CF-100 Canuck – Fast Facts

​The Canuck was designed as a large twin-engine all-weather fighter aircraft

The original design had a weak wing spar due to the placement of the engines – a problem that delayed Canuck production and negatively affected the pursuit of other development projects like the Jetliner, which was ultimately terminated to accelerate Canuck production.

The CF100 Canuck was the first Canadian designed military fighter aircraft to go into production – 692 were built.

The first flight of a Canuck occurred Jan 19, 1950.

Canuck fighter squadrons served NATO from 1956 to 1962.

The Canadian Government chose to keep the aging subsonic Canuck even as it terminated production of the supersonic Arrow interceptor in 1959.

Pilot reports suggest the Canuck struggled to intercept commercial jetliners as early as 1961.

Retired from squadron service in Canada in 1961 the Canuck fighter continued in selective service until 1981.

Canuck pilots nicknamed it the “Clunk”