The Vought F7U Cutlass is a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

carrier-based

jet fighter Fighter aircraft (early on also ''pursuit aircraft'') are military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the air ...

and

fighter-bomber A fighter-bomber is a fighter aircraft that has been modified, or used primarily, as a light bomber or attack aircraft. It differs from bomber and attack aircraft primarily in its origins, as a fighter that has been adapted into other roles, wh ...

designed and produced by the aircraft manufacturer Chance Vought. It was the first tailless production fighter in the United States as well as the Navy's first jet equipped with

swept wing A swept wing is a wing angled either backward or occasionally forward from its root rather than perpendicular to the fuselage. Swept wings have been flown since the pioneer days of aviation. Wing sweep at high speeds was first investigated in Ge ...

s and the first to be designed with

afterburner An afterburner (or reheat in British English) is an additional combustion component used on some jet engines, mostly those on military supersonic aircraft. Its purpose is to increase thrust, usually for supersonic flight, takeoff, and combat ...

s. The Cutlass was developed from the mid 1940s to early 1950s as Vought's entry in a United States Navy competition. Their design team, which was influenced by design information obtained from

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

, opted for a tailless configuration paired with low

aspect ratio The aspect ratio of a geometry, geometric shape is the ratio of its sizes in different dimensions. For example, the aspect ratio of a rectangle is the ratio of its longer side to its shorter side—the ratio of width to height, when the rectangl ...

swept wings, which was regarded as a radical departure from traditional aircraft design for the era. Vought's submission was favoured by Navy officials and was declared the winner in 1946. On 29 September 1948, the prototype performed its

maiden flight The maiden flight, also known as first flight, of an aircraft is the first occasion on which it leaves the ground under its own power. The same term is also used for the first launch of rockets. In the early days of aviation it could be dange ...

; all three prototypes would be lost during the flight test program. It was initially powered by a pair of

Westinghouse J34 The Westinghouse J34, company designation Westinghouse 24C, was a turbojet engine developed by Westinghouse Aviation Gas Turbine Division in the late 1940s. Essentially an enlarged version of the earlier Westinghouse J30, the J34 produced 3,000 ...

turbojet The turbojet is an airbreathing jet engine which is typically used in aircraft. It consists of a gas turbine with a propelling nozzle. The gas turbine has an air inlet which includes inlet guide vanes, a compressor, a combustion chamber, and ...

engines which were relatively underpowered, contributing to its accident-prone nature; its unreliable

hydraulic Hydraulics () is a technology and applied science using engineering, chemistry, and other sciences involving the mechanical properties and use of liquids. At a very basic level, hydraulics is the liquid counterpart of pneumatics, which concer ...

flight control system was also a source of difficulties. The first production model of the Cutlass, ''F7U-1'', entered service during July 1951. It was promptly followed by ''F7U-2'' and ''F7U-3'', improved models that were equipped with more powerful engines amongst other refinements. However, the Cutlass continued to suffer from frequent technical and handling problems throughout the aircraft's short service career. Accidents involving the type were responsible for the deaths of four test pilots and 21 other U.S. Navy pilots. Over one quarter of all Cutlasses built were destroyed in accidents; this high rate of accidents led to the type being withdrawn during the late 1950s despite having been in service for less than ten years.

Development

Background

The Cutlass was developed in response to a competition organised by the

for a new carrier-capable day fighter that was launched on 1 June 1945.Thomason 2008, p. 105. Specific requirements of the competition included the ability to fly at speeds of up to and altitudes of up to . Vought decided to respond with a relatively radical design for the era. Vought's design team opted for an unconventional tailless configuration; this decision was heavily influenced by aerodynamic data obtained for various wartime projects undertaken by the German Arado and Messerschmitt companies that had been obtained at the close of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

through German scientists who worked on the projects, though Vought designers denied any link to the German research at the time.Angelucci 1987, p. 447. Specifically, former

Messerschmitt AG Messerschmitt AG () was a German share-ownership limited, aircraft manufacturing corporation named after its chief designer Willy Messerschmitt from mid-July 1938 onwards, and known primarily for its World War II fighter aircraft, in partic ...

senior designer

Woldemar Voigt Woldemar Voigt (; 2 September 1850 – 13 December 1919) was a German mathematician and physicist. Biography Voigt was born in Leipzig, and died in Göttingen. He was a student of Franz Ernst Neumann. Voigt taught at the Georg August Universi ...

, who supervised the development of numerous experimental jet fighters in

, contributed to its design with his experience in the development of the Messerschmitt P.1110 and P.1112 projects.LePage 2009, pp. 275–276.Schick and Meyer 1997, p. 167. The F7U was the last aircraft designed by

Rex Beisel Rex Buren Beisel (October 24, 1893 – January 26, 1972) was an American aeronautical engineer and pioneer in the science and industry of aviation. He was the lead designer of several successful military and civilian aircraft, but is best known fo ...

, who was responsible for the first fighter ever designed specifically for the U.S. Navy, the Curtiss TS-1 of 1922. Vought's design was given the company type number ''V-346'' and later received the official designation of ''F7U'' when the aircraft was announced to be the winner of the competition. Reviewing official found the design, despite its unconventional nature, to pose an acceptable level of risk, less so than some of the competing submissions. During June 1946, an initial order for three ''XF7U-1'' prototypes, each powered by a pair of

engines, was issued to the company. Construction took place at Vought's plant in

Stratford, Connecticut Stratford is a New England town, town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It is situated on Long Island Sound at the mouth of the Housatonic River. The town is part of the Greater Bridgeport Planning Region, Connecticut, Greater Bri ...

.Thomason 2008, p. 107.

Flight testing

On 29 September 1948, the first prototype performed its

from

Naval Air Station Patuxent River Naval Air Station Patuxent River , also known as NAS Pax River, is a United States naval air station in St. Mary’s County, Maryland on the Chesapeake Bay near the mouth of the Patuxent River. It is home to Headquarters, Naval Air Systems Comm ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, piloted by Vought's chief test pilot, J. Robert Baker. Several issues were encountered during this initial flight. Shortly thereafter, the Navy announced that the aircraft would be named ''Cutlass''.Thomason 2008, p. 108. During subsequent flight testing, one of the prototypes attained a maximum speed of 625 mph (1,058 km/h).Angelluci 1987, p. 448. During September 1949, Vought received a contract to modify the design and to produce 88 ''F7U-2'' Cutlasses for the Navy.Thomason 2008, p. 108. In May 1950, the Navy opted to halt ''F7U-1'' production at 14 aircraft in favor of the updated model.Thomason 2008, p. 111. None of the 14 F7U-1s built between 1950 and 1952 were approved for use in squadron service. On 7 July 1950, Vought test pilot Paul Thayer ejected from his burning prototype in front of an airshow crowd. Around this time, Vought repeatedly noted its dissatisfaction with the Westinghouse J34 engine to the Navy, alleging that the powerplant was responsible for delivery delays and an inability to perform certain flight tests.Thomason 2008, p. 94. Funding for the Cutlass was briefly cut before being reinstated during 1950.Thomason 2008, p. 115. The extent of the aircraft's development difficulties were such that, according to aviation author Tommy Thomason, there were serious considerations towards cancelling the Cutlass entirely during the latter half of 1951, however, severe difficulties with the

Westinghouse J40 The Westinghouse J40 was an early high-performance afterburning turbojet engine designed by Westinghouse Aviation Gas Turbine Division starting in 1946 to a US Navy Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer) request. BuAer intended to use the design in sever ...

that powered many of its potential competing aircraft and thus the Navy had no solid alternative to readily take its place.Thomason 2008, pp. 94, 116. The introduction of more powerful

steam catapult An aircraft catapult is a device used to help fixed-wing aircraft gain enough airspeed and lift for takeoff from a limited distance, typically from the deck of a ship. They are usually used on aircraft carrier flight decks as a form of assist ...

s during 1952 also aided the programme considerably. On 20 December 1951, the improved F7U-3 took off for its maiden flight; this model was a reconfiguration of the aircraft towards a more general purpose fighter configuration.Thomason 2008, p. 116. Specific changes included the use of more powerful Westinghouse J46 engines, a stronger airframe that was enlarged by one-third, as well as better maintenance access via additional panels.Thomason 2008, p. 95. Test pilot (and later,

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...

)

Wally Schirra Walter Marty Schirra Jr. ( ; March 12, 1923 – May 3, 2007) was an American naval aviator (United States), naval aviator, test pilot, and NASA astronaut. In 1959, he became one of the Mercury Seven, original seven astronauts chosen for Pro ...

wrote in his autobiography that he considered the F7U-3 to be accident prone and a "widow maker". Several positive observations were also recorded by test pilots, such as it being a stable weapons platform, relatively maneuverable, fun to fly, and fairly sturdy with the strengthened airframe. Furthermore, test pilots gave particular praise for its high roll rate of 570 degrees/s, which was three times faster than most production jets at the time. Some pilots have suggested that inexperience with swept wing aircraft, as well as other innovative features of the aircraft, likely contributed to the poor accident record. Early on, it was discovered that the Cutlass would gyrate after experiencing a stall. During one test flight, Lt. Morrey Loso's Cutlass exhibited such behavior, tumbling towards the ground following a stall. Upon letting go of the control stick to reach with both hands for the ejection handle, Loso's Cutlass promptly self-corrected. It was determined that normal recovery procedures did not apply to the Cutlass, a conclusion that was later confirmed via

wind tunnel A wind tunnel is "an apparatus for producing a controlled stream of air for conducting aerodynamic experiments". The experiment is conducted in the test section of the wind tunnel and a complete tunnel configuration includes air ducting to and f ...

testing.

Design

The Vought F7U Cutlass was a carrier-based

and

. It featured broad chord, low

s, with twin wing-mounted tail fins either side of a short

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French language, French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds Aircrew, crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an Aircraft engine, engine as wel ...

. There were no flaps. The

cockpit A cockpit or flight deck is the area, on the front part of an aircraft, spacecraft, or submersible, from which a pilot controls the vehicle. The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the controls th ...

, which was

pressurized Pressurization or pressurisation is the application of pressure in a given situation or environment. Examples Industrial Industrial equipment is often maintained at pressures above or below atmospheric. Atmospheric This is the process by which a ...

, was situated well forward to provide good visibility for the

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...

during aircraft carrier approaches. The pilot was provisioned with an

ejector seat In aircraft, an ejection seat or ejector seat is a system designed to rescue the aircraft pilot, pilot or other aircrew, crew of an aircraft (usually military) in an emergency. In most designs, the seat is propelled out of the aircraft by an exp ...

. Common nicknames for the F7U amongst naval aviators included the "Gutless Cutlass", the "Ensign Eliminator" and, in kinder moments, the "Praying Mantis".O'Rourke, G.G, CAPT USN. "Of Hosenoses, Stoofs, and Lefthanded Spads." ''United States Naval Institute Proceedings'', July 1968. Both pitch and

roll Roll may refer to: Physics and engineering * Rolling, a motion of two objects with respect to each-other such that the two stay in contact without sliding * Roll angle (or roll rotation), one of the 3 angular degrees of freedom of any stiff bo ...

control was provided by

elevon Elevons or tailerons are aircraft control surfaces that combine the functions of the elevator (used for pitch control) and the aileron (used for roll control), hence the name. They are frequently used on tailless aircraft such as flying wings. ...

s, though Vought referred to these surfaces as "ailevators" at the time.

Slats Super Low Altitude Test Satellite (SLATS) or Tsubame was a JAXA satellite intended to demonstrate operations in very low Earth orbit (VLEO, below 200 km), using ion engines to counteract aerodynamic drag (physics), drag from the atmosphere ...

were fitted to the entire span of the

leading edge The leading edge is the part of the wing that first contacts the air;Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 305. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 1997. alternatively it is the foremost edge of an airfoil sectio ...

. The aircraft was provisioned with all-

flight controls; these provided artificial feedback so the pilot could feel aerodynamic forces acting on the aircraft. The hydraulic system operated at 3000 psi, twice that of other Navy aircraft; however, the system proved to be not ready for front-line service and experienced a high level of unreliability. Allegedly, this was at least partially due to many components having been intended for lower pressure hydraulic systems, resulting in a high rate of failure and thus exacerbating overall unreliability. During flight testing, aviator

John Glenn John Herschel Glenn Jr. (July 18, 1921 – December 8, 2016) was an American Marine Corps aviator, astronaut, businessman, and politician. He was the third American in space and the first to orbit the Earth, circling it three times in 1 ...

and various test pilots found the muzzle blast from the 20mm cannons caused the engines to flame out, however this was solved when the US Navy approached weapons expert George M. Chinn who designed a flame-out eliminator, a similar device to the Cutts compensator used on the

Thompson submachine gun The Thompson submachine gun (also known as the "Tommy gun", "Chicago typewriter", or "trench broom") is a blowback-operated, selective-fire submachine gun, invented and developed by Brigadier General John T. Thompson, a United States Arm ...

to divert the muzzle blast that solved the problem. The very long nose

landing gear Landing gear is the undercarriage of an aircraft or spacecraft that is used for taxiing, takeoff or landing. For aircraft, it is generally needed for all three of these. It was also formerly called ''alighting gear'' by some manufacturers, s ...

strut required for high

angle of attack In fluid dynamics, angle of attack (AOA, α, or \alpha) is the angle between a Airfoil#Airfoil terminology, reference line on a body (often the chord (aircraft), chord line of an airfoil) and the vector (geometry), vector representing the relat ...

takeoff Takeoff is the phase of flight in which an aerospace vehicle leaves the ground and becomes airborne. For aircraft traveling vertically, this is known as liftoff. For aircraft that take off horizontally, this usually involves starting with a tr ...

s lifted the pilot 14 feet into the air and was fully steerable.Thomason 2008, pp. 105–106. The high position of the nose relative to the flight deck posed visibility difficulties for the pilot.Thomason 2008, p. 113. Furthermore, the high stresses of barrier engagements, and side-loads imposed during early deployment carrier landings caused failure of the retract cylinder's internal down-locks, causing nose gear failure and resultant spinal injuries to the pilot. To help mitigate the loading forces exerted upon the nose landing gear actuator and mounting structure, Vought's design engineers added small turbines, powered by

bleed air Bleed air in aerospace engineering is compressed air taken from the compressor stage of a gas turbine, upstream of its fuel-burning sections. Automatic air supply and cabin pressure controller (ASCPC) valves bleed air from low or high stage engine ...

from the engines, to pre-spin on the nosegear tires to 90 mph prior to landing. Furthermore, an automatic fuel transfer system maintained the aircraft's

center of gravity In physics, the center of mass of a distribution of mass in space (sometimes referred to as the barycenter or balance point) is the unique point at any given time where the weighted relative position of the distributed mass sums to zero. For ...

. The initial models of the Cutlass were powered by a pair of

engines; these were widely considered to be underpowered and several pilots disparagingly claimed that they "put out less heat than Westinghouse's toasters." The J34 produced considerably less power than had been originally projected by Westinghouse, yet it was the only engine that could fit the airframe of the Cutlass without extensive reworking. Later production aircraft were provisioned with the more powerful Westinghouse J46 engine. The F7U-3M model was the first aircraft in US Navy service to be capable of firing the AAM-N-2 Sparrow I

air-to-air missile An air-to-air missile (AAM) is a missile fired from an aircraft for the purpose of destroying another aircraft (including unmanned aircraft such as cruise missiles). AAMs are typically powered by one or more rocket motors, usually solid-fuel roc ...

.Thomason 2008, p. 119. While it had been intended to equip the Cutlass with

radar Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...

, such apparatus would be excluded due to weight constraints.Thomason 2008, pp. 116, 119.

Operational history

Production orders were placed for the ''F7U-1'' under a specification that remained relatively close to that of the prototypes, and further developed ''F7U-2'' and ''F7U-3'' versions with more powerful engines. Because of development problems with the powerplant, however, the F7U-2 would never be built, while the F7U-3 would incorporate many refinements that came out of flight tests of the -1. The first 16 F7U-3s were powered by non-afterburning

Allison J35 The General Electric/Allison J35 was the United States Air Force's first axial-flow (straight-through airflow) compressor jet engine. Originally developed by GE Aviation, General Electric (GE company designation TG-180) in parallel with the Fran ...

-A-29 engines. The -3, with its Westinghouse J46-WE-8B turbojets, would eventually become the definitive production version, a total of 288 aircraft equipping 13 U.S. Navy squadrons. Further development of the type came to an end shortly after flight testing of the more capable

Vought F8U Crusader The Vought F-8 Crusader (originally F8U) is a single-engine, supersonic, carrier-based air superiority jet aircraft designed and produced by the American aircraft manufacturer Vought. It was the last American fighter that had guns as the primar ...

commenced. The F7U's performance suffered due to a lack of sufficient engine

thrust Thrust is a reaction force described quantitatively by Newton's third law. When a system expels or accelerates mass in one direction, the accelerated mass will cause a force of equal magnitude but opposite direction to be applied to that ...

; consequently, its carrier landing and take-off performance was notoriously poor. The J35 was known to flame out in rain, a very serious fault. The first fleet squadron to receive F7Us was Fighter Squadron 81 (VF-81) in April 1954. Few squadrons made deployments with the type, and most "beached" them ashore during part of the cruise owing to operating difficulties. Those units known to have taken the type to sea were: * VF-124, , August 1955 – March 1956. After pilot George Millard was killed in a Cutlass landing accident, the captain ordered every Cutlass off the ship and the squadron spent its Pacific cruise at the Atsugi naval air station in Japan * VA-66, , November 1955 – August 1956; after a pilot was injured after a nose gear collapse, the captain summoned the squadron leader, confined both he and all his pilots to quarters, and ordered the squadron ashore at

Naval Air Station Port Lyautey Naval Air Station Port Lyautey is a former United States Navy Naval Air Station in Morocco, about north-northwest of Kenitra and about northeast of Casablanca. The Naval Air Station was turned over to the Royal Moroccan Air Force and the last ...

. * VA-86, , January–March 1956 shakedown cruise * VA-83, , March–September 1956 * VA-116, USS ''Hancock'', April–September 1957 *

VA-151 State Route 151 (SR 151) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. The state highway runs from U.S. Route 29 in Virginia, U.S. Route 29 (US 29) at Buffalo Hill, Virginia, Buffalo Hill north to U.S. Route 250 in Virginia, US 25 ...

, , May–December 1956 * VA-212, , August 1956 – February 1957 * Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 4 (VX-4), and USS ''Lexington'' During 1957, Chance Vought analyzed the accident record and found that, with 78 accidents and a quarter of the airframes lost while accumulating 55,000 flight hours, the Cutlass had the highest accident rate of all Navy swept-wing fighters. Furthermore, according to Thomason, accidents involving the Cutlass were typically more severe than with other aircraft.Thomason 2008, p. 123. The aircraft's poor safety record caused Vice Admiral Harold M. "Beauty" Martin, air commander of the

United States Pacific Fleet The United States Pacific Fleet (USPACFLT) is a theater-level component command of the United States Navy, located in the Pacific Ocean. It provides naval forces to the Indo-Pacific Command. Fleet headquarters is at Joint Base Pearl Harbor� ...

, to replace the Cutlass with the Grumman F9F-8 Cougar; the decision was somewhat abrupt, with new aircraft continuing to be delivered for a time after this. Nevertheless, the outstanding order for 250 Cutlass A2U-1, a ground-attack variant, was soon cancelled. During the late 1950s, the Navy donated many of the now-surplus aircraft to various municipalities and schools to promote aviation.

Blue Angels

The Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, the

Blue Angels The Blue Angels, formally named the U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, are a Aerobatics, flight demonstration squadron of the United States Navy.. Blue Angels official site. Formed in 1946, the unit is the second oldest formal aerobatics ...

, flew two F7U-1 Cutlasses (BuNos 124426 & 124427) as a side demonstration during their 1953 show season in an effort to promote the new aircraft, but did not use them as part of their regular formation demonstration. Both the pilots and ground crews found the aircraft generally unsatisfactory, and it was apparent that the type was still experiencing multiple teething troubles.Angelluci 1987, p. 448. However, there were political pressures to adopt the Cutlass, both from several senior officers and from

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

s. Among the failures were landing gear failures, hydraulic failures, engine fires while in the air and, on one occasion, a landing gear door fell on a spectator grandstand but, through sheer luck, did not injure anyone. Following these incidents, the two Cutlasses were deemed unsuitable for demonstration flying and were flown to

Naval Air Station Memphis Naval Support Activity Mid-South (NSA Mid-South, NAVSUPPACT Mid-South, NSAMS), in Millington, Tennessee, is a base of the United States Navy. A part of the Navy Region Southeast and the Navy Installations Command, NSA Mid-South serves as the Navy ...

, Tennessee, where they were abandoned to become aircraft maintenance instructional airframes for the Naval Technical Training Center. The Blue Angels would opt to use the

Grumman F9F Panther The Grumman F9F Panther is an early carrier-based jet fighter designed and produced by the American aircraft manufacturer Grumman. It was the first jet-powered fighter aircraft to see air-to-air combat with the United States Navy as well as be ...

in place of the Cutlass.

Variants

;XF7U-1 :Three prototypes ordered on 25 June 1946 (BuNos 122472, 122473 & 122474). First flight, 29 September 1948; all three aircraft were destroyed in crashes.Gunston 1981, p. 235. ;F7U-1 :The initial production version, 14 built. Powered by two J34-WE-32 engines. ;F7U-2 :Proposed version, planned to be powered by two Westinghouse J34-WE-42 engines with

, but the order for 88 aircraft was cancelled. ;XF7U-3 :Designation given to one aircraft built as the prototype for the F7U-3, BuNo 128451. First flight: 20 December 1951. ;F7U-3 :The definitive production version, 180 built. Powered by two Westinghouse J46-WE-8B turbojets. The first sixteen aircraft, including the prototype, were powered by interim J35-A-29 non-afterburning engines. F7U-3P NAN11-54

;F7U-3P :Photo-reconnaissance version, 12 built. With a longer nose and equipped with photo flash cartridges, none of these aircraft saw operational service, being used only for research and evaluation purposes. ;F7U-3M :This missile capable version was armed with four AAM-N-2 Sparrow I air-to-air beam-riding missiles. 98 built of which 48 F7U-3 airframes under construction were upgraded to F7U-3M standard. An order for 202 additional aircraft was cancelled. ;A2U-1 :Designation given to a cancelled order of 250 aircraft to be used in the

ground attack Close air support (CAS) is defined as aerial warfare actions—often air-to-ground actions such as strafes or airstrikes—by military aircraft against hostile targets in close proximity to friendly forces. A form of fire support, CAS requires ...

role. ;V-362 :Interceptor proposal as a rival to the F-3 Demon with XJ-40 Westinghouse Jet Engines. ;V-366H :The Vought V-366H was a modernization project for the Vought F7U-3. The main design objectives were to reduce the overall dimensions of the aircraft while increasing the payload. Due to the unusual layout, both goals were achieved. With a slight increase in the wingspan, the length of the fuselage was significantly reduced, and the fuel reserves increased. Also installed is a launcher for unguided air-to-air missiles Mighty Mouse as on the F-89 Scorpion, while maintaining the cannon armament. Work on the V-366H was stopped due to the recognition of the F7U design as a whole outdated and the imminent need to create supersonic carrier-based fighters. ;V-373 :Proposal for a supersonic capable variant powered by a

Pratt & Whitney J57 The Pratt & Whitney J57 (company designation: JT3C) is an axial-flow turbojet engine developed by Pratt & Whitney in the early 1950s. The J57 (first run January 1950) was the first 10,000 lbf (45 kN) thrust class engine in the United State ...

. ;V-389 :Proposal for an improved performance attack aircraft based upon the A2U-1 Cutlass. The proposal featured a single Pratt and Whitney J57-P-4.

Operators

F7U-3M Cutlass Launches from Intrepid CV11 1954

; *

** VC-3 ** VX-3 **

VX-4 VX-4, Air Test and Evaluation Squadron Four (AIRTEVRON FOUR), commonly referred to by its nickname of The Evaluators, was a United States Navy air test and evaluation squadron based at Naval Air Station Point Mugu, California. Their tail code was ...

** VX-5 **

VA-12 Attack Squadron 12 (VA-12), also known as the "Flying Ubangis" or "Clinchers", was an attack squadron of the United States Navy active during the Cold War. From their home port at Naval Air Station Cecil Field in Florida, the squadron made ...

** VA-34 ** VF-81/VA-66 ** VF-83/VA-83 ** VA-86 ** VA-116 ** VF-122 ** VF-124 ** VA-126 ** VF-151/VA-151 ** VF-212/VA-212

Accidents and incidents

* 26 July 1954: Pilot Lt Floyd Nugent ejected from a Cutlass armed with 2.75 inch rockets. The Cutlass continued to fly on and proceeded to circle the North Island of San Diego with its

Hotel Del Coronado The Hotel del Coronado, also known as The Del and Hotel Del, is a historic beachfront hotel in Coronado, California, just across San Diego Bay from San Diego. A rare surviving example of an American architectural genre—the wooden Victorian be ...

for 30 minutes, before it finally crashed close to shore. * 11 December 1954: During an air demonstration at the christening of aircraft carrier , pilot Lt J. W. Hood was killed when his F7U-3 had a malfunction with the wing locking mechanism and the aircraft crashed into the sea. * 30 May 1955: Pilot Lt Cmdr Payton O. Harwell's Cutlass suffered an engine fire upon takeoff on his first flight in the aircraft. Harwell ejected and was rescued by a helicopter 15 minutes later. * Pilot Tom Quillin's Cutlass took off as part of a flight of four Cutlasses. Quillin's aircraft had an electrical failure which forced him to abort his training mission and return to base. * 14 July 1955: Pilot Jay T. Alkire was killed in a ramp strike on USS ''Hancock''. * 4 November 1955: Pilot Lt George Millard was killed when his Cutlass went into the cable barrier at the end of the flight deck landing area of . The nosegear malfunctioned and drove a strut into the cockpit which triggered the ejection seat and dislodged the canopy. Millard was launched forward and hit the tail of a parked A-1 Skyraider and later died of his injuries.

Aircraft on display

Seven F7U-3 Cutlass aircraft are known to have survived: * 128451 –

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

. Prototype F7U-3, fuselage only. Originally slated as a parts source for 129565, it has been transferred to Al Casby as a possible parts source for his Cutlass 129622. Prior to its storage at

NAS North Island Naval Air Station North Island or NAS North Island , at the north end of the Coronado peninsula on San Diego Bay in San Diego, California, is part of the largest aerospace-industrial complex in the United States Navy – Naval Base Coronado ...

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

it was formerly located at the

New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology The New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (New Mexico Tech or NMT), formerly New Mexico School of Mines, is a public university in Socorro, New Mexico, United States. It offers over 30 Bachelor of Science degrees in technology, the scien ...

Socorro, New Mexico Socorro (, ''Help:Pronunciation respelling key, sə-KOR-oh'') is a city in Socorro County, New Mexico, Socorro County in the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is in the Middle Rio Grande Valley AVA, Rio Grande Valley at an elevation of . At the 2020 ...

. * 129554 –

Falcon Field (Arizona) Falcon Field is in an airport located in Maricopa County, Arizona. It was originally built northeast of Mesa, Arizona, Mesa, which later included, and owns it. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2017–2021 FAA airport categor ...

. Ex VA-212. Purchased by Len Berryman from

Geiger Field Spokane International Airport is a commercial airport in Spokane, Washington, United States, located approximately west-southwest of Downtown Spokane. It is the primary airport serving the Inland Northwest, which consists of 30 counties and ...

Spokane Spokane ( ) is the most populous city in eastern Washington and the county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It lies along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south ...

, Washington in May 1958 and displayed outside the Berryman War Memorial Park in

Bridgeport, Washington Bridgeport is a city in Douglas County, Washington. It is part of the Wenatchee−East Wenatchee Metropolitan Statistical Area. Bridgeport's population was 2,141 at the 2020 census. Bridgeport is located near the Chief Joseph Dam. History T ...

from 1958 until 1992. In June 1992 it was sold to Tom Cathcart of Ephrata, Washington. Sold in September 2014, and currently at Falcon Field, Arizona, for further restoration to airworthy condition by F7U historian Al Casby. * 129565 – USS Midway Museum in

. Ex VA-212. * 129622 –

. Ex VA-34 / VA-12 aircraft that was flown to Naval Air Reserve Training Unit (NARTU) Glenview, NAS Glenview, Illinois, where it was sporadically flown by Naval Air Reserve pilots and used for instruction of enlisted Naval Reserve aircraft maintenance personnel; ownership was then transferred to the Northbrook East Civic Association and the aircraft was moved to the Oaklane Elementary School for playground use in late November 1958. It was subsequently removed and dissected to be sold for its engines. Forward fuselage was part of Earl Reinert's collection in Mundelein, Illinois, while the rest of the aircraft went to J-46 dragster builder Fred Sibley in Elkhart, Indiana. Its components are currently reunited in the collection of F7U historian Al Casby. * 129642 – Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum in

Horsham, Pennsylvania Horsham is a census-designated place in Horsham Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 15,193 at the 2020 census. It is home to the Biddle Air National Guard Base at the former site of Naval Air Station ...

. Ex VA-12 aircraft flown to NAS Willow Grove in May 1957 to take part in an air show. Upon arrival the aircraft was stricken from active duty. It was transferred to the Naval Reserve for use as a ground training aircraft, and eventually placed as a gate guard in front of the base on US Route 611. The airframe has only 326.3 hours total flight time. Currently undergoing cosmetic refurbishment for a return to display status. * 129655 –

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Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. Ex VA-212. Cosmetically restored but incorrectly marked as an F7U-3M, this aircraft is a F7U-3. Formerly displayed at Griffith Park,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. * 129685 – Under restoration for display at the

MAPS Air Museum The MAPS Air Museum is an aviation museum in Green, Ohio, United States. Run by the Military Aviation Preservation Society, it is located off SR241 on the west side of the Akron-Canton Regional Airport. The museum holds more than 50 aircraft, ...

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. The aircraft was in the collection of the late Walter Soplata in

Newbury, Ohio Newbury Center is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community in Geauga County, Ohio, Geauga County, in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is a rural suburb of Cleveland although given how much Cleveland and Newbury have both been shri ...

.
''Chance Vought F7U-3 Cutlass''. Retrieved: 14 October 2022.

Specifications (F7U-3M)

Vought F7U-1 Cutlass 3-view line drawing

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * *

External links

Vought Aircraft Industries, F-7U Photo Gallery
{{Authority control Vought aircraft, F7U

Vought F7U Cutlass The Vought F7U Cutlass is a United States Navy aircraft carrier, carrier-based fighter aircraft, jet fighter and fighter-bomber designed and produced by the aircraft manufacturer Vought, Chance Vought. It was the first tailless aircraft, tailles ...

Twinjets Tailless aircraft Carrier-based aircraft Mid-wing aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1948 Aircraft with retractable tricycle landing gear