The Northrop F-89 Scorpion was an American military all-weather interceptor designed for continental air defence. A pilot and radar operator occupied tandem cockpits, and two jet engines powered the aircraft. Successive versions carried markedly different rocket and missile installations.[1]
Development
The Scorpion first flew in August 1948, and deliveries began in July 1950. Northrop built approximately 1,050 aircraft. Its two-person crew divided the tasks of flying the interceptor and operating the radar equipment needed to find a target in darkness or poor weather.[1]
The F-89H carried guided missiles in large wingtip launching pods. Hill Air Force Base supported the family through depot maintenance, modifications and repairs to its Allison J35 turbojets. This ground organisation was an essential part of keeping the technically demanding interceptors available for defence duties during the 1950s.[2]
Nuclear interception
The F-89J was produced by converting F-89D aircraft; 350 were modified. Its armament included the Genie nuclear air-to-air rocket as well as Falcon missiles. On 19 July 1957 an F-89J launched a Genie during a nuclear test over Nevada. The test demonstrated a weapon intended to attack hostile bomber formations with a nuclear blast rather than a direct projectile hit.[1][2]
Later service
Newer supersonic interceptors reduced the Scorpion's place in the active Air Force, while Air National Guard units extended its service. The aircraft preserved at Hill was delivered in 1956 and transferred to the Oregon Air National Guard in 1958. Another surviving Scorpion, F-89J 52-1911, served with the Maine Air National Guard before flying to the National Museum of the United States Air Force in July 1969, at the end of the type's operational career.[1][2]