Tony LeVier and the first prototype Lockheed XP-80A, 44-83021, in flight over southern California’s high desert, 1945. (Lockheed Martin)Anthony W. (“Tony”) LeVier
20 March 1945: Tony LeVier was conducting a test flight of the first prototype Lockheed XP-80A, 44-83021, near Muroc Army Air Field (now known as Edwards Air Force Base).
The XP-80A was developed from the original XP-80 prototype, but was larger to incorporate a more powerful General Electric I-40 turbojet engine in place of the original Allis-Chalmers J36 (a license-built version of the British Halford H.1B).
The I-40 was a single-shaft turbojet which used a double-inlet, single-stage, centrifugal-flow compressor, fourteen straight-through combustors and a single-stage axial-flow turbine. The engine had a maximum speed of 11,500 r.p.m. and produced 4,000 pounds of thrust (17.79 kilonewtons). The I-40 was 48 inches (1.22 meters) in diameter and weighed 1,820 pounds (826 kilograms). The I-40 would be produced by Allison Division of General Motors as the J33 series.
General Electric I-40 turbojet engine cross section. (NASA)
At 15,000 feet (4,572 meters), LeVier put the XP-80A into a dive, intending to level off at 10,000 feet (3,048 meters) for a high-speed run. However, at 11,000 feet (3,353 meters), the single-stage turbine inside the jet engine failed and fragments tore through the prototype’s fuselage. The tail section of the airplane was cut off and the XP-80A went out of control.
An example of a turbine failure in a Lockheed P-80. (San Diego Air and Space Museum)
The XP-80A was not equipped with an ejection seat and LeVier had difficulty getting out, but finally escaped at about 4,000 feet (1,219 meters).
44-83021 crashed near the town of Rosamond and was completely destroyed. Tony LeVier’s parachute was swinging and he was severely injured when he hit the ground. His injuries kept him from flying for the next six months.
Lockheed XP-80A 44-83021 (U.S. Air Force)
The Lockheed XP-80A was a single-place, single engine prototype fighter. It was 34 feet, 6 inches (10.516 meters) long with a wingspan of 39 feet, 0 inches (11.887 meters) and overall height of 11 feet, 4 inches (3.454 meters). It had an empty weight of 7,225 pounds (3,277 kilograms) and gross weight of 9,600 pounds (4,354 kilograms).
Armament consisted of six Browning .50-caliber AN-M2 machine guns with 300 rounds of ammunition per gun.
Two XP-80As were built. These were followed by twelve YP-80A Shooting Star service test aircraft. The Lockheed P-80A Shooting Star was ordered into production with an initial contract for 500 aircraft. This was soon followed by a second order for 2,500 fighters.
Wreckage of XP-80A 44-83021 loaded on a flat bed trailer. (U.S. Air Force)
Lockheed XF-104 prototype, 53-7786, photographed 5 March 1954. (Lockheed Martin)
4 March 1954: Lockheed test pilot Anthony W. LeVier takes the prototype XF-104 Starfighter, 53-7786, for its first flight at Edwards Air Force Base in the high desert of southern California. The airplane’s landing gear remained extended throughout the flight, which lasted about twenty minutes.
Lockheed XF-104 53-7786 rolling out on Rogers Dry Lake, Edwards Air Force Base, California. This photograph shows how short the XF-104 was in comparison to the production F-104A. Because of the underpowered J65-B-3 engine, there are no shock cones in the engine inlets. (U.S. Air Force via Jet Pilot Overseas)
Designed by the legendary Kelly Johnson, the XF-104 was a prototype Mach 2+ interceptor and was known in the news media of the time as “the missile with a man in it.”
Tony LeVier was a friend of my mother’s family and a frequent visitor to their home in Whittier, California.
Legendary aircraft designer Clarence L. “Kelly” Johnson shakes hands with test pilot Tony LeVier after the first flight of the XF-104 at Edwards Air Force Base. (Lockheed via Mühlböck collection)
There were two Lockheed XF-104 prototypes. Initial flight testing was performed with 083-1001 (USAF serial number 53-7786). The second prototype, 083-1002 (53-7787) was the armament test aircraft. Both were single-seat, single-engine supersonic interceptor prototypes.
The wing of the Lockheed XF-104 was very thin, with leading and trailing edge flaps and ailerons. (San Diego Air & Space Museum)
The XF-104 was 49 feet, 2 inches (14.986 meters) long with a wingspan of 21 feet, 11 inches (6.680 meters) and overall height of 13 feet, 6 inches (4.115 meters). The wings had 10° anhedral. The prototypes had an empty weight of 11,500 pounds (5,216 kilograms) and maximum takeoff weight of 15,700 pounds (7,121 kilograms).
Lockheed XF-104 53-7786 (San Diego Air & Space Museum)
The production aircraft was planned for a General Electric J79 afterburning turbojet but that engine would not be ready soon enough, so both prototypes were designed to use a Buick-built J65-B-3, a licensed version of the British Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire turbojet engine. The J65-B-3 was a single-shaft axial-flow turbojet with a 13-stage compressor section and 2-stage turbine. It produced 7,200 pounds of thrust (32.03 kilonewtons) at 8,200 r.p.m. The J65-B-3 was 9 feet, 7.0 inches (2.921 meters) long, 3 feet, 1.5 inches (0.953 meters) in diameter, and weighed 2,696 pounds (1,223 kilograms).
On 15 March 1955, XF-104 53-7786 reached a maximum speed of Mach 1.79 (1,181 miles per hour, 1,900 kilometers per hour), at 60,000 feet (18,288 meters).
XF-104 53-7786 was destroyed 11 July 1957 when the vertical fin was ripped off by uncontrollable flutter. The pilot, William C. Park, safely ejected.
Lockheed XF-104 53-7786 with wingtip fuel tanks. (Lockheed Martin)
Lockheed XF-104 53-7786 with wingtip fuel tanks. Compare these finned tanks to those in the image above. (Lockheed Martin)
Lockheed Martin has an excellent color video of the XF-104 first flight on their web site at:
Lockheed XF-104 Starfighter 083-1002, serial number 53-7787, the second prototype, in flight near Edwards AFB. (U.S. Air Force)
5 October 1954: Chief Engineering Test Pilot Tony LeVier made the first flight in the second prototype Lockheed XF-104 Starfighter, 53-7787, at Edwards Air Force Base in the high desert of southern California. This was the armament test aircraft and was equipped with a General Electric T171 Vulcan 20mm Gatling gun. This six-barreled gun was capable of firing at a rate of 6,000 rounds per minute.
The XF-104 was 49 feet, 2 inches (14.986 meters) long with a wingspan of 21 feet, 11 inches (6.680 meters) and overall height of 13 feet, 6 inches (4.115 meters). The prototypes had an empty weight of 11,500 pounds (5,216 kilograms) and maximum takeoff weight of 15,700 pounds (7,121 kilograms).
While the first prototype, 53-7776, was equipped with a Buick J65-B-3 turbojet engine, the second used a Wright Aeronautical Division J65-W-6 with afterburner. Both were improved derivatives of the Armstrong Siddely Sa.6 Sapphire, built under license. The J65 was a single-shaft axial-flow turbojet with a 13-stage compressor and 2-stage turbine. The J65-B-3 was rated at 7,330 pounds of thrust, and the J65-W-6, rated at 7,800 pounds (34.70 kilonewtons), and 10,500 pounds (46.71 kilonewtons) with afterburner.
The XF-104 had a maximum speed of 1,324 miles per hour (2,131 kilometers per hour), a range of 800 miles (1,287 kilometers) and a service ceiling of 50,500 feet (15,392 meters).
53-7787 was lost 19 April 1955 when it suffered explosive decompression at 47,000 feet (14,326 meters) during a test of the T171 Vulcan gun system. The lower escape hatch had come loose due to an inadequate latching mechanism. Lockheed test pilot Herman R. (“Fish”) Salmon was unable to find a suitable landing area and ejected at 250 knots (288 miles per hour/463 kilometers per hour) and 15,000 feet (4,572 meters). The XF-104 crashed 72 miles (117 kilometers) east-northeast of Edwards Air Force Base. Salmon was found two hours later, uninjured, about 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) from the crash site.
Tony LeVier with the XF-104 armament test prototype, 53-7787, at Edwards AFB, 1954. LeVier is wearing a David Clark Co. T-1 capstan-type partial-pressure suit with K-1 helmet. (U.S. Air Force)
The YF-104A pre-production aircraft and subsequent F-104A production aircraft had many improvements over the two XF-104 prototypes. The fuselage was lengthened 5 feet, 6 inches (1.68 meters). The J65 engine was replaced with a more powerful General Electric J79-GE-3 turbojet. There were fixed inlet cones added to control airflow into the engines. A ventral fin was added to improve stability.
Lockheed F-104A-15-LO Starfighters 56-0769 and 56-0781. (Lockheed Martin)
Flight and chase crew for the first flight of the Lockheed CL-329 Jetstar, N329J. Left to right: Robert Schumacher, copilot; Ernest L. Joiner, flight test engineer; Clarence L. “Kelly” Johnson, designer; Jim Wood (USAF Flight Test), Ray Jewett Goudey, Pilot, and Tony LeVier, Chief Test Pilot, chase plane for the first flight). (Lockheed Martin)
4 September 1957: At 8:58 a.m., the first prototype Lockheed JetStar, N329J, c/n 1001, took off from Edwards Air Force Base in the high desert of Southern California. In the cockpit were Lockheed test pilots Ray J. Goudey, pilot, with Bob Schumacher, co-pilot. After a 39 minute flight, the JetStar landed back at Edwards. Test pilot Tony LeVier flew chase in a Lockheed T2V-1 SeaStar, an advanced naval variant of the Lockheed T-33A Shooting Star.
The Los Angeles Times reported:
New JetStar Plane Takes to Air Ahead of Deadline
Lockheed’s new JetStar turbine-powered utility transport was test-flown for 39 minutes yesterday out of Edwards Air Force Base.
With Pilots Ray Goudey and Robert Schumacher at the controls, the twin-engine, 10-passenger jet lifted off the runway just two minutes ahead of a deadline set 241 days ago when engineering started on the 500-m.p.h. aircraft.
The pilots described the flight as “silky smooth” and added the JetStar showed ample speed, responsive handling and remarkably low sound levels in both cabin and cockpit.
Easy of Access
A unique feature of the swept-wing plane is the location of its Bristol Orpheus engines (totaling 10,000 thrust pounds) mounted in pods on both sides of the rear fuselage aft of the wing. This position places them well clear of passengers and fuel areas and permits an uncluttered wing configuration and easy accessibility for maintenance.
The new transport is 58 feet long, spans 53 feet (with a 34-deg. sweep angle) measures 21 feet in over-all height and incorporates a horizontal stabilizer mounted high on teh vertical fin and clear of jet exhaust.
1700-Mile Range
Pressurized and designed for a range of 1700 miles and a cruising altitude of 40,000 feet, the JetStar was designed and built with Lockheed funds after the Air Force reported a need for a small, fast transport for utility passenger and cargo work and trainer operations.
Expansion of the project beyond the prototype stage depends on military acceptance of the plane.
—Los Angeles Times, Vol. LXXVI, Thursday Morning, September 5, 1957, at Page 15, Columns 1 and 2
Two CL-329 JetStar prototypes were built at the Lockheed plant at Burbank, California. All production aircraft were built at Lockheed Marietta in Georgia.
The Lockheed CL-329 JetStar was 58 feet, 10 inches (17.932 meters) long with a wingspan of 53 feet, 8 inches (16.3358 meters) and height of 20 feet, 6 inches (6.248 meters). It had a wing area of 523.00 square feet (48.59 square meters). The CL-329 had an empty weight of 15,139 pounds (6,867 kilograms) and gross weight of 38,841 pounds (17,618 kilograms).
The JetStar I wing leading edges were swept 33° (30° sweep at ¼-chord). The had 2° dihedral and an aspect ratio of 5.3. The wings incorporated a leading edge flap and double-slotted trailing edge flap. For roll control, the wing used ailerons. There were no spoilers. The vertical fin could pivot fore and aft to change the horizontal stabilizer’s angle of incidence.
The CL-329 was powered by two Bristol Siddeley Engines Ltd. Orpheus BOr.3 Mk.803 turbojet engines. (These were produced as the Wright TJ37A1.) The Mk. 803 was rated at 4,130 pounds of thrust (18.37 kilonewtons), and 4,850 (21.57 kilonewtons) at Sea Level for takeoff; later, BOr.3 Orpheus Mk.810D engines were installed These were rated at 4,850 pounds (21.57 kilonewtons.) Each engine had a dry weight of 990 pounds (449 kilograms).
The second JetStar prototype would be powered by four Pratt & Whitney JT12 engines.
The CL-329 had a cruise speed of 613 miles per hour (987 kilometers per hour). Its maximum speed was630 miles per hour (1,014 kilometers per hour), or 0.92 Mach. The airplane’s ceiling was 52,000 feet (15,850 meters), and its range was 1,725 miles (2,776 kilometers).
Performance, stability and control tests for the prototype Lockheed CL-329 JetStar began at Edwards Air Force Base, California, 27 February 1958. This aircraft is JetStar 6 N9202R, c/n 5002. (United States Air Force 170303-F-ZZ999-999)Lockheed Model CL-329 JetStar prototype, N329J, c/n 1001, forced landing, Northridge, California, 26 April 1962.Ray Jewett Goudey, 1940
Ray Jewett Goudey was born at Los Angeles, California, 25 September 1921. He was the first of six children of Raymond Freeman Goudey, a municipal sanitation engineer, and Gladys Ellen Jewett Goudey. Ray attended John Marshall High School in Los Angeles, graduating in 1940.
Ray Goudey learned to fly in 1937. He earned his commercial and flight instructor licenses in 1939, and Airline Transport Pilot license in 1943.
From 1940 through 1942, Goudey was a flight instructor for United Flying Schools at Vail Field, Montebello, California.
On 25 September 1942, Ray Goudey registered for Selective Service (conscription). He was described as having a dark complexion, black hair and hazel eyes. Goudey was 5 feet, 11 inches (1.80 meters) tall and weighed 150 pounds (68 kilograms).
Ray J. Goudey was commissioned an ensign, United States Navy, 22 June 1943. During World War II, he served as an acceptance pilot for the Navy at the Grumman, Chance Vought, and Curtiss production plants, and the Naval Aircraft Factory.
Lieutenant (j.g.) Ray Goudey married Mrs. Crystal Relph Tanner, 12 December 1945. They would have six children. They divorced in April 1966.
Ensign Ray Jewett Goudey, United States Naval Reserve.
Lt. (j.g.) Goudey was promoted to lieutenant, 19 November 1948.
Ray Goudey was hired as a test pilot for Lockheed in 1952.
Goudey married Jeanette Nelson in Reno, Nevada, 29 September 1993.
Ray Goudey flew 258 different aircraft, including 74 Lockheed models. He was the third pilot to fly the Lockheed XF-104 Starfighter, and was the development test pilot for that program. Goudey flew the XF-104 to Mach 1.75 in 1954. He conducted flight tests of the F-80A and T-33A Shooting Star and the F-94 Starfire interceptor. He flew the Lockheed U-2 for more than 2,200 hours. He served as an engineering test pilot on the Lockheed L-188 Electra, the RC-121 Warning Star, the P-3A and P-3B Orion maritime patrol bomber, and the S-3A Viking anti-submarine warfare aircraft. Goudey was also a helicopter pilot, flying Lockheed’s CL-475, XH-51A, CL-126 and L-286, and the AH-56A Cheyenne compound attack helicopter. Goudey conducted most of the flight testing of the S-3A Viking. He was involved in many Skunk Works programs, including the Have Blue stealth fighter prototype.
Goudey had in excess of 23,708 flight hours. (He was not allowed to log approximately 1,000 hours flown while working with the Central Intelligence Agency.)
Ray Jewett Goudey died 28 February 2019 at the age of 97 years. His remains were interred at the Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia.
“The first three production JetStar executive transports, along with the second JetStar prototype (white tail, registered N329K) sit on the Lockheed-Georgia Company flightline in Marietta, Georgia, in 1960. Officially designated JetStar 6, a total of eighty aircraft were built, but many were later upgraded as JetStar 8s or JetStar 731s. After the test program was completed, the JetStar at the bottom (N9201R) was delivered to the Federal Aviation Administration while the aircraft next to it went to NASA. In the background at the left is the C-130B Hercules modified as a boundary layer air control test aircraft (US Air Force serial number 58-0712) while at right is the second US Marine Corps KC-130F tanker (US Navy Bureau Number 147573) built.” (Lockheed Martin/Code One Magazine)
1 August 1955: Test pilot Anthony W. LeVier made the first flight flight of the Lockheed U-2 high-altitude reconnaissance airplane at Groom Lake, Nevada. LeVier was conducting taxi tests in preparation for the planned first flight a few days away, when at 70 knots the U-2 unexpectedly became airborne.
LeVier later said, “I had no intentions whatsoever of flying. I immediately started back toward the ground, but had difficutly determining my height because the lakebed had no markings to judge distance or height. I made contact with the ground in a left bank of approximately 10 degrees.”
On touching down on the dry lake, the U-2’s tires blew out and the brakes caught fire. A landing gear oleostrut was leaking. Damage was minor and the airplane was soon ready to fly. Tony LeVier was again in the cockpit for the first actual test flight on 4 August.
The Lockheed U-2A is a single-place, single-engine aircraft powered by a turbojet engine, intended for very high altitude photographic reconnaissance. Thirty U-2A aircraft were designed and built for the Central Intelligence Agency by Lockheed Aircraft Corporation’s secret “Skunk Works” under the supervision of Clarence L. “Kelly” Johnson.
Lockheed U-2, “Article 341,” at Groom Lake, Nevada, 1955. (Lockheed Martin)
The company designation for the proposed aircraft was CL-282. Its fuselage was very similar to the XF-104 Starfighter and could be built using the same tooling. The reconnaissance airplane was produced under the code name Operation AQUATONE.
The U-2A was 46 feet, 6 inches (14.173 meters) long with a wingspan of 80 feet (24.384 meters). Its empty weight was 10,700 pounds (5,307 kilograms) and the gross weight was 16,000 pounds (7,257 kilograms). The engine was a Pratt and Whitney J57-P-37A which produced 10,200 pounds of thrust. This gave the U-2A a maximum speed of 528 miles per hour (850 kilometers per hour) and a ceiling of 85,000 feet (25,908 meters). It had a range of 2,200 miles (3,541 kilometers).
Because of the very high altitudes that the U-2 was flown, the pilot had to wear a David Clark Co. MC-3 partial-pressure suit with an International Latex Corporation MA-2 helmet and faceplate. The partial-pressure suit used a system of capstans and air bladders to apply pressure to the body as a substitute for a loss of atmospheric pressure. Each suit was custom-tailored for the individual pilot.
Robert Sieker
On 4 April 1957, Article 341 was flown by Lockheed test pilot Robert Sieker. At 72,000 feet (21,946 meters) the engine flamed out and the cockpit pressurization failed. Parts of the U-2 had been coated with a plastic material designed to absorb radar pulses to provide a “stealth” capability. However, this material acted as insulation, trapping heat from the engine inside the fuselage. This lead to a number of engine flameouts.
Sieker’s partial-pressure suit inflated, but the helmet’s faceplate did not properly seal. He lost conciousness and at 65,000 feet (19,812 meters) the U-2 stalled, then entered a flat spin. Sieker eventually regained consciousness at lower altitude and bailed out. He was struck by the airplane’s tail and was killed. The first U-2 crashed northwest of Pioche, Nevada, and caught fire. Robert Sieker’s body was found approximately 200 feet (61 meters) away.
Because of the slow rate of descent of the airplane while in a flat spin, the impact was not severe. Portions of Article 341 that were not damaged by fire were salvaged by Lockheed and used to produce another airframe.
The first Lockheed U-2, “Article 341.” (Lockheed Martin)
The Lockheed XP-80A was a single-place, single engine prototype fighter. It was 34 feet, 6 inches (10.516 meters) long with a wingspan of 39 feet, 0 inches (11.887 meters) and overall height of 11 feet, 4 inches (3.454 meters). It had an empty weight of 7,225 pounds (3,277 kilograms) and gross weight of 9,600 pounds (4,354 kilograms).
