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thedrifter
04-10-04, 08:26 AM
Issue Date: April 12, 2004

The Lore of the Corps
The F4D Skyray set records but was ‘bizarre,’ pilots say

By Robert F. Dorr
Special to the Times

Maj. Edward N. LeFaivre, a Marine test pilot, used an F4D-1 Skyray fighter to climb faster than any plane or pilot had ever climbed before.
With a climb to a height of 15,000 meters — 49,213 feet — in just 2 minutes, 36.05 seconds, LeFaivre on May 23, 1958, established an official record.

The Skyray was a kind of paradox in the history of the Cold War. Dubbed by pilots the “Ford” because of its F4D military designation, the plane was noted for rapid acceleration on takeoff and high performance in flight. But it also was difficult to handle, especially during the moments after takeoff, when it tended to yaw as the wheels came up.

According to Col. Jacques Naviaux, the flying qualities of the Skyray “ordered on the bizarre.”

The Skyray first flew Jan. 21, 1951, at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., piloted by Douglas test pilot Larry Peyton. That flight became a harrowing experience for Peyton, with multiple control and handling problems. For reasons unclear, he never flew the bat-winged aircraft again.

Afterward, Douglas test pilots Russ Thaw and Bob Rahn did the early test flying.

A single-seat, all-weather fighter designed for carrier operations — but rarely used aboard ship — the Skyray was named after the manta ray it resembled. It was the first Navy and Marine fighter to routinely fly faster than sound, though it had to be in a slight dive to do so. In 1957, the Skyray was co-winner of aviation’s prestigious Collier Trophy, along with an Air Force fighter, the F-100 Super Sabre.

According to retired Col. Phil Oestricher, the Skyray had “excellent handling qualities.” He praised the aircraft for the way the fuselage blended into the wing, improving performance. (After he retired from the Marine Corps, Oestricher became a test pilot for General Dynamics Corp. and made the first flight of an F-16 Fighting Falcon in 1974.)

The Westinghouse engine originally planned for the Skyray proved inadequate, so production Skyrays used a Pratt & Whitney J57-P-8B turbojet engine that generated 10,500 pounds of thrust. The engine had an afterburner to increase thrust, a routine feature today but in the early 1950s a cantankerous and trouble-prone device.

The Skyray was equipped with AN/APQ-50F air-intercept radar and armed with four 20mm cannons.

Eight Marine Corps squadrons and 16 Navy squadrons operated the F4D Skyray.

In all, Douglas built 421 of the manta-shaped fighters, including two prototypes. When the system for naming American military aircraft was overhauled in 1962, the F4D-1 became the F-6A.

Today, a Skyray is part of the Marine Corps’ museum holdings at Quantico, Va.

Robert F. Dorr, an Air Force veteran, lives in Oakton, Va. He is the author of numerous books, including “Air Force One.” His e-mail address is robertdorr@aol.com.

http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/story.php?f=0-MARINEPAPER-2753246.php

Ellie