Convair F-102A (case XX)
Username - destrozas
Name - Sergio
Category - intermeadiate
Kit - Meng DS-005 (Dimorphodonseries) Convair F-102A
Scale - 1/72th
Accessories - none
The F-102 served in Vietnam, flying fighter patrols and serving as bomber escorts. A total of 15 aircraft were lost in Vietnam: one to air-to-air combat, several to ground fire and the remainder to accidents.
Initially, F-102 detachments began to be sent to bases in Southeast Asia in 1962, when radar contacts that were detected by ground radars were thought to possibly be North Vietnamese Il-28 "Beagle" bombers, which was considered a very credible threat during that time period. F-102s were sent to Thailand and other nearby countries to intercept these aircraft if they indeed threatened South Vietnam at any time.
Later on, B-52 strikes, codenamed ARC LIGHT, were escorted by F-102s based in the theater. It was during one of these missions that an F-102 was shot down by a North Vietnamese MiG-21 using an AA-2 Atoll heat-seeking missile. The MiGs approached undetected, and one of the F-102s was shot down. The other F-102 pilot managed to shoot off some AIM-4s at the fleeing MiG-21s, but no hits were recorded. This was the only air-to-air loss for the F-102 during the Vietnam War.
Interestingly enough, the F-102 became fairly heavily used in the air-to-ground role. The interceptor was equipped with 24 x 2.75-in FFARs in the fuselage bay doors, and these weapons were used to good effect against various types of North Vietnamese targets. Additionally, heat-seeking Falcon missiles used in conjunction with the F-102s nose-mounted IRST (Infrared Search & Track) were employed on night time harassment raids along the Ho Chi Minh trail. This is likely the only time an air-to-air missile has been used for air-to-ground operations.
Operations with both the F-102A and TF-102A two-seater (which was used in a Forward Air Control role because its two seats and 2.75-in. rockets offered good versatility for the mission) in Vietnam until 1968 when all F-102 aircraft were sent back to the United States.
One Deuce was shot down during an escort mission over Laos by a NorthVietnamese MiG-21 on 3 February 1968, the pilot, Lieutenant Wallace Wiggins,being killed. The F-102s scored no air-to-air kills themselves. 13 otherF-102s were lost in the conflict, two being hit by ground fire; threedestroyed on the ground by enemy sappers, plus one hit by a mortar round; andsix were lost due to in-flight engine failures, along with one that suffereda ground collision.
Username - destrozas
Name - Sergio
Category - intermeadiate
Kit - Meng DS-005 (Dimorphodonseries) Convair F-102A
Scale - 1/72th
Accessories - none
The F-102 served in Vietnam, flying fighter patrols and serving as bomber escorts. A total of 15 aircraft were lost in Vietnam: one to air-to-air combat, several to ground fire and the remainder to accidents.
Initially, F-102 detachments began to be sent to bases in Southeast Asia in 1962, when radar contacts that were detected by ground radars were thought to possibly be North Vietnamese Il-28 "Beagle" bombers, which was considered a very credible threat during that time period. F-102s were sent to Thailand and other nearby countries to intercept these aircraft if they indeed threatened South Vietnam at any time.
Later on, B-52 strikes, codenamed ARC LIGHT, were escorted by F-102s based in the theater. It was during one of these missions that an F-102 was shot down by a North Vietnamese MiG-21 using an AA-2 Atoll heat-seeking missile. The MiGs approached undetected, and one of the F-102s was shot down. The other F-102 pilot managed to shoot off some AIM-4s at the fleeing MiG-21s, but no hits were recorded. This was the only air-to-air loss for the F-102 during the Vietnam War.
Interestingly enough, the F-102 became fairly heavily used in the air-to-ground role. The interceptor was equipped with 24 x 2.75-in FFARs in the fuselage bay doors, and these weapons were used to good effect against various types of North Vietnamese targets. Additionally, heat-seeking Falcon missiles used in conjunction with the F-102s nose-mounted IRST (Infrared Search & Track) were employed on night time harassment raids along the Ho Chi Minh trail. This is likely the only time an air-to-air missile has been used for air-to-ground operations.
Operations with both the F-102A and TF-102A two-seater (which was used in a Forward Air Control role because its two seats and 2.75-in. rockets offered good versatility for the mission) in Vietnam until 1968 when all F-102 aircraft were sent back to the United States.
One Deuce was shot down during an escort mission over Laos by a NorthVietnamese MiG-21 on 3 February 1968, the pilot, Lieutenant Wallace Wiggins,being killed. The F-102s scored no air-to-air kills themselves. 13 otherF-102s were lost in the conflict, two being hit by ground fire; threedestroyed on the ground by enemy sappers, plus one hit by a mortar round; andsix were lost due to in-flight engine failures, along with one that suffereda ground collision.
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