F-84F
Thunderstreak
Manufacturer:
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Republic Aviation Corp.
November 22, 1952
33 ft. 7 in..
43 ft. 5 in.
14 ft. 5 in.
13,830 lbs.(empty), 28,000 lbs.(max takeoff)
695 mph
535 mph
810 mi. (combat radius with 2 droptanks)
46,000 ft.
1x Wright J65-W-3 turbojet, 7,220 lbs. thrust
1
6x .50 cal. Browning M3 machine guns, up to
6,000lbs. of rockets & bombs,including one
Mark 7 nuclear bomb
The Republic F-84F Thunderstreak was an American-built swept-wing turbojet fighter-bomber. While an evolutionary development of the straight-wing F-84 Thunderjet, the F-84F was a new design. The RF-84F Thunderflash was a photo reconnaissance version.
In 1949, a swept wing version of the F-84 was created with the hope of bringing performance to the level of the F-86. The last production F-84E was fitted with a swept tail, a new wing, and a J35-A-25 engine producing 5,300 pound-force of thrust. The aircraft was designated XF-96A. It flew on 3 June 1950. Although the airplane was capable of 602 knots (693 mph) the performance gain over the F-84E was considered minor. Nonetheless, it was ordered into production in July 1950 as the F-84F Thunderstreak. The F-84 designation was retained because the fighter was expected to be a low-cost improvement of the straight-wing Thunderjet with over 55 percent commonality in tooling.
Production delays with the F-84F forced the USAF to order a number of straight-wing F-84Gs as an interim measure. Delays were caused by several factors. Although tooling commonality with the Thunderjet was supposed to be 55 percent, in reality only fifteen percent of tools could be reused. To make matters worse, the F-84F utilized press-forged wing spars and ribs. At the time, only three presses in the United States could manufacture these, and priority was given to the Boeing B-47 Stratojet bomber over the F-84. The YJ65-W-1 engine was considered obsolete and the improved J65-W-3 did not become available until 1954. The first production F-84F finally flew on 22 November 1952 but suffered from control and stability problems. These problems were addressed and the F-84F was not declared operational until 12 May 1954.
In what is probably one of the very few air-to-air engagements involving the F-84F, two Turkish Air Force F-84F Thunderstreaks shot down two Iraqi Il-28 Beagle bombers that crossed the Turkish border by mistake during a bombing operation against Iraqi Kurdish insurgents. This engagement took place on 16 August 1962. The F-84F was utilized in the Korean War.
Courtesy: Wikipedia
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