#f102

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Delta Dagger over California

The prominent fairings on each side of the jet pipe on the Convair F-102A Delta Dagger came as a result of the YF-102 prototypes being barely supersonic. ⁣ ⁣ At the time, NASA aerodynamicist Richard Whitcomb had developed the idea of area ruling to minimize transonic drag. Since the fuselage couldn’t be “pinched” to the degree needed without a drastic redesign, the fairings in effect created the “pinched waist” needed for area ruling. In addition to a more powerful version of the J57 engine, the production F-102As were much better performers. ⁣ ⁣ For it’s day, the F-102A pushed the state of the art and many of the problems that dogged the early Delta Daggers were finally resolved, but the aircraft’s early reputation as troublesome stuck. ⁣ ⁣ While most F-102s served stateside with the Air Defense Command, some were stationed in Europe and Okinawa. ⁣ ⁣ In 1962, F-102s were moved to South Vietnam to protect against potential (but never occurred) North Vietnamese air attack. From 1062-1972, the F-102s were actually one of the safest aircraft with only 8 lost to operational accidents. One was downed by a MiG-21, two were lost to ground fire, and four were lost to ground attacks by Viet Cong sappers. ⁣ ⁣ Under Project Stovepipe, F-102s used their IR sensors to look for enemy campfires at night over the Ho Chi Minh Trail, sometimes even firing a heat-seeking Falcon AAM at the target. F-102s also flew daytime attacks, firing unguided rockets from the weapons bay. 618 ground attack missions were flown by the F-102As. ⁣ ⁣ Though wholly unsuited for ground attack, the F-102s had the fastest response time when emergent close air support was needed- all of South Vietnam was within 3 minutes’ flying time of Delta Daggers based at Tan Son Nhut AB at Saigon.⁣ ⁣ November Aviation Photo Challenge | @kjdphoto1971 | #1119planes | “Delta Wing” | Day 17⠀⁣ ⁣ #avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #PimaAirandSpaceMuseum #Pima #Tucson #DavisMonthan #Arizona #airport #planespotting #instaplane #instagramaviation #Convair #F102 #DeltaDagger #USAF #mil_aviation_originals #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge #AvGeekNation (at Pima Air & Space Museum) https://www.instagram.com/p/B4-W3mdhIBR/?igshid=m9hbu9nwrr7j

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US Air Force flight line, Bien Hoa Air Base. Mostly F-100's but notice the four delta wing F-102 interceptor's at lower right standing by for the MiGs that never came. An F-102 crashed after takeoff just over the river in the background when I was in the 190th AHC. One of our helicopters was there to pick him up before his parachute hit the ground.