Parasite aircraft
Videos
A parasite aircraft is a component of a composite aircraft which is carried aloft and air launched by a larger carrier aircraft or mother ship to support the primary mission of the carrier. The carrie
An F-84 Thunderjet hooked on a FICON trapeze beneath its mother ship, circa 1955
Bristol Scout on Porte Baby, 1916
A Sopwith 2F.1 Camel secured under the British HM Airship 23r, 1918
A Curtiss F9C Sparrowhawk attached by a "skyhook" to USS Macon, 1933
FICON project
Videos
The FICON program was conducted by the United States Air Force in the 1950s to test the feasibility of a Convair B-36 Peacemaker bomber carrying a Republic F-84 Thunderflash parasite fighter in its bo
Parasite aircraft
…its Convair B-36 bombers, including the dedicated XF-85 Goblin, and methods of either carrying a Republic F-84 Thunderjet in the bomber's bomb bay (the FICON project), or attached to the bomber's wingtips (Project Tom-Tom). One configuration studied for the XF-85/B-36 combination was for a B-36 to drop the XF-85 for…
GRB-36 carrying YRF-84F
EB-29A docked wingtip-to-wingtip with two EF-84Ds in Project Tip-Tow
Close-up of the B-29 with EF-84D-1-RE 48-641 on wingtip hookup
GRB-36 launching YRF-84F from the trapeze