Republic F-105 Thunderchief
The Republic F-105 Thunderchief was a supersonic single-seat fighter-bomber designed around carrying a nuclear weapon in an internal bomb bay, first flown in 1955. In Vietnam it flew more than 20,000 combat missions from bases in Thailand, and 350 of its F-105D and F-105F variants were lost in combat. Production totalled 833 aircraft, and the type was retired in February 1984.
Why It Mattered
The F-105 was designed for one mission above all: a single, low-level nuclear strike into enemy territory. When the war came in Southeast Asia instead, the Thunderchief became the principal American strike aircraft of the early Vietnam War, flying the majority of its strike bombing missions. Its two-seat Wild Weasel variants went on to pioneer the suppression of enemy air defences, hunting the radars that guided North Vietnam's surface-to-air missiles. Its crews knew it as the "Thud", and Wikipedia judges its loss record unique: the only American aircraft removed from combat because of high loss rates.
Design Notes
Republic's design took form as Advanced Project 63 under Alexander Kartveli. The aeroplane was shaped around a fuselage bomb bay holding one thermonuclear bomb. Power came from a Pratt & Whitney J75 turbojet, and a 20-mm Gatling gun was fitted in the nose at a time when fighters were expected to rely on missiles. The definitive F-105D added Doppler radar for night or bad weather operations, and its original weapons bay was sealed and fitted with additional fuel tanks instead of the nuclear store it was designed for.
Operational History
The Thunderchief entered service with the Air Force in 1958, and the all-weather F-105D followed in September 1960. From bases in Thailand, Thunderchiefs flew the Rolling Thunder campaign against North Vietnam, crossing the ridge their pilots named Thud Ridge on the run in to targets around Hanoi. Against the MiGs, F-105 crews were credited with 27.5 victories against 22 losses. The two-seat F-105F took over the Wild Weasel mission from the F-100F in January 1966, and aircraft fitted with a permanently mounted jamming pod were redesignated F-105G. Weasel crews flew "First In, Last Out": first into the target area, and still there, drawing the defences' fire, until the strike force had cleared. The F-105F was also the last variant built, with 143 completed.
Afterlife
From 1971, surviving Thunderchiefs began passing to the Air National Guard, and other F-105Ds were transferred to the Air Force Reserve. The last F-105Gs, flown by the Georgia Air National Guard, were retired on 25 May 1983. The National Air and Space Museum's F-105D had flown from Korat with the 388th Tactical Fighter Wing and later served more than a decade with the District of Columbia Air National Guard before its transfer to the museum in late 1981; it is now displayed at the Udvar-Hazy Center.