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DONE +++ RF-101J Voodoo (s/n 61-0805 "Rhino Express"); Texas ANG 1986

Started by Dizzyfugu, July 20, 2021, 12:51:35 AM

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Dizzyfugu

Submission #3 is in the making, but in order to entertain and stir speculation, I just put up this preliminary post.  :rolleyes:

Content coming soon.  ;)

Dizzyfugu

The build closes in on the finishing line, but there are pictures to be shared. It originally started with pictures of an RF-101H gate guard in Louisville at Standiford Field International from around 1987-1991:





This preserved machine wore a rather unusual (for a Voodoo) 'Hill' low-viz scheme with toned-down markings, quite similar to the late USAF F-4 Phantom IIs of the early Eighties. The big aircraft looked quite good in this simple livery, and I kept the idea of a Hill scheme Voodoo in the back of my mind for some years until I recently had the opportunity to buy a cheap Matchbox Voodoo w/o box and decals. With its optional (and unique) RF-101B parts I decided to take the Hill Voodoo idea to the hardware stage and create another submission to the group build at whatifmodellers.com: an ANG recce conversion of a former two-seat interceptor, using the RF-101B as benchmark but with a different suite of sensors.

However, the Matchbox Voodoo kit is rather mediocre, and in a rather ambitious mood I decided to "upgrade" the project with a Revell F-101B as the model's basis. This kit is from 1991 and a MUCH better and finely detailed model than the rather simple Matchbox kit from the early Eighties. In fact, the Revell F-101B is actually a scaled-down version of Monogram's 1:48 F-101B model kit from 1985, with many delicate details. But while this downscaling practice has produced some very nice 1:72 models like the F-105D or the F-4D, the scaling effect caused IMHO in this case a couple of problems. Revell's assembly instructions for the 1:72 kit are not good, either. While the step-by-step documentation is basically good, some sketches are so cluttered that you cannot tell where parts in the cockpit or on the landing gear are actually intended to be placed and how. This is made worse by the fact that there are no suitable markings on the parts – you are left to guessing.
Worse, there is a massive construction error: the way the wings section is to be assembled and mounted to the hull is impossible! The upper wing halves have locator pins for the fuselage, but they are supposed to be glued to the lower wing half (which also encompasses the aircraft's belly) and the mounted to the hull. The locator pins make this impossible, unless you bend the lower wing section to a point where it might warp or break, or you just cut the pins off - and live with some instability. Technically the upper wing halves have to be mounted to the fuselage before you glue the lower wing section to them, but I am not certain if this would work well because you also have to assemble the air intakes at the same time "from behind", which is only feasible when the wings have already been completed but still left away from the fuselage. It's a nonsense construction! I cannot remember when I came across a kit the last time with such an inherent design flaw?

Except for the transplanted RF-101B nose section, which did not fit well because the Matchbox Voodoo apparently has a more slender nose, the Revell kit was built mostly OOB. However, this is already a challenge in itself because of the kit's inherent flaws (see above), its complex construction and an unorthodox assembly sequence, due to many separate internal modules including the cockpit tub, a separate (fully detailed) front landing gear well, a rotating weapon bay, air intakes with complete ducts, and the wing section. A fiddly affair.

Only a few further changes beyond the characteristic camera fairing under the radome were made. The rotating weapon bay was faired-over with the original weapon pallet, just fixing it into place and using putty to blend it into the belly. The small underwing pylons (an upgrade that actually happened to some late Voodoos) were taken from a vintage Revell F-16. The SLAR antenna fairings along the cockpit flanks were created with 0.5mm styrene sheet and some PSR. They are a little too obvious/protruding, but for a retrofitted solution I find the result acceptable. The drop tanks came from the Revell kit, the underwing ordnance consists of an ALQ-119 ECM pod from a Hasegawa aftermarket set and a SUU-42 dispenser, scratched from a Starfighter ventral drop tank, bomb fins and the back of a Soviet unguided missile launcher.


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

More following soon.

Dizzyfugu

While I originally wanted to adopt the simple two-tone 'Hill' scheme from the gate guard for my fictional Voodoo, I eventually settled for the very similar but slightly more sophisticated 'Egypt One' scheme that was introduced with the first F-16s – it just works better on the F-101's surfaces. This scheme uses three grey tones: FS 36118 (Gunship Gray, ModelMaster 1723) for the upper wing surfaces, the "saddle" on the fuselage and the canopy area with an anti-glare panel, FS 36270 (Medium Grey, Humbrol 126) on the fin and the fuselage area in front of the wing roots, and FS 36375 (Light Ghost Grey, Humbrol 127) for all lower surfaces, all blended into each other with straight but slightly blurred edges (created with a soft, flat brush). The radome and the conformal antennae on the flanks became Revell 47 for a consistent grey-in-grey look, but with a slightly different shade. The model received an overall black ink washing and some post panel shading, so that the large grey areas would not look too uniform.


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


As an updated USAF aircraft I changed the color of the landing gear wells' interior from green zinc chromate primer to more modern, uniform white, even though the red inside of the covers was retained. The interior of the flaps (a nice OOB option of Revell's kit) and the air brakes became bright red, too.
The cockpit retained its standard medium grey (Humbrol 140, Dark Gull Grey) interior and I used the instrument decals from the kit – even though these did not fit well onto the 3D dashboards and side consoles. WTF? Decal softener came to the rescue. The exhaust area was painted with Revell 91 (Iron) and Humbrol's Steel Metallizer (27003), later treated with graphite for a dirty, metallic shine.


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Markings/decals primarily come from a 1:72 Hi-Decal F-4D sheet that contains (among others) several Texas ANG Phantoms from the mid-Eighties. Some stencils were taken over from the original Voodoo sheet, the yellow formation lights had to be procured from a Hasegawa F-4E/J sheet (the Matchbox sheet was lost and the Revell sheet lacks them completely!). The characteristic deep yellow canopy sealant stripes came from a CF-101 sheet from Winter Valley Decals (today part of Canuck Models as CAD 72008). I was lucky to have them left over from another what-if build MANY moons ago, my fictional CF-151 kitbashing.

Everything went on smoothly, but the walkway markings above the air intakes became a problem. I initially used those from the Revell sheet, which are only the outlines so that the camouflage would still be visible. But the decal film, which is an open square, turned out to be so thin that it wrinkled on the curved surface whatever I tried, and what looked like a crisp black outline on the white decal paper turned out to be a translucent dark blue with blurry edges on the kit. I scrapped them while still wet... Enter plan B: Next came the walkway markings from the aforementioned Winter Valley sheet, which were MUCH better, sharper and opaque, but they included the grey walking areas:


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

While the tone looked O.K. on the sheet it turned out to be much too light for the all-grey Voodoo, standing out and totally ruining the low-viz look. With a bleeding heart I eventually ripped them off of the model with the help of adhesive tape, what left light grey residues. Instead of messing even more with the model I finally decided to embrace this accident and manually added a new black frame to the walkway areas with generic 2mm decal stripe material from TL Modellbau The area now looks rather worn, as if the camouflage had peeled off and light grey primer shows through. An unintentional result, but it looks quite "natural".


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The "Rhino Express" nose art was created with Corel Draw and produced with a simple inkjet printer on clear decal sheet. It was inspired by the "toenail" decoration on the main landing gear covers, a subtle detail I saw IIRC on a late CF-101B and painted onto the model by hand. With its all-grey livery, the rhino theme appeared so appropriate, and the tag on the nose appeared like a natural addition. It's all not obvious but adds a personal touch to the aircraft.


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

kitbasher

What If? & Secret Project SIG member.
On the go: Beaumaris/Battle/Bronco/Barracuda/F-105(UK)/Flatning/Hellcat IV/Hunter PR11/Hurricane IIb/Ice Cream Tank/JP T4/Jumo MiG-15/M21/P1103 (early)/P1154-ish/Phantom FG1/I-153/Sea Hawk T7/Spitfire XII/Spitfire Tr18/Twin Otter/FrankenCOIN/Frankenfighter

Dizzyfugu


ChernayaAkula

Cheers,
Moritz


Must, then, my projects bend to the iron yoke of a mechanical system? Is my soaring spirit to be chained down to the snail's pace of matter?

DogfighterZen

"Sticks and stones may break some bones but a 3.57's gonna blow your damn head off!!"

kerick

" Somewhere, between half true, and completely crazy, is a rainbow of nice colours "
Tophe the Wise

Dizzyfugu

After some delay, the final pics (taking them was not easy, because the 1:72 Vodoo is rel. huge for what I normally build/take pics of) and the story behind the RF-101J.  ;)


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr





Some background:
The McDonnell F-101 Voodoo was a supersonic jet fighter which primarily served the United States Air Force (USAF). Initially designed by McDonnell Aircraft as a long-range bomber escort (known as a penetration fighter) for the Strategic Air Command (SAC), the Voodoo was instead developed as a nuclear-armed fighter-bomber for the Tactical Air Command (TAC) and later evolved into an all-weather interceptor as well as into a reconnaissance platform.

The Voodoo's career as a fighter-bomber (F-101A and C) was relatively brief, but the reconnaissance fighter versions served for some time. Along with the US Air Force's Lockheed U-2 and US Navy's Vought RF-8 Crusaders, the RF-101 reconnaissance variant of the Voodoo was instrumental during the Cuban Missile Crisis and saw extensive service during the Vietnam War. Beyond original RF-101 single seaters, a number of former F-101A and Cs were, after the Vietnam era, converted into photo reconnaissance aircraft (as RF-101G and H) for the US Air National Guards.

Delays in the 1954 interceptor project (also known as WS-201A, which spawned to the troubled F-102 Delta Dagger) led to demands for an interim interceptor aircraft design, a role that was eventually won by the Voodoo's B model. This new role required extensive modifications to add a large radar to the nose of the aircraft, a second crew member to operate it, and a new weapons bay using a unique rotating door that kept its four AIM-4 Falcon missiles (two of them alternatively replaced by unguided AIR-2 Genie nuclear warhead rockets with 1.5 Kt warheads) semi-recessed under the airframe.


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The F-101B was first deployed into service on 5 January 1959, and this interceptor variant was produced in greater numbers than the original F-101A and C fighter bombers, with a total of 479 being delivered by the end of production in 1961. Most of these were delivered to the Air Defense Command (ADC), the only foreign customer was Canada from 1961 onward (as CF-101B), after the cancellation of the CF-105 Arrow program in February 1959. From 1963–66, USAF F-101Bs were upgraded under the Interceptor Improvement Program (IIP; also known as "Project Bold Journey") with a fire control system enhancement against hostile ECM and an infrared sighting and tracking (IRST) system in the nose in place of the Voodoo's original hose-and drogue in-flight refueling probe.
The F-101B interceptor later became the basis of further Voodoo versions which were intended to improve the tactical reconnaissance equipment of the US Air National Guards. In the early 1970s, a batch of 22 former Canadian CF-101Bs were returned to the US Air Force and, together with some USAF Voodoos, converted into dedicated reconnaissance aircraft, similar to the former RF-101G/H conversion program for the single-seat F-101A/C fighter bombers.

These modified interceptors were the RF-101B and J variants. Both had their radar replaced with a set of three KS-87B cameras (one looking forward and two as a split vertical left/right unit) and a panoramic KA-56 camera, while the former missile bay carried different sensor and avionics packages.
The RF-101Bs were exclusively built from returned Canadian Voodoos. Beyond the photo camera equipment, they featured upgraded navigational equipment in the former weapon bay and a set of two AXQ-2 TV cameras, an innovative technology of the era. A TV viewfinder was fitted to the cockpit and the system was operated effectively from altitudes of 250 ft at 600 knots.


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The other re-built reconnaissance version, the RF-101J, was created from twelve former USAF F-101Bs, all of them from the final production year 1961 and with relatively few flying hours. Beyond the KS-87B/KA-56 camera set in the nose, the RF-101J featured a Goodyear AN/APQ-102 SLAR (Side-looking airborne radar) that occupied most of the interceptor's former rotating internal weapon bay, which also carried a fairing for a heat exchanger. The radar's conformal antenna array was placed on either side of the lower nose aft of the cameras and allowed to record radar maps from view to each side of the aircraft and pinpoint moving targets like trucks in a swath channel approximately 10 nautical miles (11.5 miles/18 km) wide. To identify potential targets along the flight path for the SLAR and to classify them, the RF-101J furthermore received an AN/AAS-18 Infrared Detecting Set (IRDS). It replaced the F-101B's IRST in front of the cockpit and was outwardly the most obvious distinguishing detail from the RF-1010B, which lacked this hump in front of the windscreen. The IRDS' range was almost six miles (9.5 km) and covered the hemisphere in front of the aircraft. With the help of this cryogenically-cooled device the crewman in the rear cockpit could identify through a monitor small heat signatures like hot engines, firing weapons or campfires, even in rough terrain and hidden under trees.

Both new Voodoo recce versions were unarmed and received AN/APR-36 radar homing and warning sensors to nose and tail. They also had an in-flight refueling receptacle re-fitted, even though this was now only compatible with the USAF's high-speed refueling boom system and was therefore placed in a dorsal position behind the cockpit. Furthermore, both versions received a pair of unplumbed underwing pylons for light loads, e. g. for AN/ALQ-101,-119 or -184 ECM pods, photo flash ejectors for night photography or SUU-42A/A Flares/Infrared decoys and chaff dispenser pods.


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The RF-101Bs were delivered in 1971 and allocated to the 192d Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron of the Nevada Air National Guard, where they served only through 1975 because their advanced TV camera system turned out to be costly to operate and prone to failures. Their operational value was very limited and most RF-101Bs were therefore rather used as proficiency trainers than for recce missions. As a consequence, they were already phased out from January 1975 on.
The RF-101Js entered service in 1972 and were allocated to the 147th Reconnaissance Wing of the Texas Air National Guard. Unlike the RF-101Bs' TV cameras, the AN/APQ-102 SLAR turned out to be reliable and more effective. These machines were so valuable that they even underwent some upgrades: By 1977 the front-view camera under the nose had been replaced with an AN/ASQ-145 Low Light Level TV (LLLTV) camera, sensitive to wavelengths above the visible (0.4 to 0.7 micrometer) wavelengths and ranging into the short-wave Infrared (usually to about 1.0 to 1.1 micrometer). The AN/ASQ-145 complemented the IRDS with visual input and was able to amplify the existing light 60,000 times to produce television images as clearly as if it were noon. In 1980, the RF-101Js were furthermore enabled to carry a centerline pod for the gigantic HIAC-1 LOROP (Long Range Oblique Photography) camera, capable of taking high-resolution images of objects 100 miles (160 km) away.

USAF F-101B interceptors were, as more modern and effective interceptors became available (esp. the F-4 Phantom II), handed off to the Air National Guard, where they served in the fighter role until 1982. Canadian CF-101B interceptors remained in service until 1984 and were replaced by the CF-18 Hornet. The last operational Canadian Voodoo, a single EF-101B (nicknamed the "Electric Voodoo", a CF-101B outfitted with the jamming system of the EB-57E Canberra and painted all-black) was returned to the United States on 7 April 1987. However, the RF-101Js served with the Texas ANG until 1988, effectively being the last operational Voodoos in the world. They were replaced with RF-4Cs.


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr





General characteristics:
    Crew: Two
    Length: 67 ft 5 in (20.55 m)
    Wingspan: 39 ft 8 in (12.09 m)
    Height: 18 ft 0 in (5.49 m)
    Wing area: 368 ft² (34.20 m²)
    Airfoil: NACA 65A007 mod root, 65A006 mod tip
    Empty weight: 28,495 lb (12,925 kg)
    Loaded weight: 45,665 lb (20,715 kg)
    Max. takeoff weight: 52,400 lb (23,770 kg)

Powerplant:
    2× Pratt & Whitney J57-P-55 afterburning turbojets
    with 11,990 lbf (53.3 kN) dry thrust and 16,900 lbf (75.2 kN) thrust with afterburner each

Performance:
    Maximum speed: Mach 1.72, 1,134 mph (1,825 km/h) at 35,000 ft (10,500 m)
    Range: 1,520 mi (2,450 km)
    Service ceiling: 54,800 ft (17,800 m)
    Rate of climb: 36,500 ft/min (185 m/s)
    Wing loading: 124 lb/ft² (607 kg/m²)
    Thrust/weight: 0.74

Armament:
    None, but two 450 US gal (370 imp gal; 1,700 l) drop-tanks were frequently carried on ventral hardpoints; alternatively, a central hardpoint could take single, large loads like the HIAC-1 LOROP camera pod.
    A pair of retrofitted underwing hardpoints could carry light loads like ECM jammer pods, flare/chaff dispensers or photoflash ejectors






1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 McDonnell Douglas RF-101J 'Voodoo'; s/n "61-0805 ('Rhino Express')", 147th FIG Reconnaissance Wing, Texas Air National Guard; Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base (Houston), 1986 (Whif/Revell kit conversion)
by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Well, while the all-grey USAF livery in itself is quite dull and boring, but I must say that it suits the huge and slender Voodoo well. It emphasizes the aircraft's sleek lines and the Texas ANG fin flash as a colorful counterpoint, as well as the many red interior sections that only show from certain angles, nicely break the adapted low-viz Egypt One livery up. The whole thing looks surprisingly convincing, and the subtle rhino markings add a certain tongue-in-cheek touch. It looks like a flying freight train...  :laugh: 

And submission #4 has already been finished, too, another vehicle.  :wacko:

DogfighterZen

Very nice, Thomas!
I like the Voodoo's lines and that scheme suits it. The pics also look very good. :thumbsup:
"Sticks and stones may break some bones but a 3.57's gonna blow your damn head off!!"

Old Wombat

Has a life outside of What-If & wishes it would stop interfering!

"The purpose of all War is Peace" - St. Augustine

veritas ad mortus veritas est


NARSES2

Do not condemn the judgement of another because it differs from your own. You may both be wrong.

ChernayaAkula

Cheers,
Moritz


Must, then, my projects bend to the iron yoke of a mechanical system? Is my soaring spirit to be chained down to the snail's pace of matter?