tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post6371524086327304864..comments2024-03-28T23:57:50.103-05:00Comments on Bayou Renaissance Man: A Starfighter, low overhead - and noisy!Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10595089829300831372noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-25922058994008601342017-01-13T12:30:35.634-06:002017-01-13T12:30:35.634-06:00The 104 does not stall, it will pitch up and enter...The 104 does not stall, it will pitch up and enter a series of unco-ordinated and unpredictable gyrations while seriously obeying the law of gravity. Some recoveries took 35 thousand feet or more. Most pilots bailed.<br />I have seen 450 knots by the end of the runaway and 35 thousand feet at 90 seconds. Standard run in for a nuke delivery was Mach .85 at 50 ft AGL, not a misprint. If you want a great book you can get Starfighter by David Bashow here....https://www.abebooks.com/Starfighter-Loving-Retrospective-CF-104-Canadian-Fighter/18121889640/bd<br />I'm mentioned on page 199 :)captcraighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03466164760552519521noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-24965843690982781362017-01-11T15:38:10.868-06:002017-01-11T15:38:10.868-06:00The F-104 was designed as a high altitude intercep...The F-104 was designed as a high altitude interceptor. For that mission it was fine. When it was used as a mid to low altitude fighter it was a death trap.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-26793626097515170432017-01-11T14:31:26.269-06:002017-01-11T14:31:26.269-06:00Erich Hartmann (352 aerial kills) was separated f...Erich Hartmann (352 aerial kills) was separated from the West German Air Force over the decision to purchase the F-104. He was pissed that the politicians made that choice. He flew it in the US, and was not impressed.Willhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00722792638246578812noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-646957354839776362017-01-11T13:57:49.879-06:002017-01-11T13:57:49.879-06:00BTW, the flaps are rated to 550 mph! They could be...BTW, the flaps are rated to 550 mph! They could be used for dogfighting.<br /> <br />They are blown flaps, so landing pattern use could be exciting, or lethal, if air discharge fails on one.Willhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00722792638246578812noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-48947227568813259002017-01-11T10:24:15.701-06:002017-01-11T10:24:15.701-06:00That's not a low pass! This is a low pass: htt...That's not a low pass! This is a low pass: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4iOoiEbtf2w<br /><br />(Ray Hanna in a Spitfire)<br /><br /><br />Quentinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-76360613185613112017-01-11T09:22:11.497-06:002017-01-11T09:22:11.497-06:00Notice that the flaps are down - he's actually...Notice that the flaps are down - he's actually doing a slow pass (for a Starfighter).Roger Ritternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-65010933306760450842017-01-11T04:02:23.692-06:002017-01-11T04:02:23.692-06:00Maintainence Chief to pilot: "You know that ...Maintainence Chief to pilot: "You know that bird strike you reported?"<br />Pilot: "Yeah?"<br />Maintainence Chief: "Turns out it was a jack rabbit."waepnedmannhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07114411043832799988noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-45898414312014043802017-01-10T22:23:00.494-06:002017-01-10T22:23:00.494-06:00Friend of mine flew those back in the day. An anec...Friend of mine flew those back in the day. An anecdote:<br /><br />That's what I trained on at Luke in Arizona defore transitioning to recips for Nam. <br />Crazy to fly it so low. Tough to fly. Always had to fly it. Very tiring. <br />I once did an intercept over Alaska flying from Arizona. Fly at 70,000 feet. Mach 1.8. Must have amused the Ruskies to see an Arizona decal on my tail. With air refueling about 2.5 hours. <br /><br />MichaelAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-58281231653786840112017-01-10T19:47:42.037-06:002017-01-10T19:47:42.037-06:00Lawn DartLawn Dartzdogk9https://www.blogger.com/profile/04295483098573950904noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-92202250775770326672017-01-10T19:44:38.636-06:002017-01-10T19:44:38.636-06:00Bought a kit model F104 in 1972? Or so. Dad (ex US...Bought a kit model F104 in 1972? Or so. Dad (ex USN, kicked from flight training over vision issues during WWII) looked at it after I assembled, made wry remark "even an anvil with a big enough engine will fly".<br /><br />It flew quite well... with a launch lug added and an Estes "D" rocket engine spliced into it. Crashed spectacularly on the way back down too, a very realistic model.Whyawannaknowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05348492441925654803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-63099006708063539662017-01-10T19:32:38.501-06:002017-01-10T19:32:38.501-06:00I recall seeing film of a record attempt by one of...I recall seeing film of a record attempt by one of these. Starts with the tires skidding with the brakes locked, as it spools up. <br />Pilot snaps the gear up as soon as they reach full extension, and he hold it at that distance while continuing to accelerate.<br />He's climbing vertically by the time he reaches the end of the runway.<br />You can hear the sonic boom while he's still vertical.<br /><br />Had a long chat with a Canadien Pilot who flew one down to an airshow at Moffett NAS, around 1980. He loved it. flew it for at least 8 years. Said one of it's quirks was high speed stalls. A related factor was the stall recovery took about 10k feet, so SOP was to punch out if less than 12k AGL. <br />Brakes couldn't be used above 100mph, IIRC, or they would burn out before it stopped. The drag 'chute was required, to get speed down to a rate the brakes could handle. Stall, dirty, was about 165mph, so over the fence was about 185mph. If you hit the brakes right after deploying the 'chute, they would be toast by the time you got down to 100mph. He said that was a common beginner's mistake, to get on them too soon.Willhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00722792638246578812noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-89053587455263141292017-01-10T18:05:14.904-06:002017-01-10T18:05:14.904-06:00Empty weight 14,000 pounds. J79 thrust with after...Empty weight 14,000 pounds. J79 thrust with afterburner 15,600 pounds.<br /><br />Yes -- can go straight up.<br /><br />On the other hand, with a single engine, and a wing area under 200 sq ft, it's not going to do much but crash quickly if the engine fails.Ben Yalowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12559411931000354498noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-71257461663539239762017-01-10T15:29:05.452-06:002017-01-10T15:29:05.452-06:00The F-104 also killed pilots with great regularity...The F-104 also killed pilots with great regularity. It was called Widowmaker, among other uncomplimentary names. vorkosigannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-32673985326047975422017-01-10T14:52:07.739-06:002017-01-10T14:52:07.739-06:00Beautiful, though.Beautiful, though.trailbeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06830065132795330618noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-13163883937159052582017-01-10T14:18:58.474-06:002017-01-10T14:18:58.474-06:00The last one I saw was back in '71 and it was ...The last one I saw was back in '71 and it was a wreck lying about 200 yards off the south end of the runway at Kelly Air Force Base, San Antonio. The pilot was killed in the accident.<br /><br />The Luftwaffe called them flying coffins for a very good reason.Quartermasternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6244999628674918029.post-26147330294486152262017-01-10T13:59:04.610-06:002017-01-10T13:59:04.610-06:00The Starfighters used to bill themselves a "t...The Starfighters used to bill themselves a "the world's loudest airshow team". Last I heard they were contracting for NASA. <br /><br />A while back I read somewhere that at the right altitude, the F-104 could sustain a 7G turn. <br />Ritchienoreply@blogger.com