All Out Warrior

Hello, I am new to the forum. I am an artist whose primary focus is aviation but I also paint space, railroad, naval and various military subjects. I just thought I might share some of my works.

This first piece is one I did of the F-105G in Vietnam. The F-105 Thunderchief was designed to carry a single nuclear weapon at high speed and low altitude into Soviet airspace. Entering service in 1958, the F-105 was used extensively in the Vietnam War. The F-105G Wild Weasel was a two set version used to counter surface to air missiles (SAMs). The airplane would intentionally act as a target to draw the attention of SAM crews on the ground. Once the SAM radar locked on the Wild Weasel could use that signal to launch a missile against it to destroy the SAM site. It was a highly dangerous mission and the Wild Weasels suffered heavy losses. Despite the losses the Wild Weasels were effective. The F-105 Thunderchief was an all-out warrior used in a limited war.