Alternatively the interceptor could field 4 x Hughes Falcon missiles and 2 x Nuclear-tipped AAMs. Standard armament centered on 6 x Hughes GAR-3 "Falcon" Air-to-Air Missiles (AAMs) with a battery of 36 x Folding Fin Aerial Rockets (FFARs) also carried. The FCS held the ability to take the aircraft to the target area, track the target, and engage the target on its own. The technology aboard the aircraft allowed just one crewman to be used. A tricycle undercarriage would be in play consisting of a single-wheeled nose leg mounted well-aft of the cockpit floor and a pair of single-wheeled main legs installed at the fuselage between the wing mainplanes and horizontal planes. All of the weaponry would be held internally to preserve the aerodynamic qualities of the interceptor. The cockpit, a retractable capsule, was held at the front of the design overlooking the nose in the usual way - the capsule held the ability to be raised for ground-running and collapsed for supersonic flight. A single vertical fin capped the empennage and all wing surfaces were highly swept along their leading edges. Smallish triangular wing mainplanes were affixed at shoulder level near midships and the trailing horizontal tailplanes were mid-mounted along the fuselage's aft sides. The initaitve was dubbed the "1954 Interceptor" and recognized formally as "Weapon System WS-201A".įrom six competing proposals came three selected submissions in 1951 in the Convair XF-102 (based on its dimensionally smaller XF-92), the Lockheed XF-104, and the Republic XF-103.The Republic entry was a sleek offering showcasing a slim, slab-sided fuselage with pointed nosecone. The USAF program sought to combine such an air vehicle with a new Fire Control System (FCS) - the Hughes "MA-1" - and new air-to-air missile technology. The nature of this requirement dictated a most aerodynamically-refined shape with swept-back wing surfaces and a powerful propulsion system beyond what was conventional for fighters of the period. One development of the mid-1950s became the Republic XF-103 "Thunderwarrior" (Company Model "AP-57") which sought to fulfill a USAF requirement begun in 1949 for a supersonic, technologically-advanced, missile-armed interceptor. During the 1950s, amidst the growing threat (and inherent nuclear-delivery capabilities) of Soviet jet-powered bombers, the United States Air Force (USAF) sought various solutions to the problem at hand resulting in a bewildering array of conceptual, developmental, and production aircraft to suit the role. 2 Republic XF-103 (Thunderwarrior) Specificationīefore ground-based missiles provided the basis for viable air defense systems, the "interceptor" combat aircraft was the primary counter to high-flying, long-range heavy bombers.1 Republic XF-103 (Thunderwarrior) History.
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