The F-111 was a multipurpose tactical fighter bomber capable of supersonic speeds. The F-111 was built around two powerful yet fuel-efficient TF30 turbofan engines with new afterburner technology. A capacious fuselage could accommodate bomb loads of up to 31,000 pounds and fuel for missions up 2,500 miles long, with external tanks adding another 1,000 miles. The large plane weighed twenty tons empty-or more than twice that loaded. The F-111’s designers adopted the new technology of variable-geometry, or “swing” wings. These permitted the wings to swing out during takeoff to generate maximum lift, and then would tuck inward midflight to achieve higher speeds. The F-111 was the first of several major designs that used the technology. For many years the F111 was a common site in the in the skies above Britain until the endof the cold war.
The painting depicts a F111E based at RAF Upper Heyford Oxfordshire.
