LTJG Al Crebo wasn’t able to get his stricken A-4E back aboard USS Bon Homme Richard but it did keep flying long enough for him to get back out over the water and for pictures to be taken.
The pictures in this post, taken on April 25, 1967, depict LTJG Al Crebo’s VA-212 A-4E Skyhawk, Navy BUNO 151102, following a close encounter with an SA-2 over North Vietnam.
Though LTJG Al Crebo’s damaged A-4E was unable to return to USS Bon Homme Richard (CV 31), it managed to continue flying long enough for him to get back on the sea and take pictures.
As reported by Tommy H. Thomason in his book ‘Scooter! The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk Story‘, on a strike launched on Apr. 25, 1967, from Bon Homme Richard to target an ammo depot near Haiphong, his A-4E Skyhawk was tagged by an SA-2 as he rolled in for his bomb run. The explosion destroyed both hydraulic systems and blew off his rudder, the top of the vertical fin, and several access doors. It also knocked the horizontal stabilizer askew. Both the wings and the aft fuselage had large holes in them.
Since he was on his way down anyway, he began his dive and dropped his bombs upon the target. At that point, he understood that he had no hydraulics and pulled the control disconnect to be on manual control. Muscling out of the dive and back to wing level, he was able to get out over the water and head toward the ship.
He could have lowered the tailhook and the nose gear, but he could not land back aboard, not even with the barricade in place, without the main landing gear down. Either way, he had to eject when the engine finally quit. He was picked up almost immediately and was flying again the next day.
For his harrowing mission, Crebo was awarded a Purple Heart and a Silver Star.
Scooter! The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk Story is published by Crecy and is available to order here.
Photo by U.S. Navy