North American FJ-2/-3 Fury

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_...n_FJ-2/-3_Fury

The North American FJ-2 and FJ-3 Fury are a series of swept-wing carrier-capable
fighters for the United States Navy and Marine Corps. The FJ-2 resulted from an
effort to navalise the United States Air Force's F-86 Sabre. These aircraft
feature folding wings, and a longer nose landing strut designed to increase
angle of attack upon launch and to accommodate a longer oleo to absorb the shock
of hard landings on an aircraft carrier deck.

Although sharing a U.S. Navy designation with its distant predecessor, the
straight-winged North American FJ-1 Fury, the FJ-2/-3 were completely different
aircraft. (The later FJ-4 Fury was again, a complete structural redesign of the
FJ-3). The FJ-2 was one of the aircraft used to evaluate the first steam
catapult on a US Navy aircraft-carrier.

FJ-2

By 1951, the Navy's existing straight-wing fighters were much inferior in
performance to the swept-wing Soviet MiG-15 then operating in the Korean War;
the swept-wing fighters in the Navy's development pipeline, such as the Vought
F7U Cutlass and Grumman F9F Cougar, were not yet ready for deployment.

As an interim measure, the Navy's Bureau of Aeronautics ordered a direct
development of the swept-wing F-86E Sabres as the FJ-2. As the F-86 had not been
designed to be carrier-capable, this involved some risk, but Navy pilots had
observed that the F-86A actually had a lower landing speed than the F9F Panther.
During carrier qualification trials the Navy informed Grumman that if the F9F-5
stall speed was not reduced by 12 mph (10 kn; 19 km/h) it would be removed from
carrier operations at the same time that the FJ-2 was already making its debut
into navy squadrons. North American's chief engineer at the time stated that the
swept-wing Sabre had handling and stall characteristics at low speeds comparable
to the best straight winged airplanes. The urgency behind the program was such
that 300 (later reduced to 200) FJ-2 fighters were ordered before the prototypes
had flown.

The first prototype to fly was actually the third aircraft ordered: Designated
XFJ-2B and first flown on 27 December 1951, it differed only from a standard
F-86E-10 in its armament, having four 20-mm Colt Mk 12 cannons instead of the
six Colt-Browning M3 .50 machine guns of the Sabre. The second and third
aircraft to fly were designated XFJ-2 and lacked armament, but were modified to
be carrier-capable: They had arrester hooks and longer nosewheel legs to
increase angle of attack at take-off and landing, and catapult fittings. In
August 1952 carrier trials were flown on USS Midway, followed by carrier
qualification trials on USS Coral Sea in October–December 1952. Results were
less than satisfactory: Low-speed handling was considered poor, while the
arrester hook and nose gear leg were insufficiently strong.

The first production aircraft flew on 22 November 1952. This FJ-2 incorporated
further modifications for carrier operations: The track of the main landing gear
was widened by eight inches, the outer wing panels folded upward, and the
windscreen was modified to give the pilot a better view during approach. The
FJ-2 also featured an all-moving "flying tail" without dihedral. Because of
problems experienced during launches with steam catapults, a number of FJ-2
later received a stronger nosewheel strut. Outwardly, the FJ-2 was hard to
distinguish from an F-86, apart from navy paint and the gun muzzles of the 20 mm
cannons. The engine was the General Electric J47-GE-2, a navalized version of
the J47-GE-27 used in the F-86F. The naval modifications of the FJ-2 had
increased weight by about 500 kg over the F-86F, but had not succeeded in
delivering a fully carrier-capable fighter. A decision had already been made to
give it to land-based squadrons of the US Marine Corps.

FJ-3

Even while development of the FJ-2 was ongoing, the development was planned of a
version powered by the Wright J65, a license-built version of the British
Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire turbojet. The Sapphire promised to deliver 28% more
thrust than the J47, for little gain in weight. The new version was designated
FJ-3, and an order for 389 aircraft was placed in March 1952.

To test the new engine a single FJ-2, BuNo 131931, was modified, but the first
true production FJ-3 flew on 3 July 1953. The only externally visible change
required by the new engine was a deeper intake to accommodate the larger mass
flow. Early FJ-3s had the same wing as the FJ-2, but from 1955 onwards the FJ-3
was built with a so-called "6-3" wing, with a leading edge that was extended 6
inches at the root and 3 inches at the tip. This modification, first introduced
on the F-86F, enhanced maneuverability at the expense of a small increase in
landing speed due to deletion of the leading edge slats. The version introduced
on the FJ-3 was different from that fitted to the F-86F, as camber was applied
to the underside of the leading edge to improve low-speed handling. On the FJ-3,
the new wing leading edges also held extra fuel. From the 345th aircraft
onwards, the wings were provided with four stations for external loads, up to
1000 lb on the inboard stations and 500 lb on the outboard stations.

Specifications (FJ-2)

General characteristics
Crew: 1
Length: 37 ft 7 in (11.46 m)
Wingspan: 37 ft 1.5 in (11.316 m)
Height: 13 ft 7 in (4.14 m)
Wing area: 288 sq ft (26.8 m2)
Empty weight: 11,802 lb (5,353 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 18,790 lb (8,523 kg)
Powerplant: 1 × General Electric J47-GE-2 turbojet engine, 6,000 lbf (27 kN)
thrust

Performance
Maximum speed: 675 mph (1,086 km/h, 587 kn) at sea level
Range: 860 mi (1,380 km, 750 nmi) normal
Service ceiling: 46,800 ft (14,300 m)
Rate of climb: 7,230 ft/min (36.7 m/s)

Armament

Guns: 4 × 20 mm (0.787 in) Colt Mk 12 cannon with 150 rpg.



The North American FJ-4 Fury is a swept-wing carrier-capable fighter-bomber for
the United States Navy and Marine Corps. The final development in a lineage that
included the Air Force's F-86 Sabre, the FJ-4 shared its general layout and
engine with the earlier FJ-3, but featured an entirely new wing design and was a
vastly different design in its final embodiment.


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