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Hail Thesuper Scooter LEGACY PROFILE // A-4 SKYHAWK HAIL THESUPER SCOOTER HE TIME-WORN PHRASE, ‘It’s with uprated engines and equipment, By the end of the 1940s, the US Navy Above: A view of a single-seat Skyhawk not the size of the dog in the often helping to nurture indigenous needed both a replacement for the A-1 from a two-seat TA-4 fight, but the size of the fight aviation industries as a direct result. Skyraider and a machine to carry some of All images DoD in the dog’, perfectly sums From its roots as a replacement for the the new, lighter-weight nuclear weapons up the McDonnell-Douglas A-1 Skyraider on the decks of US carriers, that were then in development. A-4 Skyhawk, which was one the Skyhawk blossomed: a lightweight Twarplane that truly belied its size. and relatively inexpensive attack aircraft (it Genius and genesis Measuring a shade over 40ft in length cost around a quarter of the price of an F-4 Military jet aircraft – even those aboard and with a wingspan of just 27ft 6ins (so Phantom II), it was to become a nuclear the navy’s carrier decks – were getting small that no wing-fold mechanism was bomber, a tanker aircraft and it would also heavier and more complex and one required for storage on even the smallest be an ‘Iron Hand’ machine to tackle surface talented aircraft designer felt this shouldn’t carrier deck), this diminutive jet – quickly to air missile sites. necessarily be the case. nicknamed ‘Scooter’ – would give stellar Later, it would be transformed into Edward H Heinemann was chief designer service to the United States Navy and a two-seat training jet in which many at Douglas, despite never having a formal Marine Corps for 47 years. generations of aviators would earn their engineering degree and was the man With a brochure ‘clean’ top speed of wings. It was to become an agile adversary behind some of its legendary aircraft, around 670mph, the A-4E Skyhawk could aircraft, a forward air control machine, a including the A-20 Havoc, A-26 Invader theoretically lug 8,500lb of ordnance to a target tug, and in blue and gold it would and Dauntless of World War Two, through target – around 500lb more than a World be the mount of the Navy’s Blue Angels to jets such as the A-3 Skywarrior, F4D War Two B-17G Flying Fortress. display team. It could even kill MiGs. Skyray and F3D Skyknight night fighter. He Its capabilities ensured export success, with almost 3,000 being built for the US and eight other nations, some even THE FIRST MACHINE, THE XA4D, WAS ROLLED OUT buying their Scooters second-hand. IN JUNE 1954 AND WEIGHED JUST 7,896LB – Throughout the A-4’s life, many airframes were re-worked into improved models, SOME 270LB BELOW DOUGLAS’ OWN ‘EMPTY’ TARGET 88 July 2021 // www.Key.Aero SUPER SCOOTERWhen the A-4 Skyhawk entered service with the US Navy 65 years ago, it was the beginning of a legend: this diminutive warrior served a number of nations in many conflicts. Report by Bertie Simmonds www.Key.Aero // July 2021 89 LEGACY PROFILE // A-4 SKYHAWK was also behind the A-1 Skyraider which Segundo design staff to give them a pep private aircraft. On the outside, the A4D was the popular if slow carrier-based talk: “I think we can do this, but it will take Skyhawk (A-4 from 1962, following the piston-engine attack machine. His designs a tough son-of-a-bitch to do it – that is me. change in aircraft designations) had a saw him nicknamed ‘Mr Attack Aviation’. I want you all on my team, if anyone wants delta-wing planform, but with a traditional Heinemann’s Skyraider had already set to leave, there is the door.” No one moved. tail unit. Anything that Heinemann the bar for his ‘light is right’ ethos, being That summer, Douglas representatives could make smaller and lighter, he did 5,000lb lighter than its competitor, the had seen first-hand the conditions that so: four black boxes of avionics and their Martin AM Mauler. Navy and Air Force aircraft were working associated wiring were condensed into So much so, that in the early 1950s, in and being worked on over in Korea. what Heinemann called the ‘biscuit’, saving the El Segundo division of Douglas Indeed, Heinemann himself had been 55lbs of weight. Aircraft Company detailed how weight, dispatched to do the very same during The nose wheel and main undercarriage complexity and cost could actually be World War Two. – which was long to give the A-4 the best reversed on modern combat aircraft. Simplicity then was the watchword, and angle of incidence for take-off – would Heinemann’s reasoning was that if many Navy and Marine pilots were asked retract forwards and come down with the weight and avionics/equipment was for their feedback into the design of the aid of gravity and airflow, thus putting less added to an aircraft (and performance new machine. stress on the hydraulic system, allowing and range had to stay constant) then Inside the diminutive attack aircraft, the it to be lighter. Any sub-contractor who the machine’s size had to increase by a conditions were cramped – you basically Below: An A4D-2 produced a part over the specified weight factor of ten. So, add a single pound of ‘wore’ the A-4 (named Skyhawk officially Skyhawk of VA-83 was shown the door – until they’d hit the refuels an F8U-1P equipment and the rest of the airframe in February 1954) and the control panel Crusader of VFP-62 target. Even the Douglas ejection seat was had to increase by 10lb to keep that wasn’t much more complicated than in a in 1961 re-designed from one on the F4D Skyray same performance. This was somewhat ironic as Douglas was designing/building the huge Skywarrior at the time, which could launch from a carrier at weights around 68,000lb. With curiosity piqued, the US Department of Defense asked Heinemann to give a presentation in early 1952 and in June the Navy asked Douglas to produce two prototype XA4D-1 attack aircraft of just 12,000lb empty (later pushed to 14,000) and a gross weight of 30,000lb. Speed of the aircraft should be around 576mph with combat range in the region of 896 miles – and all for around $1 million per aircraft. It would carry an unspecified weapon of some 2,000lb – an atom bomb. Legend has it that Heinemann claimed to be able to make the Douglas jet go around 100mph faster, be half the weight specified and still cost less. He then sketched his design and sat down the El 90 July 2021 // www.Key.Aero to use only 80 parts instead of 240 and to weigh just 40lbs, not 92. The first machine, the XA4D, was rolled out in June 1954 and weighed just 7,896lb – some 270lb below Douglas’ own ‘empty’ target weight. It was powered by a Curtiss- Wright J65 engine – a licensed British A-4 SKYHAWK: Bristol Siddeley Sapphire. A world-beater Compared with today’s concerns of F-35 A PILOT’S VIEW cost over-runs, late service entry and David ‘Frosty’ Olson earned his Naval The problem is the turning aircraft are issues with reliability and capability, the Aviator wings in August 1969 and, as well flying near stall and forward velocity A-4 was almost a model of production as being a Vought Corsair II pilot, spent a is real slow. lot of time in the cockpit of the A-4 as an “From the perch, the third aircraft will perfection. The Skyhawk even broke a adversary pilot. attempt to enter at speeds twice to three world speed record, when the XA4D-1 He said: “The A-4 was a small aircraft times that of the others. In one case, I was hit 695.16mph around a 310.5-mile and had a small cockpit. I flew the A-4 in the back seat of the TA-4. As our slow course with Lt Gordon ‘Gordo’ Gray at the after several years flying the larger A-7 speed scissors progressed, something in controls – he would also make the first and, being six-feet one, the first few the back of my mind kicked in. ‘Where is flights felt like putting a size 11 foot into the other guy?’ I looked over my shoulder. Above: A VMA-214 carrier landings on the USS Ticonderoga in a size eight shoe! One of my friends told “Oh crap, he was coming in way too hot. A-4M Skyhawk: of September 1955. note are the Mk 12 me of bombing ‘up north’ in Vietnam He pulled into us and directly in front. I Colt 20mm cannons Changes were made during production in heavy flak, he’d turn sideways in took the stick and pushed it full forward. in the wing roots, and in subsequent versions, including a the cockpit to reduce frontal area The last thing I recall was his wing-plan which would often framed forward windscreen, the ‘sugar- to shrapnel. filling the windscreen… jam in combat and “Several of the more senior pilots ”I had the same when flying against an scoop’ jet-pipe fairing, nuclear flash shield, the leading edge slats during my early career had flown the A-4 F-16 flown by the USAF’s Safety General! the single-skin ‘tadpole’ rudder (saving yet in Vietnam: they liked it because it was As he approached from behind, no one more weight), a straight and then angled a pretty stable platform, good power had told him about the A-4’s ability refueling probe, a ‘buddy-buddy’ refueling response (turbojet not turbofan) and it to really tighten the turn, forcing the system so the A-4 could act as a tanker, could take damage: with lost hydraulics overshoot.
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