1950s - There Never Was an Arrow (Part 2)
The Avro Canada CF-103 may have been somthing of a disappointment to pilots but it served well as an interim long-range interceptor. RCAF pilots, by contrast, loved the Canadair Sabre. Despite this, the Sabre had come under a sustained attack from Progressive Conservative defence critic, MGen (Ret'd) George Pearkes. The Sabre was a pilot's aircraft and played a vital role with the RCAF in Europe. But Pearkes judged this smaller fighter as being essentially useless for the defence of Canada and in fufilling the RCAF's NORAD role. Opinion was clearly divided but Pearkes - as one of 99 Canadians to be awarded the Victoria Cross - held sway. Other than as an RCAF Auxilliary type, the Canadair Sabre's day were numbered.
To critics, the replacement for the Sabre in protecting the populated areas of southern Canada must be an interceptor missile. For NORAD integration, the obvious candidate was the US IM-99B Bomarc but that missile's nuclear warhead came with political problems. As a result, conventionally-armed British alternatives were also examined - including the EE Thunderbird, Bristol Bloodhound, and Blue Envoy. The latter made the most favourable impression on DND but this longer-ranged missile was cancelled in 1957. As a result, DND pressed on with Bomarc while also looking for interim manned interceptor solutions.
Canadair was quick to propose a solution to the RCAF's shorter-ranged interceptor requirement. Through its sister firm, Canadair became aware that advanced Convair F-106A Delta Dart interceptors would soon be eclipsing the older F-102A Delta Dagger fighters in USAF service. A plan was submitted whereby ex-USAF F-102As would be refurbished by Convair (following US sales rules) before being kitted out with any RCAF-specific equipment by Canadair. Negotiations were begun to ensure access to these interceptors at times and prices agreeable to both parties. Once properly re-equipped, the RCAF would collect its 'new' CF-102C Daggers from Cartierville.
Top: A Convair/Canadair CF-102C Dagger interceptor of No. 441 Squadron. This CF-102C is in the standard natural metal scheme but has large day-glo orange panels applied for 441 detachments which deployed to RCAF Station Frobisher Bay on occasion. The chequerboard markings surrounding the nose and on the tip of the tail are for No. 441 Squadron.
The Convair fighter was equipped with the same GAR-1 Falcon missiles which armed the CF-103s. [1] That commonality seemed to be an advantage although these Hughes missiles were proving somewhat troublesome in RCAF service. However, at the time, the unreliability of the Falcon missile was a strictly held secret within the service. In any case, these Convair fighters were available and fully compatible with NORAD systems. And the purchase agreement terms also gave credit for ex-RCAF Sabres being provided as aid to allies under the US Military Assistance Program.
Interim Solutions and Improving the Breed
As noted, USAF NORAD squadrons were re-equipping with more advanced F-106A Delta Dart interceptors. Begun as F-102Bs - derivatives of the Delta Dagger - so many changes and improvements were introduced that a new designation and name were warranted. Like the F-102A, the F-106A operated in conjunction with the SAGE (Semi-Automatic Ground Environment) network linked via the Hughes MA-1 fire-control system. [2] Convair would build 277 x F-106As and 63 x F-106B 2-seaters before production in San Diego ended in late 1960. The sales team at Canadair sensed another opportunity.
In 1961, Canadair made an offer through its common parent firm, General Dynamics, to procure all F-106 tooling from Convair. The US government approved this plan with the proviso that - under the new Canada-U.S. Defence Production Sharing Agreement - Canadair would take over responsibility for producing any F-106 airframe spares required by the USAF. With the deal cinched, tooling was shipped from San Diego to the Port de Montréal for the short road or barge trips to Canadair's Cartierville plant on the north shore of the Île de Montréal.
Canadair had already taken delivery of a sample airframe - ex-USAF Convair YF-106A (56-0452). After some flight trials (by both Canadair and RCAF test pilots), this aircraft's Pratt & Whitney YJ75-P-1 turbojet was removed. This engine was then replaced by a Rolls-Royce RB.80 Conway RCo.11R low-bypass turbofan. [3] The Conway was to be built under license by Orenda - this turbofan having already been chosen to power the Avro Canada C.108 - a proposed replacement for the CF-103 Trident. [4] The Conway was slightly smaller and lighter than the US J75 which simplified installation of the alternative engine.
Armament was also to differ from USAF F-106As. American aircraft were armed with later variants of the GAR-3 Falcon missile and AIR-2 Genie rocket. However, disappointment with the performance of the Falcons and political issues with the nuclear-armed Genie prompted a search for alternatives. [5] Development of the AAM-N-3 Sparrow II missile which was to have armed the C.105 had been ended by Douglas (although Canadair persisted on its own until the C.105 was itself cancelled). However, since then, Raytheon had been working on a semi-active radar-homing derivative - designated AAM-N-6a Sparrow III by the US Navy and AIM-101 by the USAF. As the USAF was Canada's key NORAD partner, that organisation's designation was adopted by the RCAF (as the AIM-101C). [6]
Accepted by the RCAF, the first aircraft delivered were pre-production CF-106C Mk1s. These airframes were composed of Convair-supplied wings and tails combined with Canadair-assembled fuselages. The latter had, of course, been altered to accept the new engine - the Orenda PS.21 Ojibwe which produced 17,500 lbf dry and 24,000 lbf in full reheat. The Canadiar-built fuselages also differed in the arrangement of their bays - now altered to hold (and deploy) six of the chosen Canadair-built AIM-101C Sparrow SARH missiles. After a short run, the CF-106C Mk2 - created entirely from Canadair produced parts began to come down the line at Cartierville. The Mk2s would make up the majority of RCAF deliveries but both types would be upgraded to common CF-106C Mk3 standards by the late 1960s.
Bottom: A Canadair CF-106C Mk1 Dart interceptor which replaced CF-102Cs in No.441 Squadron service. Finish is all-over Aircraft Grey (FS 16473) - which obviated the need for constant polishing of unpainted surfaces. The assignment of '849' to No.441 is made obvious by its chequerboard tail band, unit crest on the fin, and a '441 shield' on the nose. (NB: this image is based on a USAF F-106A profile by Michel DeBarre.)
Although a product of the 1950s, the Canadair CF-106C did not enter RCAF squadron service until 1961. As such, the CF-106C falls slightly outside the scope of this essay. The same is true for the CF-106C's future stablemate, the twin-Ojibwe Avro Canada CF-108 Arrow long-range interceptor. So that, as they say, is a story for another day ...
[Fin]
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[1] These missiles were connected to the F-102A's Hughes MG-3 fire control system, maintaining a corporate connection with the CF-103's MA-1 FCS.
[2] For unknown reasons, the MA-1 designation belonged to a newer replacement fire-control system than the numerically higher, but older Hughes MA-2 FCS which it replaced. No idea why why.
[3] This somewhat mirrors the development of the F-102. The Convair Model 8-80 leading to the YF-102 was powered by a Westinghouse J40-WE-8 but this was due to be replaced by a license-built Bristol Olympus - the Wright J67. (Although, in the end, the F-102A received a domestic P&W J57 turbojet.)
[4] In the UK, Orenda's PS.21 Ojibwe was known as the Rolls-Royce Conway RCo.11 Mk.103RC. The PS.21 Ojibwe produced slightly less power than the proposed PS.13 Iroquois but Orenda management had now concluded that the turbofan was the future - for both military and civilian aircraft.
[5] Two British AAMs were examined as potential replacements for the fault-prone US missiles - the de Havilland Firestreak and the pending Hawker Siddeley Red Top. Both featured powerful IR sensors and were specifically designed to counter Soviet bombers. However, after cancelling Blue Vesta, there was no sign of a SARH seeker in the offing soon for either British type.
[6] Ironically, within the year, the US designation was changed to a uniform AIM-7 (AIM-7D being the direct US equivalent to the Canadair-made AIM-101C).
