F8F  Bearcat  "Wampus Cat"

Specifications: 

Armament: 

Four .5” machine guns or four 20mm. Cannons two per wing up to 2,000 lbs. Of bombs or four 5” rocket projectiles under wings.

Engine: 

Latest R-2800-E engine with a max rating of 2,500 hp.

F-8 General Information:  The F-8 Bearcat was the last US "Round Engine" Fighters to be built in quantity.  Design was first started in with the signing of a letter of intent in November of 1943.  The aircraft was flown first by Bob Hall on 31 August, 1944.  With it's compact size and big R-2800 engine, no fighter in the Navy inventory had performance that could match the Bearcat.  While  headed westbound with it's first combat qualified squadron, VF-19, on the carrier USS Langley in August of 1945, the Bearcat's first combat deployment was cut short by the end of WWII. 

N800N:  Built in 1948, this aircraft is an F8F-2, Bureau Number 121752.  She was bought by Bill and brought back from England in 1997.   A very unique aspect of this aircraft that Bill raced at Reno in '98 & '99 is that she was raced in the first Reno Air Races in 1964 and placed fourth in the Gold Unlimited race that year. She was piloted by Naval Aviator and Reno Racer Walt Ohlrich, registered as N7827C.  Walt raced her from 1964-1971 under various names including : Tom Cat, Tom's Cat, Miss Priss, and Tonapah Queen. She was then sold to John Herlihy in 1972 and reregistered as N800H. She then went by the names: Sweet Pea, Bearcat Bill, and Precious Bear.  She was later sold to Steven Gray for his "Fighter Collection" in England.

The name Wampus Cat was suggested by western swing musician & historian Paul Greenstein from the early 1930's Gene Autry tune "Bear Cat Papa Blues."  In this song, the mean, mangy, wild assed, "Bear Cat Poppa" is looking for the right Wampus Kitty, threatening to clobber all competition.  When air racing, Bill drops his Air Force call sign "Viking" and goes by "Bear Cat Poppa."

Webster Definition (with a little help and imagination from Dr. Eric Anders) as displayed on the pit crew T-shirt:

Wampus Cat \wămpĕs kāt\ n. U.S. slang  

[origin unknown; derived from catawampus]

fierce, objectionable, and loutish animal of family

Felidae, Felis catus wampenus

Donated to the Heritage Flight Museum By Bill & Valerie Anders in 1997.  Sold to nearby collection in 2006.

Wampus Cat rounding the pylons at Reno with the Wampus Cat logo background.  Logo was created by Alan Anders.	Taxing back in at Reno.
The plane and the shirt	Race #106 rolling to the races!!!!
Here she is during her carrier days on the deck of the USS Antietam, flying with VF-151 circa 1949.	This is Greg's father-in-law, Cmdr Herb Kiker (USN retired) back when he was a combat qualified Bearcat pilot.