S7th FBS (red)
S08th FBS (yellow ) Deployed to Landstuhl AB, West Germany, 22 March- Sept 1958.
Deactiva ted 1 Jul y 1958. (A ircraft left in place for 458th FBS.)
S09th FBS (red) 4S 8 th FBS (ye llow)
Reactivated 9 Ap ril 1959 a FIS with F-860. Deployed to Landstuhl , West Germany, Sept 1958-March 1959 using
SlOth FBS (purple) Buzzards 457 th FBS aircraft.
Reactivated at C lark A B, Philippines, 9 April1 959. 462nd FBS (blue)
Sllth FBS (blue) 470th FBS (green)
Deacti vated 1 July 1958 . Deactivated 1 April1 959 .

First TA F- lOOD uni t, 405 th deactivated 1 July 1958. Reactivated as

405 th FW at Clark AB, Philippines, 9 April1959 with only one F-lOOD
unit: Air National Guard (ANG) Units
SlOth TFS
TOY to Don Muang RTA FB, Thailand, April- Nov 196 1. To 3rd TFW, Arizona ANG, 162nd TFG
England AFB, 1964. 1S2nd TFTS (yellow)
Based: Tucson lAP
From F-86F to F-lOOA, May 1958. From F- 100A to F-102A fro m Feb
413th FDW From F-86H to F-l OOC/F, late 1957. F- 1000 /F, 1958 1966 as AD -gained uni t. To F-lOOC/F from mid- 1969 as 152nd TFTS
Ba ed: George A FB, Califo rnia training ANG F-100 crews. To F-1000/F, June 1972. Began A-70
1st FDS (red) trai ning late 1975 in parallel with F-100 training. F-100 fl ying ended
21st FDS (blue) March 1978.
34th FDS (green) Arkansas ANG, 188th TFG
4 74th TFS (yellow) 184th TFS (red) Flying Razorbacks From RF-10 1 to F-1000/F,
summer 1972
Assigned when Wing transitioned to F-1000/F as 41J rd TFW, 1958. Wing Based: Fort Smi th municipal airport
deactivated, 15 March 1959, re-designated 3 1st TFW. To F-4C, summer 1979.

Colorado ANG, 140th TFG

4SOth FDW From F-86F to F-lOOC, 1955 120th TFS (blue) From F-86 L to F-1OOC/F, 1 Jan 196 1
Based: Foster A FB, Texas Based: Buckley Field, Aurora
720th FDS Called to active duty 1 Oct 196 1 during Berlin C risis but remained at
72lstFDS (red) Buckley ANGB. Called to active duty 26 Jan 1968 during Pueblo C risis
722nd FDS and deployed to Phan Rang AB, RVN , 3 May 1968. Returned to State
723rd FDS contro l, 30 April1 969. To F-1000/F Oct 197 1, A-70 April1 974.
Deactivated Dec 1958. oded VS at Phan Rang AB.

767
 F-100 UN IT

Conn ecticut A G, 103 rd TFG ToA-7D, S pt 1978.

!18th TFS Flying Yankeess From F-86 1-1 to F- l OOA , summer 1960 oded M I.
Based: Brad ! y Field lA P
F/TF-102A, Jun e 1966, F- l OOD/F, spring 197 1, A- lOA, summ er 1979. Misso uri A G, l31st TFG
Camoufl aged a ircraft coded CT afte r 197 1. !lOth TFS (red) Lindbergh's Own From F- 4F to F-100 /F, Sept 1962
Based: Lambert Fie ld
District of Columbia ANG, ll3th TFG To F- l OO D/F Dec 197 1, then F-4C, ea rl y 1979.
121 st TFS (red or yellow) From F-861-1 to F- l OOC/F, mi d-1960
Based: An rews A FB ew Jersey A G, !77th TFG
a iled to act ive duty d uri ng Berli n C risis, I Oct 196 1 but remained at I 19th TFS From F-861-1 to F-LOOC/F, Sept 1965
A ndrews A FB. Deployed to Puerto Rico, Nov 1963 and to Europe, Based: A d anti c ity
A ug 1964. Ca lled to act ive duty 26 Jan 1968 during Pueblo C ri sis and Ca lled to active duty 26 Jan 1968 du ring Pueblo C ri sis and transferred
dep loyed to Myrtl e Beach AFB as F- 100 CCT unt il 18 Jun e 1969. To to Myrd e Beach A FB as F- LOO RTU un til1 8 Jun e 1969. To F- IOI B,
F- 105D/F, Jul y 197 1. Jun e 1970.
Coded XB at Myrd e Beach AFB. Coded XA at Myrd e Beach A FB 1968- 69.

Georgia ANG, I 16th TFG New Mex ico ANG, !50th TFG
! 28th TFS Fro m C- 124C to F- 1OO D/F, spring 1973 ! 88th TFS (ye llow) Enchilada Air force From F-80C to F-IOOA, April
Based: Dobbins AFB 1958
To F- 105G/F, summ er 1979. Based: Kird and AFB
Fi r t A G F- 100 unit (as !88th FIS). To F- LOOC/F sp ring 1964 as
Indiana A G, 18 l st TFG and 122nd TFG 188 th TFS. Called to active duty 26 Jan 196 du ri ng Pueb lo ri sis and
11 3 rd TFS, 18 l st TFG From F- 4F to F- 1OO D/F, ept 197 1 deployed to Tu y Hoa AB, RVN, May 196 - 5 Jun e 1969. To A -7D,
Based: !-!ulman Field, Terre Haute autumn 1973.
To F-4C, summ er 1979. oded Kat Tu y Hoa from 7 June 196 .
Coded H F after 1970.
I63rd TFS (ye llow), Marksm en, 122nd TFG From F-84F to N ew York ANG, 107th TFG
F- LOOD/F, June 197 1 !36th TFS (ye llow ) Rocky's Raiders/ ew York's Finest. From F-861-1
Based: Baer Field, Fort Way ne to F- LOOC/F, Aug 1960
To F-4 , pring 1979. Based: iaga ra Fall lA P
a il ed to act ive duty d urin g Berlin C ri is, ct 196 1 but remained at
Iowa ANG, 132nd TFG and 185th TFG N iaga ra Fa lls. Called to active d uty 26 Jan 1968 d uring Pueblo risis
124th TFS Fro m F-84 F to F-100 /F, Ap rill 971 and deployed to Tu y 1-loa AB, RVN, 14 Jun e 1968-25 May 1969 . Tran-
Based : Des Mo ines muni c ipal a irport sit ioned to F- 10 1B/F, April 1971.
Phased out last F- IOOCs in AN fo r F-100D, 1975. To A-7D, Jan 1977. Coded SG at Tu y 1-l oa 196 - 69.
!74th TFS, 185 th TFG From RF-84F to F- LOO /F, summer 1961
Based: Sioux ity muni c ipal airpo rt Ohio A G !80th, 178 th, I 79th and l 21st TFG
To F- l OOD/F Jun e 1974, then A -7D Dec 1976. 112th TFS (gree n) , 180th TFG From F-84F to F-100D/F, Oct 1970
Ba eel: Toledo A irport, wan ton
Kansa s A G, 184th TFG To A-7D, summer 1979.
127th TFS (red))ayhawks From F-86L to F- LOOC/F, spring 196 1 162nd TFS (red) , !78th TFG From F-84F to F- LOOD/F. Apri l 1970
Ba eel : McConn ell A FB Based: Springfield, Oh io
Ca lled to active duty 26 Jan du ring Pueblo C risis. Deployed to Kun an To A-70, April 1978.
AB, Korea with 354th TFW, 5 Jul y 1968-10 June 1969. Return ed to !64th TFS (ye llow), !79th TFG From F-84F to F- l OOD/F, Feb 1972
tate con tro l, Jun e 1969 . Converted to F- l05 D/F, spring 197 1. Based: Mansfield-Lahm airport
Coded BP at Kunsa n AB. To C- 130B, winter 1975.
!66th TFS (b lue), I 21st TFG From F-84F to F- 100C/F, Oct 1962
Louisiana ANG, 159th TFG Ba eel : Lockbourne AFB
122nd TFS (red , blue or green ) From F/TF- l02A to F-100D/F, wi n ter a iled to act ive duty during Pueblo ri si 26 June 1968 a nd deployed
1970 to Kunsa n A B, Korea, assign d to 354th TFW unt il 19 Jun e 1969. To
Based: NA ew O rl ea ns F- 100D/F ov 197 1, th en A -70 Dec 1974.
To F-4C Ap ril 1979. oded B at Ku nsa n AB.

Massachusetts ANG, 102nd and 104th TFG Oklahoma A G, 138th TFG

lOl st TFS From F-84F to F-100D/F, May 197 1 125thTFS (b lue,gree n or red) From -124 to F-100D/F, Jan 1973
Based: Loga n airpo rt, Bos ton Based: Tulsa
o me F-100 a signed fo r co n ve rsion tra ining in 1960 but uni t To A -70, July 1978.
continu ed to fl y F- 61-1 instead at that tim e. To F-l06A/B as AD
ga in ed unit, 10 Jun e 1972. South Dakota ANG, 114th TFG
! 3 1st TFS (red), 104th TFG From F-84F to F- 100D/F, Jun e 197 1 !75th TFS From F/TF-102A to F-100D/F, pring 197 1
Based: Barn es Field , We tfie ld Based: ioux Falls Muni cipa l A irport
To A-lOA, Ju ly 19 79. To A-70, 1977.
Coded MA.
Texas A G, 149th TFG
Michiga n ANG, 127th TFG 182 nd TFS (red) From F-84F to F-100D/F, pring 197 1
l07th TFS (red) From RF- LOLA/C to F- l OO D/F, mid - 1972 Based: Kell y AFB
Ba ed: elfr idge ANGB To F-4 , spring 1979 .

162
 F- 100 ITS

AR DC (A ir Resea rch and Developmen t Co mmand , later A ir Force

Other USAF Units Systems Command)
WADC (Wright Ai r Developmen t Cen te r) EF- 100A,
3 595th CCTW From F-84 and F-86 to F- IOOA from 1954 JF-lOOA/ /F from 1954
Based: ellis AFB, Nevada Based: W righ t Field, O h io ( late r W right- Patterson AFB)
Re-designated 45 20th CCT W, Ju ly 1958. 'EF' ( in EF- 100A ) ind ica ted 'Exempt'. C hanged in 1955 to 'JF' to avo id
co nfusion with 'E' for 'electron ic' (as in 'EB-66' ).
3 600th CCTW , A ir Tra in ing Comm and F-100 /F from D c 1957 AFFTC (A ir Force Fligh t Te t enter)
Based: Luke AFB, A ri zona Baed: Edwards AFB, a li forni a
Re-des ignated 45 10th CCTW, Jul y 1958 then 58th TFTW, Oct 1969. Fligh t test work und er ARDC using va rious F- 100s.
Aerospace Medi cal Divi sion F- lOOF
3 600th A ir D emonstration Fligh t (Thunderb irds). F- lOOC/F mid- Bas d: Broo ks A FB/ Kell y AFB, Texas
1956- Dec 1963, F- lOOD/F Jun e 1964- N ov 196 Used for a ircrew med ical research un der A RD
Late r, 3595th Ai r Demon n·ati on Fligh t, then 45 20 th A ir Demonstra- A ir Force Special Weapons Cen ter F- 100F
ti on Fligh t. Ba ed: Kirtland AFB, ew Mex ico
Atom ic weapons de li ve ry resea rch .
4510th CCTW F-100D/FfromJ uly 1958 4925th Tes t Squadron (Atomi c) F- 1OOA
Based: Luke AFB, A ri zo na Based: Kirtl and AFB, New Mexico
451lth CCTS A ir Proving G round Command ( later, A rm amen t Development and
Inact iva ted 18 Jan 1970 and rep lac d by 3 1st T FT Test enter; ADT C )
4514th CCTS (gree n )
To 58th T FTW, 15 Oct 1969. Inact ivated 15 D c 1969. Replaced by AFLC (A ir Force Logistics ommand) F-100A/C/D
310th T FT with A -70. Based: McClellan AFB, California
45 15th CCTS Used several 'pattern ' F-lOOs to ass ist with depot level ma in tenance
Activated l Sept 1966, inact ivated 18 Jun e 1970 and reactivated as wo rk.
426th TITS.
45 17th CCTS MATS (M ilitary A ir Tran port erv ice )
Ass igned to 45 10th CCTW, 1 ept 1966. Reas igned to 58th T FTW, 1708th Ferrying W ing F- lOOA
15 Oct 1969 . Tra ined ferry and deli very p ilots on F- 100.
A ll sq uadrons coded LA from July 1968.

5 8th T FTW F- lOOD/F from Oct 1969

Based: Luke A FB, A rizona
Non-USAF Units
3 11 th TITS
F- 1000/F 18 Jan 1970-2 1 Aug 1971 with asset of 4515th CT . NACA/NASA
4 26th TFT everal F- lOOA/Cs used fo r superso ni c test programm es and to develop
F- lOOD/F 18 Jan 1970-13 Sept 197 1. Activated with a se ts of 45 15th boundary laye r control including: F- lOOC 53- 1585 (NAC A 200) and
T 53- 1709 (NASA 703 )

4520th CCTW (bla k/yellow chequers) F-100A/C/D/F from July 1958 U S A rmy
Based: N ellis AFB, N evada Several F- 100D/F u ed in on nection with Hawk AM and other tri -
Took over F- 100 tra in ing when it was transferred fro m Ai r Training Com- als incl uding: F- lOOD 56-3 186, -3 18 7, -3426 and F- lOOF 56-3889,
mand to Tacti al A ir Command, Ju ly 1958. Two q uadrons moved to Lu ke -389 7,-3899, -3904, -3905,-39 11 .
A FB, Arizona, ct 1962. By 1969 all rema ining F-100D/Fs were a igned
to 4536th Fighter Weapons Squad ron (coded WB ) within 4525 th Fighter Traco r/Flight Systems
Weapons W ing. T his became 57th FWW. 45 6th FWS then beca me 65th Several F- 100D/Fs used for air-to-air training under civ ilian ontrac ts
FW (also coded WB) tha t continued to operate F- lOOD until inactivat- and other ex peri mental work in add it ion to Q F- 100 provision.
ed 3 1 Dec 1969. Approx imate ly ten F- IOOs were fl ying in vari ous c ivilian ownersh ip,
2000-200 1.
45 3 0th CCT W (ye llow) F-100C/F from Ju ly 1958
W illiam AFB, A ri zona
Re-designation of 3525th T W. Ceased F- 100 ope ration c t 1960.
MDAP F-100 Users
7272 nd FTW B-5 7E and F- 100C from Jan 195
Based: Wh e lu AB, Libya
7235th uppo rt quadra n (red , then blue ) supplied target-tow ing Republic of China
F-100 s for U AFE uni t visiting W heelus A B un til1 965 .

4 75 8th DSES (Defense Systems Eva luation Squadron ) F- lOOC/F 4 th FB W F- l OOA/F from A ug 1958
from Jul y 1962 Chiayi AB
Based: Biggs A FB, Texas 21 st FB S (red )
Provided hi gh- peed targe t tow ing a ircraft. To Ho lloman A FB, New 22 nd FB S (yellow)
Mex ico, Apri l 1966-0ct 1970. 23 rd FB S (blue )
La ter r ass igned to l l th Group. F- 100A phased out ea rl y 1980s,
475 th WEG (Weapons Evaluation G roup) QF- l OOD/F replaced by N orthrop F-5 E/F.
Based: Tyndall AFB, Florida
Supported 2nd Tactica l Aeri al Targets Squad ron , Ho lloman AFB, 1 1th G roup, 2 nd FBW F- IOOA/F fro m 1959
N ew Mex ico using Q F-100, Ap ril 19 1- 92 . H in hu AB

163
 F- I OOU ITS
41st FBS (red)
Transitioned at C hiay i as 17th FBS.
42nd FBS (blue)
48th FBS (red/whi te/blue)
Last F-100A fligh t, 5 Sept 1984
4th Squadron
Taoy uan AB RF- l OOA from Dec 1958 to Dec 1960
Serials of Aim·aft Used
Serial fo llowed by RoCAF Code.
(P) = preserved exa mple, w/o = write-off through acc ident.
F- 100-A
53- 1529/0101 (P), 53- 15 0/0 102 ,53- 1537/0103,53- 1539/0104,53-
1540/0 105 (P) , 53 -1549/0106,53- 1584/0 107 (w/o 7.4.72) , 53-
1593/0 LOS ( w/o 21.2 . 72), 53- 1595/0 109 ( w/o 11 6 69), 53- 1605/0110
( w/o 26.4 60), 53- 1608/0111 ( w/o 30. 11.71 ), 53- 1609/0 11 2, 53-
1610/0113 (P) , 53- 1611/0 114,53- 1613/0 11 5 (w/o 9.3 .65), 53-
1614/0 11 6,53- 1616/0 117 (w/o 12.1.79), 53-16 18/0 118 (w/o 16.4. 79),
53- 1619/01 19 (w/o 4.9.63), 53- 162 1/0 120 (w/o 27 .4.7 6), 53-
1622/0 12 1,53 - 1623/0122 (w/o 16.3.82), 53 -1624/0 123 (w/o 26.3 .65 ),
53- 1627/0 124, 53- 1628/0 125 (w/o 27. 1268) , 53- 1630/0126 (w/o
2.2.78), 53- 163 1/0 127 (w/o 2411.65), 53- 1632/0 128,53- 1633/0 129,
53- 163 4/0130,53- 1635/013 1,53- 1638/0132,53- 1640/0 133,53-
1643/013 4, 53- 1645/0135 (w/o 23.5 .69), 53-1646/0136,53-1648/0137,
53- 1649/0138,53- 1650/0139 (w/o 23 .1 2.61), 53- 1653/0140,53-
1655/0 141 (P), 53- 1656/0 142 (w/o 19.8.69 ), 53- 1657/0 143 (w/o
3.3 77), 53- 1658/0 144,53- 1664/0 145,53-1665/0146 (w/o 17.865), 53-
1666/0 147,53- 1667/0 148 (w/o 10.3.76), 53- 1668/0149,53 -1669/0 150
(w/o 23.7.77) , 53 -1670/0 151 (w/o 5.9.61), 53- 167 1/0 152 (w/o 7.9.75),
53-1672/0 153 (w/o 10.8.63 ), 53- 1673/0 154 (w/o 5.2.63), 53-
1675/0155, 53- 1676/0 156 ( w/o 4.11.65 ), 53- 1680/0157 ( w/o 8.9 .65),
53- 1681/0 158 (w/o 3.7.70), 53-1682/0159,53- 1683/0160,53-
1685/0161 (w/o 25.3.80 ), 53- 16 6/0162 (w/o 13.3.63), 53- 1687/0 163,
53-1689/0 164 ( w/o 18. 10.70 ), 53- 1690/0 165, 53- 169 1/0 166 ( w/o
18.3.65), 53-1692/0 167,53- 1693/0 168 (w/o 16.3.7 1) , 53- 1695/0 169
(w/o 3.3. 77) , 53-1696/0170, 53- 169 7/0 171,53- 1698/0172,53-
1699/0 173, 53- 1700/0 174 ( w/o 22. 1.64 ), 53- 1702/0 175, 53- 1703/0 176
(w/o 17.8.61) , 53- 1704/0 177 (w/o 18.9.76), 53- 1705/0 178,53-
1706/0 179 (w/o 15.2.74), 53- 1708/0180,53- 1535/0201 (w/o 11.11.77) ,
53 -1536/0202 ( w/o 13.11 .77) , 53- 1538/0203, 53 -1541 /0204, 53-
1542/0205 ,53- 1543/0206,53-1550/0207 (P), 53- 1552/0208,53-
1555/0209,53- 1560/0210,53- 1561/021 1 (P), 53-1563/02 12,53-
1565/0213,53- 1571/0214 (P), 53-1577/0215 (P), 53-1582/0216,
53- 1583/02 17 (P), 53- 1589/02 18 (P) , 53- 1594/02 19 (w/o 20.6.73), 53-
1596/0220,53- 1598/0221,53- 1601/0222,53-1602/0223 (P) , 53-
1603/0224,53- 1604/0225,53- 1606/0226 (w/o 30.3.76), 53- 1612/0227
(w/o 4.1.73), 53- 1615/022 (w/o 19.1.78), 53-1620/0229,53-
1625/0230,53- 1626/0231,53- 1637/0232,53-1638/0233 (P) , 53-
1642/0234 (P), 53- 1570/0235,53-1569/0301,53- 158 1/0302 (P), 53-
165 1/0303 , 53- 1662/0304.
RF- IOOA
53- 1545/5645,53- 1546/5646,53-1547/5647,53- 1554/5648.
F- I OOF
56-3968/000 1 (P) , 56-3977/0002 (w/o 27.5 .76), 56-3978/0003 (w/o
28.8. 76), 56-39 79/0004 ( w/o 4.8 60), 56-3987/0005 (P) , 56-3988/0006,
58-6975/0007 (w/o 17 .7.64) , 58-6977/0008 ,5 8-6980/0009 (P), 59-
256 1/0010,56-3753/00 11 ,56-3862/0012,56-3733/0013,56-
3808/0014.
164
France
F-100D/Fs were ass igned to Wings (Escadre de Chasse), each with two
or three sq uad rons (Escadron de Chase ) divided in to Flights
(Escadrill es ) with 'pooled' aircraft th at carri ed the badges of both
fli ghts: the 1st Escadrille on th e left side of the tail and the 2nd on the
right. Two Escadre flew F-l OOs: the 3rd (1 /3 , 2/3 ) and 11th (1/11 ,
2/11 , 3/11' 4/ 11 )
3e Escadre
EC 1/3 Navarre (yellow) F-84F to F-100D/F, Jan 1959
Escadrilles: SPA 95 ('swallow' badge), SPA 153 ('Egyptian falco n'
badge).
Based: Reims- Betheny. Coded 3- lA- IZ.
Deployed to Lahr, West Germ any, June 1961- j an 1966.
EC 2/3 Champagne (red) F-100D/Ffromj an 1959
Escadrilles: SPA 67 ('stork' badge), SPA 75 ('falcon' badge ).
Based: Re ims- Betheny. Coded 3-JA-JZ.
Deployed to Lahr, West Germ any, 10 June 1961 - Jan 1966.
lle Escadre
EC 1/ 11 Rousillon F-84G-F-84F, F- l OOD/F. May 1958
Escadrilles: GC lll6-5e ('comedy mask' badge), GCIII/6-6e ('tragedy
mask' badge ).
Based: Luxeil -St Sauve ur. Coded 11 -EA-EZ.
Deployed to Bremgarten , West Ge rmany, june 1961-Sept 1967.
Moved to Toul-Rosieres, Sept 1967- 10 Oct 1975. Transitioned to
Jaguar thereafter.
EC 2/ 11 Vosges F-84G-F-84F, F-100D/F, 1 May 1958
Escadrilles: S PA 91 ('eagle and skull' badge), SPA 97 ('pennan t wi th
ermin e' badge).
Based: Luxeii-St Sauve ur. Coded 11 -MA-MZ.
Deployed to Bremgarten, West Germany, June 196 1-Sept 1967.
Moved to Toui-Rosieres, Sept 1967- 1976. Transitioned to Jaguar by
end of 1976.
EC 3/ 11 Corse F-l OOD/F from 1 Aprill966
Escadrilles: SPA 88 ('serpent' badge), SPA 69 ('eat's head' badge ).
Based: Luxeil-St Sauveur. Coded 11 -RA -RZ. Became F-100 OCU.
Deployed to Bremgarten, Colmar and Toul-Ros ieres. Trans itioned to
Jaguar, 1976.
EC 4/ 11 jura F- l OOD/F, 1 Jan 1973
Escadril les: SPA !58 ('serpentaria bird holding snake' badge ), SPA 161
('sphinx' badge ).
Baed: Toui-Ro ieres and Djibouti. Coded 11 -YA -YZ.
Activated at Djibouti, Jan 1973- 12 Dec 1978. Trans itioned to Jaguar
1978- 79
Esc de Convoyage EC-070
Coded MA- MZ. Tas ked with ferrying F-100s to RAF Sculthorpe and
USAF charge, 1977-78.
Serials of Aim·aft Used
' P' = preserved example, 'ret' = an aircraft return ed to USAF charge at
RAF Sculthorpe 1975-77, 'wfu' =aircraft withdrawn from u e for other
reasons, 'w/o' = aircraft destroyed in acc ident.
F- 1000-54-NH
-2 121 (w/o 18.10.66), -2122 (w/o 26 .5.75), -2 123,-2124 (w/o), -2 125,
-2128 (ret), -2 129 (w/o 24.7.73), -2 130 (P) , -2 131(P), -2 133 (w/o
17.7.75) , -2135 (w/o 14.11.67), -2136,-2 137 (w/o 1.10.64) , -2 138 (w/o
2.8 .77), -2 140 (w/o 17.10.58) , -2 141 (w/o 8.9.59), -2 144 (w/o 1.6.67) ,
 F-100
-2 146 (ret) , -2148,-2 149 (ret), -2 150 (w/o 5.9.67), -2152 (ret) , -21 54,
-2 156 (w/o 20. 11.78 ), -2 157 (ret), -2 158 (w/o 10.2.77), -2160 (ret),
-2 162 (w/o 10.10.73), -2163 (ret) , -2164, -2 165 (ret), -2 166 (ret) , -2 167
(w/o 23.6.67), -2 169 (ret 2.3. 76), -2 171 (wfu 17. 2. 70), -21 74 (ret) ,
-2184 (w/o 17 . .64) , -21 85, -2 1 6,-2 187 (w/o ), -2 1 9 (w/o), -2 194
(ret), -2195 (w/o 12.5.60), -2 196 (ret), -2 198 (w/o 26. 1.60), -220
(ret), -2204 (w/o 29.5 .77) , -2205, -22 10 (w/o 13.9.66 ), -22 11 (ret),
-22 12 (ret), -22 13 (w/o 3.6.60), -22 15 (w/o 3 1.1 2.64) , -22 17 (w/o
11.9.63 ), -2220 ( w/o 15.6.60), -2223 (ret), -2226 ( w/o 14.8.63 ), -223 1
(w/o 7.10.64) , -2235,-2236 (w/o 13.9.66), -223 7 (w/o 22.6.6 1) , -2239
(ret), -2243 (w/o 21.8.63), -2246 (ret), -2247 (w/o 29.1.71) , -224
(ret) , -2249, -2252 (w/o 16.01.62), -2254 (ret), -2255 (w/o 3 1.0 1. 64) ,
-2257 (w/o 3 1.1 2.64) , -2260 (w/o 5.3.59), -2264 (w/o 17. 12.73), -2265
(ret), -226 7 (wfu) , -2269 (ret), -22 71 (w/o 10.69), -22 72 (ret), -22 73
( w/o ), -2293, -2295 (P).
F-1OOD-55-NH
-2734, -2736 (P) , -2737 ,-2738 , -2739(P) , -2741 (w/o 6.72), -2745
(?29.3 .6 1).
F-JOO F-56-N H
-3928,-3935 (ret), -3936 (ret), -3937 (P), -3938 (ret), -3 939 (w/o
24.6.69), -3940 (wfu 18.6.71), -3941 (w/o 19.10.73), -4008 (w/o
10.7.64 ), -4009 (ret), -40 12,-40 13 (w/o 5.8.59) , -40 14, -40 17.
Denmark
Esk 725 F-100D/F, April1961
Based: Karu p AB
To F 35/TF 35 Draken , Sept 1970.
Esk 727 F-100D/F, May 1959
Based: Karup AB
To kryd trup AB, April1 974- April1 98 1 then co nverted to F- 16A.
Esk 730 F-100D/F, 3 Jul y 1961
Ba ed: kryd tru p AB
Esk 730- 100 flew last eigh t F-100Fs until 11 Aug 1982 while rest of
squadron converted to F- 16A.
Serials of A im·aft Used
F- lOODs we re given code using ' ' and the last three digits of the se ri -
al; F- 100Fs had the la t three digit prefix ed by 'GT' .
'FS' = transfer to Flight Systems, 'P' = prese rved example, 'ret' = air-
craft returned to USAF charge at RAF Scul thorpe 1975- 77, 'T' =air-
craft transfe rred to Turkey, 'wfu' = a ircraft withdraw n from u e for
other reasons, 'w/o' = aircraft des troyed in acc ide nt.
F-lOOD
54-2 13 2 ( w/o 14. 11 .62 - mid-air) , 54-2134 ( w/o 19.3.63- mid-a ir ),
54-2 177 (T), 54-2 179 (w/o 17. 1.66 - hit sea ), 54-2 183 (w/o 13 ... 77 -
fu el problem) , 54-2190 ( w/o 4.1 2.64 - fu e l fire), 54-2 192 ( w/o 10.11. 62
- fu el tank ex pl osion ), 54-2 199 (w/o 23.8.67 - engine blockage ), 54-
2206 (T), 54-222 1 ( w/o 9 .. 61 -engine ex plo io n) , 54-2222 (T) , 54-
222 7 ( w/o 30. 1. 63 - hi t ground), 54-2240 ( w/o 3 .7.63- fu e l leakage),
54-2244 ( w/o 29. 11.76 - hi t ground) , 54-2253 ( w/o 12.12.63 - hi t
ground), 54-2256 (w/o 26.6.62 - o il pressure failed ), 54-2261 (T), 54-
2262 (T, w/o 29. 7.83 ), 54-2266 (T) , 54-22 70 (T, w/o 11.2.82 ), 54-22 74
(T, w/o 11.10. 4 ), 54-2279 ( wfu 9. 11.76 - nose-gear collapse ), 54-2283
(T, w/o 14.8.85), 54-2284 (w/o 14.11.62 - mid-a ir), 54-2288 (w/o
19.7.68 - drop tank hi t rail ), 54-2289 ( w/o 5. 10.67- vertigo, night
take-off), 54-2290 (T, ga tegua rd, Aviano ), 54-2300 ( w/o 19.3.63 -
mid-air), 54-230 1 ( w/o 27.7.65 - comp ressor fa ilure ), 54-2302 ( w/o
765
ITS
13.4.72 - hi t ground) , 54-2303 (T, wfu 14. 7.87 ), 55 -2744 (T, w/o
12. . - mid-a ir) , 55-27 47 ( w/o 6.5 . 0 - fu e l srarva ri n ), 55-2748 (T,
wfu 14.7. 7) , 55 -275 1 (T, w/o 12.3.85) , 55 -2756 (w/o 8.3.6 - hi t
ground , night ), 55 -2 765 (T, w/o 12. 10.8 1), 55-2 768 (T, wfu 13.6.88 ),
55-2769 (T, wfu 1 .6. ), 55 -277 1 (T, wfu 13.6.88), 55 -277 (wfu
5.10. 76 - nose-gearfai led) , 55-27 75 (T, wfu 5.1 1.86 ), 55 -2776 ( w/o
10.3 .73 - engine fa il ure ), 55 -2777 (w/ 29 .7.64 - adve r e yaw), 55 -
2778 (w/o 11 .. 70 - engine f ilure) , 55 -2779 (T, w/o 26.4.83 ), 55 -2 781
(w/o 4.5.77 - run away trim) , 55 -2782 (T, wfu 14.5.86 ).
TF- /OOF
56-3826FS(N414FS,w/o lU.94),5 - 42F (N417F ), 56-2844
FS (N 415 FS , G reco A ir N 26AZ), 56- 5 (w/ 16.3.76 - engine fa il -
ure), 56-38 70 (P, krydstru p AB) , 56-3 74 (1, ani. h Av iati n Mu e-
um) , 56-3892 ( w/o 9.6. 76 - engine fa ilur ), 56- 90 (P, kry trup AB),
56-39 16 FS (N4 16F ), 56-3927 (P, Dan i h Av iation Mu urn), 56-
3961 (wfu 8.9. 8 1 - nose-gear collap e ), 56-3 71 F ( 419F ),56-3996
FS (N 41 8FS).
F- IOOF
56-40 15 ( w/o 20.3 .70- adver e yaw), 56-40 18 ( w/o 2 1. 2.73 - mid-a ir),
56-40 19 (T, w/o- mid-air ), 58-6976 (T, wfu 29. 12. 7), 5 -697 ( w/o
12.5.6 1 - flat spin) , 58-6979 (w/o 2.8.66 - ricochet, trafi ng), 5 -69 1
(w/o 7.7.64 - hi t ground) , 58-6982 (w/o .2.76- engin e fa ilure), 58-
6983 ( w/o 1.6. 77 - fu el pump fa iled) , 59-2558 ( w/o 25.2. 76 - engine
fa ilure/oiI lea k) .
Turkey
F- IOOC/D/F units. (Full squadron t itl es in brackets.)
lnci Ana Jet Ussu (l sr Main Jet A ir Base ), Eskisehir
11 1 Fi lo Pante1· (Panther). ( 111nci Av-Bomba rd iman Filosu) Nov
1958- 79.
112 Fil o Seytan (Devil ) ( 11 2nc i Av-O nl eme Filosu) 1962-65 and
1969- 74.
113 Fi lo lsik (Ligh t) (11 3nc u Av Filos u) 1959-72.
3 ncu Ana Jet Ussu (3 rd Main Jet A ir Base ), Konya
13 1 Filo Ejder (Dragon ) (13 1nci Jer Egirim Filos u) 1974- 78.
13 2 Filo Hancer (Dagger) ( 13 2nc i Av- Bomba rdiman Filo u) 1974-87.
7nci Ana Jet Ussu (7th Main Jet Ai r Base ), Malatya
171 Fi lo (re- named from 113 Filo ) 1972- 77.
172 Filo (renamed from 182 Fi lo ) 1972- 79.
8 nci An a Jet U ss u (8th Main Jet Air Base ), Diya rbaki r
181 Filo Pars (Leopa rd) (1 8 1nc i Av-Bombard iman Filosu) 1972- 86.
182 Filo A tmaca (Sparrowh awk) (1 82nci Av-Bomba rdim an Filosu)
1969- 86.
(Av-Bombardiman Filosu = Fighter-Bomber Squadron; Filo = quadra n;
Av-Onleme Filosu = Fighter-Interceptor q uadra n; }et Egirim Filosu =
Jer Training Squadron .)
Serials of Aircraft Used
1958 Deliveries
F-100 D- 10-NA 54-2 16 1, -2 164, -2 17 , -220 1, -2202;
F-100F-15-NA 54-2224, -2238 , -225 1, -22 75;
F- 100 D-40-N H 55 -2749, -2755, -275 7, -2763;
F-100F-16-NA 56-3967, -3976, -3989, -3977 , -3998, -4007.
 F- IOOU ITS

1959 Deliveries -2108 , -2 1L 7, -2 1L 8;

F- LOOD-5-NA 54-2 L43, -2 14 7; F- IOOC- 11 -N H 55-27 12, -27 L5, -2720,-2722.
F- LOOD-LO-NA 54-2 159, -2 170, -2 172, -2 175, -2 L82, -2 193, -2200,
-2207, -2208, -22 16, -22 18, -22 L9; Forty-three more F- LOOCs deli vered in 1973 from the following and
F- IOOD- LS-NA 54-2228, -2230, -2242 , -2245, -22 77, -2282; the re tin 1974:
F- IOO D-35-NH 55-2 742, -2743; F-100C-2- NA 53-1725, - L73 2, - 1738, -1757 , 54-1741 , -1749, -1755,
F- LOO D-40-N H 55-2746, -2750, -2 752, -2753 , -2 75 4, -2 75 8, -2759, -1756, -1766;
-2760, -2766, -2767; F-100 -6-NA 54-1777 , - L780, - L7 82, -1787, -1794, -1798 , - L800,
F-LOOF- L6-NA 56-3999. -1804, -1805, -1807;
F- IOOC- 16-NA 54-1 L8, -1835,- 1838,- 1850, -1858;
1960-62 Deliveries F-LOO -2 1-NA 54-1868,- 1877, - 1883, - L89 L, - L903, - L908, - L9 L5,
F- LOOD- LO- A54-22 14; -19 19,- 1920, - L92 L, - L926, - L932, -1934,- 1937, - L939, -1942, - L945,
F- LOOD- LS- A 54-2776; -1948,- 1949, -1959;
F- IOOD-35- H 55-2740; F- LOOC-26-NA 54-1989,- 1999,-2013, -203 L, -2032,-2034, -2042,
F- LOOD-40- H 55-2764; -2046, -2047 ,-2052,-2053 ,-205 7,-2058,-2059,-2060, -2066,-2068,
F- LOOF- 15-NA 59-2559, -2560, -2562, -2563. -2070,-2076, -2083 , -2089,-209 1,-2092,-2097,-2 100,-2 103,-2 104,
-2 LI3 , -2 LI 5, -2 120;
1969 Deliveries F-100C- ll -N H 55 -27 16,-272 1,-2724.
F- LOOD-46-NA 55-2825; Also in 1972-74
F- LOOD-5 1-NA 55-2874, 55-28 8;
F- LOOD-56-NA 55-29 LO, -29 16, -2940; F- IOOF-5-N A 56-3759;
F- LOOD-20-NA 55-3596; F-100F-10-NA 56-3 774, -3803, -383 1,- 43, -3 50, -386 7, -3876,
F-LOOD-26-NA 55-3700; - 884, -3890, -3896, -3902, -3903, -3909, -39 19;
F- LOOD- I-NA 55-37 18, -372 1; F-100F- L5-NA 56-392 L, -394 7, -3948, -3957, -3963 .
F- LOOD-6 1-N A 56-295 L, -2960; 1977- 78 Deliveries
F-IOOD-71 -NA 56-3083;
F- IOOD-8 1-NA 56-3355; F- LOOF-6-N A 56-3 766;
F- LOOD- 6-NA 56-3399, -3457; F-100F-ll -NA 56-3895 ;
F-IOOF-15-NA 56-3946,-3952. F-100F- 16-NA 56-3950,- 958,-3966,-3992 (a ll in 1977);
F-IOOF-2-NA 56-3 732, -3 739;
1970 Deliveries F- 100F-6-NA 56-3 752;
F- IOOD-50-N H 55 -2899; F- LOOF-1L-NA 56-3783,-3788, -3800,-3846,-385 4, -39 14 (all in
F-1OOD-20-NA 55-3509; 197 ).
F-IOOD-25-NA 55-36 17, -365 1; 198 1 Delive1·ies ( ex- RDAF)
F-IOOD-30-NA 55 -3 750, -3 756;
F-IOOD-3 1-NA 55 -3 761, -3 798; F-IOOD-10-NA 54-2 177, -2206;
F-IOOD-60-N A 56-29 19, -2929 , -294 1; F- LOOD- LS-NA 54-226 1,-2266,-2270,-2274, -2283;
F- 1OOD-65-NA 56-2966; F-1OOD- LS-N H 54-23 3;
F-IOOD-70-NA 56-3039, -3096; F-IOOD-40-N H 55 -2744 ,-2748,-275 1,-2765,-2768,-2769,-277 1,
F-1OOD-90-NA 56-3235; -2775, -2 779, -2782;
F- IOOD-80-N H 56-33 76; F-IOOF-16- A 56-4019;
F-100D-85-N H 56-3390,-339 1,-3 433, -3 454; F-100F- 15- A 58-6976.
F-100F-16-NA 56-3930, -39 70.
198 2 Deliveries (ex- RD AF)
1972 Deliveries F-IOOD- LS-NA 54-2222, -2262;
F-100 -2-NA 53- 1715,- 1727,- 1729 , -1746,- 1747 , - L7 61, -1767, F- IOOD-40-N H 55 -27 71.
- L774, 54- 1759; An additional F-lOOD (54-2290 ) be arne un erviceable on it delivery
F-1OOC-6-NA 54- 1793 ; Aight to Turkey and was consigned to a dump at Sigonell a, Italy. It was
F- l OOC- 16-NA 54-1826, - I 44; later rescued and restored by the museum at Vigna di Valle, donated to
F-IOOC-2 L-NA 54-1870, -1872, - L875, -I 8 , - L925, -1929,- 1944, the 31 t TFW, USAF at Av iano AB and displayed on the gate as Th or's
- L950; Hamme1· (309th TFS, 31st TFW, coded SS ) in Vietnam camouflage.
F-100 -26-NA 54-1978 , -2022 , -2056,-2074,-2 77,-2084, -2087, The origin al Thor's Hammer wa 56-2927 .

166
 APPEND IX Ill
F-1 OOC/D Nuclear Weapons
Control Procedures
Th Mk 7 fi sion weapon wa the o nly and A/ (a switch to arm o r afe the
nuclear devi ce to be carried by F- 100 s bomb). Between the I and OUT lights
and early F- l OODs (see C hapter 3 ). It was was an in -fli ght insertio n (I FI) switch to
deployed fo r mo re than fifteen yea rs, control the IF! mechanism.
lo nge r than an y other U free-fall nucl ea r In the third row was a row offive c ircuit-
wea po n and prod uced in nin e variant brea ker switches to pro vide fo r a ircraft
between 1952 and 1967. powe r with circuit-brea ker protecti o n for:
In the aircraft it was controlled by the T- 1. Bomb fin operatio n;
145, T-2 70 (T-145) o r in later F- l OODs by 2. Weapo n batteries hea ters;
the T-270 contro l panel. The T- 270, using 3. IF! operat ion;
tb Fusing elector (F-SEL) rotary switch 4. Warm -up power fo r the bomb's radars
togeth r with two other rotary witche (two witcbe ).
and five timer di als insid e the weapon , pre- Located o n th bottom of the T- 270 wa
s t b fo re the mi ion, t the fu ing an F- EL switch to contr l th e weapon
options prio r tor leas . The cockpit pan l fu ing opti on . This switch (u ing al o th
was install ed centrally, b low th front, gro und pre- et lections on a pane l inside
ma in instrum nt display. th Mk 7) was us d to s t the proper fu ing
n the T-270, a top row of three indi- option.
cat r lights were labelled (l eft to right): U sing a setting between 1 and 4, the
EXT (t ind ica te that the Mk 7's large , timer would start at weapon release, turn
low r tabil izing fin was ex tended o r on the radar, electri ca lly arm the bo mb
releas d) ; IN( to ind ica te thatthes parate and allow th radar to detonate th e
ca psule containing the nuclear fi ssio n ele- weapon at a pre-dete rmined altitude. O n
me n ts was in place inside the bo mb cas- sett ings 5 and 6, the timer would arm the
ing); and A/S (to indicate that the weapon wea pon and allow the contact fuse to det-
sa ~ ty witch was d o ed , necessa ry fo r det- onate. Setting 7 would start the timer
onati on). Below thi on th contro l pan l when the pilot pre ed th e bo mb release
(left to righ t) was the FIN EXT/RET button at th e identifica ti on po int (I P) in
switch (to ex tend o r retract the bomb's fin, the miss io n route, indicated by a T/0
u ing battery power), O UT (showing the light. It would continue to run at release
fis ion ca psule was in the 'o ut' pos iti on) and detonate at completion of the timer
F- EL Timer Radar Deto nat ion Deli ve ry
umber A lt itude O pti on O ption
l 1 1 Radar LABS OTS*
2 2 1 Radar LABS OTS
3 1 2 Radar LAB OT
4 2 2 Radar LAB OT
5 3 C o ntact LAB OT
6 4 Contact Dive
7 5 Tim r LAB IP
*LABS - low-a ltitude bombing syste m; O T S - 'over the should er' nuclea r cl livery.
167
p ri d. f el a ing h bomb rel ase butto n ,
to ab rt th run , w uld the weap n
t imer to return t z r .
The las t items o n tb
panel prov ided A and pow r t th e
F- EL switch so that it could
options deta iled below. The U L ligh t,
when ex t ingui heel, indica ted th pr p r
fusing optio n as se lected by th F- L
switch . An y spec ial store was re l a eel by
use of the bo mb re lease butto n o n to p of
the contro l st ick.
The arm ament panel witch
tr llecl th e re lease. The M DE
T R witch se lected the type of r l a e:
LAB , LAB ALT, low-a ltitude drogue
delivery (LADD) or MANUAL. The
ARMAMENT ELECTOR switch se lect-
ed the special store , left intermedi ate or
centreline station . Pilots were required to
memorize a ll these settings and proce-
dures .
Fo r !at r weapons such as the Mk 28 EX
(ex ternall y carried), Mk 28 RE (retarded,
ex ternall y carried) or B-43 , the T- 270
panel was replaced by the 'idio t proof' T-
249, DC U -9A o r DC U -117 A version. O n
these , a large rotary se lector switch could
be set to A IR (giving a pre-set detonat io n
at an a lt itude determined by the radar
fuse ), G D (laydown o r ground contact)
detonati on or SAFE. 'Laydown' o n
weapon capable of thi optio n had to b
et on pre- fli ght. There w re 0 and GA
se ttings in wh ich the panel could be
locked with afety wire to allow d tec t io n
of any unauthori zed operati o n of th e
weapon controls. A simi lar locking
pti on was u ed in the D U-9A, wh il e
the D U -11 7A had p rmi ive acti on
link (PAL) - four kn ob with digits to pro-
vide a code co mbinati on fo r unlocking th e
bo mb re lease contro ls. A warning light
illumin ated while the weapo n fu ing
optio ns were changed by the pi lot during
the mi sion.
 APPENDIX IV

F-100 Losses in
South East Asia
55-3502 (30.9.66) 55-37 17 (1.4.68)
Includes serials followed by date of both 55-3510 (13.6.67) 55-37 19 (29.12.65)
combat and operational losses. 55-3511 (28.12.69 ) 55-3722 (14.7.68)
lashed digits indicate a loss at night. 55-3513 (21.1.69) 55-3737 (24.9.69)
55-3516 (26.6.69) 55-3738 (23.9.65 )
F-JOOC 55-3522 (9.5.69) 55-3739 (25.7.66)
53-1713 (8.8.68) 55-3534 (30.3.66) 55-3749 (1 3.4.7 1)
53-1740 (14 .3.69) 55-3535 (25.6.68) 55-3762 (26.2.68)
53-174 1 (4.5.69) 55-35 41 (26.1.67) 55-3765 (4.1.68)
53-1765 (27 .9.68) 55-3543 (1 .10.65) 55-3766 (6.6.67)
54-1775 (2.8.68 ) 55-3548 (1 8.5 .68) 55-3773 (10.5.66)
54-1897 (27.3.69) 55-3549 (12.7.67) 55-3777 (1 3.1.70)
54-19 12 (25.7.68) 55-3550 (28 .4.71) 55 -3 780 (5.3.66)
54-1922 (23.8.68) 55-3555 (24.5 .69) 55-3782 (8.5.70)
54-193 1 (18.12.68 ) 55-3559 (14 .10.66 ) 55-3783 (1 9.2.65 )
54-1956 (25/26.1.69) 55-3562 (8.2.69) 55-3787 (11.1 2.66)
54-19 73 (29 .12.68) 55-3568 (30/3 1.1.68) 55-3790 (3.6.69)
54-2004 (14 .7.68) 55-3569 (9.1.70) 55-3793 (14.3.66)
54-2030 (4.1.69) 55-3572 (9 .7.70) 55-3803 (29.5.70)
54-2041 (31.1 .69) 55-3574 (26.1.70) 55-3806 (1 6.9.70)
54-205 1 (4.1.69) 55-358 1 (8.8.69) 55-3809 (1 2. 10.66)
55-3585 (10.2.70) 56-2905 (21.7.68)
F- l OOD 55-3587 (6.3.68) 56-2907 (16.2.67)
55-2795 (1 3. 11 .65) 55-3589 (5.7.69) 56-2908 (2.1.65)
55-2837 (31.7.65) 55-3600 (13.6.65) 56-2922 (22.12.67)
55-2849 (1 2.7 .69) 55-3603 (6.11.66) 56-2923 (24.9.65)
55-2857 (2.3.65 ) 55-3606 (20.3 .68) 56-2924 (22.6.66)
55-2875 (2.4.68) 55 -3608 (28. 7.68) 56-2925 (?] (12.2.67)
55-2890 (9.3.70) 55-36 11 (12.3.67) 56-2927 (19.2.67)
55-2895 (23.8.69 ) 55-3613 (29.9.65) 56-2935 (16.11.68)
55-2900 (4.7 .68) 55-36 18 (1 0.5.6 7) 56-2936 (3.7.68)
55-2901 (1 1.2.7 1) 55-36 19 (7. 1.68) 56-2937 (11.4.7 1)
55-2903 [?]1 8.9.69 55-3625 (3 .4.65) 56-2949 (17 .5.68)
55-2904 (1 5.9.67) 55-363 1 (3 1.9.65) 56-295 4 (1 2.5.67)
55-29 11(?] (26.1.67 or 6.4.68) 55-3632 (22 .4.69) 56-2955 (1 5.4.7 1)
55-29 12 (19 .3.67) 55-3635 (1 8.3.69) 56-2956 (29.7.66)
55-291 4 (18.6.68) 55-3639 (6.8.67) 56-2960 (25.3.69)
55-2918 (22.2.69 ) 55-3640 (14 .9.66) 56-2965 (21 .10.67)
55-2920 (16.12.68) 55-3642 (1 0. 10.69) 56-2968 (26.12 .68)
55-2921 (23. 10.68) 55-3643 (20.4.68) 56-3027 (30.3.67 )
55-2923 (23 .4.68) 55-3647 (20.1 2.68) 56-3040 (19.11.67)
55-2929 (1 7.10.68) 55-3653 (16.11.68) 56-304 1 (2. 8.67 )
55-2935 (4.10.69) 55-3661 (2.10.68) 56-3049 (1 0.7.69)
55-2943 (8.7.70) 55-3702 (12.6.65) 56-3063 (8.1 2.66)
55-3071 (1 3.9.66) 55-3704 (20.1 69) 56-3066 (22.7 .68)
55-3 100 (3.10.66) 55-3714 (15.2.67) 56-3069 (14.10.69)

768
 F- 100 LOSSES I SOUT H EAS T AS IA

56-3074 (5.10.65) 56-3269 (6.3 .68) F-IOOF

56-3075 (30-4.69) 56-3270 (6.3 .69)
56-3085 (1 8.8.64) 56-3275 (15.7.67) 56-3731 (24.1.69)
56-3090 (6.8.69) 56-3277 ( 15 .3.67) 56-3734 (9 .8.69)
56-3094 (1 4.5.67 ) 56-3278 (6-4.70) 56-3750 (27.7.68 )
56-3097 (1 4. 1.70) 56-3283 (1 5.8.69 ) 56-3764 (8. 11.67)
56-3 11 3 (2 1.1 .69) 56-3285 (21. 5.67 ) 56-3772 (1 0.9.68 )
56-3 114 (1 8.8.67) 56-3287 (30.6. 70) 56-3 775 (20. 11.68)
56-3 11 9 (25.5.69 ) 56-3301 (25/26.1.69) 56-3784 (1 8.3.68 )
56-3120 (4-4.71) 56-3304 (14.2.68) 56-3 796 (1.11.69)
56-3 121 (4.3. 70) 56-3305 (22-4.69) 56-3827 (8.5 .70)
56-3 122 (2.7.68) 56-3330 (19.9.67) 56-3834 (17. 8.68 )
56-3 124 (9.7.68) 56-3332 (10.12.69 ) 56-3839 (7-4.68)
56-3 125 (1 9. 11.65 ) 56-333 4 (21.7.65) 56-3847 (1 9. 1.70)
56- 13 2 (1 2. 12. 70) 56-3335 (23-4.69) 56-3863 (1.4.69 )
56-3 136 (26.5.70) 56-3339 (24.6.68) 56-3865 (1 6.8.68 )
56-3 147 (17. 2. 70) 56-3340 (22.6.65 ) 56-3869 (1 2. 10.66 )
56-3 150 (2.3.65 ) 56-3343 (24. 7.66) 56-38 78 (30. 12.67)
56-3 151 (1 0.4.65) 56-33 72 (30.6.68) 56-3886 (22. 1.69)
56-3 152 (23.3.68 ) 56-3375 (3.8.66) 56-3887 (24.10.69)
56-3 158 (2 1.1 .69) 56-3380 ( 10.3.69 ) 56-3923 (17/1 8.2.68 )
56-3 166 (9. 1.66) 56-3383 (25. 10. 70) 56-3954 (26.8.67)
56-3 167 (26. 10.66) 56-3384 (9.3. 70) 56-3959 (17 .2.68)
56-3 170 (20.7.65 ) 56-3403 (1 6.4.69) 56-3975 (1 8. 1.70)
56-3 174 (5.3 .69) 56-341 5 (1 2.3.7 1) 56-3980 (2.5.67)
56-3 177 (20.9.65) 56-3 420 (1 6.7.69) 56-3995 (12 .1.69 )
56-3 180 (22.3 .71) 56-3429 (14.1.68 ) 56-4002 (1 .7.67)
56-3 181 (11.3 .71) 56-3431 (1 6. 11.66) 56-4005 (20.12.67)
56-3 185 (9.8.65) 56-3435 (21.8. 70) 58-1212 (23.3.66 )
56-3 197 (27. 1.71) 56-3437 (1 .8.67) 58- 1215 (11.1 2.69 )
56-3237 (29. 11.68 ) 56-3 438 (1 2. 11.68 ) 58- 1217 (19.7.66 )
56-3 242 (30.5.70) 56-3446 (9.11.68) 58- 1221 (13.3.66)
56-3 245 (1 2.9.68 ) 56-3448 (1 3.1.67) 58- 1226 (5 .7.68)
56-3252 (24.7.69) 56-3451 (1 2.2.67 ) 58- 123 1 (20. 12.65)
56-3261 (25.2.6 ) 56-3452 (17 .11 .68 )
56-3264 (22.8.67) F-1000 losses al o occurred on 18/11/64
and 13/1/65 but serials of these aircraft
were not recorded at the time.

169
 APPENDIX V

Preserved, Ground Instructional and

Displayed F-1 00 Airfra01es
Incl udes serials followed by location. 54-2239 Musee de I'A ir et de I'Espace, Paris, France
54-2265 Mil itaire Luchtvaa rt Museum , Soesterberg, Netherlands
54-2269 48 FW, RAF Laken heath, UK
YF- IOOA 54-228 1 G lendale, Arizona
52-5755 Edwards AFB, Californi a 54-2290 Av iano AB, Ita ly
54-2294 Homestead ARS, Florida
F- IOOA 54-2299 Palmdale, Califo rn ia
55-2734 Chatillon-en-Dois Ca mps ite, France
52-5756 18th Wi ng, Kadena AB, Oki nawa
55-2736 Musee de I'A ir et de I'Espace, Pari s, France
52-5759 37 TFW/MU Lackland AFB, Texas
55-2739 av igny- les- Bea um e, France
52-5760 95 ABW/MU Edwards AFB, Californi a
55-2855 I 0 FW H A G, Swanton, Ohi o
52-5762 Grand Haven, Michigan
55-2884 121 ARW, O il A G, Colum bus, Ohio
52-5773 Ameri can Airpower Heritage Museum , Midland, Texas
55-350 Fred E. We isbrod Aircraft Museum, Pueblo, Colorado
52-5 777 75 ABW/MU Hi ll AFB, Utah
55-3595 57 LG, ellis AFB, evada
53- 1529 Ch iay i RoCA F A B, Ta iwan
55-3650 13 8 FW, O K A G, Tulsa, Oklahoma
53- 153 2 ISO FW, M A Ki rtl and AFB, New Mex ico
55-3667 l3 l FW, MO AN , Bridgeton, Mis ouri
53- 1533 Melrose, ew Mex ico
55-367 42 LG, Maxwe ll AFB, Alabama
53- 1540 hung- Yeng Techn ical School, Taipei, Taiwa n
55-3 75 4 Air Force Mu eum , Wright-Patterson AFB
53- 1550 h ung· heng Aviati n Museum , Taiwan
55-3805 103 FW CT A G, East Granby, onnecticut
53- 1559 17 FW OH A G, pringfield , Ohio
56-292 116 CG, G A G, Rob ins AFB, Georgia
53- 156 1 Ro AF Museum, Taiwan
56-2940 27 LG Cannon AFB, ew Mex ico
53- 157 1 Tam Kang, Taiwan
56-2967 Myrtle Beach, aliforni a
53- 1573 17 LS, Goodfell ow AFB, Texas
56-2993 107 ARW, NY ANG, iaga ra Falls, ew York
53- 1577 G IA at Tain an High School, Taiwan
56-2995 102 FW, MA A G, O ti A G B, Massachusetts
53- 1578 140 SUG, CO A G Aurora, Colorado
56-3000 149 FW, TX A G, Kell y AFB, Texa
53- 158 1 Chung Chen Insti tu te, Taiwan
56-3008 104 FW, MA A G, Westfield, Con necticut
53- 15 3 Taitung ity rad ium , Ta iwan
56-3020 LA A G, ew rl ean , Louisiana
53- 15 9 ational University of Taiwa n
56-3022 179 AW, O H A G, Man field, Ohi o
53- 16 10 heng Kuang, Ta iwan
56-3025 127 WG, Ml A , elfridge ANG B, Mi chiga n
53- 1639 Huali en C ity, Taiwan
56- 055 162 FW, AZ ANG, Tucson, Arizona
5 - 1642 hung Hsin , Taiwan
Hsinchu AB, Taiwan 56-3 154 Lone Star Flight Museum , alveston, Texas
53- 1655
56-3 1 7 114 FW, SO A G, ioux Falls, Sou th Da kota
F- IOOC 56-32 10 122 LG I ANG, Fort Wayne, Ind iana
56-3220 49 LG, Holloman AFB, ew Mexico
53- 1712 G rissom AFB Museum , Indiana 56-32 8 77 ABW, McClell an AFB, Californ ia
53- 1716 56 EM Luke AFB, Ari zona 56-3299 140 UG, 0 ANG, Aurora, Colorado
53- 17 4 366 LG, Moun ta in Home AFB, Idaho 56-3320 18 1 FW, IN A G Terre Haute, Indiana
54-1752 Dyess AFB, Texa 56-3426 132 FW, lA G Des Moines, Ind ia na
54-1573 A ir Force Museum , Wright- Patterson AFB 56-3434 AR ANG, North Littl e Rock, Arka nsas
54-1784 Octave-Chanute Museum , Ramoul, Illi no is
54-17 5 crave-Chanute Museum , Ra ntoul, Illi no is F- IOOF
54-1786 March Field Museu m, March ARB, Ca li fo rni a
56-3727 355 LG, Davis- Momhan AFB, Arizona
54- 1 23 I ima Air Muse um , Tucson, Ari zona
56-3730 SA F Academy, olorado
54-1 5 1 78 ABW, Robins AFB, Georgia
56-38 12 Dunca n, Ari zona
54-1986 96 A BW, Eg li n AFB, Florida
56- 8 13 Independ ence, Kansas
54- 1993 184 BW, K A , Me onnell AFB, Kansas
56-38 14 Texas ity, Texas
54-2005 185 FG, lA A G, ioux C ity, Iowa
56-38 19 Saint Mar ies, Idaho
54-2089 Turk Hava Muzes i, Ataturk Airport , Istanbul , Turkey
56-3822 Li nev ill e, Alaba ma
54-2 106 W I A G RTC, amp Douglas, Wiscons in
56-3 25 Aurora, ebraska
54-2 145 Hampton, Virgini a
56-3855 Las Cruce , ew Mexico
F- lOOD 56-3862 Air Force Museum , Wright-Patterson AFB
56-3870 Skryclsrrup A B, Denmark
54-2 l3 0 av igny- les- Bea une, France 56-3874 Danish Av iation Museum , Billuncl, Denmark
54-2 13 1 Toui -Rosie res, France 56-3894 127 WG, Ml ANG, Selfr idge A GB, Michigan
54-2 136 chawbische bavern unci Technik Mu eu m, Stuttgart, West 56-3 97 177 FW, J ANG, Egg Harbor Township, ew Jer ey
Germany 56-389 Lashenden A ir Warfa re Muse um , Ashfo rd, Kem, UK
54-2 15 1 2 T RW, Sheppa rd AFB, Texas 56-390 Skrydstrup AB, Denmark
54-2 157 orth East A ircraft Museum , Tyne-and-Wear, UK 56-3927 Danish Av iatio n Museu m, Bill und, Denmark
54-2 163 Dumfries and Ga lloway Av iat ion Muse um , K 56-3929 La Grange, Texas
54-2 165 America n A ir Museum, Duxforcl, UK 56-3949 Karu p AB, De nm ark
54-2 174 Mi dland Air Museum , Baginton, UK 56-3982 Lago Vista, Texas
54-2 1 7 avigny- les- Bea une, France 56-3990 Burnet, Texas
54-2 196 orfo lk and Suffo lk Av iation Museum , Bu ngay, UK 58- 1232 70 ABG, Brooks AFB, Texas
54-22 12 422 ABS, RAF roughton, UK 58-3837 Ai r Force Museu m, Wright- Patte rson AFB
54-2223 ewark Air Museum , UK

770
 APPENDIX VI

QF-1 00 Conversions
Conversion number foll owed by eri al.
All were F- l OODs apa rt from exa mples with an asterisk, indica ting an F-100F.

Sperry Conversions
092/56-3 414, 093/55-36 10, 094/56-3048, 095/55-3669, 096/56-2979, 097/56-3984*, 098/56-29 12, 099/56-2978, 100/56- 324,
10 1/55-2809, 102/56-3006, 103/55-28 16, 104/55-2789, 105/55-2828, 106/55 -282 1, 107/55-2823, 108/55-2845, 109/55 -3657, 110/55 -
3663, 111/55-3662, 11 2/55-3 712, 113/55-3668, 114/55-3 726, 11 5/55-3692, 11 6/56-294 7' 117/56-2977' 118/56-2982, 11 9/55-3 746,
120/56-2987, 121/56-3037, 122/56-3056,123/56-3 14 ' 124/56-325 1, 125/56-3044, 126/56-3239, 127/56-3253, 12 /56-3291, 129/56-
3313, 130/56-33 10, 131/56-332 ' 1 2/56-3389,133/55-3673,134/56-3402, 135/56-3 41 0,136/56-3 176,137/55-2841 ,138/55-2877,
139/55-2860, 140/55-2867' 141/55-3620, 142/55-3593, 143/55-2898, 144/55-3623, 145/55-28 9, 146/55-2949, 14 7/55-2856, 14 /55-
3564, 149/55-3724, 150/55-3710, 15 1/55-3674, 152/55-3797, 153/56-2942, 154/56-2950, 155/56-3068, 156/56-2975, 157/56-296 1,
158/56-3107, 159/56-31 1 ' 160/56-3133, 16 1/56-3218, 162/56-3 153, 163/56-3233, 164/56-3 123, 165/56-3 129, 166/56-3 183, 167/56-
3109, 168/56-3309, 169/56-3276, 170/56-3369, 171/56-3 439, 172/55-280 1, 173/56-3400, 174/55-2834, 175/55-3752, 176/55-3788,
177/55-2830, 178/55-38 12, 179/55-2833, 1 0/55-35 45, 1 1/55-2827, 182/56-3298, 183/56-3010, 184/5 6-2980, 185/56-3205, 186/56-
3017, 187/56-3256, 188/56-2992, 189/56-3 162, 501/56-3801*, 502/56-3740*.
All the above were ex-ANG lost during flights from Tyndall or Holloman AFBs.
Flight Systems Conversions

F-lOOD
201/55-2863,202/55-2925,203/55-2939,204/55-3666,205/55-2951,206/55-3528,207/55-3578,208/55-360 1,209/55-3566,2 10/55-
3709, 211/55-37 44, 212/56-2915, 213/55-3775, 214/56-29 18, 215/56-2920, 216/56-2944, 217/56-2959, 218/56-323 1, 219/56-298 1,
220/56-29 9, 221/56-3 117, 222/56-3034,223/56-3 184,224/56-3248,225/56-3130,226/56-3 19 1,227/56-32 10,228/56-324 1,229/56-
3232, 230/55- 689, 2 1/55-3679, 232/55-3727, 233/55-3683, 23 4/56-2999, 235/55-3685, 236/56-3011 , 237/56-3213, 238/56-3260,
239/56-3295,240/56-3 422,241 /55-3558,242/55-3688,243/56-323 4,244/56-320 1, 245/56-3255,246/55- 690,247/55-2846,248/56-
29 10, 249/55-2 70,250/55-3604, 25 1/55-3508,252/56-3003, 253/55-3505, 25 4/55-3570, 255/56-3 140, 256/56-3259, 25 7/56-3265,
258/56-3303, 259/56-3306, 260/56-3296, 26 1/56-33 11 ' 262/56-3356, 263/56-33 71 ' 264/56-338 1' 265/56-3393, 266/56-3413, 267/56-
3426, 268/56-3 443,269/56-30 19, 270/56-303 1,27 1/55-3672, 272/56-3072,273/55-3703, 274/56-33 15, 275/55-38 11 , 276/56-3 405,
277/56-3331,278/55- 6 0, 279/55-3740,280/55-3705,28 1/55-2865,282/55-2873,283/55-2927,284/55-3733,285/55-3770,2 6/55-
3580, 287/56-3397,28 /56-34 12, 289/55-3552, 290/56-3135, 29 1/56-3 141 , 292/56-3307, 293/56-3462, 294/56-33 45,295/55-3758,
296/56-3 155, 297/56-3365, 298/55-3 759, 299/55-2942, 300/55-36 16, 30 l /56-2974, 302/56-3 163, 303/55-2 793, 304/55-3664, 305/55-
2 07,306/55-2813,307/55-28 18,308/55-2826,309/56-3 171,310/55 -2853,3 11/55-2859,3 12/55 -2879,313/55 -288 1,31 4/55-3665 ,
315/56-2917' 3 16/56-2932, 3 17/56-3007' 3 18/56-2952, 319/56-3024, 320/56-2953, 321/56-3028, 322/56-3033, 323/56-3035, 324/56-
3053, 325/56-3054, 326/56-3 195, 32 7/55 -2905' 328/55-29 17 ' 29/55-2933, 330/55-2945, 33 1/55-2952, 332/55-3521' 333/55-3567,
334/55-3557' 335/55-3576, 336/55-3622, 33 7/55-363 4, 338/55-3644, 339/56-30 1' 340/56-3 10 1, 341/56-3082, 342/56-3 11 2, 343/56-
3168, 344/56-3 169, 345/56-3 173, 346/56-3187' 34 7/56-3190, 348/56-3 194, 349/56-3198, 350/56-3221' 351/55-3 75 7' 352/55-3 771,
353/55-3 784, 35 4/55-3 741 ' 355/56-2970, 356/56-3427' 357/56-3 179, 358/56-3463, 359/56-3222, 360/56-3404, 36 1/56-3093, 362/56-
3425,363/56-3279,364/56-3361,365/56-3046,366/56-3 406,367/56-3385,36 /56-3333,369/55-3804.
F-JOOF
3 70/56-3 868 , 3 71/56-3 73 7' 3 72/56- 748, 3 73/56-3 751 ' 3 74/56-3 754, 3 75/56-3 760, 3 76/56-3 763, 3 77/56-3 762, 3 78/56-3 765, 3 79/56-
37 7, 380/56-3795, 38 1/56-3746, 3 2/56-3805, 383/56-38 18, 3 4/56-3830, 385/56-3840, 386/56-3836, 387/56-3859, 388}56-3860,
3 9/56-3882, 390/56-3 91' 39 1/56-3893, 392/56-3883, 393/56-3906, 394/56-3898, 395/56-3907' 396/56-39 10,397/56-3915, 398/56-
39 17, 399/56-3922, 400/56-3928, 401/56-395 1, 402/56-3956, 403/56-3962, 404/56-379 1, 405/56-3994, 406/56-3738, 407/56-4001,
40 /56-3 768, 409/56-3 773, 410/56-3 794. 411/56-38 12, 41 2/56-3813, 413/56-3814, 414/56-38 19, 415/56-3 55, 41 6/56-3822, 417/56-
3 6 1, 41 8/56-3 25, 41 9/56-3832, 420/56-3880, 421/56-3837, 422/56-38 9, 423/56-3 97, 424/56-3904.
onvers ion 411-4 21 r turned to AMARC in 199 1, 422/423/424 transferred to U Army. The others were destroyed du ring fli ghts
from Tyndall or Holloman AFB .

171
 Glossary

AAA anti-a ircraft artillery HE! high explosive/incendiary

AB air base HVA(R) high velocity aircraft (rocket)
a.b. afterburner
ACM air combat manoeuvring IC BM intercontinental ba llistic miss ile
ACT air combat tactics IFF identification, friend or foe
ADC A ir Defense Command IFR instrument flight rules
ADF automatic direction finding IOC initial operational capab ility
AFB Air Force Base IP identification point/initial po int/Instructor
AGL above ground level Pilot
AIM air intercept miss ile IR infra- red
AMARC Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration IRAN inspect and repair as necessary
Center
AN G Air National G uard KlAS knots, indicated airspeed
APU auxiliary power unit kt knots
ARS Air Refuelling Squadron
ATC Air Training Command LABS low-altitude bombing system
LADD low-altitude drogue delivery
BUFF B-52 bomber LOX liquid oxygen
BW Bomb Wing
MAS DC Military Aircraft Storage and Disposition Center
C AS close air support MiGC AP combat air patrol to counter enemy air
C BU cluster bomb unit defences
CCT S/CCTW Combat C rew Training Squadron/Wing MM Munitions Maintenance Squadron
co commanding offi cer
CONUS continental USA NAA North American Aviation
C RT cathode ray tube NAYS Doppler navigation system
CSD constant speed drive NO LO no li ve operator onboard
NOT AM notice for airmen
DEFCON defense condition NVA N orth Vietnamese Army

EC M electronic countermeasures ocu Operational Conversion Unit

ELI NT electronic intelligence ore Officer in C harge
EPR engine pressure ratio OR! Operational Readiness Inspection
EWO electronic warfare officer OTS 'over the shoulder' nuclear deli very

FAC forward air contro ller PAC AF Pacifi c Air Force

FBS/FBW Fighter-bomber Squadron/Wing PAL permiss ive action link
FDS/FDW Fighter (Day ) Squadron/Wing PCS permanent change of station
FFAR folding fin aircraft rocket POW prisoner of war
FS/FG Fighter Squadron/Group PSP pierced steel planking
FSAT full -scale aerial target
RADAN radar nav igation system
GAR gu ided air rocket RAT ram-a ir turbine
GCA ground controlled approach ResCAP combat air patrol over recovery of downed
GCI ground controlled interception aircrew
GE General Electric RHAW radar homing and warning
GP general purpose (bomb) RoCAF Republic of C hina Air Force
RTAFB Royal Thai Air Force Base
HEAP high explos ive/armour piercing RTU Replace ment Training Unit

172
 GLOSSA RY

SAC Strategic Air Command TO Technical O rder

SADS surface- to-a ir defence sy tem T OT time-over-target
SAM surface-to-air miss ile
SAR search and rescue U AFE Un ited States A ir Forces Europe
SEAD suppression of enemy air defences
SEAT O South East Asia Treaty O rganization vc VietCong
SOP standard operational procedure VFR visual flight ru les
sos Special Operations Sq uadron VNAF Vietnamese A ir Force (South Vi etnam)
VPAF Vietnamese Peoples' A ir Force (North
TAC Tactica l A ir ommand Vi tnam)
TAC AN tactica l air nav igation
TBO time between overhauls WADC Wright A ir Dev lop m nt enter
TOY temporary duty WP white phosphorus
TF (fFG(fFW Tactica l Fighter Squadron/Group/Wing ww Wild Weasel
TFTS(fFTW Tactica l Fighter Training Squadron/Wing
THK Turk Hava Kuvvetleri (Turkish AF) ZEL zero- length launch
TIC troops in contact

173
 Index

A/ A37U-5 target 43 Burns, Maj Curtis 28, 32, 42, 50, 52 , 59, 6 1 62, Exercise Tropic Lightning 125
A-I , Douglas 85 , 90 67,68
A-lOA 12 1 Bush, Bob, I 10 F-4/ RF-4, McDonnell 4, 34, 52, 57, 71, 73, 8 1,
A-4 gunsight 44 , 45 , 46, 47 , 52 , 54 Butler, Maj G. 93, 94 82, 88, 95, 100, 104, 105, 106, 108, Ill , 11 2,
A-4 , Douglas 10, 24 11 5, 12 1, 131 , 145, 148, 151
A-7, LTV 121, 122, 145 C- 130, Lockheed 11 8, 121 F4D, Douglas 6, 12
AC- 11 9, Fairchild 94 Cameron , Capt Robert 137 F-5, North rop 10,
Ackerly, Col Robert 89 Carroll , Lt Patrick 11 5 F-8/ RF-8, Vought 83 , 87
ACM (air co mbat manoeuv ring) 42, 43, 45, 46, CBU dispensers 24, 40, 44, 104, 11 8 F- 15, M cDonnell Douglas 6, 15, 76, 124
5 1, 54 , 88, 127 CF-100, Av ro 59 F- 16, GD 13 1, 143, 144
AGM-12 Bullpup 40, 79, 84 , 85, 87, 138, 140 Clarity, John 10, 40, 49, 74, 76, 97, 98, 100 F-84 , Republic 4, 13, 20, 25, 4 1, 42, 56, 66, 70,
AGM-45 Shrike 108, Ill Clark , Capt Don Ill 71 , 74, 80, 96, 11 2, 117, 118, 121, 122 , 132,
AIM-4 Falcon 45 Clark, Lt Arn ie 84 137, 140, 141 , 144, 145, 146
AIM-7 Sparrow 124, 13 1 Clarke, Troy 74 F-86, NAA. 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 13, 15, 20, 25, 33, 41,
AIM-9 Sidewinder 24, 40, 43, 44, 45, 46, 85, 88, Clausen, J. E.T. 149 45, 48, 51, 58, 59, 6 1, 71, 73 , 96, 11 7, 137
125, 130, 13 1, 137, 138, 139 Clayton, Capt John 59 F-100, NAA:
AN/ ALR-45 141 Clements, Lt Herdi s 73 afterburner 42
AN/ APG-30A 24 Cohagan , Capt Pau l 10 1 avionics 24 , 109
AN/ APR-9 109 Coleman , Capt 10 1 camera pods 106
AN/ APR-25 107, 108, 109, Ill Combat Skyspot (MSQ-77) 105, 106 coc kpit 29, 36, 69 ,
AN/ APR-26 10 7, 108, 109, 111 Comstock, Lt Col Harold 90, 100, 102 drag 'chute sys tem 28, 31, 40, 126
AN/ AP R-370 141 Conno ll y, Capt Keith 88 drone convers ion (QF-100), I 24 , 127,
AN/ APS-54 25, 138, 140, 153 Cook-Craigie Plan 6 129- 132
AN/ APX-6A/ 25 24, 32 Craig, Lt George 87 ECM mods 106-11 2
AN/ ARN-6 15, 24 Creech, Capt Wilbur 58, 71 ejection seat 30, 32, 33
AN/ ARN-21 24 Crooks , Thad 94 engine maintenance 58, 74, 76, 84 , 97, 126,
AN/ ARN-27 140 Cross fi eld , Scott 154 127
AN/ ARN-3 1 24 Cuban missile cr isis 47, 78 first fli ght II
AN/ ASN-7 40 Cullen, Lt J. A. 85 fli ght cont rol systems 8-11 , 42, 88, 99
AN/ ASN-25 4 1 Cut shall , Dean 4 fuel system 2 1, 24 , 40, 53, 55, 58, 80, 126
Arm ee de !'Air ser v ice 133-1 36 hyd r aulic systems 126
Arm strong, Capt J.W. 58 Darnell, Dan , 7 25 in-flight refu elling, 4, 22 , 23, 67
Dawson , Capt Clyde Ill land ing gear II , 32, 97, 98, 126
B-47, Boeing 14 Dawson , Capt James 103 land ing 4, 28
B-52 , Boeing 6, 45, 106, 11 0 Day, Maj George 11 2, 11 5 liquid oxygen provision 126, 127
B-57, Martin 89, 90 de Gaulle, Gen Charl es 73, 135 nuclear weapons delive r y 46, 49, 50, 52,
BAK-6/ 9 arres tin g system 40, 126 de Havilland , Geoffrey 5 68-9, 71, 77, 78
Baker, Bob 34, 153, 154 Donn er, Lt Col Laverne 11 8 ordn ance capability 24, 33, 40, 5 1, 90, 94 ,
Baker, Col Royal 8 1 Donovan, Cap t Jack 109, 110 100, 103-1 05
Barwick, Capt P. L. 78 Dowdy, Maj Bert 16 paint schemes 99, 100, 135
Bendix Air Race 20 Draken, SAAB 143 pre-flight routine 98, 99, 126, 127
Bennett , Maj Frank 88 Duke, Neville 12 reconnaissance vers ion (RF- 100A) 15, 16,
Bilcik, Mike 72, 73 Dul ger, Lt Sad ik 147 139
Blackburn , AI 38, 39 Duxford Amer ica n Ai r Museum 72, 136 record-breaking fli ghts 12
B1esse, MGen Fred erick, 6 8 Dvorchak, Capt Stephen 86 'sabre dance' 101 , 102
Blodgett, Capt Don 45 structure 7, 9, 106
Blood, Col Arli e 27 Eddins , Maj Neil 70 F-101 / RF-101 , McDonnell 6, 9, 10, 20, 45, 49,
BLU-1 napalm 84 Edney, Lt Bob 77 57 , 80, 85, 87, 90, 11 7, 120, 140
Boich ot , Col 136 Edwards, S/ Sgt 93 F-102, Convai r 5, 6, 9, 33, 45 , 68, 12 1, 122, 127 ,
Boyd, MGen Albert 12 Eell s, Capt Gordon 71 129, 145, 146, 148
Braswell, Capt Steve 137 Ellis, Bill 70 F-104, Lockh eed 4, 5, 19, 33, 39, 80, 85, 137,
Brattkus, Art 11 0 Emory, Frank 18 146, 149, 150, 151
Brooks , CoiJohn 59 , 68 Engler, Jack 32 , 99, 100 F- 105, Repub lic 4, 5, 52, 57, 73, 74, 80, 82, 85,
Broughton, Maj Jack 70 ER- 142 receive r Ill 87,96, 108-111 , 11 8, 120, 122, 152, 154
Brown , Gen George 11 6 Everest, Col Pet e 7, 8, 12 F-106, Convai r 9, 121, 129
Brown, Lt Warren 11 7 Exercis e Mobile Bal1er 57 F-Ill , GD 4, 40, 52, 81
Bru ce, Capt Wa lt 46 Exercise Swift Strike 125 Ferguson , Capt 85

174
 I DEX

Fernandez, Maj Pete 26 Lane, Capt Mi tc h II I 03 Operation Toolbo 13

FFAR ( rockets) 46, 47 Laskowski , Lt Mike 11 8 Op ration Two Bu I~
Fitzgerald, Maj Bob 70 LAU-3/A roc k t laun h r 46, 47, 83, 84 , 108, Ov r io k, MajJ hn 114
FJ Fury, NAA, I 3 109, Il l , 14 1 Ozgil , BG n Er I 14
Flight ystems, Inc. 13 1, 144 Laven, Col Geo rge 83,84
Fogleman, Cap t Ronald 92 , 11 2 Layne, Lt Willi am 124
for wa rd air co ntroller (FAC) 35, 103, 104, 11 2, Le Bailley, General 66
11 8, 149 Lee, Col Raymond 91
Fra izer, Maj Don Ill Lifsey, Ca pt Truman I 09
Li ghtning, BAC 61, 80
Gab reski, 'Gabby' 46 Li thgow, Mike 12
Garrett, Maj Dick 99, 100, 103 , 105 Lockhar t , Lt Hayden 86
Ger mscheid, Col Tom 22 , 25, 26, 4 1, 43, 45, 46, Loitwoocl , Lt Tic 74 , 75, 76
53,66, 76, 77--S l Long, Lt Col M. 13
Gold, Col Bru ce 106 Lowe, Lt Thomas 90
Goldberg, Marshall II I Lukers, Capt 65 ' 1, 70, 0, 13 ' 145
Lynch, Joe 7
Hall , Van 11 8
Han s, Col H. A. 12 M-1 bombing system 24, 46
Hanh, apt Tran 88 M-39 gun 10, 15, 43, 44, 85, 93, 153
Hard y, Col li S M-6 1 gun 10
Hays, Lt Col Emmett 8 MA-l bar rier 26, 28
Heinemann, Ed 18, 24 MA-2 (see LABS)
Hem mel, Capt Joseph 38 MA-2 AP 27, 42, 5 , 76, 77, 9 , 125
Herri ck, Col Ron 28, 31, 33, 42, 50, 5 1, 52, 69,71 MA-3 laun h r 46 RADAN (PC-2 12) 40
Hettlin ger, BGen Frank 124 Macavoy, Bob 93, 96, 11 6 Rade r, Don 15
Hickerson, T/ gt Wil fred 126 Mace, Gage 34 ram-air turbin e (RAT) II
Hinton, Bru e 41 Mackay Trophy 22 RB- 16 pey, Rolls-Royce 151
Hoov r, Bob 6 Maene, John 125, 126, 127 RB-57, Mar t in 17
Horn er, Chuck 77 Maglione, Lt Col Ralph 70 RB-66/ EB-66, Douglas 106, 108, 109
Howard , Le 32, 102 , 104 , 105 Magnusson, Capt James 88 Rectenwald , Larry 13
Howbower, Capt Hal 90 Martin , Alex 24 , 31, 32, 40, 48, 49, 51, 55, 56, Rep ublic of China Air Force ser vice 136- 140
Hunter, Hawker 59, 61 61, 65, 66 Reynes, Capt Joe 10, 87, 90
HVAR proje til es 24 , 44 , 46 Mar tin , Capt W. M. 5 Risner, Lt Col Robin son 57, 87
Martin-Baker Mk-DB/ DESA sea t 140, 143, 148 Rober ts , J.O. 154
Inni s, Maj 'Skinny' 77 MB-3 autopil ot 24, 40, 55 Robin son, Maj Robby 70
IR-133 r iv r 107, 108, 109, 110, Ill McCa rth y, Jay 96, 97, 98 RoCAF 19
IRA insp ti n pr c du r 34 McElhanon, Maj Mike 11 4 Ronca, Lt Col Bob 85
McKee, Maj Franklyn 11 7 Ross, Cap t Paul 70
J35 (G ·) 6 McPeak, Merrill 'Tony ' 70, 71, 100, 11 2 Royal Danish Air Force ser vice 140- 144
J40 (W tin ghouse) 6 MiG-I S 6, 137 Rutan, Dick 112
J47 (GE) 5, 6 MiG- 17 59, 84, 87,8 , 137 Ryan, Major John 24
J4 (P W) 5 MiG-21 88 Ryan, Mike 33
J57(P W) 6, 16, 17, 24 , 40, 127, 13 1, 142, 151 Mill , Lt Duane, I 37
J75 (P&W) 153 Misty FAC operations 11 2- 11 5 SA-2 Dvina 106, 11 0
Jabara, I Jam 91 MJ-1 loader 84, 94 SA- 16B/ HU- 16, Grumm an 73, 5
Jaguar, EPE AT 136 MK-series bombs 24 Salazar, Dick 125
Javelin, Gloster 59 MN- 1 dispenser 32 , 46, 69, almon, Col 136
Jenny, Capt Dave 11 5 Moore, Maj Roy 49, 5 1, 53, 65, 66, 137 Salome, Lt Ger ald I 00, 10 I
Jesperson, Capt Max 137 Morgan, Capt Ri ck 110 Sanclelius, Capt Eel 109, 110, Ill , 113
Johnson, Clarence 15 Moseley, 'Moose' 45 , Scharnh orst, Lt Col Gord on 58, 59
Johnson, Col Art 2 , 42 , 45, 46 Mystere, Dassault 59 Schmenk, Don 24 , 34, 39, 59 , 77, 78, 79, 80,
Johnston , Capt Bob 137 103
NAV (Doppler navigati on sys tem) 41, 57, 106 chwa rtz, Maj Bob 109
Karter, Lt llker 146 Neeld, Maj Bobby 103 SEAD 35,37
Kast ilan, Maj 'Kas' 100 Neubecker, AI 92, 93, 107 Seiler, Maj Clyde 11 6
KB-29, Boeing 23 Newell, Rich 32, 97, 98 Sibson, Maj Don 11 5
KB-50, Boeing 30, 48, 72 , 0 Nolen, Lt Col Cregg 84 im pson, Jack 17
KC-97, Boeing, 23 125 nuclear stores 12, 32, 39, 46, 50, 52, 54, 65, 136 Smar t, Lt Ford 59
KC- 135, Boeing 84, 87, 90, 135 Smi th, Col Fos ter 17
Ke lley, Col Wendell 81 O'Donnell, Capt Frank II 0 Smi th, Col Stanton 71, 72
Kemp, Bob 12 O'Neill, Cap t J. E. 11 6 mi th, George 18
Kempton, Lt Jim 100 Obenlancl , Capt Roland 93 nyder, Capt LI S
Kil gus, Capt Don 87, 88 Operation Ba rrel Roll 85 Sopko, Steve Ill
Kin delberger, Dutch 12, 18 Operati on Bell Tone 82 perr y Flight Systems 131
Ki ppenhan, Capt Co rw in 11 3, 11 5 Operation Big Wing 70 Sprous, Everett 94
Kramer, Capt Pat 58 Operati on Boom Town 140 tephenson, Air Cd r G. 18
Kropni k, Lt Col James 108 Operation Combat Fox 57 Such, Ri chard 10, 94, 95,
Kul czyk, Col Mike, 65 Operation Flam ing Dart 85 SUU-7 dispenser 92
Operation Fre loc 74 SUU-20/A dispenser 46
L'Huillier, Capt Jake 11 8 Operati on Cold Rush 125 SUU-2 1 dispenser 77, 139
LABS 40, 46, 50, 52, 53, 54 , 55, 68, 136, 154 Operation Mobile Zebra 49
Lamb, Allen T. 62, 67, 109- 11 2, 126 Operation Rolling Thunder 85- 115 T-33, Lockh eed 18, 42, 51,
Lancaste r, Col 'Lanny' 80, 11 2, 11 4, 115 Operation Saw Buell 83, 87 TACAN 32

775
 INDEX

Talbott, Col Carlos 20 101st TFS 121 475th WEG 131

Thorkeldsen , K 140 103rd TFG 128 479th FDW 13, 18, 19, 83
Titus, Capt Robert 38, 57 107th TFS 121 48lst TFS 10, 86, 90, 91 , 100
Toliver, Col Raymond 71 110thTFS 121,122, 131 492nd FBS/TFS 72 , 73
Tomkinson , Lt 93 112thTFS 121 493rd FBS/TFS 63, 136
Topel. Capt Cengiz 145 11 3th TFS 121 , 130 494th FBS/TFS 65, 72, n , 79
Trier, Capt Bob I 09 11 3th TFW 97, 124 506th FBW/TFW 25, 45 , 65, 67
Turkish Air Force service 144-148 !18th FBS/TFS 19, 121 , 138 sogth FBS 53
Turley, Ca pt Morvan 61 119th TFS 98, 118, 11 9, 120, 125 sogth FIS 51
Turner, Capt Norm 90 120th TFS 89, 116, 118 510th TFS 51, 53, 56, 82, 89, 92, 102, 106
Twiss, Peter 12 121stTFS 98, 11 8, 119 511th FBS/TFS 48, 137
122nd TFS 72, 122 522nd TFS 83, 88
U-2 , Lockheed 6, 17, 107 124thTFS 118, 122, 128 53 1st TFS 56, 85, 89, 99
Unhan, Capt Recai 146 127th TFS 57, 118, 120 612th TFS 89, 104, 112
USAF Units: !28th TFS 122 613rd TFS 73, 85, 88
3rd TFW 53, 56, 89 131st TFS 121 , 122 614th TFS 83, 84, 88
4th FDW/TFW 26, 42, 45 136thTFS 31,64, 91, 116, 117, 118, 119, 120, 615thTFS 83, 84 , 88, 93, 94, 97, 108
gth FBW/TFW 28, 32, 49, 51, 88 125, 127 3595th CCTW 18
gth sos 89 152 11 d TFTS 18, 19, 121 , 138 452oth CCTW 82 , 140
9th TFS 74 163rd TFS 121 , 123, 124 4 753th DSES 129
12th TFS 50, 60 I66thTFs 57, IIS, II9, 121 6234th Wing (P) 85, 109
12th TFW 88 174th TFS 89, 117, 118 6521 st TFW 89
1gthTFW 48,49, 50, 60 175th TFS 122 7272nd FTW 23, 25
2oth FBW/TFW 26, 57, 67, 71, 72, 75, 78, I nth TFS 126 7407th ss 16
80 182nd TFS !22, 125 AFFTC II , 38
21st FDS 26 !84th TFS 121 AFLC 18, 131
21stTFW 55,56 !88thFBS/TFS 19, 45,92, 117, 118, 119, 121 , ARDC 138
22nd FDS/TFS 67 127, 138 CTAF 14
23rd FDS/TFS 6. 67 306th TFS 80, 91, 98, 114 Skyblazers 58
23rd TFW 85 307th FBS/TFS 73, 89 Thunderbirds 4, 21, 30, 50, 70-71 , 58, 137
26th TRW 74 30gth FBS/TFS 37, 89, 91, 98. 104, 114, 131 WADC 7, 129
27th TFW 45, 47, 82, 83, 90 309th FBS/TFS 28, 45, 91, 107, 109, 114
31st FBW/ TFW 45, 46, 62, 89, 91, 94 , 116, 312th TFW 27, 45 Valentine, Hank 93, 97
142 322nd FDG 20, 23, 24, 57 Van Overschelde, Leo 58
32nd FBG 57 323rd FBW 18 Van Scyoc, James 45
32nd FBS/TFS 67, 68, 80 334th FDS 26 Vanderhoef, Pete 40, 87, 90, 91, 101 , 102
35th FBS/TFS 50, 63 336th FDS 41 Verdin, LCDR Jam es 12
35th TFW 88, 89, 116 352ndTFS 88, 93, 100 Victor Alert 62, 79, 136,
36th TFS 50, 62, 68, 82 353rd FBS/TFS 4, 73, 112 Vincent, Joe 39, 40, 101 , 104, 105
36th FDW/TFW 57, 58, 59, 64, 68, 71 , 76, 144 354th TFW 45, 48, 49, 61 , 62, 65, 66, 118 VTOL 37
37th ARRS 118 355th TFS 89, 91, 97, 98, 101 , 114, 118
37th TFW 38, 89 366th TFW 45, 60, 88, 89, 105 Ward , Major Dave 84
45th FDS 59 3ggth TFS 27 Watson , Lt Don 90
43th FBW/TFW 72 , 76, n, 81 , 133, 140, 141 , 388th FBW 73 Weart, Col George 88
142 401 st TFW 45, 66, 73, 91 Welch, George 5, 7, 8, 9, 11 , 12, 13, 14, 18
49th TFW 71, 73, 74, 82, 140 40sth FBW 25, 45, 53 , 141 Weyland , General 46, 47
soth TFW 57, 65, 68, 73, 74, 141 , 144 416th TFS 55, 87, 88, 89, 91 , 95, 100, 143 White, AI 25
53rd FDS/TFS 59. 65, 67, 68 417th TFS 64 White, Capt Ed 109
55th TFS 79, 80 42oth ARS 72 Whitford, Col Lawrence 115
56th TFS 38 422nd FDS 57 Wild Weasel I operations 107-112
sgth ARS 73 428th TFS 82 , 84, 85 Willard, Maj Garry 108, 109
66th TRW 81 429th TFS 45, 89 Williams , BGen David 0 47, 51 , 80, 83, 84. 88,
72nd TFS 51 , 53, 54 430th TFS 83 115
nth TFS 76, 80 436th FBS 17 Wright, Bobby 3 1, 74, 115. 125, 126, 127
79th TFS 71, n, 80, 81 45oth FDG/ FDW 19, 45
goth TFS 49, 51 452nd FDS 57 Yeager, Chuck 5, 12
81st TFS 64 457th FBS 62, 65 Young, Lt Col Gordon II 7
82nd TATS 131 45gth FBS 65
goth TFS 56, 89, 101 474th TTW 45, 53, 58, 65 zero length launching (ZEL) 37, 38, 39, 140

176