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Avro Canada CF-103

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CF-103
CF-103 mock-up at the Avro company
Role Interceptor
Manufacturer Avro Aircraft Limited (Canada)
Status Cancelled December 1951
Primary user Royal Canadian Air Force(intended)
Number built 0
Developed from Avro Canada CF-100

TheAvro Canada CF-103was a proposed Canadianinterceptor,designed byAvro Canadain the early 1950s as a development, and possible replacement of the company'sCF-100 Canuck,that was entering service at the time with theRoyal Canadian Air Force(RCAF).[1]Although intended to be capable of flying attransonicspeeds, the CF-103 only offered a moderate increase in performance and capability over the CF-100; subsequently, the aircraft never progressed beyond the mock-up stage.[2]

Design and development

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Even before the prototype of the CF-100 had flown, Avro Canada was conducting studies of potential advanced variations of the aircraft,[3]as the RCAF was seeking an interceptor with greater high-speed performance.[4]Due to the perceived limitations of the CF-100's original "thick", straight wing, Chief DesignerJohn Frostproposed a series of refinements that included a thinnerswept wing.[4]In December 1950, theAvro AircraftDesign Office decided to proceed with a redesign, primarily incorporating the early series CF-100 fuselage structure with a new swept wing andtailsurfaces as part of theC-100Sdesign study.[3][N 1]

Frost considered the new design as an interim aircraft between the CF-100 and the more advancedC-104project.[3]The salient changes to the basic wing planform were in decreasing itschordand thickness, and adding a 42° sweep to the leading edge, creating a near-delta wingconfiguration. The tail surfaces were also swept back.[6]One version that was considered featured two streamlined fuel tanks blended into the leading edge of the wings near the three/quarter position.[7][N 2]

Despite the use of more powerful engines, the redesign had very modest performance specifications, with a planned maximum diving speed ofMach0.95, scarcely better than theplacardedMach 0.85 speed limit of the production CF-100 Mk 2 and Mk 3.[2]Avro executives, recognizing that the company had already suffered due to the protracted development of the CF-100, determined that Frost's revised design would provide a "hedge" against the CF-100's failure to secure long-term contracts.[7]

In 1951, theCanadian Department of Trade and Commerceissued an order for two prototypes and a static test airframe, under the CF-103 project designation. Jigs, tools and detailed engineering drawings were in place by June 1951, with wind tunnel testing, conducted atCornell University,completed by November 1951.[3]Although a woodenmock-upof the CF-103 was built, along with a separate cockpit area and engine section that was partially framed in, the mock-up did not feature an undercarriage unit nor any interior fittings.[8]Two different tail designs were fitted with the initial effort only having a swept leading edge of the tail, while the definitive version had a much more raked appearance.[7]The engineering and installation requirements for the CF-103's proposedOrenda 17jet engines were not finalized, as the experimental "hybrid" using an Orenda 8 compressor unit and Orenda 11 two-stage turbine, matched to a "reheat"unit, had not been fully developed.[N 3]

Cancellation

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During 1951, flight tests carried out by Chief Development Test Pilot S/LJanusz Żurakowskiand other members of the Flight Test unit, revealed the development potential of the CF-100 had outstripped the intended performance envelope of the CF-103, while Frost and the Design Office became preoccupied with more sophisticated designs as potential replacements for the CF-100.[5][N 4]Work on the CF-103 stalled, with the maiden flight originally scheduled for the summer of 1952, postponed to mid-1953.[3]WithCold Warpressures mounting, the Canadian government demanded that production of the latest CF-100 fighter, as well as developing more advanced variants of the Canuck should predominate, leading the Avro company to curtail the moribund CF-103 project in December 1951.[1][N 5]

Although the mock-up languished in the experimental bay at the factory, a dramatic event served to preclude any attempt to restart the project.[12]On 18 December 1952, from a height of 33,000 ft (10,000 m), Żurakowski dived the CF-100 Mk 4 prototype (RCAF Serial No. 18112) to Mach 1.06.[6]His "unauthorized" test flight[N 6]resulted in the final scrapping of the mock-up.[14]

Specifications

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CF-103: original concept, c. 1950

Data fromAvro Arrow: The Story of the Avro Arrow from its Evolution to its Extinction[10]

General characteristics

  • Crew:2
  • Length:59 ft 9 in (18.21 m)
  • Wingspan:43 ft (13 m)
  • Height:16 ft (4.9 m)
  • Powerplant:2 ×Avro Canada Orenda 17afterburning turbojetengines, 7,275 lbf (32.36 kN) thrust each dry, 8,490 lbf (37.8 kN) with afterburner

Performance

  • Maximum speed:647 mph (1,041 km/h, 562 kn)
  • Maximum speed:Mach 0.85
  • Never exceed speed:M0.95

Armament
Proposed

See also

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Related development

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

Related lists

References

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Notes
  1. ^After being brought into theXC-100project at a late stage, Frost considerably "cleaned up" the original design but realized the "rudimentary" wing/engineplanformlimited the design tosubsonicperformance levels. Consequently, he began a further redesign based on his independent study of more advanced swept-wing designs.[5]
  2. ^Scale models of the proposed CF-103 indicated a more streamlined wing/engine section that incorporated a thick wing root blending the engines into the top of the fuselage. Pinion (outboard wing) fuel tanks and a mildly swept tail were also featured.[7]
  3. ^Although an Orenda TR7 was first contemplated, the more powerful Orenda 17 encountered recurrent problems in test flying with surging and asymmetrical thrust that were never resolved.[9]
  4. ^Although part of the "chain" from the CF-100S/CF-100Dleading to thesupersonicC-104 Advanced Fighter study, the CF-103 was obsolescent and proved to be a "dead end."[10]The C-104 as theC-104/2was destined to morph into the laterAvro CF-105 Arrow.[3]
  5. ^Canada had made a military commitment to enter theKorean Warwith theDepartment of National Defencemobilizing to provide a credible RCAF presence, including fielding a front line fighter squadron; ultimately, only anAir Transport Commandunit was deployed. With Avro struggling with the CF-100's wing spar problems that had led to the RCAF rejecting the first series of pre-production aircraft, the Canadian government was justifiably concerned that the company was diverting its energies. Along with the cancellation of the CF-103, Avro's other high-profile project, theAvro Canada C102 Jetlinerwas similarly affected, with production of the airliner being halted.[11]
  6. ^Żurakowski had permission to explore the maximum speed of the aircraft, although along with his direct superiors in the Flight Test office, all were unaware that the Special Projects Group of the Design Office had been concurrently promoting the CF-103 project to the RCAF.[13]
Citations
  1. ^abMilberry 1984, p. 317.
  2. ^abMilberry 1981, p. 48.
  3. ^abcdefPage et al. 2004, p. 11.
  4. ^abCampagna 2003, p. 55.
  5. ^abZuk 2001, p. 28.
  6. ^abMilberry 1981, p. 49.
  7. ^abcdValiquette 2009, p. 74.
  8. ^Page 1981, p. 70.
  9. ^Page 1981, p. 68.
  10. ^abPage et al. 2004, p. 12.
  11. ^Milberry 1984, p. 258.
  12. ^Milberry 1981, pp. 48–49.
  13. ^Stewart 1991, p. 228.
  14. ^Zuk 2004, p. 184.
Bibliography
  • Campagna, Palmiro.Requiem for a Giant: A.V. Roe Canada and the Avro Arrow.Toronto: Dundurn Press, 2003.ISBN1-55002-438-8.
  • Milberry, Larry.The Avro CF-100.Toronto: CANAV Books, 1981.ISBN0-9690703-0-6.
  • Milberry, Larry.Sixty Years: The RCAF and CF Air Command 1924-1984.Toronto: CANAV Books, 1984.ISBN0-9690703-4-9.
  • Page, Ron.Canuck: CF-100 All Weather Fighter.Erin, Ontario: Boston Mills Press, 1981.ISBN0-919822-39-8.
  • Page, Ron, Richard Organ, Don Watson and Les Wilkinson ( "The Arrowheads" ).Avro Arrow: The Story of the Avro Arrow from its Evolution to its Extinction.Erin, Ontario: Boston Mills Press, 1979, reprinted Stoddart, 2004.ISBN1-55046-047-1.
  • Stewart, Greig.Shutting Down the National Dream: A.V. Roe and the Tragedy of the Avro Arrow.Toronto: McGraw-Hill-Ryerson, 1991.ISBN0-07-551119-3.
  • Valiquette, Marc-Andre.Destruction of a Dream: The Tragedy of Avro Canada and the CF-105 Arrow, Volume 1.Montreal: Marc-Andre Valiquette (self-published), 2009.ISBN978-2-9811239-0-9.
  • Zuk, Bill.Avrocar, Canada's Flying Saucer: The Story Of Avro Canada's Secret Projects.Erin, Ontario: Boston Mills Press, 2001.ISBN1-55046-359-4.
  • Zuk, Bill.Janusz Zurakowski: Legends in the Sky.St. Catharine's, Ontario: Vanwell, 2004.ISBN1-55125-083-7.
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