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The 'missile with a man in it' was known for its blistering speed
and deadliness in air combat. The F-104C flew more than 14,000
combat hours in Vietnam as a bomber escort, a Wild Weasel escort
and a close air support aircraft. Though many were sceptical of its
ability to carry weapons, the Starfighter gave a fine account of
itself in the close air support role. It was also well known that
the enemy were especially reluctant to risk their valuable and
scarce MiGs when the F-104 was escorting bombers over North Vietnam
or flying combat air patrols nearby. The missions were not without
risk, and 14 Starfighters were lost during the war over a two-year
period. This was not insignificant considering that the USAF only
had one wing of these valuable aircraft at the time, and wartime
attrition and training accidents also took quite a bite from the
inventory.
The General Dynamics F-111 was one of the most technically innovative designs among military aircraft, introducing the variable-sweep wing, terrain-following radar, military-rated afterburning turbofan engines and a self-contained escape module among other features. Designed as a cost-saving, multi-role interceptor, naval fighter and strike bomber, its evolution prioritised the latter role and it became the USAF's most effective long-range strike aircraft during three decades of service. Rushed into combat in Vietnam before some of its structural issues were fully understood, the type suffered several early losses and gained an unfairly negative reputation that dogged it for the rest of its career, and restricted funding for more advanced versions of the design. However, in Operation Linebacker in 1972 the F-111 flew 4000 nocturnal under-the-radar missions, delivering, with unprecedented accuracy, many decisive blows that would have resulted in heavy losses for any other attack aircraft.
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