Grumman F7F Tigercat

History of the Grumman F7F Tigercat

The F7F Tigercat is another carrier-based development in Grumman's long series of fighter jets, called the Cat. The system was originally designed as a twin-engine fighter jet for off-deck use on the U.S. Navy's Midway-class aircraft carriers. Unfortunately, the aircraft proved too fast and too large for these ships (either in service or in storage) and was therefore used by the US Marine Corps as a land-based strike fighter. The Tigercat came too late to be used in World War II, but saw combat in the upcoming Korean War.

The F7F's design earned some historical distinctions by becoming the world's first dedicated twin-engine carrier-based fighter to be mass-produced with three-wheeled landing gear. The Tigercat also became the U.S. Navy's first certified twin-engine fighter jet.

By the early 1930s, Grumman had proven itself to be a capable aerospace company with a carrier-based fighter product. The F4F Wildcat proved to be an indispensable ally on the defensive and offensive fronts of the Pacific theater early and mid-term.

The vastly improved F6F Hellcat - equipped with a powerful Pratt & Whitney "Twin Wasp" radial piston engine - raised the bar several notches and helped the Allies regain air superiority for the remainder of the war. So it's no surprise that the same office that produced these two first-class aircraft went to great lengths to create a successor to the "Cat" family.

Beginning in development as early as 1941, Grumman engineers set out to build the ultimate form of carrier-based fighter jet anywhere in the world. To make this ultimate vision a reality, Grumman engineers will stick with the proven Hellcat engine - the Pratt & Whitney brand's R-2800 Twin Wasp - the same engine that will be known as the pinnacle of American piston flight The engines power the upcoming Grumman F8F Bearcat naval fighter.

The series subsequently progressed from the one-built XF7F-2N night fighter prototype to the F7F-2N two-seat night fighter production aircraft, of which 65 were built. These planes are basically from the original batch of F7F-1 production models, but the change to the double cockpit (with the radar operator at the rear) came on the 35th plane.

These are similar to the F7F-1 model, but can be easily distinguished as the loss of the fuel tank of the corresponding radar equipment and the rear radar operator's cockpit position.

The F7F-3 has the longest range of all Tigercat models, starting with the "improved" F7F-3 single-seat fighter-bomber, with 189 aircraft produced. The F7F-3 was essentially the problem Grumman was trying to solve that forced the Tigercat to fail initial carrier acceptance attempts.

The engine of this new Tigercat has been updated to an upgraded Pratt & Whitney R-2800-34W Meridian. These new engines provide better performance at higher altitudes, while adding fuel tanks improves range.

The vertical tail was also increased, while the armament was limited to 4 x 20mm guns (12.7mm machine gun armament was abandoned). Despite these changes, carrier acceptance attempts for the F7F-3 also failed, this time due to a wing failure. However, the life of the production F7F-3 continued, as these Tigercats were produced from at least 60 production F7F-3N two-seater night fighters (with radar nose, no machine gun armament) and 4 x 20mm cannons.

The F7F-3 also appeared in small batches on the F7F-3E electronic fighter and the F7F-3P photographic reconnaissance platform. The F7F-3 has a top speed of 435 mph. Range is 1,200 miles and service is capped at 40,700 feet. Fully loaded, the Tigercat F7F-3 Series weighs 25,775 pounds.

The only Tigercat that was eventually approved for carrier operation was the final production F7F-4N night fighter model line. The aircraft have been extensively redesigned to provide other "carrier-friendly" equipment and design elements, while keeping the F7F-3 series nose assemblies intact. Attention was also paid to strengthening the fuselage to prepare Vogel for the rigors of combat on the aircraft carrier. However, only 12 of this type were built and used by the US Navy (some sources show 13). The F7F-4 series has a top speed of 460 mph and a range of approximately 1,200 miles.

Reported service is capped at 40,400 feet, complemented by a climb rate of 4,530 feet per minute.

As mentioned above, the Tigercats missed out on combat in WWII, but the looming crisis on the Korean peninsula ensured that the new USMC aircraft could function. In fact, U.S. Marines from VMF(N)-513 were already stationed in Japan when fighting broke out between North and South Korea.

These Tigercat night fighters are commissioned and conduct night operations against invaders when needed. In addition to this type of operation, the Tigercat line had come to an end in 1954, after which the aircraft was retired from USMC service.

However, over the next two decades, when tiger cats were used to fight wildfires in the American West, a new (albeit limited) life emerged. Few tiger cats survive today, and even fewer are in flight.

By the way, the F7F Tigercat was originally called "Tomcat", but this naming convention - and its negative connotations - was eventually dropped in favor of "Tigercat". Decades later, the Tomcat name was revived (and forever associated with) the future Grumman F-14 Tomcat rotor-wing, turbofan-powered carrier-based interceptor.

Specification

Basic

Production

Roles

Dimensions

Weight

Performance

Performance

Armor

Changes