buzz number
{{Short description|USAF aircraft identification}}
File:F-100.jpg has the buzz number "FW-754" on its nose.]]
Buzz numbers were letter-number combinations displayed by United States Air Force military aircraft in the years immediately after World War II, through the early 1960s.
The first two letters of a buzz number indicated the type and designation of an aircraft while the last three were generally the last three digits of the aircraft serial number. Air Force fighters used buzz numbers starting with the letter F (or P, when fighters were designated as "pursuit" aircraft before June 1948), while bombers started with the letter B. For example, a P-51 Mustang would have a buzz number such as FF-230 while an F-86 Sabre might be FU-910. A B-66 Destroyer would have a buzz number such as BB-222. One of the last Air Force fighters to carry a buzz number was the F-4 Phantom II (FJ), then called the F-110 Spectre by the Air Force.
List of buzz codes
File:523d FES North American F-82E Twin Mustang 46-332.jpg with a buzz number near its tail|alt=A lineup of silver piston-engined fighters, the one in the front of the line with clearly visible U.S. Air Force insignia and 'PQ-332" coding on the rear fuselage]]
File:A-24A Jun 1950 051121-F-1234P-008.jpg
File:Lockheed YF-12A buzz number.png; possibly the last buzz number|alt=A part of a black, delta-winged aircraft with engine nacelle partway out the wing; U.S. Air Force insignia on the fuselage, "USAF" labeling on the wing, and "FX-936" coding on the nacelle]]
This table lists U.S. Air Force and U.S. Army aircraft by buzz-number prefix. Note that some aircraft types changed prefixes during their career, while other prefixes were re-used after an earlier type was retired.
See also
References
;Citations
{{Reflist|2}}
;Bibliography
{{refbegin}}
- {{cite book|last1=Adcock|first1=Al|title=C-123 Provider in action|series=Aircraft In Action|volume=124|year=1992|publisher=Squadron/Signal Publications|location=Carrollton, TX|isbn=978-0-89747-276-0}}
- {{cite book|last=Andrade|first=John M.|title=U.S. Military Aircraft Designations and Serials since 1909|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-KMgAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Buzz+numbers%22|access-date=2011-02-08|year=1979|publisher=Midland Counties Publications|location=Leichester, UK|isbn=0-904597-22-9}}
- {{cite book|last=Hooftman|first=Hugo|title=Russian Aircraft|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yoZTAAAAMAAJ&q=%22TC-616%22|access-date=2011-02-08|year=1965|publisher=Aero Publishers|location=Fallbrook, CA|isbn=978-0-8168-8100-0}}
- {{cite book|last=Johnsen|first=Frederick A.|title=Northrop F-5/F-20/T-38|series=WarbirdTech Series|volume=44|year=2006|publisher=Specialty Press|location=North Branch, MN|isbn=978-1-58007-094-2}}
- {{cite book|last=Kinzey|first=Bert|title=F-102 Delta Dagger in Detail & Scale|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ifhTAAAAMAAJ&q=T-33+%22buzz+number%22|access-date=2011-02-08|series=Detail & Scale|volume=35|year=1990|publisher=Squadron/Signal Publications|location=Carrollton, TX|isbn=978-0-8306-3046-2}}
- {{cite book|last=Sgarlato|first=Nico|title=USAF Aircraft of Today|year=1979|publisher=Squadron/Signal Publications|location=Carrollton, TX|isbn=0-89747-068-0}}
- {{cite book|last=Swanborough|first=Gordon|author2=Peter M. Bowers|title=United States Military Aircraft since 1909|url=https://archive.org/details/unitedstatesmili00swan|url-access=registration|quote=Douglas XCG-17.|year=1989|publisher=Smithsonian Institution Press|location=Washington, D.C.|isbn=978-0-87474-880-2}}
{{refend}}
;Further reading
{{refbegin}}
- {{cite book|last=Bowers|first=Peter M.|author2=David W. Menard|title=Buzz Numbers: The Explanations and Regulations Behind America's Military Aircraft Identification System|year=2006|publisher=Specialty Press|location=North Branch, MN|isbn=978-1-58007-103-1}}
{{refend}}
External links
- [http://www.aerofiles.com/buzz-tails.html Aerofiles Buzz Numbers & Tail Codes]