The California Air national guard flew the 106 in the 70's. When I was in College in Fresno California, my Buddies were student pilots and Aviation fans . We all loved to hear the unique 'Whisteling' the 106 would make as they came in on approach to Land at the Fresno Air guard base!! I once worked in the IT department for The Fairbanks North Star borough in Fairbanks Alaska, my Last Dept director was Jim Cobb who had been a 106 pilot in the 60's. He said it was his favorite of all the ships he had flown in his career in the Air force hands down....said it was like flying a Cadillac.....a great plane and Jim is a great guy and a true Patriot! Thanks for another great video!
Holding all those models must be very humbling! The F-106 will always be one of my favorite aircraft, and I had the pleasure of seeing one at the National Museum of the United States Air Force!
Thanks Max, and of all the former F-106 pilots I've known or talked to, every single one raved about flying that jet and said the same thing - it was their favorite!
The XF-92A was my father's first project at Convair. I wish I'd thought to ask him if he ever met Dr. Lippisch while on the project, but he's gone now. Then again, Dad was a new engineer, and Lippisch probably dealt with the more Sr engineers and project managers rather than the still wet behind the ears guys. Pretty sure he was on some of the other deltas. I KNOW he was on the Sea Dart, since he and I were part of the restoration crew for the one on display in San Diego, and the older retirees gave him good-natured grief! I'm the surviving member of that crew (as I was in high school at the time). I remember Dad giving me a bucket to go bail water out of the engine bay....I certainly TRIED to hit him when chucking it out the air intakes! I remember sitting in the cockpit and Dad lowering the canopy....and then wondering how in the world a pilot could see with the windscreen at a shallow angle and that solid spar down the centerline of the windscreen! In fact, the Sea Dart you show at 11:28 IS the one I helped restore! I've always considered it "my" airplane. When I was in the USAF, I was stationed at Griffiss AFB when it had the 49th FIS...the last active duty squadron to fly the F-106.
Mike; I really enjoy this channel, especially this one on the convair Deltas. I look forward every week to a new chapter. Thank you for publishing these and I appreciate all of the work that you put into them.
You keep hitting them out of the park. Great to see the models. The explanations of the features of the aircraft enhance my understanding of how/why they were built as well as filling in their place in the timelines and development cycles. Thanks!!!!!!
Super, Mike! Those models are incredible. I imagine that most of the F-102 production had the case XX wing with the fully cambered leading edge and larger angled ailerons. I know that some pilots were having stability issues especially at low speeds with the original case X wing. Just found out that the TF-102 was used in the FAC role in Vietnam...learned something new!
Who doesn't love the F-102 or F-106, must admit that I'm partial to the -106 a wee bit more than the -102, both up there with a HUGE favourite of mine, the SAAB 35 Draken! 😍😎
Built the gorgeous Revell J35 kit in the 1960s, and saw the fleet of Drakens (single and two-seaters) flown by the National Test Pilot School up at Mojave, CA until recently.
Thank you Mike. Incredible collection of Convair Deltas, informative narration and most enjoyable to watch. The models on the shelves are not too shabby either.
Thanks Glenn - 'glad you enjoyed it! I'm very fortunate to have Jim offer these incredible pieces for these videos. Next will be the VTOL exotics - Pogo, Salmon, French Colioptre, and even some exotic oddball concepts that never flew.
Another superb video Mike. Deltas are my favorites of the Century series jets. Your factory model collection is incredible. I have the old Micro-Scale (ex-Allyn) 1/60 YF-102 kit. The history of the factory / desktop models is so rich and interesting.
I built a 1/48 model of the F-106 finished in 5th FIS markings (like the F-15 in your intro) when they were still operating at Minot AFB, ND. I never saw one fly, but I was a B-52H Crew Chief at Minot from 9/89-4/93, and there was one on static display.
I was watching, and thinking, it's got me in trouble before. What if, the F-104 starfighter, had been built today? With a new tech engine, and fly by wire, and avionics. It always looked like a missile to me, and like nothing would ever be as fast as it looked. Love your videos Mike.
Excellent video, Mike! I love the Convair Deltas, and had the chance of working on the F-106A and 2 seat F-106B darts during my first hitch (USAF) in the late 1970s. I was a young Avionics Tech, working the instrument systems. At Tyndall AFB, Fl. we had the Sixes as our interceptors, McDonnell F-101Bs for support and the Lockheed T-33A as training targets. Tyndall was the Air Defense Weapon Center at that time. We also had a bunch of QF-102A expendable target drones too. It was interesting watching the drone taxi and lift off sans pilot, being flown by a guy in Sperry's white step van across the runway. Full scale RC model! 😎
Thanks for sharing this history lesson Mike. A great model collection. And an impressive history of the development of the delta wing aircraft. These were the historic jets that I grew up with.
Yes, and I forgot to mention that TF-102s were used for training X-15 pilots in the use of their full pressure suits while airborne. A very versatile airplane!
6:12 The engine fairings were added to make the 102 's fuselage conform to the area rule concept. The flare they provide is part of the "coke bottle" shape requirement.
Great video. I remember going to Commanders Day at Griffis AFB in Rome NY and watching the 49th FIS fly their F-106’s, love that aircraft! Until 10 years ago there was an F-102 Delta Dagger on static display in Liverpool NY but a county executive decided to take that down sadly. I don’t know what happened to it since.
Great history. Many thanks. I remember building a (Revell?) kit of the F106 many years ago. Have the Hasegawa kits of the 102 and 106 to build. All the best
8:35 The F-106 model you are holding may actually be a model of the F-102B . The Buzz number on the side is "FC" used for the F-102. The F-106 operationally used buzz numbers "FE". The reason it became the F-106 was the changes became so significant the USAF assign the new number.
My dad loaded weapons, including nuclear genie rockets on F-106s while he was posted in Minot AFB in the early 1960s. I still have one of his F106 maintenance manuals.
Regarding the YF-102 or "WS"201A, in the movie "Toward the Unknown", General Banner (Lloyd Nolan) tells the visiting Congressman that at Edwards they test "everything that goes with the vehicle to make up the whole weapons system"... a shining example of real concepts in a great movie! Coincidentally, a short tail F-102 is taxing on the ramp in the distance behind the General just as he makes this statement. 🙂
Love your comment on "Toward the Unknown," and although I've seen it countless times (including in a theater in 1956!), I watched my DVD version once just to catch the airplanes outside General Banner's office window. Saw the B-47, F-102, and even the GE J79-powered Douglas F4D Skyray (with red tail). Also, did you know the XF-92 was used for the opening crash sequence, buried in a ditch and fitted with a nose radome and fake air intakes to make it look like an F-102? Awesome movie!
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782 Okay, I was wondering which aircraft was used in the rescue scenes. I'll have to look for the Skyray when I have some time!
The term 'weapons system' appears to to be not always understood. In the case of the F-102, the weapons system was called SAGE (Semi-Automatic Ground Environment). The purpose of the airplane as part that system was to be directed on a collision course heading towards the target and release its missiles when within range.
Really interesting video. Your narration is so much better on these newer videos but the only thing is I would love to know more about those beautiful models you have. Who built them, what materials are they built from and why were they built? Thanks, and look forward to more content!
Thanks Jason - appreciate the comment. The two F-102As, TF-102A, and F-106A were produced by a company called Blaine Electronics for Convair execs and Air Force brass, while the MX-1554, XF-92, YF-102, and XF2Y-1 Sea Dart were built in the Convair San Diego model factory shop. They are wood models finished and painted in high-gloss lacquer in an era before fiberglass and resin like they use today. Next video posting Friday 01/15 will be on unique and exotic VTOL concepts and prototypes from the 1950s.
Very interesting info about those beautiful airplanes. Thank you. I notice that your F-106 model has the BuNo FC-464, same FC letters as the F-102 models. I have noted that each type is assigned specific letters as FW for the F-100 and FG for the F-104. Looking photos in the internet i found some F-106 with FE-XYZ... Is that correct¿.
Thanks Ricardo, and the "FE-XYZ" was probably just a generic term for theBuzz Numbers as they were called. These were used to easily identify specific aircraft, with the second letter denoting type. The three numerals were the last three digits of the aircraft's serial number.
It is hard to believe that the Delta Dart still holds that speed record, which was set in 1959! The late COL Jack Broughton stated that of all the aircraft that he flew, the Dart was "the one he would like to have parked in his garage...."
Happy new year Mike. Do you consider the swing wing on the F-111 to be the final evolution of the Convair/General Dynamics delta wing? In the swept position, the F-111 certainly looks the part along with its horizontal stabilizers.
Wow Vik, that's a really interesting point, and my answer would be "yes!" - a terrific example of advanced 1960s technology applied to an aircraft that can actually become a delta-wing design inflight. Only difference is having large stabilators for pitch control as well.
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782 Dave & I were tight for a couple of years back then & I'm surprised not to have heard that from him. Arleen says hi and happy new year to you, too.
@@ericcoleson7410 Thanks Eric, and all the best to you and Arleen. I'm still in touch with Rick Johnson ("Superman"), and our years together at Elsinore will never be equalled. 'Still remember your amazing aerotow flying the Blanik out of Skylark after the flood.
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782Incomparable place & times, wasn't it? Tell Superman he's fondly remembered. All the amazing flying that last day at Elsinore happened on your end of the rope. The edge of the lake was sobering, but I could see it coming.
Thanks for another great video Mike! Awesome models. Two questions: How many of those models would a manufacturer make? Not the best question, as there would be many variables I am sure but was wondering if it was typically in the 10s, 100s, or 1000s? Secondly, did they have a preferred scale or was it more about just generally making them to that hat-box kind of size? Love these videos!
Thanks Dave - really great questions on the factory models! The first answer is "all of the above," depending on usage. One-of-a-kind concept models were used for presentations to corporate executives or military brass, and if an airplane made it to mock-up or prototype stage, a dozen or so were made for program execs and customers. If the plane went into production, models would be farmed-out to companies like Topping back in the day (100,000 or more-per airplane!), or Pacific Miniatures today. As for scale, at Douglas, we referred to these by usage also: large Product Display Area airliner models were from 1/50 to 1/24, while executive office model were always 1/100. "Credenza Office Models" as we called them, were 1/144, and "Desk Models" were 1/164th. This also depended on the size of the airplanes. Most fighter models are 1/40-scale.
Yes, that is correct, thanks. The F-102As, TF-102A, and F-106A were indeed Blaine Electronics pieces, while the MX-1554, XF-92, YF-102, and XF2Y-1 Sea Dart were Convair San Diego model shop examples. Fantastic workmanship on all of them!
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782 I winder how far "delta" can be extended - it seems to me that even the F-111 and F-16, under certain circumstances, could be called deltas. The F-16, llike the MiG-21 is a tailed delta and the Aardvark takes the form in sweepback. Just a thought, though.
Hi Mike! Do you own all the factory made models in your video presentations? Or are they on loan? I'd like to see you do a presentation on the DeHavllin Arrow !
The brown discoloration on the one model looks like nicotine staining. I bet an art conservator in your area could advise you how to clean it off safely. I might even try windex on a q-tip first.
Good point, thanks, but we believe that model may have been exposed to a fire, or some serious heat which bent the tip of the tailfin. Appreciate the comment!
Mike, I'm a San Diegan, and I'm saddened by the outdoor display of the very rare Sea Dart. It is subject to weather, vandalism, and the ever-present pigeons on a daily basis. Other far less rare aircraft are displayed inside the building. I never understood that.
Bert, I feel your pain, and as current Curator for the Museum of Flying in Santa Monica, I can tell you that Museums are on another planet as far as management and decision making.
I worked for Convair in San Diego. The Spin Test facility used to be located adjacent to the Coast Guard station on the bay by Lindbergh Field. The Sea Dart was stored there through the '80s and '90s when I was there. We used to crawl through it while we were at the facility which was used to store assembly tooling. The Sea Dart was a structural shell of the aircraft at the time and in much worse condition than at the S D Air and Space museum. Granted it should be stored indoors but it is better off where it is now than on the bay.
Hello You Won't Believe This I Work And Developed Section Of F101,F102, F104, F106 Sm-62 , T38,F5,N156, Pencil Sketch Drawing For F20 Base on The T38 Design Single Engine Concept, (Wasp Waste Fuselage Design Discovered by Aerodynamicist Richard Whitcomb) That Was 1956 For Me. Northrop Aircraft Employed Me At Eighteen Year Old Snot Nose Kid To Salve Paradox Problem. Northrop Saw My Sample Mechanical Three Dimensional Drawing Blueprint In January 1955 At The Los Angeles Industrial Arts Program For High School Seniors. No Government Defense Contractor Could Employed anyone Under Twenty One . Northrop Got Permission From The Pentagon For This Special Needs . Defense Contractor SubContract Parts Farmed Out To Be Manufactured That Way I Was Able To Work And Developed Parts. There Is More To This Saga End For Now Bill
The California Air national guard flew the 106 in the 70's.
When I was in College in Fresno California, my Buddies were student pilots and Aviation fans . We all loved to hear the unique 'Whisteling' the 106 would make as they came in on approach to Land at the Fresno Air guard base!! I once worked in the IT department for The Fairbanks North Star borough in Fairbanks Alaska, my Last Dept director was Jim Cobb who had been a 106 pilot in the 60's. He said it was his favorite of all the ships he had flown in his career in the Air force hands down....said it was like flying a Cadillac.....a great plane and Jim is a great guy and a true Patriot! Thanks for another great video!
Holding all those models must be very humbling! The F-106 will always be one of my favorite aircraft, and I had the pleasure of seeing one at the National Museum of the United States Air Force!
Most Air Force pilots I've spoken with who flew the F-106 said it was, by far, the favorite airplane of their career!
Thank you Mike. Another very interesting video.
Glad you enjoyed it, and Happy New Year!
Mike...stunning factory model collection....I hope those are insured!
Yes, they sure are, and thanks for watching this one!
Absolutely wonderful collection znd presentation Mike. The 106 is still my favorite jet fighter.
Thanks Max, and of all the former F-106 pilots I've known or talked to, every single one raved about flying that jet and said the same thing - it was their favorite!
The XF-92A was my father's first project at Convair. I wish I'd thought to ask him if he ever met Dr. Lippisch while on the project, but he's gone now.
Then again, Dad was a new engineer, and Lippisch probably dealt with the more Sr engineers and project managers rather than the still wet behind the ears guys.
Pretty sure he was on some of the other deltas. I KNOW he was on the Sea Dart, since he and I were part of the restoration crew for the one on display in San Diego, and the older retirees gave him good-natured grief! I'm the surviving member of that crew (as I was in high school at the time). I remember Dad giving me a bucket to go bail water out of the engine bay....I certainly TRIED to hit him when chucking it out the air intakes!
I remember sitting in the cockpit and Dad lowering the canopy....and then wondering how in the world a pilot could see with the windscreen at a shallow angle and that solid spar down the centerline of the windscreen!
In fact, the Sea Dart you show at 11:28 IS the one I helped restore! I've always considered it "my" airplane.
When I was in the USAF, I was stationed at Griffiss AFB when it had the 49th FIS...the last active duty squadron to fly the F-106.
Mike; I really enjoy this channel, especially this one on the convair Deltas. I look forward every week to a new chapter. Thank you for publishing these and I appreciate all of the work that you put into them.
Thank you Steve - really appreciate the comment!
I enjoyed the premiere thanks Mike
Thanks Wayne, and Happy New Year!
You keep hitting them out of the park. Great to see the models. The explanations of the features of the aircraft enhance my understanding of how/why they were built as well as filling in their place in the timelines and development cycles. Thanks!!!!!!
Thanks Chuck - 'really appreciate all your great comments and thanks for watching!
Super, Mike! Those models are incredible. I imagine that most of the F-102 production had the case XX wing with the fully cambered leading edge and larger angled ailerons. I know that some pilots were having stability issues especially at low speeds with the original case X wing. Just found out that the TF-102 was used in the FAC role in Vietnam...learned something new!
Thanks Adam, and glad you enjoyed the video. Appreciate the comment!
Another great video. And great model’s. A great way to start the New Year.
Thanks John!
Thanks Mike! I now have a trip planned to get over to Willow Grove to see the Sea Dart and photograph for my collection.
Great Jerry, and you won't be disappointed - I saw the one at San Diego and it looked exquisite. Hard to believe it was built in 1954!
🤔💯 My favorite century series..is the "F-106" because it had it all ❤️
Who doesn't love the F-102 or F-106, must admit that I'm partial to the -106 a wee bit more than the -102, both up there with a HUGE favourite of mine, the SAAB 35 Draken! 😍😎
Built the gorgeous Revell J35 kit in the 1960s, and saw the fleet of Drakens (single and two-seaters) flown by the National Test Pilot School up at Mojave, CA until recently.
Excellent, Mike... those models are interesting all by themselves, but your perspective on the series put this presentation over thed top. Thank you.
Thanks Brian, and glad you enjoyed it. These programs are fun to do!
Thank you Mike. Incredible collection of Convair Deltas, informative narration and most enjoyable to watch. The models on the shelves are not too shabby either.
Thanks Glenn - 'glad you enjoyed it! I'm very fortunate to have Jim offer these incredible pieces for these videos. Next will be the VTOL exotics - Pogo, Salmon, French Colioptre, and even some exotic oddball concepts that never flew.
Very fascinating and interesting, thank you
Glad you enjoyed it, thanks!
Another superb video Mike. Deltas are my favorites of the Century series jets. Your factory model collection is incredible. I have the old Micro-Scale (ex-Allyn) 1/60 YF-102 kit. The history of the factory / desktop models is so rich and interesting.
Thanks Douglas, and glad you enjoyed this episode. I remember that Micro-Scale kit, and best to you in the New Year!
Wonderful ! Thank you !
I built a 1/48 model of the F-106 finished in 5th FIS markings (like the F-15 in your intro) when they were still operating at Minot AFB, ND. I never saw one fly, but I was a B-52H Crew Chief at Minot from 9/89-4/93, and there was one on static display.
I adore the F-106 and the F-2Y SeaDart
Beautiful Airframes indeed
Great Channel too! Cheers Mike
Appreciate the comment - many thanks!
I was watching, and thinking, it's got me in trouble before. What if, the F-104 starfighter, had been built today? With a new tech engine, and fly by wire, and avionics. It always looked like a missile to me, and like nothing would ever be as fast as it looked. Love your videos Mike.
Belated thanks for your comment, and great observations on the F-104!
Thank you! Well done.
Excellent video, Mike! I love the Convair Deltas, and had the chance of working on the F-106A and 2 seat F-106B darts during my first hitch (USAF) in the late 1970s. I was a young Avionics Tech, working the instrument systems. At Tyndall AFB, Fl. we had the Sixes as our interceptors, McDonnell F-101Bs for support and the Lockheed T-33A as training targets. Tyndall was the Air Defense Weapon Center at that time.
We also had a bunch of QF-102A expendable target drones too. It was interesting watching the drone taxi and lift off sans pilot, being flown by a guy in Sperry's white step van across the runway. Full scale RC model! 😎
Awesome comment, thanks! (I was Air Force in the late-1960s.)
Thanks for sharing this history lesson Mike. A great model collection. And an impressive history of the development of the delta wing aircraft. These were the historic jets that I grew up with.
Thanks Garfield, and best to you in the New Year!
I didn't know about the TF-102. So it has a side by side cockpit like the F-111. Thanks!
Yes, and I forgot to mention that TF-102s were used for training X-15 pilots in the use of their full pressure suits while airborne. A very versatile airplane!
Mike, more great work! My favorite channel
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
I love the convair Delta aircraft the Delta Dart was probably the best pure Interceptor ever made
Agreed, and anyone who ever flew the F-106 said it was their favorite airplane. Thanks for the comment!
6:12 The engine fairings were added to make the 102 's fuselage conform to the area rule concept. The flare they provide is part of the "coke bottle" shape requirement.
Great video. I remember going to Commanders Day at Griffis AFB in Rome NY and watching the 49th FIS fly their F-106’s, love that aircraft! Until 10 years ago there was an F-102 Delta Dagger on static display in Liverpool NY but a county executive decided to take that down sadly. I don’t know what happened to it since.
Great history. Many thanks. I remember building a (Revell?) kit of the F106 many years ago. Have the Hasegawa kits of the 102 and 106 to build.
All the best
Damn fine video and Convair history. Every time I watch your videos, especially the box top artwork episodes, I get an itch to finish my models👍
Appreciate the comment, thanks, and Happy New Year!
I absolutely love your channel. Huge avgeek here. RUclips suggested your channel a few days ago and I've watched quite a few so far.
Hi Mike. Love the channel! There is a Sea Dart at the Sun & Fun museum in Lakeland, Florida. One of my most favorite aircraft!
I ‘ve always had a soft spot for these “delta’s”, thanks for the wonderful descriptions of both aircraft and models, Mike! Much appreciated.
Appreciate the comment, thanks!
8:35 The F-106 model you are holding may actually be a model of the F-102B . The Buzz number on the side is "FC" used for the F-102. The F-106 operationally used buzz numbers "FE". The reason it became the F-106 was the changes became so significant the USAF assign the new number.
Good catch, thanks!
My dad loaded weapons, including nuclear genie rockets on F-106s while he was posted in Minot AFB in the early 1960s. I still have one of his F106 maintenance manuals.
Awesome! The 5th Fighter Interceptor Squadron at Minot was a very special unit - the best of the best!
Regarding the YF-102 or "WS"201A, in the movie "Toward the Unknown", General Banner (Lloyd Nolan) tells the visiting Congressman that at Edwards they test "everything that goes with the vehicle to make up the whole weapons system"... a shining example of real concepts in a great movie! Coincidentally, a short tail F-102 is taxing on the ramp in the distance behind the General just as he makes this statement. 🙂
Love your comment on "Toward the Unknown," and although I've seen it countless times (including in a theater in 1956!), I watched my DVD version once just to catch the airplanes outside General Banner's office window. Saw the B-47, F-102, and even the GE J79-powered Douglas F4D Skyray (with red tail). Also, did you know the XF-92 was used for the opening crash sequence, buried in a ditch and fitted with a nose radome and fake air intakes to make it look like an F-102? Awesome movie!
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782 Okay, I was wondering which aircraft was used in the rescue scenes. I'll have to look for the Skyray when I have some time!
The term 'weapons system' appears to to be not always understood. In the case of the F-102, the weapons system was called SAGE (Semi-Automatic Ground Environment). The purpose of the airplane as part that system was to be directed on a collision course heading towards the target and release its missiles when within range.
Really interesting video. Your narration is so much better on these newer videos but the only thing is I would love to know more about those beautiful models you have. Who built them, what materials are they built from and why were they built?
Thanks, and look forward to more content!
Thanks Jason - appreciate the comment. The two F-102As, TF-102A, and F-106A were produced by a company called Blaine Electronics for Convair execs and Air Force brass, while the MX-1554, XF-92, YF-102, and XF2Y-1 Sea Dart were built in the Convair San Diego model factory shop. They are wood models finished and painted in high-gloss lacquer in an era before fiberglass and resin like they use today. Next video posting Friday 01/15 will be on unique and exotic VTOL concepts and prototypes from the 1950s.
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782 Thanks so much for the reply. I will be watching the next video for sure!
the other Convair delta fighter was the vertical take-off Pogo.
I took a trip to San Diego partially just to see the Convair Sea Dart. I think it's a beautiful plane, regardless of the fact that it was a flop.
Agreed 100% - I saw the Sea Dart in San Diego also and couldn't believe that it was from 1954. The workmanship was exquisite!
Very interesting info about those beautiful airplanes. Thank you.
I notice that your F-106 model has the BuNo FC-464, same FC letters as the F-102 models.
I have noted that each type is assigned specific letters as FW for the F-100 and FG for the F-104.
Looking photos in the internet i found some F-106 with FE-XYZ...
Is that correct¿.
Thanks Ricardo, and the "FE-XYZ" was probably just a generic term for theBuzz Numbers as they were called. These were used to easily identify specific aircraft, with the second letter denoting type. The three numerals were the last three digits of the aircraft's serial number.
The XF-102 tail surfaces remind me of rocket fins if you were to set it horizontally.
It is hard to believe that the Delta Dart still holds that speed record, which was set in 1959!
The late COL Jack Broughton stated that of all the aircraft that he flew, the Dart was "the one he would like to have parked in his garage...."
Yes, the '106 was Col. Broughton's favorite, thanks!
Happy new year Mike. Do you consider the swing wing on the F-111 to be the final evolution of the Convair/General Dynamics delta wing? In the swept position, the F-111 certainly looks the part along with its horizontal stabilizers.
Wow Vik, that's a really interesting point, and my answer would be "yes!" - a terrific example of advanced 1960s technology applied to an aircraft that can actually become a delta-wing design inflight. Only difference is having large stabilators for pitch control as well.
There was a two seat F106 version, one seat each fore or aft of each other rather than side by side as in the case of the F102 2 seater.
Yes, that's correct. Thanks for watching!
Who was the TF-102 right-seater at Elsinore, Mike?
Chief Tow Pilot Dave Doler was a TF-102 crewman in 'Nam and really loved that airplane. Happy New Year Eric, and thanks for watching!
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782 Dave & I were tight for a couple of years back then & I'm surprised not to have heard that from him. Arleen says hi and happy new year to you, too.
@@ericcoleson7410 Thanks Eric, and all the best to you and Arleen. I'm still in touch with Rick Johnson ("Superman"), and our years together at Elsinore will never be equalled. 'Still remember your amazing aerotow flying the Blanik out of Skylark after the flood.
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782Incomparable place & times, wasn't it? Tell Superman he's fondly remembered. All the amazing flying that last day at Elsinore happened on your end of the rope. The edge of the lake was sobering, but I could see it coming.
Thanks for another great video Mike! Awesome models. Two questions: How many of those models would a manufacturer make? Not the best question, as there would be many variables I am sure but was wondering if it was typically in the 10s, 100s, or 1000s? Secondly, did they have a preferred scale or was it more about just generally making them to that hat-box kind of size? Love these videos!
Thanks Dave - really great questions on the factory models! The first answer is "all of the above," depending on usage. One-of-a-kind concept models were used for presentations to corporate executives or military brass, and if an airplane made it to mock-up or prototype stage, a dozen or so were made for program execs and customers. If the plane went into production, models would be farmed-out to companies like Topping back in the day (100,000 or more-per airplane!), or Pacific Miniatures today. As for scale, at Douglas, we referred to these by usage also: large Product Display Area airliner models were from 1/50 to 1/24, while executive office model were always 1/100. "Credenza Office Models" as we called them, were 1/144, and "Desk Models" were 1/164th. This also depended on the size of the airplanes. Most fighter models are 1/40-scale.
I believe the F-102 and 106 models you have were made by Blaine Electronics.
Yes, that is correct, thanks. The F-102As, TF-102A, and F-106A were indeed Blaine Electronics pieces, while the MX-1554, XF-92, YF-102, and XF2Y-1 Sea Dart were Convair San Diego model shop examples. Fantastic workmanship on all of them!
Enjoyed the video - but what about the B-58 and the XFY-1?
Good point, and those aircraft are covered in our "Supersonic Bombers" and "VTOLs" videos.
@@celebratingaviationwithmik9782 I winder how far "delta" can be extended - it seems to me that even the F-111 and F-16, under certain circumstances, could be called deltas. The F-16, llike the MiG-21 is a tailed delta and the Aardvark takes the form in sweepback. Just a thought, though.
@@tangier23 Good point thanks.
Hi Mike! Do you own all the factory made models in your video presentations? Or are they on loan? I'd like to see you do a presentation on the DeHavllin Arrow !
Hi Paul, Those factory models are from a large private collection here in L.A. Thanks for watching!
My late wife saw the cornfield bomber in 2002. At first she didn't believe me.
The brown discoloration on the one model looks like nicotine staining. I bet an art conservator in your area could advise you how to clean it off safely. I might even try windex on a q-tip first.
Good point, thanks, but we believe that model may have been exposed to a fire, or some serious heat which bent the tip of the tailfin. Appreciate the comment!
Mike, I'm a San Diegan, and I'm saddened by the outdoor display of the very rare Sea Dart. It is subject to weather, vandalism, and the ever-present pigeons on a daily basis. Other far less rare aircraft are displayed inside the building. I never understood that.
Bert, I feel your pain, and as current Curator for the Museum of Flying in Santa Monica, I can tell you that Museums are on another planet as far as management and decision making.
I worked for Convair in San Diego. The Spin Test facility used to be located adjacent to the Coast Guard station on the bay by Lindbergh Field. The Sea Dart was stored there through the '80s and '90s when I was there. We used to crawl through it while we were at the facility which was used to store assembly tooling. The Sea Dart was a structural shell of the aircraft at the time and in much worse condition than at the S D Air and Space museum. Granted it should be stored indoors but it is better off where it is now than on the bay.
@@paaat001 Great comment, thanks!
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