Republic YF-115 Thunderknight

Building on the experience acquired by the company on their AP-75, AP-100 and D-24 programs, Republic came up with an interceptor design that could take the place of retiring F-102s. The AP-126 Thunderknight was successfully evaluated as the YF-115 in early 1961, which led to an order for 100 production aircraft designated F-115A.

Rapidly changing requirements made the Thunderknight obsolete almost as soon as it entered service, and only 30 aircraft were eventually procured. They all served with the 5th Fighter Interceptor Squadron at Minot AFB, Nevada, being retired in early 1967.

NOTE: This piece would not have been possible without the splendid work done by Damon Moran on his F-103 Thunderwarrior color profile, for which I'm most grateful. Damon's blog: [link]

Please note that this is strictly an imaginary aircraft and story and should therefore not be taken seriously by any researcher.
Concept and photo manipulation © Stéphane Beaumort / AviaDesign 2010