F-100 Super Sabre - USAF's first operational supersonic fighter

[tomhvt]

I see a lot of incorrect claims to the title above, so I thought I would just throw it out there and see what happens.
  Those who want to argue the point are requested to post a shot of a USAF operational F-100. Simply the charge of admission to the challenge.
OK, OK!  NATO operational shots are allowed.

[WARPEE]

Sorry, no pictures...If you permit a short story from my youth...It's spring of 1975...The local Boy Scout Jamborie is being held at Vienna AFB, Youngstown, Ohio...Lots of A-37 Dragonflys from the local Air Reserve are flying training missions, but you can only hold a teens attention so long watching the Dragonflys orbiting "in the pattern"...I turned to my frind and said, "We could use a change of pace!" God and the US Air Force must have been listening because in about 10 seconds we got "bounced" by two F-100Ds in SEA camo...They came around for one more pass, then headed west...Something for two budding "airgeeks" to talk about for hours!

[tomhvt]

Nothing wrong with memories like that one, WARPEE.  Funny, I've been to the AFRES base at Youngstown but had never heard it referred to as Vienna AFB. It took some internet searching to find the name buried in some oral history accounts. Here's more on the place from Joe McKusker's pages:

"The Regular Air Force facilities at Youngstown MAP were dedicated on August 10, 1952. The housekeeping unit of the $10 million air defense base was the 88th Air Base Squadron. Air Force Times reported that the base would protect the "vital industrial Mahoning Valley." .......
The federalized 166th FIS, OANG, moved its F-84Cs from Lockbourne AFB to Youngstown in July 1952. It remained there until November 1, 1952, when it returned to state control, coincident with the activation the 86th FIS at Youngstown. The 86th FIS operated F-86s until 1957 and then F-102s until it inactivated and the base closed in 1960. The 86th FIS was part of the 79th FG, also at Youngstown, from 1955 to 1960.The March 1960 inactivation of the squadron and group, and the end of regular Air Force fighter-interceptor operations at Youngstown MAP, were announced on October 28, 1959."



The A-37B Dragonfly was an interesting type, and in fact it reequipped (or supplemented) some USAF F-100 units in SEA if I remember correctly. A munitions buddy of mine used to tell me what a B**CH it was to hang bombs on those little suckers. Seems the wing was so low they had to tow the A-37s up a ramp so the wings would overhang enough to allow the standard  "jammer" (small bomb loading truck) underneath to load the bombs.

[Jan-Arie]

Here is a pic of a Super Sabre i made at the 05 Reno air races don't know if it's airworthy??? or a museum piece to bad i don't have a side shot

[M.M.]

At Mickey's request, here's a pair of dead and stuffed F-100Fs at the Maryland Air Museum (formerly Glenn L. Martin Aviation Museum) near Baltimore.  I assume the Army flew them in some role related to the Aberdeen Prooving Ground.  Anybody know more?

-M.M.

[WARPEE]

Waiting for my flight back to Amarillo, I spent an hour and a half at the California Air Museum, at the "old" McClellan AFB (now "air park")...An F-100D, IIRC...