The Skyraider, the perfect CAS aircraft for Vietnam
The AD (Attack, Douglas) Skyraider was created as a carrier-based aircraft for the US Navy and made its first flight in 1945. The aircraft, which carried a record 14,491 lbs. of fuel and ammunition, was incredibly rugged and versatile. The original designation “AD” was changed to A-1 in 1962 when the Department of Defense standardized aircraft designations.
Transferred from the US Navy and modified to fulfill a counterinsurgency role, the first US Air Force Skyraiders were two-seat A-1Es that arrived at Bien Hoa AB, South Vietnam, in May 1964. These initial A-1Es were assigned to the 1st Air Commando Squadron, call sign Hobo.
F-100 Vs A-1E
Bruce Gordon, former USAF F-100 Super Sabre pilot, explains on Quora;
‘I flew 132 combat missions in Vietnam in the F-100. During all those missions, many in close support of ground troops, I only saw ONE enemy soldier. They call us “fast movers” because we’re traveling very fast—we’re usually about 10,000 feet up, so we can’t see the enemy. When we made our strike pass, we were moving so fast that we were very hard for small arms fire to hit us—but we couldn’t deviate from our path if we saw a target off to the side.
‘The A-1Es were slow movers. They were also a lot lower than we were; they could see enemy troops and the paths through the grass, and they had plenty of weapons to shoot when they saw a target. On the other hand, they got hit a lot more than we did and needed planes that could take a lot of small-arms fire. The A-1E Skyraider was perfect for the mission, and their pilots have my great respect!
‘Close air support is a mission, not an aircraft. We did close air support in the F-100 in Vietnam. Multi-mission aircraft can do the close air support mission, although a single-mission aircraft can probably do it better. The problem is the level of conflict.
High-intensity conflict
‘The A-1E was great for Vietnam, but like the A-10 could not survive in a high-intensity conflict where the enemy has advanced weapons and fighters. These days, light air defense missiles can be expected almost anywhere, so the usefulness of low and slow aircraft is decreasing. I expect that the future battlefield may have small drones to detect and pinpoint targets with lasers, while “weapons trucks” launch missiles or glide bombs from a safe distance.’
Gordon concludes;
‘Another good possibility is for the Army to further develop its ground-launched laser or GPS-guided weapons. Why go to the Air Force to get air support if they can get weapons on target in a few minutes from their own Battalion HQ?’
Photo by U.S. Air Force
