F-111F Aardvark ***FINISHED***

[PeterB]

I have made a start on the undercarriage.

A bit of painting to do but is proving less complicated than I thought.

 

Whilst I was doing the reasearch mentioned earlier I came across something called "The Gulf War Air Power Survey" - a set of 5 documents analysing the planning, execution and results of the war in some detail. The following extracts are from one of those documents and are perhaps of some interest.

As you can see the F-111 were busy from day one and flew a total of over 4000 strikes, which I gather means individual targets attacked rather than bombs dropped - 2 bombs on the same target is still 1 strike if I am reading it correctly. The F-111F could drop both "Precision Guided" weapons and dumb ones whilst the E could only drop dumb ones, with the possible exception of the GBU-15 which was guided through a separate data link, so I do not know if the E could actually carry that or not. As you can see, on Day 1 the F-111F attacked a combination of "leadership", Nuclear/Biological Weapons. Airfields, and Scud Missiles with PGM. I know some GBU-15 were used that day, but I suspect some were normal LGB, but more on that later.

 

Cheers

 

Pete

[PeterB]

Given that Pappy clearly knows more about the internal colours of the plane, I have shamelessly copied him, though the paintwork is nowhere near as tidy!

 

Bit of touching up to do, not that you will be able to see very much of it, and then it can go on - must get the wheels finished. The undercarriage on the F-111 was somewhat unusual I think, and on my old Revell kit it could actually be retracted which was rather clever, though it no doubt involved some simplification. The "beams" supporting the main wheels fold inwards as the undercarriage retracts but the wheel axles pivot so that the wheels remain parallel if I remember correctly - might be wrong about that!

 

Cheers

 

Pete

Edited February 27, 2021 by PeterB

[PeterB]

Well, that was a bit less complicated than I expected.

Knowing how clumsy I am getting these days I have left off the combined forward main gear door/air brake, and both the nose wheel doors and their rather fragile support struts, together with the tail bumper and rear pylon. A bit of touching up to do and then I can start on the fuselage decs.

 

At the same time I will start painting the wings and horizontal tail, together with the pylons and bombs.

 

As I mentioned earlier both versions of the F-111 could and did drop so called “iron” or “dumb” bombs – in the case of the F-111F it seems to have been Mk 82 500lb bomb with the AIR retarded tail, or various cluster bomb units. However the Pave Tack guidance pod fitted to the F model made it capable of guiding Paveway LGB, and a variety of these made up its main load during the war, together with the GBU-15 “Glide Bomb”. This was an improved version of the Vietnam Era GBU-8, with larger wings, and when released at speed and altitude it apparently could glide for up to 50 miles, making it a “stand off “ weapon – in fact I believe the USAF at one stage wanted it classified as a missile rather than a bomb, but were overruled . The GBU-15 had a TV camera head for daytime use and I think an IR head for use at night, and was guided to the target by means of a data link pod hung between the ventral fins where the ECM pod normally went, that being moved forward to the bomb bay doors where it replaced the Pave Tack pod.. I seem to remember around 70 GBU-15 were used, mostly quite early in the conflict but also later to blow out the fires at the Kuwaiti oil wells created when the Iraqi Army began its retreat.

 

Anyway, back to the Paveways of which 3 types were in general use excluding the one off GBU-28 “Deep Throat” bunker busters. As mentioned earlier in the thread the smallest was the GBU-12 500lb bomb mainly used for attacking Republican Guard tanks etc, but the other type used was the 2000lb version based on the Mk 83 bomb. By the time the war started the Paveway II system was being replaced with the improved Paveway III, so both the earlier GBU-10 and the new GBU- 24 version were used, though mostly the GBU-10 - I suspect the supply of GBU-24 ran out quite quickly. There were a number of different warhead types including a hardened one for penetration, but it was found that when attacking bridges the latter tended to pass through the structure before exploding. It was however used against hardened aircraft shelters I believe. I do not have any Paveway III bombs in my stock, and to be honest I am not entirely sure if the ones I have are actually Paveway II or not as I do not know what the external difference was other than flip out rear fin extensions, but they are going to have to do. I will be loading 4 GBU-10, though I gather that for some missions only two were carried. Initially AIM-9 Sidewinders were also carried on the so called “shoulder” mountings but once air superiority was achieved they were left off – I may add a couple as I am modelling this plane in early stages of the war.

 

Cheers

 

Pete

[Jabba]

Nice to see this with paint on (nowt wrong with a hairy stick) and also the U/C.

[PeterB]

I have been working steadily on the fuselage and all the decs are now on.

 

The 48th Tactical Fighter Wing (TFW) based at RAF Lakenheath initially was made up of 3 Squadrons – 492 TFS with a blue flash on top of tail, 493TFS with a yellow flash, and 494TFS with a red flash. Later the 495TFS was added with a green flash, this being the only replacement WSO (Weapons System Operator) training unit in USAFE apparently, which might explain my previous comment about them training the F-15E WSO's in the use of LGB/LANTIRN pods. Each Squadron had its own commander, but in addition there were two aircraft used by the Wing Commander. As the TFW was named “The Statue of Liberty Wing” usually shortened to Liberty Wing, the first Wing Commander's plane which I am modelling, 72-1448 (probably selected because the serial ended in 48) was named Miss Liberty, but 70-2390 was also used at times and called Miss Liberty II – both went to the Gulf and both carried the Commander's markings including the badges of all 4 TFS ( on the starboard side) and a tail stripe in all 4 colours, though the Desert Storm Website says Miss Liberty II was the Commander's normal plane at that time, so somebody else presumably was using this one. Compared with pics of the real thing Hasegawa's colour rendition of the badges etc leaves something to be desired but they are all I have got.

 

Earlier I said I would have to model the plane early in the war as I did not have the mission markings but I have lashed up a crude decal as you can just about see - does not bear too close scrutiny but it will do. That means I will not be mounting Sidewinders for self defence after all. and now once more have to decide whether I am going to load it with 2000lb or 500lb LGB! The extract below is from the series of reports I mentioned earlier, but this time covering the final two weeks of the conflict!

As you can see, by the end of the war "tank plinking" (RG/GOB = Republican Guard units) was the main occupation of the F-111F so I guess I will be adding the somewhat meagre but nontheless effective load of 4 x GBU-12. In the meantime, as you can see I have made a start on the wings and horizontal tail, but still quite a bit to do. I think I will probably finish off the fuselage next - jamming pod, Pave Tack, aerials, tail skid and wheel doors.

 

Cheers

 

Pete

Edited March 8, 2021 by PeterB

[Jabba]

Looking good with the decals on. The weapons load does look rather on the small size, strange that this version of the F-111 could not carry more of these on a MER or something similar. Mind you the crews did use these weapons to great effect when "tank plinking".

[PeterB]

Hi Jabba,

 

I read somewhere that there was an official limit of one LGB per pylon for several years before the Gulf War, and it was not relaxed until slightly after the war ended. Seems slightly daft but there we are. Given the size of the plane you would have thought it could have carried at least 2 GBU-12 per pylon on some sort of rack but other modellers have confirmed it was just one at that time.

 

Pete

[PeterB]

During the first year of lockdown I have built an awful lot of planes, so I thought I would take a break and do something different - in this case tanks in another GB. However with the deadline approaching I thought I better get on with this and my Tornado F3, though I have been doing a little work on them in the background, like getting the weapons load painted. Anyway here is the current state of play.

The wings are just a push fit and the leading edge slats are blu-tacked on but the flaps are now glued in place and I can finish off the painting. After that there is not really a lot to do.

 

More soon!

 

Pete

[CliffB]

It looks like you're well on course with this one Pete 

[PeterB]

Just a bit more tidying up on the wings and then I should be ready for final assembly.

The only problem is that during my break from working on this kit I have managed to misplace one of the underwing pylons - it must be around somewhere in my workroom but if it does not turn up soon I will knock up a replacement.

 

I am still debating what to do with the horizontal tail. In his build of the EF-111 Pappy pointed out that once on the ground the tail would start to drop as the hydraulic pressure bled off. Looking at the pics on the Desert Storm website I can see this in a number of cases but it is not consistent. Some have everything down, some have the wing slots and flaps down but not the tail, and some have the tail down but the wings clean. I am doing the slots and flaps down but I am tempted to leave the tail level as not only does it look better but it gives a bigger contact surface for the glue and makes it less likely to get broken off. Ok so it may not be completely accurate, but none of my builds ever are anyway!

 

Cheers

 

Pete

[PeterB]

Well, my 'vark has got its feathers at long last!

Still some touching up to do and I need to use a little PPP on the joint between the fuselage and horizontal tail but it is getting there. All that remains is to add the pivoting glove vanes thingies, pylons, bombs, ECM pod and the replacement Master nose probe and it will be ready to join my Tornado F3 in the queue for a final spray of varnish.

 

Cheers

 

Pete

Edited April 25, 2021 by PeterB

[PeterB]

I have finished the touching up (I think - bound to spot somethng else before long) and have fitted the pylons, bombs and my modified AN/ALQ 131 jamming pod - just noticed the price label on the Hasegawa weapons set it came from - £2.50 so I have had it quite a few years!

As ever black undersides do not photograph well so I have lightened it! I will leave it a couple of hours to set and then turn it over and add the remaining bits. Incidentally the missing pylon turned up in a pot on a shelf where I had put it to keep it safe, but of course not until after I had cast a replacement!

 

Cheers

 

Pete

Edited April 26, 2021 by PeterB

[PeterB]

And everything is on!

For an aircraft of this size to only be loaded with 4 x 500lb LGB still seems daft but as mentioned earlier in the thread, that is all it was allowed to carry at the time - one LGB per pylon irrespective of size/weight.

 

I will give this and my Tornado F3 a quick spray with satin varnish in the next few days and them get them in the gallery.

 

Cheers

 

Pete

[Jabba]

Looking very good now altogether. The price on that weapons set can't be that long after they were released. I am sure I have got some at home from when they first came out, will look at the price on them.

[helios16v]

13 hours ago, PeterB said:

For an aircraft of this size to only be loaded with 4 x 500lb LGB still seems daft but as mentioned earlier in the thread, that is all it was allowed to carry at the time - one LGB per pylon irrespective of size/weight.

 

Remember by this time, the aircraft's role was not that of a general bomber/attack aircraft.  They had F-16s, F-15Es, & B-52s if they needed to throw down large quantities semi-indiscriminately.  The F-111 evolved into a long range precision strike aircraft.  Go in low, fast, and deep.  Hit a specified target, no more, no less.  Then get the hell outta Dodge.  Even prior to Desert Storm (Libya 1986) that was the strike role the F-111 filled.  Due to this role and the improvements in laser guided munitions there really wasn't a need to carry a large number of bombs.  The less stuff you have hanging off it, the faster (and more efficient) you can go.

Looks good.  

[PeterB]

Fair enough, Chris,

 

Though the low level part went out of the window somewhat when using Pave Tack and LGB I guess, which was probably as well as the RAF discovered in the first few days, what with everybody and his dog on the ground banging away with anything from 7mm to 57mm guns - definitely not good for your health! It is a bit ironic that all the preperation and planning for a high tech war in Europe - coming in fast and low below the radar with heavy jamming to avoid AA missiles - proved not too good against low tech old fashioned guns, at least not until the RAF replaced JP 233 that needed to be actually laid down a runway by flying over it with something that either could be used from medium height.  Of course a stand off weapon may have been even better but I expect the payload would have been somewhat limited by comparison.

 

Pete

Edited April 27, 2021 by PeterB

[PeterB]

6 hours ago, Jabba said:

Looking very good now altogether. The price on that weapons set can't be that long after they were released. I am sure I have got some at home from when they first came out, will look at the price on them.

Hi Jabba,

 

I believe they came out in the mid to late 1980's and I bought sets I-IV pretty much as soon as they arrived in the UK. Bought a couple more bomb and AA missile sets later, and still have quite a few left. Since then the only other such Hasegawa sets I have purchased have been the later US one with JSOW etc and the European one with Sky Shadow, but I also bought 3 Russian sets from Dragon, two "Nato" sets from Italeri and 2 Airfix "High Tec Weapons sets" - must be mad as as I will never use more than 25% of the parts but there we are now they have stopped generally including "normal" weapons in plane kits and only include ones specific to the actual plane (if you are lucky) eg Durandal in the Hasegawa F-111!

 

Pete

[PeterB]

Well, I am declaring this finished.

I will post some pics in the gallery once the weather improves. In the meantime thanks to all those who have helped with feedback and other useful info. It is not a bad kit for its age and I have enjoyed it.

 

Cheers

 

Pete

[Jabba]

2 hours ago, PeterB said:

Hi Jabba,

 

I believe they came out in the mid to late 1980's and I bought sets I-IV pretty much as soon as they arrived in the UK. Bought a couple more bomb and AA missile sets later, and still have quite a few left. Since then the only other such Hasegawa sets I have purchased have been the later US one with JSOW etc and the European one with Sky Shadow, but I also bought 3 Russian sets from Dragon, two "Nato" sets from Italeri and 2 Airfix "High Tec Weapons sets" - must be mad as as I will never use more than 25% of the parts but there we are now they have stopped generally including "normal" weapons in plane kits and only include ones specific to the actual plane (if you are lucky) eg Durandal in the Hasegawa F-111!

 

Pete

 

You were not the only one as I bought all the Hasegawa sets when they first came out because as you say they stopped adding weapons in their kits. Of the earliest sets that I have one is priced at £2.55 and the other at £2.99. Like you I have also bought the other seta that you have mentioned and yes only some of the weapons have been used. I think the most annoying thing about them especially set IV the A2A missile one is the you only get a certain amount of AIM-9Ls in it when you want many more. I tend to use these up before anything else and then have to buy another set.

 

The finished model looks superb and I am looking forward to a few more pictures. Well done.

[Pappy]

On 4/28/2021 at 1:57 AM, PeterB said:

Well, I am declaring this finished.

I will post some pics in the gallery once the weather improves. In the meantime thanks to all those who have helped with feedback and other useful info. It is not a bad kit for its age and I have enjoyed it.

 

Cheers

 

Pete

 

Looking great Pete.

 

 One small point though is that the stabs typically droop almost immediately after shut-down. They typically droop 12 degrees TE down.

Sometimes they would stick but this was the exception and usually a gently nudge was all that was needed for them to return to their relaxed position,

 

cheers,

 

Pappy

[PeterB]

Hi Pappy,

 

Thanks - I mentioned this previously as the pics on the Gulf War web site show some drooped and some not. I decided to go for un-drooped partly because it makes for a much stonger joint so I was less likely to break them off being clumsy - but I also said it was probably not entirely accurate.

 

Pete

Edited April 29, 2021 by PeterB

[PeterB]

Gallery pics taken but here is one to end with.

Cheers

 

Pete