Subject: Number Eighty-Four in the Series--Republic F-84 (13 of 13)

From: [email-masked]
Date: 2 Aug 93 16:31:14 GMT

>From [email-masked]

Early jet fighters had limited range and endurance, and several bizarre 
experiments were performed to test the feasibility of enhancing jet 
fighter range by having them carried into the combat zone by either 
being towed behind bombers or by being stowed inside them.  None of 
these range-extension experiments was more bizarre than "Project Tom 
Tom", in which jet fighters were to be attached to the wingtips of 
large bombers such as B-29s or B-36s.  

Two F-84Bs (46-641 and 44-661) were selected and modified for the 
initial tests.  These two F-84Bs were redesignated EF-84B.  The 
wingtips of the EF-84Bs were modified so that they could be attached 
to flexible mounts fitted to the wingtips of a specially modified 
EB-29A (serial number 44-62093).  I have a photograph of this bizarre 
three-plane arrangement flying wingtip-to-wingtip, and you have to 
blink your eyes a couple of times to make sure that they are not 
fooling you.  

As expected, this idea proved to be highly dangerous.  The entire 
three-plane EF-84B/EB-29A/EF-84B array crashed as a unit on April 24, 
1953 with fatal results.  The project was terminated shortly 
thereafter.  

A parallel project had been undertaken with a pair of RF-84Fs (51-1848 
and 51-1849) attached to wingtip hook up assemblies on an RB-36F 
(49-2707).  After the crash of the EB-29A/EF-84B combo, trials 
continued for a few months with this RF-84F/RB-36F/RF-84F array.  Only 
a few hookup attempts were made, and wingtip vortices and turbulence 
always made this operation a very dangerous affair.  After a RF-84F 
was torn free from the B-36's wing, this project was abandoned before 
the end of 1953, since experiments with mid-air refuelling techniques 
seemed to offer greater promise for increased fighter ranges with far 
less risk to the lives of aircrews.  

Sources:

  Fighters of the United States Air Force, Robert F. Dorr and David Donald,
  Temple Press Aerospace, 1990.

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

  American Combat Planes, Third Enlarged Edition, Ray Wagner,
  Doubleday, 1982.

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

  The Republic F-84F Thunderstreak, Ray Wagner, Profile Publications, 1966.

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

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