Convair F-102
| Convair F-102 Delta Dagger | |
|---|---|
 F-102A of the 125th FIS, Florida Air National Guard |
|
| Type: | Interceptor |
| Design country: | |
| Manufacturer: | |
| First flight: |
October 24, 1953 |
| Commissioning: |
April 1956 |
| Production time: |
1955 to 1964 |
| Number of pieces: |
1,052 |
The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was a single beam fighter aircraft from the period of the Cold War from American production. It belonged to the so-called Century series ( F-100 to F-110 ). The main task of this fighter aircraft , which was put into service in 1956, was to intercept Soviet bomber fleets . The design weaknesses of the Delta Dagger could never be eliminated, so it was replaced by the McDonnell F-101 and McDonnell Douglas F-4 from the early 1960s . Many F-102s served in the National Guard for many years before the last ones were retired in 1976. The future US President George W. Bush also flew an F-102 while serving in the National Guard.
development
The development of the F-102 goes back to the beginning of the 1950s. The aircraft was from the 1948 incurred Convair XF-92A - a prototype developed. The US Air Force went in project implementation for their new interceptor first time complete alerts over, that is, it was a complete weapon system out to tender, consisting of the turnkey hunter and his weapons. The catalog of requirements for Project MX-1554 was ready on June 18, 1950, and by January 1951 six manufacturers had submitted designs, of which Convair, Lockheed and Republic were selected to build prototypes. However, three parallel projects were too expensive for the Air Force, so only the most advanced project at the time was continued by Convair. The later F-102 was then still called Model 8-80 and was initially to receive the weaker J40 engine from Westinghouse instead of the J67 from Wright, which was still in development . The proposed F-102 had a much slimmer fuselage than the XF-92. It received a pressurized cabin with an ejector seat, a far-reaching radio measuring device and an automated navigation and fire control system.
The first YF-102 (serial number: 52-7994) made its maiden flight on October 24, 1953 at Edwards Air Force Base , but was lost in an accident nine days later. The second prototype (52-7995) flew on January 11, 1954 and confirmed the fears that the first prototype had aroused: the flight performance was below average and well below the specified requirements. The problem was solved by an aerodynamically improved fuselage designed according to the area rule . This third prototype also received more powerful engines ( Pratt & Whitney J57- P-23) and on December 19, the modified aircraft Model 8-90 flew for the first time as the YF-102A , reaching a speed of Mach 1.22 and an altitude of 53,000 feet (16,155 m). In this form, the machine formed the starting point for series production.
The first operational F-102A arrived in April 1956 for the 327th interceptor squadron at George Air Force Base, a total of 889 units were built. In addition, 111 TF-102A (two-seat training aircraft) were produced. 36 F-102A imported Turkey and 16 Greece, where they were in service until the early 1980s, while the USAF began phasing out the type as early as the 1970s. In 1973, six aircraft were converted into target drones with which Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21s were simulated.
The armament of the aircraft consisted either of six guided missiles of the type AIM-4 Falcon or three AIM-4 and one AIM-26 Falcon , which could be equipped with a nuclear warhead. In addition, there were 24 unguided rockets in the weapon bays.
The "finished" Delta Dagger still fell short of expectations, but the improvements planned for the F-102B later became part of a new aircraft, the Convair F-106 Delta Dart , which finally replaced the F-102.
Calls
On a small scale, the F-102 was used in the Vietnam War. When reports of the delivery of Il-28 bombers to the North Vietnamese Air Force became known in 1962 , the Air Force stationed F-102s in Thailand and South Vietnam. With the escalation of the conflict in 1964, the F-102 were mainly used defensively. Later it was also used for ground attacks, whereby the strong armament with the unguided FFAR missiles played a role; At times, even during night operations along the Ho Chi Minh Trail, the heat-seeking Falcon missiles, which were actually intended to be used against air targets, were fired into campfires as interference. The machines of the type were also used as escorts for B-52 bombers. In 1968 all F-102 were withdrawn from Asia. A total of 15 machines were lost in Vietnam, only one of which was shot down by an AA-2 air-to-air missile. The remaining lost machines had been destroyed by anti-aircraft fire (two), on the ground (four) and accidents (eight).
The F-102s exported to Greece and Turkey were sent on combat missions during the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974. A rumor has it that there was an aerial battle between two Turkish F-102s and two Greek F-5s . The Turkish version of the story claims that the two F-5s were shot down, the Greek version, on the other hand, speaks of one F-102 being shot down and the other falling over the Turkish mainland due to a lack of fuel. Both sides deny the respective losses to this day.
variants
- YF-102 - Ten prototypes
- YF-102A - Four revised prototypes
- F-102A - production version, 889 built
- F-102B - Improved version of the F-102A, later referred to as the F-106 Delta Dart
- YF-102C - two prototypes with J57-P-47 engines
- TF-102A - two seat trainer, 111 built
- QF-102A - Two manned target drones
- PQM-102A - unmanned target drones (approx. 200 machines)
- PQM-102B - unmanned target drones with enhanced avionics
production
Acceptance of the F-102 by the USAF:
| version | 1953 | 1954 | 1955 | 1956 | 1957 | 1958 | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| YF-102 | 2 | 8th | 10 | ||||
| YF-102A | 1 | 3 | 4th | ||||
| F-102A | 13 | 160 | 463 | 239 | 875 | ||
| TF-102A | 2 | 12 | 53 | 44 | 111 | ||
| TOTAL | 2 | 9 | 18th | 172 | 516 | 283 | 1,000 |
Technical data of the F-102A
| Parameter | Data |
|---|---|
| Type: | Interceptor |
| Length: | 20.84 m |
| Wingspan: | 11.62 m |
| Wing area: | 61.45 m² |
| Wing extension : | 2.19 |
| Wing loading : |
|
| Height: | 6.46 m |
| Empty weight: | 8,777 kg |
| Normal takeoff weight: | 10,730 kg |
| Maximum take-off weight: | 14,187 kg |
| Fuel capacity: | 4,107 l (internal) |
| Top speed: | Mach 1.23 or 1,304 km / h (at optimal altitude) |
| Rate of climb: | 66 m / s |
| Service ceiling: | 16,764 m |
| Use radius: | 1,609 km (with additional tanks) |
| Transfer range: | 2,173 km |
| Crew: | 1 pilot |
| Armament: | see text |
| Engine: | a Pratt & Whitney J57-P-25 - jet engine |
| Thrust: |
|
| Thrust-to-weight ratio : |
|
| Unit price: | US $ 1.2 million |
Armament
Ordnance of up to 2,400 kg in the three-part internal weapon bay and at two external load stations
In the three-part gun bay:
Air-to-air guided missile
- 6 × Hughes AIM-4A / E / F "Falcon" (formerly GAR-1/3) - radar-guided short-range air-to-air guided missile
- 6 × Hughes AIM-4B / G "Falcon" (formerly GAR-2/4) - infrared-guided short-range air-to-air guided missile
- 2 × Hughes AIM-26A "Falcon" (formerly GAR-11 with nuclear 1-kT warhead) - radar-guided short-range air-to-air guided missile
- 2 × Hughes AIM-26B "Falcon" (formerly GAR-11 with conventional warhead) - radar-guided short-range air-to-air guided missile
Unguided air-to-surface missiles
- 2 × rocket launchers in weapon bay flaps (for 12 × unguided FFAR air-to-ground missiles Hydra ; caliber 70 mm / 2.75 inch) (not applicable after installation of the AIM-26)
- 2 × rocket launchers in weapon bay flaps (for 12 × unguided FFAR air-to- surface missiles ; caliber 50 mm / 2.00 inch) (has been replaced by FFAR)
At two external load stations
External additional container
2 × drop-off additional tanks with 871 liters (230 US gallons) of kerosene
Users
Web links
- F-102 at joebaugher.com English
Individual evidence
- ↑ Globalsecurity.org: F-102 "Delta Dagger" (engl.) (Consulted on October 7, 2019)
- ↑ Statistical Digest of the USAF 1953, p. 185; 1954, p. 70; 1955, p. 80; 1956, p. 91; 1957, p. 97; 1958, p. 72