XF8U-3 Crusader III

infobox Aircraft
name=XF8U-3 Crusader III
type=Fighter aircraft
manufacturer=Chance Vought


caption=A NASA XF8U-3, still in Navy colors, used for upper atmospheric testing.
designer=
first flight=1958-06-02
number built=5
status=Retired
unit cost=
primary user=NASA
more users=
developed from=F-8 Crusader
variants with their own articles=

The Vought XF8U-3 Crusader III was an aircraft developed by Chance Vought as a successor to the successful F-8 Crusader program and as a competitor to the F-4 Phantom II.cite book|author=Tillman, B.|title=MiG Master: Story of the F-8 Crusader (second edition)|publisher=Naval Institute Press|year=1990|id=ISBN 0-87021-585-X.] Though based in spirit on the F-8 (then known as the F8U-1 and F8U-2) and sharing the older aircraft's designation in the old Navy system, the two aircraft had little in common.

History

In parallel with the F8U-1s and -2s, the Crusader design team was also working on a larger aircraft with ever greater performance, internally designated as the V-401. Although externally similar to the Crusader and sharing with it such design elements as the variable incidence wing, the new fighter was larger and was powered by the Pratt & Whitney J75-P-5A engine generating 29,500 lb_f (131 kN) of afterburning thrust. To deal with Mach 2+ flight conditions it was fitted with large vertical ventral fins under the tail which rotated to the horizontal position for landing. To ensure sufficient performance, Vought made provisions for a Rocketdyne XLF-40 liquid-fueled rocket motor with 8,000 lb_f (35.6 kN) of thrust in addition to the turbojet. Avionics included the AN/AWG-7 fire control computer, AN/APG-74 radar, and AN/ASQ-19 datalink. The system was expected to simultaneously track six and fire at two targets.

Due to extensive changes as compared to the F8U-1, the F8U-2 was labeled by some as the "Crusader II", and as a result, the XF8U-3 was officially labeled "Crusader III."" [http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/aircraft/f8u-3.htm F8U-3 Crusader III] ." Pike, J. GlobalSecurity.org.]

The XF8U-3 first flew on June 2, 1958. During testing, the aircraft reached Mach 2.6 at 35,000 ft (10,670 m), with Vought projecting a top speed of Mach 2.9. In December 1955, the US Navy declared a competition for a Mach 2+ fleet defense interceptor. Fly-offs against the Crusader III's main competitor, the future F-4 Phantom II, demonstrated that the Vought design had a definite advantage in maneuverability. However, the solitary pilot in the XF8U-3 was easily overwhelmed with the workload required to fly the intercept and fire Sparrows which required constant radar illumination from the firing aircraft, while the Phantom II had a dedicated radar intercept officer on-board. In addition, with the perception that the age of the guns was over, the Phantom's considerably larger payload and the ability to perform air-to-ground as well as air-to-air missions, trumped Vought's fast but single-purposed fighter.

The F8U-3 program was canceled with five aircraft built. Three aircraft flew during the test program, and were transferred to NASA for atmospheric testing, as the Crusader III was capable of flying above 95% of the Earth's atmosphere. NASA pilots flying at NAS Patuxent River routinely intercepted and defeated U.S. Navy Phantom IIs in mock dogfights, until complaints from the Navy put an end to the harassment.

All of the Crusader IIIs were later scrapped.

pecifications

aircraft specifications
plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=jet
ref=The Great Book of Fighters,Green, W; Swanborough, G. "The Great Book of Fighters". Osceola: MBI Publishing, 2001. ISBN 0-7603-1194-3.] American Fighter Aircraft,cite web|last=Baugher|first=Joe|year=2000|url=http://home.att.net/~jbaugher1/f8_19.html|title=Vought XF8U-3 Crusader III|work=American Fighter Aircraft|accessdate=2007-01-20] "and" MiG Master

crew=1 pilot
length main=58 ft 8 in
length alt=17.88 m
span main=39 ft 11 in
span alt=12.16 m
height main=16 ft 4 in
height alt=4.98 m
area main=450 ft²
area alt=41.8 m²
airfoil=
empty weight main=21,860 lb
empty weight alt=9,915 kg
loaded weight main=32,320 lb
loaded weight alt=14,660 kg
max takeoff weight main=38,770 lb
max takeoff weight alt=17,590 kg
more general=
* Fuel capacity: 2,000 US gal (7,700 L)
engine (jet)=Pratt & Whitney J75-P-5A
type of jet=afterburning turbojet
number of jets=1
thrust main=16,500 lbf
thrust alt=73.4 kN
afterburning thrust main=29,500 lbf
afterburning thrust alt=131.2 kN
max speed main=2.9 Mach
max speed alt=estimated
max speed more=at 50,000 ft (15,000 m)
cruise speed main=500 knots
cruise speed alt=575 mph, 925 km/h
range main=560 NM,
range alt=645 mi, 1,040
range more=combat
ferry range main=1,777 NM
ferry range alt=2,045 mi, 3,290 km
range more=with external fuel
ceiling main=60,000 ft
ceiling alt=18,300 m
climb rate main=32,500 ft/min
climb rate alt=165 m/s
loading main=72 lb/ft²
loading alt=350 kg/m²
thrust/weight=0.74
missiles=
** 3× AIM-7 Sparrow radar-guided missiles
** 4× AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles (planned for production)
guns=4× 20 mm (0.787 in) Colt Mk 12 cannon (planned; never installed)
avionics=
* Raytheon Aero 1B weapons control system, including:
* Autotechnicas AN/AWG-7 missile control system
* AN/APQ-50 radar (planned for production)

References

ee also

aircontent
related=
* A-7 Corsair II
* F-8 Crusader
similar aircraft=
* F-4 Phantom II
* Grumman XF12F
sequence=
* XF5U - F6U - F7U - F8U - F8U-3
lists=
* List of fighter aircraft
* List of military aircraft of the United States
see also=