Skyraiders ...

[SIDSIKO]

Hi Snake,

You give me a BuNo and I can give you the date it was SOC from the Navy and more often than not, the reason.

Sid

[Snake45]

Hi Snake,

You give me a BuNo and I can give you the date it was SOC from the Navy and more often than not, the reason.

Sid

Hi Sid,

I might take you up on that offer shortly. As soon as I finish my photo-survery of all the USAF and VNAF fat-faces, I'm going to run one on all gray VNAF Skyraiders of all kinds. That information would be most helpful in telling me which ones were in the initial 31 of 1960-61 and which ones went to VNAF in the '64-'65 timeframe.

[SIDSIKO]

The first 25 supplied to the VNAF under MAP in FY61 were

134467, 134469, 134473, 134484, 134485, 134498, 134505, 134540, 134549, 134565, 134576, 134595, 134600, 134608, 134620, 134627, 134636, 135224, 135228, 135237, 135284, 135289, 135339, 139629, 139676.

[Snake45]

The first 25 supplied to the VNAF under MAP in FY61 were

134467, 134469, 134473, 134484, 134485, 134498, 134505, 134540, 134549, 134565, 134576, 134595, 134600, 134608, 134620, 134627, 134636, 135224, 135228, 135237, 135284, 135289, 135339, 139629, 139676.

That is VERY helpful--thanks!

Now, you bring up another question. Some sources say the initial VNAF allotment of AD-6s was 25, others say it was 31--6 by the end of 1960 with the other 25 delivered in 1961. Best evidence I've seen that 31 might be right is on page 81 of Johnsen's Photo Chronicle book, where it states that on 2 Jan 63, VNAF put up a max-effort attack comprising 26 Skyraiders (along with two dozen Farm Gate T-28s and 16 B-26s). We know that by that time VNAF had lost at least two Skyraiders (26 Feb 62 palace attack), so if the 26 figure is correct, either the inital allotment was 31, or they must have received some replacement aircraft circa 1962.

BTW, good to have another Skyraider true believer in this thread!

[Snake45]

Okay, any of you other Raiderphiles have Robert Dorr's Ballentine/Bantam Skyraider book? Take a look at the E/G on pages 12-13 (color spread immediately before the contents page). What's the SN? the 35-14 part is pretty clear; last number looks like a 7 to me but it's not certain. 135147 (which would have been a -5W) doesn't show up on Mutza's USAF Skyraider list (nor VNAF either). Neither does any other 13514X number except 135141, which I have several pics of and I'm pretty sure it's not this airplane.

Same airplane is on pages 118-119 (chipping pattern on the cowling is clearly the same).

Reason this one is of interest to me is it has that oddball third type of VHF antenna.

[Snake45]

Very attractive A-1J seen in service with the VNAF, one of the last A-1's produced ...

At first I thought this VNAF Skyraider was unique, with the "tall spike" antenna mounted right behind the canopy in place of the "short spike," instead of being on the aft fuselage with the "short spike" still behind the canopy. But I've now seen at least three other VNAF Skyraiders in this configuration, two grays and one camo. (The normal VNAF arrangement was to have both antennas.)

Something else to try to investigate....

[Mark Allen M]

Quite an interesting story here ...

http://www.worldaffairsboard.com/milita ... -time.html

[Adam Kline]

That is a great story. It is similar to the Ralph(Kidd) Hofer in WWII when his prop ran away. He climbed out on the wing and was ready to jump when the prop came back. He decided to climb back into the plane and fly it home.

[Ken]

Okay, any of you other Raiderphiles have Robert Dorr's Ballentine/Bantam Skyraider book? Take a look at the E/G on pages 12-13 (color spread immediately before the contents page). What's the SN? the 35-14 part is pretty clear; last number looks like a 7 to me but it's not certain. 135147 (which would have been a -5W) doesn't show up on Mutza's USAF Skyraider list (nor VNAF either). Neither does any other 13514X number except 135141, which I have several pics of and I'm pretty sure it's not this airplane.

Same airplane is on pages 118-119 (chipping pattern on the cowling is clearly the same).

Reason this one is of interest to me is it has that oddball third type of VHF antenna.

Snake, I looked at the book and can't discern the SN either. I want to say Hukee has a list of the E-5's that were assigned to the 1st SOS, but I don't have that handy. Given the black belly, is it a TS tail code, 22nd SOS bird?

Ignorant question, but by oddball VHF antenna, do you mean that its shape is symmetrical and not swept? Our O-1D Bird Dog has a similarly shaped Collins VHF (white with blue logo) and no designation visible. I clearly need to free up some time and go back about 20 posts and catch up with the depth of this great thread.

Ken

[Ken]

Quite an interesting story here ...

http://www.worldaffairsboard.com/milita ... -time.html

Thanks for sharing, Mark. And a couple of nice A-1 photos embedded in that article as well ...

Ken

[Snake45]

Snake, I looked at the book and can't discern the SN either. I want to say Hukee has a list of the E-5's that were assigned to the 1st SOS, but I don't have that handy. Given the black belly, is it a TS tail code, 22nd SOS bird?

Yeah, you can just barely make out TS tail code but there's no 147 in any of Mutza's lists. I don't think there's an E-5 list in Hukee's book but it is on his website.

Ignorant question, but by oddball VHF antenna, do you mean that its shape is symmetrical and not swept? Our O-1D Bird Dog has a similarly shaped Collins VHF (white with blue logo) and no designation visible. I clearly need to free up some time and go back about 20 posts and catch up with the depth of this great thread.

Ken

Yes. My research on the net turned up three different antennas that this could be--one by Collins, one by RAMI (both of whom are known military suppliers), and one by someone else. What's interesting is that all three are not just VHF like the normal Collins antenna, they're dual band VHF and UHF. I wonder if that's of any special significance?

Someday soon I'll post all the details of what I've found on Skyraider antennas over in the SQuestions thread.

[Ken]

What's interesting is that all three are not just VHF like the normal Collins antenna, they're dual band VHF and UHF. I wonder if that's of any special significance?

Based on my military experience, I can see them grabbing whatever was easy or on the shelf. I can also see a dual band antenna being substituted when only one type (such as VHF) needed to be hooked up. Or if there were another aircraft type at the base and they could trade parts, so be it. I think they lost A-1's rapidly enough that concern, particularly with the VNAF, for matching the T.O.'s was minimal.

Please post that stuff you mention, I'm quite interested.

Ken

[Ken]

[Snake45]

Now here's an interesting one. I've run across several BW photos of this airplane but just disccovered there's a full-color one here at WRG:



Early camoed A-1E, everything looks normal, what the big deal? Just this:

133867 to USAF as 52-133867. With 602nd Air Commando Squadron 14th Air Commando Wing hit by ground fire and landed on airstrip at CIDG Special Forces Camp, A Shau Valley, Thua Thien Province, South Vietnam Mar 10, 1966. Another A-1E flown by Maj. Bernard Fisher landed next to his plane and picked him up. Maj. Fisher was awarded the Medal of Honor.

--Joe Baugher list.

So Jump Myers' Skyraider was probably among the first camoed A-1Es in Vietnam. (I do have a couple photos of camo and gray USAF A-1Es together in the spring of '66, but they're pretty rare.)

Either that, or they Skycraned 867 back from A Shau and rebuilt it. From descriptions I've read, it sounds like the airplane burned badly enough that that wouldn't have happened, but who knows....

[SpadGuy]

Hi Snake,

You give me a BuNo and I can give you the date it was SOC from the Navy and more often than not, the reason.

Sid

Gentlemen. I can help with some of your questions in this part of the thread. Let me first say, I have found some errors in both Baugher's Skyraider listing and in Wayne Mutza's listing at the end of his book. I have all the USAF Skryaider record cards and two different sources of Skyraiders lost and a listing of ALL VNAF aircraft lost (Skyraiders and all other types) from 1962-1973.

For SIDSIKO, what is the source of your data for transfers from USN to USAF? I have the received date from the USAF record cards, but not from any USN source.

SpadGuy