The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was designed to be an interceptor aircraft and act as the core
of USAF air defenses in the late 1950s. The F-102 first appeared in service in 1956 with the
task to intercept Soviet bombers. The official name for the F-102 was “Delta Dagger” but the
most common term used was “Deuce”. There was 889 F-102As manufactured when production
ended in September 1958.

On March 21, 1962 under Project “Water Glass” the first operational deployment to Vietnam of
F-102's took place and remained there under Project “Candy Machine”. In March of 1962 F-102’
s of the 509th FIS were sent on Temporary Duty (TDY) to Tan Son Nhut Air Base near Saigon
as well as from Da Nang, South Vietnam (at the time) and Don Muang (Thailand). In 1968 Da
Nang was the busiest airport in the world with just under 2,600 daily air traffic operations. The
Deuces (F-102) were used as interceptors, some escort duty, and even ground attack. In
December of 1969 the F-102’s were withdrawn from Vietnam and at that time had lost 15
aircraft to AAA, destroyed on the ground by the Viet Cong, small arms fire and operational
accidents.

Specifications Convair (F-102A) Delta Dagger “Deuce”
Role - Supersonic All-Weather, delta wing interceptor
Crew – 1 pilot
Number Produced – 889
Dimensions
Length – 68 ft 4 in   (20.83 m)
Wingspan – 38 ft 1 in   (11.61 m)
Height – 21 ft 2 in   (6.45 m)

Weight
Empty – 19,350 lb   8,777 kg)
Loaded – 24,500 lb   (11,100 kg)
Maximum Takeoff – 31,500 lb   (14,300 kg)

Powerplant – 1 x Pratt & Whitney J57-P-25 afterburning turbojet
Thrust
Dry – 11,700 lbf   (8,777 kg)
With Afterburner – 17,200 lbf   (76.5 kN)
Fuel
Internal – 1.085 US gal   (4,107 l)
External – 2 x 215 US gal   (815 l) drop tanks

Performance
Maximum Speed – Mach 1.25 (825 mph, 1,304 km/h) @ 40,000 ft   (12,190 m)
Service Ceiling – 53,400 ft   (16,300 m)
ROC – 13,000 ft/min   (66 m/s)
Range – 1,350 nm   (2,175 km)

Armament
Rockets – 24 x 2.75 in   (70 mm) FFAR (Folding Fin Aerial Rocket) unguided rockets in missile
bay doors
Missiles
AIM-4 Falcon air-to-air
AIM-26 Falcon with conventional or nuclear warhead
Missiles were contained in 3 bays inside the aircraft belly

Avionics – MG-10 fire control system designed by Hughes Aircraft Company

This new site is being updated regularly and it will be much improved before too long. Please be patient, give it time, and check back regularly. Opportunities for community collaboration are in the works for a little further down the road.