F9F Panther

Infobox Aircraft
name=F9F Panther
type=Fighter-bomber
manufacturer= Grumman


caption=An F9F-2 of VF-21 on the USS|Midway|CV-41|6 in 1952
designer=
first flight=24 November 1947
introduced=
retired=1958, U.S. Navy 1969, Argentina
status=
primary user=United States Navy
more users=United States Marine Corps Argentine Navy
produced=
number built=
unit cost=
variants with their own articles = F-9 Cougar

The Grumman F9F Panther was the manufacturer's first jet fighter and the U.S. Navy's second. The Panther was the most widely used U.S. Navy jet fighter of the Korean War. It flew 78,000 sorties and was responsible for the first air kill by the US Navy in the war—the downing of a North Korean Yakovlev Yak-9 fighter. Total F9F production was 1,382, with several variants being exported to Argentina.

Design and development

Development studies at the Grumman company began near the end of the World War II as the first jet engines emerged. The prototype Panther, piloted by test pilot Corky Meyer, first flew on 24 November 1947. [ Meyer 2002] Propulsion was a Rolls-Royce Nene turbojet built under license by Pratt & Whitney as the J42. Since there was insufficient space within the wings and fuselage for fuel for the thirsty jet, permanently-mounted wingtip fuel tanks were added which incidentally improved the fighter's rate of roll. [Winchester 2004, p.96.] It was cleared for flight from aircraft carriers in September 1949. During the development phase, Grumman decided to change the Panther's engine, selecting the Pratt & Whitney J48-P-2, a license built version of the Rolls-Royce Tay. The other engine that had been tested was the Allison J33-A-16, a development of the Rolls-Royce Derwent.Taylor 1969, p. 506.]

From 1946, a swept-wing version was considered and after concerns about the Panther's inferiority to its MiG opponents in Korea, a conversion of the Panther (Design 93) resulted in a swept-wing derivative of the Panther, the Grumman F9F Cougar, which retained the Panther's designation number.

Operational history

US Navy

F9F-2s, F9F-3s and F9F-5s served with distinction in the Korean War, downing two Yak-9s and five Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15s with a loss of one F9F. On 3 July 1950, LT (j.g.) Leonard H. Plog of U.S. Navy's VF-51 flying an F9F-3 scored the first air victory of the war by shooting down a Yak-9. The first MiG-15 downed was on 9 November 1950 by U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander William (Bill) Amen of VF-111 "Sundowners" Squadron flying an F9F-2B. Two more were downed on 18 November 1950 , and the other two were downed on the 18 November 1952.Grossnick and Armstrong 1997] The type was the primary Navy jet fighter and ground-attack aircraft in the Korean conflict.

Panthers were withdrawn from front-line service in 1956, but remained in training roles and with Reserve units until 1958, some continuing to serve in small numbers into the 1960s. [Winchester 2004, p. 97.]

Argentine Navy

The only foreign buyer of the Panther was the Argentine Navy, who bought 24 ex-USN aircraft in 1958. The catapults on the then only Argentine carrier, ARA "Independencia" (V-1), were considered not powerful enough to launch the F9F, so the aircraft were land-based.

The Argentine Panthers were involved in the general mobilization during the 1965 border clash between Argentina and Chile but no combat occurred. They were taken out of service in 1969 due to the lack of spare parts and replaced with A-4Q Skyhawks. [ [http://www.histarmar.com.ar/Armada%20Argentina/AviacionNaval/CB-Panther.htm Pictorial and history in Argentine service] es icon ]

Variants

;XF9F-2:The first two prototypes ;XF9F-3:The third prototype;F9F-2:First production version, powered by J42 engine.;F9F-2B:Version fitted with underwing racks for bombs and rockets. All F9F-2s were eventually so modified, and the B designation was dropped.;F9F-2P:Unarmed photographic reconnaissance version used in Korea.;F9F-3:Allison J33 powered version produced as insurance against the failure of the J42, 54 built. All converted to J42 power later.;XF9F-4:Prototype used in the development of the F9F-4.;F9F-4:Version with longer fuselage with greater fuel load and powered by J33 engine. Most re-engined with J42s. F9F-4s were the first aircraft to successfully employ blown air, extracted from between the engine's compressor and combustion chambers, to energize the slot flaps, thus achieving a decrease in stalling speed of 9kt for takeoff and 7kt on power approach for landing.;F9F-5::Variant of F9F-4, but powered by Pratt & Whitney J48 engine, 616 built.;F9F-5P:Unarmed photo-reconnaissance version, 36 built, longer nose.;F9F-5K:After the F9F Panther was withdrawn operational service, a number of F9F-5s were converted into unmanned target drone aircraft. ;F9F-5KD:As drone directors for the F9F-5K drones. Redesignated DF-9E in 1962.

Operators

;ARG
*Argentine Navy;USA
*United States Navy
*United States Marine Corps

pecifications (F9F-2 Panther)

aircraft specifications

plane or copter?=plane
jet or prop?=jet
ref=Fact|date=February 2007

crew=1
length main=37 ft 5 in
length alt=11.3 m
span main=38 ft 0 in
span alt=11.6 m
height main=11 ft 4 in
height alt=3.8 m
area main=250 ft²
area alt=23 m²
empty weight main=9,303 lb
empty weight alt=4,220 kg
loaded weight main=14,235 lb
loaded weight alt=6,456 kg
max takeoff weight main=16,450 lb
max takeoff weight alt=7,462 kg
engine (jet)=Pratt & Whitney J42-P-6/P-8
type of jet=turbojet
number of jets=1
thrust main=5,950 lbf
thrust alt=26.5 kN
thrust more=with water injection
max speed main=500 knots
max speed alt=575 mph, 925 km/h
range main=1,353 mi
range alt=1,175 nm, 2,177 km
range main=1,300 mi
range alt=1,100 nm, 2,100 km
ceiling main=44,600 ft
ceiling alt=13,600 m
climb rate main=5,140 ft/min
climb rate alt=26.1 m/s
loading main=71 lb/ft²
loading alt=350 kg/m²
thrust/weight=0.42
guns=4× 20 mm (0.787 in) M2 cannon, 190 rounds/gun
hardpoints=Underwing hardpoints
hardpoint bombs=2,000 lb (910 kg) of bombs
hardpoint rockets=6× 5 in (127 mm) rockets on underwing hardpoints

Popular culture

The Panther played a prominent role in the 1954 movie "Men of the Fighting Lady" (also known as "Panther Squadron"). The F9F was featured in the flying sequences in the 1955 movie The Bridges at Toko-Ri, although in the 1953 James A. Michener novel upon which the movie was based, the main character flew an F2H Banshee.

ee also

aircontent
related=
* F-9 Cougar
similar aircraft=
* F2H Banshee
* Hawker Sea Hawk
lists=
* List of fighter aircraft
* List of military aircraft of the United States
* List of military aircraft of the United States (naval)
see also=

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Grossnick, Roy and William J. Armstrong. "United States Naval Aviation, 1910-1995". Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Historical Center, 1997. ISBN 0-16049-124-X.
* Meyer, Corwin H. "Grumman Panther". "Flight Journal", Oct. 2002.
* Schnitzer, George. "Panthers Over Korea". Baltimore, Maryland: Publish America, 2007. ISBN 1-4241-7942-4.
* Sullivan, Jim. "F9F Panther/Cougar in action". Carrollton, Texas: Squadron/Signal Publications, 1982. ISBN 0-89747-127-X.
* Taylor, John W.R. "Grumman F9F Cougar". "Combat Aircraft of the World from 1909 to the Present." New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1969. ISBN 0-425-03633-2.
* Winchester, Jim, ed. "Grumman F9F Panther". "Military Aircraft of the Cold War" (The Aviation Factfile). London: Grange Books plc, 2006. ISBN 1-84013-929-3.

External links

* [http://www.history.navy.mil/branches/hist-ac/f9f.pdf U.S. Navy Naval Aviation News article on the F9F Panther]