Subject: Number 111 in the Series--General Dynamics F-111 (8 of 13)

From: [email-masked]
Date: 17 Mar 94 17:21:57 GMT

>From [email-masked]

The F-111F was the final F-111 version produced for the Tactical Air 
Command (TAC).  It was ordered on July 1, 1970.  It differed from the 
F-111D in having more advanced electronics which were nevertheless 
simplified and more reliable.  It carried the Mark IIB avionics suite 
which combined F-111D and FB-111A navigational and digital computer 
systems (but excluding the F-111D's AN/APN-189 Doppler radar 
navigation set) plus numerous other FB-111A components such as the 
AN/APQ-144 attack radar and some simpler, less costly avionics systems 
used by earlier F-111s.  The APQ-144 attack radar of the F-111F has a 
new 2.5-mile display ring made possible by a 0.2 s pulse-width 
capability.  The F-111F also featured an improved landing gear.  It 
was powered by a pair of 25,100 lb.s.t. TF30-P-100 turbofans 
(although the first 30 had TF30-P-9s and were subsequently 
re-engined).  

On October 13, 1971, a modified F-111A started the F-111F Category I 
flight test program.  A problem with overheating of the aft centerbody 
fuselage was corrected by an engineering change.  The first F-111F 
entered service with the 374th TFW based at Mountain Home AFB in Idaho 
in January 1972.  The entire wing became operationally ready in 
October of 1972.  There were some initial problems with the TF30-P-100 
engine--difficulties were encountered with afterburner stalls in cold 
weather, with tail-feather seal leakage, and with inlet guide vane 
cracking 

The last F-111F was delivered to the USAF in September of 1976.  106 
F-111Fs were built.  Their serials were 70-2362/2419, 71-0883/0894, 
72-1441/1452, 73-0707/0718, and 74-0177/0188.  Another twenty-four 
were cancelled (serials were 71-0895/0906 and 75-0210/0221).  

After serving with the 366th TFW, the F-111Fs were reassigned to the 
48th TFW based at RAF Lakenheath in the United Kingdom.  F-111Fs also 
serve with the 57th Fighter Weapons Wing based at McClellan AFB in 
California.  

The F-111F has an internal weapons bay, but in most aircraft this bay 
is normally occupied by extra fuel or by other equipment.  Many 
F-111Fs carry the Ford AVQ-26 Pave Tack pod semi-recessed in the 
weapons bay.  The Pave Tack is equipped with a laser designator and 
forward-looking infrared (FLIR) which are used for the delivery of 
laser-guided bombs with pinpoint accuracy.  The laser and FLIR are 
boresighted in a powered turret giving magnified clear pictures of 
targets integrated with the cockpit avionics displays and 
weapons-aiming systems.  Although all of the F-111 marks can drop 
laser-guided bombs, only the F version has the laser suite to 
designate targets.  

24 F-111Fs from the 48th TFW based at Lakenheath spearheaded the US 
attack on Libya on the night of April 14, 1986, striking targets in 
Tripoli with laser-guided and retarded bombs.  The lead ship during 
the Libya strike was 70-2390.  One F-111F (serial number 70-2389) was 
lost to ground fire during the attack.  

During *Desert Storm*, the 67 F-111Fs of the 48th TFW operated from 
air bases in Saudi Arabia.  Because of their ability to deliver 
precision-guided ordinance in all-weather conditions, they played a 
key role in the destruction of the Iraqi command and control structure 
and in the elimination of key targets in the Kuwait theatre of 
operations.  These aircraft flew 2500 sorties, destroyed 2203 targets, 
including direct hits on 920 tanks, 252 artillery pieces, 245 hardened 
aircraft shelters, 13 runways, 113 bunkers, and 12 bridges.  A total 
of 5500 bombs were dropped.  Almost 85 percent of these bombs were 
precision guided munitions.  When Iraqi forces deliberately opened a 
oil pumping station manifold to allow oil to leak into the Persian 
Gulf, an F-111F was selected to deliver the GBU-15 electro-optically 
guided bomb against the manifolds to stop the flow.  

On the last night of the war, two F-111Fs delivered the 
hastily-devised GBU-28 deep-penetrator bombs against Iraqi command and 
control bunkers.  These bombs could penetrate over 100 feet of earth 
or 22 feet of concrete.  

No F-111Fs were lost in combat during the Persian Gulf War, which is a 
remarkable testament to its combat effectiveness.  

Specification of F-111F: 

Two Pratt & Whitney TF30-P-100 turbofans, 25,100 lb.s.t. with 
afterburning.  Maximum speed: 1453 mph at 53,450 feet, 914 mph as sea 
level.  Initial climb rate 25,550 feet per minute (clean).  Service 
ceiling 56,650 feet.  Combat radius 1330 miles.  Maximum ferry range 
3634 miles with external fuel.  Dimensions: wingspan 63 feet 0 inches 
(maximum), 32 feet 0 inches (minimum), length 73 feet 6 inches, height 
17 feet 0 inches, wing area 525 square feet.  Weights: 46,172 pounds 
empty, 82,819 pounds gross, 98,950 pounds maximum takeoff.  Internal 
fuel capacity was 5043 US gallons, with a total capacity of 7443 US 
gallons when maximum external fuel is carried.  

Sources:

  United States Military Aircraft Since 1909, Gordon Swanborough and
  Peter M. Bowers, Smithsonian, 1989.

  The Fury of Desert Storm--The Air Campaign, Bret Kinzey, McGraw-
  Hill, 1991.

  General Dynamics Aircraft and their Predecessors, John Wegg, 
  Naval Institute Press, 1990.

  Post-World War II Fighters: 1945-1973, Marcelle Size Knaac,
  Office of Air Force History, 1986.

  The American Fighter, Enzo Angelucci and Peter Bowers,
  Orion, 1987.

  The World Guide to Combat Planes, William Green, Macdonald, 1966. 

  Modern Air Combat, Bill Gunston and Mike Spick, Crescent Books, 1983.

  The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft Armament, Bill Gunston,
  Orion, 1988. 

  F-111 Aardvark--USAF's Ultimate Strike Aircraft, Tony Thornborough,
  Osprey Aerospace, 1993.

  F-111 Aardvark, Hans Halberstadt, Specialty Press, 1992.

Joe Baugher		AT&T Bell Laboratories   	
2000 North Naperville Road      Naperville, Illinois 60566-7033