Specifically the " ten numbers" on the A 10 warthog or the ov 10 bronco's

and are there any other 10 aircraft?

Just a number.

The letter before and after the numbers mean a lot, but the number itself is usually just the next number available (lots of skips due to aircraft that were never produced.

Example, F = Fighter

F-14
F-15
F-16
YF-17 (never produced)
F-18
F-19 (thought to be the Stealth Figher, which was craftily number F-117 and not even a Fighter).
F-20 Tigershark (never Produced)
F-21 (Skipped maybe?)
F-22 Lightening
YF-23 (lost to the YF-22)

Etc.

Now look at the F-14. There were F-14A, F-14B, F-14C (never produced) and F-14Ds. There are wide powerplant and avionics differences between the A/B/D. Same with F-16s. There are huge differences between F-16A/B/C/D/CJ and even differences in production 'Blocks'.

But the number is just the number.

I recently did a bunch of looking on Wiki. I was amazed at the year developed and year put into service on various military aircraft. For instance with the Tomcat I always assumed it was early 80s, not early 70s.

I’m a nerd when it comes to military aviation.

quote:

Originally posted by jljones:

...I’m a nerd when it comes to military aviation.

Welcome to the club, a LOT of us are.

Here are some links if you have spare time:

https://theaviationist.com/

https://www.airspacemag.com/

quote:

Originally posted by jljones:
I recently did a bunch of looking on Wiki. I was amazed at the year developed and year put into service on various military aircraft. For instance with the Tomcat I always assumed it was early 80s, not early 70s.

I’m a nerd when it comes to military aviation.

It takes 10-15 years to put an aircraft in service (or more, in some cases). Everything that's cutting edge is already more than a decade old when it hits the tarmac in it's first assignment.

By comparison, during the second world war, clean-sheet designs were fielded in as little as 90 days. Not nearly the level of sophistication as today insofar as avionics and systems, but quantum leaps from what was available at the time, and designs which are still considered remarkable in their performance and capability today...including many which saw service for decades, in multiple conflicts and wars.

If you want a good look at aircraft development for the military. Read Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War. He was the "architect" for the modern day F-16. The book will give you a glimpse of weapon development.

Andrew

Well, speaking of 10's, there is the KC-10 Tanker.

BTW "Peninsula Seniors" on YouTube is an addictive channel, they bring in soooooooo many interesting speakers, and sometimes actually aircraft are flown in, I just saw Japanese Zero fly in and talk of the pilot. Check it out, you'll like it.

quote:

Originally posted by RHINOWSO:
Just a number.
F-14Ds.

Was hanging out with this (Tom) cat last Thursday, and thought of you when I saw it. It's just jaw-dropping, in person.

quote:

Originally posted by jljones:
I recently did a bunch of looking on Wiki. I was amazed at the year developed and year put into service on various military aircraft. For instance with the Tomcat I always assumed it was early 80s, not early 70s.

I’m a nerd when it comes to military aviation.

The first operational F-14 Tomcats actually deployed and flew CAPs aboard the USS Enterprise at the tail end of the Vietnam War, but entered service too late to have any major affect and claimed no kills.

quote:

Originally posted by RHINOWSO:

F-21 (Skipped maybe?)

The F-21 was the designation given to the ex Israeli Kfir C2s leased from them and flown from 1985 to 1989 simulating MiG-23s.

quote:

Originally posted by VictimNoMore:
Was hanging out with this (Tom) cat last Thursday, and thought of you when I saw it. It's just jaw-dropping, in person.

Well thank you. The Tomcat was a magnificent aircraft, albeit getting long in the tooth when I started riding around in them (late-90s). It was like an old muscle car, pure power, very little finesse, and took some real skill to fly / operate. Very rewarding aircraft to crew.

I believe that example is one of Tomcats that shot down a Libyan MIG-23, as an F-14A with VF-32 in 1989, before being converted to an F-14D. I never flew in a "D", but friends who did said they had a MIG kill star painted inside the cockpit of that particular aircraft to commemorate the shootdown.

quote:

Originally posted by clubleaf206:
The F-21 was the designation given to the ex Israeli Kfir C2s leased from them and flown from 1985 to 1989 simulating MiG-23s.

Yeah, I remember that now.

I used to follow things more closely while I was in, but have to admit that I don't pay attention to aviation nearly as much anymore.

Rhino,

I think he's referring to the BUNOs in conjunction with an additional four (?) numbers.

quote:

Originally posted by OKCGene:
Well, speaking of 10's, there is the KC-10 Tanker.

The -10 in that designation is from the DC-10. The KC-10 is a model of the DC-10.

I guess if he’s talking about BUNO it would best be described as a VIN for the AC. For instance an A6E with a 158xxx buno was manufactured pre TRAM. 159xxx through 163xxx was post TRAM. I don’t think it ever went above a 163xxx-164xxx if memory serves me correctly. The EA6s did.

quote:

Originally posted by RHINOWSO:
Yeah, I remember that now.

I used to follow things more closely while I was in, but have to admit that I don't pay attention to aviation nearly as much anymore.

Well, I’m a model builder, we kinda geek out on that stuff, sometimes.

quote:

Originally posted by LS1 GTO:
Rhino, I think he's referring to the BUNOs in conjunction with an additional four (?) numbers.

I think he's saying the "10" in A-10 and OV-10. Then again, it is bendable so it's open to interpretation.

On that side note, Navy / Marine aircraft have a BUNO (serial numbers). USAF do as well, but I always liked the fact that USAF has the year they were acquired as the leading 2 numbers, i.e. 97-0123 was built / acquired (not really sure which) in 1997, which gives you a sense of it's age.

USN/USMC BUNOs are just a number - the higher they are, the newer they are but there is no intuitive way to tell how new / old they are.

Example - these F-15s were acquired in 1986, pretty obvious.



This F-18 was made, in, who really knows...

That’s interesting that a hornet has a 163xxx buno. The marines must have some F-Ed up system in assigning buno

quote:

Originally posted by jljones:
That’s interesting that a hornet has a 163xxx buno. The marines must have some F-Ed up system in assigning buno

I think they are assigned in block of numbers, so they can be out of order to a degree.

Way more than I ever wanted to know about them here.

http://www.joebaugher.com/navy...als/navyserials.html

quote:

Originally posted by RHINOWSO:

quote:

Originally posted by jljones:
That’s interesting that a hornet has a 163xxx buno. The marines must have some F-Ed up system in assigning buno

I think they are assigned in block of numbers, so they can be out of order to a degree.

Way more than I ever wanted to know about them here.

http://www.joebaugher.com/navy...als/navyserials.html

Well since the Hornet is/ was attached to the CV-2 Hornet, it's obviously a WWII plane, cause you know, it's the Final Countdown.

My father was on a Carrier and his brother a B52 Navigator; and a cousin was on those Spy plane jets out of Tinker AFB, plus five other examples in friends and extended family, so I was around these things a bunch as a kid, especially as a non military brat, myself, as my dad only served 4ys during Vietnam, as did I during Desert Storm, but I've been surrounded by it my whole life.

I've crawled in and/or sat in most of the popular ones up through the early 80s.

I like a bunch of specialty ones, like the Osprey, and any VTOL sort, the big Bombers, Refuelers, Spy jets...