Too bad they weren't fitted with the engines from the F-111F...


GK121, u r so right.


We evidently had the option, in the day (1969-71, I believe) because of the delivery delays, to change our F-111C order to the F-111F.


Unfortunately, due to Govt bureaucracy (and possibly for fear of further price increases), this was not taken up.


Big shame. We could have avoided our orphan AUP (based largely on F-111A/E AMP) and run with the F-111F Pacer Strike upgrade in 1995. 25k of poke per side, and the aircraft could easily have pressed on beyond 2010 (our withdrawal date). BTW, I think F-111F airtests went to M2.5.

I've done 1300ish mph with champers!! 😎Also done it up front too!

That would be exactly what happened to a US F4 in mid-60s. Following a tail slide, erect spin, TBC deployment, canopy jettison and twin ejection, the aircraft recovered and landed wheels up on the salt lake.

Of course I have... in a pointy jet thingy.

But most VC10 pilots have flown the pond (west to east) with a ground speed of well over 1000 mph... often 1000 kts

Faster than the Sun
 

A very worthwhile read is the book with the above name by Peter Twiss

Fairey Delta FD 2.......especially the problems they had of proving to the US that they had actually achieved it.......:ok:

I second the 1000 mph+ with a glass of Dom Perignon in my hand. The air correspondent for the Economist was in the next seat (as a reward for his magazine's diligent efforts to get the :mad: scrapped) and he remarked that it was better than working for a living. I toddled into our elegant Sarfoftheriver HQ at 1 pm, fresh as a newly minted daisy, and announced that I had had breakfast in Singapore.

On topic: I recall reading an immediately post-GW1 account of an F-111F claiming M=1.4 on egress from an objective whose residents were highly miffed and heavily armed.

Or in English 783 kts

sharpend wrote: Huh? Let's say M0.886 at FL390 and ISA+30. I make that a TAS of 542 knots, or 624 mph. So to crack 1000 mph groundspeed, you'd need a tailwind component of 327 knots, bluntie old chap.....:rolleyes:

I'm not sure where SAC is getting their data but the numbers I posted are from the respective pilot manuals:

TO 1F-15C-1 15 Jan 1982 Page 5-6 "Airspeed Limitation and Afterburner Operating Envelope.

NATOPS Flight Manual Navy Model F-14A Aircraft, 15 May 1995 page 4-7 Maximum Allowable Airspeeds.

Beags .Possibly sharpend was getting 1000 kilometres an hour transcribed in the old grey matter.

So far then, the 1000mph IAS seems to be unofficially claimed by some Tonka F3 mates, all outside RTS? Seems there is not an IAS record classification for aircraft? :hmm:

Clean jets are fun , but wasn't the J79 powered F4 actually able to go faster than most with external tanks on in the real world? ;)

OAP

Indeed PN, however seeing that this thread is about speeds in MPH, I put the the figures in that standard instead of Kts. I was writing the post while Fox3 was doing his one about Sageburner.

The FAI data sheet for the low level record in actually done in KPH.

Fai Record File

So what's the fastest groundspeed for a VC10? I understand it was just about the fastest subsonic airliner.

I crossed the pond 2 weeks ago in a 764 with some serious tailwind, ground speed was over 700mph according to the seatback liar thing.

It was a long trip back home last week against that tailwind!

1000mph - easy - I did it sitting in style, glass of champagne in hand, decent book to read, nice hostie.............

thank God the employer was paying............................... :):)

have we REALLY already forgotten about Concorde???

No, I just recall that a type of Sgt Fletcher wing tank had a very high RTS IAS limit? Or so they said!:eek:

OAP

MJ
Thanks. I see the classification is retired. Was the 3km course limited by a "not above" height?

OAP

RB199
 

When you look at what the F3 could do with only 16,000 ish thrust, it does very well.

Having spent some time rebuilding them and speaking to Rolls Royce, it would have been very easy to upgrade that to 18,000 at least. We did not buy that.
We bought more time on wing.

A better LP comp would have boosted dry power like the German MK 105 motors.

Flight of the Pheonix.
 

BEags

Yes, BB was indeed rumoured to have been involved as you say. :ok:

Sadly, for the Zoom Merchant it wasn't such a happy ending as he was in a significant position of responsibility at the time...

I'm guessing that the champagne riders were nowhere near Mother Earth when they got their 1000mph tick. :ok:

LJ

OK465, USAF did a trial, '60s I guess, to see the potential for incapacitating of very high speed pass over troops in the open with the Thud.

Apparently a low pass at 6 feet would do the buzz. I think at 6 feet there could have been lots of thuds if the troops hadn't ducked. Not so effective against Viet G ing.