Operation Wooden Leg Questions

[Steve McArthur]

I'm looking at building Baz 957 during Operation Wooden Leg in October 1985. I've done a bit of research to answer most of my questions, but still have a couple question.

 

1) When were chaff/flare dispensers fitted to Israeli F-15s?  I haven't found a clear enough photo of the belly of any Israeli F-15 dated before about 2000 to show one way or the other. I ran across a reference that the USAF started adding ALE-45 dispensers in 1985. But, Israel has done it's own thing with EW and self protection systems, so they might have ordered chaff/flare dispensers from the start or fitted them on delivery. Almost all photos I've found online are of the Improved Baz which didn't reach squadrons start until the late '90s. Question still holds for when they first appeared, but I found a photo in the IsraDecal book showing the belly of one of the Wooden Leg planes that with a magnify glass I could make out what look like dispensers forward of the gear doors.

3) Were the cockpits originally black like the Improved Baz or grey like USAF fighters? I've got the IsraDecal Baz book, so I've seen it's cockpit photos. Those are all Improved Baz where standardizing the cockpit was one of the design goals and I can't trust it for 20 years prior. I'm curious if anyone knows how the planes were originally ordered. Anyone got a photo of a pre-AUP cockpit? 

 

4) I'm assuming a joystick of some sort was added to the right side console of the rear cockpit for GB-15 guidance, was there an additional TV screen installed as well?

 

Some other stuff people may find useful:

 

Operation Wooden Leg planes:

BAZ    Block                   Serial        Notes

450     F-15D-27-MC     80-0131    RTB with GBU-15 had Double Tail insignia inboard side of tails.

455     F-15D-27-MC     80-0132

957     F-15D-28-MC     80-0133    1983 Survived mid-air with Skyhawk (4 kills by Oct 1985)

970     F-15D-28-MC     80-0135    Wingman to Flight Lead

223     F-15D-35-MC     83-0063    Flight Lead (aircraft lost 4/1/87)

280     F-15D-35-MC     83-0064

840     F-15C-29-MC     80-0129

530     F-15C-36-MC     83-0057

 

F-15D load: CFT's fitted

Left Side GBU-15 no sparrows or sidewinders (rails removed)

Centerline: AN/AXQ-14 Data Link Pod

Right Side: Fuel Tank, 2xAIM-7F (grey bodies), 2xAIM-9L (grey bodies)

 

F-15C load: CFT's fitted; 4xAIM-7F; 4xAIM-9L; MER with 6x500lb bombs on centerline.

 

Spearhead Squadron red wedge markings were not applied to inside of tails until 1991. Several photos from the day of Wooden Leg show either blank inside tails or 450 with the Double Tail squadron markings. Squadron and national markings were painted over for the op, so all you need are standard F-15 stencils and some tail numbers for most planes. From a photo dated 1987 of 223 in Osprey's Israeli F-15 Eagle Units in Combat showing Escapac IC-7 seats with the arming lever clearly visible in the disarm position on the headrest, assume that all Baz still equipped with Escapac seats until at least 1987. The fleet was changed to ACES II in the '90s but photos are scarce. Any AUP plane should have ACES II.

 

Great Wall's F-15B/D Baz kit doesn't have CFTs or turkey feathers, so I'm going to use Hasegawa's F-15E Demonstrator that has the right CFTs and engine nozzles included.

 

Baz 113 represents F-15B 73-0113 that was transferred from the USAF to Israel in 1992 (Peace Fox V), went through AUP in 2001. Probably had ACES seat retrofitted while in USAF service and wasn't retrofitted with Escapac on transfer to Israel, but it's anyone's guess. Couldn't find a USAF history on this plane. 

 

Baz 704 represents F-15B 76-1524 1 of 2 F-15B built new as part of original Israeli F-15 order (Peace Fox I). 2 kills as 704. Number changed to 404 in the mid '80s and has it's gun port faired over at some point. No current Baz numbered 704.  All other Baz 7XX planes are F-15Ds from Peace Fox IV with 90-???? serials. All current photos show the gun faired and are the only F-15C/D Baz's I've seen with rounded RWR fairing on both tail booms. All other F-15C/D had pointing tail booms like original F-15A/B.

 

Sources:

The Sword of David: The Isreali Air Force at War

Osprey Israeli F-15 Eagle Units in Combat

IsraDecal F-15 Baz

airliners.net 

Edited May 2, 2018 by Steve McArthur
New info

[Finn]

This site:

 

https://foxtrotalpha.jalopnik.com/the-amazing-saga-of-how-israel-turned-its-f-15s-into-mu-1701606283

 

indicates the F-15Ds carried 2 GBU-15s each, a pic is shown of the load.

 

Jari

[Steve McArthur]

The pic is not from the day of the raid. That pic is in most of the  books I cited during the description of the IAF developing their PGM capabilities.

 

All the pics I've found of the aircraft on the raid are consistent with load I described. The inaccurracies in that article are one of the reasons I posted the information I did.