Full-Scale Aerial Target (FSAT) 1990 to 1998
82d Tactical Aerial Targets Squadron (TATS)
475th Weapons Evaluation Group (WEG)
White Sands Missile Range / Holloman AFB, NM / Tyndall AFB, FL
| F-106A | F-106A | F-106A | F-106A | F-106A | F-106A | F-106B |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
56-0453
56-0454 56-0457 56-0458 56-0463 56-0465 56-0466 57-0232 57-0234 57-0235 57-0236 57-0240 57-0241 57-0243 57-0244 57-0245 57-0246 57-2453 57-2455 57-2456 57-2459 57-2461 57-2463 57-2465 57-2466 57-2467 57-2470 57-2475 57-2476 57-2477 57-2480 | 57-2481
57-2482 57-2483 57-2485 57-2487 57-2490 57-2492 57-2493 57-2494 57-2495 57-2496 57-2497 57-2499 57-2501 57-2503 57-2504 57-2505 57-2506 58-0760 58-0764 58-0766 58-0767 58-0772 58-0773 58-0774 58-0775 58-0779 58-0780 58-0782 58-0783 58-0786 | 58-0788
58-0790 58-0791 58-0792 58-0793 58-0795 58-0797 59-0002 59-0005 59-0006 59-0007 58-0008 59-0010 59-0011 59-0015 59-0016 59-0020 59-0023 59-0024 59-0025 59-0026 59-0027 59-0031 59-0032 59-0033 59-0034 59-0035 59-0037 59-0038 59-0040 59-0042 | 59-0043
59-0044 59-0046 59-0047 59-0048 59-0049 59-0051 59-0053 59-0054 59-0056 59-0057 59-0058 59-0059 59-0060 59-0061 59-0062 59-0063 59-0064 59-0066 59-0072 59-0074 59-0076 59-0077 59-0080 59-0081 59-0082 59-0083 59-0085 59-0090 59-0091 59-0092 | 59-0093
59-0094 59-0096 59-0097 59-0099 59-0100 59-0102 59-0104 59-0105 59-0046 59-0047 59-0048 59-0049 59-0051 59-0053 59-0054 59-0056 59-0057 59-0058 59-0059 59-0060 59-0061 59-0062 59-0063 59-0064 59-0066 59-0072 59-0074 59-0076 59-0077 59-0080 59-0081 | 59-0082
59-0083 59-0085 59-0090 59-0091 59-0092 59-0093 59-0094 59-0096 59-0097 59-0099 59-0100 59-0102 59-0104 59-0105 59-0106 59-0108 59-0109 59-0110 59-0119 59-0126 59-0127 59-0128 59-0129 59-0130 59-0132 59-0133 59-0135 59-0136 59-0138 59-0140 59-0141 | 57-2508
57-2509 57-2512 57-2517 57-2518 57-2522 57-2524 57-2530 57-2532 57-2535 57-2536 57-2537 57-2539 57-2540 57-2541 57-2543 57-2545 57-2546 57-2547 58-0900 58-0901 58-0902 59-0149 59-0150 59-0151 59-0152 59-0153 59-0155 59-0158 59-0159 59-0161 |
A USAF F-106 Delta Dart cruises in level flight. Unobserved, another USAF aircraft falls in trail behind the Dart and fires an air-to-air missile at it. The F-106 performs an aggressive slice in hopes of evading the missile, releasing countermeasures all the while. But it's no use - tracking unerringly, the missile cuts the F-106 in half. Debris rains from the resulting fireball, but there are no parachutes. Why is one US fighter being shot down by another? This is a typical day for the 82d Tactical Aerial Targets Squadron (TATS). The 82nd flew the USAF's last active-duty Delta Darts as Full-Scale Aerial Targets (FSATs) for weapons tests.
Under United States law (Title 10, Section 2366 of the U.S. Code) a missile system must undergo lethality testing before it can enter full-scale production. This means it must be fired at a combat-configured target, which for air-to-air or surface-to-air missiles is a full-size, fully capable aircraft. The cost and hazards of using a manned aircraft from the active-duty inventory for this purpose are obvious. Instead, the target is an unmanned FSAT drone. Our beloved Darts died to give birth to new weapons systems.
The "Q" prefix in QF-106 signifies a drone conversion.
In 1986, a contract was awarded to Flight Systems Inc. (FSI), later Honeywell, as the prime contractor to convert 194 Delta Darts. Three years before the last "Sixes" were delivered to AMARC at Davis-Monthan AFB in Arizona, FSI began converting them to the QF-106A target drone configuration. This program came to be known as Pacer Six, which ran from 1990-1998. After being returned to flyable status at Davis-Monthan, the jest were flown to the Mojave Airport, CA where FSI began the initial conversion work.
The first flight of a converted "Six" took place in July of 1987. However, the remaining conversions were very slow to be completed with the last not completed until 1990. Following the completion of this initial batch of QF-106s the remaining 188 conversions were transferred to the USAF itself in conjunction with sub contractor American Electronic Laboratories (AEL), East Alton, Illinois. Once returned to flight status at Davis-Monthan, with some of the initial conversion work doen there, the aircraft wer ferried to AEL in Illinois just outside of St. Louis, Missouri. Years later AEL was bought out by Tracor.
The QF-106s began operating as a Full-Scale Aerial Target (FSAT) in late 1991 at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, and later at the Eglin Gulf Test Range in Florida, based at Holloman and Tyndall. A typical mission would employ the QF-106 as a target for an infrared homing missile. The aircraft had burners placed on pylons underneath the wings to act as IR sources for heat-seeking missiles, but it must be admitted that no real enemy would be so accommodating as to add these burners to make their planes better targets.
However, the intention of the program was for the QF-106 to survive repeated engagements with air-to-air missiles, to make it possible for each QF-106 to last as long as possible before it was destroyed. The last shoot down of a QF-106 (57-2524) took place at Holloman AFB on February 20, 1997.
The QF-106 was replaced by QF-4 Phantom drones, which will eventually be replaced by something else.
Almost 2/3, approx 199 aircraft, of all the Sixes produced were converted to QF-106 Aerial Target Drones under the 'Pacer Six' Program assigned to the 475th Weapons Evaluation Group (WEG), most expended by the 82d Tactical Aerial Targets Squadron (TATS) at Tyndall AFB Florida. In the course of active operations QF106 drone ops, which extended to January of 1998, there were several flyable survivors which were able to return to AMARC for storage.
Last Surviving Six's "Swamp Things" The Final Chapter of the QF-106 Drones By CMSgt (Ret) Dick Lewis
There were also a few non-flying airframes left on the Tyndall ramp at the end of the 'Pacer Six' Program (7 aircraft), as well, and originally they were parked in that part of the Tyndall AFB ramp known as the 'Swamp', although in unflyable condition.
Purchase of these remaining airframes was subsequently negotiated by a private aviation enterprise based in Texas (David Tokoff's GRECO-AIR in El Paso) and a tentative deal was struck with DRMS to sell the aircraft for purposes of restoring them as non-flying, museum-display grade aircraft. One of these aircraft was reportedly ear-marked for restoration as a fully operational flying specimen, although it appears that perhaps two of them may have been fully restored at this time for flight (including a two-seat B model); however, due to the fact that stringent 'de-mil' requirements for combat aircraft require cutting the airframe structural members to render them incapable of further flight applications, this stalled the whole purchase package for some time.
In Mar 2004 the non-flying survivors had all been trucked from the Tyndall ramp and shipped to GRECO-AIR's El Paso base of operations, where most of them awaited restoration. Since then, and as recent as Nov 2013, the "El Paso Birds" as most refer to them now are in the private hands of WESTERNAIR Inc. and are in the process of being sold.
MORE about the El Paso Birds here
More on the "Swamp Things" By CMSgt (Ret) Dick Lewis
In the spring of 1998, the last of the flyable QF-106's departed Tyndall AFB for their final destinations. Aircraft 59-0158, 59-0043 and 58-0774 flew to the boneyard at Davis-Monthan AFB, while 59-0023 flew to the museum at Dover AFB. Left behind, were seven QF-106's, not in flyable condition, and relegated to the backline storage area known as "The Swamp."
In early 1999, an unnamed party contracted to remove the Swamper's and truck them to El Paso, TX, purportedly for air-museum displays. After three aircraft were prepared for transportation, work was halted due to a contract dispute. The aircraft were secured from wind and weather damage, the tools and equipment were put in storage and the work crew disbanded. Here's the list of those seven:
| Tail # w/Link | Assigned Unit | Non-flyable Reason |
|---|---|---|
|
57-2509 (B)
57-2517 (B) 57-2543 (B) 57-2545 (B) 58-0786 (A) 59-0047 (A) 59-0105 (A) Last Unit |
159th FIS
186th FIS ADWC 5th FIS 159th FIS 119th FIS 5th FIS Status |
Ground Fire Damage
Crash Damage Nose Gear Damage Cracked Intake Duct Cracked Wing Spar Cracked Wing Spar Cracked Wing Spar |
QF-106 Delta Dart Mission Report Apr 1999
[forecastinternational.com]
57-2517 CRASH DAMAGE STORY
From the Pilot Himself, Col Robert "Buzz Sawyer, 3 July 1999
On 21 March 97, Jim Fairhurst (one of my LM pilots) ferried AD256 (57-2517) to Tyndall, as we were sending all our 106s East, making room for our QF-4s. When he landed, his right brake was locked, and with just about 100 hours total QF-106 time, he couldn't keep it on the runway. She hit the barrier housing and broke off the right gear, and spun around, almost flipping over on her back. The other two gear collapsed, the nose was broken off (which threw the battery out of the jet), and he had to be cut out of the cockpit. The aftermath is attached.
After being grounded and scrutinized by an accident board, our MC-11 maintenance was suspect, and we went through a big thrash replacing the air "dryers". Well on 14 March 97, I flew AD199 to Tyndall, and my left brake was locked when I landed! It felt like I rolled over a BAK-12 cable as I touched down (my tire blowing) and the jet started drifting left. Tower says I have smoke coming from my left wheel, I appear to have blown a tire.
My hands are full as I'm about to go off into the grass on the left side of the runway, as the tower now says my left wheel has caught fire. Great! Well, with full forward and right stick, nosewheel steering hard right, and a little right brake, I got the plane parallel to the runway, and starting to correct back to the right a little. I still thought I just had a blown tire, and was planning to turn off, when the jet just stopped. I couldn't taxi any further, so I opened the canopy and looked out (getting ready to jump over the side if I was on fire) and saw my wheel was ground off almost to the hub.
Well, I left it on the runway and got a ride back into ops with the WEG commander. Having seen what happened to 256 three weeks earlier, he says, "nice job keeping it on the runway." Thanks. That was it. My boss didn't even put me in for a $ award!
So, the next day I left her on the ramp, impounded. At least they had the plane to intact to investigate, unlike AD256. That was the last I saw her. I don't know whether it was shot down, or was one of the lucky ones that went back to AMARC. I suspect she sleeps with the fishes, as it was a good flying drone. Buzz
USAF "Full Scale Aerial Targets" Drone Program History
By Col Robert "Buzz Sawyer
In the early 1970's the U.S. Air Force started the "Full Scale Aerial Targets" (FSAT) program, aimed at providing the test community with realistic targets for anti-aircraft weapons. The targets needed to be similar in size and performance to "threat" aircraft. Rather than building something from scratch, the service decided to "reclaim" USAF fighters from storage. As older military aircraft get too expensive to support, or their capabilities become obsolete, they may be sold to other countries, "scrapped" for their parts and recyclable components, or put in "storage" at the Air Force's "Aircraft Maintenance and Reclamation Center" (AMARC) at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, Arizona. These "storage" aircraft in the "Bone Yard" became the source for the FSAT program, as they are today.
The first target was the F-102 "Delta Dagger," which was flown from about 1974 to about 1984. This 1950's vintage fighter-interceptor, known as the "Deuce" by its pilots and maintainers, was built in limited quantities. The Deuce was replaced by the F-100 "Super Sabre" beginning its phase-in around 1983. Also known as "The Hun," the supply of F-100s was also limited, and was followed by the F-106 "Delta Dart" which became operational as an FSAT in 1991. The last F-106s were flown at Tyndall AFB in Florida, in early 1998. In 1996, the F-4 "Phantom II" started pulling duty as an FSAT. A large supply of F-4s exists, and should last for the next couple of decades.
With the sole purpose of being shot at by "killer" missiles, there weren't many volunteer pilots to fly these target fighters. A system was designed to allow these jets to be flown from the ground by remote control. Once modified to be flown by remote control, these old fighters and interceptors are redesignated with a "Q" in front of their former designation, thus: QF-102, QF-100, QF-106, and QF-4. The aircraft are taken out of "storage" and made airworthy and flyable by the personnel at AMARC. The jets are then flown to a civilian facility (currently Mojave, California, for the QF-4) where all the remote control components are installed. They're then flown to Tyndall AFB, Florida, where the first remote control flight is attempted/accomplished, and "accepted" by the U.S. Air Force for duty as FSATs. Since the program's inception in the early 1970s, two Air Force bases have flown FSATs: Tyndall AFB near Panama City, Florida, flying on ranges over the Gulf of Mexico (W-151 and W-470), and Holloman AFB near Alamogordo, New Mexico, flying over the White Sands Missile Range. The bulk of unmanned missions and the headquarters of the FSAT program are at Tyndall.
Flying an airplane by remote control, in the USAF FSAT program, is very much like flying an aircraft simulator on a home PC. The controller sits at a console with one or two computer monitors (CRTs), an array of switches and push buttons, and a keyboard. Of course there is also a "joystick" used to "fly" with. The buttons, switches, and keyboard are used to issue commands for things like raising and lowering landing gear, for initiating and canceling different flight modes, etc. The brain is a RISC6000 computer on the ground, a similar computer in the jet, and if everything is working properly, and according to the plan, the computers can takeoff, fly the target profile, and land the drone (a remotely controlled vehicle is commonly known as a "drone") with minimum human assistance. If the drone gets hit by a missile, and can no longer fly normally, the computer has problems-that's where the Drone Controller is needed. The human computer, although usually slower in acting, is programmed to handle anomalies. All possible malfunctions, and "real time" changes to plans, cannot be programmed into "Clyde" (the RISC6000). When damaged, a drone is flown at landing speeds at a safe altitude to insure controllability during landing. If it can be controlled, it is flown back to the home base and landed. If there are any difficulties which would preclude a completely safe recovery, the drone is destroyed by an onboard bomb.
Taking off and landing a 50,000 pound jet fighter by remote control sometimes doesn't go as planned. Some have gone berserk and go off the runway resulting in an impressive fire ball! Thus, we practice frequently. While practicing remote control skills, and for the majority of FSAT missions, there is no intent to fire missiles at the targets. In these cases a human pilot is actually in the aircraft cockpit. This duty is known as "safety pilot." As a safety pilot, I strap in and start the jet, and taxi to the takeoff position on the runway. I then turn on several switches in the cockpit which "give control" to the pilot at the computer console. I then "ride" and observe that the jet does as planned. IF the controller's skills aren't perfect, IF the aircraft's onboard systems malfunction, IF the myriad of ground hardware develop problems, or IF the ground or aircraft software isn't programmed correctly, I squeeze a button on the "stick" and have full control of the aircraft back. When the discrepancy is solved, I turn one switch back on, and the guy on the ground is flying the airplane again. Most times the safety pilot will take control at the end of a mission, and land the airplane himself, in the conventional way. As safety pilots in the FSAT program, we have to accomplish the same currency and proficiency requirements as active duty U.S. Air Force pilots. Buzz
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