Created By: theschell

Downloadable File Size: 19.87 M (approx.)

The Mach 2 capable F-105 conducted the majority of strike bombing missions during the early years of the Vietnam War; it was the only U.S. aircraft to have been removed from combat due to high loss rates. Originally designed as a single-seat, nuclear-attack aircraft, a two-seat Wild Weasel version was later developed for the specialized Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) role against surface-to-air missile sites. The F-105 was commonly known as the "Thud" by its crews.

As a follow-on to the Mach 1 capable North American F-100 Super Sabre, the F-105 was also armed with missiles and a cannon; however, its design was tailored to high-speed low-altitude penetration carrying a single nuclear weapon internally. First flown in 1955, the Thunderchief entered service in 1958. The F-105 could deliver a greater bomb load than some American heavy bombers of World War II such as the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and Consolidated B-24 Liberator. The F-105 was one of the primary attack aircraft of the Vietnam War; over 20,000 Thunderchief sorties were flown, with 382 aircraft lost including 62 operational (non-combat) losses (out of the 833 produced). Although less agile than smaller MiG fighters, USAF F-105s were credited with 27.5 kills.

During the war, the single-seat F-105D was the primary aircraft delivering the heavy bomb loads against the various military targets. Meanwhile, the two-seat F-105F and F-105G Wild Weasel variants became the first dedicated Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) platforms, fighting against the Soviet-built S-75 Dvina (NATO reporting name: SA-2 Guideline) surface-to-air missiles. Two Wild Weasel pilots were awarded the Medal of Honor for attacking North Vietnamese surface-to-air missile sites, with one shooting down two MiG-17s the same day. The dangerous missions often required them to be the "first in, last out", suppressing enemy air defenses while strike aircraft accomplished their missions and then left the area.

The Thunderchief was the largest single-seat, single-engine combat aircraft in history, weighing approximately 50,000 pounds (23,000 kg). It could exceed the speed of sound at sea level and reach Mach 2 at high altitude; the F-105 could carry up to 14,000 lb (6,400 kg) of bombs and missiles. The Thunderchief was later replaced as a strike aircraft over North Vietnam by both the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II and the swing-wing General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark. However, the "Wild Weasel" variants of the F-105 remained in service until 1984 when they were replaced by the specialized F-4G "Wild Weasel V".

Here are some of the Highlights:

• Over 50 Points of Articulation on the main figure!

• Moving Flaps, Ailerons, Spoilers, Rudder. Stabilator, Speed Brakes, Opening Landing Gear Doors, Raising and Lowering Gear, Spin-able Wheels, Steer-able Nose Gear, Opening Canopies, Deployable Slats, Deployable Emergency Drag Chute, Fully Functional Cockpit Flight Controls, and Working Ejection Seats...and more.

• Numerous ERC dials for ease of control from one main location, including dials for various basic flight maneuvers. The weapons sets also have ERC controls for ease of use in images and animation!

• Nose Radome opens to reveal the AN/APN-131 Radar Set.

• Conforming Dummy Aircrew figure to use to place a Flight Crew in the Cockpit.

• Conforming Crew Boarding Ladders and FOD Storage Covers for the Engines and Air Intakes.

• 14 Separate Conforming Weapons sets designed to be Mixed and Matched to create multiple load-outs for the Weapons most commonly carried by the F105 Thunderchief, with fully controllable ordinance deployment. These Sets are broken down by mounting location so that each set can be properly mix and matched with the others, allowing a total combination of over 100 variations of weapons loads that can be loaded based on mission requirements!

• Note: All of this product`s content was created by "theschell" (Christopher D. Schell) with additional help with ERC controls, Poser MAT Files & Additional Texturing by Mark A. Fares (KageRyu). My thanks to Mark for his extra hard work on this figure!

No additional files will be needed to use this product... it is a stand-alone figure!