The Northrop F-89 Scorpion was an American all-weather, twin-engined
interceptor aircraft
An interceptor aircraft, or simply interceptor, is a type of fighter aircraft designed specifically for the defensive interception role against an attacking enemy aircraft, particularly bombers and reconnaissance aircraft. Aircraft that are cap ...
built during the 1950s, the first
jet-powered
Jet propulsion is the propulsion of an object in one direction, produced by ejecting a jet of fluid in the opposite direction. By Newton's third law, the moving body is propelled in the opposite direction to the jet. Reaction engines operating o ...
aircraft designed for that role from the outset to enter service. Though its straight wings limited its performance, it was among the first
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...
(USAF) jet
fighters
Fighter(s) or The Fighter(s) may refer to:
Combat and warfare
* Combatant, an individual legally entitled to engage in hostilities during an international armed conflict
* Fighter aircraft, a warplane designed to destroy or damage enemy warplan ...
equipped with
guided missile
In military terminology, a missile is a guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles are thus also called guided missiles or guided rockets (when a previously unguided rocket ...
s and notably the first combat aircraft armed with air-to-air
nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bom ...
s (the unguided
Genie
Jinn ( ar, , ') – also romanized as djinn or anglicized as genies (with the broader meaning of spirit or demon, depending on sources)
– are invisible creatures in early pre-Islamic Arabian religious systems and later in Islamic mytho ...
rocket).
Design and development
The Scorpion stemmed from a
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
(USAAF) Air Technical Service Command specification ("Military Characteristics for All-Weather Fighting Aircraft") for a
night fighter
A night fighter (also known as all-weather fighter or all-weather interceptor for a period of time after the Second World War) is a fighter aircraft adapted for use at night or in other times of bad visibility. Night fighters began to be used i ...
to replace the
P-61 Black Widow
The Northrop P-61 Black Widow is a twin-engine United States Army Air Forces fighter aircraft of World War II. It was the first operational U.S. warplane designed as a night fighter, and the first aircraft designed specifically as a night fight ...
. The preliminary specification, sent to aircraft manufacturers on 28 August 1945, required two engines and an armament of six guns, either machine guns or
autocannon
An autocannon, automatic cannon or machine cannon is a fully automatic gun that is capable of rapid-firing large-caliber ( or more) armour-piercing, explosive or incendiary shells, as opposed to the smaller-caliber kinetic projectiles (bull ...
. The revised specification was issued on 23 November; it did not specify jet propulsion, but the desired maximum speed of virtually dictated that all the submissions would be jet-powered. The aircraft was to be armed with aerial rockets stored internally and six guns split between two flexible mounts, four guns forward and two in the rear. Each mount had to be capable of 15° of movement from the longitudinal axis of the aircraft. Each mount's guns were to be automatically controlled by radar. For ground attack, it had to be capable of carrying bombs and to be able to carry a minimum of eight rockets externally.
Bell Aircraft
The Bell Aircraft Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer, a builder of several types of fighter aircraft for World War II but most famous for the Bell X-1, the first supersonic aircraft, and for the development and production of many ...
,
Consolidated-Vultee
Convair, previously Consolidated Vultee, was an American aircraft manufacturing company that later expanded into rockets and spacecraft. The company was formed in 1943 by the merger of Consolidated Aircraft and Vultee Aircraft. In 1953, it ...
,
Douglas Aircraft
The Douglas Aircraft Company was an American aerospace manufacturer based in Southern California. It was founded in 1921 by Donald Wills Douglas Sr. and later merged with McDonnell Aircraft in 1967 to form McDonnell Douglas; it then operated as ...
,
Goodyear,
Northrop and
Curtiss-Wright
The Curtiss-Wright Corporation is a manufacturer and services provider headquartered in Davidson, North Carolina, with factories and operations in and outside the United States. Created in 1929 from the consolidation of Curtiss, Wright, and v ...
all submitted proposals. In March 1946, the USAAF selected the
Curtiss-Wright XP-87 Blackhawk
The Curtiss-Wright XF-87 Blackhawk (previously designated the XP-87) was a prototype American all-weather jet fighter-interceptor, and the company's last aircraft project. Designed as a replacement for the World War II–era propeller-driven P- ...
, adapted from their proposed
XA-43 attack aircraft
An attack aircraft, strike aircraft, or attack bomber is a tactical military aircraft that has a primary role of carrying out airstrikes with greater precision than bombers, and is prepared to encounter strong low-level air defenses while pre ...
and the Northrop N-24 design, one of four submitted by the company.
The N-24, designed by
Jack Northrop
John Knudsen Northrop (November 10, 1895 – February 18, 1981) was an American aircraft industrialist and designer who founded the Northrop Corporation in 1939.
His career began in 1916 as a draftsman for Loughead Aircraft Manufacturing Com ...
, was a slim-bodied swept-wing aircraft with a two-man pressurized
cockpit
A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft or spacecraft, from which a Pilot in command, pilot controls the aircraft.
The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the ...
and
conventional landing gear
Conventional landing gear, or tailwheel-type landing gear, is an aircraft undercarriage consisting of two main wheels forward of the center of gravity and a small wheel or skid to support the tail.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Term ...
.
[''Air International'' July 1988, p. 45.] To reduce
drag, the two
Allison J35
The General Electric/Allison J35 was the United States Air Force's first axial-flow (straight-through airflow) compressor jet engine. Originally developed by General Electric (GE company designation TG-180) in parallel with the Whittle-based c ...
turbojet
The turbojet is an airbreathing jet engine which is typically used in aircraft. It consists of a gas turbine with a propelling nozzle. The gas turbine has an air inlet which includes inlet guide vanes, a compressor, a combustion chamber, and ...
engines were buried in the lower
fuselage
The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraft t ...
, directly behind their air intakes, and they exhausted underneath the rear fuselage. The
horizontal stabilizer
A tailplane, also known as a horizontal stabiliser, is a small lifting surface located on the tail (empennage) behind the main lifting surfaces of a fixed-wing aircraft as well as other non-fixed-wing aircraft such as helicopters and gyroplan ...
was mounted just above the junction of the vertical stabilizer with the fuselage and had some
dihedral.
A contract for two aircraft, now designated the XP-89, and a full-scale mock-up was approved on 13 June, although construction of the mock-up had begun immediately after the USAAF announced that the N-24 had been selected. It was inspected on 25 September and the USAAF had some reservations. The inspectors believed that the radar operator needed to be moved forward, closer to the pilot, with both crewmen under a single
canopy
Canopy may refer to:
Plants
* Canopy (biology), aboveground portion of plant community or crop (including forests)
* Canopy (grape), aboveground portion of grapes
Religion and ceremonies
* Baldachin or canopy of state, typically placed over an a ...
, the
magnesium alloy
Magnesium alloys are mixtures of magnesium (the lightest structural metal) with other metals (called an alloy), often aluminium, zinc, manganese, silicon, copper, rare earths and zirconium. Magnesium alloys have a hexagonal lattice structure, w ...
components of the wing replaced by
aluminum alloy
An aluminium alloy (or aluminum alloy; see spelling differences) is an alloy in which aluminium (Al) is the predominant metal. The typical alloying elements are copper, magnesium, manganese, silicon, tin, nickel and zinc. There are two principal ...
, and the fuel tankage directly above the engines moved. Other changes had to be made as wind tunnel and other aerodynamic tests were conducted. The swept wings proved to be less satisfactory at low speeds, and a thin straight wing was selected instead. Delivery of the first prototype was scheduled for November 1947, 14 months after the inspection. The position of the horizontal stabilizer also proved to be unsatisfactory, as it was affected by the engine exhaust, and it would be "blanked-out" by airflow from the wing at high
angles of attack
In fluid dynamics, angle of attack (AOA, α, or \alpha) is the angle between a reference line on a body (often the chord line of an airfoil) and the vector representing the relative motion between the body and the fluid through which it is m ...
. It was moved halfway up the tail, but its position flush with the leading edge of the vertical stabilizer proved to cause extra drag through turbulence and reduced the effectiveness of the
elevators
An elevator or lift is a cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or decks of a building, vessel, or other structure. They are ...
and
rudder
A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (generally aircraft, air or watercraft, water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to ...
. Moving the horizontal stabilizer forward solved the problem. Another major change occurred when USAAF revised its specification to delete the rear gun installation on 8 October. Another inspection of the mock-up was held on 17 December, and the inspectors suggested only minor changes, even though the fuselage fuel tanks were still above the engines. Northrop's efforts to protect the fuel tanks were considered sufficient, as the only alternative was to redesign the entire aircraft.
The XP-89 had a thin, straight, mid-mounted wing and a crew of two, seated in tandem. The slim rear fuselage and the high-mounted horizontal stabilizer led Northrop employees calling it the Scorpion—a name later formally adopted by the Air Force.
The intended armament of four 20-millimeter
M24 cannon
The HS.404 is an autocannon originally designed and produced by Spanish/French company Hispano-Suiza in the mid-1930s. It was widely used as an aircraft, naval and land-based weapon by French, British, American and other military services, par ...
in a small nose turret was not ready when the XP-89 was completed in 1948.
[Davis and Menard 1990, p. 5.] Pending the availability of either of the two turrets under development, an interim six-gun fixed installation, with 200 rounds per gun, was designed for the underside of the nose. The thin wing had an
aspect ratio of 5.88, a
thickness-to-chord ratio
In aeronautics, the thickness-to-chord ratio, sometimes simply chord ratio or thickness ratio, compares the maximum vertical thickness of a wing to its chord. It is a key measure of the performance of a wing planform when it is operating at tra ...
of 9% and used a
NACA 0009-64 section, which was selected for its low drag at high speed and stability at low speeds. A further advantage of the straight wing was that it could accommodate heavy weights at the wingtips. The wing could not fit the circular-type (rotating)
spoilerons
In aeronautics, spoilerons (also known as spoiler ailerons or roll spoilers) are spoiler (aeronautics), spoilers that can be used asymmetrically as flight control surfaces to provide roll control.
Operation
Spoilerons flight dynamics (fixed-wing ...
used in the P-61, so Northrop used the "
deceleron
The deceleron, or split aileron, was developed in the late 1940s by Northrop, originally for use on the F-89 Scorpion fighter. It is a two-part aileron that can be deflected as a unit to provide roll control, or split open to act as an air b ...
s" designed for the unsuccessful
XP-79 prototype
A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and Software prototyping, software programming. A prototyp ...
. These were clamshell-style split
aileron
An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...
s, which could be used as conventional ailerons, as
dive brake
Dive brakes or dive flaps are deployed to slow down an aircraft when in a dive. They often consist of a metal flap that is lowered against the air flow, thus creating drag and reducing dive speed.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, ...
s, or function as
flaps as needed.
[Davis and Menard 1990, p. 4.] All flying surfaces, the flaps and the landing gear were hydraulically powered. The thin wing dictated tall, thin, high-pressure () mainwheel tires, while the low height of the fuselage required the use of dual wheels for the nose gear.
The terms of the initial contract were revised and formalized on 21 May 1947 with the price increased to $5,571,111. The delivery date of the first aircraft was scheduled 14 months (July 1948) from signing and the second 2 months after that. A month before the prototype made its first flight on 16 August 1948 at
Muroc Army Air Field
Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force installation in California. Most of the base sits in Kern County, but its eastern end is in San Bernardino County and a southern arm is in Los Angeles County. The hub of the base is Ed ...
, the USAF changed its
designation
Designation may refer to:
* Designation (law), the process of determining an incumbent's successor
* Professional certification
* Designation (landmarks), an official classification determined by a government agency or historical society
* Designa ...
for fighter aircraft from "P" to "F". The XF-89 was fitted with
Allison J35-A-9
The General Electric/Allison J35 was the United States Air Force's first axial-flow (straight-through airflow) compressor jet engine. Originally developed by General Electric (GE company designation TG-180) in parallel with the Whittle-based cen ...
turbojets and proved to be seriously underpowered. Initial flights were made with conventional ailerons, decelerons not being installed until December.
[''Air International'' July 1988, p. 46.]
Several months earlier the Air Force conducted a competitive evaluation of the three existing all-weather interceptor prototypes, the
XF-87
The Curtiss-Wright XF-87 Blackhawk (previously designated the XP-87) was a prototype American all-weather jet fighter-interceptor, and the company's last aircraft project. Designed as a replacement for the World War II–era propeller-driven P- ...
, the XF-89, and the
US Navy's XF3D. The evaluators were qualified night-fighter pilots, radar operators, and experienced maintenance
non-commissioned officer
A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not pursued a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. (Non-officers, which includes most or all enli ...
s. The pilots were not impressed with any of the aircraft and recommended procurement of an interim aircraft that resulted in the development of the
Lockheed F-94 Starfire
The Lockheed F-94 Starfire was a first-generation jet powered all-weather, day/night interceptor of the United States Air Force. A twin-seat craft, it was developed from the Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star trainer in the late 1940s. It reached ope ...
from the training version of the
Lockheed F-80 Shooting Star
The Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star was the first jet fighter used operationally by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) during World War II. Designed and built by Lockheed in 1943 and delivered just 143 days from the start of design, prod ...
. The F-89 proved to be the fastest of the three contenders,
[Blazer and Dorio 1993, p. 12.] although it was in last place in cockpit arrangement and ease of maintenance.
One pilot claimed that the XF-89 was the only real fighter and compared the XF-87 to a medium
bomber
A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching aerial torpedo, torpedoes, or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. The first use of bombs dropped ...
and the XF3D to a
trainer.
[ The full Committee on Evaluation overruled those evaluators, preferring the Northrop design, as it had the greatest potential for development. The Air Force subsequently canceled the production contract for the F-87 to free up money for the Scorpion.]
By November 1949 the second aircraft was virtually complete, but the Air Force was concerned about the design's poor thrust-to-weight ratio and decided to implement a weight-reduction program, as well as upgrading the engines to the more powerful Allison J33-A-21
The General Electric/Allison J33 is a development of the General Electric J31, enlarged to produce significantly greater thrust, starting at and ending at with an additional low-altitude boost to with water-alcohol injection.
Development
Th ...
fitted with an afterburner
An afterburner (or reheat in British English) is an additional combustion component used on some jet engines, mostly those on military supersonic aircraft. Its purpose is to increase thrust, usually for supersonic flight, takeoff, and comba ...
. Other major changes included the replacement of the nose gun turret by the Hughes
Hughes may refer to:
People
* Hughes (surname)
* Hughes (given name)
Places Antarctica
* Hughes Range (Antarctica), Ross Dependency
* Mount Hughes, Oates Land
* Hughes Basin, Oates Land
* Hughes Bay, Graham Land
* Hughes Bluff, Victoria La ...
-designed six-gun nose, AN/ARG-33 radar, and Hughes E-1
Hughes may refer to:
People
* Hughes (surname)
* Hughes (given name)
Places Antarctica
* Hughes Range (Antarctica), Ross Dependency
* Mount Hughes, Oates Land
* Hughes Basin, Oates Land
* Hughes Bay, Graham Land
* Hughes Bluff, Victoria Lan ...
fire-control system
A fire-control system (FCS) is a number of components working together, usually a gun data computer, a director, and radar, which is designed to assist a ranged weapon system to target, track, and hit a target. It performs the same task as a ...
, permanent wing-tip fuel tanks, and the ability to lower the complete engine for better maintenance access. The new nose added to the length of the aircraft. It was redesignated YF-89A to better reflect its role as a pre-production testbed to evaluate equipment and changes planned for the F-89A production aircraft. The aircraft was essentially complete by February 1950.
After repairs from a crash landing
An emergency landing is a premature landing made by an aircraft in response to an emergency involving an imminent or ongoing threat to the safety and operation of the aircraft, or involving a sudden need for a passenger or crew on board to term ...
on 27 June 1949, the XF-89 was flown to March AFB
March Air Reserve Base (March ARB), previously known as March Air Force Base (March AFB) is located in Riverside County, California between the cities of Riverside, Moreno Valley, and Perris. It is the home to the Air Force Reserve Command's Fo ...
to participate in the RKO
RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orpheu ...
movie ''Jet Pilot'' in February 1950. Shortly afterward, the aircraft crashed on 22 February, killing the observer, when flutter developed in the elevator and the subsequent vibrations caused the entire tail to break off. Construction of the production models was suspended until the reasons for the accident were discovered. Engineering and wind-tunnel tests revealed that the geometry of the rear fuselage and the engine exhaust created flutter-inducing turbulence that was aggravated by the high-frequency acoustic energy from the exhaust. Fixes for the problem involved the addition of a "jet wake fairing" at the bottom rear of the fuselage between the engines, external ("ice tong") mass balances for the elevator, pending the design of internal mass balances, and the addition of exhaust deflectors to the fuselage to reduce the turbulence and the consequent flutter.
Well before the YF-89A was complete, a $39,011,622 contract was awarded to Northrop on 13 May 1949 for 48 F-89A aircraft, one static test airframe and the modifications made to the YF-89A.
Operational history
Production was authorized in January 1949,[Knaack 1978, p. 85.] with the first production F-89A flying in September 1950. It had AN/APG-33 radar and an armament of six 20-millimeter T-31 cannon with 200 rounds per gun. The swiveling nose turret was abandoned, and fuel tanks were permanently fitted to the wingtips. Underwing racks could carry 16 aerial rockets or up to of bombs.
Only 18 F-89As were completed, which were mainly used for tests and trials, before the type was upgraded to F-89B standard, with new avionics.[''Air International'' July 1988, pp. 47–48.] The type entered service with the 84th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron in June 1951,[Knaack 1978, p. 87.] experiencing considerable problems with engines and other systems, and soon gave way to the F-89C. Despite repeated engine changes, problems persisted, compounded by the discovery of structural problems with the wings that led to the grounding of the F-89 and forced a refit of 194 -A, -B, and -C models.[Knaack 1978, pp. 88–89.]
The major production model was the F-89D, which first flew 23 October 1951 and entered service in 1954. It removed the cannon in favor of a new Hughes E-6
Hughes may refer to:
People
* Hughes (surname)
* Hughes (given name)
Places Antarctica
* Hughes Range (Antarctica), Ross Dependency
* Mount Hughes, Oates Land
* Hughes Basin, Oates Land
* Hughes Bay, Graham Land
* Hughes Bluff, Victoria La ...
fire control system with AN/APG-40 radar and an AN/APA-84 computer. Armament was two pods of fifty-two "Mighty Mouse" FFAR rockets.[''Air International'' August 1988, pp. 88–89.] A total of 682 were built.[Knaack 1978, p. 93.] In August 1956 a pair of F-89D interceptors were scrambled from Oxnard Air Force Base
Oxnard Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base, located in the city of Camarillo, California.
History
Camarillo Airport was originally established in 1942 when the California State Highway Department constructed an auxiliary la ...
to shoot down a runaway F6F-5K drone leading to the so-called Battle of Palmdale
The Battle of Palmdale was the attempted shoot-down of a runaway drone by United States Air Force interceptors in the skies over Southern California in mid-August 1956. The drone was launched from Point Mugu Naval Air Station and soon went out of ...
.
Proposed re-engined F-89s, designated F-89E and F-89F, were not built, nor was a proposed F-89G that would have used Hughes MA-1 fire control and GAR-1/GAR-2 Falcon air-to-air missile
The newest and the oldest member of Rafael's Python family of AAM for comparisons, Python-5 (displayed lower-front) and Shafrir-1 (upper-back)
An air-to-air missile (AAM) is a missile fired from an aircraft for the purpose of destroying a ...
s like the Convair F-106 Delta Dart
The Convair F-106 Delta Dart was the primary all-weather interceptor aircraft of the United States Air Force from the 1960s through to the 1980s. Designed as the so-called "Ultimate Interceptor", it proved to be the last specialist interceptor i ...
.
The subsequent F-89H, which entered service in 1956, had an E-9 fire control system like that of the early F-102 and massive new wingtip pods each holding three Falcons (usually three semi-active radar homing
Semi-active radar homing (SARH) is a common type of missile guidance system, perhaps the most common type for longer-range Air-to-air missile, air-to-air and surface-to-air missile systems. The name refers to the fact that the missile itself is ...
GAR-1s and three infrared
Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from around ...
GAR-2s) and 21 FFARs, for a total of six missiles and 42 rockets. Problems with the fire-control system delayed the -H's entry into service, by which time its performance was notably inferior to newer supersonic
Supersonic speed is the speed of an object that exceeds the speed of sound ( Mach 1). For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C (68 °F) at sea level, this speed is approximately . Speeds greater than five times ...
interceptors, so it was phased out of USAF service by 1959.
The final variant was the F-89J. This was based on the F-89D, but replaced the standard wingtip missile pod/tanks with fuel tanks and fitted a pylon under each wing for a single MB-1 Genie
The Douglas Aircraft Company, Douglas AIR-2 Genie (previous designation MB-1) was an unguided air-to-air rocket with a 1.5 kt W25 (nuclear warhead), W25 nuclear warhead. It was deployed by the United States Air Force (USAF 1957–1985) and Cana ...
nuclear rocket (sometimes supplemented by up to four conventional Falcon air-to-air missiles). The F-89J became the only aircraft to fire a live Genie as the ''John'' Shot of Operation Plumbbob
Operation Plumbbob was a series of nuclear tests that were conducted between May 28 and October 7, 1957, at the Nevada Test Site, following ''Project 57'', and preceding '' Project 58/58A''.
Background
The operation consisted of 29 explosions ...
on 19 July 1957. There were no new-build F-89Js, but 350 -Ds were modified to this standard. They served with the Air Defense Command
Aerospace Defense Command was a major command (military formation), command of the United States Air Force, responsible for continental air defense. It was activated in 1968 and disbanded in 1980. Its predecessor, Air Defense Command, was est ...
, later renamed the Aerospace Defense Command
Aerospace Defense Command was a major command of the United States Air Force, responsible for continental air defense. It was activated in 1968 and disbanded in 1980. Its predecessor, Air Defense Command, was established in 1946, briefly inac ...
(ADC), through 1959 and with ADC-gained units of the Air National Guard
The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia of each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the ter ...
through 1969. This version of the aircraft was extensively used within the Semi Automatic Ground Environment
The Semi-Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) was a system of large computers and associated networking equipment that coordinated data from many radar sites and processed it to produce a single unified image of the airspace over a wide area. S ...
(SAGE) air-defense system.[Green and Swanborough 1994, pp. 457–458.]
A total of 1,050 Scorpions of all variants were produced.
Variants
;XF-89
:First prototype, powered by two Allison J35-A-9
The General Electric/Allison J35 was the United States Air Force's first axial-flow (straight-through airflow) compressor jet engine. Originally developed by General Electric (GE company designation TG-180) in parallel with the Whittle-based cen ...
engines.[Angelucci and Bowers 1987, p. 370.]
;XF-89A
:Second prototype. Fitted with more powerful dry ( wet) Allison J35-A-21A
The General Electric/Allison J35 was the United States Air Force's first axial-flow (straight-through airflow) compressor jet engine. Originally developed by General Electric (GE company designation TG-180) in parallel with the Whittle-based cen ...
engines and revised, pointed nose with cannon armament.
;F-89A
:First production version, eight built. Fitted with revised tailplane and six cannon armament.
;DF-89A
:F-89As converted into drone control aircraft.
;F-89B
:Second production version with upgraded avionics. 40 built.
;DF-89B
:F-89Bs converted into drone control aircraft.
;F-89C
:Third production version with more powerful dry ( wet) Allison J35-A-33
The General Electric/Allison J35 was the United States Air Force's first axial-flow (straight-through airflow) compressor jet engine. Originally developed by General Electric (GE company designation TG-180) in parallel with the Whittle-based c ...
engines. 164 built.
;YF-89D
:Conversion of one F-89B to test new avionics and armament of F-89D.
;F-89D
:Main production version which saw deletion of the six 20-millimeter cannon in favor of 104 rockets in wing pods, installation of new Hughes E-6 fire-control system, AN/APG-40 radar and the AN/APA-84 computer. This new system allowed the use of a lead-collision attack in place of the previous lead-pursuit-curve technique. A total of 682 built.
;YF-89E
:One-off prototype to test the dry ( wet) Allison YJ71-A-3
The Allison J71 was a single spool turbojet engine, designed and built in the United States. It began development in 1948 as a much modified J35, originally designated J35-A-23.
Operational history
The Allison J71 turbojet powered the Douglas B ...
engine, converted from an F-89C.[''Air International'' August 1988, p. 92.]
;F-89F
:Proposed version with revised fuselage and wings, powered by dry ( wet) Allison J71-A-7
The Allison J71 was a single spool turbojet engine, designed and built in the United States. It began development in 1948 as a much modified J35, originally designated J35-A-23.
Operational history
The Allison J71 turbojet powered the Douglas B ...
engines, never built.["Standard Aircraft Characteristics: Northrop F-89F "Scorpion"."]
National Museum of the United States Air Force. Retrieved: 23 October 2016.
;F-89G
:Proposed version equipped with Hughes MA-1 fire control and GAR-1/GAR-2 Falcon air-to-air missile
The newest and the oldest member of Rafael's Python family of AAM for comparisons, Python-5 (displayed lower-front) and Shafrir-1 (upper-back)
An air-to-air missile (AAM) is a missile fired from an aircraft for the purpose of destroying a ...
s, never built.
;YF-89H
:Modified F-89D to test features of F-89H. Three converted.[Angelucci and Bowers 1987, p. 372.]
;F-89H
:Version with E-9 fire control system, six Hughes GAR-1/GAR-2 Falcon missiles and 42 Folding Fin Aircraft Rockets (FFAR). 156 built.[''Air International'' August 1988, pp. 89–90.]
;F-89J
:Conversion of F-89D with underwing hardpoints for two MB-1 (later AIR-2) Genie nuclear armed rocket and four Falcon missiles, and carrying either the standard F-89D rocket/fuel pod or pure fuel tanks. A total of 350 were converted from F-89Ds.[''Air International'' August 1988, p. 90.]
Operators
: ''see also: F-89 Scorpion units of the United States Air Force
The Northrop F-89 Scorpion was a subsonic second-generation jet interceptor of the United States Air Force. After a long development during the postwar era of the late 1940s, it began reaching operational units in the early 1950s. A stablemate ...
''
;
* United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...
* Air National Guard
The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia of each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the ter ...
Aircraft on display
;F-89B
* 49-2457 – Lakeview Park, Nampa, Idaho
Nampa () is the largest city in Canyon County, Idaho. Its population was 100,200 at the time of the 2020 Census. It is Idaho's third-most populous city. Nampa is about west of Boise along Interstate 84, and six miles (10 km) west of Meridian. ...
.
;F-89D
* 52-1862 – Elmendorf AFB
Elmendorf Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) facility in Anchorage, Alaska. Originally known as Elmendorf Field, it became Elmendorf Air Force Base after World War II.
It is the home of the Headquarters, Alaskan Air Command (AL ...
, Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring Ma ...
. Marked as 53-2453 (actual 53-2453 is a F-89J below) Previously displayed at Tyndall AFB, FLorida.
* 53-2463 – Museum of Aviation, Robins Air Force Base
Robins Air Force Base is a major United States Air Force installation located in Houston County, Georgia, United States. The base is located just east of the city of Warner Robins, south-southeast of Macon and approximately south-southeast ...
, Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
.
* 53-2494 – home base of the 158th Fighter Wing
The 158th Fighter Wing (158 FW) is a unit of the Vermont Air National Guard, stationed at Burlington Air National Guard Base, Burlington, Vermont. If activated to federal service, the Wing is gained by the United States Air Force Air Combat Com ...
, Vermont Air National Guard
The Vermont Air National Guard (VT ANG) is the aerial militia of the Vermont, State of Vermont, United States, United States of America. It is, along with the Vermont Army National Guard, an element of the Vermont National Guard. The 158th Fighte ...
, Burlington Air National Guard Base
Burlington may refer to:
Places Canada Geography
* Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador
* Burlington, Nova Scotia
* Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington"
* Burlington, Prince Edward Island
* Burlington Bay, now ...
, Vermont
Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...
.
* 53-2517 – , Chino, California
Chino ( ; Spanish for "Curly") is a city in the western end of San Bernardino County, California, United States, with Los Angeles County to its west and Orange County to its south in the Southern California region. Chino is adjacent to Chino ...
. The rudder of 53-2519 was added to the aircraft at the museum.
* 53-2536 – EAA AirVenture Museum
The EAA Aviation Museum, formerly the EAA AirVenture Museum (or Air Adventure Museum), is a museum dedicated to the preservation and display of historic and experimental aircraft as well as antiques, classics, and warbirds. The museum is lo ...
, Oshkosh, Wisconsin
Oshkosh is a city in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, of which it is the county seat. The city had a population of 66,816 in 2020, making it the ninth-largest city in Wisconsin. It is also adjacent to the Town of Oshkosh.
History
Oshkosh was ...
.
* 53-2610 – Air Force Armament Museum
The Air Force Armament Museum is a military aviation museum adjacent to Eglin Air Force Base in Valparaiso, Florida, dedicated to the display of Air Force armament. It is supported by the private, non-profit Air Force Armament Museum Foundation.
...
, Eglin Air Force Base
Eglin Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base in the western Florida Panhandle, located about southwest of Valparaiso in Okaloosa County.
The host unit at Eglin is the 96th Test Wing (formerly the 96th Air Base Wing). The ...
, Florida.
* 53-2646 – Friendship Park, Smithfield, Ohio
Smithfield was a village in Smithfield Township, Jefferson County, Ohio, United States. The population was 869 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Weirton–Steubenville, WV-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area. In 2019, Smithfield voted to ...
.
* 53-2674 – Pima Air & Space Museum
The Pima Air & Space Museum, located in Tucson, Arizona, is one of the world's largest non-government funded aerospace museums. The museum features a display of nearly 300 aircraft spread out over 80 acres (320,000 m²) on a campus occ ...
(adjacent to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base), Tucson, Arizona
, "(at the) base of the black ill
, nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town"
, image_map =
, mapsize = 260px
, map_caption = Interactive map ...
.
* 53-2677 – Minnesota Air National Guard
The Minnesota Air National Guard (MN ANG) is the aerial militia of the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is, along with the Minnesota Army National Guard, an element of the Minnesota National Guard.
As state militia units, the units in the Minnesota Ai ...
Museum, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
.
;F-89H
* 54-0298 – Dyess Linear Air Park, Dyess Air Force Base
Dyess Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located about southwest of downtown Abilene, Texas, and west of Fort Worth, Texas.
The host unit at Dyess is the 7th Bomb Wing assigned to the Global Strike Command Ei ...
, Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
.
* 54-0322 – Hill Aerospace Museum
Hill Aerospace Museum is a military aviation museum located at Hill Air Force Base in Roy, Utah. It is dedicated to the history of the base and aviation in Utah.
History
Preparations for a museum began in 1984, when ground was broken on an "Ae ...
, Hill Air Force Base
Hill Air Force Base is a major U.S. Air Force (USAF) base located in northern Utah, just south of the city of Ogden, and bordering the Cities of Layton, Clearfield, Riverdale, Roy, and Sunset with its largest border immediately adjacent to ...
, Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
.
;F-89J
* 52-1856 – Bangor International Airport
Bangor International Airport is a joint civil-military public airport on the west side of the city of Bangor, in Penobscot County, Maine, United States. Owned and operated by the City of Bangor, the airport has a single runway measuring . F ...
/ Bangor Air National Guard Base
Bangor Air National Guard Base is a United States Air National Guard base. Created in 1927 as the commercial Godfrey Field, the airfield was taken over by the U.S. Army just before World War II and renamed Godfrey Army Airfield and later Dow Arm ...
(former Dow AFB
Bangor Air National Guard Base is a United States Air National Guard base. Created in 1927 as the commercial Godfrey Field, the airfield was taken over by the U.S. Army just before World War II and renamed Godfrey Army Airfield and later Dow Arm ...
), Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...
.
* 52-1868 – Selfridge Military Air Museum
The Selfridge Military Air Museum is an aviation museum located at Selfridge Air National Guard Base near Mount Clemens, Michigan.
History
The museum was founded in 1975 by Colonel Robert A. Stone. The museum was moved slightly in 2000 to accom ...
, Selfridge ANGB, Michigan.
* 52-1896 – New England Air Museum
The New England Air Museum (NEAM) is an American aerospace museum located adjacent to Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks, Connecticut. The museum consists of three display hangars with additional storage and restoration hangars. Its c ...
, Windsor Locks, Connecticut
Windsor Locks is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 12,613. It is the site of Bradley International Airport, which serves the Greater Hartford-Springfield region and occupies approxim ...
.
* 52-1911 (painted as 53-2509) – National Museum of the United States Air Force
The National Museum of the United States Air Force (formerly the United States Air Force Museum) is the official museum of the United States Air Force located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, northeast of Dayton, Ohio. The NMUSAF is the ...
, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB) is a United States Air Force base and census-designated place just east of Dayton, Ohio, in Greene County, Ohio, Greene and Montgomery County, Ohio, Montgomery counties. It includes both Wright and Patte ...
, Dayton, Ohio
Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Day ...
. This aircraft was the last F-89 remaining in service when it was transferred to the Museum from the Maine Air National Guard
The Maine Air National Guard (ME ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of Maine, United States of America. It is, along with the Maine Army National Guard, an element of the Maine National Guard.
As state militia units, the units in the Maine ...
in July 1969.
* 52-1927 – Castle Air Museum
Castle Air Museum is a military aviation museum located in Atwater, California, United States adjacent to Castle Airport, a former United States Air Force Strategic Air Command base which was closed in 1995, after the end of the Cold War. It is o ...
(former Castle AFB
Castle Air Force Base (Castle AFB, 1941–1995) is a former United States Air Force Strategic Air Command base in California, located northeast of Atwater, northwest of Merced, and about south of Sacramento.
The Central Valley base in unin ...
), Atwater, California
Atwater is a city on California State Route 99, State Route 99 in Merced County, California, Merced County, California, United States. Atwater is west-northwest of Merced, California, Merced, at an elevation of . The population as of the 2020 Uni ...
.
* 52-1941 – Peterson Air and Space Museum
Peterson Air and Space Museum is an aviation museum located at Peterson Space Force Base, Colorado Springs, Colorado focused on the history the of Air Defense Command, Aerospace Defense Command and Air Force Space Command.
History
The museum ...
, Peterson Air Force Base
Peterson Space Force Base, previously Peterson Air Force Base, Peterson Field, and Army Air Base, Colorado Springs, is a U.S. Space Force Base that shares an airfield with the adjacent Colorado Springs Municipal Airport and is home to the Nor ...
, Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
.
* 52-1949 – March Field Air Museum
The March Field Air Museum is an aviation museum near Moreno Valley and Riverside, California, adjacent to March Air Reserve Base.
History
The museum was founded in 1979 as March Air Force Base Museum. One of the first exhibits at the museum was ...
, March Air Reserve Base
March Air Reserve Base (March ARB), previously known as March Air Force Base (March AFB) is located in Riverside County, California between the cities of Riverside, Moreno Valley, and Perris. It is the home to the Air Force Reserve Command's Fo ...
(former March AFB
March Air Reserve Base (March ARB), previously known as March Air Force Base (March AFB) is located in Riverside County, California between the cities of Riverside, Moreno Valley, and Perris. It is the home to the Air Force Reserve Command's Fo ...
), Riverside, California
Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States, in the Inland Empire metropolitan area. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. It is the most populous city in the Inland Empire an ...
.
* 52-2129 – Air Power Park
The Air Power Park is an outdoor, roadside museum in Hampton, Virginia which recognizes Hampton's role in America's early space exploration and aircraft testing. The outdoor park is open year-round, seven days a week from sunrise to sunset. Severa ...
and Museum (near Langley Air Force Base
Langley Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in Hampton, Virginia, adjacent to Newport News, Virginia, Newport News. It was one of List of airfields of the Training Section of the United States Army Air Service, thirty-two ...
), Hampton, Virginia
Hampton () is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 137,148. It is the List ...
.
* 53-2547 – 120th Fighter Wing
The 120th Airlift Wing (120 AW) is a unit of the Montana Air National Guard, stationed at Great Falls Air National Guard Base at Great Falls International Airport, Montana. If activated to federal service, the Wing is gained by the United States ...
of the Montana Air National Guard
The Montana Air National Guard (MT ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of Montana, United States of America. Along with the Montana Army National Guard it is an element of the Montana National Guard.
As state militia units, the units in the Mo ...
at Great Falls Air National Guard Base
Great Falls International Airport is a public/military airport in city limits three miles southwest of central Great Falls in Cascade County, Montana, United States. The airport has also been called Great Falls Municipal Airport.
The Nation ...
, Great Falls International Airport
Great Falls International Airport is a public/military airport in city limits three miles southwest of central Great Falls in Cascade County, Montana, United States. The airport has also been called Great Falls Municipal Airport.
The Natio ...
, Montana
Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...
. It is the only F-89 to have ever fired a Genie
Jinn ( ar, , ') – also romanized as djinn or anglicized as genies (with the broader meaning of spirit or demon, depending on sources)
– are invisible creatures in early pre-Islamic Arabian religious systems and later in Islamic mytho ...
rocket with a live nuclear warhead, having done so as part of Operation Plumbob
Operation Plumbbob was a series of nuclear tests that were conducted between May 28 and October 7, 1957, at the Nevada Test Site, following ''Project 57'', and preceding '' Project 58/58A''.
Background
The operation consisted of 29 explosions, ...
.
* 53-2453 – Heritage Flight Museum
The Heritage Flight Museum is an aviation museum located at Skagit Regional Airport just west of Burlington, Washington.
History
The museum was founded by the family of Apollo 8 astronaut William Anders in 1996 and was originally located at Be ...
, Burlington, Washington
Burlington is a city in Skagit County, Washington, United States. Its population was recorded as 9,152 in the 2020 census. Burlington is located approximately halfway between Seattle and Vancouver, B.C. The city is included in the Mount Vernon&n ...
. (note: see 52-1862 above, marked as 53-2453)
* 53-2604 – 119th Wing
The 119th Wing (119 WG) is a composite unit of the North Dakota Air National Guard, stationed at Fargo Air National Guard Base, North Dakota. If activated to federal service, elements of the Wing are gained by the United States Air Force Air Comb ...
of the North Dakota Air National Guard
The North Dakota Air National Guard (ND ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of North Dakota, United States. Along with the North Dakota Army National Guard, it is an element of the North Dakota National Guard.
As state militia units, the u ...
, Fargo Air National Guard Base Fargo Air National Guard Base is a United States Air National Guard facility located at Hector International Airport in Fargo, North Dakota. The 119th Wing is based at Fargo and operates the MQ-9A Reaper.
History
The North Dakota Air National Gu ...
/ Hector Field
Hector International Airport is a civil-military public airport three miles (5 km) northwest of Fargo, in Cass County, North Dakota, United States. The busiest airport in North Dakota, it is owned by the City of Fargo Municipal Airport ...
, Fargo, North Dakota
Fargo ( /ˈfɑɹɡoʊ/) is a city in and the county seat of Cass County, North Dakota, United States. According to the 2020 census, its population was 125,990, making it the most populous city in the state and the 219th-most populous city in ...
."F-89 Scorpion/53-2604."
''aerialvisuals.ca'' Retrieved: 12 January 2015.
Specifications (F-89D)
See also
References
Notes
Bibliography
* Angelucci, Enzo and
Peter Bowers. ''The American Fighter''. Yeovil, UK: Haynes Publishing Group, 1987. .
* Blazer, Gerald and Mike Dario. ''Northrop F-89 Scorpion''. Leicester, UK; Aerofax, 1993. .
* Davis, Larry and Dave Menard. ''F-89 Scorpion in Action'' (Aircraft Number 104). Carrollton, Texas: Squadron/Signal Publications, 1990. .
* Green, William and Gordon Swanborough. ''The Complete Book of Fighters: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Every Fighter Aircraft Built and Flown''. London: Salamander Books, 1994. .
* Isham, Marty J. and David R. McLaren. ''Northrop F-89 Scorpion: A Photo Chronicle''. Atglen, Pennsylvania: Schiffer Military History, 1996. .
* Kinsey, Bert. ''F-89 Scorpion'', (Detail and Scale Vol. 41). Waukesha, Wisconsin: Kalmbach Publishing, 1992. .
* Knaack, Marcelle Size. ''Encyclopedia of US Air Force Aircraft and Missile Systems, Volume 1, Post-World War Two Fighters, 1945–1973''. Washington, D.C.: Office of Air Force History, 1978. .
* "Scorpion with a Nuclear Sting: Northrop F-89". ''
Air International
''AIR International'' is a British aviation magazine covering current defence aerospace and civil aviation topics. It has been in publication since 1971 and is currently published by Key Publishing Ltd.
History and profile
The magazine was fir ...
'', Vol. 35, No. 1, July 1988, pp. 44–50. Bromley, UK: Fine Scroll. .
* "Scorpion with a Nuclear Sting: Northrop F-89—Part Two". ''Air International'', Vol. 35, No. 2, August 1988, pp. 86–92. Bromley, UK: Fine Scroll. .
* Swanborough, F. Gordon and Peter M. Bowers. ''United States Military Aircraft Since 1909''. London: Putnam, 1963. .
External links
Joe Baugher F-89 pages"First Look Inside The USAF F-89 Scorpion Fighter," ''Popular Science'' 1951 article with cutaway of F-89 with original six 20 mm cannon nose, article at bottom of page(1957) T.O. 1F-89D-1 Flight Handbook USAF Series F-89D Scorpion Aircraft (Part 1) (Part 2)
{{Authority control
1940s United States fighter aircraft
F-089 Scorpion
Twinjets
Mid-wing aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1948