F-105F Thunderchief anti collision light

[bradley25mm]

Question; during the war in Vietnam, did any of them have an anti collision on the top of the fuselage?

[tcoat]

I can not say with 100% certainty but looking at a pile of pictures I saw no lights on Vietnam era 105's.



This one looks like it may have the opening faired over right on the rear edge of the tan camo blotch.





More recent pictures (obviously post Vietnam era) pretty much all have them.



Pretty safe to say no I would think. 

[themongoose]

When i did my early 105 the info i got from Larry Davis was that they had a flush mounted anti collision light. Same location as the one you see in later pics. I’m traveling right now but can look for pics in what he gave me when i get home.

[themongoose]

I have these 3 on my ipad, hard to see but you can make out the break in the OD/blk on top of the spine where the light is at.

[tcoat]

Mar 22, 2024 6:53:59 GMT -5 themongoose said:

I have these 3 on my ipad, hard to see but you can make out the break in the OD/blk on top of the spine where the light is at.

There is certainly a different colour there but not the distinctive break in the profile so again may be faired over. Hard to really tell though.

[stikpusher]

Appears to be flush mounted here in the late 60’s



raised on the near G in the Linebacker era, 1972



Post Vietnam, certainly the raised light

[bradley25mm]

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Thanks guys for the reply’s. Stan Goldstein (EWO on “Big Brass Ones” Crown 7, F-105F)called today to give me some first hand insight. The FAA required that they be installed on all F-105’s returning to the states, AFTER the war in Vietnam.
In my limited research, I’ve seen some with and some without. The black and white photo was Big Brass Ones before it went to Vietnam. 

[bradley25mm]

[bradley25mm]

I’ve got quite a few friends now that are part of the River Rats Fighter Pilot Association. Leonard “Lucky” Ekman responded to my question “As I recall, we had rotating red beacons on the top of the tail and under the cockpit. Thud never, in my day, had anti-collision strobe lights, as those were a mid-60s innovation in general and commercial aviation. We did not have luminescent green formation lighting, only the wing tip lights which we could dim-steady to spare the wingmen the disorienting effects of bright-flash.

In combat, they were used heading to and on the pre-Strike tanker, but were turned off in the fence check crossing the Mekong. For night combat missions all lights were off, unless we’d briefed to stay in visual range of each other, in which case we used dim steady, rotating beacons off, to deny the visual gunners our location in the night sky. I’d imagine, but don’t know, that the lights were on for Linebacker II over Hanoi because of the collision potential with the crowd of friendlies.”

[tcoat]

Mar 22, 2024 20:03:21 GMT -5 bradley25mm said:

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Thanks guys for the reply’s. Stan Goldstein (EWO on “Big Brass Ones” Crown 7, F-105F)called today to give me some first hand insight. The FAA required that they be installed on all F-105’s returning to the states, AFTER the war in Vietnam.
In my limited research, I’ve seen some with and some without. The black and white photo was Big Brass Ones before it went to Vietnam. 

Explains why some looked like they never had them or they were removed and faired over. Probably won't be "wrong" either way unless you can find a picture of the particular aircraft you are doing.

[stikpusher]

From photos, a good reference point would be for Rolling Thunder and before would be no raised rotator beacon, and around the time of Linebacker they started to be installed. Markings are pretty easy to identify for the time period. The F-105 changed quite a bit detail wise over its service life. Intakes and vents were added or removed, a backup hydraulics fairing on the fuselage spine was added, radar warning receivers and reinforcement plates added... details present on models may or may not be present as you wish to depict an aircraft at a particular point in time and for the markings.