The Republic F-84 Thunderjet is an American turbojetfighter-bomber aircraft. Originating as a 1944 United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) proposal for a "day fighter", the F-84 first flew in 1946. Although it entered service in 1947, the Thunderjet was plagued by so many structural and engine problems that a 1948 U.S. Air Force review declared it unable to execute any aspect of its intended mission and considered canceling the program. The aircraft was not considered fully operational until the 1949 F-84D model and the design matured only with the definitive F-84G introduced in 1951. In 1954, the straight-wing Thunderjet was joined by the swept-wing F-84F Thunderstreak fighter and RF-84F Thunderflash photo reconnaissance aircraft.
The Thunderjet became the USAF's primary strike aircraft during the Korean War, flying 86,408 sorties and destroying 60% of all ground targets in the war as well as eight Soviet-built MiG fighters. Over half of the 7,524 F-84s produced served with NATO nations, and it was the first aircraft to fly with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds demonstration team. The USAFStrategic Air Command had F-84 Thunderjets in service from 1948 through 1957.
The F-84 nomenclature can be somewhat confusing. The straight-wing F-84A to F-84E and F-84G models were called the Thunderjet. The F-84F Thunderstreak and RF-84F Thunderflash were different airplanes with swept wings. The XF-84H Thunderscreech (not its official name) was an experimental turboprop version of the F-84F. The F-84F swept wing version was intended to be a small variation of the normal Thunderjet with only a few different parts, so it kept the basic F-84 number. Production delays on the F-84F resulted in another order of the straight-wing version; this was the F-84G.
In 1944, Republic Aviation's chief designer, Alexander Kartveli, began working on a turbojet-powered replacement for the P-47 Thunderbolt piston-engined fighter aircraft. The initial attempts to redesign the P-47 to accommodate a jet engine proved futile due to the large cross-section of the Thunderbolt's fuselage. Instead, Kartveli and his team designed a new aircraft with a much-slimmer fuselage housing an axial compressor turbojet engine in the rear fuselage, and an air intake in the nose of the fuselage, with air ducts running from the nose to the engine and taking up much of the fuselage volume. Fuel was mainly stored in tanks in the thick, but laminar flow airfoil, unswept wings.[1][2]
On 11 September 1944, the USAAF released General Operational Requirements for a day fighter with a top speed of 600mph (520kn; 970km/h), a combat radius of 850mi (740nmi; 1,370km), and armament of either eight .50in (12.7mm) or six .60in (15.2mm) machine guns. In addition, the new aircraft had to use the General Electric TG-180 axial turbojet which entered production as the Allison J35. These specifications proved to be too ambitious, however, and the radius requirement was reduced to 705mi (613nmi; 1,135km) and the armament suite was reduced to six .50-caliber or four .60-caliber machine guns in order to reduce weight.[3][4]
On 11 November 1944, Republic received an order for three prototypes of the new XP-84—known to Republic as the Model AP-23.[3][2] Since the design promised superior performance to the Lockheed-built P-80 Shooting Star and Republic had extensive experience in building single-seat fighters, no competition was held for the contract. The name "Thunderjet" was chosen to continue the Republic Aviation tradition started with the P-47 Thunderbolt, while emphasizing the new method of propulsion.[2][5] On 4 January 1945, even before the aircraft took to the air, the USAAF placed an additional order for 25 service test YP-84As and 75 production P-84Bs (later modified to 15 YP-84A and 85 P-84B).[6][7]
Meanwhile, wind tunnel testing by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics revealed longitudinal instability and stabilizer skin buckling at high speeds.[7] The weight of the aircraft, a great concern given the low thrust of early turbojets, was growing so quickly that the USAAF had to set a gross weight limit of 13,400lb (6,100kg).[6][7] The results of this preliminary testing were incorporated into the third prototype, designated XP-84A, which was also fitted with a more powerful J35-GE-15 engine with 4,000lbf (17.79kN) of thrust.[6][7]
The first prototype XP-84 was rolled out in December 1945,[8] but availability of suitable engines delayed flight testing.[7] The first prototype was transferred to Muroc Army Air Field (present-day Edwards Air Force Base) where it flew for the first time on 28 February 1946 with Major Wallace A. "Wally" Lien at the controls. It was joined by the second prototype in August, both aircraft flying with J35-GE-7 engines producing 3,750lbf (16.68kN).[9] On 8 September 1946, the second XP-84 set a US national airspeed record of 607.2mph (527.6kn; 977.2km/h), but failed to match the world speed record of 612.2mph (532.0kn; 985.2km/h) set the day before by a British Gloster Meteor.[6] The effort to break the speed record delayed the test program with the second prototype.[9] The 15 YP-84As, which were delivered to Patterson Field (present-day Wright-Patterson Air Force Base) for service tests from January 1947, differed from XP-84s by having an upgraded J35-A-15 engine, carrying six 0.50in M2 Browning machine guns (four in the nose and one in each wing root), and having the provision for wingtip fuel tanks holding 226USgal (188impgal; 860L) each.[10]
Due to delays with delivery of jet engines and production of the XP-84A, the Thunderjet had undergone only limited flight testing by the time production P-84Bs began to roll out of the factory in 1947. In particular, the impact of wingtip tanks on the aircraft's structure was not thoroughly studied. This proved problematic later.[10][11] After the creation of the United States Air Force by the National Security Act of 1947, the "Pursuit" designation was replaced with "Fighter", and the P-84 became the F-84.[12][13]
Operational history
The F-84B, which differed from the YP-84A only in having faster-firing M3 machine guns (later F-84s also had provision to carry eight 5in (130mm)High Velocity Aircraft Rockets (HVAR) underwing[14][10]), became operational with 14th Fighter Group at Dow Field, Bangor, Maine, in December 1947.[14][10] Flight restrictions followed immediately, limiting maximum speed to Mach 0.8 due to control reversal, and limiting maximum acceleration to 5.5g-force (54m/s2) due to wrinkling of the fuselage skin. To compound the problem, parts shortages and maintenance difficulties earned the aircraft the nickname, "Mechanic's Nightmare".[14][10] On 24 May 1948, the entire F-84B fleet was grounded due to structural failures in the aircraft's wings.[14][10] The F-84C featured a somewhat more reliable J35-A-13C engine of the same power as the A-15-C used by the F-84B,[15][16] and modified fuel and electrical systems.[15] Beyond these modifications, the F-84C was virtually identical to the F-84B, and suffered from the same defects.[13]
P-84Bs of the 48th Fighter Squadron, 14th Fighter Group, 1948
A 1948 review of the F-84 program discovered that none of the F-84B or F-84C aircraft could be considered operational or capable of executing any aspect of their intended mission. The program was saved from cancellation because the F-84D, whose production was well underway, had satisfactorily addressed the major faults. A fly-off against the F-80 revealed that while the Shooting Star had a shorter takeoff roll, better low altitude climb rate and superior maneuverability, the F-84 could carry a greater bomb load, was faster, had better high altitude performance and greater range.[17] As a compromise, the USAF in 1949 committed US$8million to implement over 100 upgrades to all F-84Bs and F-84Cs, most notably reinforcing the wings to a similar standard to the F-84D.[15][18] Despite the resultant improvements, both the F-84B and F-84C were withdrawn from service during 1952.[19]
The structural improvements were factory-implemented in the F-84D, which entered service in 1949. Wings were covered with thicker aluminum skin, the fuel system was winterized and capable of using JP-4 fuel, and a more powerful J35-A-17D engine with 5,000lbf (22.24kN) was fitted. It had been discovered that the untested wingtip fuel tanks contributed to wing structural failures by inducing excessive twisting during high-g maneuvers. To correct this, small triangular fins were added to the outside of the tanks.[20][21] The F-84D was phased out of USAF service in 1952 and left Air National Guard (ANG) service in 1957.[17]
The first effective and fully capable Thunderjet was the F-84E model which entered service in 1950. The aircraft featured the J35-A-17 engine, further wing reinforcement, a 12in (300mm) fuselage extension in front of the wings and 3in (76mm) extension aft of the wings to enlarge the cockpit and the avionics bay, an A-1B gunsight with AN/APG-30 range-finding radar, and provision for an additional pair of 230USgal (190impgal; 870L) fuel tanks to be carried on underwing pylons.[22][23] The latter increased the combat radius from 850mi (740nmi; 1,370km) to over 1,000mi (870nmi; 1,600km).[23]
One improvement to the original F-84 design was rocket racks that folded flush with the wing after the 5-inch HVAR rockets were fired, which reduced drag over the older fixed mounting racks. This innovation was adopted by other US jet fighter-bombers.[24]
A Portuguese F-84 being loaded with ordnance in the 1960s, at Luanda Air Base, during the Portuguese Colonial War.
Despite the improvements, the in-service rates for the F-84E remained poor with only half of the aircraft operational in April 1950.[25] This was primarily due to a severe shortage of spares for the Allison engines. The expectation was that F-84Es would fly 25 hours per month, accumulating 100 hours between engine overhauls. The actual flight hours for Korean War and NATO deployments rapidly outpaced the supply and Allison's ability to manufacture new engines.[25] The F-84E was withdrawn from USAF service in 1956, serving with the Air Force Reserve until 1957 and lingering with ANG units until 1959.[26]
The final straight-wing F-84 was the F-84G, intended as a stop-gap until the swept wing F-84F entered service, but ordered in large numbers to build-up NATO air forces.[22] It introduced a refueling boom receptacle in the left wing,[27][28][29]autopilot, Instrument Landing System, J35-A-29 engine with 5,560lbf (24.73kN) of thrust, a distinctive framed canopy (also retrofitted to earlier types), and the ability to carry a single Mark 7 nuclear bomb.[27][28] The F-84G entered service in 1951, although deliveries were slowed by shortages of engines. Production continued until July 1953 with 3,025 F-84Gs delivered, with 789 going to the USAF and 2,236 to US allies as part of US military aid.[30] The F-84G was retired from the USAF in mid-1960.[31]
Flying the Thunderjet
Typical of most early jets, the Thunderjet's takeoff performance left much to be desired. In hot Korean summers with a full combat load, the aircraft routinely required 10,000ft (3,000m) of runway for takeoff even with the help of RATO bottles (two or four of these were carried, each producing 1,000lbf (4.4kN) of thrust for 14 seconds).[30] All but the lead aircraft had their visibility obscured by the thick smoke from the rockets. F-84s had to be pulled off the ground at 160mph (140kn, 260km/h) with the control stick held all the way back.[32] Landings were made at a similar speed. For comparison, the North American P-51 Mustang landed at approximately 120mph (100kn, 190km/h).[33] Despite the "hot" landing speeds, the Thunderjet was easy to fly on instruments and crosswinds did not present much of a problem.[34]
An F-84E launching rockets.
Thanks to the thick straight wing the Thunderjet rapidly reached its Mach 0.82 limitation at full throttle and low altitude. The aircraft had sufficient power to fly faster, but exceeding the Mach limit at low altitudes resulted in a violent pitch-up and structural failure causing the wings to break off.[32] Above 15,000ft (4,600m), the F-84 could be flown faster but at the expense of severe buffeting. However, the airspeed was sufficiently easy to control to make safe dive bombing from 10,000ft possible.[35] The top speed limitation proved troublesome against Soviet Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15s in Korea. Slower than the MiG, the F-84 was also unable to turn tightly with a maximum instantaneous-turn load of only 3gs followed by rapid loss of airspeed. One F-84E pilot credited with two MiG kills achieved his second victory by intentionally flying his aircraft into pitch-up. The MiGs chasing him were unable to follow the violent maneuver and one crashed into the ground. Luckily for the F-84E pilot, the aircraft did not disintegrate but the airframe did suffer heavy warping.[36] The F-84 was a stable gun platform and the computing gunsight aided in accurate gunnery and bombing. Pilots praised the aircraft for Republic's legendary ruggedness.[37]
Pilots nicknamed the Thunderjet "The Lead Sled".[38] It was also called "The Iron Crowbar", "a hole sucking air", "The Hog" ("The Groundhog"), and "The World's Fastest Tricycle", "Ground Loving Whore" as a testament to its long takeoff rolls.[39] F-84 lore stated that all aircraft were equipped with a "sniffer" device that, upon passing takeoff safety speed, would look for the dirt at the end of the runway. As soon as the device could smell the dirt, the controls would turn on and let the pilot fly off the ground. In the same vein, it was suggested a bag of dirt should be carried in the front landing gear well. Upon reaching takeoff safety speed, the pilot would dump the dirt under the wheels, fooling the sniffer device.[30]
Korean War
The Thunderjet had a distinguished record during the Korean War.[30] After the entry of the People's Republic of China into the war in October 1950, the US Fifth Air Force requested that a wing of F-84s be sent to Korea.[40] While the F-84B and F-84C could not be deployed overseas because their J35 engines had a service life of only 40 hours, the F-84D and F-84E were more suitable,[41] and so the F-84E-equipped 27th Fighter Escort Group was sent to the Far East aboard the aircraft carrier Bataan, which arrived in Japan on 30 November 1950. After maintenance, the F-84s moved to Taegu airfield (known as K-2), flying its first operational missions on 7 December 1950.[40] The aircraft were initially tasked with escorting the B-29 Superfortress bombers. The first Thunderjet air-to-air victory was scored on 21 January 1951 at the cost of two F-84s.[39][42] The F-84 was outmatched by the swept-wing Soviet Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15, which was both faster and more manoeuvrable,[36] and the MiG counter-air mission was soon given to the F-86 Sabre. The F-84 switched to the ground attack role at which it excelled.[43]
A KB-29M tanker refueling an F-84E over Korea. F-84Es could only refuel the wingtip tanks separately.F-84G-26-RE Thunderjet 51-16719 while assigned to the 3600th Air Demonstration Team (USAF Thunderbirds), 1954.
The number of units operating the F-84 over Korea gradually increased, both by bringing over Air National Guard Groups from the US, and converting F-80 squadrons already in theater.[44] The F-84 flew a total of 86,408 missions,[34] dropping 55,586tons (50,427metric tons) of bombs and 6,129tons (5,560metric tons) of napalm, and firing 22,154 rockets.[45] The USAF claimed F-84s were responsible for 60% of all ground targets destroyed in the war.[46] Notable F-84 operations included the 1952 attack on the Sui-ho Dam. During the war, the F-84 became the first USAF fighter to utilize aerial refueling. In aerial combat, F-84 pilots were credited with eight MiG-15 kills against a Soviet-claimed loss of 64aircraft. The total losses were 335 F-84D, E and G models.[39] According to the USAF FY1953 statistical digest, during the Korean war, 305 F-84s were lost, including 249 in combat missions and 56 non-combat losses.[47]
Western Europe
Air battle over Merklín - A notable incident occurred on 10 March 1953, when two Czech MiG 15 fighters intercepted two US Air Force F-84Es that were claimed to have strayed from German to Czechoslovakian airspace and shot one down. It crashed on the German side of the border and the pilot successfully ejected.[48][49]
Portugal
Portugal received its first F-84s in January 1953, with 25 new build F-84Gs later supplemented by USAFE stocks and from other European operators, with deliveries eventually reaching 125 F-84Gs.[50] They were the Força Aérea Portuguesa's first operational jet fighters.[51] Two squadrons were formed in Portugal, operating the F-84 in both air-defense and ground attack roles,[52] with the Thunderjet also equipping an aerobatic display team, the Dragões.[53] In 1960, the two operational F-84 squadrons were disbanded and the remaining F-84s transferred to training units.[54] In 1961, however, an uprising against Portuguese rule began in Angola, and as a result, 25 F-84Gs were refurbished by OGMA and sent to Angola, with the first aircraft arriving at Luanda in August that year. There, they formed the Esquadra 91 (91st Squadron), carrying out bomb, rocket and gun attacks against separatist forces.[55][56] In 1966, after Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence, and the imposition of the Beira Patrol by the British Royal Navy to attempt to stop the flow of fuel to Rhodesia via the port of Beira, Mozambique, a detachment of eight F-84s was sent from Luanda to Mozambique to guard against potential clashes with British forces, with the aircraft returning to Angola when the threat of military action receded.[57] Attrition of the F-84s was heavy, and by 1973, only five F-84s remained operational, with the last examples withdrawn from use that year, although the F-84G nominally remained in Portuguese service until October 1975.[55][58]
On 7 September 1946, the second XP-84 prototype set a national speed record of 607.2mph (527.6kn, 977.2km/h), slightly slower than the world record 612.2mph (532.0kn, 985.2km/h) held by the British Gloster Meteor.[6] None of these records exceeded the April 1941 wartime achievement of an Me 163A rocket plane at some 624.2mph;[61] itself first exceeded by the American Douglas D-558-1Skystreak in August 1947, using basically the same Allison J35 turbojet engine as the F-84.[62]
On 22 September 1950, two EF-84Es, flown by David C. Schilling and Col. William Ritchie, refuelled using the probe and drogue system from Avro Lincoln tankers operated by the British company Flight Refuelling Limited, flew across the North Atlantic from Great Britain to the United States. Ritchie's aircraft ran out of fuel over Newfoundland, but the other successfully made the crossing, which took 10 hours and 2 minutes and three aerial refuelings. The flight demonstrated that large numbers of fighters could be rapidly moved across the Atlantic.[63][64]
The F-84G was the first fighter with built-in aerial refueling capability and the first single-seat aircraft capable of carrying a nuclear bomb.[28]
On 20 August 1953, 17 F-84Gs of the 508th Strategic Fighter Wing using aerial refueling flew from the United States to the United Kingdom. The 4,485mi (3,897nmi; 7,218km) journey was the longest-ever nonstop flight by jet fighters at the time.[63][64]
286,407 for the first 100 163,994 for the next 141
147,699
212,241
212,241
237,247
769,300
667,608
Cost per flying hour
390
Maintenance cost per flying hour
185
185
Notes: The costs are 1950 estimates and have not been adjusted for inflation.
Variants
Straight-wing variants
The XP-84A (foreground) and YP-84As
XP-84
The first two prototypes. Powered by 3,750lbf (16.7kN) J-35-GE-7 engine,[70] and armed with four .50 in (12.7mm) machine guns.[71]
XP-84A
The third prototype with a more powerful (4,000lbf (18kN)) J35-GE-15 engine.[9] This airframe was subsequently modified with a pointed fairing over the intake and lateral NACA intakes were installed into the intake trunks.[citation needed]
YP-84A
Service test aircraft with J35-A-15 engines and six guns; 15 built.[10]
P-84B (F-84B)
First production version, J35-A-15 engine; 226 built.[72]
F-84C
Reverted to the more reliable J35-A-13 engine, improved fuel, hydraulic and electrical systems; 191 built.[73][15]
F-84D
J35-A-17 engine, various structural improvements. The pitot tube was moved from the tail fin to the splitter in the air intake with fins added to the wingtip fuel tanks; 154 built.[20][74]
F84 E&G Thunderjet French Air Force 1951–1955
EF-84D
Two F-84Ds, EF-84D 48-641 and EF-84D 48-661 were modified with wing-tip coupling devices to allow them to link in-flight with the wingtips of a B-29 bomber and extend the range of the fighters. The B-29 and one of the EF-84s were lost in an accident on 24 April 1953, when the F-84s automatic flight controls were activated after link-up.[75][76]
F-84E
J35-A-17D engine, SperryAN/APG-30 radar-ranging gunsight, retractable attachments for RATO bottles, inboard wing hardpoints made "wet" to permit carrying an additional pair of 230USgal (190impgal; 870L). Stretched fuselage and enlarged cockpit.[22][77] Most aircraft were retrofitted with F-84G-style reinforced canopies.[78] 843 built.[79] Some aircraft used as interim reconnaissance aircraft, with cameras in the wingtip fuel tanks, by Netherlands and Norway until RF-84Fs became available.[80]
EF-84E
F-84Es modified for testing - examples included testing of air-to-air refuelling systems,[64] use as a FICON test aircraft with a B-36 host[81] and use as test aircraft for the ZELMAL (Zero-length launch, Mat landing) experiments for operations away from airfields vulnerable to nuclear attack using the booster rocket from the MGM-1 Matador cruise missile.[82]
F-84G
Single-seat fighter-bomber capable of delivering the Mark 7 nuclear bomb using the LABS, J35-A-29 engine, autopilot, capable of inflight refuelling using both the boom (receptacle in left wing leading edge) and drogue (probe fitted to wingtip fuel tanks), introduced the multi-framed canopy which was later retrofitted to earlier straight-winged F-84s.[27][83] A total of 3,025 were built (789 for the USAF for other users under MAP).[28] Some used by Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy and Yugoslavia as interim reconnaissance aircraft with cameras in the wingtip fuel tanks.[80]
F-84KX
Conversion of ex-USAF F-84Bs into target drones for the United States Navy. Sometimes claimed that 80 aircraft converted but programme may have been cancelled prior to conversion or use of the aircraft.[84]
Republic F-84 Thunderjet in the Royal Military Museum at the Jubelpark, Brussels.Imperial Iranian Air Force F-84G of the Golden Crown aerobatic team.Republic F-84 Thunderjet at the Italian Air Force Museum, Vigna di Valle in 2012.Royal Norwegian Air Force Republic F-84G Thunderjet.Portuguese Air Force F-84 Thunderjet.Yugoslav F-84 Pivka
Belgium
Belgian Air Force operated 21 F-84Es and 192 F-84Gs, with deliveries from April 1951.[93] Replaced by F-84Fs and RF-84Fs in 1956. 54 Thunderjets were destroyed in crashes in Belgian service, with 23 pilots killed.[94]
Denmark
Danish Air Force operated 240 Republic F-84G from April 1952 until January 1962 and 6 Republic F-84E.[95]
Yugoslavian Air Force operated 219 F-84Gs from June 1953 until 1974.[97] In May 1963 one Thunderjet crashed and exploded on a building in Slavina, Postojna. Two people and a pilot died in the incident. It is the only military airplane incident in Slovenia after the end of World war 2.[99]
The Republic Aviation Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer based in Farmingdale, New York, on Long Island. Originally known as the Seversky Aircraft Company, the company was responsible for the design and production of many important military aircraft, including its most famous products: World War II's P-47 Thunderbolt fighter, the F-84 Thunderjet and F-105 Thunderchief jet fighters.
The Republic F-105 Thunderchief is an American fighter-bomber that served with the United States Air Force from 1958 to 1984. Capable of Mach 2, it conducted the majority of strike bombing missions during the early years of the Vietnam War; it is the only American aircraft to have been removed from combat due to high loss rates. It was originally designed as a single-seat, nuclear-attack aircraft; a two-seat Wild Weasel version was later developed for the specialized Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) role against surface-to-air missile sites. The F-105 was commonly known as the "Thud" by its crews.
Alexander Kartveli, born Aleksandre Kartvelishvili, was a Georgian aeronautical engineer and an aviation pioneer in the United States. Kartveli achieved important breakthroughs in military aviation in the time of turbojet fighters.
The Northrop F-89 Scorpion is an all-weather, twin-engined interceptor aircraft designed and produced by the American aircraft manufacturer Northrop Corporation. It was the first jet-powered aircraft to be designed for the interceptor role from the outset to enter service, as well as the first combat aircraft to be armed with air-to-air nuclear weapons in the form of the unguided Genie rocket. The name Scorpion came from the aircraft's elevated tail unit and high-mounted horizontal stabilizer, which kept it clear of the engine exhaust.
The 116th Air Control Wing is a Wing of the Georgia Air National Guard/United States Air Force, stationed at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. If activated for federal service, the wing is gained by Air Combat Command.
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The Republic F-84F Thunderstreak is an American swept-wing turbojet-powered fighter-bomber. The RF-84F Thunderflash was a photo reconnaissance version.
MDP Wethersfield is a Ministry of Defence facility in Essex, England, located north of the village of Wethersfield, about 6 mi (9.7 km) north-west of the town of Braintree. Originally an RAF station, the site was later used as the headquarters and training centre of the Ministry of Defence Police until 2022. It now houses asylum seekers.
The Albatros L 84 was a German tandem two-seat, single-bay fighter sesquiplane first flown in 1931. Four of the five examples produced were built by Focke-Wulf Flugzeugbau, into which Albatros Flugzeugwerke was amalgamated in that year.
The 121st Air Refueling Wing is a unit of the Ohio Air National Guard, stationed at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base, Columbus, Ohio. If activated to federal service, the Wing is gained by the United States Air Force Air Mobility Command.
The 182d Fighter Squadron is a unit of the Texas Air National Guard 149th Fighter Wing located at Kelly Field Annex, Joint Base San Antonio, Texas. The 149th is equipped with the F-16C/D Fighting Falcon.
The 158th Airlift Squadron is a unit of the Georgia Air National Guard's 165th Airlift Wing located at Savannah Air National Guard Base, Georgia. The 158th is equipped with the C-130J Hercules and is operationally-gained by the Air Mobility Command (AMC).
The 125th Fighter Squadron is a unit of the Oklahoma Air National Guard 138th Fighter Wing located at Tulsa Air National Guard Base, Oklahoma. The 125th is equipped with the Block 42 F-16C Fighting Falcon.
The 69th Fighter Squadron is a United States Air Force Reserve fighter squadron. It is assigned to the 944th Operations Group, stationed at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona.
The 128th Airborne Command and Control Squadron is a unit of the Georgia Air National Guard 116th Air Control Wing located at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. The 128th is equipped with the E-8C Joint STARS.
The 14th Operations Group is the flying component of the 14th Flying Training Wing, assigned to the United States Air Force's Air Education and Training Command. The group is stationed at Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi.
The 20th Operations Group is the flying component of the 20th Fighter Wing, assigned to the United States Air Force Air Combat Command. It is stationed at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. It is a successor organization of the 20th Pursuit Group, one of the 15 original combat air groups formed by the U.S. Army before World War II.
The 116th Operations Group is a Georgia Air National Guard unit assigned to the 116th Air Control Wing. The unit is stationed at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. The 116th Group controls all operational Northrop Grumman E-8C Joint STARS aircraft of the 116th Air Control Wing. It was activated in 1992, when the Air Force implemented the Objective Wing organization, and was successively equipped with the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle and the Rockwell B-1 Lancer before converting to the E-8C in 2002.
The 136th Operations Group is a component of the 136th Airlift Wing of the Texas Air National Guard. It was first activated in June 1943 as the 368th Fighter Group. After training with Republic P-47 Thunderbolts in the United States, it deployed to the European Theater of Operations, where it began combat operations in March 1944. Shortly after D-Day, the group moved to the continent of Europe, continuing operations until May 1945. The group was awarded the Distinguished Unit Citation and the Belgian Fourragère for its combat operations and being credited with the destruction of 120 enemy aircraft in air to air combat. It served in the occupation forces until the spring of 1946, when it inactivated and transferred its personnel and equipment to another unit.
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Forrer, Frits T. (1992). The Fun of Flying. Gulf Breeze, Florida: Holland's Glory. ISBN0-9714490-3-1.
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Wauthy, Jean-Luc; de Néve, Florimond (February 1996). "Les aéronefs de la Force Aérienne belge: Septième partie: Les F-84". Le Fana de l'Aviation (in French). No.315. pp.44–47.
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