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Cranston Fine Arts  Aviation Art and Artists Modern Era Aircraft  Thunderchief |
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| Thunderchief Aviation Prints |
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| Text for the above items : |
Jaws of the Dragon by Stan Stokes. The Republic F-105 Thunderchief, or Thud, as it was nicknamed by many of the pilots who flew it, was conceived as a supersonic, low altitude fighter-bomber capable of carrying a nuclear weapon in its internal bomb bay and two more on its wing stations. The F-105 evolved from a proposal made by Republic to the USAF in 1952. A series of delays, cancellations, spec changes, and other problems resulted in a very long gestation period for this aircraft, with initial production models not reaching operational units until 1958. The Thud was a big, powerful aircraft. With a length of 65 feet and a height of 20 feet, the F-105 would typically fly combat missions with a gross weight at takeoff in excess of 50,000 pounds. Although the F-105 was fortunately never utilized for the nuclear mission it was designed for, it did become the primary tactical bomber utilized by the USAF during the Vietnam War. In fact, the Thud flew more than 75% of all the bombing sorties directed at North Vietnam during the War. The Ham Rong Bridge in North Vietnam was a frequent target for F-105s. Ham Rong translates into English as Dragons Jaws, and this very important north-south rail and highway line was a vital supply link in allowing the North Vietnamese to send streams of men and materials south. The Ham Rong Bridge was 546 feet long and was 56 feet wide. It took eight years to build this incredibly sturdy bridge and Ho Chi Minh himself dedicated the bridge in 1964. SAMs and antiaircraft batteries heavily defended it. Living up to its name, the bridge was one of the most punishing targets to attack, and many American aircraft and pilots were lost during the numerous attacks on the Dragons Jaws. From 1965 to 1968 almost seven hundred aircraft had attacked the bridge, hitting it with more than 10,000 tons of high explosives. Despite these attacks, repair crews worked around the clock, and the bridge remained usable. Rockets proved ineffective and only direct hits with large bombs were likely to do any serious damage. Recognizing this, the North Vietnamese knew that American fighter-bombers would have to pass directly over the Dragons Jaws to release their bombs. A wall of antiaircraft fire would be directed directly over the bridge during such attacks, and a horrific toll was exacted on attacking American aircraft. In Stan Stokes painting an F-105 piloted by Fred V. Cherry is depicted during an attack on the Ham Rong Bridge. Col. Cherry was shot down in October of 1965 and remained a POW until 1973. He retired from the Air Force in 1981. The Dragons Jaw stood as a symbol of North Vietnamese resistance until it was finally destroyed by a laser-guided, smart bomb in1972. |
Rolling Thunder by Robert Taylor. Flying down Thud Ridge at just below the speed of sound, Jack Broughton leads an F-105 Thunderbolt raid on the power plant at Viet Tri, North Vietnam, March12, 1967. The target was destroyed. |
Thuds by R E Pierce. No text for this item |
Lethal Encounter by William S Phillips. On April 19, 1967, then-Major Leo K. Thorsness took on, in the words of another officer, most of North Vietnam all by himself in one of the epic battles of that war. On that day, Thorsness and his backseater, Electronic Warfare Officer Captain Harold E. Johnson, fought about a half-dozenMiGs, shot down one-and probably another while protecting their wingman, who, with his backseater, had been forced to bail out of their damaged aircraft over enemy territory. The artist has captured the moment after Thorsness shot past his kill and continued on, during one of the most valiant efforts in the air war. He left the battle area only for midair refueling and then returned to ward off enemy fighters, staying even after he had run out of ammunition. |
| Top Aces for : Thunderchief | ||
| A list of all Aces from our database who are known to have flown this aircraft. A profile page is available by clicking the pilots name. | ||
| Name | Victories | Info |
| Donald J Strait | 13.50 | The signature of Donald J Strait features on some of our artwork - click here to see what is available. |
| Paul P Douglas Jr | 8.00 | The signature of Paul P Douglas Jr features on some of our artwork - click here to see what is available. |
| Thunderchief Pilot and aircrew signature details |
Lt Colonel Harold W Bingaman Our estimated value of this signature : £25 | Lt Colonel Harold W Bingaman 'Bing' Bingaman joined the service in 1951, serving first with the 510th Fighter Bomber Squadron at Langley Field. Flying the F-105 out of Thailand with the 355th TFW, he first saw combat over North Vietnam in September 1966 taking his Thud Jinkin Josie III through the Rolling Thunder Operations - missions involving visiting flak sites on the legendary attack on the Viet Tri power plant, and targets in Hanoi. |
Lt Colonel Max C Brestel Our estimated value of this signature : £20 | Lt Colonel Max C Brestel Max Brestel was commissioned and received his wings in 1957. While a member of the 354th TFW he was the first American pilot to shoot down two MiGs in the Vietnam War whilst flying an F-105 on a raid against the Thai Nguyen steel mill on March 10th 1967. He flew a total of 247 combat missions, including 107 over North Vietnam. |
 Colonel Jacksel M Broughton Our estimated value of this signature : £20 | Colonel Jacksel M Broughton Jacksel Broughton was born on January 4, 1925 in Utica, New York. Jacksel Broughton was a 1942 graduate of Brighton High School in Rochester, New York. Broughton entered the United States Military Acedemy on July 15th, 1942, in the wartime three-year curriculum that eliminated the cadet second class (junior) year. Graduating from West Point in 1945, he was commissioned into the United States Air Force. Jacksel Broughton was initially assigned to Europe, flying P-47s and P-51s. He converted to jets at Nellis AFB, he flew a combat tour in Korea in P-80s, and a second tour in F-84s. After various operational positions he led the USAF Thunderbirds for three years - the worlds first supersonic acrobatic team. Jacksel commanded 2 tours in south east Asia flying the F-105 during Rolling Thunder missions. In his long career he accomplished being combat ready in every Air Force Fighter from the P-47 to F-106. During 4 combat tours he flew over 216 combat missions. Jacksel has written two highly respected books - Thud Ridge and Going Downtown, both first hand accounts of the air war over South East Asia. He retired from the Air Force in 1968 with the rank of Colonel on August 31st, 1968, with 43 separate awards and decorations, including four Distinguished Flying Crosses two Silver Stars and the highest Air Force decoration, the presidentially-awarded Air Force Cross. |
  Col Fred V Cherry USAF Our estimated value of this signature : £50 Died : 2016 | Col Fred V Cherry USAF Born in Suffolk, Virginia in 1928, Fred Cherry graduated from Virginia Union University (Biology Major) in 1951. He entered the USAF in 1951 and went through basic airman training at Sampson Air Force Base in Ithaca, New York. In October of that year he commenced pilot training at Malden, Missouri with later studies at Dennison/Sherman, Texas. At Webb AF13 in Texas he successfully completed Jet Fighter Pilot training and was commissioned at Second Lieutenant in October of 1952. Ten more weeks of intensive combat training ensued, after which Cherry was assigned to the 3 1 01h Fighter Bomber Squadron of the 58 th Fighter Bomber Group. He flew more than fifty combat sorties over North Korea piloting F84Gs prior to the end of hostilities in 1953. From early 1954 until August of 1958 Cherry served stateside with a number of units including the 407 th Strategic Fighter Squadron (F-84s) and the 506 h Tactical Fighter Wing (F- 1 00s.) After a short tour to Germany, Fred returned home as a full time combat crew training inspector at Luke AFB. He then served a two-year tour in Japan with the 35h Tactical Fighter Squadron of the 8h Tactical Fighter Wing where he flew F-100s. As the War in Vietnam escalated, Cherry was assigned to the 35 th Tactical Fighter Squadron, where he flew 52 combat missions while piloting the F-105D. On his last mission over North Vietnam he was shot down on October 22, 1965. He was immediately captured after surviving ejection from his F-105. He remained a prisoner of war in North Vietnam from October 1965 until February of 1973. With the end of hostilities and the return of our POWs, Fred Cherry returned to the States. He attended the National War College in 1973-74, and the Defense Intelligence School the year after. He was assigned to the Defense Intelligence Agency from June 1974 until September 1981. Following his retirement from the Air Force, Fred has had an active civilian professional career. He served as the Director of Technical Support Services for E.H. White & Co. in Washington, DC from 1982-87, and as Marketing Manager for Data Transformation Corp. after 1987. Fred Cherry's 30plus military awards and decorations include the Air Force Cross, the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit with Oak Leaf Cluster, two Distinguished Flying Crosses, two Bronze Stars, two Purple Hearts, the Air Force Commendation, the Meritorious Service Award, two President Unit Citations, and a Distinguished Unit Citation. Col. Cherry was commissioned by President Ronald Reagan to serve on the Korean War Veteran's Memorial Advisory Board. He also received the Award for Outstanding Service to the Military Community from the Tuskegee Ainnen. Cherry has been an active member of the Kiwanis International as well as the Masonic Lodge. He resides in the Washington, DC area and is currently President and CEO of Cherry Engineering Support Services. Inc. The Cherry's are blessed with six children, and eleven grandchildren. He died on 16th February 2016. A Clipped Signature is Available |
  General Paul Douglas Our estimated value of this signature : £35 Died : 2002 | General Paul Douglas After joining the military as a Private in 1940 Paul Douglas transferred to the USAAF for pilot training, arriving in Europe to join the 268th Fighter Group. Flying P-47 Thunderbolts, he was credited with 8 air victories and destroying 27 enemy aircraft on the ground. On two occasions he shot down three enemy aircraft on one mission. He commanded the 396th Fighter Squadron and became deputy commander of the 386th Fighter Group, flying a total of 136 combat missions in World War II. He later commanded the 36th Fighter Group in Belgium, France and Germany. Paul Douglas later flew 101 combat missions in the F-105 in Vietnam, and in all completed over 6000 flying hours as a command pilot, and is one of the most highly decorated Air Force pilots. Douglas died on December 26, 2002. He is buried in the Central Texas State Veteran's Cemetery in Killeen, Texas |
 Major Robert Krone Our estimated value of this signature : £20 | Major Robert Krone Bob flew an impressive 100 missions with the 469th TFS flying F-105 Thunderchiefs. Bob was the first acting commander to complete 100 missions in 1967, as the four before him did not make it, either shot down and injured or wound up as a POW. Bob earned four DFCs while flying the Thud, all in less than a year, and two in one month! |
  Major General Donald Strait Our estimated value of this signature : £55 Died : 2015 | Major General Donald Strait Don Strait was born on April 28th, 1918 and grew up in Verona, New Jersey. From an early age Don Strait wanted to be a pilot, and after working for Prudential Insurance Company for a short period Don Strait enlisted in 1940 in the 119th Observation Squadron of the New Jersey National Guard. Initially Don Strait was an armorer and moved up to become an aerial gunner in the two-seater O-46 and O-47 observation planes. He qualified as an aviation cadet in early 1942 and started his training at Maxwell Field, Alabama. After Basic and in January 1943 Strait received his wings and his commission. Don Strait got his ambition to become a fighter pilot, he began flying the P-47 Thunderbolt at Westover Field, MA. After checking out in the P-47 and completing transition training he was assigned to the 356th Fighter Group, then at Bradley Field, CT. By August, 1943 Don Strait had been promoted to Captain before being transferred to England. Captain Don Strait with the 356th Fighter Group went to Martlesham Heath in England flying first the P-47 Thunderbolt. Martlesham Heath was just five miles from the North Sea, which made it relatively easy to find when returning from a mission in bad weather. The 356th made its first combat sorties in October, 1943, with sweeps over Holland and northern France; sightings of Luftwaffe planes were quite rare, and the group took over a month to score its first aerial victory. Strait's first combat occurred on February 6th, 1944, when his flight bounced a pair of Fw190s while on an escort mission. He immediately attacked. The 190s split apart and he chased one down to the deck. He scored hits on it and the pilot bailed out - Strait's first kill. But he and his wingman had used too much fuel, and barely made it back to base. He shot down a couple more Bf109s while flying Thunderbolts on February 10th and May 19th. Having completed well over 200 combat hours, he was entitled to rotate home, but agreed to continue front-line flying, provided that he was given command of the 361st Fighter Squadron. He took a 30-day leave and returned to Europe in September, 1944. He and Captain George May, the intelligence officer, reviewed daily sightings and disposition of the Luftwaffe, which helped him plan and lead the squadron's missions. Don Strait took part in long range bomber escort and ground support missions, taking part in all the D-Day operations, before converting to P51s. The group flew their first Mustang mission on November 20, the same day that Strait assumed command of the 361st FS. In two combat tours he flew a total of 122 missions. He led the squadron again on November 26, 1944, when it flew an escort mission over the heavily defended Ruhr. After linking up with the B-17s just east of Holland, the pilots were advised of 40 bandits approaching from the south. As Strait's sixteen Mustangs arrived in the Osnabruck area, they spotted the 40 Bf109s at 25,000 feet. They dropped tanks and attacked. Then Strait spotted about another 150 German fighters at various altitudes, preparing to attack the bombers. 'We've got the whole damn Luftwaffe!' he radioed. He closed to within 350 yards of an enemy airplane and fired - it dived away smoking. Strait's wingman saw it crash. Strait soon bounced another 109, but it eluded him. He spotted a third and closed to within 300 yards, and exploded it (a shared kill with Lt. Shelby Jett). After this dogfighting, fuel began to be a concern, so they headed home. That day the 356th FG destroyed 23 enemy aircraft without losing a single American. After two more victories on December 5th, Strait found more air combat on Christmas Day. In action again against Bf109s, he had a nasty moment when his first victim left oil and engine coolant all over his windscreen. Skidding away, Strait almost rammed his foe. He continued shooting down German planes in 1945 - an Fw190 on Jan. 14th, another Fw190 on Feb 14th, and three Fiesler Storch light observation planes on Feb 20th. Don Strait commanded the 361st Fighter Squadron, and became the Group's leading fighter Ace with 13 and a half air victories, all but three of these flying the P51. After the war he rejoined the NJ Air National Guard. He later commanded the 108th Tactical Wing in Korea, where he flew the F86, F84, and F105 jet. Participated in the Cuban Missile Crisis, and Vietnam. He retired from the Air Force in 1978 with the rank of Major General, and was inducted into the New Jersey Aviation Hall of Fame in 1989. Donald Strait died on 30th March 2015. A Clipped Signature is Available |
Colonel Leo K Thorsness Our estimated value of this signature : £20 | Colonel Leo K Thorsness Leo Thorsness flew 92.5 missions in the two seater F-105F Wild Weasels. The job of these specially equipped models was to pinpoint the North Vietnamese SAM (surface to air) missile sites, by getting the sites to activate their radar and fire their missiles at them, so that F-105s could see, attack and destroy the SAM ground radar sites. On April 19th 1967 for one such mission with the 357th TFS, Leo Thorsness was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. On April 30th his luck ran out- he was shot down just 7 missions short of his combat tour. Taken prisoner, he spent six years as a POW in North Vietnam. |
| Thunderchief Squadron details |
354th Tactical Fighter Wing Country : US | 354th Tactical Fighter Wing |
355th Tactical Fighter Wing Country : US | 355th Tactical Fighter Wing |
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