F-100
|
|
| North American F-100 Super Sabre
|
F-100 Super Sabre
|
| Description
|
| Role | interceptor fighter, fighter-bomber
|
| Crew | 1
|
| First Flight | 1953
|
| Entered Service | 1954
|
| Manufacturer | North American Aviation
|
| Dimensions
|
| Length | 50 ft | 15.2 m
|
| Wingspan | 38 ft 9 in | 11.8 m
|
| Height | 16 ft 2.75 in | 4.9 m
|
| Wing area | 400 ft² | 37.2 m²
|
| Weights
|
| Empty | 21,000 lb | 9,500 kg
|
| Loaded | 28,847 lb | 13,084 kg
|
| Maximum takeoff | 34,832 lb | 15,800 kg
|
| Powerplant
|
| Engine | Pratt & Whitney J57-P-21/21A turbojet
|
| Thrust | 10,200 lb dry
16,000 lb afterburner | 45 kN dry
71 kN afterburner
|
| Performance
|
| Maximum speed | 864 mph | 1,390 km/h
|
| Combat range | 1995 miles | 3,210 km
|
| Ferry range | miles | km
|
| Service ceiling | 50,000 ft | 15,000 m
|
| Rate of climb | 19,000 ft/min | 5,800 m/min
|
| Wing loading | lb/ft² | kg/m²
|
| Thrust/Weight |
|
| Avionics
|
| Gun tracking radar | AN/APR-25(v)
|
| Radar warning receiver | AN/APR-26(v)
|
| Automatic pilot | Minneapolis-Honeywell MB-3
|
| Low-altitude bombing system | AN/AJB-1B
|
| Armament
|
| Guns | 4 × 20 mm Pontiac M-39 cannon
|
| Bombs | Mk 7, Mk 28, Mk 43, Mk 57, Mk 61 and TX-43 nuclear weapons
Up to 7040 lb (3,190 kg) of conventional bombs
|
| Missiles | 4 × AIM-9 Sidewinder
GAM-83 Bullpup
|
The North American F-100 Super Sabre was a jet fighter aircraft that served with the USAF from 1954 to 1971 and with the ANG until 1979. It was the successor to the F-86 Sabre, the first of the century series of US jet fighters, and the first US fighter capable of supersonic speed in level flight.
Development work began in 1949 for a supersonic interceptor and prototype construction started in 1951 when the company won a contract for 110 aircraft. The first YF-100 prototype flew on May 25, 1953 with a Pratt & Whitney J57 engine, it broke the sound-barrier on its first flight. The YF-100 set a world speed record in October 1953 at 754.99 mph (1,215 km/h). The first aircraft, the F-100A, were delivered in late 1953 and became operational from September 1954. Despite the testing, there were a number of operational crashes that grounded the aircraft from November 1954 until February 1955 when the problem (stability) was identified and solved (larger control surfaces).
The F-100A was followed by the F-100C (1954, 476 built) and the F-100D (1956, 1,274 built) fighter-bombers, with increased wing-area, fin and rudder size, six underwing hard-points and improved electronics. The F-100D was an unforgiving aircraft, over 500 were lost in accidents by USAF pilots. The final production variant was the F-100F tandem trainer (339 built), first flown in 1956 it was stretched by 3 m to accommodate the second crew.
The Super Sabre, especially the F-100D was widely used in the Vietnam War, but was replaced from 1966 on tougher missions by the F-4 and the F-105. The aircraft served in Vietnam until 1971.
