Republic F-84 Thunderjet

The Republic F-84 Thunderjet is an American <a href="/facts/Turbojet/tr3vYndL">turbojet</a> <a href="/facts/Fighter-bomber/263tB5NF">fighter-bomber</a> aircraft. Originating as a 1944 <a href="/facts/United_States_Army_Air_Forces/0mtva6Cw">United States Army Air Forces</a> (USAAF) proposal for a "day fighter", the F-84 first flew in 1946. Although it entered service in 1947, the Thunderjet was plagued by such a large amount of structural and engine problems that a 1948 U.S. Air Force review declared it unable to execute any aspect of its intended mission and considered canceling the program. The aircraft was not considered fully operational until the 1949 F-84D model and the design matured only with the definitive F-84G introduced in 1951. In 1954, the straight-wing Thunderjet was joined by the swept-wing <a href="/facts/F-84F_Thunderstreak/BWoAuyRC">F-84F Thunderstreak</a> fighter and RF-84F Thunderflash photo <a href="/facts/Reconnaissance_aircraft/qL3ScS18">reconnaissance aircraft</a>.
The Thunderjet became the USAF's primary strike aircraft during the <a href="/facts/Korean_War/Qo93pNhE">Korean War</a>, flying 86,408 sorties and destroying 60% of all ground targets in the war as well as eight Soviet-built <a href="/facts/Mikoyan-Gurevich_MiG-15/UmfVFcSQ">MiG fighters</a>. Over half of the 7,524 F-84s produced served with <a href="/facts/NATO/dCeTddMY">NATO</a> nations, and it was the first aircraft to fly with the <a href="/facts/U.S._Air_Force_Thunderbirds/6LXYrdyF">U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds</a> demonstration team. The <a href="/facts/USAF/7MxWBYlc">USAF</a> <a href="/facts/Strategic_Air_Command/Qp0Y5xpB">Strategic Air Command</a> had F-84 Thunderjets in service from 1948 through 1957.
The F-84 was the first production fighter aircraft to utilize <a href="/facts/Inflight_refueling/VMV3xXlW">inflight refueling</a> and the first fighter capable of carrying a <a href="/facts/Nuclear_weapon/QVdBcMdm">nuclear weapon</a>, the <a href="/facts/Mark_7_nuclear_bomb/KnfFK2l0">Mark 7 nuclear bomb</a>. Modified F-84s were used in several unusual projects, including the <a href="/facts/FICON_project/xNHG5Lxr">FICON and Tom-Tom</a> dockings to the <a href="/facts/B-29_Superfortress/79pXKprr">B-29 Superfortress</a> and <a href="/facts/B-36/GUwVqxkc">B-36</a> bomber motherships, and the experimental <a href="/facts/XF-84H_Thunderscreech/yH920F3y">XF-84H Thunderscreech</a> <a href="/facts/Turboprop/t7c8rkCx">turboprop</a>.
The F-84 nomenclature can be somewhat confusing. The straight-wing F-84A to F-84E and F-84G models were called the Thunderjet. The <a href="/facts/F-84F_Thunderstreak/BWoAuyRC">F-84F Thunderstreak</a> and RF-84F Thunderflash were different airplanes with swept wings. The XF-84H Thunderscreech (not its official name) was an experimental turboprop version of the F-84F. The F-84F swept wing version was intended to be a small variation of the normal Thunderjet with only a few different parts, so it kept the basic F-84 number. Production delays on the F-84F resulted in another order of the straight-wing version; this was the F-84G.

Republic F-84 Thunderjet open-in-new

Republic F-84 Thunderjet