About Bryan Swopes
Bryan R. Swopes grew up in Southern California in the 1950s–60s, near the center of America's aerospace industry. He has had a life-long interest in aviation and space flight. Bryan is a retired commercial helicopter pilot and flight instructor.
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Is there any text other than the caption for the photo?
No. I just liked the photo. 🙂
Aren’t there 2 F models in the photo?
Good eye, Ernest! You are correct: the first one, and the second from last. I shall change to caption. Thank you.
You know, I miss the SEA camouflage scheme. I grew up on base and I was used to seeing practically everything that flew wearing it. It’s certainly more visually interesting than the current low visibility one, and as a modeller, it’s more fun to paint.
Looks like the third “Nickle” from the end is the bird on display in the air park by the main gate. There is a very nice display of past aircraft, but the F105 and the A7D are my favs. I worked on both of them many years ago in SEA and at DM.
I looked up the tail numbers as best I could make them out. It appears most of these planes went into retirement as display models.
I believe the far one, 63-4372, crashed in Norway during a NATO exercise in 1981 killing the pilot.
2nd farthest one, the F model, has its tail number partially obscured. It falls in the series 63-8281 to 63-8289. This was not a lucky stretch of numbers. Four were shot down in Vietnam and two crashed elsewhere. Of the remaining three, one was converted to F-105G, retired to MASDC, and then to Davis Monthan AFB (for display?). Another went on display at Octave Chanute Aerospace Museum, Rantoul IL. The last one went to MASDC, no further info.
The third one from far end, 62-4360, is listed as on display at Tinker AFB, just as David Castiaux noted. I was stationed at Tinker from 82 to 86, I wonder if it was there then?
Next to it, 61-108, converted to GF-105D (G meaning ground trainer, not flyable) and used at Lackland AFB for Security Forces training. Later moved to Palm Springs Air Museum, painted in Vietnam era scheme and put on display.
5th from far end 61-069 listed as on a pole display between Omaha and Lincoln Nebraska (SAC Museum?)
61-115 spent some time at Lackland, then went to Haralson County Veteran’s Association in Georgia for display.
61-061 went to MASDC, now AMARG – the Boneyard.
61-084 also went to MASDC.
61-099 went to an air museum at Aurora Municipal Airport in Illinois.
63-8331, the F model in the foreground, first went to MASDC, then to the Pacific Coast Air Museum in Santa Rosa California.
Thank you for your research, Eric. It is nice to know that at least some of these remarkable aircraft still exist. The F-105 suffered such high combat and operational losses, which I think reflects on the very dangerous missions it performed rather than any problem with the aircraft itself. (One crashed less than two miles from where I am now sitting, 2 March 1978.)
My name is Barrie Gibson and I was one of the Regular Air Force Advisors working with the 507th AFRES folks when these aircraft first arrived at Tinker. It was a bit of a challenge for the major change from their previous planes (I believe they may have been C-124s) but they were up and running in very little time. Spent two years ’72-’74 training the Fire Control (WCS) team. Very much miss working the nickles.
….worked to death in IndoChina, literally.