LTV A-7D Corsair II
During the middle of the Vietnam War, the USAF faced a number of procurement problems. Losses to the F-105 Thunderchief community were mounting to the point that it was thought the aircraft might become “extinct,” while the F-111 Aardvark, which was to replace the F-105, was having numerous teething troubles. Another problem was that the Sandy escort units for rescue helicopters were forced to use Korean War-era ex-US Navy A-1 Skyraiders, which, while good aircraft, were not getting any younger. The USAF needed an aircraft that could replace the A-1 and supplement the F-105 until the F-111 finally reached maturity—and it needed the aircraft immediately, and at low cost. After reviewing a number of options, the USAF settled on the US Navy’s A-7A Corsair II. The Navy’s F-4B had been adapted to USAF standards, and it was felt that the A-7 could be as well. An A-7A was bailed back to LTV for conversion to the USAF-specific A-7D variant.
Though externally little different to the Navy A-7A, the A-7D was actually a significant upgrade. Since the reliability of the TF30 engine was a concern, the D model would use a license-built version of the Rolls-Royce Spey turbofan; as the USAF did not use the 20mm cannon that the Navy preferred, these were deleted in favor of the more common M61 Vulcan 20mm gatling cannon. The refuelling probe was deleted in favor of the USAF-plug style refuelling receptacle. The first A-7D flew in September 1968. So successful was the A-7D in testing that the Navy would adopt a modified version as the A-7E.
Though at first reluctant to fly yet another Navy retread, especially one that was considered remarkably ugly—pilots quickly nicknamed the A-7 the SLUF (Short Little Ugly Fellow)—it soon gained a reputation for easy flying and, like its Navy “brother,” pinpoint bombing accuracy. In wing strength by 1970, it was soon deployed to Vietnam for combat operations, mainly to replace not just the A-1 but also the aging F-100 Super Sabre. USAF pilots found that the A-7 was not well suited to tropical operations: hot-and-high conditions meant that the A-7D took ten miles to generate enough power to climb above 500 feet, while a poor brake system caused it to be a real danger in landing on slick runways.
During Operation Linebacker, the A-7s went to North Vietnam, but only sparingly and usually in as Sandy escorts, which the Corsair II excelled at. They were far more effective in South Vietnam. Alongside Navy A-7Es, USAF A-7Ds brought the curtain down on the Vietnam War by participating in the Mayaguez rescue operation in May 1975, and were among the very last USAF aircraft to leave Southeast Asia. They had complied the best loss ratio of any combat aircraft during the war, with only six A-7Ds lost in over 12,000 missions.
With the post-Vietnam retirement of the A-1, F-100, and F-105, the A-7D was left as one of the few USAF attack aircraft, but the USAF planned to end procurement by 1975; postwar budget cuts led to additional Corsair II production to take up the slack. The F-111 had become a long-range strike aircraft, but for anticipated operations in Central Europe, the USAF preferred the development of the A-10 Thunderbolt II over A-7s. As a result, the USAF divested itself of most of its A-7s to the Air National Guard—somewhat to the chagrin of active-duty units, as ANG units began winning the coveted Gunsmoke bombing trophy with their A-7s. A minor upgrade mounting the Pave Penny laser designator to A-7Ds began in 1979.
With the A-10 in large numbers in theater, the USAF chose not to deploy ANG A-7s to the First Gulf War, though small numbers had seen action in Grenada and the 1989 invasion of Panama. At the end of Operation Desert Storm, when the Navy retired their last two squadrons of A-7Es, the USAF decided to do the same, and the A-7D rapidly disappeared from active units in favor of the F-16; the last left USAF service in 1993. A number were passed on to Greece, where it lasted until 2014. Of 1569 A-7s produced, just under half were USAF A-7Ds or two-seat A-7Ks, and today about 18 survive as museum aircraft.
A-7D 68-8222 seems to have spent its whole career with the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards AFB, California, operating as a testbed for A-7 flight systems. It flew at Edwards from 1968 to retirement in 1992, and was put into storage at AMARG afterwards. In 2000, the USAF decided to preserve the aircraft, and it was donated to the Dakota Territory Air Museum in Minot, North Dakota--an interesting choice, since no A-7 unit was ever based in North Dakota.
All the same, it's good to see that 68-8222 didn't end up as beer cans, and definitely a change from the A-7 norm to see one in the overall white test scheme used by AFFTC aircraft. (At one point during its career, 68-8222 actually wore Navy-style gray over white camouflage.) The aircraft was recently repainted, and looks great against a pleasant North Dakota afternoon...which unfortunately wasn't going to last much longer for us!
LTV A-7D Corsair II
During the middle of the Vietnam War, the USAF faced a number of procurement problems. Losses to the F-105 Thunderchief community were mounting to the point that it was thought the aircraft might become “extinct,” while the F-111 Aardvark, which was to replace the F-105, was having numerous teething troubles. Another problem was that the Sandy escort units for rescue helicopters were forced to use Korean War-era ex-US Navy A-1 Skyraiders, which, while good aircraft, were not getting any younger. The USAF needed an aircraft that could replace the A-1 and supplement the F-105 until the F-111 finally reached maturity—and it needed the aircraft immediately, and at low cost. After reviewing a number of options, the USAF settled on the US Navy’s A-7A Corsair II. The Navy’s F-4B had been adapted to USAF standards, and it was felt that the A-7 could be as well. An A-7A was bailed back to LTV for conversion to the USAF-specific A-7D variant.
Though externally little different to the Navy A-7A, the A-7D was actually a significant upgrade. Since the reliability of the TF30 engine was a concern, the D model would use a license-built version of the Rolls-Royce Spey turbofan; as the USAF did not use the 20mm cannon that the Navy preferred, these were deleted in favor of the more common M61 Vulcan 20mm gatling cannon. The refuelling probe was deleted in favor of the USAF-plug style refuelling receptacle. The first A-7D flew in September 1968. So successful was the A-7D in testing that the Navy would adopt a modified version as the A-7E.
Though at first reluctant to fly yet another Navy retread, especially one that was considered remarkably ugly—pilots quickly nicknamed the A-7 the SLUF (Short Little Ugly Fellow)—it soon gained a reputation for easy flying and, like its Navy “brother,” pinpoint bombing accuracy. In wing strength by 1970, it was soon deployed to Vietnam for combat operations, mainly to replace not just the A-1 but also the aging F-100 Super Sabre. USAF pilots found that the A-7 was not well suited to tropical operations: hot-and-high conditions meant that the A-7D took ten miles to generate enough power to climb above 500 feet, while a poor brake system caused it to be a real danger in landing on slick runways.
During Operation Linebacker, the A-7s went to North Vietnam, but only sparingly and usually in as Sandy escorts, which the Corsair II excelled at. They were far more effective in South Vietnam. Alongside Navy A-7Es, USAF A-7Ds brought the curtain down on the Vietnam War by participating in the Mayaguez rescue operation in May 1975, and were among the very last USAF aircraft to leave Southeast Asia. They had complied the best loss ratio of any combat aircraft during the war, with only six A-7Ds lost in over 12,000 missions.
With the post-Vietnam retirement of the A-1, F-100, and F-105, the A-7D was left as one of the few USAF attack aircraft, but the USAF planned to end procurement by 1975; postwar budget cuts led to additional Corsair II production to take up the slack. The F-111 had become a long-range strike aircraft, but for anticipated operations in Central Europe, the USAF preferred the development of the A-10 Thunderbolt II over A-7s. As a result, the USAF divested itself of most of its A-7s to the Air National Guard—somewhat to the chagrin of active-duty units, as ANG units began winning the coveted Gunsmoke bombing trophy with their A-7s. A minor upgrade mounting the Pave Penny laser designator to A-7Ds began in 1979.
With the A-10 in large numbers in theater, the USAF chose not to deploy ANG A-7s to the First Gulf War, though small numbers had seen action in Grenada and the 1989 invasion of Panama. At the end of Operation Desert Storm, when the Navy retired their last two squadrons of A-7Es, the USAF decided to do the same, and the A-7D rapidly disappeared from active units in favor of the F-16; the last left USAF service in 1993. A number were passed on to Greece, where it lasted until 2014. Of 1569 A-7s produced, just under half were USAF A-7Ds or two-seat A-7Ks, and today about 18 survive as museum aircraft.
A-7D 68-8222 seems to have spent its whole career with the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards AFB, California, operating as a testbed for A-7 flight systems. It flew at Edwards from 1968 to retirement in 1992, and was put into storage at AMARG afterwards. In 2000, the USAF decided to preserve the aircraft, and it was donated to the Dakota Territory Air Museum in Minot, North Dakota--an interesting choice, since no A-7 unit was ever based in North Dakota.
All the same, it's good to see that 68-8222 didn't end up as beer cans, and definitely a change from the A-7 norm to see one in the overall white test scheme used by AFFTC aircraft. (At one point during its career, 68-8222 actually wore Navy-style gray over white camouflage.) The aircraft was recently repainted, and looks great against a pleasant North Dakota afternoon...which unfortunately wasn't going to last much longer for us!