Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cs.utexas.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!att!cbnews!military
From: fiddler%concertina@Sun.COM (Steve Hix)
Newsgroups: sci.military
Subject: Re: F-104 Ejection Seats and Other Trivia
Message-ID: <1990Aug29.014445.7401@cbnews.att.com>
Date: 29 Aug 90 01:44:45 GMT
References: <1990Aug18.182728.24742@cbnews.att.com> <1990Aug24.034122.636@cbnews.att.com>
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From: fiddler%concertina@Sun.COM (Steve Hix)

> From: newave!john@uunet.UU.NET (John A. Weeks III)
> 
> The artical in "Warplane" goes on to mention an invasion scare in Taiwan
> during 1957/1958.  It claims that USAF F-104 flew missions to intercept
> Chinese MIGs, and some of the F-104 returned without their Sidewinders.
> There are supposedly unconfirmed rumours that the F-104's scored several
> MIG kills.

A friend of mine was in the AF, moved from [AF base just north of San Francisco]
to Taiwan during this period.  He was an F-104 crew chief.

The pilots flying missions over the straits west of Taiwan, as far as his
experience went, were ROC AF.  They complained that their guns (Vulcan 20mm
cannon) were jamming.  They weren't.  It's just that a couple seconds 
sustained shooting would use up all your ammunition.

The solution was a circuit that would shut off the guns after about .2 seconds
of firing.  You then had to release the trigger and try again to throw more
stuff ahead.

The Chinese pilots, btw, said they liked the Sidewinder.  Worked just fine.
(At least, they didn't have any on board when they returned to base.)

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