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Grumman F7F-3 'Tigercat'

Description
  Manufacturer:Grumman


  Base model:F7F
  Designation:F7F
  Version:-3
  Nickname:Tigercat
  Designation System:U.S. Navy / Marines
  Designation Period:1922-1962
  Basic role:Fighter
  Crew:Pilot

Specifications
  Length: 45' 4" 13.8 m
  Height:16' 7" 5.0 m
  Wingspan: 5' 6" 1.6 m
  Wingarea: 455.0 sq ft 42.2 sq m
  Empty Weight: 16,270 lb 7,378 kg
  Gross Weight: 25,720 lb 11,664 kg

Propulsion
  No. of Engines: 2
  Powerplant: Pratt & Whitney R-2800-34W
  Horsepower (each): 2100

Performance
  Range: 1,200 miles 1,932 km
  Cruise Speed: 222 mph 357 km/h 192 kt
  Max Speed: 435 mph 700 km/h 378 kt
  Climb: 4,530 ft/min 1,380 m/min
  Ceiling: 40,700 ft 12,405 m

Known serial numbers
69740 / 69989, 80359 / 80547, 116729 / 117728

Examples of this type may be found at
MuseumCityState
National Museum of Naval AviationNAS PensacolaFlorida
Pima Air & Space MuseumTucsonArizona

F7F-3 on display


National Museum of Naval Aviation

Pima Air & Space Museum
  


 

Recent comments by our visitors
 bruce Thomas
 Castaic, CA
I was meeting some friends at a Van Nuys airport 94th Aero Squardron
on Friday the 9-21-09. Since I was early I parked my butt on the patio next to the 34 left runway. And I looked down the taxiway to see a f7f taxiing. What a sight, I had never seen one. As it took off I felt a lot younger,when I would watch for p-51's and the like when I was a airport rat by 30 years earlier and into warbirds . But still what a sight.....
Bruce

08/25/2009 @ 21:46 [ref: 24352]
 Rocco
 Reno, NV
Just a few minutes ago a flight of 3 F7F's came over my house. After 3 passes they landed at Stead. What a sight what beautiful birds.
09/10/2008 @ 18:39 [ref: 22662]
 Craig Crippen
 West Hills, CA
What lead me to this site was the sound of the two big radial engines on an F7F flying over my house yesterday 9-9-2008. My wife thinks I'm a little nuts at 63 years of age to be running out of the house when I think I hear something cool flying over. I guess it came out of Van Nuys. This was the first time I had ever seen the F7F. Thankfull one present from a past Christmas was Janes's Fighting aircraft of WW II that helped me identify the F7F.
09/10/2008 @ 10:00 [ref: 22652]
 Wayne King
 Winterhaven`, CA
Early in 1952 I arrived at the Naval Air Technical Training Commanad, Norman, Oklahoma. The Navy was opening three taining schools AN"P" Airman Preparitory School, AD"A" Aviation Machinest Mate School, and AM"A" Aviation Structural Mechanic School. They were receiving aircraft to be used for the schools and there were 2 F7F aircarft among them. I thought they were two of the most beautiful A/C i had ever seen. To this day I feel the same way. CPO,King,USN,Ret
06/09/2008 @ 21:44 [ref: 21219]
 Wayne King
 Winterhaven`, CA
Early in 1952 I arrived at the Naval Air Technical Training Commanad, Norman, Oklahoma. The Navy was opening three taining schools AN"P" Airman Preparitory School, AD"A" Aviation Machinest Mate School, and AM"A" Aviation Structural Mechanic School. They were receiving aircraft to be used for the schools and there were 2 F7F aircarft among them. I thought they were two of the most beautiful A/C i had ever seen. To this day I feel the same way. CPO,King,USN,Ret
06/09/2008 @ 21:43 [ref: 21218]
 Greg Berge
 , CA
To D Pat Harrington

I have contact with an F7F driver of VMF 513 from the Korean War. Contact me if you would like
05/07/2008 @ 09:34 [ref: 20820]
 D. Pat Harrington
 , AZ
I am building a 1:48 scale model aircraft of the Grumman Tigercat F7F-3N Night-fighter deployed with VMF(N)-513 at Pyongtaek S. Korea during the summer of 1952. The bird has the name "Linda" and the numeral "24" painted on the nose in red paint. It also carries the code "WF" in large red letters on the vertical stabilizer.

It has the menacing "Droopsnoot" nose typical for this night-fighter type that housed the SCR-720 radar apparatus... but what is not so typical is the box-like protuberance that appears to sit directly on top of the nose (immediately above the nose gear's main leg if you were to extend an invisible line "north" through the airframe). This appears (to me, anyway) to be some sort of "field modification"... a blister or a fairing that may have housed some additional radar or radio component. If I had to guess, the shape (in profile) seems to suggest that the "box' is wider and more massive in the front that it is at the back, and would therefore have some taper to the shape: front-to-back. I can say with certainty that this is not the football-shaped ADF antenna housing familiar on many earlier F7F-2D airframes.

I've spend hours on-line trying to get some additional information and/or some additional images of this aircraft's nose that is more complete than the profile illustration that has appeared in print over the years (I'm using Squadron/Signal's F7F Tigercat in Action #79). The profile is good and very well-rendered, but in order to do this airframe justice, I really need some overhead and nose-on photos to work with.

Can anyone offer any additional insights into this apparent one-of-kind modification?

Regards,
I
D. Pat Harrington
04/21/2008 @ 13:56 [ref: 20644]
 Keith
 , CA
F7F-3 is at Van Nuys airport today 3/28/08 sitting right beside the fence acros the alley from Hawker Beechcraft
03/28/2008 @ 12:41 [ref: 20272]
 Bill Wheeler
 Upland, CA
I, too, saw that beautiful and very rare F7F departing Brackett Airport the previous writer commented on. I happened to see it from a slightly different vantage point, though. I was in the stands watching the drag racing. I pointed out the Tigercat to my wife, and she enjoyed using out binoculars to watch the big warbird take off and do a circle around Brackett before departing the area. I am an FAA air traffic controller at the Ontario, California, International Airport's control tower (ONT), so I get to watch thousands of aircraft taking off and landing each week, but it's always a special treat to get to see a rare aircraft like that F7F in flight. I also wanted to mention that the rather odd-looking canard-winged corporate aircraft the previous writer mentioned was an Italian-built Piaggio. Pretty cool to watch, as well!
11/07/2007 @ 19:17 [ref: 18446]
 George Godwin
 Rowland Heights, CA
We went to Norm's Hangar Restaurant at Brackett Field in Pomona for breakfast. We had hoped to enjoy the landings and takeoffs of Cessnas, Beachcrafts, etc. We were REWARDED with those plus a corporate-sized somewhat cunard-winged turbo prop, and a thrilling take-off and subsequent LOW level fly by of a Grumman f7f.
There was at the same time a large drag racing event at the adjacent fairgrounds, but the sound of those huge radial engines, the plane's unique beauty, and it's history, brought a tear to my eyes.
11/04/2007 @ 12:20 [ref: 18396]

 

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