Fast Aviation Data's video: General Dynamic F-111C - First flight test of the Royal Australian Air Force

The Royal Australian Air Force took delivery of the first of its new strike-reconnaissance aircraft, the F-111C, At Fort Worth, Texas on the 4th of August 1968 The 474th became the first USAF operational wing equipped with the General Dynamics F-111 In March 1968. The F-111 Aardvark was first delivered to the US Air Force on the 29 of December 1966 and assigned to the USAF Flight Test Center (Air Force Systems Command), Edwards AFB, CA on 9 Jan 1967 for weapons testing. After reaching an initial operational capability just before spring in 1968, the Air Force leaders decided to rush a small detachment of F-111A’s version to Southeast Asia under a program known as "Combat Lancer". Six 428th TFS F-111A’s were allocated to the Combat Lancer program, and departed Nellis AFB for Takhli RTAFB on 15 March 1968. 55 night missions had been flown against targets in North Vietnam, but two aircraft had been lost. Replacement aircraft had departed Nellis, but the loss of a third F-111A (66-0024) on April 22 halted F-111A combat operations. While the aircraft remained poised for combat, they saw little action before their return to the USA in November 1968. It turned out that the three F-111A losses were not due to enemy action but were caused by wing and tail structural defects. However, the Air Force and General Dynamics remained hard at work trying to fix the problems with the F-111A. Modifications to the F-111 to correct the design flaws took a lot longer than expected, and the Wing was not fully operational until July 1971. In 1972 the USAF contracted with Grumman to convert 42 existing F-111As into electronic warfare aircraft. The EF-111A can be distinguished from the F-111A by the equipment bulge atop their tails. In May 1998, the USAF withdrew the final EF-111As from service, placing them in storage at Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center. The F-111 was replaced by the F-15E Strike Eagle for medium-range precision strike missions. The RAAF was the last operator of the F-111, serving until December 2010. See more aircraft images at https://goo.gl/Sh8Qnc Calculate your fun holiday trip time and distance at https://goo.gl/sv0kWB Source: AWM ID: F02734 Title: First test flight of RAAF's new F-111C aircraft Created: 4th August 1968 in the USA AWM Description: At Fort Worth, Texas, 4 August 1968 the RAAF took delivery of the first of its new strike-reconnaissance aircraft, the F-111C. The aircraft was handed over to the Australian Minister for Defence, Mr. Alan Fairhall, during a ceremony at the General Dynamics plant. This item shows the first flight test of the RAAF F-111C. The aircraft taxies from a hangar to the runway, takes off; Aerial shots of the aircraft in flight. After landing the aircraft returns to its hangar Music: Spitfire - Recorded by the Royal Australian Armoured Corps Band in 1966