Grumman A-6E Intruder
The A-6 Intruder was designed to serve two roles: one, to replace the aging A-1 Skyraider and supplement the A-4 Skyhawk in the carrier-based strike role, and two, to give the US Navy a genuine all-weather strike aircraft. The requirement was issued in 1957, and Grumman’s A2F-1 design selected, with the first flight in 1960. In 1962, just before fleet entry in 1963, the Intruder was redesignated A-6A.
The A-6 was designed to hit targets with pinpoint accuracy in adverse weather, day or night, similar to what the USAF would later require for the F-111 Aardvark. For this reason, it was built around the Digital Integrated Attack/Navigation Equipment (DIANE), which used three radar systems to constantly update the INS and provide attack data to the bombardier/navigator sitting in the right seat. The system proved very complicated and it would be some years before it was perfected. Since the weather and night would be the Intruder’s primary defense, no defensive armament was put on the aircraft, though it could carry an impressive 18,000 pound warload of air-to-ground weaponry.
The Intruder was committed early to the Vietnam War, which showed up the flaws in the DIANE system and a more lethal one in the bomb delivery system, which had a tendency to set off the bombs prematurely, destroying the aircraft. Gradually improvements were made, and despite the loss of 84 Intruders over Vietnam, it proved to be extremely effective: until the bugs were ironed out of the F-111A in 1971, the A-6 remained the only American aircraft that could attack during the monsoon season. Specialized A-6Bs were also produced specifically for Iron Hand defense suppression missions, and A-6Cs for anti-truck operations on the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
All three variants were replaced by the A-6E beginning in 1971: this replaced DIANE with a more advanced solid-state computer and the three radars with a single AN/APQ-148 multimode radar. In 1979, the A-6E was further modified with the installation of Target Recognition Attack Multisensor (TRAM), consisting of a turret in the nose containing FLIR linked to the radar and a new bomb computer. Besides making the already accurate A-6 even more deadly, it also allowed the Intruder to drop laser-guided bombs, hit moving targets with bombs, and also use passive radar to attack a target.
A-6s would find themselves once more heavily employed during the First Gulf War, flying 4700 sorties for the loss of four aircraft; its final roles would find it supporting Marines in Somalia in 1991 and UN forces in Bosnia in 1995. By that time, surviving A-6Es had been partially upgraded to allow them to fire all newer guided weapons in the inventory (namely the AGM-84 Harpoon, AGM-65 Maverick, and AGM-88 HARM), while most of the fleet also received composite wings. Grumman further proposed an updated version designated A-6F, with new avionics and engines, but the US Navy rejected this in favor of replacing the Intruder with the F/A-18C/D Hornet. The last A-6E left US Navy service by Feburary 1997; the US Marine Corps had retired theirs in 1993.
The Pacific Northwest Air Museum has two tails that belong to aircraft that still exist--but aren't on display at the museum! This tail belongs to BuNo 152603, but the actual aircraft is on display as a veterans' memorial in Richmond, Indiana. The reason why only the tail is at the museum is because VA-128--appropriately named the "Golden Intruders"--was the training squadron for the US Navy's A-6 community. When 152603 was retired in 1995, the tail was retained by VA-128 as a tribute to the graduates of the squadron's training program; the aircraft was given a tail from a scrapped A-6 and donated to the memorial in Indiana.
Before 152603 managed to be two places at once, it started off as an A-6A, delivered to VMA(AW)-202 ("Double Eagles"), which served as the Marine A-6 training squadron at MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina. Later that year, it was transferred to an unknown Marine unit (possibly VMA(AW)-242) and flew combat missions from Da Nang, South Vietnam. In 1971, it returned to the US and was transferred to the Navy, serving with VA-86 ("Black Falcons") at NAS Whidbey Island, Washington; it was converted to an A-6E in 1973 and remained at Whidbey, flying with VA-128, until it was retired in 1979.
However, 152603 wasn't quite finished yet. It was returned to service in 1990 and deployed with VA-176 ("Thunderbolts") aboard the USS Forrestal (CV-59) during the First Gulf War. Following its return home, 152603 returned to its old squadron and stomping grounds, VA-126 at Whidbey Island. It was retired for good in 1995, as mentioned above, when VA-126 was disestablished as the A-6 was retired.
152603's tail retains VA-126's markings, with the starboard side of the tail (the side pictured here) with 1937 names: all the A-6 pilots and bombardier/navigators that trained with VA-126. On the port side are the names of "plank owner" A-6 crews that were assigned to VA-126 when it was formed, and A-6 aircrew that have "flown west"--passed away.
This was another unique find at the museum, which is definitely worth a visit.
Grumman A-6E Intruder
The A-6 Intruder was designed to serve two roles: one, to replace the aging A-1 Skyraider and supplement the A-4 Skyhawk in the carrier-based strike role, and two, to give the US Navy a genuine all-weather strike aircraft. The requirement was issued in 1957, and Grumman’s A2F-1 design selected, with the first flight in 1960. In 1962, just before fleet entry in 1963, the Intruder was redesignated A-6A.
The A-6 was designed to hit targets with pinpoint accuracy in adverse weather, day or night, similar to what the USAF would later require for the F-111 Aardvark. For this reason, it was built around the Digital Integrated Attack/Navigation Equipment (DIANE), which used three radar systems to constantly update the INS and provide attack data to the bombardier/navigator sitting in the right seat. The system proved very complicated and it would be some years before it was perfected. Since the weather and night would be the Intruder’s primary defense, no defensive armament was put on the aircraft, though it could carry an impressive 18,000 pound warload of air-to-ground weaponry.
The Intruder was committed early to the Vietnam War, which showed up the flaws in the DIANE system and a more lethal one in the bomb delivery system, which had a tendency to set off the bombs prematurely, destroying the aircraft. Gradually improvements were made, and despite the loss of 84 Intruders over Vietnam, it proved to be extremely effective: until the bugs were ironed out of the F-111A in 1971, the A-6 remained the only American aircraft that could attack during the monsoon season. Specialized A-6Bs were also produced specifically for Iron Hand defense suppression missions, and A-6Cs for anti-truck operations on the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
All three variants were replaced by the A-6E beginning in 1971: this replaced DIANE with a more advanced solid-state computer and the three radars with a single AN/APQ-148 multimode radar. In 1979, the A-6E was further modified with the installation of Target Recognition Attack Multisensor (TRAM), consisting of a turret in the nose containing FLIR linked to the radar and a new bomb computer. Besides making the already accurate A-6 even more deadly, it also allowed the Intruder to drop laser-guided bombs, hit moving targets with bombs, and also use passive radar to attack a target.
A-6s would find themselves once more heavily employed during the First Gulf War, flying 4700 sorties for the loss of four aircraft; its final roles would find it supporting Marines in Somalia in 1991 and UN forces in Bosnia in 1995. By that time, surviving A-6Es had been partially upgraded to allow them to fire all newer guided weapons in the inventory (namely the AGM-84 Harpoon, AGM-65 Maverick, and AGM-88 HARM), while most of the fleet also received composite wings. Grumman further proposed an updated version designated A-6F, with new avionics and engines, but the US Navy rejected this in favor of replacing the Intruder with the F/A-18C/D Hornet. The last A-6E left US Navy service by Feburary 1997; the US Marine Corps had retired theirs in 1993.
The Pacific Northwest Air Museum has two tails that belong to aircraft that still exist--but aren't on display at the museum! This tail belongs to BuNo 152603, but the actual aircraft is on display as a veterans' memorial in Richmond, Indiana. The reason why only the tail is at the museum is because VA-128--appropriately named the "Golden Intruders"--was the training squadron for the US Navy's A-6 community. When 152603 was retired in 1995, the tail was retained by VA-128 as a tribute to the graduates of the squadron's training program; the aircraft was given a tail from a scrapped A-6 and donated to the memorial in Indiana.
Before 152603 managed to be two places at once, it started off as an A-6A, delivered to VMA(AW)-202 ("Double Eagles"), which served as the Marine A-6 training squadron at MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina. Later that year, it was transferred to an unknown Marine unit (possibly VMA(AW)-242) and flew combat missions from Da Nang, South Vietnam. In 1971, it returned to the US and was transferred to the Navy, serving with VA-86 ("Black Falcons") at NAS Whidbey Island, Washington; it was converted to an A-6E in 1973 and remained at Whidbey, flying with VA-128, until it was retired in 1979.
However, 152603 wasn't quite finished yet. It was returned to service in 1990 and deployed with VA-176 ("Thunderbolts") aboard the USS Forrestal (CV-59) during the First Gulf War. Following its return home, 152603 returned to its old squadron and stomping grounds, VA-126 at Whidbey Island. It was retired for good in 1995, as mentioned above, when VA-126 was disestablished as the A-6 was retired.
152603's tail retains VA-126's markings, with the starboard side of the tail (the side pictured here) with 1937 names: all the A-6 pilots and bombardier/navigators that trained with VA-126. On the port side are the names of "plank owner" A-6 crews that were assigned to VA-126 when it was formed, and A-6 aircrew that have "flown west"--passed away.
This was another unique find at the museum, which is definitely worth a visit.