Grumman F-9 Cougar

what is it?

The Grumman F9F/F-9 Cougar is a carrier-based jet-powered fighter aircraft designed and produced by the American aircraft manufacturer Grumman. It was developed during the early 1950s on behalf of the United States Navy (US Navy) and United States Marine Corps (USMC), which were keen to quickly introduce a naval fighter equipped with a swept wing. Grumman's design team decided to adapt its earlier F9F Panther, replacing the straight wing of the Panther with a new swept wing.

🔎How to recognise it: 1 jet engine · mid wing · 10.5 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 1,052 km/htop speed
• size 9,526 kgmax take-off weight
• built 1,392made 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 75 years ago, in 1951.
• 🏎️Top speed is 8.1× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
• 🚗Wingspan of 10.5 m: about 2 cars parked nose to tail.
• 🏔️Can fly 1.5× 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

1951-09-20

introduced

1952

retired

1974

status

retired

number built

1,392

role

fighter aircraft

origin

🇺🇸 United States

makers

Grumman

engines

1× Pratt & Whitney J48-P-8

crew

1

length

12.5 m

wingspan

10.5 m

height

3.8 m

max take-off weight

9,526 kg

top speed

1,052 km/h

cruise speed

870 km/h

range

—

ceiling

13,564 m

wings

mid wing

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