General Dynamics F - 111C The General Dynamics F - 111C ( nicknamed " 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 . During 1979 and 1980 four of these aircraft were converted to the RF - 111C reconnaissance variant . Four ex - United States Air Force ( USAF ) F - 111As were purchased by Australia and converted to F - 111C standard in 1982 to replace F - 111Cs destroyed during accidents . Australia also operated 15 F - 111Gs between 1993 and 2007 , mainly for conversion training . The RAAF retired its remaining F - 111Cs in December 2010 . Although they were never used in combat , the F - 111Cs gave the RAAF a powerful strike capability . The aircraft went through modernisation programs in the 1980s and 1990s and the RAAF acquired improved weapons to maintain their ability to penetrate hostile airspace . Despite this , by the 2000s the F - 111Cs were becoming outdated and expensive to maintain , leading to a decision to retire them in 2010 rather than 2020 as originally planned . The F - 111s were replaced by 24 Boeing F / A - 18F Super Hornet s on an interim basis , pending the delivery of F - 35 Lightning II s currently in development . Development . Background . In June 1960 , the United States Air Force issued a requirement for an F - 105 Thunderchief replacement . The U . S . Navy , conversely , began a program to develop a new air defence fighter for use on its large aircraft carriers . On 14 February 1961 , newly appointed United States Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara formally directed that the services study the development of a single aircraft that would satisfy both requirements . The Tactical Fighter Experimental ( TFX ) requirements were based largely on the Air Force ' s needs . A request for proposal s ( RFP ) for the TFX was provided to industry in October 1961 . After four rounds of proposals , General Dynamics ( GD ) was selected over Boeing ; GD signed the TFX contract in December 1962 . The USAF F - 111A and Navy F - 111B variants used the same airframe structural components and TF30 - P - 1 turbofan engines . They featured side - by - side crew seating in an escape capsule , as required by the Navy . Because of conflict between the Air Force and Navy over whose requirements had precedence , McNamara intervened in 1961 , declaring that the Air Force desires would override suggestions by the Navy . The F - 111A variant first flew on 21 December 1964 from Carswell AFB , Texas . It was followed by the F - 111B , which first flew on 18 May 1965 . As F - 111 development continued , stall issues arose in certain parts of the flight regime ; these were addressed by modifying the engine inlet in 1965 – 66 , ending with the " Triple Plow I " and " Triple Plow II " designs . The F - 111B was cancelled by the Navy in 1968 due to weight and performance deficiencies . Subsequently , the improved F - 111E , F - 111D , F - 111F models were developed for the USAF . The FB - 111A strategic bomber and the EF - 111 electronic warfare versions were also later developed for the USAF . Production ended in 1976 , with a total of 563 F - 111 variants built , well below the prediction of 1 , 500 . Replacing the Canberra . The Menzies government first publicly discussed the need for replacing the English Electric Canberra in 1954 , only a year after the RAAF began receiving the bomber . The non - supersonic Canberra lacked radar and electronic countermeasures , all disadvantages based on Korean War experience . The RAAF believed that it needed a new strategic bomber to fulfill the nation ' s obligations to the Commonwealth Strategic Reserve in Malaysia , ANZUS , and SEATO . Air Staff Requirement 36 that year mandated an all - weather attack aircraft by 1959 capable of delivering a variety of bombs and missiles . A study recommended one of the British V bomber s , but Prime Minister Robert Menzies ' Minister of Defence Frederick Shedden decided in 1956 that at £1 million each they were too expensive . Air Marshal Valston Hancock , Chief of the Air Staff , stated in April 1960 that Australia needed a replacement for the Canberra . Although in mid - 1962 the Menzies government again decided to not replace the Canberra , Indonesia ' s increasingly aggressive statements regarding Malaysia soon caused Australia to reevaluate the decision . " The Sydney Morning Herald " reported in October 1962 that the Indonesian Air Force ' s Soviet Tupolev Tu - 16 bombers could reach Sydney or any other Australian city with a light bomb load , while the Canberras could not fly in all weather and had a range of , insufficient to reach Djakarta . The opposition Labor Party , led by Arthur Calwell , used the report to criticize Menzies . The government denied that the Tu - 16 could reach Sydney , but Minister for Air Frederick Osborne acknowledged that the Canberras were " the weakest link in our armoury at the present moment " . He stated , however , that the available foreign bombers were unsuitable for the RAAF . The American Boeing B - 52 Stratofortress and Convair B - 58 Hustler , for example , were too large for existing Australian runways . More suitable aircraft such as the British BAC TSR - 2 and the American TFX ( later the F - 111 ) would soon be available , Osborne said . Hancock study . In May 1963 Menzies requested an A£200 million increase in defence spending over the next five years , and proposed to send a team led by Hancock overseas to evaluate Canberra replacements . Early candidates were the French Dassault Mirage IV , the TSR - 2 , and the U . S . North American A - 5 Vigilante , McDonnell Douglas F - 4 Phantom II and the TFX . From June to August , Hancock ' s team visited France , Britain and the United States to evaluate the competitors , and determined that the TFX would be the aircraft best suited for the role . The Mirage IV had insufficient range and the A£108 million price was too expensive . The F - 4 and the A - 5 were immediately available , but the less expensive F - 4 would need air - to - air refueling to reach Indonesia from Australia . The TSR - 2 was behind schedule and over budget , was the most expensive at A£122 million for 24 aircraft , and British government support for the program was uncertain . While the TFX was also controversial in the United States , its promised performance specifications and per - aircraft cost were superior to that of the TSR - 2 . As he did not expect TFX to be available before 1970 , however , Hancock recommended buying 36 A - 5 aircraft for A£88 million to counteract the perceived imminent threat from Indonesia . The Menzies government was reluctant to choose as interim replacement the A - 5 or the F - 4 , which could not be deployed until 1966 and would cost A $ 120 – 180 million . Waiting for the TSR - 2 or TFX in 1969 or 1970 seemed to pose great risk , but when considering Hancock ' s findings in September 1963 it wanted to be able to offer a substantial response to the Labor party ' s criticism of its defence strategy . The British and American governments competed on behalf of their nations ' unbuilt bombers , as both believed that export sales would increase domestic support for the aircraft . The Menzies government viewed the British promise to deploy a squadron of V bombers in Australia for interim defense until the TSR - 2 was ready as unacceptable for both technical and political reasons . Beyond its cost , the Royal Air Force had not ordered the TSR - 2 ; the Chief of the Defence Staff Lord Louis Mountbatten , who opposed it , advised the Australians against buying the aircraft and the RAAF feared being the only customer . Decision . The government determined that it did not need to go ahead with an immediate replacement for the Canberra and preferred Hancock ' s original choice of the TFX as a long - term solution , leading to the Menzies government ' s announcement on 24 October that it was ordering 24 F - 111s for US $ 125 million , enough for two squadrons . The announcement came during the campaigning for the 1963 general election . Calwell ' s Labor party had on 22 October reiterated its pre - campaign promise that it would replace the Canberras as soon as it formed a government . The government ' s announcement , and the consequent improvement of its chances against Labor , likely also benefited the United States ; the purchase helped rebut American critics of the TFX , and the Kennedy administration preferred Menzies ' defence policies to the opposition ' s . The contract was signed the following year through the U . S . Department of Defense . The British government ' s cancellation of the TSR - 2 in April 1965 showed that Australia ' s decision to not order it was correct . Procurement , delays , and renaming . The U . S . offered two squadrons of Boeing B - 47 Stratojet s for free lease pending the delivery of the F - 111 ; Australia declined the offer in June 1964 — despite the aircraft having been demonstrated around the country just before the 1963 election as an interim Canberra replacement , likely another sign of the American preference for Menzies — because the B - 47 did not offer significant improvements over the Canberra and , like the V bombers , would require longer runways . The immensely complex and ambitious F - 111 design and construction process forced the Australian government to quickly adopt sophisticated American procurement and project management methods . Although Australia originally planned to buy the American F - 111A design , RAAF liaison officers requested country - specific changes such as a long - distance radio , Aeronautical Research Laboratories in Melbourne participated in an intake redesign and provided metal fatigue expertise , and an Australian test pilot evaluated the Australian version ' s longer wings and performance in tropical conditions . The differences from the F - 111A caused it to be designated the F - 111C in 1966 . Delivery . The first F - 111C was officially delivered in 1968 , finally giving Australia an aircraft that could fly to Jakarta , drop bombs , and return without refueling . ( The RAAF only acquired air - to - air refueling for the F / A - 18 , possibly to avoid causing difficulties with other Asian countries by increasing the F - 111C ' s already great range . ) Training began in 1967 , with RAAF personnel seeing terrain - following radar and other sophisticated equipment for the first time . However , development delays and structural problems delayed acceptance of aircraft by the RAAF until 1973 . These issues were mainly to do with the wing attach points , and the redesign of the F - 111 engine intakes . Completion of contractual requirements to the satisfaction of Australia also took time , damaging the morale of the hundreds of trained RAAF personnel who had little to do . The program costs , during 1963 – 1967 , grew at an alarming rate ; estimates by the USAF at the start of the program was placed at US $ 124 . 5 million , but by April 1967 had risen to $ 237 . 75 million . While the initial price of US $ 5 . 21 million per aircraft was capped at US $ 5 . 95 million , R & D , labor , and other costs were not . The rising price , three unexplained losses of USAF F - 111As in Vietnam during their first month of deployment , and the British and U . S . Navy ' s orders ' cancellations caused further controversy in Australia during 1968 . By 1973 , however , when the F - 111A had accumulated 250 , 000 flight hours , it had the best safety record among contemporary aircraft , which presaged the F - 111C ' s own excellent record . Four aircraft were modified to RF - 111C reconnaissance configuration during 1979 – 80 , retaining their strike capability . The RF - 111C carried a reconnaissance pack with four cameras and an infrared linescanner unit . Four ex - USAF F - 111As were refitted to F - 111C standard and delivered to Australia as attrition replacements in 1982 . There F - 111Cs were equipped to carry Pave Tack FLIR / laser pods in the mid - 1980s . They underwent an extensive Avionics Upgrade Program through 1998 . Under this program , the F - 111C was upgraded to digital avionics . This included twin mission computers , modern digital databus , digital weapon management system , new AN / APQ - 171 terrain - following radar , new AN / APQ - 169 attack radar , and twin ring - laser gyro INS . In late 2001 , wing fatigue problems were discovered in one of the F - 111C fleet . As a result , a decision was made in May 2002 to replace the wings with spares taken from ex - USAF F - 111Fs stored at the Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center ( AMARC ) . The short span wings underwent a refurbishment in Australia , which included extending the span , in effect making the wings the same as the F - 111C and F - 111G models . Following the Avionics Upgrade Program , Australian F - 111s received weapons system and various other upgrades . Design . The F - 111 was an all - weather attack aircraft capable of low - level penetration of enemy defences to deliver ordnance on the target . It featured variable geometry wings , an internal weapons bay and a cockpit with side - by - side seating . The cockpit formed part of an escape crew capsule . The F - 111 had a three - point undercarriage arrangement with a two - wheel nose gear and two single - wheel main undercarriage . Most F - 111 variants included a terrain - following radar system connected to the autopilot . The aircraft were powered by two Pratt & Whitney TF30 afterburning turbofan engines . The F - 111 ' s internal weapons bay could also carry bombs , a removable 20 mm M61 cannon , or auxiliary fuel tanks . The F - 111C was equipped to carry the AN / AVQ - 26 Pave Tack targeting system on a rotating carriage that kept the pod protected within the weapons bay when not in use . Pave Tack is a FLIR and laser rangefinder / designator that allowed the F - 111 to designate targets and drop laser - guided bomb s on them . RF - 111Cs carried a pallet of sensors and cameras for reconnaissance use . F - 111Cs were also equipped to launch the AGM - 84 Harpoon anti - ship missile and the AGM - 142 Popeye stand - off missile . Operational history . Entry into service . The Australian government ordered 24 F - 111C aircraft to replace the RAAF ' s English Electric Canberra s in the bombing and tactical strike role . While the first aircraft was officially handed over on 4 September 1968 , structural issues delayed the entry into service of the F - 111C . Twenty - four USAF F - 4 Phantom II s were leased as an interim measure . The Phantoms were delivered in September and October 1970 to No . 82 Wing at RAAF Base Amberley , Queensland . During its next three years in RAAF service , one F - 4 was lost . By June 1973 , the remaining 23 Phantoms were returned to the U . S . Like the F - 111 , the F - 4 was a two - seat , multi - role , supersonic aircraft . Much more sophisticated than the Canberra , capable of air - to - air and air - to - ground attack roles ; it had inertial navigation , a gun and radar . Experience with the F - 4 likely contributed to the RAAF ' s success with the F - 111 . The RAAF proposed keeping the F - 4 and using it with the F - 111 , but the government decided that the cost was too great . The F - 111C entered Australian service after the technical problems were resolved , and the first F - 111C was accepted at Nellis Air Force Base on 15 March 1973 . On 31 March , the RAAF Washington Flying Unit was formed at McClellan Air Force Base in California with the mission of ferrying the first 12 F - 111Cs to Australia . This unit was commanded by Group Captain John Newham , who later served as Chief of the Air Staff between 1985 and 1988 . The RAAF ' s first six F - 111Cs arrived at Amberley on 1 July 1973 , and three subsequent groups of six F - 111s arrived on 27 July , 28 September and 4 December . F - 111Cs were allocated to No . 1 Squadron and No . 6 Squadron , under the control of No . 82 Wing . No . 1 Squadron was the RAAF ' s strike squadron , and maintained a nominal strength of 12 F - 111s . No . 6 Squadron mainly served as the F - 111 operational conversion unit , though it also operated the RF - 111 aircraft at times and could serve in the strike role if required . Once in RAAF service , all F - 111 maintenance was undertaken at Amberley . From 1973 to 2001 No . 482 Squadron conducted intermediate maintenance of the aircraft , while heavy maintenance was the responsibility of No . 3 Aircraft Depot . No . 482 Squadron also operated the RAAF ' s F - 111 flight simulator . From 2001 onwards , Boeing Australia performed all F - 111 maintenance under a contract with the Australian government . After entering service the F - 111 proved highly successful . Although it never saw combat , the F - 111C was the fastest , longest range combat aircraft in Southeast Asia . Aviation historian Alan Stephens has written that they were " the preeminent weapons system in the Asia - Pacific region " throughout their service and provided Australia with " a genuine , independent strike capability " . Stewart Wilson , in his book " Lincoln , Canberra and F - 111 in Australian Service " , described the F - 111C as " an unqualified success . . . , providing Australia with a potent strike capability in an aircraft which , a quarter of century after its first flight remains second to none . " Former Indonesian defense minister Benny Murdani told his counterpart Kim Beazley that when others became upset with Australia during cabinet meetings , Murdani told them " Do you realise the Australians have a bomber that can put a bomb through that window on to the table here in front of us ? " Gulf War and East Timor . During late 1990 and early 1991 the Australian government considered deploying F - 111Cs to expand the Australian contribution to the 1991 Gulf War , which mainly comprised a Royal Australian Navy task group . The Department of Defence and Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade ' s ( DFAT ) preferred option if the government decided to expand Australia ' s commitment was to deploy at least two RF - 111s , though these aircraft would need to have their electronic warfare equipment upgraded to operate in this war zone . Due to the small size of the RF - 111 force , the loss of any of these aircraft in combat would have inflicted a heavy blow on Australia ' s reconnaissance capability . The second preference in the advice put to the government was to deploy a squadron of four to eight F - 111Cs , though Defence did not support this . In the event , the government decided to not expand the Australian force . As a result , the F - 111Cs ' contribution to the war was limited to conducting intensive exercises with the Naval ships as they sailed through Australian waters en route to the Persian Gulf . The Australian - led INTERFET intervention into East Timor in September 1999 marked the closest Australia ' s F - 111s came to combat . F - 111s from both No . 1 and No . 6 Squadrons were deployed to RAAF Base Tindal , Northern Territory , on 28 August to support the international forces , and remained there until 17 December 1999 . This was a maximum effort for No . 82 Wing , and up to 10 F - 111Cs were available at Tindal ; No . 1 Squadron ' s commitment peaked at six aircraft and about 100 personnel . No . 75 Squadron also maintained 12 F / A - 18s at its home base of Tindal to support INTERFET if needed . From 20 September , when INTERFET began to arrive in East Timor , the F - 111s were maintained at a high level of readiness to conduct reconnaissance flights or air strikes if the situation deteriorated . For the latter role two F - 111s armed with concrete - filled bombs fitted with precision guidance kits were kept available at all times . INTERFET did not encounter significant resistance , however , and F - 111 operations were limited to reconnaissance missions conducted by RF - 111Cs from 5 November . Each of these sorties were made after gaining approval from the Indonesian government and normally focused on bridges and communications installations . The last RF - 111C flight over East Timor took place on 9 December . War games had the F - 111s achieving complete success if a strike was necessary against Indonesian military headquarters near the capital . Other roles and controversies . The Royal Australian Air Force ' s F - 111 fleet has at times been controversial . The long delay to the delivery of the aircraft was a significant political issue in the late 1960s and early 1970s . This occurred around the same time that massive delays and cost blowouts to the Sydney Opera House were making headlines , prompting some commentators to dub the F - 111 the " Flying Opera House " . In 1983 the Hawke Administration tasked an RF - 111 to take surveillance photos of the Franklin Dam project in Tasmania . The use of an RAAF aircraft to " spy " on its own territory led to the minister responsible , Senator Gareth Evans , earning the nickname " Biggles " ( after the famous hero pilot of a number of books by Captain W . E . Johns ) . Another aspect of the F - 111 which drew criticism was the poor work conditions for F - 111 ground crew involved in sealing / de - sealing F - 111 fuel tanks resulted in a class action lawsuit and the Australian government paying out more than A $ 20 million in damages . The health issues with chemical exposure included permanent brain damage to a number of ground crew before conditions were improved . A number of ex - USAF aircraft were delivered to Australia as attrition replacements and to enlarge the fleet . Four aircraft modified to the F - 111C standard were delivered in 1982 . The government bought 15 F - 111Gs to supplement its F - 111Cs in 1992 and delivered in 1994 . Additional stored ex - USAF F - 111s were reserved as a spare parts sources . In Australian military and aviation circles , the F - 111 Aardvark was affectionately known as the " Pig " , due to its long snout and terrain - following ability . Seven of the 28 F - 111Cs and one of the 15 F - 111Gs were destroyed in accidents during their service with the RAAF . These accidents took the lives of 10 air crew . The accidents occurred from 1977 to 1999 . In mid - 2006 , an RAAF F - 111 was chosen to scuttle the North Korean ship " Pong Su " which had been involved in one of Australia ' s largest drug hauls in recorded history . The ship had been sitting in " Snails Bay " , off Birchgrove , while the government decided its fate , and it was decided in March 2006 it would be scuttled by air attack . The " Pong Su " was sunk on 23 March 2006 by two GBU - 10 Paveway II laser - guided bomb s . Retirement . In 2007 , Australia decided to retire all of its RAAF F - 111s . The drawdown of the RAAF ' s F - 111 fleet began with the retirement of the F - 111G models operated by No . 6 Squadron in late 2007 . One of the reasons given for the F - 111s ' retirement was that they required an average of 180 hours maintenance for every flight hour . In March 2008 , after a review , the new Labor government confirmed its purchase of the 24 F / A - 18F Super Hornets as an " interim " measure until the delivery of the F - 35s ; in 2010 , the government signed the acquisition contract . The final RAAF F - 111 aircrew conversion took place in 2009 , with four pilots and two Air Combat Officers ( ACOs ) qualifying . The RAAF retired its last F - 111s on 3 December 2010 , after the final flight by aircraft from No . 6 Squadron over southern Queensland . Australia is currently a partner in the development of the Lockheed Martin F - 35 Lightning II stealth fighter , with plans for the country to procure up to 100 examples to replace the F - 111 as well as the F / A - 18 Hornet . Between 21 and 24 November 2011 , 23 of the RAAF ' s F - 111C and F - 111Gs which had not been selected for preservation were buried at the Swanbank landfill site outside of Ipswich , Queensland . The RAAF had considered scrapping these aircraft , but concluded that it would be cheaper to bury them . The remaining ex - RAAF F - 111s will be placed on display . Variants . F - 111C . The F - 111C was the export version for Australia , combining the F - 111A design with the longer F - 111B wings and the strengthened FB - 111A undercarriage . RF - 111C . Four F - 111C aircraft were modified to RF - 111C reconnaissance configuration . These aircraft met the RAAF ' s requirement for aircraft to reinstate its photographic reconnaissance capacity . While the original order for F - 111s specified that 18 would be strike variants and six reconnaissance variants , the RAAF later agreed to accept all 24 as strike aircraft and later retrofit six with reconnaissance pallets . In 1971 the USAF dropped plans to fit some of its F - 111s as reconnaissance aircraft , but sold the design of the reconnaissance pallet to Australia for $ 3 million . At this time the RAAF decided to fit the pallet to four rather than six aircraft . The reconnaissance pallet contains four cameras and an infrared linescanner unit and is fitted in the F - 111 ' s weapons bay . The RF - 111Cs retained their strike capability . The first F - 111C , A8 - 126 selected for conversion to the RF - 111C variant was modified at General Dynamics plant at Fort Worth , Texas between October 1978 and 18 April 1979 . After four months of test flights , the aircraft returned to Australia in August 1979 where it conducted further tropical weather trials at Darwin . The other three aircraft were modified by the RAAF ' s No . 3 Aircraft Depot at RAAF Base Amberley in 1980 , using kits purchased from General Dynamics . The RF - 111C variant proved to be highly successful , and was considered to be among the best tactical reconnaissance aircraft in the world . Three of the four RF - 111Cs remained in RAAF service until 2010 . The other aircraft was retired in 2006 after suffering damage from landing on its belly after one of its main wheels separated during take off ; although the aircraft was repairable it was judged not worthwhile doing so due to the impending retirement of the entire F - 111 fleet . The RAAF does not have an aircraft with the RF - 111C ' s intelligence , surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities since they were retired . Aircraft on display . 11 F - 111Cs were retained as heritage assets . Five will be placed on display at RAAF bases . On 4 October 2012 , six more cosmetically restored and repainted aircraft were unveiled at RAAF Base Amberley for display at private aviation museums . Ownership would be retained by the Australian government and they would loaned to : The Australian Flying Corps and Royal Australian Air Force Association would also receive a crew module of A8 - 131 . The crew modules of A8 - 135 , A8 - 136 and A8 - 137 are also held at the Aviation Heritage Centre , RAAF Base Amberley .