How to Make a Plane

The U.S. Air Force has never let newsmen print complete details of its fastest operational fighter, the F-100. The plane, said Air Force security officers, is secret. But last week, with no official help from the Air Force, unofficial specifications of the F-100 were available in print all over the world. The source: Aireview, Japan's largest aviation monthly (circ. 20,000), which printed classified details of the F-100, including a detailed diagram. In Washington Air Force security people launched an investigation to find out how this breach of security occurred, said that any U.S. publication that reprinted the Japanese sketch would be "violating security."

The odd feature of the foofaraw was that there was no mystery about this "breach of security." In Tokyo Aireview Publisher Jin Imai calmly explained that his staff had merely pieced together specifications of the F-100 just as any good newsman--or intelligence officer--would. After the F-100 was announced 20 months ago, Aireview wrote to North American Aviation, Inc. in California for information about its prize fighter plane.

In return the magazine got publicity pictures that showed riveters at work on the wing sections, and the engine and fuel tanks being dropped into place on the assembly line. The pictures gave Aireview a good start toward doping out structural details. From the Tokyo office of the United States Information Agency, the magazine got a fuselage view illustrating the F-100's sound abatement chamber. From North American's own house organ, Skyline, Aireview picked up details of previous planes from which the F-100 had been developed.

From then on it was easy. The editors followed the rivet lines on the photographs, figured out where the bulkheads went. From gun mounts plainly showing in the pictures, they positioned the ammunition magazines. From all these structural details Aireview worked out the plane's specifications.

Aireview Publisher Imai pointed out that it was not so easy to piece together Russian planes. The Russians never oblige with detailed photographs. Publisher Imai, who does not have to deal with the Services' bureaucratic security offices as U.S. newsmen do, was baffled by all the excitement over his "breach of security." Said he: "All the Air Force has to do is to ignore our drawing. They're the only ones who can say whether it was correct or not. By making a fuss, they tend to give the impression that we were right."

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