McDonnell F3H Demon

"F3H" redirects here. For the camera, see Nikon F3H.

F3H Demon
An F3H-2N Demon in flight in 1956
General information
TypeCarrier-based all-weather interceptor
ManufacturerMcDonnell Aircraft Corporation
StatusRetired
Primary userUnited States Navy
Number built519
History
Introduction date7 March 1956
First flight7 August 1951
Retired1964

The McDonnell F3H Demon is a subsonic swept-wing carrier-based jet fighter aircraft designed and produced by the American manufacturer McDonnell Aircraft Corporation. It was the first swept wing jet fighter and the only single-engined carrier-based fighter the company produced.[1]

The Demon was developed during the late 1940s and early 1950s to fulfill a United States Navy requirement for a high-performance swept wing naval fighter to succeed the F2H Banshee. On 7 August 1951, the XF3H-1 performed its maiden flight, flown by test pilot Robert Edholm. The original design for a short-range interceptor was reworked into a heavier medium-range all-weather fighter to counter the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 jet fighter being encountered during the Korean War; however, the addition of about 7,000 lb (3,200 kg) of weight negatively impacted the Demon's performance. The Demon was originally designed to be powered by the Westinghouse J40 turbojet engine, which suffered severe problems including low thrust output and poor reliability, and was ultimately abandoned after the matter became politically controversial in 1955. This outcome necessitated another major redesign of the aircraft to accept the alternative Allison J71 powerplant.[2][3]

On 7 March 1956, the Demon was introduced to operational service. Though the aircraft had insufficient power for supersonic performance and insufficient endurance for its intended general-purpose role, it complemented day fighters such as the Vought F8U Crusader and Grumman F11F Tiger as an all-weather, missile-armed interceptor.[4][5] The Demon was withdrawn in 1964 and thus did not participate in the Vietnam War. Both it and the Crusader were replaced on Forrestal-class and similar supercarriers by the more capable and versatile McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II, which bears a strong family resemblance, as it was conceived as an advanced development of the Demon. The supersonic F-101 Voodoo of the United States Air Force was similar in layout, but was derived from the earlier XF-88 Voodoo, which also influenced the Demon's layout.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Boeing was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Angelucci and Bowers 1987, p. 304.
  3. ^ Francillon 1990, pp. 118–119.
  4. ^ Elward and Davies 2001, p. 13.
  5. ^ Francillon 1990, p. 126.