General Dynamics F-111C

what is it?

The General Dynamics F-111C (nicknamed the "Pig") is a variant of the F-111 Aardvark medium-range interdictor and tactical strike aircraft, developed by General Dynamics to meet Australian requirements. The design was based on the F-111A model but included longer wings and strengthened undercarriage. The Australian government ordered 24 F-111Cs to equip the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) in 1963, but the aircraft were not delivered until 1973 because of long-running technical problems.

🔎How to recognise it: 2 jet engines · 21.3 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 2,656 km/htop speed
• size 49.9 tmax take-off weight
• built 28made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

• 🎂First flew 58 years ago, in 1968.
• 🏎️Top speed is 20.4× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
• 💥Faster than sound: up to Mach 2.2 (sea-level speed of sound ≈ 1,235 km/h).
• 🚗Wingspan of 21.3 m: about 5 cars parked nose to tail.
• 🐘Fully loaded it can weigh as much as 8 African elephants (~6 t each).
• 🏔️Can fly 2.3× higher than Mount Everest (8,849 m).

jet: Gas turbine pushing air out the back (turbofan or turbojet): fast and high-flying.

spec sheet

first flight

1968-07

introduced

1973

retired

2010

status

retired

number built

28

role

fighter-bomber and reconnaissance aircraft

origin

🇺🇸 United States

makers

General Dynamics

engines

2× Pratt & Whitney TF30-P-100

crew

2

length

22.4 m

wingspan

21.3 m

height

5.2 m

max take-off weight

49.9 t

top speed

2,656 km/h

range

—

ceiling

20,117 m

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.