Hi, can anyone tell me how many different types of planes the Wild Weasels flew during Vietnam?
I believe they started with the Skyraiders originally… then they specialized some F-100s for the job… but the first highly specialized a/c used specifically for the duty was the
F-105. I’m sure they used the F-4 at the tailend of the conflict… goodness knows it filled that role through desert storm. Trust me I’m no expert… I’m sure others will correct any inaccuracies I’ve made.
What ajacketsfan sounds pretty accurate to me. The F-100, the F-105 and the F-4 are about all of the aircraft to carry the Wild Weasel brand.
Thanks guys. What about the F104, did they ever use it?
The f-104 was not used on weasel missions as far as I know. SAM suppression is handled now by F-16’s.
my god man what are you trying to do to those poor Starfighter pilots. and as for the A-1 it was only used for Close air support and didn’t have any provisions for sam suppression.
Oh and the Navy had the EA-6A Intruder for its SEAD missions
The first aircraft used in the WIld Weasel role were specialized F-100D’s. Externally they didn’t look much different than other F-100D’s used as Fast FACs, but inside they had a bunch of extra black boxes, etc… The main problem was the ordanance they carried which required them to head straight at the SAM/AAA site to deliver. Many were lost. Then came the F-105 and the intial variations of what’s now known as the HARM.
The Huns did the weasel thing first on the Air Force side in SE Asia. B-66’s got involved on the electronics end, not so much as shooters. The Navy took a multi-plane tasking, as the A-6B did the “dedicated” SEAD mission and then the A-4’s started devoting a pylon or two to the Shrikes when those missiles came out. The Air Force went with two seat Thuds (F-105F’s) for the second generation Weasels, then converted the F models to G’s with fancy electronics. They turned to the Phantom (C’s and E’s- on into the G’s) when the Thuds ran out of airframe life. The current Weasels are the block 50 F-16’s. Single seaters,as well. Highly automated, according to a 522nd FS Weasel Pilot. My Dad flew the “Teeny Weenie Weasels” (T-39F’s) out of Nellis in the late '60’s and has several Weasel friends. There is a Squadron/Signal book out called Wild Weasel- The SAM Suppression Story by Larry Davis that has a lot of information in it.
The 2 seat F-100F was the first jet to be used in the Wild Weasel roll in Viet Nam. The 1st generation black boxes were reasonably effective at finding Fan Song signals for the SA-2 SAM and the Fire Can signals for the 57mm and 87mm AAA. The Shrike missile had some limitations in aspect of target aquisition and it got “lost” if the emitter shut down. The biggest problem with the Hun as a Wild Weasel was that it was considerably slower than the F-105 bombers it was supposed to protect. This forced the whole strike force to slow down in the target area, which is a major NO NO. 86 of the 114 F-105Fs built as trainers were converted to the Wild Weasel roll and were very successful. The only two Medals of Honor won by Thud drivers were earned by Merlyn Deflefsen and Leo Thorsness, both flying F-105F Wild Weasels. 54 of the F Weasels were converted to G models with the addition of better electronics. Contrary to popular belief, the big torpedo shaped fairing on the fuselage sides was not the discerning feature of the G when they were first upgraded to that standard in 1967. They took the AN/ALQ-101 ECM pod, split it in half and glued each half to the outside of the lower front fuselage in 1972.
The USAFs efforts to put the Wild Weasel systems into the F4C and F4D aircraft in the late 1960s met with limited success because of such limited physical space to put everything and interference with standard F-4 systems. The definitive Wild Weasel was the F-4G, which were converted from F-4E aircraft, and which flew for the first time in 1977. This replaced the 20 mm cannon in the nose with electronics, however the F-4G retained the ability to use the AIM-9 Sidewinder and the AIM-7 Sparrow. It added the ability to use the AGM-88 HARM and AGM78 Standard Arm. That is the platform that was so successful in Desert Storm.
Darwin, O.F. [alien]
How did that old poem go? Oh yeah…
Wild Weasel, Wild Weasel they call me by name,
I fly on THUD Ridge and play the big game.
Swift through the valleys and over the hills,
I dodge all the missiles and go for the kills.
Yardbird
Was the AGM-78 ARM missile used by -105s in Vietnam, or afterward?
I believe that to be not entirely correct!
The US Navy used the A-6B for its “Iron Hand” Missions, the marines had the EA-6A, although I’m sure it was used for EW rather than actual Sam Supression or SEAD.
Believe I can answer that!
The AGM-78 STARM or Standard ARM was used by the USAF and USN in SAM suppression from the early days. The HARM was a modified sparrow as I recal it. The STARM is also used by the US NAVY on its ships as a SAM, it is then called the SM-1 or -2, and has an additional booster.