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As a follow-on to the Mach 1 capable [[North American F-100 Super Sabre]], the F-105 was also armed with missiles and a rotary cannon; however, its design was tailored to high-speed low-altitude penetration carrying a single [[nuclear weapon]] internally. First flown in 1955, the Thunderchief entered service in 1958. The single-engine F-105 could deliver a bomb load greater than some American [[heavy bomber]]s of [[World War II]] such as the [[Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress]] and [[Consolidated B-24 Liberator]]. The F-105 was one of the primary attack aircraft of the [[Vietnam War]]; over 20,000 Thunderchief sorties were flown, with 382 aircraft lost including 62 operational (non-combat) losses (out of the 833 produced). Although less agile than smaller MiG fighters, USAF F-105s were credited with 27.5 kills.
During the conflict, the single-seat F-105D was the primary aircraft delivering heavy bomb loads against the various military targets. Meanwhile, the two-seat F-105F and F-105G Wild Weasel variants became the first dedicated SEAD platforms, fighting against the [[Soviet Union|Soviet]]-built [[S-75 Dvina]] ([[NATO reporting name]]: SA-2 ''Guideline'') [[surface-to-air missile]]s. Two Wild Weasel pilots were awarded the [[Medal of Honor]] for attacking North Vietnamese surface-to-air missile sites, with one
When the Thunderchief entered service it was the largest single-seat, single-engine combat aircraft in history, weighing approximately {{convert|50000|lb|kg|lk=on|sigfig=2}}.<ref name="Crosby">Crosby 2002, p. 229.</ref> It could exceed the [[speed of sound]] at sea level and reach [[Mach number|Mach 2]] at high altitude.<ref name="F-105D"/> The F-105 could carry up to {{convert|14000|lb|kg|abbr=on|sigfig=2}} of bombs and missiles. The Thunderchief was later replaced as a strike aircraft over North Vietnam by both the [[McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II]] and the swing-wing [[General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark]]. However, the "Wild Weasel" variants of the F-105 remained in service until early 1984, at which point they were replaced by the specialized [[McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II#Variants|F-4G "Wild Weasel V"]].
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