Convair F-102 Delta Dagger (Case X)

1/72 scale
Kit No. DS-003
Retail: $46.00
Decals: Three versions – all U.S. Air Force
Comments: Engraved panel lines and recessed rivet detail, detailed cockpit with raised relief and recessed dials on main and side instrument panels; optional position canopy and air brakes, detailed weapons bay with option for open bay doors and missiles deployed to fire; extra AIM-4 Falcon missiles

History

In order to deal with the looming threat of Soviet strategic bombers, in the late 1940’s the U.S. Air Force developed a specification for a new high altitude, high speed interceptor. The result, Convair’s F-102 Delta Dagger, took its maiden flight on October 24, 1953. The “Deuce” went through a difficult design and developmeent period, and was unable to go supersonic on that first flight. It entered service with NORAD, the North American Air Defense Command, in April 1956, and would ultimately become the first American fighter able to reach supersonic speed in level flight, as well as the first manned interceptor developed as part of an integrated weapons system

This integrated weapons system was comprised of two key components: The first was SAGE, or Semi-Automatic Ground Environment, a system that coordinated NORAD’s response to Soviet air attacks by providing command guidance for ground-controlled interception by air defense aircraft), or by GCI (Ground Control Intercept) radars. The second component was a new on-board electronic control system, the MX-1179. The interceptor component itself was dubbed MX-1554. The main armament consisted of conventional or nuclear AIM-4 Falcon air-to-air missiles, or a mix of the two.

The F-102 was also one of the first interceptors of the jet age, if not the very first, to roll off the assembly line without a gun of any kind, given military planners’ conviction by the mid-1950’s that aerial gunnery and dogfighting skills were obsolete. Air-to-air missiles, according to the prevailing doctrine, were the only weapons modern fighters needed. While the F-102 was highly automated and linked to SAGE, with on-board radar that would search for the target, it was still up to the pilot to locate the target, select the appropriate armament (early F-102’s carried up to 24 unguided 2.75-inch folding fin aerial rockets (FFAR) in addition to Falcon missiles), lock onto the target, then press home the attack despite any radar jamming.

The F-102 originated with a January 1949 Advanced Development Objective (ADO) issued by the U.S. Air Force calling for a new fighter able to exceed the performance of Soviet jet bombers, and thereby intercept and destroy them. In time the ADO was called “the 1954 interceptor,” referring to its anticipated entry into service. By June 1950 it became a formal RFP that went out the major aircraft manufacturers.

The RFP specified that the new aircraft had to be supersonic and would be designed around what would today be called an avionics suite, the MX-1179 ECS (Electronic Control System). Ultimately the MX-1179 would not be ready in time and was replaced with another system, the Hughes E-9, itself later replaced with the MG-10, the permanent avionics suite for the F-102A. The MG-10 consisted of the AN/ARR-44 data link (providing the pilot information electronically rather than by voice), the MG-1 automatic flight control system, and the AN/ARC-34 miniaturized communication set.

Industry response to the RFP was strong, with nine proposals submitted by six manufactuers: three from Republic, two from North American, and one each from Chance-Vought, Convair, Douglas and Lockheed. Of these, on July 2, 1951 Convair, Lockheed and Republic were invited to develop their proposals further, including mock-ups. Soon afterward, Lockheed dropped its submission, and Republic’s advanced but costly XF-103 design ultimately fell victim to Air Force budget cuts in 1957 (after the F-102 entered service) without ever reaching the mock-up stage. Convair’s submission, based on refinements of its XF-92A delta wing research aircraft, would be built with a Westinghouse J40 turbojet, pending the availability of the more powerful Wright J67 that was initially contemplated.

The F-102’s service in the Air Defense Command was relatively brief, but it was intended as an interim interceptor almost from the very outset. The December 1951 contract between Convair and the Air Force called for an interim version of the aircraft that would ulitimately meet the MX-1554 specification, in the hope of that the interceptor in its final form would quickly follow. The contract acknowledged that the Wright J67 powerplant, like the planned avionics, would not be ready by the time the interim aircraft was due to enter service. At this stage, the interim aircraft was designated F-102A, and the follow-on aircraft the F-102B. As the latter design evolved, due to extensive differences in the two airframes, the follow-on aircraft would become the F-106A. Meanwhile, by almost imperceptible steps, the interim F-102A took on greater importance, and the planned production quantities grew larger.

Development Challenges: Powerplant

The F-102A’s development problems first centered on its weight, which was increasing continuously during 1952-53 as the design took on more detail. The Westinghouse J-40 (the most powerful American turbojet engine qualifed for production as of 1951) lacked the thrust to give the F-102A the specified speed and altitude. Its replacement, the Pratt and Whitney J-57P-11 (soon to be the powerplant for the superb Vought F-8 Crusader), officially rated as being in the 10,000 lb. class and due to enter production in February 1953, was heavier. But the J-57 would prove capable of delivering superior power; it would deliver up to 12,000 lbs. of thrust, while the J-4o could at most deliver 10,000 lbs., and then only on afterburner.

 

Development Challenges: Aerodynamic Drag

Even more serious difficulties loomed. Wind tunnel tests conducted by the National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics (NACA) in early 1953 proved that the maximum altitude of 57,000 feet and combat radius of 350 miles (304.3 nm) predicted by Convair were too optimistic. The data also showed the plane would not and could not go supersonic — the Convair designers had failed to make proper allowance for a delta wing aircraft’s aerodynamic drag. Convair were initially reluctant to admit a problem, but the YF-102’s maiden flight from Edwards AFB in October 1953 verified that the prototype ran afoul of the area rule concept of aircraft design — that drag interference at transonic speeds depends almost entirely on the distribution of the aircraft’s total cross-sectional area along the direction of flight. In plain English, there was a point at which the fuselage cross-section was too thick for the plane to achieve supersonic speed.

The first prototype would be destroyed in a take-off accident less than two weeks later, but not before it proved conclusively that in its current form, the YF-102A was aerodynamically incapable of supersonic flight — an embarrassing development given that this was an explicit Air Force requirement. The solution, implemented with a re-design during the first half of 1954, was to indent the fuselage to a “coke-bottle” or “wasp waist” configuration. This delayed the air flow breakaway and reduced the associated increase in drag. In addition, the fuselage was lengthened by four feet and the air intakes were enlarged. Modifications were also made to the wing camber, the vertical tail was enlarged, and a more powerful J57 engine was installed. On December 19, 1954, the re-designed YF-102A resumed flight testing, going supersonic on its second flight — reaching Mach 1.22 and an altitude of 53,000 feet.

Service Record

The F-102A finally entered service with the Air Defense Command’s 327th Fighter Squadron at George Air Force Base, California in April 1956. It still was not out of the woods, as it was plagued by several bugs early in its operational career. Modernization of the F-102A, undertaken almost concurrently with the aircraft’s final production change, lasted from 1957 to 1963. It was still being modernized long after some of the aircraft had been retired from the ADC. This addressed U.S. air defense needs, increasingly provided by the Air National Guard, and those of operational squadrons fulfilling U.S. commitments overseas under NATO and SEATO. From May 1957 on, the F-102 fleet was retrofitted with a new wing allowing it to reach 55,000 feet.

Once it entered service, the force of F-102A’s was quickly built up, with five squadrons being fully equipped or in transition by the end of 1956. Fourteen additional squadrons became operational in 1957, and at the peak of its career, the F-102A was in service with 26 Air Defense Command squadrons. No less stunning was the rapid decline in F-102 strength as newer, more capable aircraft entered service, notably Convair’s F-106 in June 1959 and McDonnell’s F-4 Phantom II two years later. Nineteen of the ADC’s 26 F-102A squadrons were either disbanded or re-equipped by October 1960, leaving only a handful of operational squadrons until the mid-1960’s when they were either deactivated or transferred to the Pacific Air Forces or Air National guard units. In the interim, the F-102A remained on strength as a front-line interceptor in key strategic areas, chief among them the squadrons fulfilling America’s commitment to its allies in Europe and Asia.

The sole exception to the withdrawal from front-line service in the ADC was the 57th Fighter Interceptor Squadron based at Keflavik, Iceland, which flew the F-102A until April 1973 when it converted to the F-4C Phantom. In the U.S. the Air National Guard, tasked with maintaining permanent combat readiness and shouldering a large proportion of American air defense needs, operated the F-102 until at last retiring it in 1975. After nearly two decades of being entrusted with the nation’s defense, it was a fitting end to the lengthy career of a distinguished interceptor that has been called “the Cadillac of fighters.”

The Kit

Meng’s F-102A is injection molded in grey plastic and consists of 101 parts, including 5 clear parts for the canopy and navigation lights. The cockpit tub includes side panel instrumentation with raised detail, and the main instrument panel bears both raised detail and recessed relief for individual dials. The three-part ejection seat is fairly detailed but contains no parts for, or any attempt to represent, seat straps. The control yoke is accurately represented as a squared off “U” at the top of the control column.

The landing gear are nicely detailed with boxed in wheel wells and corresponding internal structural detail, likewise for the dive brakes, which can be depicted open or closed. The three-piece delta wing has ample engraved detail and separately mounted ailerons, and solid detail marks the engine exhaust nozzle assembly. There is a detailed paint guide for every stage of construction.

If there is a major complaint about the instructions, it is that they do not make sufficiently clear that modelers have the option of depicting the ventral weapons bay open or closed. During Step 8, direction is given to cement the one-piece weapons bay door in place, effectively closing it off. However, at Step 10, it’s clear that modelers also have the option to show the weapons bay open, with the Falcon missiles either stowed for flight or deployed on their extended rail launchers for firing (alternate parts are provided for the weapons bay doors if they are shown in the open position).

In addition, it is not clear from the illustration provided that the canopy can be open or closed, at the modeler’s option. Despite these flaws, the instruction sheet is for the most part well illustrated and calls out paint colors in the Hobby Color and Mr. Color lines. A major plus is that the kit provides twice as many Falcon missiles as you need to complete the kit, 12 in all.

Markings

The kit markings are in their own re-sealable clear plastic envelope and include decals for three versions. They have excellent color and are fully in register. The first is for an aircraft of the 431st Fighter Interceptor Squadron, circa 1962. This aircraft, tail number 61006, is painted in a scheme of overall Air Defense Gray with a Black nose and Black anti-glare panel, with red markings on the vertical tail and dive brakes. The second is for an aircraft of the 327th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, circa 1958. This aircraft, tail number 53380, is also painted in a scheme of overall Air Defense Gray with a Black nose and Black anti-glare panel, and bears a white flash on the vertical tail with red lightning bolts and the ace of spades painted in Black on its dive brakes. It also bears the unconventional curved “U.S. Air Force” markings on the side of the fuselage. The third version is a machine of the 479th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, circa 1970 and is painted for its deployment to Southeast Asia in a scheme of Dark Tan, Olive Green and Dark Green over Camouflage Grey under surfaces.

Conclusion

This is a beautiful kit of the F-102A, with a nicely detailed cockpit and weapons bay, and options to show both either open or closed. The dive brakes likewise can be depicted in the open or closed position. The instructions could be illustrated with a bit more clarity regarding the options, but close study of the images will overcome this defect. The paint guide is very helpful, but the paint legend is limited to only two brands, clearly steering modelers to specific paint manufacturers instead of giving them a fuller range of choices. Nonetheless, the kit is highly recommended for its quality.

 

References

• “Convair F-102: The Deadly Deuce,” Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft, Volume 16, Issue 191, pp. 3805-3809.
• www.fighter-planes.com
• www.theaviationist.com
• www.globalsecurity.org