Category Archives: Aviation

22 November 1961

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Lieutenant Colonel Robert Bradford Robinson, Jr., U.S. Marine Corps, with the McDonnell YF4H-1 Phantom II, Bu. No. 142260, with which he set a world absolute speed record, 22 November 1961. Colonel Robinson is wearing a Goodrich Mark IV full-pressure suit for protection at high altitudes. (U.S. Navy)

22 November 1961: In recognition of the 50th Anniversary of Naval Aviation, a number of speed and altitude record attempts were planned, using the U.S. Navy’s new McDonnell YF4H-1 Phantom II fighter. On the morning of 22 November, Lieutenant Colonel Robert Bradford Robinson, Jr., United States Marine Corps, took off from Edwards Air Force Base on Operation Skyburner, an attempt to set a new World Absolute Speed Record. He was flying the second Phantom II built, Bu. No. 142260.

The Phantom carried three external fuel tanks for this flight. It had a 600-gallon (2,271.25 liter) centerline tank and two 370-gallon (1,400.6 liter) wing tanks. Robinson flew southeast toward NAS El Centro, then turned back to the northwest. Over the Salton Sea, he began to accelerate the YF4H-1 to build up speed for the record run over a measured twenty-mile course back at Edwards AFB. The Phantom’s two General Electric J79-GE-3A afterburning turbojets used a tremendous amount of fuel at full throttle and the centerline fuel tank was quickly emptied. Robinson jettisoned the empty tank over the Chocolate Mountain gunnery range. Continuing to accelerate, the two wing tanks were next jettisoned as they ran dry, this time at Bristol Dry Lake.

McDonnell YF4H-1 Phantom II, Bu. No. 142260, during Operation Skyburner, 22 November 1961. (U.S. Navy)

The Phantom entered the east end of the speed course in full afterburner. Having burned off more than 1,300 gallons of fuel, 142260 was much lighter now, and aerodynamically cleaner after dropping the external tanks. Robinson exited the west end of the 20-mile (32.2 kilometer) course in less than one minute.

Fédération Aéronautique Internationale rules require that a speed record must be made with two passes in opposite directions. The average speed of the two runs is the record speed. The Phantom was flying so fast that it covered another 105 miles (169 kilometers) before it could turn around. During the turn, it was still traveling at 0.9 Mach.

Robinson again put the engines in afterburner as he approached the course from the west. On the second run, the fighter was even lighter and its recorded speed was more than 1,700 miles per hour (2,736 kilometers per hour). The average of the two runs was calculated at 2,585.425 kilometers per hour (1,606.509 miles per hour.) This was the new FAI Absolute World Speed Record.¹

For his accomplishment, Lieutenant Colonel Robinson was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross by Secretary of the Navy John B. Connally. The presentation took place on 25 November 1961 at Newport News, Virginia, during the commissioning of USS Enterprise CVA(N)-65.

McDonnell YF4H-1 Phantom II Bu. No. 142260 during Operation Skyburner, 1961. (U.S. Navy via FFRC Photo Collection)

In the next few weeks, the same YF4H-1 would establish a world record for sustained altitude—20,252 meters (66,444 feet).² Two years earlier, 6 December 1959, in Operation Top Flight, 142260 had established a world record for absolute altitude when it zoom-climbed to 98,557 feet (30,040 meters).³

Lieutenant Colonel Robert B. Robinson, Jr., U.S. Marine Corps, with the McDonnell YF4H-1 Phantom II Bu. No. 142260, with which he set a world absolute speed record, 22 November 1961. (U.S. Navy)

Robert Bradford Robinson, Jr., was born at Orange, California, 22 October 1923. He was the second of four children of Robert Bradford Robinson, a U.S. Postal Service mail carrier, and Golda Leutha Nordeen Robinson.

Robert B. Robinson. (Orange and White 1941)

Bob Robinson attended Orange Union High School, graduating in 1941. He participated in all varsity sports, and was selected to attend the Boys’ State leadership program. He earned a bachelor of science degree at Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri.

Robinson entered the United States Marine Corps on 26 August 1942. He received the wings of a Naval Aviator and was commissioned as a second lieutenant on 1 December 1943.

2nd Lieutenant Robinson married Miss Lavonne Jean David at Nueces, Texas, 23 December 1943. They would later have a son, Robert Bradford Robinson III (and a grandson, Robert Bradford Robinson IV)

During the Battle of Okinawa, Lieutenant Robinson flew the radar-equipped Grumman F6F-3N Hellcat night fighter with VMF(N)-543.

A Grumman F6F-3N Hellcat night fighter of VMF(N)-543, circa 1944. The radome is at the far end of the airplane’s right wing. (U.S. Navy)

Lieutenant Robinson was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant, 31 March 1945. Following World War II, Lieutenant Robinson was assigned to VMF-311, and became one of the first Naval Aviators to qualify in turbojet-powered aircraft. The squadron initially flew the Lockheed TO-1 Shooting Star (P-80), and later transitioned to the Grumman F9F Panther.

A Lockheed TO-1 Shooting Star  Bu. No. 33822 (P-80C 47-219) of VMF-311, circa 1948. (NNAM.1996.488.163.012)

Lieutenant Robinson was promoted to the rank of captain 1 April 1950. VMF-311 was sent to the Korean war zone in November 1950, initially operating from Yokosuka Air Base in Japan. The squadron flew close air support missions in support of the amphibious assault of Inchon, and at the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir. Captain Robinson returned to night fighter operations when he joined Marine All-Weather Squadron 513 (VMF(N)-513) on 13 January 1951. The unit which was equipped with Grumman F7F-3N Tigercats and Chance Vought F4U-5N Corsairs.

Two Grumman F9F-2 Panthers of VMF-311 being refueled at K-3, Republic of South Korea, circa 1951. The aircraft closest to the camera is an F9F-2B, Bu. No. 123602. (Department of Defense HD-SN-99-03071)

Captain Robinson was promoted to the rank of major, 31 December 1954. He completed the six-month course at the Naval Test Pilot School, NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, graduating in March 1959 (Class 21).

In 1963, Lieutenant Colonel Robinson retired from the Marine Corps after 20 years’ service. He was then employed as a test pilot for the McDonnell Aircraft Corporation at St. Louis, Missouri. He remained with the company for 30 years.

Mrs. Robinson died 7 February 1997, after 53 years of marriage. Bob Robinson later married Mrs. Julian Brady (née Elizabeth Catchings), the widow of a long-time friend.

Robert Bradford Robinson, Jr., died 28 September 2005 at McComb, Mississippi. He was buried at the Hollywood Cemetery in McComb.

¹ FAI Record File Number 9060

² FAI Record File Number 8535

³ FAI Record File Number 10352

© 2018, Bryan R. Swopes

22 November 1955

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Tupolev Tu-16 (NATO codename "Badger")
Tupolev Tu-16 (NATO codename “Badger”). (Federation of American Scientists)
Major Fedor Pavlovich Golovashko, Hero of the Soviet Union.
Major Fedor Pavlovich Golovashko, Hero of the Soviet Union (1923–1981)

22 November 1955:  The Soviet Union’s first thermonuclear weapon, RDS-37, was air-dropped at the Semipalatinsk Test Site, approximately 150 kilometers west of the city of Semipalatinsk, Kazakh S.S.R. (now, Kazakhstan). The bomber, a Tupolev Tu-16A, and its crew were under the command of Senior Test Pilot Major Fedor Pavlovich Golovashko.

The RDS-37 was a two-stage radiation-implosion thermonuclear bomb, what was called at the time a “hydrogen bomb.” (RDS stands for Rossiya delaet sama—meaning, in effect, that “Russia does it itself.” This three-letter prefix was applied to atomic tests since the first, RDS-1, 29 August 1949.)

This was the Soviet Union’s twenty-fourth nuclear weapons test, but its first true thermonuclear bomb, and it was the world’s first air-dropped “H bomb.” (The United States’ first air-drop of a thermonuclear weapon, Redwing Cherokee, took place six months later, 20 May 1956. Great Britain’s Grapple I/Short Granite test occurred 15 May 1957.)

Major Golovashko and his crew had made a previous attempt with the RDS-37. Two days earlier, 19 November, the loading of the bomb began at 6:45 a.m. Four hoists were used to lift it into the bomber’s weapons bay. The process took about two hours.

In this still frame from a cine film recording, the RDS-37 bomb is shown being positioned under the Tupolev Tu-16A bomber for loading into the bomb bay. (Pravda.net)

At 9:30 a.m., the Tu-16 took off from Zhana Semey Airport (PLX), about 8 kilometers (5 miles) south of the city of Semipaltinsk. It began climbing to an altitude of 12,000 meters (39,370 feet) as it flew toward the test site. Golovashko’s bomber was escorted by pairs of Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 fighters to prevent the theft of the test weapon.

Although the weather had been forecast to be good, it unexpectedly began to deteriorate. The Tu-16 was above a cloud layer with the test area obscured. As the crew prepared to bomb by radar, the radar equipment failed and all attempts to repair it were unsuccessful.

Test conductors were very concerned about landing the Tupolev back at Semipalatinsk with a fully-armed nuclear bomb still on board. There was consideration of dropping the RDS-37 over remote mountains, but there was no certainty of being able to avoid villages or towns, and if the bomb were to only partially detonate there could be widespread contamination by its radioactive fuel.

There was a delay in making a decision and the Tupolev’s fuel was getting low. Finally it was decided to have the bomber return to Semipalatinsk with the bomb. The landing was uneventful and the technicians removed the RDS-37 for servicing before the next test attempt.

Андре́й Дми́триевич Са́харов

It was normal procedure for bomber crews to rotate, but the decision was made to have Major Golovashko’s crew make the second test flight. On 22 November the weapon loading began at 4:50 a.m., with takeoff at 8:34 a.m. Again the Tupolev Tu-16A was escorted by pairs of MiG-17s. Once again, the bomber arrived over the test site at 12,000 meters, flying at 870 kilometers per hour (541 miles per hour).

Soviet nuclear weapons designer Andrei Dmitrievich Sakaharov, whose “other idea”—radiation-implosion—was used in the design of the RDS-37, was at an observation site about 70 kilometers from the test target. He watched the Tu-16 as it flew overhead and described it as, “dazzling white with its sweptback wings and slender fuselage extending far forward, it looked like a sinister predator poised to strike.” He also noted that the color white is “often associated with death.”

Sakharov's "white bomber."
Sakharov’s “sinister predator.”

After being released from Major Golovashko’s Tupolev, the RDS-37 was retarded by parachute to allow time for the bomber to get away. It detonated at 1,550 meters (5,085 feet) above the ground. The flight crew described seeing a blue-white flash that lasted 10 to 12 seconds. The shock wave of the detonation, spreading at the speed of sound, hit the bomber 3 minutes, 44 seconds after the drop. The Tu-16 experienced accelerations of 2.5Gs, and was lifted to higher altitude. It was not damaged.

5–7 minutes following the detonation the distinctive mushroom cloud had reached to a height of 13–14 kilometers (8–8.7 miles) and its diameter was 25–30 kilometers (15.5–18.6 miles).

The RDS-37 detonated with a reported yield varying between 1.6 and 1.9 megatons (depending on source). The bomb had a designed yield of 3 megatons but this had been intentionally reduced for this test.

The bomb detonated under a temperature inversion layer which reflected a large proportion of the explosive force back to the ground. A small town about 75 kilometers (47 miles) away suffered significant destruction. A small child was killed when a building collapsed. At another location, a soldier in an observation was killed when the trench caved in from the shock. Nearly 50 others were injured. Windows were broken as far as 200 kilometers (124 miles) away.

Several videos of this test are available on YouTube.

The Tu-16 has a normal bomb load of 3,000 kilograms (6,614 pounds), but can carry up to 9,000 kilograms (19,842 pounds). It has seven Afanasev Makarov AM-23 23mm autocannons for defense, mounted in three pairs which are remotely operated by the gunners, and a single gun in the nose. These guns fire at a rate of 900 rounds per minute.

The Tupolev Tu-16 was built in bomber, cruise missile carrier, electronic counter measures, aerial tanker, and electronic and photographic reconnaissance versions, at three factories in the Soviet Union: Kazan Plant N22, Kuibyshev N18 and Voronezh N64. 1,507 Tu-16s were built before production ended in 1961. 453 of these were the Tu-16A nuclear weapons version. Another 120 were built under license in China by Harbin Aircraft. These are designated H-6.

Фёдор Павлович Головашко

Fedor Pavlovich Golovashko was born at Byokovo, Novosibirsk, 22 June 1923. He was educated through the 9th grade before being drafted into the Soviet Army in 1941. He was trained as a pilot at the Novosibirsk Military Aviation School, graduating in 1943.

He was assigned to a Long Range Aviation regiment (Dalnyaya Aviatsiya) under the command of Alexander Ignatyevich Molodchy, twice a Hero of the Soviet Union.

Golovashko’s final missions of the Great Patriotic War (World War II) were flown against Berlin.

Fedor Golovashko remained in the Air Force following the war and soon was in command of a squadron. He became a test pilot in 1954 and was assigned to the Semipalatinsk Test Site.

Senior Test Pilot Major Fedor Pavlovich Gorovashko was named a Hero of the Soviet Union, 11 September 1956. He reached the rank of Colonel before retiring from the Air Force in 1961. He had been awarded the Order of Lenin, Order of the Red Banner (two awards), Order of the Patriotic War 1st Degree, and the Order of the Red Star (two awards).

After retiring, Colonel Golovashko lived in Odessa. He died there, 19 April 1981.

Major Golovashko’s bomber was a Tupolev Tu-16A (NATO codename “Badger-A”). This was a two-engine turbojet-powered long-range medium bomber. It was normally operated by a flight crew of seven.

OKB Tupolev test pilot Nikolai Stepanovich Rybko, Hero of the Soviet Union (1911–1977)

Developed from the Tupolev Design Bureau Project 88, the prototype Tu-16 made it’s first flight at Zhukovsky Airfield (Ramenskoye Airport), southeast of Moscow, on 27 April 1952. The test pilot was Nikolai Stepanovich Rybko. This was the Soviet Union’s first swept-wing bomber. It was designated Tu-16 and entered production in 1954.

The Tu-16A was designed specifically to carry nuclear weapons and had a strengthened fuselage and heated bomb bay. The Tupolev Tu-16 is 34.8 meters (114.2 feet) long with a wingspan of 33 meters (108.3 feet) and overall height of 10.36 meters (34 feet). The wings are mounted at mid-fuselage and have a compound sweep. The inner portion has a leading edge sweep of 40.5°, and the outer wing is swept to 35°. t has an empty weight of 37,200 kilograms (82,012 pounds) and maximum takeoff weight of 79,000 kilograms (174,165 pounds).

Power is supplied by two large turbojet engines mounted in the wings at the fuselage, similar to the de Havilland Comet, though they are angled slightly outward to direct the exhaust away from the airplane’s skin panels. The Tu-16A variant is equipped with two Mikulin RD-3M-200 turbojets which produce 21,835 pounds of thrust, each.

The Tu-16A has a maximum speed of 992 kilometers per hour (610 miles per hour) and a service ceiling of 12,800 meters (41,995 feet). Its maximum range is 6,400 kilometers (3,977 miles).

Screen Shot 2015-11-21 at 16.05.37 © 2017, Bryan R. Swopes

Medal of Honor, Major Charles Joseph Loring, Jr., United States Air Force

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Major Charles Joseph Loring, Jr., United States Air Force (1918–1952)
Major Charles Joseph Loring, Jr., United States Air Force (1918–1952)

MEDAL OF HONOR

LORING, CHARLES J., JR.

The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pride in presenting the Medal of Honor (Posthumously) to Major Charles Joseph Loring, Jr. (AFSN: 13008A), United States Air Force, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the 80th Fighter-Bomber Squadron, 8th Fighter-Bomber Wing, Fifth Air Force in aerial combat at Sniper Ridge, North Korea, on 22 November 1952. While leading a flight of four F-80 type aircraft on a close support mission, Major Loring was briefed by a controller to dive-bomb enemy gun positions which were harassing friendly ground troops. After verifying the location of the target, Major Loring rolled into his dive bomb run. Throughout the run, extremely accurate ground fire was directed on his aircraft. Disregarding the accuracy and intensity of the ground fire, Major Loring aggressively continued to press the attack until his aircraft was hit. At approximately 4,000 feet, he deliberately altered his course and aimed his diving aircraft at active gun emplacements concentrated on a ridge northwest of the briefed target, turned his aircraft 45 degrees to the left, pulled up in a deliberate, controlled maneuver, and elected to sacrifice his life by diving his aircraft directly into the midst of the enemy emplacements. His selfless and heroic action completely destroyed the enemy gun emplacement and eliminated a dangerous threat to United Nations ground forces. Major Loring’s noble spirit, superlative courage, and conspicuous self-sacrifice in inflicting maximum damage on the enemy exemplified valor of the highest degree and his actions were in keeping with the finest traditions of the U.S. Air Force.

Action Date: November 22, 1952

Service: Air Force

Rank: Major

Company: 80th Fighter-Bomber Squadron

Regiment: 8th Fighter-Bomber Wing

Division: 5th Air Force

This Lockheed F-80C-10-LO Shooting Star, 49-1826, (marked FT-826)  of the 8th Fighter Bomber Wing is the same type as F-80C-10-LO, 49-1830, flown by Major Loring. (U.S. Air Force)

Charles Joseph Loring, Jr., was born at Portland, Maine, 2 October 1918. He was the first of four children of Charles Joseph Loring, a laborer, and Mary Irene Cronin Loring. Charles Loring, Sr., served in the United States military during World War I.

Lieutenant Charles J. Loring, Jr.

Charley Loring attended Cheverus High School, a private religious school in Portland, graduating in 1937.

Loring enlisted in the Air Corps, United States Army, at Cumberland, Maine, 16 November 1942. He was trained as a pilot at Greenville, Mississippi, and Napier Field, Alabama. He was commissioned a second lieutenant, Air Reserve, 16 February 1943.

During World War II, Lieutenant Charles J. Loring, Jr., had been a Republic P-47D Thunderbolt fighter pilot assigned to the 22nd Fighter Squadron, 36th Fighter Group, 9th Air Force, in Europe. Loring was promoted to first lieutenant, Army of the United States (A.U.S.), 24 June 1944. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for actions in support of the D-Day invasion of Normandy.

Lieutenant Loring flew 55 combat missions before his P-47D-28-RE, 44-19864, was shot down by ground fire near Rocherath-Krinkelt, Belgium, on Christmas Eve, 24 December 1944. Captured, Lieutenant Loring was taken to the garrison hospital at Hemer, then transferred to an interrogation center at Frankfurt, Germany. He remained a prisoner of war until Germany surrendered in May 1945.

Lieutenant Charles J. Loring, Jr., stands next to a Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. (World War II Flight Training Museum)

Loring was promoted to captain, A.U.S., 23 October 1945. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for actions in support of the D-Day invasion of Normandy. He was also awarded the Air Medal with ten oak leaf clusters, and the Purple Heart.

In 1945, Charles J. Loring, Jr. married Miss Elsie P. Colton of Beverly, Massachusetts, in Boston. They would have two daughters, Aldor Rogers Loring and Charlene Joan Loring.

After World War II came to an end, Captain Loring reverted to the rank of first lieutenant, Air Reserve, 16 February 1946. Loring was appointed first lieutenant, Air Corps, 19 June 1947 with date of rank retroactive to 16 February 1946. In September 1947, the United States Air Force was established as a separate military service, with standing equivalent to the United States Army and United States Navy. Charles Loring was appointed a first lieutenant, United States Air Force, with date of rank again 16 February 1946.

Lieutenant Charles J. Lorig was flying this Republic P-47D-28-RE Thunderbolt, 44-19864, marked 3T W, when he was shot down near Hotten, Belgium, 24 December 1944. (U.S. Air Force photograph via Jim Sterling)

Flying the Lockheed F-80C Shooting Star with the 80th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 8th Fighter Bomber Wing, during the Korean War, Major Loring served as the squadron operations officer. According to his father, Charles J. Loring, Sr., “Charley was a stubborn man. He said he would never be a prisoner again. He was the kind of man who kept his word about everything.”

Major Charles J. Loring, Jr., United States Air Force, Operations Officer, 80th Fighter Bomber Squadron ("Headhunters"), at K-13, Suwon, South Korea, Fall 1950. (U.S. Air Force)
Major Charles J. Loring, Jr., United States Air Force, Operations Officer, 80th Fighter Bomber Squadron (“Headhunters”), at K-13, Suwon, South Korea, Fall 1950. (U.S. Air Force)

The Medal of Honor was awarded by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, 5 May 1953, but this was kept secret by the Air Force “to protect him from enemy reprisal” in the event that Major Loring had not died in the crash of his fighter, but had been captured. The Medal was presented to Mrs. Loring and her two daughters, Aldor and Charlene, by Secretary of the Air Force Harold E. Talbott, during a ceremony held at Bolling Air Force Base, Washington, D.C., 17 April 1954. Limestone Army Airfield in Maine was renamed Loring Air Force Base, 1 October 1954.

Secretary of the Air Force Harold E. Talbott shows the Medal of Honor to the daughters of Major Charles Joseph Loring, Jr., during a presentation ceremony at Bolling Air Force Base, 17 April 1954. Left to right, Secretary Talbott; Charlene Joan Loring, age 4; Aldor Rogers Loring, age 5; Mrs. Loring. (NEA Wirephoto)

A cenotaph memorializing Major Loring is at the Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia.

Medal of Honor

© 2017, Bryan R. Swopes

22 November 1952

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Test Pilot Russell Morgan Roth with the first production Republic F-84F-1-RE Thunderstreak, 51-1346. (Jet Pilot Overseas)

22 November 1952: At Farmingdale, Long Island, New York, Republic Aviation Corporation test pilot Russell Morgan (“Rusty”) Roth took the first production F-84F-1-RE Thunderstreak, 51-1346, for its first flight.

Republic YF-96A 49-2430. (Republic Aviation Corporation)

The swept-wing F-84F fighter bomber was an improved version of Republic’s straight-wing F-84 Thunderjet series, designed to operate at high sub-sonic speeds. Originally designated XF-96A, the prototype, 49-2430, used the fuselage of the final F-84-15-RE Thunderjet under Air Force contract, and was powered by an Allison J35-A-25 turbojet engine, rated at 5,200 pounds static thrust (23.13 kilonewtons).

Republic F-84F-1-RE Thunderstreak 51-1346. (U.S. Air Force)

Redesignated XF-84F, the prototype was followed by two YF-84F pre-production airplanes which were powered by a more powerful Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire turbojet engine.

The first production Republic F-84F-1-RE Thunderstreak, 51-1346, with its predecessor, a F-84G Thunderjet. (Unattributed)

The F-84F-1-RE Thunderstreak was 43.4 feet (13.23 meters) long, with a wingspan of 33.6 feet (10.24 meters) and overall height of 15.0 feet (4.6 meters). The wings were swept aft 40° at 25% chord. They had an angle of incidence of 1° 30′, and 3° 30′ anhedral. The total wing area was 324.7 square feet (30.17 square meters), a 25% increase over the straight-winged F-84E. The F-84F-1 had an empty weight of 13,645 pounds (6,189 kilograms) and maximum takeoff weight of 27,000 pounds (12,247 kilograms).

The early variants used a horizontal stabilizer with elevators. This was soon changed to an “all-flying” stabilator.

Republic F-84F-1-RE Thunderstreak 51-1346, the first production airplane, at Farmingdale, New York, 1952. (Republic Aviation Corporation)

The first ten production aircraft were powered by the Wright J65-W-1 engine, a licensed variant of the Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire. These were later upgraded to the Buick-built J65-B-3. The J65-B/W-3 was a single-shaft axial flow turbojet with a 13-stage compressor and 2-stage turbine. It was 10 feet, 8.6 inches (3.266 meters) long, 3 feet, 1.7 inches (0.958 meters) in diameter, and weighed 2,785 pounds (1,263 kilograms). The J65-W-3 had a normal power rating of 6,350 pounds of thrust (28.25 kilonewtons) at 8,000 r.p.m., and a maximum 7,220 pounds (32.12 kN) at 8,300 r.p.m. (5 minute limit). Additionally, the Thunderstreak was equipped with four Aerojet 14AS-1000 solid-fuel rocket engines for takeoff. These produced 1,000 pounds of thrust (4.45 kilonewtons), each, for 14 seconds.

Overhead view of one of the two YF-84F pre-production prototypes shows the airplane’s swept wings. This variant has the sliding canopy of the straight-wing Thunderjet. (Republic Aviation Corporation)

The F-84F-1 Thunderstreak had a maximum speed of 595 knots (685 miles per hour/1,102 kilometers per hour) at Sea Level (0.900 Mach). It could climb to 30,000 feet (9,144 meters) in 13.8 minutes, and had a service ceiling of 36,150 feet (11,019 meters). The fighter-bomber had a maximum ferry range of 2,150 nautical miles (2,474 statute miles/3,982 kilometers).

The Thunderstreak was armed with six M3 .50-caliber aircraft machine guns, with four mounted in the nose above the intake, and two in each wing root. Each gun was supplied with 300 rounds of ammunition.

The fighter bomber had a maximum bomb load of 6,000 pounds (2,722 kilograms). It could also carry eight 5-inch HVAR rockets, or twenty-four 2.75-inch FFARs. For tactical nuclear strike, the F-84F could carry one variable yield Mark 7 nuclear bomb.

Republic built 2,112 Thunderstreaks at Farmingdale, and 559 were built by General Motors in Kansas City, Kansas. The F-84F served with the United States Air Force and Air National Guard until 1972. It also served with a number of NATO countries.

NACA Research Test Pilot George E. Cooper with 51-1346 at NASA Ames Aeronautical Laboratory, circa 1954. (NASA)

In 1954, 51-1346 was assigned to the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics at the Ames Aeronautical Laboratory, Moffett Field, California. It returned to Edwards Air Force Base where it was used to test rocket-assisted takeoffs and zero-length launches (ZELL). It was then assigned to the Ohio Air National Guard.

Republic F-84F-1-RE Thunderstreak 51-1346 displayed at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base, Ohio, circa 1995.

The first production Thunderstreak is on display at Columbus-Rickenbacker International Airport, Columbus, Ohio.

The first production airplane, Republic F-84F-1-RE Thunderstreak 51-1346 is on display at Columbus-Rickenbacker International Airport in Columbus, Ohio. (Photograph courtesy of Dave Peel. Used with permission.)
Russell Roth, 1937. (The Re Echo)

Russell Morgan Roth was born at Emporia, Kansas, 7 October 1919. He was the youngest of three sons of Thaddeus Roth, a farm laborer, and Dorothy Amy Shipley Roth. Mrs. Roth died 25 November 1932. “Rusty” attended Emporia High School, Emporia, Kansas, graduating in 1937.

When Roth registered for the draft (Selective Service, or conscription), 16 October 1940, he was described as having a dark brown complexion, brown hair and hazel eyes. He was 5 feet, 6 inches (1.68 meters) tall and weighed 140 pounds. (63.5 kilograms)

Roth enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps as an aviation cadet, 30 October 1941. He was trained as a fighter pilot at Luke Field, Arizona, and was commissioned a second lieutenant 22 June 1943. Serving with the 80th Fighter Squadron (“Headhunters”), Fifth Air Force, in New Guinea and the Philippine Islands, he flew 132 combat missions with the Lockheed P-38 Lightning. He was credited with shooting down two enemy airplanes and another two “probables.” Captain Roth was awarded the Air Medal with four oak leaf clusters (five awards).

Rusty Roth with his Lockheed P-38 Lightning, “Half Pint.”

Following World War II, Captain Roth was assigned as assistant chief of the Flight Development Branch at Muroc Army Airfield in the high desert of southern California.He was involved in testing the Douglas XB-43 Jetmaster, the experimental Northrop N-9M flying wing, and the North American XP-86 Sabre.

Captain Roth graduated from the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, in 1949. He then returned to Muroc, now renamed Edwards Air Force Base. On 11 January 1951, Captain Roth located the wreck of a B-50 Superfortress which had disappeared after departing March Air Force Base, near Riverside, California, the previous day.

Roth was released from active duty 1 October 1951, and joined Republic as a test pilot in 1952. On 9 December 1952 he flew the company’s XF-91 Thunderceptor, a turbojet/rocket-propelled fighter, to Mach 1.07 at 35,000 feet (10,668 meters). This was the first time that a U.S. fighter aircraft had exceeded Mach 1 in level flight. Republic’s president, Mundy I. Peale, described the XF-91 as “a combat-ready airplane.”

A Republic XF-91 at the NACA High-Speed Flight Research Station, Edwards Air Force Base, California, circa 1951. (NASA E-475)

On 7 May 1954, Roth made the first flight of the XF-84J, a re-engined variant of the Thunderstreak. The fighter bomber was equipped with a General Electric XJ73 engine.

In 1955, Roth wrote a three-page article, “Flying the F,” for Flying Safety, a U.S. Air Force publication. He described pre-flight checks, takeoff technique and airspeed and power management. He wrote, “I still say that you really have to try to make a bad landing.” ¹

On April 23 1955, Roth was promoted to chief experimental test pilot of the Republic Aviation Corporation.

On 22 October 1955, Rusty Roth made the first flight of Republic’s YF-105A Thunderchief. He described the 45-minute flight as “a very fine ride.” On 16 December 1955, YF-105A 54-098 made an emergency landing at Edwards AFB after one of its main landing gear assemblies was torn off when it failed to retract during a high speed flight. Roth was severely injured, but he survived.

Repiblic YF-105A 54-098 landing at Edwards Air Force Base. (Ray Wagner Collection, San Diego Air and Space Museum Archives)

Russell Morgan Roth died at Lancaster, California, 10 November 1972, at the age of 53 years. He was buried at Joshua Memorial Park in Lancaster.

¹ Flying Safety, Vol XI, No. 1, January 1955, at Pages 8–10. Directorate of Flight Safety Research, Norton Air Force Base, California.

© 2019, Bryan R. Swopes

17–22 November 1946

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Avro Lancastrian C.1 VH742 after installation of Rolls-Royce RB.41 Nene Mk.I gas turbine engines. The inboard Merlin engines have been shut down and their propellers feathered. (Royal Air Force)

17 November 1946: A modified Avro 691 Lancastrian C.1, VH742, under the command of Rolls-Royce’s chief test pilot, Captain Ronald Thomas Shepherd, O.B.E., flew from London Heathrow Airport (LHR) to Aéroport de Paris – Le Bourget (LBG) for 17th Salon de Aviation (Paris Air Show) with two Rolls-Royce RB.41 Nene Mk.I turbojet engines for propulsion. The airplane’s two Rolls-Royce Merlin V-12 piston engines were shut down, except for takeoff and landing, and their three-bladed propellers were feathered to reduce drag. It was the first-jet-powered passenger transport to fly from one country to another.

A contemporary aviation industry news article described the event:

The Nene-Lanc, Flies to Paris

THE flight of the Nene Lancaster from London to Paris last Monday, to play its part in connection with the exhibition, may be said to have marked a historic part in British aircraft development, for it constituted the first time that any jet-powered airliner had flown from one country to another. Moreover, since this particular aircraft has been flying fairly regularly since round about the time of the Radlett exhibition, the flight to Paris was no special performance, but merely one more public demonstration of its inherent reliability.

In the hands of Capt. R. T. Shepherd, chief test pilot for Rolls-Royce, the “Nene-Lanc” landed at Le Bourget at 10.58 a.m., G.M.T., after a 50-minute flight from London Airport, giving an average speed of 247.5 m.p.h. [398.3 kilometers per hour] Two passengers were carried in addition to the crew; they were Mr. Roy Chadwick, the Avro designer, and Mr. R. B. William Thompson, Chief Information Officer of the Ministry of Supply.

Capt. Shepherd said that he was very pleased with the aircraft’s performance and added that, but for having to circle Le Bourget Airport Twice before landing, the flight would have been completed in 43 minutes.

— FLIGHT and AIRCRAFT ENGINEER, No. 1978. Vol. L., Thursday, November 21st, 1946 at Page 561, Column 2.

Five days later, VH742 flew back to England:

Return Trip

THE return of the Nene Lancastrian on Nov. 22nd, direct from Le Bourget to Heathrow, was made in only 49 min, including landing, actual flying time from point to point being 41 min—an average speed of 322 mp.h. [518.2 kilometers per hour] This remarkable performance was in spite a beam wind and the dead weight and drag of the two inboard Merlins, which are only used for takeoff and landing.

Passengers of the return trip included Mr. Roy Chadwick, chief designer and a director of A. V. Roe and Co., Air Comdre. Kirk and Air Comdre. Pike.

—FLIGHT and AIRCRAFT ENGINEER, No. 1979., Vol. L., Thursday, November 28th, 1946 at Page 588, Column 1.

Avro Lancastrian (nene engine test bed). © IWM (ATP 14764B)
Avro Lancastrian C.1 VH742 with Rolls-Royce Nene engines. © IWM (ATP 14764B)

The Rolls-Royce RB.41 Nene engine first been run in October 1944. It  installed in a Lockheed YP-80A Shooting Star, 44-83027, and the engine was first flown 18 July 1945 with Rolls-Royce test pilot Wing Commander John Harvey Heyworth, A.F.C., in the cockpit. The Nene-powered P-80 had made approximately 30 test flights when it was damaged beyond repair at RAF Syerston, 6 December 1945. With test pilot Andy McDowall flying, a fractured fuel pipe caused the engine to flame out from fuel starvation. McDowall tried to glide to a landing but another airplane was on the runway. He touched down on the grass but the landing gears were pushed up through the Shooting Star’s wings.

The jet fighter had been too small to allow for adequate test equipment. A larger aircraft was needed. The R.A.F. assigned VH742 the role of test aircraft.

The new Lancastrian arrived at the Rolls-Royce Flight Test Establishment at Hucknall Aerodrome, Nottinghamshire, 30 October 1945. The modification was engineered and the airplane was modified. The Lanc’s two outboard Rolls-Royce Merlin V-12 engines were removed and two Nene Mk.I engines were installed in underslung nacelles. The wing flaps were shortened by 3 feet, 4 inches (1.016 meters) and the ailerons by 10 inches (0.254 meters) to provide clearance from the jet engines’ exhaust. Sheet steel was installed on the lower surfaces of the wings as protect against the heat.

Three fuel tanks were installed in each of the Lancastrian’s wings. The center tank contained gasoline for the Merlin engines, while the inner and outer tanks, plus two auxiliary tanks in the fuselage, carried kerosene for the jet engines. Fuel capacity was 760 gallons (2,877 liters) of gasoline and 2,420 gallons (9,161 liters) of kerosene.

In the Lancastrian’s cockpit, additional instruments were installed for the turbojets: tachometers reading from 0–20,000 r.p.m.; oil pressure gauges, 0–80 p.s.i.; exhaust gas temperature, 400˚–750 ˚C., and exhaust gas pressure.

The first flight of the modified VH742 took place 14 August 1946, with Ronnie Shepherd in the cockpit. Running on the jet engines alone, the airplane was extraordinarily quiet and vibration free. Like all early turbojets, the Nenes were slow to accelerate from low r.p.m. Test pilots had to use caution. Jim and Harvey Heyworth also flew VH742 during the last half of August.

RB.41 Nene. (Rolls-Royce)
RB.41 Nene. (Rolls-Royce)

The Rolls-Royce RB.41 Nene Mk.I was developed from the earlier RB.40 Derwent.¹ It was considerably larger and produced nearly double the thrust. It was a single-stage centrifugal-flow compressor/single-stage axial-flow turbine, rated at 5,000 pounds of thrust (22.24 kilonewtons) at 12,400 r.p.m. for takeoff.

A second Nene-powered Lancastrian was added to the test fleet at Hucknall the following year. Last Nene flight took place in August 1949.

VH742 had been ordered by the Royal Air Force during World War II as an Avro Type 683 Lancaster B. Mk.III, a very long range heavy bomber, and assigned identity markings PD194. With the end of World War II in Europe, orders for hundreds of Lancaster bombers were cancelled. The partially completed PD194 was modified on the assembly line as a Lancastrian C. Mk.I passenger transport and renumbered as VH742.

The Avro Type 691 Lancastrian was a four-engine civil transport based on the World War II very long range heavy bomber, the Avro Lancaster. The airliner was operated by a flight crew of four and carried one flight attendant. It could carry up to thirteen passengers. The Lancastrian was 76 feet, 10 inches (23.419 meters) long with a wingspan of 102 feet (31.090 meters) and overall height of 19 feet, 6 inches (5.944 meters). The empty weight was 30,220 pounds (13,707.6 kilograms) and gross weight was 65,000 pounds (29,483.5 kilograms).

The Lancastrian Mk.III was powered by four 1,648.9-cubic-inch-displacement (27.04 liter) liquid-cooled, supercharged, Rolls-Royce Merlin T24/2 single overhead camshaft (SOHC) 60° V-12 engines producing 1,650 horsepower and turning three bladed propellers.

The airplane a cruise speed of 245 miles per hour (394.3 kilometers per hour) and a maximum speed of 315 miles per hour (506.9 kilometers per hour). The service ceiling was 25,500 feet (7,772 meters) and the range was 4,150 miles (6,679 kilometers).

Rolls-Royce test pilots (left to right) Wing Commander John Harvey Heyworth, AFC; Squadron Leader Alexander James Heyworth, DFC and Bar, FRAeS; Captain Ronald Thomas Shepherd, OBE; Wing Commander Andrew McDowall, DSO, AFC, DFM; and Herbert Clifford Rogers, OBE, DFC; with Merlin 632/ Avon-powered Avro Lancastrian C.2 VL970, circa 1949. Each one of these men served as Chief Test Pilot for Rolls-Royce. (Rolls-Royce)
Rolls-Royce test pilots (left to right) Wing Commander John Harvey Heyworth, A.F.C.; Squadron Leader Alexander James Heyworth, D.F.C. and Bar, FRAeS; Captain Ronald Thomas Shepherd, O.B.E.; Wing Commander Andrew McDowall, D.S.O., A.F.C., D.F.M.; and Herbert Clifford Rogers, O.B.E., D.F.C.; with Merlin 632/ Avon-powered Avro Lancastrian C.2 VL970, circa 1949. Each one of these men served as Chief Test Pilot for Rolls-Royce. (Rolls-Royce)

91 Avro Lancastrians were built, including modified Lancaster bombers. The transport variant first flew in 1943. In addition to the Royal Air Force, commercial Lancastrians were operated by British European Airways, British Overseas Airways Corporation and British South American Airways. The last one was retired in 1960.

Rolls-Royce built more than 1,100 RB.41 Nene engines. It was licensed for production by Pratt & Whitney as the J42. Forty Nenes were sold to the Soviet Union under the condition that they would not be used for military purposes. These were reverse-engineered and produced as the Klimov RD-45 which powered the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 fighter.

¹ While Rolls-Royce named its piston-driven aircraft engines after birds of prey, the turbojet engines were named for rivers.

© 2018, Bryan R. Swopes