History

The Republic F-105 Thunderchief was an American supersonic fighter-bomber used by the United States Air Force. Capable of Mach 2, it conducted the majority of strike bombing missions during the early years of the Vietnam War; it was the only American aircraft to have been removed from combat due to high loss rates.[1] It was originally designed as a single-seat, nuclear-attack aircraft; a two-seat Wild Weasel version was later developed for the specialized Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) role against surface-to-air missile sites. The F-105 was commonly known as the "Thud" by its crews.

Vietnam war

In spite of a troubled early service life, the F-105 became the dominant attack aircraft early in the Vietnam War. The F-105 could carry more than twice the bomb load farther and faster than the F-100, which was used mostly in South Vietnam.[71] In a foreshadowing of its Wild Weasel role, the first F-105D combat mission of the war involved an attack on 14 August 1964 against an anti-aircraft artillery site on Plaine des Jarres.[72][73] This mission was carried out by aircraft of the 36th TFS, 6441st Tactical Fighter Wing deployed from Yokota Air Base, Japan to Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand.[74] The first Thunderchief lost in the war also occurred during this mission, although the pilot managed to return the aircraft to Korat.[72][73] The first strike mission took place on 13 January 1965 with the destruction of the Ben Ken bridge in Laos.[75] In early 1965 additional F-105 squadrons were deployed to Korat and Takhli air bases in Thailand. At the start of Operation Rolling Thunder in March 1965, large numbers of F-105Ds were shipped to these bases to participate in intense bombing missions.[76]
Controls
Ag-1 Bombs
Ag-2 Bombs
Ag-3 Chute
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