title: Yamato-class battleship

text: Although five "Yamato"-class vessels had been planned in 1937, only three—two battleships and a converted aircraft carrier—were completed. All three vessels were built in extreme secrecy, to prevent American intelligence officials from learning of their existence and specifications; indeed, the United States' Office of Naval Intelligence only became aware of "Yamato" and "Musashi" by name in late 1942. At this early time, their assumptions on the class's specifications were quite far off; while they were correct on their length, the class was given as having a beam of —in actuality, it was about and a displacement of 40,000–57,000 tons (actually, 69,000 tons). In addition, the main armament of "Yamato" class was given as nine guns as late as July 1945, four months after "Yamato" was sunk. Both "Jane's Fighting Ships" and the Western media also misreported the specifications of the ships. In September 1944, "Jane's Fighting Ships" listed the displacement of both "Yamato" and "Musashi" as 45,000 tons. Similarly, both the "New York Times" and the Associated Press reported that the two ships displaced 45,000 tons with a speed of 30 knots, and even after the sinking of "Yamato" in April 1945, "The Times" of London continued to give 45,000 tons as the ship's displacement. Nevertheless, the existence of the ships—and their supposed violation of naval treaties—heavily influenced American naval engineers in the design of the 60,500-ton s, though they were not designed specifically to counter the "Yamato" class.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: was ordered in March 1937, laid down 4 November 1937, launched 8 August 1940, and commissioned 16 December 1941. She underwent training exercises until 27 May 1942, when the vessel was deemed "operable" by Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto. Joining the 1st Battleship Division, "Yamato" served as the flagship of the Japanese Combined Fleet during the Battle of Midway in June 1942, yet did not engage enemy forces during the battle. The next two years were spent intermittently between Truk and Kure naval bases, with her sister ship "Musashi" replacing "Yamato" as the flagship of the Combined Fleet. During this time period, "Yamato", as part of the 1st Battleship Division, deployed on multiple occasions to counteract American carrier-raids on Japanese island bases. On 25 December 1943, she suffered major torpedo damage at the hands of and was forced to return to Kure for repairs and structural upgrades.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: In 1944—following extensive anti-aircraft and secondary battery upgrades—"Yamato" joined the Second Fleet in the Battle of the Philippine Sea, serving as an escort to a Japanese Carrier Division. In October 1944, as part of Vice-Admiral Takeo Kurita's Center Force for the Battle of Leyte Gulf, she used her naval artillery against an enemy vessel for the only time, helping sink the American escort carrier and the destroyer before she was forced away by torpedoes from , which put her out of combat. Lightly damaged at Kure in March 1945, the ship was then rearmed in preparation for operations. "Yamato" was deliberately expended in a suicide mission as part of Operation Ten-Go,


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: sent to use her big guns to provide relief to Japanese forces engaged in the Battle of Okinawa. She never came close, sunk en-route on 7 April 1945 by 386 American carrier aircraft. After receiving 10 torpedo and 7 bomb hits she capsized, taking 2,498 of the 2,700 crew-members with her, including Vice-Admiral Seiichi Itō. The sinking of "Yamato" was seen as a major American victory, and Hanson W. Baldwin, the military editor of "The New York Times", wrote that "the sinking of the new Japanese battleship "Yamato" ... is striking proof—if any were needed—of the fatal weakness of Japan in the air and at sea".


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: was ordered in March 1937, laid down 29 March 1938, launched 1 November 1940, and commissioned 5 August 1942. From September to December 1942, she was involved in surface and air-combat training exercises at Hashirajima. On 11 February 1943, "Musashi" relieved her sister ship "Yamato" as the flagship of the Combined Fleet. Until July 1944, "Musashi" shifted between the naval bases of Truk, Yokosuka, Brunei, and Kure. On 29 March 1944, she sustained moderate damage near the bow from one torpedo fired by the American submarine . After repairs and refitting throughout April 1944, "Musashi" joined the 1st Battleship Division in Okinawa.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: In June 1944, as part of the Second Fleet, the ship escorted Japanese aircraft carriers during the Battle of the Philippine Sea. In October 1944, she left Brunei as part of Admiral Takeo Kurita's Center Force during the Battle of Leyte Gulf. "Musashi" was sunk 24 October during the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea, taking 17 bomb and 19 torpedo hits, with the loss of 1,023 of her 2,399-man crew.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: "Shinano", originally Warship Number 110, was laid down as the third member of the "Yamato" class, albeit with a slightly modified design. Most of the original armor values were slightly reduced, including the belt, deck, and turrets. The savings in weight this entailed meant that improvements could be made in other areas, including added protection for fire-control and lookout positions. In addition, the secondary armament on the first two "Yamato"s was to have been replaced by the /65 caliber Type 98 gun. Although smaller, this gun was superior to the 127 mm, possessing a significantly greater muzzle velocity, maximum range, anti-aircraft ceiling, and rate of fire.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: In June 1942, following the Japanese defeat at Midway, construction of "Shinano" was suspended, and the hull was gradually rebuilt as an aircraft carrier. She was designed as a 64,800-ton support vessel that would be capable of ferrying, repairing and replenishing the air fleets of other carriers. Although she was originally scheduled for commissioning in early 1945, the construction of the ship was accelerated after the Battle of the Philippine Sea; this resulted in "Shinano" being launched on 5 October 1944 and commissioned a little more than a month later on 19 November. "Shinano" departed Yokosuka for Kure nine days later. In the early morning on 29 November, "Shinano" was hit by four torpedoes from . Although the damage seemed manageable, poor flooding control caused the vessel to list to starboard. Shortly before midday, she capsized and sank, taking 1,435 of her 2,400-man crew with her. To this day, "Shinano" is the largest naval vessel to have been sunk by a submarine.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: Warship Number 111, never named, was planned as the fourth member of the "Yamato" class and the second ship to incorporate the improvements of "Shinano". The ship's keel was laid after "Yamato"s launch in August 1940 and construction continued until December 1941, when the Japanese began to question their ambitious capital ship building program—with the coming of war, the resources essential in constructing the ship would become much harder to obtain. As a result, the hull of the fourth vessel, only about 30% complete, was taken apart and scrapped in 1942; materials from this were used in the conversions of and to hybrid battleship/aircraft carriers.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: The fifth vessel, Warship Number 797, was planned as an improved "Shinano" but was never laid down. In addition to the modifications made to that ship, 797 would have removed the two wing turrets in favor of additional 100 mm guns; authors William Garzke and Robert Dulin estimate that this would have allowed for 24 of these weapons. "Yamato" was eventually modified in 1944 to something akin to this.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: The "Yamato-"class battleships had primary armaments consisting of three 3-gun turrets mounting /45 caliber Type 94 naval guns – the largest guns ever fitted to a warship, although they were officially designated as the 40 cm/45 caliber (15.9 in) Type 94 – each of which weighed 2,774 tonnes for the complete mount. Each gun was long and weighed , and could fire armor-piercing shells and high explosive shells out to at a rate of 1½ to 2 shells per minute.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: The main guns were also capable of firing "3 Shiki tsûjôdan" ("Common Type 3") anti-aircraft shells. A time fuze was used to set how far away the shells would explode (although they were commonly set to go off away). Upon detonation, each of these shells would release 900 incendiary-filled tubes in a 20° cone facing towards incoming aircraft; a bursting charge was then used to explode the shell itself to create more steel splinters, finally, the tubes would ignite. The tubes would burn for five seconds at about and would start a flame that was around long. Even though they comprised 40% of the total main ammunition load by 1944, "3 Shiki tsûjôdan" were rarely used in combat against enemy aircraft due to the severe damage the firing of these shells inflicted on the barrels of the main guns; indeed, one of the shells may have exploded early and disabled one of "Musashi"s guns during the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea. The shells were intended to put up a barrage of flame that any aircraft attempting to attack would have to navigate through. However, U.S. pilots considered these shells to be more of a pyrotechnics display than a competent anti-aircraft weapon.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: In the original design, the "Yamato" class' secondary armament comprised twelve 15.5 cm/60 Type 3 guns mounted in four 3-gun turrets (one forward, two amidships, one aft), and twelve 12.7 cm/40 Type 89 guns in six double turrets (three on each side amidships). These had become available once the "Mogami"-class cruisers were rearmed with guns. With a AP shell, the guns had a maximum range of at an elevation of 45 degrees. Their rate of fire was five rounds per minute. The two midships turrets were removed in 1944 in favor of additional heavy and light anti-aircraft guns.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: Initially, heavy anti-aircraft defence was provided by a dozen 40-caliber 127-mm Type 89 dual-purpose guns in six double turrets, three on each side of the superstructure. In 1944, the two amidship 15.5 cm turrets were removed to make room for three additional 127-mm mounts on each side of "Yamato", bringing the total number of these guns to twenty-four . When firing at surface targets, the guns had a range of ; they had a maximum ceiling of at their maximum elevation of 90 degrees. Their maximum rate of fire was 14 rounds a minute; their sustained rate of fire was around eight rounds per minute.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: The "Yamato" class originally carried twenty-four 25 mm Type 96 anti-aircraft guns, primarily mounted amidships. In 1944, both "Yamato" and "Musashi" underwent significant anti-aircraft upgrades in preparation for operations in Leyte Gulf using the space freed up by the removal of both midships secondary battery turrets, and ended up with a complement of twenty-four guns, and one hundred and sixty-two antiaircraft guns, The 25 mm anti-aircraft guns could tilt at 90-degree angles to aim at planes directly overhead, but their mountings' lack of protection made their gunnery crews extremely vulnerable to direct enemy fire. These guns had an effective range of , and an effective ceiling of at an elevation of +85 degrees. The maximum effective rate of fire was only between 110 and 120 rounds per minute because of the frequent need to change the fifteen-round magazines. This was the standard Japanese light AA gun during World War II; it suffered from severe design shortcomings that rendered it a largely ineffective weapon. According to historian Mark Stille, the twin and triple mounts "lacked sufficient speed in train or elevation; the gun sights were unable to handle fast targets; the gun exhibited excessive vibration; the magazine was too small, and ... the gun produced excessive muzzle blast".


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: The class was also provided with two twin mounts for the licence-built 13.2 mm Type 93 anti-aircraft machine guns, one on each side of the bridge. The maximum range of these guns was , but the effective range against aircraft was only . The cyclic rate was adjustable between 425 and 475 rounds per minute; the need to change 30-round magazines reduced the effective rate to 250 rounds per minute.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: The armament on "Shinano" was quite different from that of her sister vessels due to her conversion. As the carrier was designed for a support role, significant anti-aircraft weaponry was installed on the vessel: sixteen guns, one hundred and twenty-five anti-aircraft guns, and three hundred and thirty-six anti-aircraft rocket launchers in twelve twenty-eight barrel turrets. None of these guns were ever used against an enemy vessel or aircraft.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: Designed to engage multiple enemy battleships simultaneously, the "Yamato"s were fitted with heavy armor plating described by naval historian Mark Stille as providing "an unparalleled degree of protection in surface combat". The main belt of armor along the side of the vessel was up to thick, with transverse bulkheads of the armoured citadel up to thick. A lower belt armor thick extending below the main belt was included in the ships as a response to gunnery experiments upon and the new Japanese Type 91 shell which could travel great lengths underwater. Furthermore, the top hull shape was very advanced, the peculiar sideways curving effectively maximizing armor protection and structural rigidity while optimizing weight. The armor on the main turrets surpassed even that of the main belt, with turret face plating thick. Armor plates in both the main belt and main turrets were made of Vickers Hardened steel, which was a face-hardened steel armor. Main armored deck— thick—was composed of a nickel-chromium-molybdenum alloy. Ballistics tests at the proving ground at Kamegakubi demonstrated the deck alloy to be superior to the homogeneous Vickers plates by 10–15%. Additional plating was designed by manipulating the chromium and nickel composition of the alloy. Higher contents of nickel allowed the plate to be rolled and bent without developing fracture properties.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: For torpedo protection, a multiple bulkhead side protection system was used which consisted of several void spaces as well as the lower belt armor; the system has a depth of and was designed to withstand a TNT charge. No torpedo defense system compartments were liquid loaded, despite the known benefits. This may have been the result of overestimating the effectiveness of the lower belt armor against torpedoes, an effort to decrease draft, and provision of additional counter-flooding spaces.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: The relatively new procedure of arc welding was used extensively throughout the ship, strengthening the durability of the armor plating. Through this technique, the lower-side belt armor was used to strengthen the hull structure of the entire vessel. In total, the vessels of the "Yamato" class contained 1,147 watertight compartments, of which 1,065 were beneath the armored deck. The ships were also designed with a very large amount of reserve buoyancy to mitigate the effects of flooding.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: However, despite the immense armor thickness, the protection scheme of the "Yamato" class still suffered from several major design flaws and shortcomings. Structural weakness existed near the bow of the vessels, where the armor plating was generally thinner, as demonstrated by "Musashi's" damage from a torpedo hit in 1943. The hull of the "Shinano" was subject to even greater structural weakness, being hastily constructed near the end of the war and having been equipped with incomplete armor and unsealed watertight compartments at the time of her sinking. The torpedo defense system performed substantially worse than designed. In particular, very poor jointing between the upper-belt and lower-belt armor created a rupture-prone seam just below the waterline. When combined with the relatively shallow system depth and the lack of liquid loading, this caused the class to be susceptible to torpedoes. Joint failures have been attributed to the considerable damage inflicted upon "Yamato" from a single torpedo impact in 1943, and to the sinking of "Shinano" from four hits in 1944.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: The "Yamato" class was fitted with 12 Kampon boilers, which powered quadruple steam turbines, with an indicated horsepower of 147,948 (). These, in turn, drove four propellers. This powerplant enabled the "Yamato" class to achieve a top speed of . With this speed, the "Yamato" class' ability to function alongside fast carriers was limited. In addition, the fuel consumption rate of both battleships was very high. As a result, neither battleship was used in combat during the Solomon Islands Campaign or the minor battles during the "island hopping" period of 1943 and early 1944. The propulsion system of "Shinano" was slightly improved, allowing the carrier to achieve a top speed of .


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: Two battleships of an entirely new and larger design were planned as a part of the 1942 fleet replenishment program. Designated as Design A-150 and initially named Warship Number 178 and Warship Number 179, plans for the ships began soon after the design of the "Yamato" class was finished, probably in 1938–39. Everything was "essentially completed" sometime in 1941, but with war on the horizon, work on the battleships was halted to fill a need for additional warships, such as aircraft carriers and cruisers, to replace war losses of those vital ships. The Japanese loss in the Battle of Midway, where four carriers were sunk (out of ten, to date, in the entire navy), made it certain that work on the ships would never begin. In the third volume of their "Battleships" series, "Axis and Neutral Battleships in World War II", the authors William H. Garzke and Robert O. Dulin asserted that these ships would have been the "most powerful battleships in history" because of their massive main battery and extensive anti-aircraft weaponry.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: Similar to the fate of papers relating to the "Yamato" class, most papers and all plans relating to the class were destroyed to prevent capture at the end of the war. It is known that the final design of the ships would have had an even greater firepower and size than the "Yamato" class—a main battery of six guns in three turrets and secondary dual purpose armament consisting of twenty-four dual mounted guns (similar to the s). The displacement was to be bigger than the "Yamato"s, and a side armor belt of was planned.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: On the eve of the Allies' occupation of Japan, special-service officers of the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyed virtually all records, drawings, and photographs of or relating to the "Yamato"-class battleships, leaving only fragmentary records of the design characteristics and other technical matters. The destruction of these documents was so efficient that until 1948 the only known images of "Yamato" and "Musashi" were those taken by United States Navy aircraft involved in the attacks on the two battleships. Although some additional photographs and information, from documents that were not destroyed, have come to light over the years, the loss of the majority of written records for the class has made extensive research into the "Yamato" class somewhat difficult. Because of the lack of written records, information on the class largely came from interviews of Japanese officers following Japan's surrender.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: However, in October 1942, based upon a special request from Adolf Hitler, German Admiral Paul Wenneker, attached to the German Naval Attache in Japan, was allowed to inspect a "Yamato"-class battleship while it was undergoing maintenance in a dockyard, at which time Admiral Wenneker cabled a detailed description of the warship to Berlin. On 22 August 1943, Erich Groner, a German naval historian, and author of the book "Die Deutschen Kriegschiffe, 1815–1945", was shown the report while at the "Führer Headquarters", and was directed to make an "interpretation" and then prepare a "design sketch drawing" of the Japanese battleship. The material was preserved by Erich Groner's wife, Mrs. H. Groner, and submitted to publishers in the 1950s.


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: From the time of their construction until the present day, "Yamato" and "Musashi" have carried a notable presence in Japanese culture, "Yamato" in particular. Upon completion, the battleships represented the epitome of Imperial Japanese naval engineering. In addition, the two ships, due to their size, speed, and power, visibly embodied Japan's determination and readiness to defend its interests against the western powers, especially the United States. Shigeru Fukudome, chief of the Operations Section of the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff, described the two ships as "symbols of naval power that provided to officers and men alike a profound sense of confidence in their navy."


title: Yamato-class battleship

text: "Yamato", and especially the story of her sinking, has appeared often in Japanese popular culture, such as the anime "Space Battleship Yamato" and the 2005 film "Yamato". The appearances in popular culture usually portray the ship's last mission as a brave, selfless, but futile, symbolic effort by the participating Japanese sailors to defend their homeland. One of the reasons that the warship may have such significance in Japanese culture is that the word "Yamato" was often used as a poetic name for Japan. Thus, the end of the battleship "Yamato" could serve as a metaphor for the end of the Japanese empire.


title: Virgin Records

text: Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwide success over time, with the success of platinum performers Paula Abdul, Janet Jackson, Devo, Tangerine Dream, Genesis, Phil Collins, OMD, the Human League, Culture Club, Simple Minds, Lenny Kravitz, the Sex Pistols, and Mike Oldfield among others, meaning that by the time it was sold, it was regarded as a major label, alongside other large international independents such as A&M and Island Records.


title: Virgin Records

text: Virgin Records was sold to EMI in 1992. EMI was in turn taken over by Universal Music Group (UMG) in 2012 with UMG creating the Virgin EMI Records division. The Virgin Records name continues to be used by UMG in certain markets such as Germany and Japan.


title: Virgin Records

text: Virgin Records America, Inc. was the company's North American operations founded in 1986. They are still active and headquartered in Hollywood, California, and operate under the Capitol Music Group imprint, now also owned by UMG, since 2012. The US operations have also taken on the name Virgin Records. A minor number of artists remain on Virgin Records America's roster, which is currently mostly occupied with European artists such as Bastille, Circa Waves, Corinne Bailey Rae, Ella Eyre, Grizfolk, Walking on Cars, Seinabo Sey, and Prides; American artists include Knox Hamilton, L'Tric, Loren Gray, and Rise Against.


title: Virgin Records

text: Virgin Classics was founded in 1988 as part of Virgin Records. Along with EMI Classics, it too was acquired by UMG in 2012 as part of the takeover of the EMI Group. But the terms of the European Commission's approval of the takeover required divestment of the two classical labels. Accordingly, both were sold in February the following year to Warner Music Group, and this transaction was approved by the European Union that May. Warner placed the Virgin Classics artist roster and catalogue in its Erato Records division, and the "Virgin Classics" name, along with "EMI Classics," disappeared.


title: Virgin Records

text: Branson and Powell had initially run a small record shop called "Virgin Records and Tapes" on Notting Hill Gate, London, specializing in krautrock imports, and offering bean bags and free vegetarian food for the benefit of customers listening to the music on offer. The first real store was above a shoe shop at the Tottenham Court Road end of Oxford Street.


title: Virgin Records

text: After making the shop into a success, they turned their business into a fully fledged record label. The name Virgin, according to Branson (in his autobiography), arose from Tessa Watts, a colleague of his, when they were brainstorming business ideas. She suggested Virgin – as they were all new to business – like "virgins". The original Virgin logo (known to fans as the "Gemini" or "Twins" logo) was designed by English artist and illustrator Roger Dean: a young naked woman in mirror image with a large long-tailed lizard and the word "Virgin" in Dean's familiar script. A variation on the logo was used for the spin-off Caroline Records label.


title: Virgin Records

text: The first release on the label was the progressive rock album "Tubular Bells" by multi-instrumentalist Mike Oldfield, who was discovered by Tom Newman and brought to Simon Draper – who eventually persuaded Richard and Nik to present it as their first release


title: Virgin Records

text: in 1973, produced by Tom Newman, for which the fledgling label garnered unprecedented acclaim. This was soon followed by some notable krautrock releases, including electronic breakthrough album "Phaedra" by Tangerine Dream (which went Top 20), and "The Faust Tapes" and "Faust IV" by Faust. "The Faust Tapes" album retailed for 49p (the price of a 7" single) and as a result allowed this relatively unknown band a massive audience as the album sold over 60,000 copies and also reached number 12 in the charts, though it was later redacted its spot on the grounds of the cover price. Other early albums include Gong's "Flying Teapot (Radio Gnome Invisible, Pt. 1)", which Daevid Allen has been quoted as having never been paid for.


title: Virgin Records

text: The first single release for the label was Kevin Coyne's "Marlene" (b/w "Everybody Says"), taken from his album "Marjory Razorblade" and released in August 1973. Coyne was the second artist signed to the label after Oldfield.


title: Virgin Records

text: Although Virgin was initially one of the key labels of English and European progressive rock, the 1977 signing of the Sex Pistols (who had already been signed and then dropped by both EMI and A&M) reinvented the label PM in a new-wave outpost, a move that plunged the record company into the mainstream of the punk rock era. Under the guidance of Tessa Watts, Virgin's Head of Publicity (and later, also Director of Production), the Pistols rocketed the label to success. Shortly afterwards, the Nottingham record shop was raided by police for having a window display of the Sex Pistols' album "Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols" in the window. Afterwards they signed other new wave groups: Public Image Ltd, Boxer, Culture Club, Fingerprintz, Gillan, Holly and the Italians, Human League (whose "Don't You Want Me" was the label's first chart-topping single, in 1981), Magazine, Skids, the Motors, Penetration, the Ruts, Shooting Star, Simple Minds, and XTC.


title: Virgin Records

text: After modified versions of the twins label came the red, white and blue design introduced in 1975, which coincided with the height of punk and new wave. The current Virgin logo (known informally as "the scrawl") was created in 1978, commissioned by Simon Draper, then managing director of Virgin Records Limited. Brian Cooke of Cooke Key Associates commissioned a graphic designer to produce a stylised signature. The logo was first used on Mike Oldfield's "Incantations" album in 1978 and by the Virgin Records label exclusively until gradually other parts of the Virgin Group adopted it, including Virgin Atlantic, Virgin Mobile and Virgin Money.


title: Virgin Records

text: Virgin Records was sold by Branson to Thorn EMI in June 1992 for a reported US$1 billion (around £560 million), with a special non-competition clause that would prevent Branson from founding another recording company during the five years following the agreement (see the final paragraph in EU Merger Decision IV/M202 of 27 April 1992). It now faces competition from Branson's new label: V2 Records. Branson sold Virgin Records to fund Virgin Atlantic which at that time was coming under intense anti-competitive pressure from British Airways. (In 1993 BA settled a libel action brought by Branson over BA's "dirty tricks" campaign, giving him £500,000 and a further £110,000 to his airline).


title: Virgin Records

text: After being acquired by Thorn EMI, Virgin launched several subsidiaries like Realworld Records, Innocent Records, blues speciality label Point Blank Records, and indie music label Hut Recordings, and continued signing new and established artists like Korn, A Fine Frenzy, Thirty Seconds to Mars, Tina Turner, Beenie Man, The Rolling Stones, Spice Girls, The Smashing Pumpkins, We Are Scientists, The Kooks, dcTalk (mainstream releases, contract ended in 2000), Belinda Carlisle, Meat Loaf, Placebo, Janet Jackson (contract ended in 2006), Daft Punk (contract ended in 2008), My Favorite Highway, Does It Offend You, Yeah?, The Future Sound of London, The Chemical Brothers, Brooke Allison, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, The Almost, Mariah Carey (contract ended in 2002), N.E.R.D, Laura Marling, Swami, RBD, Thalía and Priscilla Renea.


title: Virgin Records

text: Because business models increasingly diverged, Thorn EMI shareholders voted in favour of demerger proposals on 16 August 1996. The resulting media company became the EMI Group. In 1997, Virgin absorbed the remainder of EMI USA, which earlier consolidated EMI America Records and Manhattan Records, with Capitol Records acquiring EMI's other American operations, and in 1998, opened a country music division called Virgin Records Nashville, of which record producer Scott Hendricks was president. The label's signees comprised Julie Reeves, Jerry Kilgore, Roy D. Mercer, Tom Mabe, Chris Cagle, Clay Davidson, and River Road. In 2001, Virgin Nashville closed and its roster was folded into Capitol Records' Nashville division.


title: Virgin Records

text: Capitol Records and Virgin Records America merged in 2007 to form Capitol Music Group after a massive restructuring of EMI Group Ltd. Stepping down as chief executive of Capitol Records was Andy Slater, with Jason Flom, former executive of Virgin, taking the reins as chairman and CEO of the newly created company.


title: Virgin Records

text: Universal Music Group (UMG) purchased EMI in 2012, thus acquiring Virgin. UMG absorbed Virgin's British operations to create Virgin EMI Records in March 2013.


title: Virgin Records

text: On 16 June 2020, Universal rebranded Virgin EMI Records as EMI Records and named Rebecca Allen (former president of UMG's Decca label) as the label's president, with Virgin Records now operating as an imprint of latter label.


title: Virgin Records

text: In February 2021, the Universal Music Group announced that it will rebrand the Caroline Music Group as Virgin Music Label & Artist Services, the name change was "inspired and influenced by the spirit and ethos of the iconic Virgin Records label". In September 2022, UMG consolidated Virgin Records, Virgin Music Label & Artist Services, Ingrooves and recently acquired mtheory Artist Partnerships as part of the newly launched division Virgin Music Group. UMG also appointed mtheory founders JT Myers and Nat Pastor as Co-CEOs of the new division.


title: Virgin Records

text: The Virgin label was distributed in the US by Atlantic from 1973 to 1975. During this period, 14 albums were issued. All had been previously issued in the UK on Virgin, although one album, "Marjory Razorblade" by Kevin Coyne, was truncated from a 20-song double album to an 11-song single album.


title: Virgin Records

text: Beginning with Mike Oldfield's "Ommadawn" album in 1975, American distribution switched to CBS Records/Columbia Records. CBS/Columbia was unwilling to release all Virgin artists, and so many were licensed to other labels: Epic (the sister company of Columbia): Mike Oldfield (1980s releases), Captain Beefheart (1982's Ice Cream For Crow), Culture Club (1982-1986), Holly and the Italians, some XTC (1982's English Settlement) and Shooting Star; Atlantic: Julian Lennon, Genesis (previously on Charisma Records), Phil Collins; A&M: (UB40, The Human League, Simple Minds, Breathe, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark and The Blue Nile), Warner Bros.: (Sex Pistols, Scritti Politti, Devo); Geffen (XTC - 1983 on); MCA: (Tangerine Dream, Belinda Carlisle); RCA: (the soundtrack of "1984") and Arista: (Heaven 17, Jermaine Stewart). Some of these records had a small Virgin logo added to the regular company design on the label. One of Virgin's and Epic's biggest acts of the 1980s was Culture Club.


title: Virgin Records

text: In 1978, Virgin set up US operations first in New York on Perry Street, with distribution from Atlantic Records. Virgin Records soon moved operations to New Jersey along with a short-lived subdivision called Virgin International, handled by independent New Jersey-based distributor Jem Records. Virgin International was used mainly for progressive rock artists and reissues of earlier Virgin / Atlantic albums such as "Hergest Ridge" by Mike Oldfield, and "Fish Rising" by Steve Hillage, which Columbia chose not to reissue. Virgin International also issued albums by some of Virgin's reggae artists, including Gregory Isaacs. At the same time, Virgin releases distributed by Columbia continued, distribution returning to Atlantic (later WEA) in 1980, at which time Virgin International ceased operations.


title: Virgin Records

text: In 1986, Virgin Records opened up another American division, Virgin Records America. Its first release was the debut album by Cutting Crew which included the hit single "(I Just) Died in Your Arms". Other Virgin America signings included Camper Van Beethoven, Bob Mould, Warren Zevon, Paula Abdul, T'pau, Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers, Redhead Kingpin & The F.B.I., Neneh Cherry, Steve Winwood, Hindsight and, after her MCA contract ran out in 1991, Belinda Carlisle. Virgin Records America's releases were distributed through WEA again by Atlantic Records until 1992. In 1996, Virgin Records offered Janet Jackson one of the best and highest deals at the time estimating an $80 million dollar deal. The agreement also required Virgin to allocate about $25 million in video production, marketing and promotion costs – a much larger sum than most deals. The label was then acquired by EMI-Capitol Special Markets. Virgin Records America was founded by the executive team of Jordan Harris, Jeff Ayeroff and Phil Quartararo.


title: Virgin Records

text: Another American company called Caroline Records co-existed during this time. Caroline records rarely mentioned a connection with Virgin, and some UK and European Virgin albums that were distributed internationally (instead of being manufactured in each country) named Caroline as their American distributor. Some Caroline records bore the label name Caroline Blue Plate, which was mainly used for reissuing on CD many early progressive rock albums and artists from Virgin and Caroline's UK branches.


title: Virgin Records

text: The first Canadian editions were distributed by WEA, and were parallel issues of the same early 14 albums issued in the US by Virgin/Atlantic.


title: Virgin Records

text: In 1975, distribution transferred to Columbia (as it had in the US), but the following year distribution was transferred again to Polydor Records (which changed its name to PolyGram by 1980), and issued a different and larger selection of records from what was being issued in the US. Canadian editions of the Dindisc label were issued as Dindisc/Virgin. Virgin's Canadian division arranged to have Canadian artists Martha & the Muffins and Nash the Slash signed to Dindisc in the UK as well; both artists had releases in Canada and the UK on Dindisc.


title: Virgin Records

text: In 1983, an independent Virgin Records Canada Inc. company was created, three years before a similar move occurred in the US. From this time onward, Virgin Canada used unique label designs not seen in other countries: a red label with five horizontal bars across the top and an extra-large "scrawl" logo from 1983 to 1985, followed by a purple label with round logo up to 1992 when Virgin was acquired internationally.


title: Virgin Records

text: Soon after Virgin Records was founded, the label created a music publisher for its artists, who also served as songwriters. Starting in the 1980s, Virgin Music signed songwriters from other record labels. After Virgin was acquired by EMI, the publisher was folded into EMI Music Publishing as EMI Virgin Music.


title: Virgin Records

text: In 2012, a consortium led by Sony/ATV Music Publishing acquired EMI Music Publishing for $2.2 billion. However, the European Union ruled that Sony/ATV would represent over half of all the charting hits in the United Kingdom, and required the company to auction off Virgin Music and Famous Music UK, as well as twelve unrelated authors.


title: Virgin Records

text: In December 2012, BMG Rights Management acquired the Virgin and Famous publishers, and concluded the deal in May 2013. Virgin Music was renamed BMG VM Music, while Famous Music became BMG FM Music.


title: Virgin Records

text: Before its demise, Virgin Music's songwriters included Iggy Pop, Texas, Ozzy Osbourne, Cannibal Corpse, Nirvana, Winger, Wax, Tears for Fears, The Prodigy, Goo Goo Dolls, Tool, The Crystal Method, Terence Trent D'Arby, Lenny Kravitz, Ben Harper, Warrant, Mark Ronson, Devo, Culture Club, Take That, Bullet for My Valentine, Robbie Williams, Wayne Hector, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, and XTC.


title: Paul McCartney discography

text: The discography of English musician Paul McCartney consists of 26 studio albums, four compilation albums, nine live albums, 37 video albums, two extended plays, 111 singles, seven classical albums, five electronica albums, 17 box sets, and 79 music videos.


title: Paul McCartney discography

text: Before his career as a solo artist, McCartney enjoyed success as a member of the rock band the Beatles. After their break-up in 1970, McCartney released his eponymous debut album, the 1971 single "Another Day" and "Ram" with wife Linda McCartney, all of which were commercial successes, with the latter being supported by his first number one single "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey". After "Ram", the duo formed Wings and released several successful albums including "Band on the Run" (1973), "Venus and Mars", (1975) and "Wings at the Speed of Sound" (1976). Since the break-up of Wings in 1981, McCartney has continued his career as a solo artist.


title: Paul McCartney discography

text: In 2012, McCartney was ranked eleventh best selling singles artist in United Kingdom with 10.2 million singles sold.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The Dassault Mirage III () is a family of single/dual-seat, single-engine, fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by French aircraft company Dassault Aviation. It was the first Western European combat aircraft to exceed Mach 2 in horizontal flight, a feat which was achieved on 24 October 1958.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: In 1952, the French government issued its specification, calling for a lightweight, all-weather interceptor. Amongst the respondents were Dassault with their design, initially known as the Mirage I. Following favourable flight testing held over the course of 1954, in which speeds of up to Mach 1.6 were attained, it was decided that a larger follow-on aircraft would be required to bear the necessary equipment and payloads. An enlarged Mirage II proposal was considered, as well as MD 610 Cavalier (3 versions), but was discarded in favour of a further-developed design, powered by the newly developed Snecma Atar afterburning turbojet engine, designated as the Mirage III. In October 1960, the first major production model, designated as the Mirage IIIC, performed its maiden flight. Initial operational deliveries of this model commenced in July 1961; a total of 95 Mirage IIICs were obtained by the French Air Force ("Armée de l'Air", AdA). The Mirage IIIC was rapidly followed by numerous other variants.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The Mirage III was produced in large numbers for both the French Air Force and a wide number of export customers. Prominent overseas operators of the fighter included Argentina, Australia, South Africa, Pakistan and Israel, as well as a number of non-aligned nations. Often considered to be a second-generation fighter aircraft, the Mirage III experienced a lengthy service life with several of these operators; for some time, the type remained a fairly maneuverable aircraft and an effective opponent when engaged in close-range dogfighting. During its service with the French Air Force, the Mirage III was normally armed with assorted air-to-ground ordnance or R.550 Magic air-to-air missiles. Its design proved to be relatively versatile, allowing the fighter model to have been readily adapted to serve in a variety of roles, including trainer, reconnaissance and ground-attack versions, along with several more extensive derivatives of the aircraft, including the Dassault Mirage 5, Dassault Mirage IIIV and Atlas Cheetah. Some operators have undertaken extensive modification and upgrade programmes of their flights, such as Project ROSE of the Pakistan Air Force.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The Mirage III has been used in active combat roles in multiple conflicts by a number of operators. The Israeli Air Force was perhaps the most prolific operator of the fighter outside of France itself; Israel deployed their Mirage IIIs in both the Six-Day War, where it was used as both an air superiority and strike aircraft, and the Yom Kippur War, during which it was used exclusively in air-to-air combat in conjunction with the IAI Nesher, an Israeli-built derivative of the Mirage 5. Ace of aces Giora Epstein achieved all of his kills flying either the Mirage III or the Nesher. During the South African Border War, the Mirage III formed the bulk of the South African Air Force's fleet, comprising a cluster of Mirage IIICZ interceptors, Mirage IIIEZ fighter-bombers and Mirage IIIRZ reconnaissance fighters; following the introduction of the newer Mirage F1, the type was dedicated to secondary roles in the conflict, such as daytime interception, base security, reconnaissance and training. The Argentine Air Force used the Mirage IIIEA during the Falklands War, but their lack of an aerial refueling capability limited the aircraft's usefulness in the conflict. Even using drop tanks, the Mirages only had an endurance of five minutes within the combat area around the British fleet.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The Mirage III family has its origins within a series of studies conducted by the French Defence Ministry which had commenced in 1952. At the time, several nations had taken an interest in the prospects of a light fighter, which had been motivated by combat experiences acquired during the Korean War, specifically the Soviet-built Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 jet-propelled fighter aircraft which had drawn considerable attention internationally. Western nations were keen to explore the performance of a relatively uncomplicated and heavily armed jet-powered swept wing fighter, inspired by the rapid advances in aircraft capabilities that had been made by the Soviet Union. France was one of the quickest governments of several nations, including the United Kingdom (resulting in the Folland Gnat), the United States (leading to the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk), and Italy (which became the Fiat G.91), to embark on encouraging the development of such an aircraft.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: In 1952, the French government issued its specification, calling for a lightweight, all-weather interceptor, capable of climbing to in 6 minutes along with the ability to reach Mach 1.3 in level flight. Three separate French manufacturers decided to respond to the specification, these being Dassault Aviation, Sud-Est, and Sud-Ouest, offering the "MD.550 Delta", SE.212 Durandal and SO.9000 Trident, respectively. Dassault's submission, which became known as the MD.550 Delta, was a diminutive and sleek-appearing aircraft that was principally powered by a pair of Armstrong Siddeley MD30R Viper afterburning turbojet engines (built under licence by Dassault); atypically, the design also featured provisions for the installation of a secondary propulsion system in the form of a SEPR-built 66 liquid-fuel rocket engine, capable of providing boost thrust of .


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The basic layout of the MD.550 Delta featured a tailless delta configuration, possessing a 5 per cent thickness (ratio of airfoil thickness to length) and 60° sweep, complete with a large vertical stabilizer and rudder. However, the tailless delta configuration imposed a number of limitations, including the lack of a horizontal stabilizer, which meant that conventional flaps could not be used; this resulted in a relatively long takeoff run and a high landing speed. The delta wing itself limits maneuverability and suffers from buffeting at low altitude due to the large wing area and resulting low wing loading. However, the delta is a simple design, easy to construct and relatively robust while providing generous amounts of internal volume in the wing for fuel tankage and being capable of achieving high speeds when flown in a straight line.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: British aviation author Derek Wood observed that there was "a striking resemblance" between the MD.550 Delta and the British Fairey Delta 2, an experimental aircraft that first flew three months later, on 6 October 1954, and which set a new world speed record on 1 March 1956. During the latter stages of testing of the Fairy Delta 2 in October and November 1956, the FD2 performed 47 low level supersonic test flights from Cazaux Air Base, Bordeaux, in France. Dassault engineers observed these trials and obtained additional data on the performance and flight characteristics of delta wing aircraft. The Delta 2 confirmed Dassault's theories, and provided additional supporting evidence for the viability of the Mirage III development.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: On 25 June 1954, the first prototype of the MD.550 Delta, without afterburning engines or rocket motor and with an unusually large vertical stabilizer, conducted its maiden flight. In this configuration, it was able to attain a maximum speed of Mach 1.15. Following initial flights, it received a redesign that involved the vertical stabilizer being reduced in size along with the installation of afterburners and a rocket motor; it was at this point that the aircraft was renamed as the "Mirage I". In late 1954, the prototype attained a recorded speed of Mach 1.3 in level flight without rocket assistance, as well as reaching Mach 1.6 when using the rocket motor. According to aviation author John F. Brindley, testing of the Mirage I and prototypes of the rival Trident and Durandal designs had demonstrated the limitations of the light fighter concept, namely limitations on both endurance and equipment/payload capacity. The small size of the Mirage I restricted its armament to a single air-to-air missile, and it was decided during flight trials that the aircraft was too small for the carriage of a useful armament. Following the completion of flying trials, the Mirage I prototype was eventually scrapped.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Dassault was keen to produce a successor to the Mirage I prototype; at one point, the firm was considering the production of an enlarged version, known as the "Mirage II", which would have been furnished with a pair of Turbomeca Gabizo turbojet engines. However, the Mirage II ultimately remained unbuilt as it was bypassed for an even more ambitious design, being 30 per cent heavier than the original Mirage I, powered by the newly developed Snecma Atar afterburning turbojet engine, capable of generating up to of thrust. The Atar was an axial-flow turbojet design, having been derived from the German Second World War-era BMW 003 engine. The new Atar-equipped fighter design received the name "Mirage III". There was also an even larger "heavy fighter" design drafted, referred to as the Mirage IV. A decisive factor had been interest from the French military, who had made its favour for the Mirage III proposal known to the company.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The Mirage III incorporated various new design principles, such as the transonic area rule concept, where changes to an aircraft's cross-section were made as gradual as possible, resulting in the famous "wasp waist" configuration of many supersonic fighters. Similar to its Mirage I predecessor, the Mirage III had provision for a booster rocket engine. On 17 November 1956, the prototype Mirage III perform its first flight. During its 10th flight, it was recorded as having attained a speed of Mach 1.52 at one point. During the course of the flight test programme, the prototype was fitted with a pair of manually-operated intake half-cone shock diffusers, known as "souris" ("mice"), which could be moved forward as the Mach number increased. This achieved a reduction in inlet pressure losses by ensuring the fuselage oblique shock remained outside the intake lip. Reportedly, their addition enabled an increased speed of Mach 1.65 to be reached, while use of the supplemental SEPR 66 rocket (as fitted to the Mirage I) had allowed for a speed of Mach 1.8 to be reached in September 1957.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The success of the Mirage III prototype resulted in an order for 10 pre-production "Mirage IIIA" fighters. Although the type had initially conceived of as an interceptor, the batch had been ordered with the intention of using them to develop the type for additional roles as well. The Mirage IIIA were almost 2 meters longer than the Mirage III prototype, had an enlarged wing of 17.3 per cent greater area, a chord reduced to 4.5 per cent, and an Atar 09B turbojet capable of generating afterburning thrust of up to . The SEPR 841 rocket engine was also retained. The Mirage IIIA was also fitted with a Thomson-CSF-built Cyrano Ibis air intercept radar, operational-standard avionics, and a drag chute to shorten its landing roll.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: In May 1958, the first Mirage IIIA conducted its first flight. On 24 October of that year, this aircraft achieved a top speed of Mach 2.2 during one of its test flights, thus becoming the first Western European aircraft to exceed Mach 2 in level flight. In December 1959, the tenth and final Mirage IIIA was rolled out; the last six pre-production aircraft were largely representative of the subsequent initial production standard. The test regime involved a wide variety of tasks, including the evaluation of the newer SEPR 841 rocket motor, various underwing drop tanks, and other major systems. One Mirage IIIA was powered by a Rolls-Royce Avon 67 engine capable of generating of thrust, to serve as a test model for Australian evaluation, which was given the "Mirage IIIO" designation. This variant flew in February 1961, but the Avon powerplant was ultimately not adopted on production aircraft.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The first major production model, the "Mirage IIIC", first flew in October 1960. The IIIC was largely similar to the earlier IIIA, being less than a half meter longer and featuring a full operational fit. The Mirage IIIC was a single-seat interceptor, with an Atar 09B turbojet engine, featuring an eyelid type variable exhaust. The Mirage IIIC was armed with twin 30 mm DEFA cannon fitted in the belly with the gun ports under the air intakes. Early production Mirage IIICs had three stores pylons, one under the fuselage and one under each wing; another outboard pylon was soon added to each wing, for a total of five, excluding a sleek supersonic tank which also had bomb-carrying capacity. The outboard pylon was intended to carry an AIM-9B Sidewinder air-to-air missile, later replaced by the Matra R550 Magic and was also armed with the radar guided Matra R530 Missile on the center line pylon.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: A total of 95 Mirage IIICs were obtained by the French Air Force ("Armée de l'Air", AdA), with initial operational deliveries in July 1961. The Mirage IIIC remained in service with the AdA until 1988.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The "Armée de l'Air" also placed an order for a two-seat "Mirage IIIB" operational trainer. Performing its first flight on 21 October 1959, it was developed in parallel with the Mirage IIIC. The fuselage was stretched about a meter (3 ft 3.5 in), while both cannons were removed to accommodate the second seat. The IIIB lacked radar and provision for the SEPR rocket was also deleted, although it could carry external stores if desired. The AdA ordered 63 Mirage IIIBs (including the prototype), including five "Mirage IIIB-1" trials aircraft, ten "Mirage IIIB-2(RV)" inflight refueling trainers with dummy nose probes, used for training Mirage IVA bomber pilots, and 20 "Mirage IIIBE"s, with the engine and some other features of the multi-role Mirage IIIE. One Mirage IIIB was fitted with a fly-by-wire flight control system in the mid-1970s and redesignated "Mirage IIIB-SV" ("Stabilité Variable"), it was used as a testbed for the system in the later Mirage 2000.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: While the initial Mirage IIIC model was heading towards quantity production, Dassault turned its attention towards the development of a multirole/strike variant of the aircraft. Efforts in this direction would eventually materialized in the form of the single-seat "Mirage IIIE"; a two-seat trainer variant of the aircraft was also developed, designated as the "Mirage IIID". On 5 April 1961, the first of a batch of three prototypes performed its first flight.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The Mirage IIIE considerably differed from the earlier Mirage IIIC interceptor. In terms of its airframe, the aircraft possessed a forward fuselage extension, which had been made to increase the size of the avionics bay, located directly behind the cockpit. The stretch had also enabled its fuel capacity to be expanded, which had been deemed necessary after several pilots had criticized the Mirage IIIC for having been quite limited in terms of its range.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Many Mirage IIIEs were fitted with a British-built Marconi continuous-wave Doppler navigation radar radome on the bottom of the fuselage, underneath the cockpit; in contrast, none of the Mirage IIICs were provided with this apparatus. A similar inconsistent variation was the presence or absence of a high frequency (HF) antenna fitted as a forward extension to the vertical tailplane; on some Mirages, the leading edge of the tailplane was a straight line, while on those with the HF antenna the leading edge had a sloping extension forward. The extension appears to have been generally standard on production Mirage IIIAs and Mirage IIICs, but only appeared in some of the Mirage IIIE's export versions. The Mirage IIIE featured Thomson-CSF Cyrano II dual mode air / ground radar; a radar warning receiver (RWR) system with the antennas mounted in the vertical tailplane; and an Atar 09C engine, the latter being equipped with a petal-style variable exhaust.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: On 14 January 1964, the first production Mirage IIIE was delivered to the AdA, over time, 192 aircraft were eventually delivered to that service. By 1971, this variant had become the most widely exported version of the aircraft.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: A number of dedicated reconnaissance variants of the Mirage III were developed and produced, grouped under the general designation of "Mirage IIIR". These aircraft possessed a Mirage IIIE airframe but were furnished with avionics from the Mirage IIIC variant, along with a purpose-developed camera nose, which internally accommodated up to five OMERA cameras. On this variant, the radar system was removed due to a lack of available space in the nose, however, the aircraft retained the twin DEFA cannons and all compatibility with its external stores. An improved variant, designated as the "Mirage IIIRD", was also developed later on; it was essentially a Mirage IIIR outfitted with an extra panoramic camera at the most forward nose position, along with the adoption of the Doppler radar and other avionics from the Mirage IIIE, and provision for carrying an infrared linescan or a Side looking airborne radar in an under-fuselage pod.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: In response to interest expressed by the AdA in a reconnaissance model of the Mirage design, Dassault proceeded with the development of a pair of prototypes. On 31 October 1961, the first of these prototypes conducted its maiden flight; on 1 February 1963, it was followed by the first production-standard aircraft of the model. The AdA opted to obtain a total of 50 production Mirage IIIRs; the service later ordered a further 20 Mirage IIIRDs as well. Several export customers, most notably Switzerland, also chose to procure reconnaissance Mirages. The Mirage IIIR preceded the Mirage IIIE in operational introduction.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The largest export customers for Mirage IIICs built in France were Israel, their principal variant being the "Mirage IIICJ", and South Africa, the bulk of their fleet being the "Mirage IIICZ". Some export customers obtained the Mirage IIIB, with designations only changed to provide a country code, such as: "Mirage IIIDA" for Argentina, "Mirage IIIDBR" for Brazil, "Mirage IIIBJ" for Israel, "Mirage IIIBL" for Lebanon, "Mirage IIIDP" for Pakistan, "Mirage IIIBZ" and "Mirage IIIDZ" and "Mirage IIID2Z" for South Africa, "Mirage IIIDE" for Spain and "Mirage IIIDV" for Venezuela.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: After the outstanding Israeli success with the Mirage IIIC, scoring kills against Syrian Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17s and MiG-21 aircraft and then achieving a formidable victory against Egypt, Jordan, and Syria in the Six-Day War of June 1967, the Mirage III's reputation was greatly enhanced. The "combat-proven" image and low cost made it a popular export success. According to Brindley, a key element of the Mirage III's export success was the extensive support given to Dassault by the French government; he has claimed that the state would often commence negotiations without involving or informing Dassault at all until a later stage.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: A good number of Mirage IIIEs were built for export as well, being purchased in small numbers by Argentina as the "Mirage IIIEA", Brazil as the "Mirage IIIEBR", Lebanon as the "Mirage IIIEL", Pakistan as the "Mirage IIIEP", South Africa as the "Mirage IIIEZ", Spain as the "Mirage IIIEE", and Venezuela as the "Mirage IIIEV", with a list of subvariant designations, with minor variations in equipment fit. Dassault believed the customer was always right, and was happy to accommodate changes in equipment fit as customer needs and budget required.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Some customers obtained the two-seat Mirage IIIBE under the general designation "Mirage IIID", though the trainers were generally similar to the Mirage IIIBE except for minor changes in equipment fit. In some cases they were identical, since two surplus AdA Mirage IIIBEs were sold to Brazil under the designation "Mirage IIIBBR", and three were similarly sold to Egypt under the designation "Mirage 5SDD". New-build exports of this type included aircraft sold to Abu Dhabi, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Egypt, Gabon, Libya, Pakistan, Peru, Spain, Venezuela, and Zaire.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: During the 1960s, the Soviet Union was alleged to have been engaged in attempts at conducting industrial espionage that targeted Dassault and specifically the Mirage III. In one widely reported incident, a pilot of the Lebanese Air Force was approached by Soviet agents, who offered him a bribe to fly one of the nation's 14 Mirage IIIs directly to Soviet territory; Lebanese counter-intelligence was notified of the attempt by the pilot. Diplomatically, France was protective of the fighter, often forbidding nations from re-exporting their Mirage IIIs to third parties without their consent under the threat of a prospective embargo.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Export versions of the Mirage IIIR were built for Pakistan as the "Mirage IIIRP" and "Mirage IIIRP2", and South Africa as the "Mirage IIIRZ" and "Mirage IIIR2Z" with an Atar 9K-50 jet engine. Export versions of the IIIR recce aircraft were purchased by Abu Dhabi, Belgium, Colombia, Egypt, Libya, Pakistan, and South Africa. Some export Mirage IIIRDs were fitted with British Vinten cameras, not OMERA cameras. Most of the Belgian aircraft were built locally.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Initial Israeli operations were conducted in a close cooperative relationship with both Dassault and France itself, the former sharing large amounts of operational data and experience with the other parties. However, Israel was forced into updating its own Mirages when France imposed an arms embargo on the region after the 1967 Six-Day War. For many years, official military relations did not exist between France and Israel, however, spare components remained available. The result of these troubles was the development of Israel Aircraft Industries' Nesher fighter, which was based on the Mirage 5. Nevertheless, Mirage IIIB upgrades up to and including a full Kfir-type conversion have also been made available to third parties by IAI.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: South Africa was amongst the earliest export customers for the Mirage III, having initially ordered a batch of 15 Mirage IIIC for low-level ground attack operations, for which they were armed with the Nord Aviation AS-20, along with three Mirage IIIBZ two-seater trainers. Further aircraft were ordered, including a batch of 16 Mirage IIIEs, three Mirage IIID two-seaters and four Mirage IIIR photo-reconnaissance aircraft. During the early 1970s, South Africa reportedly held negotiations with Dassault with the aim of securing a licence to produce either the Mirage III, the Mirage 5 and the Mirage F1.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: However, much like Israel, South Africa was similarly isolated by a French arms embargo after the passage of United Nations Security Council Resolution 418 in November 1977. The South African Air Force launched an ambitious rebuild programme for its Mirage III fleet, soliciting Israeli technical assistance to convert existing airframes into the Atlas Cheetah. Fixed foreplanes distinguish the Cheetah from its Mirage predecessor, and an extended nose, probably inspired by the IAI Kfir, houses a modified electronics suite, including radar. Built in single-seat, two-seat interceptor, and two-seat combat trainer versions, the Atlas Cheetah entered service in 1987 during the South African Border War. Armament consists of Denel Kukri or Darter heat-seeking air-to-air missiles, the targeting of which was aided by a pilot's helmet mounted sight.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: In 1967, Pakistan opted to purchase an initial batch of 18 Mirage IIIEPs, 3 Mirage IIIDPs and 3 Mirage IIIRPs from France. Over the course of time, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) inducted large numbers of new and secondhand Mirages IIIs and Mirage 5s spanning multiple variants. In 1977 and 1978, an additional 10 new Mirage IIIRP2s were delivered.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The Mirage III remained a formidable weapon in the hands of the Pakistan Air Force. Perhaps the most notable PAF unit equipped with the type has been No. 5 Squadron, which was fully operational by the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. During the conflict, while flying out from bases in Sargodha and Mianwali, the Mirage III was extensively used to conduct ground attacks against Indian military units and targets of interest. The PAF denied that any Mirage was lost. It was also confirmed by France that no fighter jet was missing from the total of 23 (a single aircraft had already been lost before the war).


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: In 1991, because French production of the Mirage III and most spare parts had ceased, Pakistan acquired 50 Australian-built Mirages, which had been retired by the Royal Australian Air Force in 1988: 42 examples of the Mirage IIIO and eight twin-seat IIID. A further five incomplete aircraft were also obtained from the RAAF for cannibalized spare parts. Eight of the ex-RAAF Mirages entered service with the PAF immediately, while another 33 were upgraded under a PAF project known as ROSE I ("Retrofit of Strike Element"), with new equipment including: head-up display (HUD), HOTAS controls, multi-function display (MFD), radar altimeter, nav/attack system (manufactured by SAGEM), inertial navigation and GPS systems, radar warning receiver (RWR), an electronic countermeasures (ECM) suite, decoy flares and chaff dispenser. In 1999, multi-mode FIAR Grifo M3 radar was installed in the PAF Mirages.<ref name="flightglobal.com 24/02/99">Paul Lewis, "Building a base: Pakistan builds on the capabilities of local support for combat aircraft", "Flight International", published: 24 February 1999, URL: http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/1999/02/24/48539/building-a-base.html Retrieved: 25 September 2009</ref>


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Ten Lebanese Air Force aircraft were purchased in 2000 and in 2003 15 Mirage IIIEEs and 5 Mirage IIIDEs were obtained from the Spanish Air Force for cannibalized spare parts.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: From 2011, the PAF Mirage fleet was modified to carry Hatf-VIII (Ra'ad) cruise missiles and to accommodate aerial refueling probes of South African origin (presumably similar to those that built into the Atlas Cheetah). Subsequently, these aircraft have been modified to accept additional equipment and munitions, such as Chinese PL-12 air-to-air missiles.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Variants of the Mirage IIIE were built under license in both Australia (as the IIIO) by GAF, and Switzerland (as the IIIS) by F+W Emmen.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Australia first showed an official interest in replacing its CAC Sabre with the Mirage III in 1960, and initially considered a variant powered by a licence-built variant of the Rolls-Royce Avon turbojet (used by the CAC Sabre). While an experimental Avon-powered Mirage III was built as a prototype and flown in trials, it did not result in use of the Avon by a production variant.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The Australian government decided that the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) would receive a variant based on the Mirage IIIE and powered by the SNECMA Atar engine, built under license by Government Aircraft Factories (GAF) at Fishermans Bend, Melbourne. Known as the "Mirage IIIO" or GAF Mirage, the Australian variant differed from the Mirage IIIE mainly in its avionics. The other major Australian aircraft manufacturer at the time, the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation (CAC), also based in Melbourne, was also involved in the project, producing the Atar engine under licence.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Initially, Dassault provided a pair of pattern aircraft, the first of these flying in March 1963, which were transported to Australia and used to aid technicians at GAF in establishing their own assembly line for the type. GAF produced three variants: the "Mirage IIIO(F)", which was an interceptor, the Mirage "IIIO(A)", a surface attack aircraft and the twin seat "Mirage IIIO(D)", a lead-in fighter trainer. GAF completed 48 Mirage IIIO(F), 50 Mirage IIIO(A) and 16 Mirage IIIO(D) aircraft.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Between 1967 and 1979, all the surviving Mirage IIIO(F) aircraft were converted to the Mirage IIIO(A) standard, which reconfigured them from the interceptor role to perform ground attack and aerial reconnaissance missions instead. In 1988, the Mirage III was finally withdrawn from RAAF service; 50 of the surviving fighters were exported to Pakistan in 1990. Several examples are preserved in museums around Australia; at least one of these is reportedly under restoration to a taxiable condition.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: In 1961, Switzerland purchased a single Mirage IIIC from France for use as a development aircraft to support the nation's intentions to domestically produce 100 Mirage III fighters for the Swiss Air Force. Accordingly, Mirages were manufactured in Switzerland by F+W Emmen (today RUAG, the federal government aircraft factory in Emmen) under the Mirage IIIS designation. The Mirage IIIS was intended to perform the attack, interception, and reconnaissance missions in a single model. However, the venture suffered considerable cost overruns, mainly due to Swiss-mandated customisations and features, this was compounded by a lack of financial oversight, controversy over the manufacturing cost ultimately cumulated in the so-called "Mirage affair" and the resignation of several officials. It became clear that a single model was not capable of the performance desires; thus only 36 Mirage IIIS interceptors and 18 Mirage IIIRS reconnaissance aircraft were eventually produced by F+W Emmen.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The Mirage IIIS was with considerably strengthened wings, airframe, and undercarriage as the Swiss Air Force had required robustness comparable to that of carrier-based planes. The reinforced airframes enabled aircraft to be moved by lifting them with a crane (hence the airframes also being fitted with four lifting points, retractable nosecones and lengthened nosewheel legs), as the aircraft caverns in the mountains that Swiss Air Force uses as bunkers offer very little space to maneuver parked aircraft. Another benefit of the strengthened frames was the enabling of JATO-assisted takeoffs, giving the type a short takeoff and landing (STOL) capability.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Other major differences were present on the Swiss-built interceptors. It was furnished with new American-sourced avionics along with a different cockpit design, including a Hughes Aircraft Company-built TARAN-18 radar system and could armed with the AIM-4 Falcon air-to-air missile (Swiss designation of the SAAB Licence built Robot 27 (Rb27), which is similar to the Hughes AIM-26 "Falcon"). Radar warning receivers (RWR) were installed upon on both wingtips and on the back of the rudder. In addition, the Mirage IIIS had the wiring to carry a Swiss-built or French-built nuclear bomb. In the event, the programme to produce a Swiss nuclear bomb was stopped in the pre-production stage and Switzerland chose not to purchase such weapons from France either. The Mirage IIIRS could also carry a centerline pod for conducting photo reconnaissance missions, as well as an integral fuel tank underneath the aft belly; this tank could carry a smaller fuel load, but also allowed for a rear-facing film camera to also be added. When fitted with the reconnaissance pod, supersonic performance was severely diminished.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The Mirage IIIS could be optionally fitted with a SEPR (Société d'Etudes pour la Propulsion par Réaction) 841 rocket engine with its nitric acid oxidiser tank. It was installed under the rear of the fuselage on a removable adaptor; it could be removed and a similar-shaped fuel tank installed instead. The SEPR rocket enabled the Mirage IIIS to reach an altitude of 24,000 m with its additional thrust of 1500 kp; the rocket motor could be switched off and restarted a maximum of three times during a flight, and had a maximum running time of 80 seconds. In an emergency, the rocket engine could be jettisoned at low flight speeds. The rocket fuel (TG-02) was very hazardous and highly toxic, requiring special buildings for maintenance to be built in Buochs and Payerne and personnel involved in its handling to wear special protective suits; accordingly, the rocket motor was not used often.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: In 1967, the Mirage IIIS entered operational service with the Swiss Air Force; the Mirage IIIRS followed two years later. After an upgrade programme started in 1988, canards designed and produced by RUAG Aerospace were fitted to the type, along with a Martin-Baker-built ejection-seat. Defensive measures included a TRACOR AN/ALE-40 chaff/flare dispenser positioned at the back under the end of the engine, first fitted following upgrades in 1988. In 1999, Switzerland phased out the last of its Mirage IIIS fleet; the remaining Mirage IIIRS, BS and DS variants were taken out of service in 2003.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: On 29 November 1966, the pilot of an Israeli Air Force Dassault Mirage III shot down two Egyptian MiG-19s which were trying to intercept an Israeli reconnaissance Piper J-3 Cub in Israeli airspace. The first MiG was destroyed with a R.530 radar guided missile fired from less than a mile away, marking the first aerial kill for the French-made missile. The second MiG-19 was dispatched with cannon fire.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: During the Six-Day War, fought between 5 and 10 June 1967, Israel deployed a small detachment of 12 Mirages (comprising 4 permanently in the air and 8 at a high state of readiness on the ground) to defend the skies of Israel against attacks by hostile bombers, virtually all other Mirages were equipped with bombs and deployed on bombing raids against Arab air bases. Reportedly, the Mirage's performance as a bomber was modest at best, perhaps due to its limited payload capacity. During the first day of combat, a total of 6 MiG fighters were claimed to have been shot down by Mirage pilots. During the following days, Israeli Mirages typically performed as fighters; out of a claimed total of 58 Arab aircraft shot down in air combat during the conflict, 48 were accounted for by Mirage pilots.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: During the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the Mirage fleet was solely engaged in air-to-air operations. ACIG.org claims that at least 26 Mirages and Neshers were lost in air-to-air combat during the war. Contrary to these claims, formal Israeli sources claim that only five Israeli Air Force aircraft were shot down in air-to-air dogfights. In comparison, 106 Syrian and Egyptian aircraft were claimed shot down by Israeli Mirage IIICJ planes, and another 140 aircraft were claimed by the Nesher derivative. Israeli Air Force pilot Giora Epstein, "ace of aces" of modern, supersonic fighter jets, achieved all of his victories flying either the Mirage IIICJ or the IAI Nesher (An Israeli derivative of the Mirage 5, which were in turn developed from the Mirage III).


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: During the South African Border War, the South African Air Force operated a force of 16 Mirage IIICZ interceptors, 17 Mirage IIIEZ multirole fighter-bombers, and 4 Mirage IIIRZ reconnaissance fighters, which were typically flown from bases in South-West Africa. Despite being recognised as an exceptional dogfighter, the Mirage III was often criticised for lacking the range to make it effective over long distances, such as during strike operations against People's Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN) insurgents based in neighbouring Angola. South African pilots also found the high-nosed, delta-winged Mirage III relatively difficult to land on the rudimentary airstrips near the operational area.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Over time, the Mirage IIIs were eventually assigned to 2 Squadron, SAAF, and restricted to the secondary roles of daytime interception, training exercises, and photographic reconnaissance missions following the adoption of the newer Mirage F1. The mediocre performance of the fighter's Cyrano II radar effectively precluded the type from conducting nighttime operations, as well as during challenging weather conditions. By the late 1980s, the Mirage IIICZ was considered so obsolete that it was utilised only for base security. Nevertheless, the Mirage IIIRZ continued to be deployed for photo reconnaissance missions over Angolan targets, as the SAAF had only one other aircraft equipped for this role, the even more antiquated English Electric Canberra.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: During reconnaissance missions, SAAF Mirage IIIRZs would often fly at extremely low altitudes, sometimes as low as fifty feet (15 metres); briefly prior to reaching their intended targets, the aircraft would enter a rapid climb from which photographs would be taken before turning away. During the Battle of Cuito Cuanavale, Mirage IIIRZ pilots carried out mock sorties over enemy positions in Xangongo and Humbe in an attempt to provoke a response from Cuban or Angolan MiG-21s and MiG-23s, which would then be engaged by accompanying SAAF Mirage F1AZs.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: During the 1971 War, PAF Mirages were used in preemptive strikes and also claimed the first aerial victories against Indian Airforce Canberra Bombers & Reconnaissance aircraft in the Western Front, along with Su-7 and Hawker Hunter. During the war, the Mirages were frequently employed for Airfield Interdiction, strike, as well as CAP missions; whereas the tasks of Close Air Support and Battlefield Air Interdiction were taken up by F-86 Sabres and Shenyang F-6P aircraft.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Moreover, during the War on terror, Pakistani Mirage-III & Mirage-V jets were deployed in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province after the spillover of militants from Afghanistan in 2001. They performed Close Air Support missions throughout the conflict.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: In February 2019, the Indian Air Force bombed a wooded area in Balakot after violating Pakistan's airspace. In response, then Prime Minister Imran Khan ordered the Air Force to perform retaliatory airstrikes on Indian military installations at Indian Administered Kashmir. The retaliatory airstrikes were codenamed "Operation Swift Retort" and for this purpose, Two Dassault Mirage-VPAs armed with H-4 SOW glide bombs and two dual seat Dassault Mirage-IIIDAs from the No. 15 Squadron were deployed for the mission. In the early hours of 27 February, the Mirages carried out the airstrikes while JF-17s and F-16s from other squadrons provided escort and CAP. The Mirage-VPAs dropped their payloads while the Weapon Systems Officers in the Mirage-IIIDAs guided the bombs to their respective targets via data link. However, they were ordered to drop the bombs on open fields near their intended targets since the purpose of the operation was to make India aware about Pakistan's capability to strike back at any aggression. The mission was a success and all aircraft returned safely.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The Argentine Air Force deployed their Mirage IIIEA fleet during the 1982 Falklands War. Their ability to function as long-range strike aircraft was dramatically hindered by the type's lack of any aerial refueling capability; even when furnished with a pair of 2,000-litre (550-gallon) drop tanks to carry extra fuel, the Mirages (and Israeli-built Daggers) would be forced to fly up to the absolute limit of their range in order to even reach the British fleet from the mainland. Normally, the fighters would be sent to engage patrolling British Harrier jets and to provide air cover to a Douglas A-4 Skyhawk strike force; however, they would have no more than five minutes at most over the combat area before having to embark upon the return flight back to their airfields.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Usually, Argentine Mirages were flown with an armament consisting of one Matra R530 or a pair of Magic 1 AAMs. They only entered direct combat once, resulting in one of the Mirages being shot down by an AIM-9L Sidewinder fired by a Harrier, and another destroyed by friendly fire after attempting to land on the runway at Port Stanley when nearly out of fuel. The fighters were frequently deployed to conduct diversion flights, flying at a very high altitude to force a response from the patrolling British Harriers to improve the chances of survival and success of the attack force. Additionally, a number of Mirages were also kept on a high state of alert against possible Avro Vulcan raids upon targets within the Argentine mainland, as well as to serve as a deterrence against aggressive flights by neighbouring Chile conducted upon Argentina's western border.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Export version of the Mirage IIIR for the Pakistan Air Force, with provision to carry the infrared linescan pod; 10 built.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: A total of 1,403 Mirage III/5/50 aircraft of all types were built by Dassault. There were a few unbuilt variants:


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The next major variant, the "Mirage 5", grew out of a request to Dassault from the Israeli Air Force. The first Mirage 5 flew on 19 May 1967. It looked much like the Mirage III, except it had a long slender nose that extended the aircraft's length by about half a meter. The Mirage 5 itself led directly to the Israeli "Nesher", either through a Mossad (Israeli intelligence) intelligence operation or through covert cooperation with AdA, depending upon which story is accepted. (See details in the "Nesher" article). In either case, the design gave rise to the "Kfir", which can be considered a direct descendant of the "Mirage III".


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: In 1968, Dassault, in cooperation with the Swiss, began work on a Mirage update known as the "Milan" ("Kite"). The main feature of the Milan was a pair of pop-out foreplanes in the nose, which were referred to as "moustaches". The moustaches were intended to provide better take-off performance and low-speed control for the attack role. The three initial prototypes were converted from existing Mirage fighters; one of these prototypes was nicknamed "Asterix", after the internationally popular French cartoon character, a tough little Gallic warrior with a huge moustache.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: A fully equipped prototype rebuilt from a "Mirage IIIR" flew in May 1970, and was powered by the uprated afterburning thrust SNECMA Atar 09K-50 engine, following the evaluation of an earlier model of this new series on the one-off "Mirage IIIC2". The Milan also had updated avionics, including a laser designator and rangefinder in the nose. A second fully equipped prototype was produced for Swiss evaluation as the "Milan S". The canards did provide significant handling benefits, but they had drawbacks. They blocked the pilot's forward view to an extent, and set up turbulence in the engine intakes. The Milan concept was abandoned in 1972, while work continued on achieving the same goals with canards.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Following the development of the Mirage 50, Dassault had experimented with yet another derivative of the original Mirage series, named the "Mirage IIING" ("Nouvelle Génération", new generation). Like the Milan and Mirage 50, the IIING was powered by the Atar 9K-50 engine. The prototype, a conversion of a Mirage IIIR, flew on 21 December 1982.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: The Mirage IIING had a modified delta wing with leading-edge root extensions, plus a pair of fixed canards fitted above and behind the air intakes. The aircraft's avionics were completely modernized, making use of the parallel development effort underway for the next-generation Mirage 2000 fighter. Chiefly amongst these changes, the Mirage IIING used a fly-by-wire system to allow control over the aircraft's relaxed stability. The aircraft had an improved nav/attack system with inertial navigation and a head-up display. A variety of radars could be fitted, including the Cyrano IV and Agave and these could be supplemented by a laser rangefinder. The uprated engine and aerodynamics improved take-off and sustained turn performance.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Ultimately, the type never went into production, but to an extent the Mirage IIING was a demonstrator for various technologies that could be and were featured in upgrades to existing Mirage IIIs and Mirage 5s. After 1989, enhancements derived from the Mirage IIING were incorporated into Brazilian Mirage IIIEs, as well as into four ex-"Armée de l'Air" Mirage IIIEs that were transferred to Brazil in 1988. In 1989, Dassault offered a similar upgrade refit of ex-AdA Mirage IIIEs under the designation "Mirage IIIEX", featuring canards, a fixed in-flight refueling probe, a longer nose, new avionics, and other refinements.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: One of the offshoots of the Mirage III/5/50 fighter family tree was the "Mirage IIIV" vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) fighter. ("IIIV" is read "three-vee," not "three-five"). This aircraft featured eight small vertical lift jets straddling the main engine. The Mirage IIIV was built in response to a mid-1960s NATO specification for a VTOL strike fighter. It used eight RB.162-31 lift engines(generating 5,400 lb thrust each), long-stroke landing gears, and additional covers to reduce impact of the lift engine exhausts. The main engine was a SNECMA TF-104 turbojet.


title: Dassault Mirage III

text: Project ROSE (Retrofit Of Strike Element) was an upgrade programme launched by the Pakistan Air Force to upgrade old Dassault Mirage III and Mirage 5 aircraft with modern avionics. In the early 1990s, the PAF procured 50 ex-Australian Mirage III fighters, 33 of which were selected after an inspection to undergo upgrades. In the first phases of Project ROSE, the ex-Australian Mirage III fighters were fitted with new defensive systems and cockpits, which included new HUDs, MFDs, RWRs, HOTAS controls, radar altimeters and navigation/attack systems. They were also fitted with the FIAR Grifo M3 multi-mode radar and designated "ROSE I". Around 34 Mirage 5 attack fighters also underwent upgrades designated "ROSE II" and "ROSE III" before Project ROSE was completed.


title: Ed McMahon

text: Edward Leo Peter McMahon Jr. (March 6, 1923 – June 23, 2009) was an American announcer, game show host, comedian, actor, singer, and combat aviator. McMahon and Johnny Carson began their association in their first TV series, the ABC game show "Who Do You Trust?", running from 1957 to 1962. McMahon then made his famous thirty-year mark as Carson's sidekick, announcer and second banana on NBC's "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" from 1962 to 1992.


title: Ed McMahon

text: McMahon also hosted the original "Star Search" from 1983 to 1995, co-hosted "TV's Bloopers & Practical Jokes" with Dick Clark from 1982 to 1998, presented sweepstakes for American Family Publishers, annually co-hosted the "Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon" from 1973 to 2008 and anchored the team of NBC personalities conducting the network's coverage of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade during the 1970s and 80s.


title: Ed McMahon

text: McMahon appeared in several films, including "The Incident", "Fun With Dick and Jane", "Full Moon High" and "Butterfly", as well as briefly in the film version of the TV sitcom "Bewitched" and also performed in numerous television commercials. According to "Entertainment Weekly", McMahon is considered one of the greatest "sidekicks".


title: Ed McMahon

text: McMahon was born in Detroit, Michigan, to Edward Leo Peter McMahon Sr., a fund-raiser and entertainer, and Eleanor (Russell) McMahon. He was raised in Lowell, Massachusetts, often visiting his paternal Aunt Mary Brennan at her home on Chelmsford Street. After three years as a carnival barker in Mexico, Maine, McMahon served as a fifteen-year-old bingo caller in Maine. He put himself through college as a pitchman for vegetable slicers on the Atlantic City boardwalk. His first broadcasting job was at WLLH-AM in Lowell, and his television career launched in Philadelphia at WCAU-TV.


title: Ed McMahon

text: McMahon hoped to become a United States Marine Corps fighter pilot. Prior to the US entry into World War II, both the Army and Navy required pilot candidates to attend at least two years of college. McMahon studied at Boston College from 1940 to 1941. On "The Howard Stern Show" in 2001, he stated that after Pearl Harbor was attacked, the college requirement remained in effect and he still had to finish his two years of college before applying for Marine Corps flight training.


title: Ed McMahon

text: After completing the college requirement, McMahon began his primary flight training in Dallas. This was followed by fighter training in Pensacola, where he also earned his carrier landing qualifications and was designated as a Naval Aviator. He was a Marine Corps flight instructor in F4U Corsair fighters for two years, finally being ordered to the Pacific Fleet in 1945. However, his orders were canceled after the atomic bomb attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, forcing Japan's unconditional surrender.


title: Ed McMahon

text: As an officer in the Marine Corps Reserve, McMahon was recalled to active duty during the Korean War. He flew an OE-1 (the original Marine designation for the unarmed single-engine Cessna O-1 Bird Dog) spotter plane, serving as an artillery spotter for Marine artillery batteries and a forward air controller for Navy and Marine fighter bombers. He flew a total of 85 combat missions, earning six Air Medals. After the war, he remained in the Marine Corps Reserve, retiring in 1966 as a Colonel. In 1982, McMahon received a state commission as a brigadier general in the California Air National Guard, an honorary award to recognize his support for the National Guard and Reserves.


title: Ed McMahon

text: After World War II, McMahon studied at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., under the GI Bill and graduated in 1949. He majored in speech and drama while studying under Gilbert Hartke and was a member of Phi Kappa Theta fraternity. After graduation, McMahon led the effort to raise funds for a theater to be named for Hartke and attended its dedication in 1970 with Helen Hayes and Sidney Poitier. While working as Carson's sidekick during "The Tonight Show", McMahon served as the president of the national alumni association from 1967 to 1971 and would often return to campus, especially for homecoming. During the university's centennial celebration in 1987, McMahon and Bob Newhart performed. He received an honorary Doctor of Communication Arts in 1988.


title: Ed McMahon

text: "I owe so much to CU," McMahon once said. "That's where my career got its start." Today, the Ed McMahon Endowed Scholarship helps outstanding students and provides scholarship assistance to juniors and seniors who are pursuing a bachelor's degree in either the Department of Drama or the Department of Media Studies within the School of Arts and Sciences.


title: Ed McMahon

text: McMahon and Carson first worked together as announcer and host on the ABC daytime game show "Who Do You Trust?" running from 1957 to 1962. He describes what happened when the pair first met, the whole meeting being "about as exciting as watching a traffic light change".


title: Ed McMahon

text: McMahon rejoined Carson for "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" on October 1, 1962, on NBC. For almost 30 years, McMahon introduced the show with a drawn-out ""Heeeeeeeeeeere’s Johnny!"" His booming voice and constant laughter alongside the "King of Late Night" earned McMahon the nickname the "Human Laugh Track" and "Toymaker to the King". As part of the introductory patter to "The Tonight Show", McMahon would state his name out loud, pronouncing it as , but neither long-time cohort Carson nor anyone else who interviewed him ever seemed to pick up on that subtlety, usually pronouncing his name .


title: Ed McMahon

text: Aside from his co-hosting duties, it also fell upon McMahon during the early years of Carson's tenure (when the show ran 105 minutes) to host the first fifteen minutes of "Tonight", which did not air nationally. McMahon also served as guest host on at least one occasion, substituting for Carson during a week of programs that aired between July 29 and August 2, 1963, and again for two nights in October 1963. McMahon served as a counter to the notoriously shy Carson. Nonetheless, McMahon once told an interviewer that after his many decades as an emcee, he would still get "butterflies" in his stomach every time he would walk onto a stage and would use that nervousness as a source of energy.


title: Ed McMahon

text: His famous opening line "Heeere's Johnny!" was used in the 1980 horror film "The Shining" by the character Jack Torrance (played by Jack Nicholson) as he goes after his wife and child with an axe. He did in-program commercials for many sponsors of "The Tonight Show", most notably Budweiser beer and Alpo dog food, and also did commercials for them that ran on other programs.


title: Ed McMahon

text: McMahon was also host of the successful weekly syndicated series "Star Search", which began in 1983 and helped launch the careers of numerous actors, singers, choreographers and comedians. He stayed with the show until it ended in 1995 and in 2003, he made a cameo appearance on the CBS revival of the series, hosted by his successor Arsenio Hall.


title: Ed McMahon

text: His long association with brewer Anheuser-Busch earned him the nickname "Mr. Budweiser" and he used that relationship to bring them aboard as one of the largest corporate donors to the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Since 1973, McMahon served as co-host of the long-running live annual Labor Day weekend event of the "Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon". His 41st and final appearance on that show was in 2008, making him second only to Jerry Lewis himself in number. McMahon and Dick Clark hosted the television series (and later special broadcasts of) "TV's Bloopers and Practical Jokes" on NBC from 1982 to 1993.


title: Ed McMahon

text: In 1967, McMahon had a role in the film "The Incident" and appeared as Santa Claus on "The Mitzi Gaynor Christmas Show". From 1965 to 1969, McMahon served as "communicator" (host) of the Saturday afternoon segment of "Monitor", the weekend news, features and entertainment magazine on the NBC Radio Network. The 1955 movie "Dementia", which has music without dialogue, was released as "Daughter of Horror" in 1970. The newer version, which had a voice over by McMahon, still has music without dialogue, but with an added narration read by him. McMahon had a supporting role in the original "Fun with Dick and Jane" in 1977.


title: Ed McMahon

text: He then played himself in ""Remote Control Man"", a season one episode of Steven Spielberg's "Amazing Stories". In 2004, McMahon became the announcer and co-host of "Alf's Hit Talk Show" on TV Land. He has authored two memoirs, "Here's Johnny!: My Memories of Johnny Carson, The Tonight Show, and 46 Years of Friendship" as well as "For Laughing Out Loud". Over the years, he emceed the game shows "Missing Links", "Snap Judgment", "Concentration", and "Whodunnit!".


title: Ed McMahon

text: McMahon also hosted "Lifestyles Live", a weekend talk program aired on the USA Radio Network. Additionally, he also appeared in the feature documentary film, "Pitch People", the first motion picture to take an in-depth look at the history and evolution of pitching products to the public. In the early 2000s, McMahon made a series of Neighborhood Watch public service announcements parodying the surprise appearances to contest winners that he was supposedly known for. (In fact, it is not clear whether the company McMahon fronted, American Family Publishers, regularly performed such unannounced visits, as opposed to Publishers Clearing House and its oft-promoted "prize patrol".)


title: Ed McMahon

text: Towards the end of the decade, McMahon took on other endorsement roles, playing a rapper for a FreeCreditReport.com commercial and in a "Cash4Gold" commercial alongside MC Hammer. McMahon was also the spokesman for Pride Mobility, a leading power wheelchair and scooter manufacturer. His final film appearance was in the independent John Hughes themed rom-com "Jelly" as Mr. Closure alongside actress Natasha Lyonne. Mostly in the 1980s through the 1990s, McMahon was the spokesperson for Colonial Penn Life Insurance Company.


title: Ed McMahon

text: McMahon married Alyce Ferrell on July 5, 1945, while he was serving as a flight instructor in the Marines. The couple had four children: Claudia (b. 1946), Michael Edward (1951–1995), Linda and Jeffrey. They separated in 1972 and divorced in 1974. McMahon married Victoria Valentine on March 6, 1976. They adopted a daughter in 1985, Katherine Mary. The couple divorced in 1989. McMahon paid $50,000 per month in spousal and child support. On February 22, 1992, three months before his "Tonight Show" run came to a close, in a ceremony held near Las Vegas, McMahon married 37-year-old Pamela "Pam" Hurn, who had a son named Alex. McMahon's daughter Katherine served as best person at the wedding. McMahon was a longtime summer resident of Avalon, New Jersey.


title: Ed McMahon

text: In June 2008, it was announced that McMahon was $644,000 behind on payments on $4.8 million in mortgage loans and was fighting to avoid foreclosure on his multimillion-dollar Beverly Hills home. McMahon was also sued by Citibank for $180,000. McMahon appeared on "Larry King Live" on June 5, 2008, with his wife to talk about this situation. In the interview, McMahon's wife Pam said that people assumed that the McMahons had a lot of money because of his celebrity status. Pamela McMahon also commented that they do not have "millions" of dollars. On July 30, 2008, McMahon's financial status suffered another blow. McMahon failed to pay divorce attorney Norman Solovay $275,168, according to a lawsuit filed in the Manhattan federal court. McMahon and his wife, Pamela, had hired Solovay to represent Linda Schmerge, his daughter from another relationship, in a "matrimonial matter", said Solovay's lawyer, Michael Shanker.


title: Ed McMahon

text: On August 14, 2008, real estate mogul Donald Trump announced that he would purchase McMahon's home from Countrywide Financial and lease it to McMahon, so the home would not be foreclosed. McMahon agreed instead to a deal with a private buyer for his hilltop home, said Howard Bragman, McMahon's former spokesman. Bragman declined to name the buyer or the selling price, but he said it was not Trump. In early September, after the second buyer's offer fell through, Trump renewed his offer to purchase the home.