Grumman Aerospace
Grumman F7F-4N Tigercat
Manufactured 1943–1946 Introduction date 1944 First flight 2 November 1943

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General Info

Grumman Aerospace Grumman F7F-4N Tigercat 

General information
Type	Heavy fighter

National origin	United States
Manufacturer	Grumman
Primary users	United States NavyUnited States Marine Corps
Number built	364
History
Manufactured	1943–1946
Introduction date	1944
First flight	2 November 1943
Retired	1954
Developed into	Grumman XTSF

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History Grumman Aerospace
Grumman F7F-4N Tigercat
Manufactured 1943–1946 Introduction date 1944
First flight 2 November 1943

The Grumman F7F Tigercat is a heavy fighter aircraft that served with the United States Navy (USN) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) from late in World War II until 1954. It was the first twin-engine fighter to be deployed by the USN. While the Tigercat was delivered too late to see combat in World War II, it saw action as a night fighter and attack aircraft during the Korean War. Designed initially for service on Midway-class aircraft carriers, early production F7Fs were land-based variants. The type was too large to operate from older and smaller carriers, and only a late variant (F7F-4N) was certified for carrier service.

Design and development

Based on the earlier Grumman XP-50 that was eventually canceled, the company developed the XP-65 (Model 51) further for a future "convoy fighter" concept. In 1943, work on the XP-65 was terminated in favor of the design that would eventually become the F7F The contract for the prototype XF7F-1 was signed on 30 June 1941. Grumman's aim was to produce a fighter that outperformed and outgunned all existing fighter aircraft, and that had an auxiliary ground attack capability.

Performance of the prototype and initial production aircraft met expectations; the F7F was one of the fastest piston-engine fighters, with a top speed significantly greater than single-engine USN aircraft — 71 mph faster than a Grumman F6F Hellcat at sea level. Captain Fred Trapnell, one of the premier USN test pilots of the era, stated: "It's the best damn fighter I've ever flown." The F7F was to be heavily-armed — four 20 mm cannon and four .50 caliber (0.50 in; 12.7 mm) machine guns, as well as underwing and under-fuselage hardpoints for bombs and torpedoes. This speed and firepower was bought at the cost of heavy weight and a high landing speed, but what caused the aircraft to fail carrier suitability trials was poor directional stability with only one engine operational, as well as problems with the tailhook design. The initial production series was, therefore, used only from land bases by the USMC, as night fighters with APS-6 radar..Grumman Tigercat variants Wiki Link

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Grumman F7F-4N Tigercat
Manufactured 1943–1946 Introduction date 1944
First flight 2 November 1943

Grumman Aerospace Corporation,

Grumman Aerospace Corporation
Grumman F7F-4N Tigercat

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General characteristics

• Crew: 2
• Length: 45 ft 4 in (13.82 m)
• Wingspan: 51 ft 6 in (15.70 m)
• Height: 16 ft 7 in (5.05 m)
• Wing area: 455 sq ft (42.3 m²)
• Airfoil: root: NACA 23015; tip: NACA 23012

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Powerplant

• Empty weight:  (7,380 kg)
• Max takeoff weight: (11,666 kg)
• Powerplant: 2 × Pratt & Whitney R-2800-34W Double Wasp 18-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engines, 2,100 hp (1,600 kW) each
• Propellers: 3-bladed constant-speed fully-feathering propellers

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Specifications

• Maximum speed: Mach 2.34 (1,544 mph, 2,485 km/h) at altitude
• Range: 1,600 nmi 3,000 km)
• Combat range: (580 mi, 930 km)
• Service ceiling: (16,000 m) plus
• g limits: +7.5 g (+6.5 g  limit)
• Rate of climb: 45,000 ft/min (230 m/s) plus

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Armament

• • Guns:
    
    • 4 × 20 mm (0.79 in) AN/M3 cannon (200 rpg, wing roots)
    • 4 × 0.50 in (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine gun (400 rpg, in nose) (normal fighter versions only; replaced by radar unit in the -3N nightfighter)
  • Bombs:
    
    • 2 × 1,000 lb (454 kg) bombs, or
    • 8 x 127mm unguided rockets under wings and
    • 1 x 150 gallon fuel or napalm tank under fuselage, or
    • 1 × torpedo under fuselage (day fighter only)

Special Links Grumman Aerospace Corporation,  Grumman F7F-4N Tigercat  

Links to Youtube & Others

Beginning in 1949, F7Fs were flown to the then-U.S. Navy storage facility at Naval Air Station Litchfield Park, Arizona. Although the vast majority of the airframes were eventually scrapped, a number of examples were purchased as surplus. The surviving Tigercats were primarily used as water bombers to fight wildfires in the 1960s and 1970s and Sis-Q Flying Services of Santa Rosa, California, operated an F7F-3N tanker in this role until retirement in the late 1980s.

Grumman F7F-4N Tigercat

The F-14 Tomcat was designed as both an air superiority fighter naval interceptor.

Youtube Link

At the time of filming, the only recognizable star in the movie was Tom Cruise, who was known as a teen idol from 1983’s “Risky Business.”.

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