Tag:

A4

When a US Navy A-4 pilot had to eject after a catastrophic turbine failure that turned his Skyhawk into a fireball

by Till Daisd February 15, 2024

‘I had a catastrophic turbine failure that buzz sawed the back end of my plane and turned the plane into a fireball. I was going about 500 knots indicated. I ejected through the fireball,’ Ken VanderHorst, US Navy A-4 Skyhawk pilot

In a military aircraft, an ejection seat is a device meant for rescuing the pilot or other crew of the aircraft in an emergency. The majority of designs involve the canopy coming off and the seat being propelled out of the aircraft by a rocket motor or explosive charge, taking the pilot with it. The ejection seat releases a parachute once it is outside the airplane. To prevent a collision, the seats of two-seat aircraft are ejected at distinct angles.

Pilots had to manually climb out of the aircraft and remove the canopy before ejection seats were invented.

Ejection seats can save lives. But can fighter pilots eject if a catastrophic failure turns their aircraft into a fireball?

‘Yes,’ Ken VanderHorst, former US Navy A-4 Skyhawk pilot, recalls on Quora.

‘Many years ago, I was flying a sand blower mission in an A-4 Skyhawk over the California desert.

‘I had a catastrophic turbine failure that essentially buzz-sawed the back end of my plane and turned the plane into a fireball.

‘There were absolutely no strange noises or other warnings of any kind

‘I was going about 500 knots indicated. I ejected through the fireball. I had some burns and some serious flailing injuries but survived. I later returned to flight duty. So yes, you can eject while on fire. Indeed, that is almost certainly your best option for a serious fire.’

VanderHorst concludes;

‘At 500+ knots your extremities get caught by the air blast, and they “flail” around. I injured my left leg and left arm. I recovered and flew again. But I was warned that when I turned 60, my old injuries would come back to haunt me. I’m 70 this year, and now I understand what the flight surgeon meant. Lots issues.’

U.S. Air Force photo by Jet Fabara

February 15, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

An ex-Blue Angels CO explains the decision to replace the F-4 Phantom II with the A-7 Corsair II and the choice of the A-4 Skyhawk rather than the F-14 Tomcat

by Till Daisd January 29, 2024

written by Till Daisd

‘While we were doing this search for airplanes, a couple of squadrons were coming back from Vietnam and were being decommissioned. They had the A-4F, which was the latest model at that time,’ Ken Wallace former Blue Angels CO

The lightweight, high-speed A-4 Skyhawk gave the US Navy, Marines, and friendly nations a maneuverable yet powerful attack bomber with great altitude and range capabilities and unusual flexibility in armament capacity. It was built small to be cost-effective and to fit more of them on a carrier.

Between 1956 and 1979, around 3,000 A-4s were built; they were used as aggressor aircraft, as front-line squadrons, and as advanced trainers (the latter being called TA-4s and having two-seat cockpits). The Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron’s Blue Angels were also equipped with A-4s.

Following a series of accidents and maintenance issues with their McDonnell Douglas F-4J Phantom IIs during the 1973 air show season, the Blue Angels stood down to allow Secretary of the Navy John Warner—who would go on to serve six terms in the US Senate as a representative of the state of Virginia—to give a program overview. Six senior flag officers were assigned by Warner to examine the Blue Angels program, and they all agreed that it should be continued as a “prime recruiting asset.”

According to Nicholas A. Veronico’s narrative in The Blue Angels a Fly-By History, Ken Wallace, a team leader in 1961–1963 and slot pilot in 1954–1955, was asked to lead the team through challenging times. Wallace was the tactical air plan officer in the chief of naval operations’ office. “Because of my past association with the Blue Angels, whenever anything that concerned them came up, I was rung in on it in some way,’ he said.

According to Wallace, “the Secretary of the Navy was not fully supportive of keeping the team. Admiral Zumwalt, who was chief of naval operations and not an aviator, was very much insistent on keeping the team in business. So he and I went to chat with the Secretary of the Navy. The Secretary agreed to keep it in business, but we had to change airplanes. He would not let us continue with the F-4s, partially due to the crashes, and at this point, we were in the fuel crunch of the mid-1970s. The F-4 is not an economical airplane on fuel, and it is a heavy-maintenance airplane. It was just a little bit too visible for the times.”

Given the job of program manager for the Blue Angels, Wallace had his work cut out for him. Drawing on his previous experience with the team, he would implement many far-reaching changes. “I started casting about for a different airplane. The airplane that I really wanted was the F-14,’ he said. “I did not want an F-14 with all the weapons control systems in it; that was wasteful.” After proposing his idea to Grumman, they decided that it would cost more to make an airplane without the systems than it would to make one with them. Cost became the determining factor, and the F-14 idea went by the wayside.

For Wallace, the A-7 was the next logical choice. He said, “There simply were not enough airplanes in the pipeline to let us have them. The fleet needed the A-7 desperately and could not divert seven aircraft for our use. I went down to Chance Vought and flew the airplane, and it certainly would have been quite suitable.”

Although it had been looked at by many team leaders in the past, Wallace once again considered McDonnell Douglas’ A-4 Skyhawk. “The A-4 was about the only fleet airplane left that was anywhere near usable by the team,” he said. “It just so happened that while we were doing this search for airplanes, a couple of squadrons were coming back from Vietnam and were being decommissioned. They had the A-4F, which was the latest model at that time. They also had the latest engine, the P-408. It had more thrust than any of the previous engines the A-4 had used.

“We got together with the engineers at McDonnell Douglas and with some of the people at Naval Air Systems Command. We needed some changes to the control system. We needed more nose-down force. Traditionally, the Blue Angels fly the airplane, regardless of the model, with a full-down nose trim. It gives us, in some cases, 40 pounds of nose-down stick force. We want that nose-down force, so we’ve got something we are putting pressure against all the time. Plus, in rough air, it tends to make you bounce away from the formation rather than up into the airplanes ahead of you. By bracing our right forearm on our leg or knee, it provides a very stable or firm base to control the airplane with the stick. By just flexing your wrist a little bit, rather than having large-magnitude arm movements, you get your control that way. The engineers at McDonnell Douglas came up with a bungee cord arrangement that modified the bell crank assemblies in the airplane, thus providing the nose down force.

“We also bolted up the leading-edge slats. The A-4 in its normal configuration has aerodynamic slats on the leading edges of the wings. They are actuated by aerodynamic force and are used in heavy g-loads or accelerations. They increase the camber of the wing so that you get more lift. The problem with those aerodynamic slats is that depending on the condition of flight, if you’re not exactly in balanced flight or if you are in a turn, one slat may not come out and the other may fully deploy. It really depends on the air loads. If they come out asymmetrically, they can pop you right on your back faster than you can think about it. We determined that by bolting them up we would not add to the landing speed of the airplane by any significant amount.

“We took the guns out, some armor plating, added a drag chute for operations from shorter airports, and added weight to the nose for balance. The overall weight reduction was significant. We ended up with an airplane that weighed 11,300 pounds [dry] and we had an engine that produced 11,400 pounds of thrust. When you got down to a light fuel load, you could do some pretty cute tricks with that little airplane. The roll rate would certainly not spin your head, but it was more than enough for what we wanted to do in the air show.’

The ultimate modification saw the Blue Angels elevated to the rank of a full U.S. Navy squadron, endowing the team commander with the same power and position as a squadron CO. This meant that the flight surgeon, supply and administrative officers, and the public affairs and maintenance teams were no longer loaned to the team.

The Skyhawk made its show season debut in 1974 and flew with the Blue Angels until 1986, when the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet took its place.

Photo by U.S. Navy

January 29, 2024 0 comment

History

A former US Navy F/A-18 pilot explains why he had the most pleasure flying the A-4 Skyhawk over the Hornet

by Till Daisd January 14, 2024

written by Till Daisd

‘I will say this—and I know a lot of other Navy guys that would say the same thing—my fun meter was probably most pegged flying the A-4 Skyhawk,’ Jim Danhakl, former US Navy F/A-18 Hornet pilot

Between 1954 and 1979, Douglas produced 2,960 A-4 Skyhawk attack aircraft.

The lightweight, fast bombers, dubbed “Heinemann’s Hot Rod” (after Douglas designer Ed Heinemann), were built small to be cost-effective and fit more of them on a carrier. They were also known as the Bantam Bomber, Mighty Mite, and Scooter. The US Navy, Marines, and allies were able to use maneuverable, powerful attack bombers with exceptional altitude, range capabilities, and a remarkable degree of armament capacity thanks to Skyhawks.

What was it like to fly the A-4 Skyhawk, considering its unique capabilities?

Jim Danhakl, former US Navy F/A-18 Hornet pilot, recalls on Quora;

‘During my era, the F/A-18 was the king of the hill. It was by far the best airplane on the carrier. We used to eat Tomcats for lunch in a dogfight, and the missions, both air-to-air and air-to-ground were more diverse and challenging. I also loved being single seat and the pride that comes with “doing it all”.

‘But I will say this—and I know a lot of other Navy guys that would say the same thing—my fun meter was probably most pegged flying the A-4 Skyhawk.

‘Maybe it was first love; maybe it’s the way you slid in the jet and wore it vice larger cockpits that felt more rub-a-dub-dub. But the A-4 was a performer, especially the big engine A-4F.

‘We fought against adversaries who flew those all the time and I’ve been embarrassed by those guys in guns only 1 vs. 1 dogfighting.’

Danhakl concludes;

‘I would not want to go to war in one; today that choice would be the F-35, but for the flat-out fun factor, I would have to say the A-4F Skyhawk was my fav. I don’t think anyone who flew carrier-fighter-based aviation in the last 30 years would disagree too much!’

Photo by U.S. Navy

January 14, 2024 0 comment

Cold War

The US Navy A-4 pilot who fell asleep on a cross-country flight and was woken up by ATC

by Till Daisd January 1, 2024

written by Till Daisd

‘This one pilot had made the Yuma run in a TA-4J on Friday and was returning to Jacksonville on Sunday. Due to the time zone shift it’s likely that he was tired,’ David Tussey, former US Navy A-7E Corsair II pilot

According to a 2013 survey conducted by a pilots’ union, almost half of airline and commercial pilots fall asleep while piloting an aircraft. Out of the 56% of pilots who acknowledged sleeping, 29% said to the British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa) that they wake up to discover their fellow pilot dozing.

What about military pilots? What happens if a fighter jet pilot falls asleep while flying?

‘Here’s a sea story, or as they say, “this is a no-shitter”,’ David Tussey, former US Navy A-7E Corsair II pilot, says on Quora.

‘I had just arrived at NAS Cecil Field in 1974 to begin training in the A-7E. There was also an A-4 squadron stationed there, VA-45.

‘One weekend, an A-4 pilot (whose name I can’t definitively recall) was scheduled to make a “parts run” to MCAS Yuma where the A-7 RAG squadron had a detachment. Ready-to-replace parts were often loaded in an external store and ferried out to the Yuma detachment over the weekend, returning with a load of the replacement items. Fun stuff and good cross-country flying.

‘When you returned from MCAS Yuma to NAS Cecil Field in Jacksonville, FL, you almost always arrived at night due to the three-zone time difference. Often quite late at night, depending on when you depart the west. It’s nearly a full “across the US flight” from Arizona to Florida.

‘This one pilot had made the Yuma run in a TA-4J on Friday and was returning to Jacksonville on Sunday. There’s no evidence he was intoxicated; in fact, he was pretty straight-laced, but due to the time zone shift, it’s likely that he was at least tired.

‘The flight from Yuma to Jacksonville in a TA-4J requires two legs, with a refueling stop mid-way at, say, Tinker AFB in Oklahoma City or a similar military base located in the mid-west.

‘On the second leg of the flight that Sunday evening, with the autopilot flying the airplane due east and night falling, the pilot apparently fell asleep. ATC could not raise radio contact and started treating the aircraft as a lost radio incident as the aircraft crossed Louisiana and into northern Florida.

‘However, as the aircraft approached Jacksonville, it did not descend to land (weather was VFR). Instead, the aircraft continued to fly straight-and-level right over Jacksonville and out over the Atlantic Ocean.

‘Well, now ATC is in a panic—has the pilot become incapacitated? What’s gone wrong here?

‘FINALLY, about 50 miles out over the Atlantic, ATC awakened the pilot, who finally woke up and astonishingly acted like nothing had happened!! He turned the airplane around, and despite being way, way too low on fuel DID NOT declare an emergency!

‘He overflew two military airports on his way back to NAS Cecil, …and low and behold finally made it back to NAS Cecil Field, landed safely, taxied into the flight line. Shut down the aircraft. Filled out the paper work and went home… just another day at the office.

‘From when the pilot awakened until he landed at NAS Cecil Field was well over 150 miles, all with the low fuel light illuminated, and well over 30 minutes.

‘Scared the living bejeezus out of everyone.

‘When the details of this emerged, as you can imagine, the Squadron CO, Jax Approach, CO of NAS Cecil Field, were absolutely livid. The Squadron CO even went so far to dip the fuel tank (used a stick to measure the fuel remaining) and found there was 4 gallons left. FOUR GALLONS! What really fried the CO’s ass was that this pilot never declared an emergency despite the extreme low fuel state, and overflew two perfectly good military divert bases instead of landing immediately.

‘Not sure what happened after that. There was no damage done to Navy property, just some very poor judgment and headwork, followed by a major, major ass chewing.

‘But man, that was quite the story around Naval Aviation and particularly at NAS Cecil Field, always ending with a “he did what?”.’

Photo by U.S. Navy

January 1, 2024 0 comment

History

US Naval Aviator discusses why the A-4 Skyhawk wasn’t a very good fighter

by Till Daisd December 13, 2023

written by Till Daisd

‘Yes, the A-4 Skyhawk was agile. However, it takes more than agility to make a good fighter,’ John Chesire, former US Naval Aviator and TOPGUN graduate

2,960 A-4 Skyhawk aircraft were produced by Douglas between 1954 and 1979. Known by their loving nicknames, “Heinemann’s Hot Rod” (after Douglas designer Ed Heinemann), the Bantam Bomber, Mighty Mite, and Scooter were built small to be cheap and to fit more of them on a carrier. Skyhawks were maneuverable, powerful attack bombers with exceptional altitude and range capabilities and a unique degree of armament capability made available to the US Navy, Marines, and allied nations.

Furthermore, even though the legendary A-4 was intended to be a simple, light-weight Navy carrier attack aircraft, the Skyhawk performed a variety of tasks, including aerial refueling, nuclear strikes, and acting as an adversary aircraft. Why wasn’t the A-4 Skyhawk employed as a fighter during the Vietnam War since it was maneuverable enough to act as an adversary aircraft with the US Navy?

‘Yes, the A-4 Skyhawk was agile. However, it takes more than agility to make a good fighter,’ John Chesire, former US Naval Aviator and TOPGUN graduate, explains on Quora.

‘The A-4 was designed as an attack aircraft and not a fighter. Its forte was air-to-ground. It was never designed for the air-to-air role of a fighter. It did, however, have a gun and the capability of carrying Sidewinders, but it really lacked a fighter’s radar and a complete air-to-air weapon system. Nor did it have the speed like an F-4, an F-8, or the F-105. Furthermore, it lacked an afterburner, which is a necessity for any true fighter aircraft.

‘The reason that the A-4 was used as an adversary training aircraft for TOPGUN and fleet pilots was not because it was a good fighter. It was because its tight turning radius simulated the tight-turning MiG series aircraft. It was useful in that it taught F-4 pilots to avoid a turning fight with them and rather use some of the F-4’s advantages against the A-4.’

Chesire concludes;

‘While a rookie might have trouble fighting an A-4 with an F-4, it was an entirely different story with a well-trained F-4 driver. Using the F-4’s advantages, the A-4 was most always easily defeated. It was a great attack aircraft and a great training device, but it was not a great fighter, even though it had a tight turning radius.’

Photo by Lt. Cmdr. Joe Parsons / U.S. Navy

December 13, 2023 0 comment

History

An ex-US Navy pilot discusses why flying the A-4 Skyhawk was the most enjoyable experience of his career

by Till Daisd November 12, 2023

written by Till Daisd

‘With the A-4, you don’t actually fly it as you wear it. It quickly and responsively becomes an extended part of you and will do most anything you desire it to do,’ John Chesire, former US Naval Aviator

Between 1954 and 1979, Douglas produced 2,960 A-4 Skyhawk attack aircraft.

Known by their nicknames “Heinemann’s Hot Rod” (after Douglas designer Ed Heinemann), the Bantam Bomber, Mighty Mite, and Scooter were built small to be cost-effective and to fit more of them on a carrier. Skyhawks were maneuverable, powerful attack bombers with exceptional altitude and range capabilities, as well as an unusual flexibility in armament capacity, that were made available to the US Navy, Marines, and allied nations.

Given its unique capabilities, what was it like to fly the A-4 Skyhawk?

‘Oh my, what a wonderfully fun aircraft to fly! It was always a thrill to fly, regardless of which of the many different and various A-4 models one was flying in,’ John Chesire, former US Naval Aviator, explains on Quora.

‘The Skyhawk was the most fun aircraft I ever flew. Simple yet extremely quick and agile, her roll rate was an incredible 720 degrees/second. She demanded attention. Never could I trim any A-4 up for hands-off flying for very long. She always wanted to “play.” Nimble and maneuverable, no wonder so many pilots loved the A-4. She acquired such endearing nicknames as Heinemann’s Hot Rod, Scooter, Bantam Bomber, Tinker Toy, and others. I always liked the scooter moniker because flying it reminded me of my two young children having fun pedaling their little three-wheel scooters in the street and screaming with joy. Flying the A-4 was like giving a kid a new and great toy.

‘The first A-4 I flew was an old A-4C. It had an older engine that was sluggish compared to the fighters I had been flying. It also did not have ground spoilers, which made for some tricky and scary crosswind landings. However, it was single-seat, something that every pilot likes by not having someone in the back looking over your shoulder. I flew it on some RDT&E* projects, but I was allowed to also fly it anytime I wanted to… and I often did. For a while, it was my little personal sports car of the air. Of course, later models with their improved engines were like little rocket ships or like Star Wars’ TIE fighters. I never got to fly those, that’s OK. I did not miss much.

‘Some years later, I would fly another A-4, the TA-4J two-seat trainer, as a flight instructor. I had been flying F-14 Tomcats at the time, but the TA-4J being so much fun to fly was not a letdown. Moreover, it was a challenging but honest aircraft for student naval aviators to hone their skills.’

Chesire concludes;

‘One more thing… with the A-4, you don’t actually fly it as you wear it. It quickly and responsively becomes an extended part of you and will do most anything you desire it to do.’

Photo by U.S. Navy

November 12, 2023 0 comment

History

After more than 60 years of service, a Royal New Zealand Air Force A-4 pilot retires

by Till Daisd April 9, 2023

written by Till Daisd

It was the only occasion an A-4 Skyhawk from the Royal New Zealand Air Force had opened fire in anger

When Jim Jennings fired a warning shot over the bow of a Taiwanese squid boat that was fishing illegally in New Zealand waters in 1976, he entered the annals of the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF).

It was the only occasion an RNZAF Skyhawk had opened fire in anger. Although that incident attracted the public’s attention, Mr. Jennings’ remarkable flying career, which lasted more than 60 years and took him all around the world, was not defined by that event.

He is now retired, and on May 27, 2021, a brief ceremony at RNZAF Base Ohakea bid him farewell. An 18-year-old Mr. Jennings joined the military in 1961 and began his training as an engine fitter and mechanic after growing up on a farm in North Canterbury.

He made the decision to become a pilot in 1964. Before being assigned to Ohakea to fly Vampires, he had training on Harvard and Devon aircraft.

“The old Vampire that sits outside of the main gate of Ohakea is one I’ve flown many times,” he says in a New Zealand Defence Force news release.

As the RNZAF upgraded to Skyhawks, Mr. Jennings piloted them on training exercises in Singapore, Malaysia, and Australia. He also served as an operations flight commander on the Strikemaster for a while.

Royal New Zealand Air Force A-4 pilot who fired warning shots across the bow of a Taiwanese squid boat retires after more than 60 years of service — A McDonnell Douglas A-4K *Skyhawk* (s/n NZ6205) from No. 75 Squadron, Royal New Zealand Air Force, preparing for take-off from RAAF Base Darwin, Northern Territory (Australia), during exercise “Pitch Black ’84”, a joint US, Australian and New Zealand exercise on Apr. 22, 1984.

Prior to being assigned to Malaysia in the integrated Air Defence System from 1981 to 1983, he spent some time at the headquarters in Wellington with his family.

Before receiving an “out of the blue” offer to take over the No. 2 Squadron, a Skyhawk training unit, Mr. Jennings went back to his old habitat at Ohakea where he served as the Strike Wing’s Executive Officer.

“I had two lovely years there training lots of pilots on the Skyhawk and having a real blast.”

Another high point in Mr. Jennings’ career was his 1989 deployment to Iran as the Detachment Commander of the Air Unit, which provided in-country air transport for the UN mission there.

“It was a very nice place and a lovely country and the mission itself worked quite well but it did have its moments dealing with Iranian Revolutionary Guards.”

The country was like “Central Otago on a grand scale”.

“It had magnificent scenery, lovely people, and snow. My tour was a winter one and at the back of Tehran, where we were based they had a very good ski field. It was a real highlight of my career.”

For his military achievements, he was named a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List in 2010.

The position of Mr. Jennings was changed to a civilian position in 2011. He has been in charge of operational support issues for the previous ten years, including the airline diversion capability at Ohakea.

Now that he is 79, the man is ready for retirement and a “good sleep-in.”

“I feel young, but the reality is, that’s quite a few years on the clock. I think it was time to retire and give someone else a run at it.

“I think I will miss being on an air base with aircraft around because I’ve been with aircraft nearly all my life, but it’s been a lovely experience and I’ve worked with some excellent people over the years.”

The A-4 Skyhawk in service with the Royal New Zealand Air Force

The RNZAF received 10 A-4K single-seat aircraft and 4 TA-4K in 1970, joining the 75 Squadron. In 1984, the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) added 8 A-4G Skyhawks and 2 TA-4Gs, enabling the formation of a second squadron with Skyhawk equipment, 2 Squadron.

Project Kahu was started in 1986 as a less expensive option for purchasing new replacement Skyhawks. Its goal was to equip New Zealand’s Skyhawks with new avionics, including AN/APG-66NZ radar based on the F-16, and armaments. The 12 original RNZAF aircraft and the 10 ex-RAN aircraft were all converted to the A-4K Kahu standard.

The Skyhawks were placed in storage in anticipation of sale in 2001 after the dissolution of the three Air Combat Force squadrons (Nos. 2, 14, and 75). They were kept up with the help of sporadic service flights before being transferred to RNZAF Base Woodbourne and preserved in latex.

In 2012, Draken International and the government of New Zealand agreed to the purchase of eight A-4Ks and related equipment for its adversary training services. Six of them were former RAN A-4G aircraft with considerably fewer flying hours as carrier aircraft. In Lakeland, Florida, at Draken’s Lakeland Linder International Airport facility, these were subsequently transported to the United States. The other A-4K planes were donated to museums in Australia and New Zealand.

Photo by Royal New Zealand Air Force, U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy

April 9, 2023 0 comment

History

The A-4 involved in a barricade landing with the Skyhawk flown by John McCain

by Till Daisd March 22, 2023

written by Till Daisd

VA-163 went through 3 A-4 Skyahwk CAG jets on the ’67 cruise… 150132 was lost on Aug. 20, and 149959 went down over Hanoi, on Oct. 26. 152003 took the barrier in November.

Lt Cdr John S. McCain, a VA-163 Saints pilot, was shot down while flying A-4E BuNo 149959 on October 26, 1967. He started diving toward a thermal power station close to Hanoi. He was promptly targeted by a SAM battery, and its missile tore off the majority of his Skyhawk’s right-wing, as described by Peter Mersky in his book US Navy and Marine Corps A-4 Skyhawk Units of the Vietnam War. He couldn’t do much to maintain control, so he ejected directly into the middle of the city. When evasion proved impossible, McCain began his five years of cruel imprisonment and suffering. From a dirty jail cell in the Hanoi Hilton to the halls of Congress, it would be a very long voyage.

In a previous post, we mentioned how six days before McCain’s flight, LT JG Denny Earl had to employ the arresting barricade to return to land on the Oriskany, which was flying BuNo 149959, despite having both of his legs shattered by North Vietnamese anti-aircraft fire.

Setting the record straight: The photo of the A-4 involved in this barricade landing does not show the Skyhawk then flown by John McCain when he was shot down over Hanoi

But, as aviation expert Scott Brown noted, ‘the jet McCain was downed in… wasn’t the one Denny Earl took the barrier in…. Earl’s barrier crash was NOV. 20, not OCT 20…

‘I found this shot…. you can see the BuNo…. 152003.

‘Oriskany has 3 CAG jets that cruise, McCain went down in the 2nd….the replacement was the one Earl was wounded in….

‘VA-163 went through 3 CAG jets on the ’67 cruise… 150132 was lost Aug. 20, 149959 went down over Hanoi, Oct. 26. Earl was wounded and took the barrier in 152003 in November… Later in the cruise, they put Earl’s name on it, although he had already been evacuated off the ship.

‘Every database on A-4s has this wrong… it’s weird…’

Brown went on;

‘Very interesting story about this… I’ve been a Firefighter / Paramedic for almost 30 years…very early in my career, we used to carry a piece of equipment called a PASG…Pneumatic Anti Shock Garment. It was basically a G-suit, had inflatable rubber bladders on the legs and abdomen that you’d inflate in the hope that it would force blood out of the legs…like a G-suit. The PASG was a terrible idea, didn’t work at all, but it was useful for either stopping major bleeding or splinting a whole leg. Dr. Adeeb, VA-163’s flight doc, was also a pilot. They didn’t let him go over the beach, but they did let him fly local and tanker hops. He was aloft when Denny came back, it was his idea to have him inflate his G-suit and keep it inflated to try and stop the bleeding. It worked and absolutely saved his life.’

According to Peter Fey, who backs up this assertion in his book Bloody 16, ‘When Adeeb landed following his tanker mission, he climbed down from the flight deck and proceeded to help operate on Earl. The ship’s general surgeon began preparing for surgery as Adeeb swapped his flight suit for surgical scrubs. With Adeeb’s assistance, they repaired Earl’s leg with several pins. With his leg repaired, Earl was evacuated arriving in Pensacola, Florida, less than thirty-six hours after being wounded.’

Brown concluded: ‘So that Adeeb landed and immediately went into surgery, was amazing!’

Photo by U.S. Navy

March 22, 2023 0 comment

History

Mike Estocin, the first US Navy jet pilot to ever get the Medal of Honor for a combat mission

by Till Daisd January 6, 2023

written by Till Daisd

Despite the fact that Estocin’s A-4E caught fire on its final approach, he managed to land safely into the barrier, and the fire crew extinguished the flames as he descended from the cockpit unharmed

The A-4 Skyhawk was created by Douglas Aircraft Company designer Ed Heinemann in response to his worries about the weight and cost of combat aircraft rising in the 1950s. The A-4 broke with this trend by omitting a large wing-folding mechanism in favor of a compact delta wing for better storage on aircraft carriers. To further cut weight, engineers changed the pilot ejection mechanism and minimized the number of cockpit components.

Other measures included replacing a heavy-duty battery with a wind-powered generator that was stored in the fuselage, using gravity-dropped landing gear instead of a backup hydraulic system, and installing an air conditioning system that was one-third lighter than those that were previously available. The A-4, or “Tinker Toy,” as pilots called it, exceeded the Navy’s maximum weight limit by more than half in its final configuration.

The National Naval Aviation Museum claims that Skyhawks flew more combat missions over Vietnam than any other naval aircraft, including notable missions for the Iron Hand, strikes against bridges and power plants in North Vietnam, and close air support of troops engaged in ground combat in South Vietnam.

Iron Hand was a strictly SA-2 “Guideline” kill-and-suppression operation, typically carried out in support of an Alpha strike against a significant target by a single A-4 equipped with two or more AGM-45 Shrikes.

As told by Peter E. Davies in his book A-4 Skyhawk Vs North Vietnamese AAA North Vietnam 1964-1972, an outstanding example of Iron Hand skill was displayed on Apr. 20, 1967, by VA-192’s Operations Officer, Lt Cdr Mike Estocin, flying from Ticonderoga as part of CVW-19. He conducted a three-aircraft Iron Hand flight against three 285th Missile Regiment SA-2 sites near Haiphong with the goal of taking out as many SAM batteries as he could. His strategy was flying as close as he could to a target before launching his missiles. Although Estocin’s A-4E sustained significant AAA damage to its wings, all three sites were destroyed.

He went back to the target to use the last remaining Shrike despite the fuel depletion accelerating quickly. After getting his “feet wet,” Estocin connected with an A-3 “Whale” tanker that towed him back to Ticonderoga while pumping fuel into his aircraft a little bit more quickly than it was leaking out. Knowing that he only had enough fuel for one attempt at a landing, he detached from the tanker two miles from CVA-14 and headed for the deck. Despite the fact that Estocin’s A-4E caught fire on his final approach, he managed to land the aircraft safely into the barrier, and the fire crew put out the flames as he descended from the cockpit unharmed.

When his squadronmate Lt(jg) J. W. Cain was shot down by AAA in an A-4E BuNo 152076 during VA-192’s Alpha strike attack on a fuel dump in Haiphong on April 26, 1967, Lt Cdr Estocin was once more SAM hunting. As he was returning to 12,000 feet, shortly after Estocin’s Iron Hand section had lofted a Shrike in front of the strike force, he noticed an SA-2 approaching him. Just as the missile burst close to his aircraft, he started an evasive diving turn after likely positioning himself to target the missile’s launch location. He rolled and dove toward the earth while his A-4 (BuNo 151073) was on fire before pulling out at 2,000 feet.

By this time, Estocin’s aircraft was burning intensely as the pilot raced for the coast. As the Skyhawk slowly lost speed, another SAM that was passing nearby came dangerously close to striking it. Lt Cdr John Nichols of VF-191 followed the downed A-4E in his F-8E, observing substantial damage to its forward fuselage and observing Estocin seemingly slumped forward in his cockpit, apparently oblivious to radio messages. Estocin was later identified as the future MiG killer. The plane lost all of its stores when their wiring burned out as it went inverted at 1,000 feet just short of the coast before crashing. Shortly after, Estocin received the Medal of Honor posthumously, becoming him the first and only US Navy jet pilot to receive it for a combat mission.

The story of Lt Cdr Mike Estocin the only US Navy jet pilot to ever receive the Medal of Honor for a combat mission — Lt Cdr Mike Estocin

A-4 Skyhawk Vs North Vietnamese AAA North Vietnam 1964-1972 is published by Osprey Publishing and is available to order here.

Photo by U.S. Navy; Artwork: Osprey

January 6, 2023 0 comment

History

The A-4 Skyhawk: from Douglas to the U.S. Navy

by Till Daisd November 1, 2022

written by Till Daisd

The Douglas Aircraft A-4 Skyhawk was a family of light attack bombers manufactured and used by the United States Navy. It was designed to replace the AD-1 Skyraider, which had become a propeller-driven veteran in the 1950s, but it never succeeded in pushing it out of service. In 1956, development began on what would eventually become the A-4A. This version was powered by a Wright J65 turbojet engine and could fly at speeds approaching 725 miles per hour. The wingspan of this version was 27 feet 5 inches with a width of 9 feet 5 inches, not including the air intake for its engine. Because it was considered “light,” it weighed only 10,500 pounds empty and could carry a payload of up to 16,000 pounds internally and externally without overloading its landing gear. The main gear retracted into sponsons that protruded outward from each side of the fuselage’s body just behind its cockpit.

The A-4 Skyhawks were a family of light attack bombers manufactured and used by the United States Navy. The aircraft was designed and produced by Douglas Aircraft, who also designed the famous DC-3 airliner. The Skyhawk was used by the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps as well as being sold abroad to many countries. Although never seeing combat in Vietnam, it was later used in several conflicts such as Operation Desert Storm, where it proved its worth again as an effective weapon against enemy forces on land or sea.

The Skyhawk was designed by Ed Heinemann, an engineer who played a major role in the development of other significant military aircraft at Douglas.

The new aircraft had to be faster and more maneuverable than its predecessor and able to carry a greater bomb load over longer distances. It also had to have better visibility for pilots.

The prototype first flew on December 20, 1954—just four years after the start of design work on it.

The Skyhawk also proved to be a popular export for South America and Israel, though both countries later developed their own aircraft models based on the Skyhawk design. The A-4B was used by the US Navy and Marine Corps between 1955 and 1975. It had four 20mm cannons in addition to its air-to-air rockets, making it an effective adversary against other aircraft during dogfights.

The Israeli Air Force (IAF) started using the Skyhawk in 1968 after purchasing three A4s from Argentina. Later that year, Israel purchased 27 more planes from Douglas Aircraft Company in California before establishing its own production line for modified versions of the aircraft that included better radar systems and more powerful engines than those installed on earlier versions of this plane model series.

Despite being designed to replace the AD-1 Skyraider, which was a propeller-driven aircraft that had become a veteran of the Korean War by the time the A-4 Skyhawk entered service with the U.S. Navy in 1961, it never succeeded in pushing it out of service.

In 1952, four separate proposals from Douglas were submitted for meeting the needs of this requirement. The A4D and A4E were swept-wing designs, while the A4F and A4G were straight-wing designs. The Navy selected the A4D as its next-generation carrier-based attack aircraft.

In 1956, development began on what would eventually become the A-4A. The first production version of the Skyhawk was equipped with a more powerful J65 engine and its first batch was also fitted with ejection seats.

The A-4 was designed to be a small, light attack bomber that could take off from aircraft carriers and operate as a land-based aircraft. The first prototype flew in 1958 and was powered by the Wright J65 turbojet engine, which was also used in the F3H Demon fighter jet. This engine gave the Skyhawk an impressive top speed of 725 miles per hour.

The Skyhawk’s fuselage is constructed from aluminum alloy with titanium used for high-stress areas such as the wings and tail fins. Other materials include magnesium alloy for various control surfaces, Duralinox (a type of plastic) for parts where fuel tanks or oil coolers are attached to metal structures, steel alloys for landing gear struts and ribs on wings, glass fiber reinforced plastic (GRP) for outer wing panels (the smooth white skin you see), cloth insulation covering bodywork components like fuel tanks and cockpit canopy windows; copper wire in electrical systems; Plexiglas windows; rubber seals around doors; fabric seat cushions; leather straps on ejection seats; carpeting on floors inside cockpits—you get the idea!

The wingspan of this version was 27 feet 5 inches with a width of 9 feet 5 inches, not including the air intake for its engine. This number is measured from wing tip to wing tip at the widest point of the wing.

Because it was considered “light,” it weighed only 10,500 pounds empty and could carry a payload of up to 16,000 pounds internally and externally without overloading its landing gear.

This meant that the aircraft could be flown off a carrier’s deck with ease—even when loaded down with bombs and rockets. In addition, this light weight allowed for short takeoffs in confined areas such as an aircraft carrier’s flight deck or even on land at bases close to enemy lines.

The A-4 Skyhawk was also designed from the beginning to be able to make precise low-altitude bombing runs at speeds of up to 500 miles per hour (805 km/h). This made it highly effective against ground targets while avoiding enemy air defenses such as antiaircraft artillery (AAA) batteries or surface-to-air missiles (SAMs).

The main gear retracted into sponsons that protruded outward from each side of the fuselage’s body just behind its cockpit. This was a design feature that allowed the plane to operate from aircraft carriers as well as land bases. The nose gear, however, retracted into two telescoping cylinders mounted under the fuselage just forward of its leading edge.

The A-4 Skyhawk has served the Navy well over its many years, and it continues to do so. It is a shining example not only of American ingenuity but also of the close and mutually beneficial relationship between this country and its military branches. In fact, Douglas Aircraft Company’s story illustrates how these organizations can work together for the betterment of both. Though some might see this tale as one about aircraft design, we think it’s also about a sort of partnership that helps each party grow stronger in its own right.

November 1, 2022 0 comment