ROCKET KING: The Extraordinary Nuclear Rocket Armed Scorpion Was The F-35 Of The 1950s

The F-35 Lightning is a remarkable technological feat. A flying computer packed with advanced systems and cutting edge weapons. Despite its dynamic limitations, it is a lethal air-to-air fighter and strike aircraft.

But this isn’t the first time that the US has sought to push the technological boundaries in such a profound manner.

In the early 1950s the US Air Defence Command began to deploy the F-89 Scorpion, the F-35 of its day. A glamorous movie star of a plane that embodied the technological ambition of the 1950s. It was the first aircraft to automate intercept and fire control. The first to be armed primarily with air-to-air missiles. And it remains the only fighter to launch a live nuclear air-to-air rocket. Despite its celebrity in period and its numerous firsts, the F-89 is now largely forgotten.

In this video I’m going to explain its many remarkable features and capabilities and make the case for greater recognition for the F-89. I’ve focused in particular on how and why the Scorpion’s weapon load evolved over its ten year life, the avionics that directed those weapons and how the combination functioned as part of the US air defence system in the 1950s and 1960s. It’s an unashamedly deep dive that includes a bunch of data and anecdotes I’ve collected and squirrelled away over the years.

I really hope you enjoy this one. I recognise it’s a bit niche and maybe a bit more factual than recent videos. If you have feedback on the format or the topic, I’d really love to hear it in the comments. I’m trying to improve with every video and your input has been a great help.

Sources and notes

Deep dive into the attack curve for the F-100 Super Sabre, using 20mm cannons and AIM-9B Sidewinder:    • AERIAL ATTACK STUDY: F-100 Super Sabr...  

I used information and diagrams from the USAF Flight Manuals for the F-89B, C, D, H and J to understand the operational and functional differences between the types and illustrate them in the video. I’ve done my best to repair the document scans but you’ll doubtless find some flaws - my Photoshop skills aren’t that great!

The excellent (but sadly out of print) Aerofax Datagraph 8 on the F-89 Scorpion provided some of the data around pricing and information about weapon weights. I verified the latter using calculations based on weapon data from Wikipedia

Some squadron context and general information came from F-89 Scorpion In Action. Unfortunately this is also out of print, but quite a lot of new copies seem to be in circulation

Context on the ADC’s detection and deconfliction system and interceptor doctrine in the early 1950s are from The Emerging Shield by Kenneth Schaffel

The history of the Plumbbomb John test came from Wikipedia and This Day In Aviation