F-105D
Contents
Description
The F-105D Thunderchief is a rank VII American strike aircraft with a battle rating of 11.0 (AB), 10.3 (RB), and 10.0 (SB). It was introduced in Update "Winged Lions". A nickname often associated with the F-105D was "Thud".
Like its contemporaries in the Su-7 family, the F-105D is a strike aircraft designed for ordnance delivery at high speeds at low altitude, and its design reflects this, with powerful acceleration, excellent control authority at high speeds, good roll rate, and plentiful choices in bomb options. The F-105D also has a full range of ballistic computer programming, including CCIP for Rockets, Bombs and Cannons, plus a CCRP function that uses its surprisingly capable AN/ASG-19 radar. While it lacks a true "lock" function, the gun has a radar-ranging gunsight as well as a Search and IFF function that allows it to at least see targets in front and above it to a relatively high degree of efficiency at ranges of up to 37 kilometers. This allows it to see enemies to some extent, and plan ahead to avoid them. The F-105 was designed with nuclear strike in mind, and it performs best roaring through valleys and over hills at low altitude, reaching speeds of almost mach 1.2 when clean, and mach 1.05 with a full load of sixteen 750-pound M117 bombs. Famous for its use during Operation Rolling Thunder in Vietnam as the United States Air Force's main strike aircraft, the F-105, like the P-47 and F-84 that preceded it, has a reputation for being an aircraft capable of taking heavy punishment. However, it had several fatal flaws, including the lack of any standoff air-to-ground ordnance, the positioning of the fuel tanks directly above control cables and the at-times temperamental engine, the low-altitude, low-speed passes that it was forced to fly, and the doctrines of the time.
This fighter has chaff in pods, but does not have flares. It is vulnerable to the IR Air-to-Air Missiles (AAMs) that are prevalent at the battle-rating range that it fights at, as well as the radar-guided anti-aircraft guns and the IR or Beam-riding Surface-to-Air Missiles (SAMs) it faces at the battle-rating. This is offset by the aforementioned roll rate and control authority, meaning that it can easily outroll or outmaneuver any rear-aspect AAM in-game except the Matra R.550 Magic, which can only be outmaneuvered with range and the assumption that the Magic's booster has shut off. Since it was designed to perform toss-bombing at high speeds on the deck, it also has the capability to pull surprisingly high Gs and turn/loop tighter than expected for an attack aircraft, managing turns of 12-13 Gs with empty bomb racks and 4 Sidewinders, or 13-14 G clean with 12 minutes of fuel left in the tank at around ~1100 km/h, and still manages 10-11 G sustained turns above and below those speeds. Seeing as these speeds, fuel loads and payloads are fairly standard conditions when turning away from a base to head home for more ordnance, or while tussling with MiGs over the battlefield, the F-105D makes a capable dogfighter in its own right. Not many enemy pilots expect the F-105D to be capable of popping a 12 G sustained turn immediately after destroying a base, and even fewer expect it from an attacker glued onto their tail!
General info
Flight performance
Describe how the aircraft behaves in the air. Speed, manoeuvrability, acceleration and allowable loads - these are the most important characteristics of the vehicle.
| Characteristics | Max Speed (km/h at 10,668 m) |
Max altitude (metres) |
Turn time (seconds) |
Rate of climb (metres/second) |
Take-off run (metres) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AB | RB | AB | RB | AB | RB | |||
| Stock | 2,129 | 2,102 | 12192 | 28.5 | 29.5 | 149.3 | 141.5 | 1,050 |
| Upgraded | 2,206 | 2,167 | 27.5 | 28.0 | 202.8 | 175.0 | ||
Details
| Features | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Combat flaps | Take-off flaps | Landing flaps | Air brakes | Arrestor gear | Drogue chute |
| X | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | X | ✓ |
| Limits | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wings (km/h) | Gear (km/h) | Flaps (km/h) | Max Static G | |||
| Combat | Take-off | Landing | + | - | ||
| 0 | 546 | 2,350 | 827 | 444 | ~12 | ~5 |
| Optimal velocities (km/h) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ailerons | Rudder | Elevators | Radiator |
| < 720 | < 950 | < 800 | N/A |
Engine performance
| Engine | Aircraft mass | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engine name | Number | Basic mass | Wing loading (full fuel) | |||
| J75-P-19W | 1 | _,___ kg | ___ kg/m2 | |||
| Engine characteristics | Mass with fuel (no weapons load) | Max Takeoff Weight | ||||
| Weight | Type | _m fuel | __m fuel | __m fuel | ||
| 2699 kg | Jet | _,___ kg | _,___ kg | _,___ kg | _,___ kg | |
| Maximum engine thrust @ 0 m (RB/SB) | Thrust to weight ratio @ 0 m (___%/WEP) | |||||
| Condition | 100% | WEP | _m fuel | __m fuel | __m fuel | MTOW |
| Stationary | 7060 kgf | 11060 kgf | _.__ | _.__ | _.__ | _.__ |
| Optimal | ___ kgf (_ km/h) |
~13309 kgf (1109 km/h) |
_.__ | _.__ | _.__ | _.__ |
Survivability and armour
|
IMPORTANT: This aircraft cannot carry flares. The countermeasure pods are AN/ALE-38/41 Chaff dispensers, which, unlike modern countermeasures pods or USN countermeasure systems, use neither a common calibre nor dispenser system as flares. The F-105D was never equipped with the AN/ALE-40 combined Chaff/Flare suite used on the F-4E, nor the AN/ALE-29 chaff/flare dispenser used on the A-4 Skyhawks and [Corsairs]. |
- 12.7mm armour plate behind the pilot.
Since the aircraft is so big, and has a considerable amount of interior space, gunfire will often pass through the empty innards of the aircraft. Single hits from 20 mm or 23 mm cannons such as the Gryazev-Shipunov GSh-23L, Hispano Mk.V and Browning-Colt Mk12 Mod 0 will likely cause no damage other than slight damage to the wings or fuselage. Longer bursts with more hits will cause more serious damage that is likely to require repair at the airfield as soon as possible. Often, cannon bursts from the rear will destroy the engine and disable the tail control, forcing the pilot to bail out, but the wings, fuselage and tail assembly will all stay attached to the plane until the aircraft slams into the ground. Theoretically, it is possible to control the aircraft entirely with flap input and throttle control without the elevator, but this requires almost ideal conditions that almost never occur. The F-105D, however, lends itself better to this than most aircraft, thanks to flaps that are large, tough, and durable, with rip speeds in excess of 750 km/h.
The F-105D's tail control and elevators are particularly vulnerable to enemy fire, and even single hits that wouldn't even damage the fuselage or wings will likely cripple or seriously impair your tailplane. This is compounded by the fact that the F-105D has control cables for the tail in both the top and the bottom of the aircraft, and therefore is extremely vulnerable to enemy fire. Enemy missiles are almost guaranteed to destroy the tail control, wing control, or ignite the massive fuel tanks in the fuselage. F-105D pilots must take utmost care to dodge missiles or otherwise avoid confrontations where enemy missiles come into play, such as prolonged tail-chases in a target-rich environment.
Modifications and economy
| Flight performance | Survivability | Weaponry | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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|
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Armaments
Offensive armament
The F-105D is armed with:
- 1 x 20 mm M61A1 cannon, nose-mounted (1,028 rpg)
Suspended armament
|
This aircraft has many different payloads. For convenience, the aircraft's ordnance has been split into sections. |
The F-105D can be outfitted with the following ordnance:
- Without load (clean, no pylons)
- Air-to-Air Missiles:
Click Expand to show
- 4 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles
- 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles
- Air-To-Ground Missiles:
Click Expand to show
- 4 x AGM-12B Bullpup missiles
- 2 x AGM-12B Bullpup missiles + 32 x countermeasures
- 2 x AGM-12C Bullpup missiles
- 2 x AGM-12C Bullpup missiles + 32 x countermeasures
- 14 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x AGM-12B Bullpup missiles (10,500 lb total)
- 8 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x AGM-12C Bullpup missiles (6,000 lb total)
- 6 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x AGM-12C Bullpup missiles + 32 x countermeasures (4,500 lb total)
- 9 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 2 x AGM-12B Bullpup missiles (9,000 lb total)
- 5 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 2 x AGM-12C Bullpup missiles (5,000 lb total)
- 3 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 2 x AGM-12C Bullpup missiles + 32 x countermeasures (3,000 lb total)
- Rockets:
Click Expand to show
- 76 x FFAR Mighty Mouse rockets
- 38 x FFAR Mighty Mouse rockets + 32 x countermeasures
- Bombs:
Click Expand to show
- 14 x 500 lb LDGP Mk 82 bombs (7,000 lb total)
- 14 x 500 lb LDGP Mk 82 bombs + 32 x countermeasures (7,000 lb total)
- 14 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 32 x countermeasures (10,500 lb total)
- 16 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs (12,000 lb total)
- 6 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs + 32 x countermeasures (8,500 lb total)
- 8 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs (10,000 lb total)
- 8 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x 3,000 lb M118 bombs (12,000 lb total)
- 6 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x 3,000 lb M118 bombs + 32 x countermeasures (10,500 lb total)
- 11 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs (11,000 lb total)
- 5 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 2 x 3,000 lb M118 bombs (11,000 lb total)
- 3 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 2 x 3,000 lb M118 bombs + 32 x countermeasures (9,000 lb total)
- 3 x 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs (6,000 lb total)
- 3 x 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs + 32 x countermeasures (6,000 lb total)
- 3 x 3,000 lb M118 bombs (9,000 lb total)
- 3 x 3,000 lb M118 bombs + 32 x countermeasures (9,000 lb total)
- Multirole:
Click Expand to show
- 6 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x AGM-12C Bullpup missiles + 4 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles (4,500 lb total)
- 6 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x AGM-12C Bullpup missiles + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (4,500 lb total)
- 6 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x AGM-12B Bullpup missiles + 4 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles (4,500 lb total)
- 6 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x AGM-12B Bullpup missiles + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (4,500 lb total)
- 3 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 2 x AGM-12B Bullpup missiles + 4 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles (3,000 lb total)
- 3 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 2 x AGM-12B Bullpup missiles + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (3,000 lb total)
- 3 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 2 x AGM-12C Bullpup missiles + 4 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles (3,000 lb total)
- 3 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 2 x AGM-12C Bullpup missiles + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (3,000 lb total)
- 14 x 500 lb LDGP Mk 82 bombs + 2 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles (7,000 lb total)
- 14 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 4 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles (10,500 lb total)
- 14 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (10,500 lb total)
- 6 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs + 4 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles (8,500 lb total)
- 6 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (8,500 lb total)
- 6 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x 3,000 lb M118 bombs + 4 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles (10,500 lb total)
- 6 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x 3,000 lb M118 bombs + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (10,500 lb total)
- 9 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 4 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles (9,000 lb total)
- 9 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (9,000 lb total)
- 3 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 2 x 3,000 lb M118 bombs + 4 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles (9,000 lb total)
- 3 x 1,000 lb LDGP Mk 83 bombs + 2 x 3,000 lb M118 bombs + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (9,000 lb total)
- 3 x 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs + 4 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles (6,000 lb total)
- 3 x 2,000 lb LDGP Mk 84 bombs + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (6,000 lb total)
- 3 x 3,000 lb M118 bombs + 4 x AIM-9B Sidewinder missiles (9,000 lb total)
- 3 x 3,000 lb M118 bombs + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (9,000 lb total)
- Summary & Recommendations
The F-105D carries a range of bombs, but the payloads an F-105D pilot will often use are:
- 16 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs (12,000 lb total) This payload is best for bombing bases. It takes seven M117 bombs to destroy a base at 9.7, and with 16 bombs, dropping in 5 pairs of 2 and 6 individual drops, an F-105D can easily pickle off four pairs of bombs (8 total) before using the remaining ones to destroy another base, lighting the afterburner, and heading for home.
- 14 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (10,500 lb total) This payload is one of the best for bombing bases and then switching into an Air to Air role. The AIM-9E missiles are capable against aircraft that are slow, and useful for causing faster aircraft to maneuver to avoid missiles, forcing them to lose speed and giving you a chance to close the gap.
- 6 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x 3,000 lb M118 bombs + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (10,500 lb total) One of the single most effective payloads, this may be used as a substitute for the above payload if a pilot dislikes having to pickle off eight bombs individually, as now, with a single push of a button, two M118s come sliding off the rails. These two bombs combined are more than enough for a base, but are also effective in their own right as Capture-point clearing bombs, or for destroying aircraft staying on the airfield near the end of a match. Campers beware!
- 6 x 750 lb M117 cone 45 bombs + 2 x AGM-12C Bullpup missiles + 4 x AIM-9E Sidewinder missiles (4,500 lb total) Two heavy-duty bullpups and four sidewinders make for a powerful punch against both ground and air targets. The M117s are there merely as additional ordnance, and may be jettisoned where necessary for a cleaner aircraft, or used against enemy targets.
The LDGP Mark 82 500lbs bombs provided stock, and the AGM-12B/sidewinder combinations serve no point once spaded. The Mark 82 can quickly be replaced by the extremely effective M117, which bomb-for-bomb provides the most effective bombing option, since it carries the most TNT for its weight. In addition to this, the Thunderchief carries as many M117s as it does Mark 82s, and also has far more available ordnance options that pair M117s together with other weapons, such as bullpups. The AGM-12B and Sidewinder/Chaff pod combinations allow for a maximum of two AGM-12Bs, a full rack of bombs on the centreline, and four AIM-9B/Es. Once the AGM-12C has been unlocked, carrying these combinations is useless, since the AGM-12C is superior in every metric, and given the limit on how many bullpups can be carried with AIM-9s, it's more useful to carry the larger missile rather than the smaller one.
Something to consider is that more experienced players may find Mark 83 effectively redundant, as the M117s that precede them in the modifications menu carry nearly 210 kilograms of TNT equivalent, and the F-105 can carry more of them than Mark 83s. While at first, the Mk 83's additional 66 kilograms of TNT equivalent (for a total of 276kg per thousand-pound bomb) seem like an improvement, the M117 has nearly identical fragment dispersion/vehicle destruction radii, as well as only 7mm less armour penetration. Coupled with the aircraft's ballistic computer for precision-bombing, experienced pilots shouldn't need the extra explosive mass to destroy a ground target, and since on a single hardpoint, the F-105 carries more M117s than Mark 83s (4-6 as opposed to 3 for the Mark 83), even novice pilots may find it easier to use the M117, since they have more M117s to drop. Pilots will also find it easier to acquire the M117 than the Mark 83 on this aircraft, as M117s are available as a Tier I modification, while Mark 83s are in Tier II, and the Thunderchief has far more Tier II modifications that should take a higher priority over the Mark 83, such as New Boosters or AIM-9Bs.
Chaff is not advisable for the F-105D. At this battle rating, the F-105D faces mostly IR missiles, and given its flight performance, pilots must rely on maneuvering alone to defeat the AIM-9Bs, AIM-9Es, R-3Ss, AIM-9Gs that are typical to planes around the 8.7-9.7 BR range, as well as the occasional R-60s, AIM-9Js/Rb 24Js, and rare AIM-7C, AIM-7D and AIM-7E sparrows that it can face from time to time. All of these missiles can be defeated with appropriate maneuvering and avoidance of enemy aircraft, making chaff pods entirely redundant, and at the moment, just something that takes up more space on a hard point that could be used by a bomb, missile, or rocket pod. However, in Ground RB, chaff may be useful in temporarily spoofing early missile and gun SPAA. That said, no SPAA at that BR is entirely radar-based, and most radar-based SPAAGs use their radar to determine only a target solution rather than guide any sort of weapon. For instance, the most common anti-aircraft missile systems in Ground RB — the Roland 1, Type 93, Ozelot, 2S6 and ADATS — all use either IR guidance or a form of semi-active beam-riding guidance that completely ignores chaff.
Four AGM-12Bs is the maximum amount of guided ordnance that the F-105D can carry, if a pilot requires a lot of guided missiles to take out tanks in Ground RB. Due to the ballistic computer, it is often better to take bombs instead, since you can drop from higher up and on different flight profiles where enemy tanks and SPAAs do not expect air attack.
The Mighty Mouse FFARs that it receives are effective, but slightly underpowered compared to the Zunis, S-8s, S-24s, S-25s and 13,5cm m/70 other similar aircraft in and around its battle rating receive. At the moment, the LAU-3s cannot be used with AIM-9Es, bombs, or any other payloads outside of either on their own or with chaff. This makes bringing FFARs a sub-par option compared to other ordnance options already available for the F-105D Thunderchief.
Usage in battles
The F-105 is an extremely versatile aircraft. Used in a bombing role, typically designated by either "A for Attack" or "B for Bomber", the F-105 in fact excels at both air-to-ground and air-to-air roles, though the aircraft is typically less successful in the latter than the former.
Usage against Air Targets
While the F-105 is classified as an attacker, the aircraft lends itself well to air-to-air work. The aircraft, however, requires basic knowledge on how to fly jets in energy-fighting maneuvers.
On the Offensive
The F-105's best advantage is in its speed and considerably powerful engine. The aircraft has good energy retention and turning performance at speed, thanks to the nuclear toss-bombing flight profile that the aircraft was designed for. The F-105 does not have any issue with using this ability to loop rapidly at high speed in the vertical by turning quickly and at high Gs in the horizontal. Managing around 12Gs in a sustained turn beginning at Mach 1.0, the F-105 has performance entirely unexpected from a single-engined attacker of its size at its battle rating. F-105Ds also possess strengthened wing spars that earlier variants did not, and unlike said earlier variants, will not tear its wings in sustained maneuvers very easily. Managing up to 13Gs, and up to fourteen Gs in rare cases, the F-105's large, strong wings grant it energy retention in addition to roll rate, and the swept-wing construction makes it one of the faster-accelerating aircraft at its battle rating- more than enough to match more nimble MiG-19s and MiG-21s at certain speeds.
On the Defensive
The F-105D is extremely survivable. The size of the aircraft means that the aircraft can shrug off damage to its airframe and wings easily and keep flying, and it is easy to glide back to base when out of fuel or damaged. The Thud has a chance to put out fires in its spinal fuel tanks, but due to its position above the engine, if the rear fuel tank gets set on fire, the engine will likely burn down with it. However, the F-105D is good at gliding home and back to base even when the engine is down or after sustaining heavy damage. The pilot lacks protection from the front and sides, and the aircraft lacks any sort of protection for fuel tanks, engine, control cables and control surfaces, unlike its well-armoured stablemate, the A-7 Corsair II. The aircraft can lose a wingtip and a tail fin, but still make it home to base and glide in for a landing. The gears are extremely durable and lend themselves well to rough landing, and the high ground clearance allows the aircraft a better chance of avoiding a tail strike in a high-speed landing.
The size of the aircraft is a double-edged sword, as enemy missiles are almost guaranteed to go off when in proximity to the aircraft. Dodging high-G missiles can become a hassle as while rolling the aircraft and jinking are the most effective methods of taking missiles off your tail, they also increase the surface area that is presented to the proxy fuse. Smaller, more maneuverable missiles such as R-60s and SRAAMs have an extremely slim chance to detonate even after you appear to have "dodged" it since the proximity fuze is still live after the missile loses its lock.
All of these pale in comparison to its speed, roll rate, and acceleration. Few aircraft possess the F-105D's aptitude for speed. Only higher-BR aircraft it sees in full uptiers, such as the MiG-21SMT and the MiG-21MF, F-104 Starfighters and F-4F(e)s have the ability to keep up with it. Speed is a form of protection in and of itself, since the F-105D can simply jettison its ordnance and run away from whatever it doesn't want to face. However, loading heavy payloads like the bombs required to destroy bases leech away at its speed, and thus speed is only really an option when running the aircraft with AIM-9Es only, or completely clean.
Thanks to the roll rate, the F-105D is able to quickly roll to dodge enemy gunfire, and also enemy missiles. The latter is essential, given the fact that the F-105D never carried any flares, and will never recieve flares due to never carrying any such countermeasures in real life.
Usage against Ground Targets
While the F-105D can carry up to four air-to-ground guided missiles, it can only do this with four AGM-12Bs. This load is hardly optimal, particularly since with the ballistic computer, bombs might be far more effective anyhow. The F-105D does get AGM-12Cs, but only two of them. Keep in mind that with this payload, you cannot carry AIM-9Es for self-defense, nor chaff for spoofing radar. While still able to destroy ground targets, this payload's effectiveness is sometimes questionable in the face of the other payloads this versatile aircraft is capable of carrying. When carrying AIM-9Es or chaff pods, the amount of air-to-ground missiles that the aircraft is able to carry drops to two. The aircraft can only carry two AGM-12s and AIM-9Es with bombs, meaning that using combined loads of AGM-12Bs and missiles/chaff is entirely moot once AGM-12Cs are unlocked and available to the player. The F-105D lacks any fire-and-forget air-to-ground ordnance, as well as any kind of good stand-off ordnance to use against SPAAs. This means that aircraft is vulnerable to enemy SPAA armaments since novice pilots will have to fly low in order to use the bombs, the AGM-12s require constant attention to hit moving targets, and the aircraft lacks any sort of standoff ordnance to use against AAA while staying at an appreciable distance away.
The F-105D is equipped with a full range of ballistic computer functionality. The Constantly Computed Impact Point (CCIP) function helps show the pilot where bombs and rockets will go when released. The Constantly Computed Release Point (CCRP) function that uses the powerful onboard radar system to paint a target on the ground, and it gives the pilot an alert when "release authority" is handed over at a point where if the bomb is dropped, the projectile will hit the target selected. The CCRP system is effective at any altitude, but requires the pilot to have good timing and knowledge of the system being used. The CCIP system is also useable from most altitudes, but is most effective in dives below 1000 metres above ground level, meaning that the pilot will have to fly low, exposing themselves to enemy fire as a result. While this is not usually a problem in Air RB, in Ground RB, where ground-based Short-Range Air Defense (SHORAD) is present, the aircraft is particularly vulnerable to radar-assisted Gun AAA, enemy IR/Beam-riding SAMs, and main cannons.
Despite this vulnerability, the aircraft is extremely tough and survivable.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- High speed and energy retention for Boom & Zoom tactics
- Good dogfighter at high speeds with a surprising amount of pull
- Good acceleration
- Effective control authority at speeds in excess of ~700 km/h
- Excellent takeoff flaps with a high rip speed (~823 km/h) that may be used during combat
- High pull at speeds of ~1000 km/h (12-14 G)
- Excellent M61 Vulcan cannon with large ammo pool
- Excellent range of payloads
- Shrugs off damage to wings, airframe and fuselage
- Four AIM-9Es for air to air work
- Good search radar
Cons:
- Lacks armour
- Easily set ablaze from the side and rear
- Acceleration is middling compared to other aircraft; take care not to lose too much speed
- Bad low speed handling
- Tail control easily disabled by missiles or gunfire
- Large target while turning
- No flares; vulnerable to IR missiles
- Chaff pods supplant AIM-9Es and/or air-to-ground ordnance, and have a relatively low countermeasure count
- Its own IR missiles are mediocre, and do not pull hard enough or have a high enough track rate for dogfights
- Lacks advanced TV/Laser-guided missiles
- Radar lacks ACM mode, changeable FOV or changeable range, and may only be used as a rangefinder
- High minimum landing approach speed may be difficult for novice jet players
- High payload results in sluggish performance with full loads of bombs
- Extremely high fuel consumption on Afterburner; requires careful management of fuel supply on minimum or 20 minutes fuel load
History
The F-105 Thunderchief is an American supersonic fighter-bomber that served during the Vietnam war. Originally an advanced derivative of the RF-84F, the F-105 was a large attack aircraft designed for both nuclear and conventional strike. F-105s would see extensive service in Vietnam as the USAF’s primary attack aircraft until high loss rates forced it to be retired from active service. A total of 833 aircraft were built.
Design and development
The F-105 originated as an internal project of the RF-84F Thunderflash photo-reconnaissance aircraft, featuring the same wing-mounted engine intake system. The aircraft was designed for low-altitude strike and featured a small, highly swept wing with variable intakes built into the wing root. The aircraft was initially designed around the Allison J71, but the design grew so large that the aircraft was instead designed around the Pratt & Whitney J75 producing 107 kn of thrust with afterburner. The first YF-105A prototype flew in October of 1955, and despite being powered by a less powerful engine, managed to attain Mach 1.2 in level flight. The initial F-105A received a mixed response from the USAF, and an initial order of 199 aircraft was reduced to 15 F-105s, including six prototypes, six F-105Bs and three RF-105Bs.
In March of 1956, the USAF ordered a further 75 F-105Bs and 17 RF-105B reconnaissance variant aircraft. The aircraft was named “Thunderchief”, a continuation of Republic’s “Thunder” line with the earlier P-47 Thunderbolt, F-84 Thunderjet and F-84F Thunderstreak. The F-105B was followed by the F-105D variant in 1957, which would become the definitive F-105 variant produced. This variant of the F-105 housed the AN/ASG-19 “Thunderstick” bombing/navigation system for improved air-to-ground capabilities. The first F-105D flew in June of 1959; in total, 610 aircraft were produced.
Operational service
The F-105B entered service with the USAF in August of 1958, while the F-105D variant began to replace F-105Bs in frontline units between 1960 and 1965. During testing in June of 1961, the F-105 delivered 7 tons of bombs, the largest bombload ever carried by a single-engine fighter. The F-105 would soon see active combat in the Vietnam war, where it served as the USAF’s primary attack aircraft. The F-105s would eventually fly over 20000 combat missions in Vietnam, and despite its large and unwieldy airframe, shoot down 27 Vietnamese MiGs. 24 of these aircraft were shot down using the F-105’s internal Vulcan cannon.
However, F-105s in Vietnam suffered from an extremely high loss rate: of 833 total F-105s produced, 382 aircraft were lost, mostly to ground anti-aircraft fire. 17 aircraft were shot down by enemy aircraft. The F-105 had the unfortunate distinction of being the only American aircraft to have been removed from combat due to high loss rates, being replaced in its ground attack role by the F-4 Phantom II and F-111 Aardvark. Aircraft of the F-105G “Wild Weasel” suppression of enemy air defence (SEAD) variant remained in service until the end of the Vietnam war, after which they were replaced by the F-4G Wild Weasel IV. Following the end of the Vietnam war, the remaining F-105s were rapidly retired, with the last F-105G flying in February of 1984.
Media
- Videos
See also
Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:
- reference to the series of the aircraft;
- links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.
External links
References
- National Air and Space Museum. (n.d.). Republic F-105D thunderchief. Republic F-105D Thunderchief. Retrieved December 24, 2021, from https://www.si.edu/object/republic-f-105d-thunderchief%3Anasm_A19820064000
- Swopes, B. (2021, August 10). Payload archives. This Day in Aviation. Retrieved December 24, 2021, from https://www.thisdayinaviation.com/tag/payload/
| USA jet aircraft | |
|---|---|
| Fighters | |
| F9F | F9F-2 · F9F-5 · F9F-8 |
| F-80 | F-80A-5 · F-80C-10 |
| F-84 | F-84B-26 · F-84F · F-84G-21-RE |
| F-86 | F-86A-5 · F-86F-25 · F-86F-2 · F-86F-35 |
| F-89 | F-89B · F-89D |
| F-100 | F-100D |
| F-104 | F-104A · F-104C |
| F-4 | F-4C Phantom II · F-4E Phantom II · F-4J Phantom II · F-4S Phantom II |
| F-5 | F-5A · F-5C · F-5E · F-20A |
| F-8 | F8U-2 · F-8E |
| F-14 | F-14A Early · ▄F-14A IRIAF · F-14B |
| F-15 | F-15A · F-15C MSIP II · F-15E |
| F-16 | F-16A · F-16A ADF · F-16C |
| Other | P-59A · F2H-2 · F3D-1 · F3H-2 · F4D-1 · F11F-1 |
| Strike Aircraft | |
| FJ-4 | FJ-4B · FJ-4B VMF-232 |
| A-4 | A-4B · A-4E Early |
| A-7 | A-7D · A-7E · A-7K |
| AV-8 | AV-8A · AV-8C · AV-8B Plus · AV-8B (NA) |
| A-10 | A-10A · A-10A Late · A-10C |
| F-111 | F-111A · F-111F |
| Other | A-6E TRAM · F-105D · F-117 |
| Bombers | |
| B-57 | B-57A · B-57B |
| USA strike aircraft | |
|---|---|
| Douglas | A-20G-25 · A-26B-10 · A-26B-50 · A2D-1 · AD-2 · AD-4 · A-1H |
| North American | A-36 · PBJ-1H · PBJ-1J |
| Other | AM-1 · AU-1 · XA-38 |
