Today we’re diving into the details of an iconic American jet fighter from the Cold War era!

F-101C Voodoo: A Jet Fighter for the USA at Rank VI

At a glance:

• High speed and rate of climb
• Radar and RWR
• 20 mm cannons
• No air-to-air missiles

Introducing the F-101C Voodoo!

In the Heavy Cavalry major update, we’ll be adding the F-101C Voodoo to the American interceptor line! We hinted at this aircraft in the Community Update No.11 post, and we’re glad so many of you guessed it. Great job! Enough of that for now, let’s take a look at how the Voodoo will perform in the game, and our reasoning for adding it.

Usage in Battle

Right off the bat, it’s fair to say that the F-101C Voodoo is going to be one of the best interceptors at its Battle Rating. This is thanks to its excellent rate of climb and high maximum speed, which allow it to be among the first to reach altitude and catch up with any opponent. Once you do, the Voodoo is armed with rapid-fire 20 mm cannons with 800 rounds of ammunition, allowing you to slice any enemy into pieces with well-placed hits. To help you detect enemies, the Voodoo is equipped with a radar and an RWR, useful if you encounter enemies with guided missiles or SAMs.

Feature Spotlight: Thrust & Speed

The F-101C Voodoo will serve as a transitional link between the first production jet fighters and the more advanced F-104 and F-5 interceptors. Once you’ve unlocked the Voodoo, you’ll gain a whole new understanding of what a fast jet is all about! It can climb at 165 meters per second and accelerates to over 1,550 km/h at high altitude, which is quite excellent indeed.

Interesting: A modified version of the F-101A with experimental engines set an absolute world speed record in 1957, reaching 1,943.5 km/h!

Vehicle History

The F-101 Voodoo fighter was developed by McDonnell in response to the US Strategic Air Command’s urgent need for a long-range escort fighter to protect B-36 and B-52 intercontinental bombers. In 1951, McDonnell’s design won the competition, and the first F-101A flew in 1954.

With the end of the Korean War, Tactical Air Command saw it as a promising fighter-bomber with nuclear strike capability, but the design was unsuitable for low-altitude tactical operations due to G-force limitations. To address this issue, the F-101C was developed with a strengthened structure, allowing maneuvers at up to 7.33G. It was identical in appearance and armament to its predecessor, but was slightly heavier.

The first F-101C took to the air on August 21st 1957; a total of 47 of these aircraft were built.

The F-101C Voodoo is set to be a great transitional aircraft in between the F-80 and the first Starfighter, with high speed, great guns and a radar and RWR. Until the next blog, see you around!

Please note that vehicle specifications may be subject to revision and change before being added to the game.

You can greatly speed up the research of the F-101C Voodoo with these packs: