Brigadier
General Charles F. Born, commander of Crew Training Air Force,
was given the task of forming the new
organization.
The mission of this
new demonstration team was:
"To demonstrate efficiency, familiarization
and orientation to
people not knowing of the F-84G; to create
interest in the training
program; and to recruit aviation cadets."
The F-84G was selected as first Thunderbirds aircraft
The aircraft selected for the new demonstration team had to be able
to show how
good training made a typical aircraft easy to handle. The aircraft
had to
be stable for maneuvers in formation, reliable enough to meet show
schedules,
rugged for the demonstration team.
In addition, the F-84G was the first fighter in the Air Force with
mid-air refueling
capability. To convert the aircraft from combat to demonstration,
technicians
removed the guns and plugged the gun ports.
F-84G Thunderjet
1953-1954
122 Air Shows
Length: 38 feet 8 inches
Wingspan: 36 feet 5 inches
Height: 12 feet 7 inches
Gross weight at take-off: 23,525 pounds
Maximum speed: 622 miles per hour
Ceiling: 40,500 feet
Top
Mindful of their mission to show how the Air Force's best aircraft
perform,
the Air Force selected the swept-wing F-84F Thunderstreak as their
second
aircraft. The Thunderstreak was modified for the team by adding
smoke
tanks for the first time, and red, white, and blue drag chutes. In
addition,
the extreme heat from the lead aircraft--1,500 degrees
Fahrenheit--required
moving the slot's radio antennia from the jet's fin.
For the first time, a solo was added to the diamond displays,
increasing
the show time to 19 minutes.
F-84F Thunderstreak
1955
100 Air Shows
Length: 43 feet 5 inches
Wingspan: 33 feet 7 inches
Height: 14 feet 5 inches
Gross weight at take-off: 24,200 pounds
Maximum speed: 695 miles per hour
Ceiling: 46,000 feet
Thunderbirds Become World's First Supersonic Demonstration Team
With the move from the F-84F to the F-100
Super
Sabre, the Thunderbirds
became the world's first supersonic aerial
demonstration
team. In fact,
the F-100 was the first Air Force jet able to
reach the speed of sound
while flying level or climbing.
In addition to the new aircraft, the Thunderbirds
moved to
Nellis Air Force Base in 1956 to simplify
logistics
and maintenance
support of the aircraft.
F-100C Super Sabre
1956-1963
640 Air Shows
Length: 47 feet
Wingspan: 38 feet 9 inches
Height: 15 feet 6 inches
Gross weight at take-off: 34,832 pounds
Maximum speed: 880 miles per hour
Ceiling: 42,500 feet
Top
Almost a footnote in the history of Thunderbirds' aviation,
the F-105B Thunderchief performed only six shows between April 26 and
May 9.
The Thunderchiefs were the only aircraft that could use dual smoke,
red and blue.
On May 9, 1964, as the team arrived the night before a show at
Hamilton Air Force Base, California, Captain Gene Devlin put his
F-105 into a climb when the aircraft broke apart due to structural
instabilities.
The entire Air Force fleet of F-105s were grounded immediately after
the incident.
The team spent June and July 1964 transitioning into F-100Ds.
While the return to the F-100 was supposed to be temporary,
the F-105 never returned to the Thunderbird hangar.
F-105B Thunderchief
1964
6 Air Shows
Length: 64 feet
Wingspan: 34 feet 11 inches
Height: 19 feet 8 inches
Gross weight at take-off: 52,500 pounds
The F-100D Super Sabre did not differ much from the earlier F-100C.
The noticeable variation was in the bent refueling probe on the
starboard
wing.
In 1968, the team was given its official name that stands today:
the U.S. Air Force Air Demonstration Squadron.
The last show in the Super Sabres was performed at Nellis Air Force
Base
for Boy Scout Day, 1968.
F-100D
Super Sabre
On June 4, 1969, the Thunderbirds demonstrated their newest
aircraft,
the
F-4E Phantom, to President Richard Nixon and the 1969 graduating class
of the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. The event was
covered
by
ABC television and broadcast to an estimated 10 million spectators.
The conversion to the F-4 was extensive. The
communication/navigation
equipment had to be relocated to the front seat, a smoke system
installed,
the rear seat stick removed, and a luggage storage area added in the
nose.
The Phantoms ended their Thunderbirds reign in 1973, performing
their
final show in New Orleans on November 10.
F-4E Phantom
1969-1973
518 Air Shows
Length: 62 feet 10 inches
Wingspan: 38 feet 5 inches
Height: 16 feet 3 inches
Gross weight at take-off: 53,814 pounds
Maximum speed: 1,500 miles per hour (Mach 2.24)
Ceiling: 62,000 feet
The oil embargo of 1973 prompted the Thunderbirds to look for an
aircraft
that was more economical. The T-38 Talon was selected and became the
only
non-combat airplane used by the Thunderbirds. Economically, it was
unequaled: five T-38s used the same amount of fuel needed for one F-4
Phantom.
January 18, 1982, was a dark day in Thunderbirds history when four
T-38s crashed during a practice at Indian Springs, Nevada. The
four-ship
Diamond was executing a line abreast loop when the lead aircraft
experienced
a mechanical failure. The wing and slot aircraft followed lead into
the ground. The accident is known as the Diamond Crash.
T-38 Talon
1974-1981
598 Air Shows
Length: 46 feet 4 inches
Wingspan: 25 feet 3 inches
Height: 12 feet 11 inches
Gross weight at take-off: 11,761 pounds
Maximum speed: 830 miles per hour
Ceiling: 53,600 feet
The move into the F-16A Fighting Falcon was born as much from
necessity
as it was precedented historically. The original Thunderbird
mission was
to demonstrate how a combat aircraft--which the T-38 was not--was an
effective
tool in the hands of a well-trained and experienced pilot. With the
F-16,
the Air Force returned to that ideal. On June 22, 1982, the first
Thunderbird-painted F-16 arrived at Nellis. Not until April 2, 1983,
was the first performance flown in the F-16s, more than 18 months since
the last show.
F-16A Fighting Falcon
1983-1991
676 Air Shows
Length: 49 feet 5 inches
Wingspan: 31 feet
Height: 16 feet
Maximum speed: 1,500 miles per hour
Ceiling: 50,000 feet
In 1992, the Thunderbirds received their ninth aircraft, the F-16C.
With the team's last demonstration in the F-16A, the Thunderbirds were
the last active-duty unit to use the A model.
The F-16 is operated by 19 air forces throughout the world,
from Norway to Venezuela, and Korea to Bahrain.
The officer team grew by one in 1995 with the addition of a flight
surgeon.
