#bgm-34b

[usafphantom2]

Another good photo of the BGM-34B.

Armed decoy for bombers

@GuyPlopski via X

[skyfire85]

Just one month later, the USAF issued a contract to Ryan to develop a modified Firebee drone for aerial reconnaissance under the BIG SAFARI program. The new Model 147A Fire Fly could travel 1,200 miles at 55,000 feet, thanks to a 35" plug added to the fuselage, which added 68 gallons of fuel. The second, third and fourth Fire Flies were fitted with Halcyon A-1 cameras from the U-2. Tests conducted in the summer of 1962 proved that the Fire Flies were virtually invisible on radar, with only the jet contrail betraying the craft. A masking system was developed for later variants which injected chlorosulfuric acid into the exhaust, which created tiny ice crystals, generating a transparent contrail. The growing war in Vietnam led to a rapid proliferation of Fire Fly variants, used in both high- and low-altitudes, for photographic and signals intelligence as well as in electronic warfare. The Model 147E, for example, was used in "sniffing" out the control frequency used by the SA-2 SAMs supplied to the North Vietnamese, allowing the US to develop radar-warning and jamming equipment for manned aircraft. Model 147F aircraft, meanwhile, were fitted with the AN/ALQ-51 "Shoe Horn" deception jammer, which fooled Soviet "Fan Song" radar as to where its target was, while the 147N was equipped with traveling-wave tube amplifiers, allowing the N model to act as a decoy for other RPVs or manned airplanes. Like their more benign cousins, the Fire Fly (later renamed Lightning Bug) were launched from DC-130s and recovered by helicopters.

-A U.S. Air Force Lockheed DC-130A Hercules, carrying a pair of Lightning Bugs, taking off on a mission in Southeast Asia. | Photo: USAF

-The USAF AQM-34L Firebee drone "Tom Cat" of the 556th Reconnaissance Squadron flew 68 missions over North Vietnam before being shot down by anti-aircraft fire over Hanoi. | Photo: USAF

-HH-3E Jolly Green Giant inflight capture of an 556th Reconnaissance Squadron AQM-34 drone. | Photo: USAF

The draw-down of US forces in Vietnam saw the recall and retirement of the Model 147s, though Ryan continued to develop the line, developing the BGM-34A, which could be armed with AGM-45 Shrike anti-radiation missiles, AGM-65 Maverick anti-armor missiles, or Rockwell GBU-8 or -9 HOBOS bombs, the BGM-34B, which featured more powerful engines and could be fitted with low-light TV and laser designators, and the multi-mission BGM-34C. Though highly advanced, growing concerns over the logistics of launching, operating and recovering these RPVs, especially with Europe's weather and in the face of Soviet airpower, led many in the USAF to doubt their usefulness. The final blow came in 1979 with approval of the SALT II treaty, under which the BQMs were considered strategic weapons, putting them in competition with cruise missiles, despite the fact that Ryan's RPVs could not be armed with nuclear weapons.

-BGM34A Remotely Piloted Vehicle with Maverick missile on wing pylon of a DC130E launch aircraft. | Photo: Military Review

-Illustration of the BQM-34C, showing some of the modules that could be fitted. | Illustration: USAF

Development of the Firebee target drone also continued, and in 1965 the US Navy awarded Ryan a contract to develop a supersonic version, which first flew in 1968. The USAF also acquired these Model 166 Firebee IIs, which retained the same engine and control systems of its slower cousins, while having an almost completely redesigned fuselage and wing. The Firebee II could maintain a Mach 1.5 dash for up to 4 minutes, and was recoverable by parachute.

-A U.S. Air Force Ryan BQM-34F Firebee II drone (s/n 70-1432) leaves its launch pad during the air-to-air combat training exercise "William Tell '82" at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida (USA), on 9 October 1982. | Photo: USAF TSgt. Frank Garzelnick

The Model 166 has been retired, but variants of the original Firebee are still in use by the US. Five specially modified BQM-34-53 were used to lay corridors of chaff during the 2003 invasion of Iraq, two of them being ground launched and three being dropped from the last remaining DC-130.

-Some of the many variations of the Firebee family.

-Firebee II remotely piloted vehicles are stored in the Teledyne Ryan service hangar. | Photo: SSGT Daniel C. Perez, USAF

FLIGHTLINE: 104 - Ryan Firebee RPVs

Developed in the early 1950s, the Ryan Firebee line of drones was one of the first jet powered RPVs, and remains in service into the 21st century.

The result of a 1948 request from the USAF for a jet-propelled gunnery target, the Ryan Firebee first flew in 1951. The 'Bee could be launched from a trolley via a RATO, or air-dropped (a specially modified A-26 Invader was used during testing). The type was ordered into production as the Q-2A in 1952, and was also acquired by the US Navy as the KDA-1, and by the Army as the XM21. The Royal Canadian Air Force purchased a number of upgraded KDA-4 Firebees, launched from a Lancaster 10DC. The Firebee was radio controlled, and was fitted with a two-stage parachute that would first slow, then allow the drone to descend if it was hit; the parachute could also be deployed on command.

-Ryan KDA Firebee target drone under the wing of a Douglas JD-1 Invader control aircraft. | Photo: Ryan Teledyne Archives

-From right to left: USAF Q-2A, US Navy KDA-1, US Army XM21, RCAF KDA-4. | Photo: Ryan Teledyne Archives

-An Avro Lancaster 10DC with a Firebee RPV. | Photo: RCAF

In the late 1950s Ryan was awarded a contract by the USAF to develop an updated version of the Firebee, which was given the internal designation Model 124 Firebee II. The new variant, given the USAF designation Q-2C, first flew in 1958, and was approved for production in 1960. Under the 1962 Tri-Service system, the Q-2C was redesignated the BQM-34A, while the older KDA-1 and -4 Firebee I still in service with the Navy were designated AQM-34B and AQM-34C respectively. The BQM was larger overall, with the intake moved under the fuselage, and a new, more pointed nose. The Firebee II had longer wings as well, and was powered by an improved Continental J69-T-29A turbojet.

-A BQM-34A Firebee II in flight. | Photo: Northrop Grumman

Continuous updates were made to the Firebee II, with changes being made to the tail fins, engine and avionics. The US Navy purchased its own BQM-34As, while the US Army acquired the MQM-34D, which had longer wings and a heavy JATO booster. During the 1970s, several Army Firebees were refitted with GE J85 engines and modified intakes and were used to test the FIM-92 Stinger MANPADS. Certain USAF AQMs were modified with the same early stealth tech that had been originally developed for the Red Wagon spy drones. US Navy and USAF Firebees were launched from specially modified DC-130 Hercules transports fitted with four pylons on the wings. One remote control officer and 2 launch control officers were responsible for the BQMs. USN SH-3 or USAF CH-3E and CH-53 helicopters were used to recover the drones.

-A U.S. Navy DC-130A Hercules (BuNo 158228) from Composite Squadron VC-3 in flight in 1976, carrying BQM-34S Firebee drones. | Photo: PHCS Robert L. Lawson, USN

-A U.S. Navy SH-3G Sea King helicopter (BuNo 148050) from Fleet Composite Squadron 5 (VC-5) carrying a Ryan BQM-34S. | Photo: PHC Lawrence B. Foster, USN

The success of the Firebee line led Ryan to contemplate RPVs with more active roles, and in 1959 they began work on a high altitude reconnaissance version to replace manned aircraft like the RB-47. Several Model 124s were fitted with screens over the intake, as well as radar absorbent materials on the sides of the fuselage, and a radar absorbing paint job. These tests, carried out in September and October 1961, informed the design of the Model 136, code named Red Wagon, which would be a new design featuring long, straight wings, a dorsally mounted engine, and an inwardly canted tail, both of which would suppress the radar and IR signature.

-Concept art of the Red Wagon recon RPV. - Illustration: Teledyne Ryan Archives

Red Wagon was put on hold after JFK's election, and Ryan began work on a new design known as Lucy Lee that would conduct photographic and SIGINT (signals intelligence) from outside Soviet airspace. For reasons not entirely clear (but are likely related to the CIA's work on the A-12) Lucy Lee was cancelled in January 1962.

-Concept art of the Lucy Lee design. | Illustration: Teledyne Ryan Archives