Scooters Forever (A-4 Skyhawk Tribute Thread)

[Mumbles]

a few more...

 

[Jabba]

A-4 at NASM

The A-4 pictured here is located at the National Air & Space Museum in DC. The museum wanted an aircraft for its Naval Aviation display, so that's the one the Navy gave them. I told my Dad about it in 1978, he went down & it turned out it was in his squadron in Viet Nam. In exchange for a look at his logbook showing that this BUNO had been flown in combat from the Bonny Dick, they painted his name on it. He'd recently (1973) returned from his longest shore duty tour (Hanoi Hilton 5 1/2 years).

Jabba

 

[BusyBee604]

Salute To Your Dad!

The A-4 pictured here is located at the National Air & Space Museum in DC. The museum wanted an aircraft for its Naval Aviation display, so that's the one the Navy gave them. I told my Dad about it in 1978, he went down & it turned out it was in his squadron in Viet Nam. In exchange for a look at his logbook showing that this BUNO had been flown in combat from the Bonny Dick, they painted his name on it. He'd recently (1973) returned from his longest shore duty tour (Hanoi Hilton 5 1/2 years).

Jabba

Jabba, if you will e-mail me your Dad's name, I am sure I would know him. I was flying A-4s in VA-146 on Connie during "Rolling Thunder", about the same time as he went down. Was he in VA-76 or VA-212?

I saw the A-4 at the Air & Space Muaeum when I visited the Vietnam Wall in 1988. I just can't remember whose name was on it.
BzB

 

[Cron]

Thank you for sharing the story Jabba. I took the liberty to find a close-up picture of the A-4 in question, and it looks like the name on the fuselage is that of Cdr. R.B. Fuller of VA-76.

"July 14, 1967
VA-76 Commanding Officer, Commander R. B. Fuller, shot down during combat mission over North Vietnam. Captured by enemy troops, he was a prisoner of war. Commander Fuller was released from captivity on March 4, 1973. "

He flew an A-4C, BuNo 147709 that day.

Source
Source 2

 

[rare21]

The A-4 pictured here is located at the National Air & Space Museum in DC. The museum wanted an aircraft for its Naval Aviation display, so that's the one the Navy gave them. I told my Dad about it in 1978, he went down & it turned out it was in his squadron in Viet Nam. In exchange for a look at his logbook showing that this BUNO had been flown in combat from the Bonny Dick, they painted his name on it. He'd recently (1973) returned from his longest shore duty tour (Hanoi Hilton 5 1/2 years).

Jabba

Jabba if your dad wanted to come down to the real South Texas he'd never have to buy another beer again compliments of me.

 

[BusyBee604]

So. Texas

Jabba if your dad wanted to come down to the real South Texas he'd never have to buy another beer again compliments of me.

Rare, If I ever come back to So. Texas, it will NOT be to take your rifle...but to share a Lone Star or several with a fellow NA!:icon_zbee
I'm a So.Texas survivor, having done my jet advanced in Beeville in '58. A big night on the town in those days was a double date @ the Texas Drive-In with a case of iced-down Lone Star & 2 NAVCADs in the trunk! Great flying also in the 'ol F9F-8 Cougar. Fun times...:spin_125:
Stay safe Smokey!
BzB

 

[Catmando]

...... Great flying also in the 'ol F9F-8 Cougar. Fun times...:spin_125:

BzB

Ok, "T" models, but close.

.........

 

[BusyBee604]

Wrong!!!

Ok, "T" models, but close.

.........

CatMan...There were no F9F-8T (TF9J)s at Chase Field in '58. All duals were in Instrument Phase (TV-2s) at that time. Even the "-8 swept-wing Cougars" were new to the TRACOM, as our sister advanced sqdns in Memphis & Kingsville were still flying F9F-2 straight-wing Panthers.:icon_tong
BzB

 

[scoolbubba]

I knew I saw a Scooter buzzing around my house!
Having trouble getting the picture to work. ATAC is in town.

See here:
http://www.print2webcorp.com/news/Jacksonville/JaxAirNews/20090917/p01_a3.htm

 

[A4sForever]

CatMan...There were no F9F-8T (TF9J)s at Chase Field in '58. All duals were in Instrument Phase (TV-2s) at that time. Even the "-8 swept-wing Cougars" were new to the TRACOM, as our sister advanced sqdns in Memphis & Kingsville were still flying F9F-2 straight-wing Panthers.:icon_tong
BzB

Roger that -- when I did my Aviation 'indoc' @ CHASE ... they had both types of F9s ... two-seat Trainers and single-seat former fighter/bombers ... the single seat birds were used to 'chase' (no pun) STUD flights, and frequently were used by late-stage STUDs to fill out the flight schedule when a sufficiency of 'trainers' did not meet the demands of the daily schedule ...

During my 'indoc' back-seat TF9 ride ... we joined up on a Argentinian STUD (Venezuelan?) in a single-seat bird for an impromptu ACM yank & bank session ...

 

[Catmando]

Roger that -- when I did my Aviation 'indoc' @ CHASE ... they had both types of F9s ... two-seat Trainers and single-seat former fighter/bombers ... the single seat birds were used to 'chase' (no pun) STUD flights, and frequently were used by late-stage STUDs to fill out the flight schedule when a sufficiency of 'trainers' did not meet the demands of the daily schedule ...

During my 'indoc' back-seat TF9 ride ... we joined up on a Argentinian STUD (Venezuelan?) in a single-seat bird for an impromptu ACM yank & bank session ...

Curiosity took me to my old logbook. Out of a total of 106 flights at VT-24, the breakdown was:

86 hops in the two-seat trainer TF9J
20 hops in the single seat AF9J

As studs, we were jealous of the instructors. They could (maybe required to?) fly around the landing pattern with their canopy open in the AF9J, but we students were prohibited to do so.

 

[A4sForever]

... As studs, we were jealous of the instructors. They could (maybe required to?) fly around the landing pattern with their canopy open in the AF9J, but we students were prohibited to do so.

If memory serves, that was kinda the 'drill' @ Saufley in the Teenie-Weenie B-model with the slight adjustment that it was open cockpit in the landing pattern for everyone ... but when you were off on a STUD solo in the area -- the open canopy , John Wayne 'Flying Leathernecks' imitation was a 'no-no'. I guess 'they' thought we might go crazy or something ... ???

So, of course .... what was the first thing many STUD-solos would do upon arrival in the area ... ???

Three guesses ... the first two don't count.

 

[scoolbubba]

What was the reasoning behind flying with the top down back in the day, other than it looked cool and made your silk scarf flap around your leather helmet?

 

[A4sForever]

What was the reasoning behind flying with the top down back in the day, other than it looked cool and made your silk scarf flap around your leather helmet?

It made it easier to egress the airplane when in the landing pattern and the engine went *cough* ... *COUGH* ... and you thought: Boy, it's REALLY quiet in here all of a sudden ... ... why isn't the prop turning (?) ... why am I descending (??) .... HOLY SHIT !!! We're gonna' LAND !!!

Up high -- it looked cool and made our silk scarves flap around our leather helmets ...

 

[Catmando]

It made it easier to egress the airplane when in the landing pattern and the engine went *cough* ... *COUGH* ... and you thought: Boy, it's REALLY quiet in here all of a sudden ... ... why isn't the prop turning (?) ... why am I descending (??) .... HOLY SHIT !!! We're gonna' LAND !!!

Up high -- it looked cool and made our silk scarves flap around our leather helmets ...

All that plus this: The f-9 ejection seat was not a "zero-zero" seat.

So in the landing pattern you were very close to being out of the safe ejection seat envelope. Thus your only (survivable) option might be to belly it in. Having the canopy already open helps for a faster exit from a crashed and burning Cougar.