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i need some help guys !


seavixenxj494

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hey all i desperatly need some help , i am taking part in a korean war group build for the nats this year and i want to do somthing out of the ordenery 1st of i will do a F-86 egg-plane but i have heard that f-6f hellcats where used in korea as r/c bombs?? can any of you guys give me any information ?? a pickture would be the best :)

thanks you so much ,

steve

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Hi Steve

Yes, F6F's were used in Korea as radio controlled bombs, known as F6F-5K Drone.

(Apparently there were only 6 used)

If you have access to Sqn/Signals Walk around 9-F6F Hellcat, there is a picture

on page 75.

If you don't, PM me

Regards

Alan

Edited by LDSModeller
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  • 3 weeks later...

There's a picture of an F6F-5K drone being prepared for launch on page 37 of "F6F Hellcat in Detail And Scale". It's being launched from USS Boxer CV21 and, because the picture also takes in the control aircraft (a Skyraider) on the other catapult, it's a bit of a distant shot. Aircraft is in a weathered (pretty matt) Midnite Blue with whitish grey exhaust stains extending back to the leading edge of the flaps. It has standard post 1947 markings ie with the red bars (logically enough): believe these would have been 50" dia on fuselage centred 69" forward of the tailplane and 45" on wing centred 57" from wingtip. There is a white NAVY between the fuselage insignia and tailplane, which I'd estimate at 20" high, centred on the fuselage insignia. There's a white code on the cowling which looks slightly smaller, say 15". From a 3/4 rear position it's not easy to read it: if you forced me to choose, I'd plump for "15" but I can't even be positive it's a 2-digit code. No other markings visible: nil on fin, nil on starboard upper wing. Can't spot any airframe mods to indicate it's a drone.

HTH

Nick

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I found a picture on the back of a very dog eared copy of air war over korea(sqn/signal) a very small picture it may well the same a/c that Nick is on about , as above but on the cowl is the code V6 in white and small 6`s on forward faceing u/c doors, on the centre line is what could be a finless bomb and under the stbd wing it says there is a tv camera pod but all you can make out is a highlight that must be the lens, on the top of the fin there seems to be a cruciform antena ?

This drone/bomb is being flown by Guided missile unit 90 from USS Boxer August 1952 and this also shows in the background the control skyraider with its engine running but to small to see any markings. Sorry no scanner but to be honest the photo is so small and rough it would probably not scan copy/ to well.

Just checked out what it says in the book, as above six used in korea 2000lb bomb, camera under wing first used in Korea on 28/8/52 to destroy the Hungnam bridge and the weapon was first tested in 44 against Japanese shipping.

PM me your address ive just got it copied and at least it is a picture, dodgy or not.

Regards Dek.

Edited by derek burton
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I found a picture on the back of a very dog eared copy of air war over korea(sqn/signal) a very small picture it may well the same a/c that Nick is on about , as above but on the cowl is the code V6 in white and small 6`s on forward faceing u/c doors, on the centre line is what could be a finless bomb and under the stbd wing it says there is a tv camera pod but all you can make out is a highlight that must be the lens, on the top of the fin there seems to be a cruciform antena ?

This drone/bomb is being flown by Guided missile unit 90 from USS Boxer August 1952 and this also shows in the background the control skyraider with its engine running but to small to see any markings. Sorry no scanner but to be honest the photo is so small and rough it would probably not scan copy/ to well.

Just checked out what it says in the book, as above six used in korea 2000lb bomb, camera under wing first used in Korea on 28/8/52 to destroy the Hungnam bridge and the weapon was first tested in 44 against Japanese shipping.

PM me your address ive just got it copied and at least it is a picture, dodgy or not.

Regards Dek.

The picture in F6F Hellcat Walkround is a closer view of V6 from the same angle as the one in Air War Over Korea. To my mind its paintwork looks a bit less weathered than the one in D+S (maybe that's V5 vice 15?). Anyway, closer view and better reproduction show that article under fuselage is definitely a bomb without fins though whether 1000lb (Walkround caption) or 2000lb (Air War text) I couldn't say. Derek is right about the cruciform antenna: the normal angled fintop antenna has horizontal additions added about 1/3 of the way up: projection each side about same length and dia as the antenna itself. Looks as if antenna wires head down from the ends to somewhere in the vague area of where the wing trailing edges meet the fuselage. Guidance pod still in shadow but looks to be about the size of an ASH pod with a hemispherical nose with an optically flat lens about 4" in dia at the tip. The paint has weathered away around most of the circumference of the lens aperture. Other details: 6s on cowling and u/c doors are stencil format, prop boss matt black.

HTH.

Nick

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