F-105 and 'Nam

woutlaw said:
I feel the same way, which got me thinking.

20-30 years from now, pilots will be saying "Man, I was born 30 years too late. Remember the F-22, now that was old skool. It actually had a man inside of it. Now that was flying."

And then they'll leave the house, drive to their remote operator job and go to war in 12-hour shifts.
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Yeah, all 50 of them (pilots), because we won't be able to afford to buy any more aircraft than that.
 
bunk22 said:
I always felt I was born about 20-30 years too late.
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60 years too late for me.

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Hacker15e said:
60 years too late for me.

10.jpg
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Well, if we're going even further back, then I too was born too late:

corsair.jpg


Know when the F4U Corsair and P-51 Mustang actually dueled as enemies? The Corsair came out on top but of course that was more due to the pilot than aircraft.
 
bunk22 said:
Well, if we're going even further back, then I too was born too late:

corsair.jpg


Know when the F4U Corsair and P-51 Mustang actually dueled as enemies? The Corsair came out on top but of course that was more due to the pilot than aircraft.
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That would be the -69 Soccer war with Honduras and El Salvador.

How about -109s against Mustangs after WWII? Or at least -109s knock-offs.
 
bunk22 said:
Know when the F4U Corsair and P-51 Mustang actually dueled as enemies? The Corsair came out on top but of course that was more due to the pilot than aircraft.
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June 1969, over Honduras.

The FAH Corsair shot down the El Salvador Cavalier Mustang II FAS 404.
 
Great show, Mike.

Old photos like that always make me nostalgic.

As for old warbirds... if I had my druthers, I'd have flown the Jug.

She wasn't much to look at, but she was terror to anything on the ground, a dream to handle, and if you could make it home, she'd get you there.

I met a guy that flew the P-47 in Europe in WWII at the museum at Dallas Love a few years ago. He showed me some documentation detailing the incredibly mind-blowing amount of enemy equipment his squadron destroyed in an equally impressive small amount of time.

Then, he showed me a little plastic baggie. The baggie had the bullet fragments removed from him after he got hit during a mission by small arms fire.

I was very proud to shake his hand.

p-47-PICT1838.jpg
 
Firebird2XC said:
a dream to handle
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Just out of curiosity, in what way was the Jug 'a dream'? Stability? Roll rate? Turn rate? Acceleration? Ride quality? Weapons platform stability? And, more importantly, compared to what?

I haven't had the chance to fly one, so I dunno.
 
MikeD said:
Old.

School.

The USAF as it used to be, and never will be again unfortunately.

You'll see in these slideshows of the F-105 wings at Korat/Takhli, Thailand during Vietnam, that it was a big deal to finish 100 missions against the toughest Integrated Air Defense System in the world at the time, and still make it home, much less to 100 missions. Considering that the US Lost over 400+ F-105s in Vietnam (nearly 50% of the number built), it's no surprise that an event like this was such a big event....as the slideshow shows, so many people would show up to greet the survivor, parade, fire truck washdowns, celebratory cannon burst, tossed into a pool. you never truly knew if that day's mission was going to be your last. And with fairly high loss rates during the Rolling Thunder years, you had a very good chance of either being dead, or a longtime resident of the Hanoi Hilton. Couple that with BS rules of engagement that put the pilots at a disadvantage, lousy politically-driven tactics, and no will to win from the government; and its no wonder there was the well-earned and appropriate "don't give a crap" attitude. All they really had were themselves and their fellow aircrews to depend on.

When squadron ready rooms had Playboy centerfolds adorning the walls, and squadron bars were true bars.....not "heritage rooms".

On the first set, the 105 with the 3 MiG kills is very full up.

http://www.burrusspta.org/slideshowtest.html

See if you can spot the F-105 on the tanker, with the tan portion of the camo shaped like a woman lying on her back with legs spread, and the AR receptacle between her legs....lol.

http://www.burrusspta.org/slideshowtest2.html

Was a different time in the AF........definitely had its issues just as it does today, but we have 10 times the amount of BS and little of the heritage anymore. Just alot of rank stupidity.
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This is why I have decided to get PRK and try for the Navy or Marines. I already saw enough in ROTC, that I cannot even imagine once you are actually in it is like.

With the great "leaders" they are creating it will be interesting how long it will take before the AF collapses all together :insane:
 
I'm afraid that political BS is something that you cannot escape in any branch of the service. Sure, there may be more of it in one branch vs. another, but you can't escape it.
 
Hacker15e said:
Don't mistake anything you saw in ROTC as being indicative of anything on active duty.

ROTC is a bizarre being in and of itself that was strange and idiotic well before the rest of the AF was.
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Yeah, I can understand that. I just question how good of officers most of the people that were in my detachment will be. I am sure they will be the next group of remf pieces of sh..

Wing_96 said:
I'm afraid that political BS is something that you cannot escape in any branch of the service. Sure, there may be more of it in one branch vs. another, but you can't escape it.
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Yeah, such is the times I suppose, welcome to politically correct fake America.

Through research it seems I may have a better shot at fighters in the Navy so that is why I want to go that route. I am expecting a large amount of BS if I am even able to pull this off.
 
Hacker15e said:
Just out of curiosity, in what way was the Jug 'a dream'? Stability? Roll rate? Turn rate? Acceleration? Ride quality? Weapons platform stability? And, more importantly, compared to what?

I haven't had the chance to fly one, so I dunno.
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Good point. I haven't flown it either, so if it seemed I spoke as if I had knowledge of it, I didn't mean it that way.

I just speak of the reputation she had with the pilots who flew her.

She was the B-1900D of the war, if you will.
 
challenger said:
This is why I have decided to get PRK and try for the Navy or Marines. I already saw enough in ROTC, that I cannot even imagine once you are actually in it is like.

With the great "leaders" they are creating it will be interesting how long it will take before the AF collapses all together :insane:
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Agree with Hacker, ROTC is nothing like the real military. I earned my commission via UCLA NROTC and though it was fun, it was not the Navy. The Navy sucks ass in many ways too, just fyi.
 
The P-47 had a few innovations such as rudder pedals that could be folded down to afford more room on long escort flights, air conditioning and (not an innovation but) the radial engine could take punishment that would cause the Merlin-powered P-51 to become a glider. Also, with 8 .50 cal guns, it would shred whatever in the pipper. It also had quite a few hard points which was good and bad. Good in that it could carry a lot of stuff but bad in that it meant the airplane spent a lot of time in ground attack, fun if you came back, not fun if you got tagged.

Reportedly it was a very comfortable cockpit and more -47s were built than P-51s or P-38s. The ultimate was the P-47N
 
Orange Anchor said:
The P-47 had a few innovations such as rudder pedals that could be folded down to afford more room on long escort flights, air conditioning and (not an innovation but) the radial engine could take punishment that would cause the Merlin-powered P-51 to become a glider. Also, with 8 .50 cal guns, it would shred whatever in the pipper. It also had quite a few hard points which was good and bad. Good in that it could carry a lot of stuff but bad in that it meant the airplane spent a lot of time in ground attack, fun if you came back, not fun if you got tagged.

Reportedly it was a very comfortable cockpit and more -47s were built than P-51s or P-38s. The ultimate was the P-47N
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Aye. Having developed a certain degree of respect and admiration for the 'crunchies' on the ground, Close Air Support is where it's at, baby.
 
Also, the razorback canopy P-47s (like the one pictured) had a cool look to them.
 
MikeD said:
Also, the razorback canopy P-47s (like the one pictured) had a cool look to them.
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According to various sources, there is only 1 Razorback still flying. The Tennessee air museum has two -47s flying and they are within about 50 numbers from the same production plant. They are, however, not 'razorbacks'.
 
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