Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, ca. 1960

[Dizzyfugu]

Ladies and gentlemen (or both at once), as a tribute to AZ Model's (re) release of its F6U Pirate kit in two whif boxings, here's my personal take on it (conversion of the original Admiral release): the unlucky Pirate in Argentinian Navy service  :


Some background:
The Vought F6U Pirate was the Vought company's first jet fighter, designed for US Navy during the mid-1940s. Although pioneering the use of turbojet power as the first naval fighter with an afterburner and composite material construction, the aircraft proved to be underpowered and was judged unsuitable for combat. None were ever issued to operational squadrons and they were relegated to development, training and test roles before they were withdrawn from USN service in 1950.


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-301'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


A specification was issued by the US Navy's Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer) for a single-seat, carrier-based fighter powered by a Westinghouse24C (later J34) axial turbojet on 5 September 1944. Chance Vought was awarded a contract for three V-340 (company designation) prototypes on 29 December 1944.

The XF6U was a small aircraft with tricycle landing gear and with straight wings and tail surfaces. The wings were short enough that they did not need to fold. In order to fit more aircraft into crowded hangars, the nose gear could be retracted and the aircraft's weight would rest on a small wheel attached by the ground crew. This raised the tail up so that it could overlap the nose of the aircraft behind it. The jet engine was mounted in the rear of the fuselage and was fed by ducts in each wing root.

The most unusual feature of the aircraft was its use of "Metalite" for its skin. This was made of balsa that was sandwiched between two thin sheets of aluminum. "Fabrilite" was also used for the surfaces of the vertical stabilizer and rudder; this was similar to Metalite, but used fiberglass instead of aluminum.

Two fuel tanks were fitted in the center of the fuselage. The forward tank, ahead of the wing, contained 220 US gallons (830 l; 180 imp gal) and the rear tank, 150 US gallons (570 l; 120 imp gal). These were supplemented by two jettisonable 140-US-gallon (530 l; 120 imp gal) tip tanks. The cockpit was well forward and was provided with a bubble canopy which gave the pilot good visibility. He was provided with a Mk 6 lead-computing gyro gunsight. Underneath the cockpit were four 20 mm (0.79 in) M3 autocannon. Their 600 rounds of ammunition were carried behind the pilot. The empty casings of the two upper guns were retained in the aircraft, while those from the two lower guns were ejected overboard.


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-301'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


After a company-wide contest to name the aircraft, the initial prototype, named the Pirate, made its first flight on 2 October 1946. Flight testing revealed severe aerodynamic problems, mostly caused by the airfoil section and thickness of the wing. The vertical stabilizer also had to be redesigned to smooth out the airflow at the intersection of the horizontal and vertical stabilizers. Other changes included the addition of dive brakes on the sides of the fuselage and the replacement of the Metalite panels near the engine's exhaust with stainless steel ones.

The first XF6U-1 prototype was powered by a Westinghouse J34-WE-22 turbojet with 3,000 lbf (13.34 kN) thrust, one third of the weight of the aircraft. To help improve the underpowered aircraft's performance, the third prototype, which first flew on 10 November 1947, was lengthened by 8 feet (2.4 m) to use a Westinghouse J34-WE-30 afterburning engine of 4,224 lbf (18.78 kN) thrust, the first United States Navy fighter to have such a powerplant.

In 1947, even before the flight testing of the prototypes was completed, 30 production aircraft were ordered. They incorporated an ejection seat and a redesigned vertical stabilizer as well as two auxiliary fins, one towards the tip on each side of the tailplane in an attempt to improve the directional stability of the aircraft. The fuselage was lengthened to fit additional equipment and the wing had fillets added at the rear junction with the fuselage.


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The first production F6U-1 performed its initial flight on 29 June 1949. 20 aircraft were initially provided to VX-3, an operational evaluation squadron based at Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland. The judgment from the evaluation was rather unfavorable, so that the few aircraft in USN service ended up being used primarily to develop arresting gear and barriers. Some were used operationally for a short time by at least one Texas-based United States Navy Reserve squadron as they transitioned to jets.
Anyway, the 30 production aircraft had only a total of 945 hours of flight time, only 31.5 hours each. Some aircraft flew only six hours which was enough for little more than their acceptance flight and the flight to their ultimate disposition, since the USN would not use the Pirate in its active arsenal.

But elsewhere, the small and simple aircraft aroused attention: the Argentine Naval Aviation (Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, COAN) became interested in the small F6U fleet in early 1950. Eventually the COAN bought 20 flyworthy specimen of these machines (price remains unknown until today, but is assumed to be 'symbolic') as fast, land-based fighter and attack aircraft.

Delivery of aircraft followed suit, as the USN wanted to scrap the rather obsolete F6U fleet quickly. All 20 aircraft were transferred in flight in September 1950 to the Argentinian Navy Base Punta Indio near La Plata and integrated into Fuerza Aeronaval 1 (Naval Aviation Force 1).

The COAN received a baptism by fire on 16 June 1955 when naval airplanes, including F4U and F6U, painted with catholic crosses and blessed by priests, participated on the Bombing of Plaza de Mayo. One of the navy aircraft was shot down by an air force Gloster Meteor.

In 1958, the COAN jet fighter force was augmented by Grumman F9F Panthers and Cougars - the Argentine Naval Aviation bought 24 ex-USN aircraft, which added more punch.


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Another great change came into effect when the Navy received its first aircraft carrier the ARA Independencia in 1959. At the time, her aircraft inventory included the F4U Corsair, SNJ-5Cs Texan and Grumman S2F-1 (S-2A) Trackers. The F6U were still in service, even though the number of operational aircraft had been reduced to a dozen – the rest was already stored away and used for spares.

Anyway, the F6U turned out to be valuable to the COAN since it was possible to deploy it from the new carrier - the F9F Panther and F9F Cougar jets were not suitable for this task, as the catapults of ARA Independencia (V-1) were considered not powerful enough to launch the heavier F9F.

Consequently, the F6U saw a midlife update. This major overhaul included an engine update, the original J34-WE-30A engines were replaced by stronger J34-WE-36A engines, outfitted with an afterburner developed by Solar Aircraft. These new engines offered 4.000 lb (17.8 kN) dry thrust and 5.360lb (23,87kN) at full afterburner and with water injection. While overall performance did not change much, acceleration and rate of climb improved appreciably, and launching the F6U from the small carrier deck became much safer, as well as landing, in case of a 'touch and go', because the new engines had more power reserve and was quicker to react to throttle input. Empty and total weight increased slightly, so the landing gear was beefed up.

In the course of the update, the aircraft's M3 cannons were replaced by M2 cannons (so that the gun armament was the same as on the F9F) and the COAN Pirates received hardpoints under the wings which allowed them to carry light external loads. Typical weaponry included up to six HVAR missiles, six 100lb bomby or two 500lb bombs. The wing tip drop tanks were retained.


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


These twelve revamped aircraft were integrated into Fuerza Aeronaval 2 (Naval Aviation Force 2), based at navy airbase Comandante Espora, near Bahía Blanca, where all embarked aircraft were concentrated. The conversion was finished in late 1960.

It would not take long until Argentinian Navy pilots would see combat again: during 1962 internal military fighting between factions known as Azules y Colorados ("Blue" and "Reds") occurred, culminating in the 1963 Argentine Navy Revolt in which Navy F9F Panthers, F6U Pirates and F4U Corsairs bombed Argentine Army tanks in defense of the Navy base of Punta Indio.

Argentine Navy F6U Pirates also saw combat in the 1963 Argentine Navy Revolt, bombing and strafing a column of the Army 8th Tank Regiment which was advancing on the rebelling Argentine Navy base of Punta Indio. The attack destroyed several M4 Sherman tanks, at the cost of one F9F Panther shot down.


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-301'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The final operational use of the Argentine Pirates was their involvement in the general mobilization during the 1965 border dispute between Argentina and Chile - but no combat occurred. After that incident the F6U were retired and all remaining aircraft finally scrapped.
This also started a major rejuvenation of the Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina: the remaining F4U were retired in 1968 from ARA Independencia, and the Panthers and Cougars were taken out of service in 1969 due to the lack of spare parts, and eventually replaced with A-4Q Skyhawks.


General characteristics
Crew: 1
Length: 37 ft 7 in (11.46 m)
Wingspan: 32 ft 10 in (10 m)
Height: 12 ft 11 in (3.39 m)
Wing area: 203.4 ft² (18.9 m²)
Empty weight: 7,320 lb (3,320 kg)
Loaded weight: 12,900 lb (5,850 kg)
   
Powerplant:
1× Westinghouse J34-WE-36A, rated at 4.000 lb (17.8 kN) dry thrust and 5.360lb (23,87kN) at full afterburner with water injection

Performance:
Maximum speed: 596 mph (517 kn, 959 km/h)
Range: 1,170 mi (1,020 nmi, 1,880 km)
Service ceiling: 46,260 ft (14,100 m)
Rate of climb: 8,060 ft/min (40.95 m/s)
Wing loading: 63.4 lb/ft² (304 kg/m²)
Thrust/weight: 0.327

Armament
4× 20 mm (0.79 in) M2 cannon under the nose with 190 RPG
Underwing hardpoints and provisions to carry combinations of up to 6× 5" (127 mm) rockets and/or bombs, for a total of 2.000 lb (907 kg).



The kit and its assembly:
I got my hands on this Admiral kit some time ago, uncertain what to make of it. The F6U is one of those early jet aircraft in the Twilight Zone after WWII which is predestined to be whiffed – but I lacked a good idea. Vague plan was to create a later USN aircraft, in classic Gull Grey/White with colorful markings.

The final push came through AZ Model's re-release of the Pirate kit under its own banner and in two whif boxings – including aforementioned USN options, too. That pushed me to "make something different".

With some creative discussion at whatifmodelers.com about these new kits I settled on a new idea: a machine for the Argentinean Navy, in classic grey and white livery and with appropriate markings. While whiffy, this idea is not too far-fetched as the COAN actually operated ex USN aircraft, as explained in the background above. And why shouldn't Argentina have bought the obsolete F6Us as a bargain...?

The kit was mostly built OOB, and you encounter some typical short-run kit challenges. Personal changes include the replaced of the PE parts on the hull and landing gear with styrene pieces. I also added a Matchbox pilot figure in the opened cockpit.


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-301'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

The air intake interior is poor, if non-existant. Builders are supposed to insert a simple, blank wall, which is IMHO not satisfactory at all. With some styrene wedges and strips I tried to simulate an interior/air duct, even opening the fuselage sides inside of the wing area. Not perfect, but certainly better than the original proposal from AZ Model. By the way, the front wheel well is also missing, completely. It is uncertain where the front wheel is supposed to be glued on to, maybe in mid-air? I added a 1mm sheet of styrene, which also hides the resin cockpit tub's underside from view.

The fit of the fuselage halves is so-so, expect some putty work. On the other side, the upper wings fit perfectly onto the fuselage. On the other side, the lower fuselage and the fuselage insert between the wings do not fit well, so that there's more putty work.
The fin, which is a separate piece and has to be glued directly onto the fuselage (without any aids) was warped in two directions and very hard to get into place.


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-301'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


To my surprise the original resin cockpit is fine, even though just one single piece, and falls literally into place.
Since it is easy to realize and adds realism I lowered/extended the flaps and created interior parts from styrene strips.
The hardpoints under the wings (the F6U didn't have any, just its guns) are personal additions. The four HVARs were leftover resin pieces from my recent 'Sabrecat' conversion. On the nose, hollow steel needles (0.8mm) were added as cannon mounts.
Under th erear fuselage, an arrester hook was added (from an A-4 Skyhawk), as well as a tail bumper.
On the rear fuselage I added air scoops for the (fictional) stronger engine and afterburner – the J34-WE-36A (AFAIK) never existed, just a non-afterburner variant that was used as a pair in the Douglas F3D (F-10) Skyknight.

Many small things, but they enhance the kit considerably, which is otherwise solid. But the F6U is IMHO way overpriced for what you get, resin and PE parts won't help much.


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Painting and markings:
Nothing spectacular. Benchmark for this were real-life COAN F9F Panthers, painted in "Gris Nevado" over and matt white from below. Most of the markings come from a Hobby Boss F9F-2 which offer a COAN painting option.

The F6U  was painted in authentic USN colors (FS 36440 and 37875, Testors 1730 and Humbrol 130, respectively, the latter painted on a thin primer coat with Revell Acryllics flat white), the blue fin decoration was painted with a mix of Humbrol 48 and 130, in oder to match the rather pale national insignia on the deceals. The white segment on the fin as well as the yellow sun icon were later added as decals.


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-301'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Interior surfaces were painted in Cockpit Green (Humbrol 226), and, for some shock value, the opened flaps received a red interior (Revell 330, a bright tone, RAL 3000). The aircraft's rear was painted with Steel and Titanium Metallizer (both ModelMaster), and slightly rubbed with graphite – a nice contrast to the other, rather pale colors.

Finally, the kit was slightly weathered with some counter-shading on the upper sides in order to simulate dull paint from prolonged sunshine exposure, and a light black ink wash, as well as some dry-painting on leading edges. Everything was finally sealed under a matt acryllic varnish, with some extra matt varnish.


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-301'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 by dizzyfugu, on Flickr




All in all a rather uncomplicated whif project. Not easy, though, since the Admiral/AZ Models kit is far from perfect, takes some experience.
The sleek aircraft offers a LOT of whiffery potential, as AZ Models own two fantasy marking kits show, and that's certainly not the whole story, as this COAN aircraft demonstrates. The Argentinian Pirate whif is unspectacular but subtle, it looks almost natural (what I like!). The whole thing was realized in a week – and the light colors suit the slender F6U well.

[tc2324]

Another great looking model Dizzy and excellent use of the AZ kit and photoshop. 

Lets just hope that the carrier crew raise the barrier in time in the approach shot... 

[Dizzyfugu]

Thank you!

As a side note: all pics are taken "as they are", no composing; editing is just used in order to enhance contrast or some filter effects, and to edit the landing gear and/or the holder away.


1:72 Chance Vought F6U-1 'Pirate', aircraft '3-A-103'/1224, Comando de Aviación Naval Argentina, (COAN), Fuerza Aeronaval 2; ARA Independencia, summer 1960 - WiP by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

[Librarian]

Very, very nice kit . Always had a special soft spot for the Pirate. Amazing to think it's the son of the mighty Corsair. I'd love to start modelling 1/72 early jets....always thought the Me262 cheated; too advanced-looking too quickly .

[The Rat]

Nice job on that, almost makes it look like a respectable bit of engineering!    I have the Meikraft version in the stash, short run kit which will surley challenge my limited skills. 

[sandiego89]

Excellent, and from such a tough kit.  Really like this.  Do you have a thread on your photography process?  Are all your backgrounds printed out on a large printer? 

[Dizzyfugu]

Thank you very much. No, there's no documentation about taking the pictures (among others because I just have one camera... ), just WiP pics. And, yes, all backgrounds are in general color prints, done on a laser printer, and in DIN A3 format (45x30cm/18x12"). For small aircraft like this it is more than enough, but bigger "things" might get limited in perspective. To go along with the backgrounds I also have a stash of bases.

[CSMO]

Cool concept and backstory. A fine build. I have built the old Meikraft Pirate and lit was an easy build that looks very good in USN Glossy Sea Blue. Adios, Larry.

[NARSES2]

That's just stunning  Some of the black & white shots could fool anybody

[Dizzyfugu]

 

Such "action pics" add much to the realism - and they were partly created as a fall-back option, because the background actually is just BW... Anyway, sometimes you can cheat - the first picture has actually a BW background, too, but the yellow tractor to the left is a perfect delusion, so that this flaw can only be recognized if you know about it. 

Thanks a lot to everyone!

[Army of One]

Spanking build/backstory/pics yet again.....awesome all round package...!!

[Hman]

Lovely 

[Ed S]

Well done.  Great model and superb photography.

Ed