F10F Jaguar

The Grumman F10F Jaguar was not the first American aircraft with variable sweep wing - this honor belongs to aircraft Bell the X -5 US Air Force, but it was such first aircraft, developed taking into account the series production and the flight operations. The Project was born in the main aviation-engineering administration of the US Navy, which was concerned by the fact that the increased stalling speeds and landing approach in heavy destroyers with the sweptback wing made war shooting from the aircraft carriers in the open sea impossible.

The first aircraft was prepared during March 1952. It came out large and heavy and it had a wing, capable with the aid of the hydraulic drive change sweepback from 3,5 deg. to 42,5 deg. After several taxiing tests with the low speed on the base Of betpeydzh on 16 April it was dismantled for the transportation by aircraft Douglas C-124 Globemaster to the aviation military base Edwards into Murok Dry Lake. the test pilot of company Grumman flew on it during the entire test program, which was begun from the complete with the events of the 16- minute flight on 19 May. Problems in some systems of aircraft, which determined the plan of conducting 32 flights of test program, appeared. Only on 25 April 1953 it was completed. During the tests valuable experience was acquired, and the mechanism of a change in the sweepback of wing proved its fitness for work.

The characteristics of engine J40 were during March 1953 that trifle, because of which the order for 100 production aircraft on 1 April was abolished. As a result the project, from which on 13 June remained 12 pre-series machines, as a whole was ended. Two experiment aircraft, one of which had 90% of perfection, were transmitted for the use in the tests to destruction. Their construction after static tests for strength became rifle target on the Aberdeen proving ground.