Daily Archives: February 2, 2024

2 February 1982

Aviation, , , , , , , ,
An Aeroflot Mil Mi-26 at Farnborough, 1984.
An Aeroflot Mil Mi-26 at Farnborough, 1984. (MilborneOne)

2–4 February 1982: Over a three-day period, several flight crews set a series of Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) payload-to-altitude world records at Podmoskovnoe. They flew an OKB Mil Design Bureau Mi-26 heavy lift helicopter.

Летчик-испытатель Г.Р.Карапетян в кабине вертолета Ми-26. (Test pilot GR Karapetyan in the cockpit of the Mi-26 helicopter.)

On 2 February, Gurgen Rubenovich Karapetian and Y. Chapaev flew to 6,400 meters (20,997 feet) with a 10,000 kilogram (22,046.2 pound) payload.¹

The OKB Mil Design Bureau’s Mi-26 is the world’s largest helicopter. It is a twin-engine, single main rotor/tail rotor helicopter with fixed tricycle landing gear. It is normally operated by two pilots, a navigator, flight engineer and flight technician, and can carry as many as 90 passengers.

The Mi-26 has an overall length with rotors turning of 40.025 meters (131 feet, 3.8 inches) and height of 8.145 meters (26 feet, 8.7 inches). The main rotor has a diameter of 32.00 meters (104 feet, 11.8 inches). The helicopter has an empty weight of 28,200 kilograms (62,170 pounds) and maximum takeoff weight of 56,000 kilograms (123,459 pounds).

The eight-blade fully-articulated main rotor system turns clockwise at 132 r.p.m. (the advancing blade is on the left). A five-blade tail rotor is mounted on the right side of a pylon in a pusher configuration. The tail rotor turns clockwise as seen from the helicopter’s left side (the advancing blade is below the axis of rotation).

Power is supplied by two Lotarev D-136 turboshaft engines producing 8,500 kW (11,399 shaft horsepower), each.

The cruise speed of the Mi-26 is 255 kilometers per hour (158 miles per hour) and maximum speed is 295 kilometers per hour (183 miles per hour). The hover ceiling, out of ground effect (HOGE), is 1,800 meters (5,905 feet), and the service ceiling is 4,600 meters (15,092 feet), though on 2 February 1982, test pilot Gurgen Karapetyan, who flew with Grishchenko at Chernobyl, flew an Mi-26 to 6,400 meters (20,997 feet) carrying a 10,000 kilogram (22,046 pound) payload.¹ The maximum payload is 20,000 kilograms (44,092 pounds). The helicopter’s range, carrying an 18,000 kilogram (39,683 pounds) payload is 670 kilometers (416 miles).

The Mi-26 first flew in 1977. Production began in 1980. The helicopter remains in service with both military and civil operators.

Gurgen Rubenovich Karapetyan, Hero of the Soviet Union
Gurgen Rubenovich Karapetyan, Hero of the Soviet Union.

Gurgen Rubenovich Karapetyan (Гурген Рубенович Карапетян) was born 9 December 1936 in what is now Ekaterinberg, Sverdlovsk, Russia. He learned to fly a Polikarkpov Po-2 (NATO identifier, “Mule”) at the Sverdlovsk flying club at the age of 15.

Karapetyan served in the Soviet Air Force from 1956 to 1963. His rank was first lieutenant. An uncle advised him to attend the Moscow Aviation Institute, and he graduated in 1961. He worked as an engineer at Mil Design Bureau and then attended test pilot school. From 1962 to 1993, Karapetyan was a test pilot for the Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant, becoming the chief test pilot in 1974.

Gurgen Rubenovich Karapetyan

In April 1986, along with Anatoly Demyanovich Grishchenko, Gurgen Karapetyan flew a Mil Mi-26 helicopter dropping loads of sand and wet cement on the wreckage of the Chernobyl Reactor Number 4, which had been destroyed by an explosion. Carrying 15 ton loads suspended from an 800-foot (244 meters) cable, they made repeated trips while flying through the radioactive gases released from the plant. Grishchenko later died as a result of radiation exposure.

On 24 January 1993, President Mikhail Gorbachev named Karapetyan a Hero of the Soviet Union. He was twice awarded the Order of Lenin, and is an Honored Test Pilot of the Soviet Union.

Gurgen Karapetyan has set 10 world records in helicopters. He has flown more than 5,500 hours in 39 helicopter types. Now retired, he lives in Moscow.

¹ FAI Record File Number 9902

© 2019, Bryan R. Swopes

2 February 1974

Aviation, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
General Dynamics YF-16 Fighting Falcon 72-1567, 2 February 1974. (U.S. Air Force 071202-F-9999J-029)

2 February 1974: Test pilot Philip F. Oestricher made the first test flight of the General Dynamics YF-16 Light Weight Fighter prototype, 72-1567, at Edwards Air Force Base, California. During the 90-minute flight the airplane reached 400 knots (740.8 kilometers per hour) and 30,000 feet (9,144 meters).

Built at Fort Worth, Texas, the prototype rolled out 13 December 1973. It was loaded aboard a Lockheed C-5A Galaxy heavy-lift transport and was flown to Edwards. During high-speed taxi tests on 20 January 1974 the YF-16 began to oscillate in the roll axis, threatening to touch the wingtips to the ground.

Philip F. Oestricher, General Dynamics test pilot. (Photograph courtesy of Neil Corbett, Test and Research Pilots, Flight Test Engineers)

To prevent damage, Phil Oestricher lifted off to regain control and after six minutes, touched down again.

The airplane had sustained damage to the right horizontal stabilizer. Engineers determined that the airplane’s roll control was too sensitive, and that the exhaust nozzle was improperly wired, resulting in too much thrust at low throttle settings. The YF-16 was repaired and was ready for its first test flight on 2 February.

A prototype YF-16 during a test flight, March 1973. Edwards Air Force Base is visible under the airplane's left wing. (Lockheed Martin)
The first prototype YF-16, 72-1567, during a test flight, March 1974. Edwards Air Force Base is visible under the airplane’s left wing. (Lockheed Martin)

The two YF-16 prototypes competed against the Northrop YF-17 for the role of the Air Force and NATO light weight fighter program. The YF-16 was selected and single-seat F-16A and two-seat F-16B fighters were ordered. The YF-17 was developed into the U.S. Navy’s F/A-18 Hornet.

Phil Oestricher in the cockpit of the first General Dynamics YF-16 Light Weight Fighter prototype at Carswell Air Force Base, Texas, December 1972.
Phil Oestricher in the cockpit of the first General Dynamics YF-16 Light Weight Fighter prototype at Carswell Air Force Base, Texas, December 1973. (Lockheed Martin)

The F-16 was designed to be a highly-maneuverable, light weight air superiority day fighter, but it has evolved into a multi-role fighter/fighter bomber with all weather attack capability.

The F-16 (now, a Lockheed Martin product) remains in production, with more than 4,500 having been built in the United States and under license in Europe. The United States Air Force has more than 1,200 F-16s in service.

A U.S. Air Force F-16C Block 50D Fighting Falcon, serial number 91-0405, of the 52nd Fighter Wing, Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany. This F-16 is armed with four AIM-120 air-to-air missiles and two air-to-ground AGM-88 High-speed Anti-Radiation Missiles (HARM). It carries external fuel tanks and an electronics countermeasures unit. (U.S. Air Force)
A U.S. Air Force F-16C Block 50D Fighting Falcon, serial number 91-0405, of the 52nd Fighter Wing, Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany. This F-16 is armed with four AIM-120 air-to-air missiles and two air-to-ground AGM-88 High-speed Anti-Radiation Missiles (HARM). It carries external fuel tanks and an electronics countermeasures unit. (U.S. Air Force)

The F-16C is a single-seat, single-engine Mach 2+ fighter. It is 49.3 feet (15.03 meters) long with a wingspan of 32.8 feet (10.0 meters) and overall height of 16.7 feet (5.09 meters). It has an empty weight of 20,300 pounds (9,207.9 kilograms) and maximum takeoff weight of 48,000 pounds (21,772 kilograms).

The fighter is powered by one Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-229 or General Electric F110-GE-129 afterburning turbofan engine which produces 17,800 pounds of thrust (79.178 kilonewtons) each, or 29,100 pounds (129.443 kilonewtons) with afterburner) (F100), or 29,500 pounds (131.223 kilonewtons) (F110).

General Dynamics/Lockheed Martin F-16C Block 30H Fighting Falcon 87-0292, 121st Fighter Squadron, 113th Operations Group, District of Columbia Air National Guard (Lockheed Martin)
Lockheed Martin F-16C Block 30H Fighting Falcon 87-0292, 121st Fighter Squadron, 113th Operations Group, District of Columbia Air National Guard (Lockheed Martin)

The Fighting Falcon has a maximum speed of Mach 1.2 (913 miles per hour, or 1,470 kilometers per hour) at Sea Level, and Mach 2+ at altitude. The fighter’s service ceiling is higher than 50,000 feet (15,240 meters). Maximum range is 2,002 miles (3,222 kilometers).

The F-16C is armed with one General Electric M61A1 Vulcan 20 mm 6-barreled Gatling gun with 511 rounds of ammunition, and can carry a wide range of air-to-air and air-to-ground missiles and bombs.

The first prototype YF-16, 72-1567, is now on display at the Virginia Air and Space Center, Hampton, Virginia.

The first of the two General Dynamics prototype YF-16 Fighting Falcon lightweight fighters, 72-1567, on display at the Virginia Air and Space Center, Hampton, Virginia. (Rtphokie via Wikipedia)
The first of the two General Dynamics prototype YF-16 Fighting Falcon lightweight fighters, 72-1567, on display at the Virginia Air and Space Center, Hampton, Virginia. (Rtphokie via Wikipedia)

© 2017, Bryan R. Swopes

2 February 1970

Aviation, , , , , , , , , , ,
Convair F-106A Delta Dart of the 71st Fighter Interceptor Squadron, with a Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker, circa 1970. (U.S. Air Force)
Convair F-106A-100-CO Delta Dart 58-0775 of the 71st Fighter Interceptor Squadron with a Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker, circa 1970. This is the same type aircraft flown by Lieutenant Gary Foust, 2 February 1970. (U.S. Air Force)
1st Lt. Gary E. Foust

2 February 1970: At approximately 9:50 a.m., three Convair F-106A Delta Dart supersonic interceptors of the 71st Fighter Interceptor Squadron, 24th Air Division, based at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana, were engaged in an air combat training mission.

1st Lieutenant Gary Eugene Foust was flying F-106A-100-CO 58-0787, an airplane usually flown by the squadron’s maintenance officer, Major Wolford.

During the simulated combat, Lt. Foust entered into a vertical climb with his “opponent,” Captain Tom Curtis, who was also flying an F-106, and they both climbed to about 38,000 feet (11,600 meters) while using a “vertical rolling scissors” maneuver as each tried to get into a position of advantage.

Diagram of Vertical Rolling Scissors Maneuver, (Predrag Pavlovic, dipl. ing. and Nenad Pavlovic, dipl. ing.)
Diagram of Vertical Rolling Scissors Maneuver. (Predrag Pavlovic, dipl. ing. and Nenad Pavlovic, dipl. ing.)

Lt. Foust’s interceptor stalled and went in to a flat spin. Captain Curtiss described it: “The aircraft looked like the pitot tube was stationary with the aircraft rotating around it. Very flat and rotating quite slowly.”

Foust tried all the recovery procedures but could not regain control of the Delta Dart. With no options remaining, at about 15,000 feet (4,572 meters), Foust ejected from the apparently doomed airplane.

This F-106A (S/N 58-0787) was involved in an unusual incident. During a training mission, it entered an flat spin forcing the pilot to eject. Unpiloted, the aircraft recovered on its own and miraculously made a gentle belly landing in a snow-covered field. (U.S. Air Force photo)
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 58-0787 made an un-piloted belly landing onto a snow-covered farm field near Big Sandy, Montana, 2 February 1970. (U.S. Air Force)

After the pilot ejected, the F-106 came out of the spin and leveled off.  With its engine still running, -787 continued flying, gradually descending, until it slid in to a landing in a wheat field near Big Sandy, Montana. Eventually the airplane ran out of fuel and the engine stopped at about 12:15 p.m.

Lieutenant Foust safely parachuted into the mountains and was soon rescued.

58-0787 was partially disassembled by a maintenance team from Hill Air Force Base, Utah, and loaded on to a rail car. It was then transported to the Sacramento Air Logistics Center at McClellan Air Force Base, Sacramento, California, where it was repaired and eventually returned to flight status with the 49th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, 21st Air Division, at Griffiss Air Force Base, New York.

After the Convair Delta Dart was retired from active service, 58-0787 was sent to the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.

This F-106A (S/N 58-0787) was involved in an unusual incident. During a training mission, it entered an flat spin forcing the pilot to eject. Unpiloted, the aircraft recovered on its own and miraculously made a gentle belly landing in a snow-covered field. (U.S. Air Force photo)
Convair F-106A Delta Dart 58-0787 sits in a snow-covered Montana farm field, February 1970. (U.S. Air Force)

The Convair F-106A Delta Dart was the primary all-weather interceptor of the United States Air Force from 1959 to 1988, when it was withdrawn from service with the Air National Guard. It was a single-seat, single-engine delta-winged aircraft capable of speeds above Mach 2.

The airplane was a development of the earlier F-102A Delta Dagger, and was initially designated F-102B. However, so many changes were made that it was considered to be a new aircraft.

The F-106A is 70 feet, 8.78 inches (21.559 meters) long with a wingspan of 38 feet, 3.5 inches (11.671 meters). The total area of the delta wing is 697.83 square feet (64.83 square meters). The angle of incidence was 0° and there was no dihedral. The leading edges were swept aft 60°. The top of the vertical fin was 20 feet, 3.3 inches (6.180 meters) high. The Delta Dart weighs 24,028 pounds (10,899 kilograms) empty, and has a maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) of 39,195 pounds (17,779 kilograms).

Convair F-106A Delta Dart three-view illustration with dimensions. (SDASM)

The F-106 was powered by a Pratt & Whitney J75-P-17 afterburning turbojet engine. The J75-P-17 was a two-spool axial-flow turbojet engine with afterburner. It used a 15-stage compressor section (8 high- and 7 low-pressure stages) and a 3-stage turbine section (1 high- and 2-low pressure stages). The J75-P-17 had a maximum continuous power rating of 14,100 pounds of thrust (62.72 kilonewtons), and military power rating of 16,100 pounds (71.62 kilonewtons) (30-minute limit). It produced a maximum of 24,500 pounds (108.98 kilonewtons) with afterburner (5-minute limit). The engine was 3 feet, 8.25 inches (1.124 meters) in diameter, 19 feet, 9.6 inches long (6.035 meters), and weighed 5,875 pounds (2,665 kilograms).

Convair F-106A Delta Dart 58-0787 sits in a snow-covered Montana farm field, February 1970. (U.S. Air Force)

The interceptor has a cruise speed of 516 knots (594 miles per hour/956 kilometers per hour), and a maximum speed of 1,153 knots (1,327 miles per hour/2,135 kilometers per hour) at 35,000 feet (10,668 meters). The F-106A had a maximum rate of climb of 41,400 feet per minute (210 meters per second) at Sea Level. It could climb to 50,000 feet (15,240 meters) in 5 minutes. The service ceiling was 52,700 feet (16,063 meters). Its combat radius was 426 nautical miles (490 statute miles/789 kilometers) with maximum internal fuel (1,514 U.S. gallons/5,731 liters). The maximum ferry range was 1,571 nautical miles (1,808 statute miles/2,909 kilometers), when carrying an additional 454 gallons (1,719 liters) in two external tanks.

A Convair F-106A Delta Dart launches a Genie air-to-air rocket. (U.S. Air Force)
A Convair F-106A-135-CO Delta Dart, 59-0146, of the 194th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, California Air National Guard, launches an AIM-2 Genie air-to-air rocket. (U.S. Air Force)

The Delta Dart was armed with four GAR-3A radar-homing, or -4A (AIM-4F, -4G) infrared-homing Falcon air-to-air guided missiles, and one MB-1 (AIM-2A) Genie unguided rocket with a 1.5 kiloton W-25 nuclear warhead. The missiles were carried in an internal weapons bay. In 1972, the General Electric M61A1 Vulcan 20mm cannon was added to the rear weapons bay with 650 rounds of ammunition. (The number of gun-equipped Delta Darts is uncertain.)

Convair built 342 F-106 interceptors. 277 were F-106As and the remainder were F-106B two-seat trainers.

Convair F-106A-100-CO Delta Dart 58-0787 in the collection of the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. (U.S. Air Force)
Convair F-106A-100-CO Delta Dart 58-0787 in the collection of the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. (U.S. Air Force)

© 2024, Bryan R. Swopes