Meet the Avro CF-105 Arrow: The Long-Ranger Fighter Designed to Battle Russia – 19FortyFive

Avro CF-105 Arrow is a source of pride for Canada and still has a massive fanbase today. Why did Ottawa pass on this Cold War fighter concept and go in a different direction?After the Second World War, at a time when the British Royal Air Forcewas still recovering and had no money to think about a new interceptor, Avro Canada developed the CF-100, often dubbed the Canuck. As the first combat aircraft of all-Canadian design, it proved to be an excellent long-range, all-weather fighter. More importantly, it highlighted that thenewly formed Avro Canada an offshoot of the British-based aircraft manufacturer showed brilliance in completing a challenging project quickly.

From that success, in the mid-1950s, work progressed on the Avro Canada CF-105 Arrow, a giant, delta-winged interceptor. It offered abright hope for the futureof the Canadian aircraft industry, and had the potential of providing the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) with the capability to meetSoviet bombers and possibly destroy them in a war as far away as the North Pole. After earning the right to develop and build the aircraft, Avro Canada grew significantly, and by 1957, employed more than 20,000 people making it one of the largest companies in the nation. It drew major investment from the government as well at its own employees.

Confidence in the company, and in Canadas aerospace industry, was soaring high. Butlike Icarus, it soon came crashing down.

Avro CF-105 Arrow The Details

Development of the Arrow progressed quickly, and it has largely been remembered as being one of the most advanced aircraft of its era, while it was also widely praised for its power and beauty. It also helped to establishCanadaas a world leader in scientific research and development.

To say that everything about the Arrow was massive is an understatement. It wasan immense projectin size, scale and ambition. The aircraft itself was enormous as well. Weighing about 20,000 kg (44,000 pounds) empty, with a 15.2 m wingspan, it was a huge aircraft for an interceptor.

It was also a highly advanced aircraft that required many of its components to be specially developed. It boasted the worlds first computerized flight control and weapon system, while it was faster than any jet in its class. The Arrow was designed to travel at nearly twice the speed of sound at an altitude of 53,000 feet. Developed without the aid of computers or simulation tools, the designers relied on scale models for wind-tunnel testing.

Avro CF-105 Arrow Why It Failed

The first CF-105 Arrow prototype was rolled out on October 4, 1957 and more than 12,000 people arrived to see the advanced-looking aircraft. However, that event was largely overshadowed by the USSRs launch of Sputnik 1 into orbit on that same day and which heralded the dawn of the space age and potentially the end of the Arrows main target, the long-range bomber.

A total of five Arrows took part in flight tests in a program that began in 1958, but the project was doomed due to political and technical woes. The high cost of the program

The Arrow was canceled in February 1959 by the government of the newly elected Canadian Prime Minister John Diefenbaker, who sought to cut federal spending. It likely didnt help that Diefenbaker, a Progressive Conservative and teetotaler, had a poor relationship with Avro Canadas President Crawford Gordon, Jr., who was known for his love of smoke and drink.

The Avro Canada CF-105never entered production, and the RCAF eventually acquired the American-built CF-101B Voodoo instead. Avro Canada never recovered from the programs cancellation and ceased operations in 1962.

Nearly three decades after the program was shuttered, a four-hour TV miniseries about the Arrow program was produced for CBC Television. Tilted simplyThe Arrow, it starred notable Canadian actors including Dan Aykroyd, Michael Ironside, and Sara Botsford and offered a dramatized look at the attempt to produce the supersonic jet. It went on to have the highest viewership to that point for a CBC program perhaps highlighting just how much this jet meant to the Canadian people.

Now a Senior Editor for 1945, Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer who has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers and websites. He regularly writes about military hardware, and is the author of several books on military headgear includingA Gallery of Military Headdress, which is available on Amazon.com. Peter is also aContributing Writerfor Forbes.

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Meet the Avro CF-105 Arrow: The Long-Ranger Fighter Designed to Battle Russia - 19FortyFive