Q&A for How to Understand US Military Aircraft Designations

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What does the "2" on a A-10 Thunderbolt II/Warthog mean?

Community Answer

It was the second plane with this name. The P-47 was originally called Thunderbolt as well.

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What does the 130 stand for on a C-130?

Community Answer

130 is the 130th in the Transport series. Such as F-16. 16 is the 16th in the Fighter series.

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Does the V in Navy aircraft designations come from the French word vol?

Community Answer

No it does not. The V stands for VTOL which is short for "Vertical Take Off and Landing."

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In the designation "X-37B," does the B stand for bomber?

Community Answer

No. The "B" means "B variant." The X-37 comes in three variants: X-37A, X-37B, and X-37C.

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Why are some Navy planes called things like Wildcat, Hellcat, etc.?

Community Answer

The "Wildcat" and "Hellcat" fighter aircraft were made by the company Grumman. These aircraft names were given by the manufacturer and not the army. However, these names are really nothing more than suggestions that the military services may or may not accept as the official name. In this case, Grumman likes to use names ending with "cat," so this has resulted in the F4F Wildcat, F6F Hellcat, F7F Tigercat, F8F Bearcat, and F-14 Tomcat. Other companies like Boeing use "strato" and "fortress."

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First military aircraft used the abbreviation 'BE'. What does this stand for?

Michael Crescenzo

Community Answer

Multiple designations means there are multiple uses, BE meaning a Bomber with extensive electronic equipment.

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