United States Air Force

Convair F-102 Delta Dagger Pilot's Flight Operating Manual United States Air Force

The world's first all-weather, supersonic jet interceptor, the F-102 Delta Dagger was built at the height of the Cold War. The initial mission of the "Deuce", as the F-102 came to be known, was to intercept and destroy incoming Soviet bombers. During the Vietnam conflict however, the F-102 found a new role as a fighter and as an escort for B-52 bombers. The F-102 debuted on Oct. 24, 1953 and deployed as part of Air Defense Command in 1956. In 1973, the USAF began converting F-102s into target drones. They flew in this configuration as late as 1986. Originally printed by Convair and the USAF, this F-102 Flight Operating Manual taught pilots everything they needed to know before entering the cockpit. Classified "Restricted", the manual was recently declassified and is here reprinted in book form. This affordable facsimile has been reformatted and color images appear in black and white. Care has been taken however to preserve the integrity of the text.