The RA-5C Vigilante had a fearsome reputation among pilots. Indeed, there were cases of officers turning down orders to an RVAH squadron out of fear of the aeroplane
The RA-5C Vigilante, developed from the A-5 nuclear bomber, was the largest and fastest aircraft to ever operate from an aircraft carrier deck.
The first deployment of the ‘Vigi’ coincided with the escalation of the Vietnam War. Because of its highly dangerous and crucial reconnaissance role, the aircraft experienced the highest loss ratio of any American plane during that conflict.
Robert R. “Boom” Powell explains in his book RA-5C Vigilante Units in Combat that the Vigilante had a fearsome reputation among pilots. There were indeed cases of officers turning down orders to an RVAH squadron out of fear of the aircraft. The reputation was not completely undeserved, but came mostly from its early days in fleet service. The flaps on the leading and trailing edges of the wing were set at 40 degrees for landing, and only the trailing-edge flaps incorporated Boundary Layer Control (BLC). This configuration led to increased approach speeds with inadequate pitch responsiveness, causing incidents such as damaged nose gears, flattened main-mount tires, and sporadic catastrophic ramp strikes.
Starting with the A-5B, the trailing flap area was increased, the leading-and trailing-edge flaps went to a 50-degree extension and it was to the leading-edge flaps (droops) that the BLC moved. The accident rate dropped, but what would have been a hard landing in another aircraft turned into a major accident (Class A) if either of the two critical bulkheads cracked because of the time and effort required to repair the damage. Attached to the 556 bulkheads were the main landing gear and forward engine mounts—the 5% was duly reinforced. More of a problem were the 742 bulkheads, which mounted the horizontal slabs, vertical stabilizer, and rear engine mounts.
Psychology also played a part as well. From Powell’s personal experience, when the answer to the – question of what aeroplane he flew evoked the response ‘Oh wow, aren’t Vigilantes awfully difficult to land on the ship?’, a natural reaction was to stand a little straighter and say, ‘Yes, but I can hack it’! Thus, the unspoken implication was that the pilot was some sort of superman.
Powell flew the RA-5C for seven years, and for part of this time, he was the RVAH-3 LSO. His views on landing the Vigilante are as follows;
‘Landing an aeroplane on a ship is a challenge — doubly so at night. Yet, despite its reputation, the RA-5C did well day and night. Many RVAH squadrons and individual Vigilante pilots won air wing landing competitions. The training was the key. Not only for the pilots but the LSOs. Waving the “heavies” — A-5s and A-3s — was a special skill. LSOs from those communities had no trouble with each other’s jets, but the LSOs from units equipped with “little” aeroplanes were intimidated and did not always appreciate the effects of mass and inertia.
‘I always felt the hardest thing to do in a “Vigi” was not land on the boat, but go get in position for the catapult shot. The RA-5C used a bridle attached to two hooks under the intakes to launch, rather than the current nose-launch bar. This meant the nose wheel had to go up and over the catapult shuttle, but not too far. The shuttle was shaped like a turtle shell catapult shuttle, with the end chopped off, and it was slippery with an amalgam of jet fuel, condensed steam, and salt spray. From the deck, the Vigilante had to be turned precisely on the center of the cat track. Because of the length of the fuselage, there was little distance to correct the line-up. At the shuttle, the tolerances became even closer. If not aligned with the exact center of the hump, the nose gear would slip off the edge and cut the tyre. You would add power to get over the hump, feel the wheel drop, and if you did not stop within two inches, you would crack the hold-back fitting in the tail.
‘A good taxi director would modify the standard signals and add lots of body English. He would vary the speed and distance of his waving hands. His body would lean and twist, shoulders dip, and head nod with signals to the pilot. He could have become a ballet dancer or professional mime with the skills needed to launch an RA-5C.’
RA-5C Vigilante Units in Combat is published by Osprey Publishing and is available to order here.
Photo by U.S. Navy
