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A-7 Corsair II

A-7s left Vietnam for the Air Guard.

The Air Force A-7 Corsair II was derived from theCorsair developed for the Navy in the early 1960s,and was more or less ordered off-the-shelf. Therst USAF prototype ew on April 6, 1968. The onlysignicant changes to the LTV-built Navy versionwere use of a different engine and addition of a20 mm cannon (which the Navy later adopted).Somewhat less than beautiful, the A-7in boththe Air Force and Navy versionsproved to beboth effective and highly adaptable.

The A-7 was intended to replace the A-4 Skyhawk,and it sprang from a requirement to be developedfrom an existing type. LTV won with a highly modi-ed version of its F-8 Crusader, a fact which helped

speed A-7 development. The Corsair II had a shorterfuselage and larger air intake, but its wings wereroughly the same size, and it used both leading edge

and trailing edge aps, as well as upper surfacespoilers, as did the F-8. The A-7s main strengthwas payload; it could carry up to 15,000 poundsof ordnance. USAF expressed interest in 1966,ordering an A-7D with a more powerful engine.

The Navy A-7 entered combat in Vietnam in De-cember 1967 and ew more than 90,000 combatmissions there. The Air Force A-7s pulled heavycombat duty late in the war, ying close air sup-port missions and serving with search and rescueoperators. The type achieved high accuracy withbomb drops by the aid of an automatic electronicnavigation and weapons delivery system. In 1973,the Air Force began assigning A-7Ds to Air National

Guard units. Walter J. Boyne

In Brie

Designed, built by LTV Aerospacee rst ight Sept. 27, 1965 e crewof one (two in trainer) e number built 1,545 (484 USAF) e one RollsRoyce/Allison TF41-A-1 turbofan engineeSpecifc to A-7D:armamentone M-61A 20 mm Vulcan cannon e max load 15,000 lb of bombs,missiles, mines, rockets, gun pods e max speed 698 mph e cruisespeed 545 mph e max range 1,780 mi e weight (loaded) 42,000 lbe span 38 ft 9 in e length 46 ft 2 in e height 16 ft.

Famous Fliers

Air Force Cross: Colin Clarke. Notables: Jim Allen, Tom Crawford,Howell Estes III, Gregory Feest, Thomas Goselin, Craig Gourley,John Hoskins, William Lake, Dennis Larsen, Chuck McClarren,David McCloud, Thomas McKee, John Miller Jr., Wally Moorhead,Lonnie Ratley, Robin Scott, Sandy Sharpe, Michael Short, LeightonSmith Jr., Anthony Tolin, Robert Yates.

Interesting Facts

Nicknamed SLUF (for Short Little Ugly Feller) e performed (onAug. 15, 1973) last ofcial bombing in SEA War e saw combat inSouth Vietnam, North Vietnam, Cambodia, Lebanon, Libya, Grenada,Panama, Kuwait, and Iraq e used for close air support, search andrescue, reconnaissance, interdiction, surveillance e in Vietnam, suf-fered only six losses in 13,000 sortieslowest ratio for any USAFtypee provided air cover in battle for Mayagueze used as surrogateto train F-117 stealth ghter pilots in 1980s.

This aircrat: USAF A-7D#70-0970as it looked in late 1972 when assigned to 354th TFW, Korat RTAB,Thailand. It is displayed at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio.

80 AIR FORCE Magazine/ March 2010

Airpower ClassicsArtwork by Zaur Eylanbekov

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F-8 Crusader

Crusaders on deck, with wings raised seven degrees.

The F-8 Crusader was beloved by its Navy andMarine Corps pilots. It was the frst carrier-basedfghter to exceed a speed o 1,000 mph. Thoughintended to be a day-only, clear-weather air supe-riority fghter, this Vought aircrat was later givenlimited all-weather capability. The Crusader is otenreerred to as the Last Gun Fighter. Built aroundour 20 mm cannons, it was the last US fghter torely on guns as primary armament.

The all-metal aircrat eatured a unique two-position,variable-incidence wing which could be raisedhydraulically seven degrees, enabling the aircratto land and take o at low speeds while giving thepilot excellent visibility. It was not the prettiest

aircrat in the eetCrusader eatured a gapingchin inlet and a slab-sided uselagebut it was

aerodynamically sophisticated. Features included amidspan dogtooth extension o the chord, designedto alleviate pitch-up, and wings with inboard andoutboard leading edge aps.

The aircrat gained national ame with a series ohigh profle record-setting ights, including one byMaj. John Glenn, who in 1957 ew supersonic romcoast to coast. In 1962, the RF-8 variant played acrucial role in the Cuban Missile Crisis, providingessential low-level photographs, o Soviet and Cu-ban deployments. It was active primarily, however,in the Vietnam War, where its guns came in handyduring close-in dogfghts with North VietnameseMiGs. The Crusader also served as a bomb truck,

employed against communist orces in SouthVietnam. Walter J. Boyne

In Brie

Designed, built by Vought e frst ight March 25, 1955 e crew oone e one P&W J57 turbojet engine e number built 1,264. Specifcto F-8E: max speed 1,120 mph e cruise speed 560 mph e maxrange 1,100 mi e armament our 20 mm cannons, two Sidewindermissiles, rocket pack, two 2,000-lb bombs or two Bullpup missilese weight (max) 34,000 lb e span 35 t 2 in e length 54 t 6 in e

height 15 t 9 in.Famous Fliers

Medal o Honor: James Stockdale. Notables: Dick Bellinger,Donald Engen, Paul Gillcrist, Charles K lusmann, Harold Marr,Paul Speer. Record Setters: John Glenn (coast to coast, threehours, 23 minutes), Duke Windsor (1,015 mph).

Interesting Facts

Originally designated the F8U e reputed to be an ensign killeror its early control difculties e ew in frst combat againstNorth Vietnamese MiG-17 (April 1965) e posted best kill ratio(6:1) o any US fghter in Vietnam War e nicknamed gator byits crews e suered rom high accident rate e used by MarineCorps or close air support e enjoyed longest service (until1987) in photo-recce variant e played major role in Cuban Mis-sile Crisis e own o a carrier with wings olded e became onlyaircrat to use the AIM-9Ca radar-guided Sidewinder.

This aircrat: USMC F-8E CrusaderBN #150663o VMF(AW) 312 (the Checkerboards), as it lookedin late 1965.

80 AIR FORCE Magazine/ June 2010

Airpower ClassicsArtwork by Zaur Eylanbekov