Photos in this set were derived from three different Trackers. Photos by Jerry Proc depict the CS2F-2 Tracker example (s/n 1600) held in the collection of the Canadian Aerospace Museum or s/n 1577 held in the collection of the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum in Hamilton, Ontario. Photos taken by Bruce Macmillian came from Tracker examples owned by Conair at Abbotsford, BC Airport.

Bomb bay. It is offset to the port side. (s/n 1600)

With auxiliary 125 Imp gal (568 litres) fuel tank fitted in the bombay. Long range drop tank trials under program PD67/12 showed the tank to have unpredictable jettison characteristics so it was affixed to the airframe. The only other large, non-ordnance item carried in the bombay was a SKAD - Survival Kit Air Droppable. (Abbotsford Tracker photo by Bruce  Macmillan)

Pratt and Whitney 983C9HE1 engine. (s/n1600)

Nameplate example for the Pratt and Whitney 983C9HE1 engine.

Paint detail and markings on port propellor. (s/n 1577)

Detail of starboard wing hinge.  (sn/1600)

Port side sonobuoy launcher on s/n 1600. RCN Trackers carried a total of 16 air-dropped T.1946 sonobuoys. The two larger holes at the top aft end of the engine nacelle were intended to house the direction-finding SSQ-1 sonobuoy. It failed acceptable tests so it wasn't deployed with the S2F and the holes were left empty. The first action on arrival over a potential submarine location was for the co-pilot to eject a pattern of sonobuoys from the rear of the engine nacelles. The pilot then orbited the search area while the two systems operators analyzed printouts of frequency scans from the Jezebel long-range detection system; these would indicate any tell-tale engine, propeller or shaft noises captured and transmitted by the sonobuoys.  Inside the wheel well, there is a plenum that only covers the front end of the 8 sonobuoy launch tubes. Attached to it is a duct that supplies warm air from the engine compartment to this plenum, thus keeping the sonobouys from freezing up. When the Tracker was modified for a Maritime Surveillance role, all the anti-submarine processing equipment was removed and the remaining two sonobouys (one on each side) were used strictly as position markers. An aluminum plate was cut to cover all but one of the holes.

Unless otherwise noted, all photos in this table by Jerry Proc

Tail bumper wheel. This prevents the belly from making contact with the takeoff surface should the pilot use too steep of a takeoff angle.

Starboard side - main landing gear hydraulics. (s/n 1577)

These are the connectors for external power sources. Located slightly aft of the crew door.

All

70 million candlepower searchlight. Since the starboard wing is in the folded position, the light is upside down. (s/n 1600) The biggest problem with the searchlight was using it the wrong way. It was frowned upon to direct the searchlight on the bridge of a ship at night as the intense light ruined the night vision of the bridge watchkeepers and the entire watch had to be changed, much to chagrin of the ship's crew. Also, during the Tracker's later years, infra-red electro-optical night vision systems were out performing searchlights, thus negating any requirement for a more powerful searchlight. One addition to the Maritime Reconnaissance Tracker was the addition of a photo pod mounted on one of the wing pylons under the starboard wing. The photo pod included a camera and photo-flash unit to illuminate targets for night photography (Photo by Jerry Proc)

S/N 1577 with the protective cover removed from the searchlight. The lamp can be selectively positioned through 53 degrees of azimuth and 48 degrees of elevation by remote control and operates on a 20% duty cycle. It is likely an exaggeration, but aircrew lore has it that you could read a newspaper at 2 miles using this searchlight. (Photo by Jerry Proc)

This diagram shows the searchlight components. Click on image to enlarge. (Source:Tracker manual)

Tailhook and MAD boom in retracted positions. The black tubing is there just to support the aft end of the aircraft in its museum setting. (s/n 1600)

Nose gear and chock detail. (s/n1600)

Top portion of nose gear. (s/n 1577)

Aft portion of nose wheel well. (s/n 1577)

S/N 1577 with nose cone in the maintenance position.

Crash barrier hook. It's made from 1/2"steel plate with 3/16" thick plate on the sides. (s/n 1600)

Windshield wiper blade detail on port side. (s/n 1600)

S/N 1600. On at least two Tracker cutaway drawings, this appendage on the horizontal stabilizer is indicated as being an ECM antenna. That is incorrect. This "port tailplane probe" provides aerodynamic balance and is used dampen vibrations generated in the original Tracker airframe design. With the engines at certain power settings, the tail plane turned into a 'blur' caused by harmonic vibrations. The probe is used on almost all versions of the Tracker, even the larger S-2D and S-2E versions. Even when the Tracker received turboprop engine conversions, these vibrations were still very much in evidence at certain power settings as attested by one engineer who worked on the conversions.

APS-38 radome in retracted position. (s/n 1577).  The purpose of those diagonal outcroppings on the surface of the radome is purely aerodynamic.  It reduces drag on the radome.

Unless otherwise noted, all photos in this table by Jerry Proc

Ian Maw, a former Tracker armourer, comments on the auxiliary fuel tank. "It was rare for the post-ASW CP-121 to fly without one installed (200-mile sovereignty zone to patrol). They were awful to install. Even if the airframe techs had the distinct pleasure of doing most of the work connecting everything, we armourers had to try to tighten the sway braces on both sides of the rack it was secured to.

A nut and bolt replaced the rack safety pin, so the tank was not droppable. Getting at the outboard sway braces was easy, as there was a rectangular panel on the side of the fuselage that had a nice long-handled tool clipped to the inside of it. There were also  two round panels about an inch or two in diameter above, or below this panel (I can't remember now) that the tool would go into and reach the end of the braces. The inboard braces were a little trickier, as they had to be reached through a small access panel in the cabin, well aft of the rack. The size of the tank made it nearly impossible to slip one's arm into a space barely bigger than the arm itself...and then somehow try to swing a wrench in there. This had to be retorqued again after the tank changed shape a little when full. Around 1988, the installation was simplified by allowing the tank to rest against the inner wall of the bomb bay and then simply tightening the outer sway braces. The bomb doors were always opened before shut down to allow the avgas fumes to air out and for pilot peace of mind as most liked to bang on the tank before flight to check it was full".

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Credits and References:

1)  Bruce Macmillan  <bruce_macmillan(at)telus.net>
2) Jeff Rankin-Lowe <siriusproductions(at)sympatico.ca>
3) Ian Maw,  Canadian Air Force
4) Ernest Cable <erncar(at)ns.sympatico.ca>
5) Tommy Thomason  <tommythomason(at)sbcglobal.net>
6) Keith Harrington <va7ssb(at)hotmail.com>
 
 
 

Feb 15/14