In the early 1970s, the parasite fighter concept was revived, in the form of a Boeing study investigating the use of a 747 jumbo jet as flying aircraft carrier.
The study was performed under a contract from the US Air Force Flight Dynamics Laboratory (USAF FDL) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio.
The Boeing concept was highly ambitious, envisioning a 747-200 class jetliner as an "airborne aircraft carrier (AAC)" with a complement of ten "microfighters". The 747 would not only be able to launch and retrieve the microfighters, but also refuel them in flight or, on retrieval, load them up with fuel and weapons for a new sortie. The 747 would carry enough materiel to support three sorties per microfighter. The study also considered the use of the Lockheed C-5A cargolifter as the carrier aircraft, but not surprisingly the Boeing engineers judged the 747 the better choice.
