F-100 Super Sabre – August, 2016 Restoration Report

Another recent view of the F-100 showing the newly-installed air-to-air refueling probe on the starboard wing. (photo by Aaron Robinson)


The F-100 in the restoration hangar. (photo by Aaron Robinson)
The F-100 in the restoration hangar. (photo by Aaron Robinson)

F-100D Restoration Update

by Richard Mallory Allnutt

Over the past year, we have been following the restoration of a combat veteran F-100D Super Sabre at the Museum of Aviation in Warner Robins, Georgia. The restoration team has been slowly returning this important airframe from the corroded hulk it once was into a magnificent representative example of the breed. This aircraft, USAF serial 56-2995, flew several hundred missions during the Viet Nam War. Ret’d. Maj.Gen. Rick Goddard flew more than a hundred of those sorties, including one on February 9th, 1969 for which he received the Silver Star. Nearly fifty years later, Gen.Goddard is again working on the aircraft, alongside fellow restorer Aaron Robinson. It is most definitely a labor of love for the two men, who have both poured an enormous amount of effort into the project. (Please see our earlier article for a more in depth look at the aircraft’s history.)

Outside again, the F-100 during its move from the restoration hangar to its present position in the WWII hangar. (photo by Aaron Robinson)
Outside again, the F-100 soon after receiving her undercarriage installation. (photo by Aaron Robinson)

When we last visited the museum in March, the aircraft’s fuselage had just received a set of freshly restored wings. Since then, the restoration team has installed the undercarriage, and towed the aircraft from the restoration hangar into the back of the Scott Hangar, where further work involving non-hazardous materials can take place.

The Hun on the run... moving from the restoration hangar to its present position in the WWII hangar. (photo by Aaron Robinson)
The Hun on the run… moving from the restoration hangar to its present position in the WWII hangar. (photo by Aaron Robinson)

They recently installed the (de-militarized) 20mm cannon in the munitions bays, along with the ammunition tracks and link chutes. The project is still in need of a few pieces to complete the gun systems, so if any of our readers can help, please do contact the museum. Since the move into the Scott Hangar, Robinson and another volunteer have attached the inflight refueling probe on the starboard wing.

Another recent view of the F-100 showing the newly-installed air-to-air refueling probe on the starboard wing. (photo by Aaron Robinson)
Another recent view of the F-100 showing the newly-installed air-to-air refueling probe on the starboard wing. (photo by Aaron Robinson)

The newly-installed 20mm cannons in one of the F-100's two munitions bays. (photo by Aaron Robinson)
The newly-installed, demilitarized 20mm cannons in one of the F-100’s two munitions bays. (photo by Aaron Robinson)

Last week, the team opened up the storage can containing the aircraft’s Pratt&Whitney J57 engine to verify that it has all the necessary pieces. Work on the engine bay is now complete, so it will only be a matter of time before a crew can mount the powerplant. The team is also preparing the cockpit for painting. The fully-rebuilt ejection seat is on hand for installation once the cockpit is ready. Aaron Robinson reports that much of the remaining work, involves installing small pieces and fabricating a number of missing small access panels. Once these jobs are done, it should then just be a matter of repainting the airframe exterior before the aircraft is finished and can go on formal display. They are in the home stretch now!

The newly-restored ejector seat ready for installation. (photo by Aaron Robinson)
The newly-restored ejector seat ready for installation. (photo by Aaron Robinson)

Checking that the F-100's engine has all of the necessary components attached. (photo by Aaron Robinson)
Checking that the F-100’s engine has all of the necessary components attached for re-installation. (photo by Aaron Robinson)


WarbirdsNews wishes to thank Aaron Robinson for his help in preparing this article, as well as for the fascinating photographs which illustrate it.

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Richard Mallory Allnutt's aviation passion ignited at the 1974 Farnborough Airshow. Raised in 1970s Britain, he was immersed in WWII aviation lore. Moving to Washington DC, he frequented the Smithsonian’s National Air & Space Museum, meeting aviation legends.

After grad school, Richard worked for Lockheed-Martin but stayed devoted to aviation, volunteering at museums and honing his photography skills. In 2013, he became the founding editor of Warbirds News, now Vintage Aviation News. With around 800 articles written, he focuses on supporting grassroots aviation groups.

Richard values the connections made in the aviation community and is proud to help grow Vintage Aviation News.

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About Richard Mallory Allnutt (Chief Editor) 1060 Articles
Richard Mallory Allnutt's aviation passion ignited at the 1974 Farnborough Airshow. Raised in 1970s Britain, he was immersed in WWII aviation lore. Moving to Washington DC, he frequented the Smithsonian’s National Air & Space Museum, meeting aviation legends. After grad school, Richard worked for Lockheed-Martin but stayed devoted to aviation, volunteering at museums and honing his photography skills. In 2013, he became the founding editor of Warbirds News, now Vintage Aviation News. With around 800 articles written, he focuses on supporting grassroots aviation groups. Richard values the connections made in the aviation community and is proud to help grow Vintage Aviation News.

3 Comments

  1. I was stationed at Tuy Hoa AB in 1969. I have an original intake cover for the F-100 that I would donate for General Goddards aircraft if he would like it. I am in Pigeon Forge,Tn. with that cover at a reunion of Tuy Hoa veterans. The General can contact me at (517)927-7859 . I’ll be here until Sunday.

    • Hey Dale… My name is Dale Overstreet and I also was in Tuy Hoa in 1969. I was a crew chief on the F-100D and F models there. I was in the 355th squadron.
      When we left there in the Fall of 1970 we ended up in Louisiana at England Airforce base.

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