Bat out of Hell

Specialty Press published an excellent book on the F4D and F5D, Killer Rays, by Mark Frankel. It is available from Amazon and I can't recommend it too highly. Steve Ginter's F4D monograph  is out of print but well worth the effort to find it for its many technical illustrations and pictures.

Also see http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2015/07/its-not-that-easy-to-avoid-error.html for some additional configuration details.

First, the Bureau Number summary:

XF4D-1: 124586-124587

F4D-1: 130740-130751                 12
           134744-134973                230
           139030-139207                178
                                                  420
Note: 130751 was a static test article and did not fly, so 419 is sometimes given as total production, not counting the two XF4Ds.

The F4D had a particularly long gestation, as Douglas sought to resolve handling quality and performance problems and Westinghouse, to qualify and deliver the AERO 13F armament control system. The first 109 Skyrays delivered (not counting the 2 XF4Ds or 12 from the first production contract) were accepted as day-visual fighters.  Even the 110th, BuNo 134853, proved to be unacceptable for service acceptance trials of the all-weather configuration. The benchmark was finally the 176th, BuNo 134919, although prior aircraft were subsequently modified to be compliant with it. If you are a nit-picky modeler, it is easy to be confused by the differing details that you'll see in pictures of early and late Skyrays.

This is a drawing that I did for an IPMS article on the F4D. It was based on Douglas drawings with details added from photographs.

Note that the basic drawing has the late upper aft fuselage and the early tail bumper fairing with the respective early and late counterparts shown as scrap views. This was the basis for the similar drawing in Steve Ginter's F4D monograph. Note that it depicts the early, small inboard and outboard Aero pylons that were superceded. If you look closely, you'll note that the big pylon that carries the external tank is angled slightly outboard and perpendicular to the lower wing surface. This is correct.

Contrary to some published drawings, the bottom of the fuselage does not tilt downward at the radome. The radome does angle slightly downward, a late change at the mockup stage to provide more over-the-nose visibility, but not to the extent that it protrudes below the fuselage aft of the radome. (Also see http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2016/04/douglas-f4d-forward-fuselage-profile.html)

The Douglas seat originally installed was very similar to the one in the A2D Skyshark.

130XXX did not receive radar scopes, Martin-Baker seats, or other retrofits except for the engine change and on at least 130745, the upper aft fuselage change.

Lights: The F4D had flush Douglas position lights on the wing. Note that they were in slightly different locations on the upper and lower side of the wing. My old notes state that there were small yellow/orange formation lights below the canopy fairing and on the aft fuselage spine as shown on the drawing. The ones on the aft fuselage were later moved to the vertical fin. There was originally a white light on the top of the canopy forward of the hinge and on the bottom of the fuselage on the forward engine access door. Upper and lower red anti-collision lights were subsequently added to conform to FAA standards.

Early aircraft (at least through 134749) did not originally have the small leading edge barricade fences; these were retrofitted. Early aircraft did have the “spats” on main landing gear that helped engage the Davis barrier cables on axial deck carriers. With the advent of the angled deck, the spats disappeared.

This is a very early production F4D with the no scoops on the inlet, the small AERO pylons, and the Davis barrier pickups on the main landing gear:

At 134853, the center wing pylon that was used for external tanks was changed to the longer AERO 7A pylon (retrofitted)

At 134857, revised upper aft fuselage for drag reduction (retrofitted to earlier in late 1957/early 1958)

Early aft fuselage (and afterburner):

Late aft fuselage (and afterburner):

(BuNo 130745 was a Douglas flight test airplane used to develop the boat tail drag reduction; it was also used to set time-to-climb records in this configuration.)

This may help to understand the changes:

Note that the afterburner nozzle in the picture of 130745  above is closed, the position for non-afterburning thrust. During development, it was decided to have the nozzle open (the position when the afterburner was operating) when the engine was idling. This both reduced static thrust and allowed the engine to idle at a high enough rpm to keep the generator on the line providing adequate ac current for the AERO 13F fire control system. As a result, when the engine was shut down, the nozzle was now open as shown in the following photo.

More detail is provided in this illustration:

At 134919, larger inboard and outboard wing pylons (retrofitted); this allowed the 19-shot AERO 7D rocket pod to be carried.

At 139030?, the longer tail bumper fairing (it extended forward onto the aft engine access door) was incorporated for drag reduction. It was probably not retrofitted, e.g.BuNo 134936 at the Pueblo, Colorado museum has the original fairing.

At 139159, it appears that the J57-P-8A iris-type afterburner nozzle engine was replaced in production with the -8B flap-type afterburner nozzle engine. (The -8B was evaluated on 139030.) See late aft fuselage pictures above. Prior aircraft were retrofitted.

At some point in production, the small inlet on the outside lip of each engine inlet was changed from a flush configuration to a bulged scoop. The flush inlet is seen as late as BuNo 134804 but the bulged scoop appears to have been retrofitted on most Fords. The right flush inlet was round while the left was more rectangular.

The original armament was to be four 20 mm cannon and up to six rocket pods. The guns were sometimes (often?) removed and the ports faired over, (The shell chute holes were usually left open.) Sidewinder capability was added early on and up to four could be carried (on the inboard and outboard wing stations), although the usual load-out was two (I've never seen a picture of one with four or even four rails).

When the Sidewinder capability was added, unique Sidewinder pylons were provided in place of the standard pylons; however, Sidewinders could also be carried on the standard pylon with the addition of a Sidewinder rail adapter. There doesn't seem to be a preference for either inboard or outboard Sidewinder loading. The inboard pylon tended to be the Sidewinder-specific one and the outboard, the standard pylon with the adapter, but there were exceptions.

Inboard Sidewinder Pylon

Inboard Sidewinder Adapter

Outboard Sidewinder Pylon

Outboard Sidewinder Adapter

Toward the end of the Skyray production run, the Navy decided to standardize on the Martin-Baker ejection seat for its fighters (except as it turned out, for the F11F Tiger). F4Ds were therefore retrofitted with the Martin-Baker seat as each went through its first or second overhaul. At least some Skyrays were still flying with the original seat through 1960 but a 15 September 1961 Flight Handbook revision implies that all F4Ds except BuNos 1307XX had the Martin-Baker seat by then.

Other notes:

The cockpit and ejection seat were originally black. At some point, the cockpit floor, console sides, and ejection seat were painted dark gull gray. The requirement was in place in March 1954, almost a year before the change in exterior color to gray/white, so it seems likely that the F4D cockpit was painted as shown here except for the prototypes and very first production airplanes. However, the color of the Douglas seat was black for some time before being changed to dark gull gray. (The Martin-Baker seats were always black.)

 

The radar was located behind the control stick, which made viewing it awkward. A cardboard periscope arrangement was reported kludged up but I haven't seen it. Note that the gun sight was located behind the instrument panel and projected the targeting information onto the center windscreen panel.

The inflight refueling capability was added by installing a probe on the left external tank.

Note that in the example above, the Douglas ejection seat and its rails are dark gull gray, the 20mm cannon ports appear to be faired over, Sidewinder rails are in place on the outboard pylon, and there is no red edging on the nose gear door (for some reason, operational Skyrays with red-painted "crush" points were fairly rare and definitely late in life; also see https://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2012/10/painting-crush-points-red.html).

The leading edge slats were free to move so they were normally open due to gravity when the airplane was static. In flight, aerodynamic and inertia forces determined their position. (When the wings were folded, gravity closed the slats on the folded section).

The large triangular surfaces inboard of the elevons were giant pitch trimmers. They could be angled 28.5 degrees above their faired position but only 1.5 degrees below. They were trimmed up trailing edge up for takeoff and landing and are almost always seen in this position when the aircraft was on the ground.

The rudder was in two separate sections. The lower was a true rudder; the upper was used for trim and yaw damping. It was not unusual for the two sections to be in different positions.

The pod on the centerline station was known as the Navpac. It contained marker beacon and civil VOR omni receivers.

Note that the instrument panel was not symmetrical: the upper left corner was slightly lower than the  the upper right to improve the pilots ability to see the Landing Signal Officer.

The "tail wheel" extended when the landing gear came down and retracted 10 to 15 seconds after the main gear squat switch closed unless the tail hook was down. (I'm not sure but I think it went back up without delay when the tail hook was down.)

As far as kits go, the best by far is Tamiya's, which are available in both 1/72 and 1/48 scale. This is the 1/72nd version, built and photographed by Joe Hegedus. Click Here for an excellent build article by AlexS.

Click Here for a detailed and helpful review of the 1/48th kit.

Furball Aero-Design released a set of 1/48th decals for several F4Ds along with comprehensive marking instructions.

 Unfortunately, Furball has sold out: http://stores.ebay.com/Furball-Aero-Design?_rdc=1

 

Cut then Add have created decals for a wide range of aircraft, even those for which there is not yet a representative kit. For more on their F4D 1/72 and 1/48 options, click HERE.

The Mighty Skywarrior

For pictures of virtually every A3D, see http://www.millionmonkeytheater.com/A3D.html.

The Whale was the result of a U.S. Navy program to develop a carrier-based, long-range, nuclear bomber. It had a very long career. Originally intended to operate from a super carrier, United States, it was downsized to be compatible with Midway-class carriers and with the advent of steam catapults and angled decks, based on the carriers as small as the Essex-class 27 Charlies.

Production ended in 1960. There were two basic airframes, the Bombers and the so-called Versions. The Versions were special mission aircraft, with the Bombers also being relegated to a support mission role very early in the Vietnam War.

 Bomber

Production
   A3D-1 (A-3A)
   A3D-2 (A-3B)

Modification
   A3D-1P (RA-3A)
   A3D-1Q (EA-3A)
   KA-3B Tanker*
   EKA-3B Tanker and Jammer

*The Bombers could and did carry the tanker package prior to the official designation of KA-3B.

Versions

Production
   A3D-2P (RA-3B) Photo Reconnaissance
   A3D-2Q (EA-3B) Electronic Reconasissance
   A3D-2T (TA-3B) Bombardier Trainer

Modification
   A3D-2Z (VA-3B) VIP transports converted from TA-3Bs and an EA-3B
   ERA-3B Aggressor Jammer

A Version was clearly distinguishable from a Bomber because the former was designed for a higher level of pressurization, externally most evident by the canopy framing. The canopy of the Bombers had skinny frames and a large rectangular sliding hatch; the Versions' canopy had heavier frames and the hatch was small, square, and inward opening. The higher level of pressurization was also evident in the structure of the boarding ladder/escape slide.

The canopy structure of both the Bombers and the Versions changed over time due to the relocation of the sextant port for celestial navigation. The last 21 Bombers were built with a sextant bubble in the left rear position and many were retrofitted with it while retaining the original sextant port; none of the Versions were originally produced with this feature but many were retrofitted.

The Versions Retrofit canopy shown above needs to be revised. It is correct for the A3D-2P/

RA-3B. Some A3D-2Q/EA-3Bs were retrofitted with the additional framing over the third crewman but there was no sextant port at that position. The sextant port was retained at the assistant pilot position instead.

For more on the Bomber canopies, see:  http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2016/02/douglas-a3d-2-skywarrior-canopy.html

 

The Bomber configuration varied considerably over time. There wasn't any external difference between the A3D-1 and the -2 initially. The designation change was primarily due to installation of an uprated J57 engine. (For background on the -1, see http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2013/06/blue-whales.html) The first notable external difference was the addition of the capability to be refueled in flight since this applied to the A3D-2 only with the exception of at least one A3D-1 (BuNo 130353 was equipped with a probe for flight test evaluation). However, provisions for the refueling probe were not originally installed on early A3D-2s and deployed Skywarriors were not fitted with them initially. Likewise, the DECM or "Dove Tail" was incorporated in late production A3D-2s and retrofitted to earlier ones along with the subsequent DECM nose. The addition of the DECM tail was not accompanied by a small rearward facing antenna on the vertical fin tip as I had previously thought (it was incorporated along with the "L"-shaped antenna on the later nose) but the small inlet on the dorsal fin may have been added at that time.

From BuNo 142650 and subsequent for both Bombers and Versions, the fuel vent, which had been a small vertical mast on the lower surface of the left horizontal stabilizer, was changed to a large horizontal mast on the left rear fuselage. It doesn't appear to have been retrofitted. For some pictures and discussion on this, see http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2013/05/a3d-fuel-vent.html

Provisions for the tanker package on the Bombers were also incorporated at BuNo 142650 with no designation change. When the tanker package was retrofitted on earlier Bombers as a permanent installation, the modified aircraft were designated KA-3B.

Other antennas came and went. As a result, a given Bomber may vary in detail from the following...

 

Note that the original A3D-2 configuration was identical externally to the A3D-1. What is shown above is a mid-life configuration. For more, see http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2013/05/mid-life-a3d-2-bomber-configuration.html

Rick Morgan notes that "many EKA-3Bs lost their distinctive ALQ-92 side blisters after 1972 but kept the belly canoe and its systems, remaining EKA-3Bs. You tend to see a lot of captions that mistake late EKAs for KAs. Many of the EKAs eventually lost all of their jamming systems and reverted to true KA status from about 1974; many of these airframes went to the two Reserve units which, despite their original VAQ titles, never had EKAs. If you look closely at later VAK-208/308 birds, many showed scars from where the ALQ-92 blisters had been."

The Versions' fuselage was very different internally, with the forward fuel cell moved aft to create a large pressurized compartment immediately behind the cockpit. The entrance door was relocated forward about 20 inches. On the A3D-2T and the A3D-2Q, an escape hatch was added to the top of the fuselage and a bailout door was incorporated on the right side of the fuselage for the cabin occupants. On the A3D-2P, the forward part of the cabin area was filled with cameras. The aft part was used for small side-by-side bomb bays containing flash cartridges for night photography.

The redesign was accompanied by other detail changes. All A3Ds used bleed air to turn two air turbine motors (ATMs) to generate the required electrical and hydraulic power. On the Bombers, the two ATMs were located side-by-side facing outboard on the left side of the fuselage. The exhaust ports were small round holes below and behind the cockpit. On the Versions, the ATMs were located below the cockpit, with one rectangular vent on each side of the forward fuselage. The Versions were also equipped with a deployable Ram Air Turbine for emergency power. It was located on a small door below the right ATM exhaust port. (The Bomber relied on battery power if both ATMs failed.) The Versions also had much larger brakes that extended a few inches out past the wheel hub. See http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2013/05/douglas-a3d-skywarrior-main-landing.html. The aft end of the refueling probe fairing extended farther aft than on the Bombers because of the relocation of the forward fuel tank

The Versions also had a small inlet on the bottom of the aft end of the radome that was not present on the Bombers (this is a picture of an RA-3B (A3D-2P) so it also has the view ports for the camera aiming periscopes).

For some more detail and illustrations on the differences between the forward fuselage of the Bombers and the Versions, see http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2013/05/trumpeter-148-a3d-forward-fuselage.html

The A3D-2T did not have dual controls. It was a trainer for bombardier and navigators. It did have a unique flight deck arrangement, with the third crewman position behind the pilot facing forward instead of aft. The ASB-1 bombing system position was relocated to the cabin, which also accommodated stations for three other students and an instructor. Wing pylons were provided to carry practice bomb containers. (For more, see http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2013/09/ta-3b-skywarrior.html)

A slightly different wing was introduced during the production of the A3Ds, both Bombers and Versions. It had a cambered leading edge (CLE) airfoil, with the wing chord increased by a few inches perpendicular to the wing, more at the root than the tip. See the table above for the effectivity. Also see http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2013/06/a3d-3-skywarrior-wings.html

A slat was added between the fuselage and the engine pylon and the configuration of the outboard slats changed as well.

 (Note: Douglas factory drawings were not perfectly consistent, so there may be small errors in the above; any minor deviation from the Trumpeter or Hasegawa kit features should not necessarily be considered correct)

The benefits were a slightly lower stall speed and wind-over-deck requirement for takeoff and landing. Combat ceiling was also improved by about 1,000 feet. Maximum speed was a few knots slower. See BuNo chart above for aircraft that were built with the CLE wing. The CLE wing was not retrofitted (except for Douglas flight test evaluation on BuNos 138918 and 138938) but I wouldn't rule out the replacement of a wing on a non-CLE A-3 with one from a CLE A-3 at some point in a long service life.

As shown in the opening picture above, the A3D sometimes sported old-fashioned wire antennas. These high frequency radio antennas don’t appear on early bombers because the HF antenna was originally enclosed in the leading edge of the vertical fin. They are present on some KA-3s and EKA-3s and also some of the Versions (one appears to have been part of the mission equipment suite of the A3D-2Q.). It was either a late production introduction (the last 20 non-CLE wing and all CLE-wing bombers?) and/or a retrofit. The forward connection of the upper antenna was on the rear edge of the left side of the canopy fairing, so it was just to the left of the bomber’s sliding hatch when it was open; if there were two antennas, the other terminated on the right side of the canopy fairing (there appear to be exceptions.) The upper antenna terminated on a post on the left side of the vertical fin just behind the leading edge antenna cover and below its top. The lower antenna usually terminated on the left side of the fin just behind leading edge antenna cover and just above the fin-fold joint but sometimes it terminated on the right side. The lower antenna was not always present when the upper antenna was and vice versa, although if there was only one antenna, it was usually the upper one. For more on antennas, including illustrations, see http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2015/06/a3d-3-wire-antenna-configurationa.html

The introduction of the RA-5C resulted in surplus RA-3Bs. The ERA-3B, not to be confused with the EKA-3B, was a highly modified Skywarrior used to provide simulation of enemy electronic warfare during fleet training exercises. All the reconnaissance hardware was removed from the camera compartment and an ECM operator station was added there along with a jump seat; a subsequent modification reportedly replaced the jump seat with a standard one.* Since this compartment was now occupied (although there had reportedly been a jump seat there when it was an RA-3B), the overhead emergency-egress hatch provided on the EA/TA was incorporated.The TA wing pylons were added to carry jamming pods. Due to the addition of all the avionics and externally mounted antennas and ram air turbines, the ERA-3B was deemed too heavy to land on aircraft carriers so it was shore-based.

* Revised in accordance with comments by MadDogVAQ33 and Anonymous provided below.

(Photo by Phil Friddell)

Both the 1/72 Rareplanes vacuform and the Hasegawa injection-molded A3D kits were produced using excellent factory drawings that I provided. The Rareplanes kit was one of Gordon's first with decals (a few unique black markings only for a VAH-4 KA-3B deployed on Kitty Hawk) and low-pressure molded landing gear struts. The overall shape is very good. The wing slats were the early configuration but defined by raised lines so a CLE wing would be just as easy to create. The canopy was for the later bomber configuration but unfortunately it was formed from a clear plastic that has yellowed over time so it would have to be replaced in any event. The kit included parts for the A3D-2P (RA-3B) camera ports and the EA-3B large "canoe".

The Hasegawa kit was issued in at least four different configurations but all were Bombers or modifications of Bombers such as the KA-3B and EKA-3B via extra parts. The canopy is the later Bomber canopy. The wheel brakes are the ones originally used on the Versions; I've not seen a picture of a Bomber with them but that doesn't mean a few Bombers weren't subsequently shod with them as well**. The slats are depicted by fine engraved lines, rather than being extendable***, with a CLE wing slat represented inboard of the engine nacelle and non-CLE slats outboard. Not withstanding nit picky details like that, it is a very nice kit, as shown here, built and photographed by Dave Hansen:

 For a summary of his build, click HERE

***The normal parked configuration of the Skywarrior was with the slats extended and the flaps usually down. An extendable tail bumper is provided in the Hasegawa kit but it is normally up since it automatically retracted 15 seconds after touchdown and stayed up until the landing gear was next extended.

Other kits which have been produced are the 1/84 Revell injection molded A3D, the Combat Models 1/48 vacuform (with a separate detail set) A3D, and the Collect-Aire 1/48 resin EA-3B

27 May 2013: Trumpeter has now issued a 48th scale injection molded kit of the A3D. It is very impressive, with wings and tail that can be positioned either spread or folded, flight controls and flaps/slats that be positioned, engines, a radar, etc. Given the number of variants and changes over the years, it's understandable that some errors and simplifications were made in the configuration. For some specifics and other A3D information, see:
http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2013/05/trumpeter-148-a3d-forward-fuselage.html

http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2013/05/a3d-fuel-vent.html

http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2013/05/douglas-a3d-skywarrior-main-landing.html

http://tailhooktopics.blogspot.com/2013/05/trumpeter-148-a3d-2-skywarrior.html

http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2013/08/a3d-3-flap-to-pylon-fairing.html

http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2014/04/trumpeter-148-a3d-skywarrior-yet-again.html

http://tailspintopics.blogspot.com/2015/06/a3d-2-3b-skywarrior-bomb-bay.html

For a specific discussion of the A3D-1Q, see:
http://thanlont.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-curious-case-of-a3d-1q-crew-size.html

Several people have provided me with information on the Skywarrior over the past 30 years or so but I want to particularly recognize Rick Morgan's contributions and his role as the subject-matter expert for the Whale as far as I am concerned (see http://thanlont.blogspot.com/2015/03/new-a3da-3-skywarrior-monograph.html). The following references are also recommended:

Naval Fighters Number Forty-Five, Douglas A3D Skywarrior Part One Design/Structures/Testing
Naval Fighters Number Forty-Six, "Fleet Whales" Douglas A-3 Skywarrior Part 2
Aerograph 5 Douglas A-3 Skywarrior
Squadron Signal Publications Aircraft Number 148, A-3 Skywarrior in Action

Aftermarket Stuff

Jakub Cikhart suggested that I mention some of the aftermarket items available for the Hasegawa kit, specifically Eduard and Aires. Eduard produces a canopy and wheel hub paint mask set, XS112, and photo-etch details for the cockpit, speed brakes, etc, 72-258. Aires offers a set of speed brakes, wells, and actuators, #7247. (The Hasegawa kit speed brakes are not extendable.)

One of the few criticisms of the Hasegawa kit is that the cockpit detail is a bit sparse, followed by the observation that you can't discern much through the canopy anyway. Obscureco Aircraft have come to the rescue with a resin kit that provides cockpit detail for the A-3A/A-3B/KA-3B/EKA-3B. It includes three different variations on the bombardier's bombing hardware and the cockpit's rear bulkhead, with multiple options for the rearward facing seat equipment. See website.

Aeromaster issued at least two sets of decals for the Skywarrior, 72160 and 72161. Superscale also issued two decal sheets for the Skywarrior, 72-781 and 72-782.

XA3D-1: Newman R&D (aka Muroc Models) produced an excellent conversion kit for BuNo 125412. It includes resin parts for the J40 engine nacelles and pylons, the original nose and 20 mm tail turret, and the fin tip pod as well as a vacuform canopy, decals, and detailed instructions. The resin block used to form the canopy is also provided, so you can make replacement canopies if needed.

A3D-2 Bomber: One reissue of the Hasegawa A3D kit was the "Early Version." It included resin parts for the original nose and 20 mm tail turret as well as decals for VAH-1's 606AG assigned to Independence and VAH-9's 518AC. The turret is probably the best of the aftermarket options I've seen, since it includes engraved lines for the brake parachute and a recess for the tail hook. The instructions suggest scraping the later sextant framing off the canopy.

There are at least two other conversions like the one in the Hasegawa early version kit albeit without decals. One is Maintrack Models 72:43 for the "A-3A", although there was no notable difference between the -1 and -2. My impression is that the turret fairing extends a bit too far forward to properly mate with the fuselage if you cut it at the panel line indicated in the instructions: it will extend too far aft. Quickboost offers the original nose and 20 mm turret as 72 189 and 72 205 respectively. The turret is similar in configuration to the one in the Hasegawa kit and in my opinion is superior in accuracy and detail to the Maintrack version.

Versions: Cutting Edge Modelworks issued four conversion kits which all included "seamless" engine inlets:
CEC72018 A3D-1Q
CEC72019 ERA-3B
CEC72020 A3D-1P, A3D-2Q, NRA-3B, and EA-3B
CEC72021 RA-3B/A3D-2P
Decals were not included and the instructions are a bit less than complete.

Mike West sells a Hasegawa kit conversion for extending the wing slats, including the CLE configuration, and flaps. See http://www.lonestarmodels.com/Conversions1-72.html

**Dave Hansen recommends using the Reskit main landing gear wheels for a 1/72 Hasegawa-bomber build (1/48 also available) in place of the Version ones provided in the kit:

Click HERE for pictures and his comments.

The Stoof

4 July 2023: Illustrations of the bomb bay loading options:http://tailhooktopics.blogspot.com/2023/07/grumman-s2f-bomb-bay.html

Steve Ginter has an S2F-1 monograph in work; it should be available later this year. See his Naval Fighters web site HERE. If you can find Fall 2007 (#8) issue of Aerospace Modeler Magazine, it included a build article on the 1/48th Collect-Aire S2F and details on the S2F.

The nickname "Stoof" was derived from its original designation, S2F. The originally approved name was Sentinel. This was changed to Tracker when the COD (Trader) and AEW (Tracer) versions were named.

Designations Pre/Post 1962:

S2F-1     S-2A

S2F-1S   S-2B

S2F-2     S-2C

S2F-3     S-2D

S2F-3S   S-2E

S2F-1S1 S-2F (A very rare instance of a prior designation being reused in the post-1962 lexicon)

The S2F-1 has long been represented in 1/72nd scale by the excellent Hasegawa kit. Kinetic has now released a 1/48th scale "S2F"kit which represents the S-2E/G.

Once upon a time (that's me as a pre-teen, between my brother John Gregory and a naval aviator, John Brandenberg, who let us take a close look as his VS-21 S2F-1 in 1956 or thereabouts.

Short version of the differences between the Stoofs:

1. There were three fuselages, the S2F-1, the S2F-2 (S2F-1 with a bigger bomb bay), and the S2F-3. The S2F-3 center fuselage was longer than the -1's by 18 inches, 14 forward of the wing and 4 aft. The pilot compartment was increased in length by six inches by moving the aft bulkhead aft without changing the location of the window, which resulted in an increase in the length of the equipment operator's work space of eight inches. Note: the S2F-3 cabin was not widened externally as has been reported; there was an increase in internal width of three inches in the upper portion of the compartment accomplished by changing the fuselage skin in that area from skin/stringer construction to a honeycomb panel. The cabin window was also enlarged and it appears to have been relocated a bit farther forward.*

 * As near as I can determine from pictures compared to a Grumman forward fuselage drawing, this is the size and location of the S2F-3 (S-2D and subsequent) crew compartment window:

2. There were two horizontal stabilizers, the original S2F-1 and a bigger version on the S2F-2/3 to offset the bigger bomb load and longer fuselage respectively. The S2F-3 had a greater wingspan/aspect ratio by virtue of the addition of rounded wingtips.

3. The big radome over the cockpit appeared early in S2F-1 production and was also on the S2F-2; it was deleted from the S2F-3. (The antennas were moved to the rounded wing tips.)

4. The aft end of the nacelles changed, first to add a "parrot beak" or "hawk's bill" fairing during S2F-1 production and then to cut the beak/bill off for the S2F-3 (S-2D)for more sonobuoy capacity. The two larger holes in the S2F-1/2 sonobuoy dispenser were for the SSQ-1 directional sonobuoy but it proved unsatisfactory in service so the bigger holes did not have the store retention clips.

 

S2F-1s (S-2As) with BuNos 129XXX and 133XXX and all S2F-2s (S-2Cs) were built with the small nacelle that faired into the upper surface of the wing at the trailing edge. All later S2F-1s (136XXX and higher) were built with an aft nacelle which extended over the top of the trailing edge of the wing and above and aft of the opening in the rear of the nacelle. The Canadian S2Fs had the early aft nacelle.* The Japanese S2Fs had the beak/bill.

Note that early S2Fs had a different main gear wheel hub as on this VS-21 S2F-2. They also had a smaller "head" on the extendible Magnetic Anomaly Detector located at the tail of the airplane.

Note that the pilot’s overhead hatch in the picture above is solid (no clear Plexiglas). Based on a quick review of a lot of pictures, it would appear that the hatch was solid on at least half of the first S2F-1s (and all S2F-2s) at initial delivery. The survivors, for the most part, eventually got clear hatches (the problem, identified early on in Navy trials, was that there was inadequate visibility into the turn with the solid hatch). My guess at the moment is that all S2Fs painted overall blue had solid hatches and there were even some early ones in the gray/white color scheme with solid hatches.

5. The original cockpit of the S2F-1 and -2 had the control columns extending out from the instrument panel and the pilot sat in a bucket seat on a seat-pack type parachute, strapped in with a conventional seat belt and shoulder harness.

With the S2F-3, the control columns were relocated to be between the pilots and the instrument panel and the seat was changed to one with a back-pack type parachute and a restraint system requiring a torso harness.

This excellent picture of an S2F-3 in flight test at Grumman illustrates the differences between it and the earlier S2Fs:

Note the increased distance between the cockpit window and the red propeller warning stripe compared to the lead photograph, the bigger crew compartment window, the rounded wingtips that housed the antennas that had been in the strut-mounted "pod" over the cockpit, and the increased span horizontal tail. The retro-smoke marker located on the lower right fuselage between the cabin door and the dust bin radome was rmoved. (It was reinstated on the S-2G.)

The forward angled probe under the fuselage was the barrier pickup. It was added early during S2F-1 production after a barrier crash. See my Navy aircraft history blog entry Here. It was no longer necessary after the U.S. Navy completed its switchover to angle-deck carrier. My impression is that it was no longer installed at some point during S-2E production.

The higher gross weight of the S2F-3 required power plant installation changes as well:

Compare the size of the crew compartment window, the location of the warning stripe, and the engine nacelle of this Reserve S2F-1 to the above:

The "plumbing" in the nose cap was also rearranged (note that early S2Fs did not have the taxi light):

The final U.S. Navy Tracker was the S-2G, which were modified S-2Es:

A folding antenna was added with an avionics upgrade where the barrier pickup had been. Note that extra sonobuoy dispenser scabbed onto the right side of the right nacelle (the 1/48th Kinetic kit has two but only one is needed) and the fuselage-mounted retro smoke marker system was reinstated. The S-2G was also operated by the Australians.

* The Canadian S2Fs were initially all but identical to the early production S2F-1s. However, the avionics suite underwent a series of improvements. For almost everything you need to know about the Canadian program, see This Excellent Website, identified to me by Robert St-Pierre, who also provided this picture of a CS2F landing on Bonaventure.

 

The "cans" on the CS2F wing tips contained passive ESM antennas, which presumably were incorporated in lieu of the similar S2F system located in the pod above the forward fuselage of the S2F-1/2.

Kinetic Kit Redux

Mike Belcher of Belcher Bits has done an evaluation of the Kinetic S-2E/G fuselage with an eye toward creating aftermarket decals and options for the CS2F. In the process, he has identified a problem with the length of the aft fuselage of the kit. See HERE.

Mike also offers a S-2E to early S2F-1 conversion kit consisting of new horizontal stabilizers, aft engine nacelle terminations and an instruction sheet, which is on line. Click HERE.

Modelers continue to note shortcomings with the kit's cockpit. It provides a relatively simple version of the later seats, the S2F-1/2 instrument panel and control wheels, (see above) and a rectangular opening to the cockpit rather than an opening with an arch at the top, and is missing the aft (folding section) of the center console. I assume that it's also missing the search light control stick that can be seen in the copilots side window.

In order to provide adequate access to (and from) the pilot and copilot seats, the aft section of the center console could be pivoted upwards against the instrument panel where it was retained by a latch on the glare shield. The following are pictures of an S2F-1 cockpit. One shows the arch at the top of the opening to the cockpit.

The S2F had a fixed slot in the outboard leading edge of the wing.

The slot opening was farther forward on the underside of the wing. Note that there was a deicing boot on the lower surface of the wing aft of the slot opening as well as one on the leading edge of the wing.

Another view of the slot and boot on the lower side of the wing.

Another question raised about the Kinetic kit is the location of the jury struts used to secure the wings when folded.

There were two very small permanent attach points on the centerline of the upper fuselage.

The wing-attach point for each strut was located inside a small door.

Note that the location of the attach point was different on the left and right wing.

The forward strut angled forward when installed:

For more pictures of the wing jury struts, among other things, click Here.

The Kinetic kit also omitted the search light reflector, etc. inside the searchlight housing. The light was mounted on a gimbal and aimed using a removable control handle mounted in the copilot's side window. (The picture of the gimbal has been rotated so you're looking down from above; it was lifted from this website.)

Click Here for pictures of the control handle (Note that the cockpit is an S2F-1 procedures trainer, not an S2F-3's.)

Click Here for a discussion of the difference in cockpit side windows between early and late airplanes.

Upper exhaust troughs: