The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was a US interceptor aircraft built as part of the backbone of the United States Air Force's air defenses in the late 1950s. Entering service in 1956, its main purpose was to intercept invading Soviet bomber fleets.

The F-102 was the first operational supersonic interceptor and delta-wing fighter of the USAF. It used an internal weapons bay to carry both guided missiles and rockets. As originally designed, it could not achieve Mach 1 supersonic flight until redesigned with area ruling. The F-102 replaced subsonic types such as the F-89 Scorpion, and by the 1960s, it saw limited service in Vietnam in bomber escort and ground attack roles. It was supplemented by F-101 Voodoos and, later, by F-4 Phantom IIs. Many of the F-102s were transferred to United States Air National Guard duty by the mid-to-late 1960s, and the type was retired from operational service in 1976. The follow-on replacement was the Mach 2 class F-106 Delta Dart which was an extensive redesign of the F-102.

Pictured here is a 1:72 scale rendition of a Convair F-102A Delta Dagger interceptor that was attached to the 460th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, 337th Fighter Group, then deployed to Portland IAP, Oregon, during 1962. Now in stock!

Dimensions:
Wingspan: 6-1/4-inches
Length: 11-1/4-inches

Release Date: March 2022

Historical Account: "For the Defense" - Established in late 1942 as a ground support squadron, the 460th Fighter Interceptor Squadron deployed to the Pacific Theater of Operations in 1943. Initially it was sent to Australia where the unit functioned as a ground support unit at Sydney Airport, then at Dobodura in New Guinea. Converted to a P-47 Thunderbolt operational combat unit, engaged in fighter-bomber operations against Japanese positions in New Guinea, Netherlands East Indies and also during the Philippines Campaign (1944-1945). Moved to Okinawa, then Japan after the Japanese Capitulation as part of the Occupation Force, inactivated in 1946.

The squadron was reactivated in 1954 as part of the U.S. Air Force Air Defense Command, stationed at Knoxville, for air defense of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and TVA dams in eastern Tennessee. Moved to Portland AFB, Oregon, and flew air defense missions over the Pacific Northwest, later to southern California in 1968 at Oxnard AFB, which closed a year later; it then moved to Grand Forks AFB, North Dakota, until inactivated as part of the draw down of ADC in 1974.