From Controversy to Cutting Edge A History of the F-111 in Australian Service Mark Lax © Commonwealth of Australia 2010 This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced by any process without prior written permission. Inquiries should be made to the publisher. Disclaimer The Commonwealth of Australia will not be legally responsible in contract, tort or otherwise, for any statements made in this document. Release This document is approved for public release. Portions of this document may be quoted or reproduced without permission, provided a standard source credit is included. National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry Author: Lax, Mark, 1956- Title: From controversy to cutting edge : a history of the F-111 in Australian service / Mark Lax. ISBN: 9781920800543 (hbk.) Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index. Subjects: Australia. Royal Australian Air Force--History. F-111 (Jet fighter plane)--History. Air power--Australia--History. Dewey Number: 358.43830994 Illustrations: Juanita Franzi, Aero Illustrations Published by: Air Power Development Centre TCC-3, Department of Defence CANBERRA ACT 2600 AUSTRALIA Telephone: + 61 2 6266 1355 Facsimile: + 61 2 6266 1041 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.airpower.gov.au/airpower This book is dedicated to the memory of Air Vice-Marshal Ernie Hey and Dr Alf Payne Without whom, there would have been no F-111C iii Foreword The F-111 has been gracing Australian skies since 1973. While its introduction into service was controversial, it quickly found its way into the hearts and minds of Australians, and none more so than the men and women of Boeing. Over the past 15 years, Boeing and its people have developed a special bond with this remarkable aircraft. From the commencement of our first F-111 contract, the Avionics Upgrade Program, on 15 January 1995 through to its farewell flight, Boeing has worked in close partnership with the RAAF, industry partners and the Commonwealth of Australia to ensure its technology, weaponry and airframe remain cutting edge. For Boeing, the retirement of the F-111 signals the end of a very proud period in our company’s history. It has been a source of tremendous opportunity and great pride for our employees. In reflecting on Boeing’s history with the F-111, there are many proud moments. We have performed significant repairs, modifications and upgrades that enhanced the fleet’s lethality and survivability, Dennis Muilenburg and we worked as partners to ensure it remained a President & Chief Executive Officer formidable supersonic long-range strike aircraft for Boeing Defense, Space & Security Air Force. Most of all, as the F-111 flies into the history books, we salute the men and women of the RAAF who have operated and maintained this iconic Australian aircraft. It has been our privilege and honour to support our RAAF customer, and to work with our friends and allies to preserve and promote freedom around the globe. Thank you for all that you have done. iv Rarely has the acquisition of one aircraft type had such a far-reaching impact on a fighting force as has the F-111 with the Royal Australian Air Force. So as the aircraft goes out of service in December 2010, it is with much pleasure that I introduce this book. The F-111 has been an incredible success story, and the RAAF has had a love affair with the ‘Pig’ for nearly 40 years—as has the Australian public. It has been a familiar crowd pleaser at air shows and its signature ‘dump and burn’ routine will be sadly missed. There can be little doubt that the F-111 will find its place in history for its contribution to Australian defence as the cornerstone of our strategy of deterrence. That such a complex weapon system could remain relevant is a testament to the many hundreds of men and women who flew, maintained, updated and supported the F-111 fleet over the four decades it was in service. Despite the F-111’s success, there is also much that the RAAF has learnt from operating it - both in the air and on the ground. Perhaps the most significant was the deseal/reseal program which led the RAAF Air Marshal Mark Binskin, AO to change the way it managed its people and its Chief of Air Force maintenance practices. As well as the RAAF’s highly skilled technicians, I single out the role that defence industry has played, particularly over the last 20 years. Without that support, the aircraft would have retired at least 10 years before its time. I extend my personal thanks, and those of the Air Force F-111 community, to Boeing for their partnership with us on this remarkable aircraft. I particularly want to commend the company’s sponsorship of this book. I am sure the relationship we have developed during the F-111’s later years will prosper well into the future. v Contents Foreword iv The British F-111K and its Price 53 Preface viii The Australian F-111 Cost Blow-out 56 Acknowledgements x The Third Australian F-111 Controversy – List of Tables xii The Delivery Schedule 56 List of Figures xii Training Commences 59 Abbreviations and Acronyms xiii 1968 – A Year of Frustration 62 Imperial/Metric Conversion Table xv An Undeserved Poor Reputation 65 Table of Ranks xv The First Acceptance of the F-111C 66 Notes 71 1. Introduction 1 4. Acquisition (Part II) 1968–1973 77 2. Desire 1953–1963 5 The Wing Carry Through Box Crisis 77 The Postwar Period 5 Flight Trials Placed on Hold 80 The Quest for a Strategic Bomber Force for Fatigue Studies and ARL 81 Australia 5 The F-111C Flight Simulator 85 An Advanced Jet Bomber Force? 7 The 1969 Bland Mission 85 The Nuclear Weapons Option? 11 Time for a Reassessment? 88 Meeting the Air Staff Requirement 13 Disaster: The Crash of F-111A 67-0049 89 A Change of Heart 14 The 1970 Congressional Hearings 90 TSR2 or TFX? 15 The Development of New Techniques in The TSR2 Debacle – Politics in Extremis 16 Fracture Mechanics 91 The Birth of the TFX 19 The Cold Proof Load Test Concept 92 The USAF-USN TFX Debate 21 The Fraser-Laird Agreement 95 The Hancock Strike/Reconnaissance The Read Mission and the Phantoms 98 Evaluation Team 25 The Second Acceptance of the F-111C 100 Townley’s Mission 29 The RAAF Gets its F-111s 105 Notes 32 The Arrival in Australia 108 3. Acquisition (Part I) 1963–1968 37 Notes 112 Politics and the Media 37 An Interim Bomber – The B-47E Stratojet 5. Implementation 1973–1983 117 Emerging Indigenous Strike Doctrine 117 for the RAAF 38 More Problems Emerge 119 A Quantum Leap 40 The RAAF Maintenance Philosophy 121 The USN’s F-111B Project and the Fallout Airworthiness in the RAAF 127 for Australia 41 The RAAF Liaison Offices at McClellan AFB 130 A Project Management Methodology 42 Training and Exchanges 132 A Step Too Far? 45 The Reconnaissance Requirement 134 The First Australian F-111 Controversy – Reconnaissance Revisited 138 The Design 45 Project Air 14 – The RF-111C Conversion 138 ARL Steps In 48 Weapons – ‘A Parlous State’ 142 The Second Australian F-111 Controversy – The Introduction of Laser-Guided Bombs 145 The Cost 51 vi The Role of Defence Science 149 A New Role – Precision Air Support 212 Early Engine Problems 149 Becoming the Sole Operator 214 Boron Doubler and Adhesive Upgrades Continue to Life of Type 216 Bonding Repairs 150 East Timor Operations 216 Aerodynamic Modelling of F-111 CPLT in Australia 220 Performance 151 The 2002 Wing Crack and the Wing A Political Crisis – The Franklin Dam Affair 152 Recovery Program 221 The First Decade 155 Enter Boeing as Prime Contractor 222 Notes 157 The Engine Upgrades 225 The Block Upgrade Program 227 6. Application 1983–1993 161 Venit Horus – The Hour has Come 229 Enhancing Strike Capability 161 Suffering the Winds of Change – Efficiency F-111A Attrition Buy 161 Reviews and Beyond 230 The Pave Tack Project 163 A Deterrent or Not? 231 Maritime Strike and AGM-84 Harpoon 167 The End of the F-111 Era 233 A Bigger Bomb? 170 Twenty Tons of Scrap? 237 ARDU Flight Test Program 174 Notes 240 Faith in the Aircraft 175 Proving a Point – Crosshairs on the Window 176 Appendices 245 The 1986 Dibb Review and the 1987 1. Australian F-111 Specifications 245 Defence White Paper 177 2. Weapons Stations and Maximum Loads 246 The Avionics Update Program 183 Bibliography 247 The Replacement Simulator 187 The First Gulf War – 1991 189 Index 259 Development of an Indigenous EW Capability 191 EW Upgrades and Project Echidna 191 Further Defence Reviews 192 The Restructure of Maintenance and Logistics Support 194 Amalgamation of Maintenance Units 195 Notes 197 7. Sustainment 1993–2010 201 The F-111G Acquisition 201 The F-111G Acquisition – The Political Fallout 205 The Deseal/Reseal Disaster 206 The Deseal/Reseal Process 208 The Study of Health Outcomes 210 The JSCFADT Committee Review 211 vii Preface This book covers a 50-year history—that of is used, immediately followed by its abbreviated Australia’s first and foremost strategic weapon, form, and thereafter using only the acronym. I have the F-111. As such, it spans the experience of five included a list of abbreviations and acronyms for generations of air and ground crew, of politicians reference. who were both for and against the aircraft, and of defence contractors both in Australia and the Metric and Imperial/US Measures United States.