Douglas A-1 Skyraider

[radarvc35]

would just like to give a shout out to all the U.S.Navy Able Dog drivers and combat aircrew who flew these great warbirds on many combat missions over North Korea way before Vietnam, it seems many people have forgotten them.

[kiddingme00]

I flew in the 'SkyRaider' with VNAF on many occasions. What an aircraft. Great memories.

[Twirlyhead]

Probably responsible for the logic that eventually produced the A-10.

[BillKiernan]

incredible. they were considering rebuilding them again in the 80s.

[Craig60918]

im reading cheating death by george marret at the moment - awesome read for skyraider fans - do not mark as spam!

[agumon12]

This aircraft would provide sufficient competition for the A 10 Warthog.

[kiwigalahad]

I read somewhere a Skyraider shot down a Mig during Vietnam war. Anyone confirm this?

[BillKiernan]

@kiwigalahad they shot down 2 migs actually. check Johnson, Clinton. "Skyraider vs Mig-17." Untold Stories.

[TheGnolla]

@BillKiernan Say what!? :-O That's awesome!

[pronto355]

whats the helicopter at 3:57

[biglou117]

@pronto355 An H-21 flying bannana

[PresidentSkroob12345]

@pronto355 The weird helicopter with the intermeshed, contra-rotating rotors is the HH-43 Huskie.

[MrWINNSLAW]

"No telling how many NVA and Viet Cong pissed in their pants when this plane was in the area!"

[MultiMango72]

@MrWINNSLAW thats childs play compared to being rained on by the B-52.

[ElectraGSX]

'Sandy's' were a life saver a nam vet told me.

[pkrippa]

Sandies...

[nikond90greg]

Was a crew chief on A-!E's and H's from 6/69-11/70 at Hurlburt Filed. FL. They actually had R-3350 recip engine. Got to fly in one once. better than any ride at Disneyland

[TheUSA1945]

When you heard the roar of those piston engines you knew that you would probably last until choppers got there.Jets could get there quicker but could not stay.The skyraiders could circle around and blast anything needed.They saved a lot of men in Vietnam.Great Plane!

[Highice007]

Pretty awesome, this plane was too late for world war two, and was largely known as a Korean War plane, Two decades later and they still wanted to bring it back into production. Quite a testament indeed :)

[Zajuts149]

What are those rocket launchers on the A-1 at the start of the clip? It looks like 6 4.5" rocket tubes lashed together. Anyone know the name/number? I've seen pictures of the B-26K with the same launchers.

[jaglavaksoldier]

@Zajuts149 Those are SUU-14 Submunition Dispensers. Its a bundle of six pipes strapped together, with a cap on the front end to hold them together. It ejected the submunitions out the rear. These were often used in Vietnam by Spads. Riot gas loads were useful for interfering with the work of antiaircraft gunners or a carpet of minelets dropped behind downed aircrew on the run to block pursuers.

[Zajuts149]

@jaglavaksoldier Thanks!

[Lusth0g]

I guess when you´re shot down, sitting somewhere in the north vietnamese jungle, then hearing the sound of 2800 coming in to save your ass, this is the best moment in anyones life!

[lonelywolf1966]

i love the sandys what a plane!!!

[Darthbelal]

I used to think the Spads were ugly, then I heard and read of the service they provided, I now think they're beautiful!

[atom2009]

Best close air support plane ever built.

[shrttmr1]

Its been 43 years and I recocgnize the Airman strapping in the pilot as Charlie E., we were stationed at Plieku from 66-67. Other Aiman who worked on this aircraft are Sgt. Ginrich, Don C., James F., Joel W., Larry S.. I went on a post inspection ride in the aircraft with the last tail no's 625, was a great ride, it latter crashed.

[rhurst1945]

We should be using these in Afghanistan.

[childkicker]

Does the flared part behind the main cowling move or is it fixed out like that?

[Ag3nt0fCha0s]

Just one engine? Surely a ground-attack aircraft should have two...

[MikeTMerciless]

Just goes to show that there is a use for low and slow and tough as nails.

[SgtGrant23]

ive flown in 1 its amazing r-3350 powerful powerplant its truly amazing

[dixievfd55]

Skyraiders would be perfect for hunting Al Qaeda.

[MsSKY2]

'i see that you two fighter pilots, Lucky people, greetings from Portugal

[LightningT5]

good attack aircraft, for something that was designed in the 1940s to support a planned attack on mainland Japan, still to be serving into the 1950s over Korea and the 1960s/early 1970s over Vietnam, where one shot down a MiG, they where most impressive, being in service from 1946-1972

[fridgewrestler]

My dad was on board the CVA 60 Saratoga in Mayport Florida. I remember the A1 Skyraider flying over all the time. I always stopped what I was doing to watch them. The engine noise was awesome.

[daltonagre]

Colombia kills many terrorists with Brazilian made aircraft Super-Tucano, with propelers.

[uggati]

My granpappy flew these planes in the WW2, so he told me all about 'em. I figure I'm just about the top expert on them, so I won't even bother correcting all the mistakes from the other guys here, who obviously don't know jack about 'em.

[EveryMn]

@uggati Interesting, because the Able Dog was not operational during WWII.

[kornek21]

@uggati expert eh? lol..i would rather call you a know nothing at all expert

[JFDhater]

@uggati .....Which World War 2 are you talking about? Being it ended in 1945, I can hardly figure out how this plane could have flown back then, when it wasn't even a conception of an engineer's mind then. I may not know alot about the plane, but I am definitely NOT going to talk out of my ass either.

[ErieBoy62]

@uggati I must agree with JFDhater. I don't know what color the sky is in your world, but in the Skyraider's world it is blue. It is true that the first flight of the Skyraider was in March '45 but it did not enter service until 1946 and did not see action until the Korean War. So obviously your "granpappy" must have told you ll about them after he had finished a long night of heavy drinking at the boozer. And it is you "who obviously don't know jack about 'em".

[TheBroadwayLimiteds]

"Do it Sandy I'd do it for you"

[jjjazzycraig]

my girlfriend has a nice cockpit.

[fusebiter]

can't imagine where this man got his info. a belly landing DID NOT take an aircraft out of action for very long. There were civilian RAM (rapid area maintenance) teams ready to put them back in the air in short order. I saw this first hand in Ubon, Thailand in 1967.

[schizoidboy]

Makes me think of a single shot muzzle loader, an ancient weapon but that doesn't mean I'd want to be shot with one.

[jerrymail]

It's my favorite aircraft of the Vietnam War with the Skyhawk and the Thunderchief.

[mefik]

The thunderchief f-105 is a beast, i never heard of it before until a watched a documentary about Leo Thorsness and the day he saved his wingman and shot down a couple of mig 21 with the thunderchief

[rayjohn03]

Worked on them 65-66 aero repair at Bien Hoa, Nha Trang and Udorn Thailand. Great bird, the belly landings were back in the air within weeks as I recall.

[pennridgeboy]

rayjohn. My F4 was parked directly across from the A1's at Udorn in 1968. I had, Jolly Greens to my left, A1's out front, what a view! I loved watching and hearing them crank up before dawn. The whine of the starter and then seeing smoke flames belch out of the exhaust. Great experience! My cousin was an A1 crew chief at another location in Thailand.He can't say enough about them.

[Phillydroog]

@pennridgeboy  Must be a perkasie boy :p

[jackc144]

I spent 4 years with the A1E's. Eglin afb, Fla; Bien Hoa AB, Vn and Pleiky AB, Vn.Its the best a/c ever built. I've seen it with Tree limbs inside the wings and thousands of masking tape holes covered over so it could do a turn-around and fly another mission. I was once a Tail-Gunner in the Blue Room as a Test at Pleiku.

[Darknamja]

Cool to see the "Big Bertha" aircraft recovery vehicle. Brings back memories of my teenage years on the flightline.

[donwilk8]

Worked on them in 1966 at Bien Hoa, Nha Trang and Udorn Thailand. 14th Air Commando Wing, 602nd Fighter Sq. It was a great tough aircraft. Mine took 16 50 cal hits and came home ok. It took a licking and kept on ticking. I got to fly it a couple of times over the Philipines as a crew chief thanks to one of our pilots. What a thrill.

[kilowat46]

@donwilk8 I was in VF-31 F4's aboard the USS Saratoga when the actual plane that shot down the Mig VA-176 they flew on board, I think it was 1966/67 they had orange all on the belly I asked what that was they were washing off he said agent orange

[kiddingme00]

I flew combat missions in this machine out of Bien Hoa.

[turduckens4u]

Love this Bird it could do anything it was asked to do. Amazing how it could carry more than its own weight in ordanece.

[msantosmxmx]

Probably is going to be built again...

[Stover36]

I wish, that plane and the man who flew them had balls: the Skyraider is one of those planes that will take you home no matter the punishment (almost). the pilots were those guys who had the eggs to get in'em and stay within AAA range and come back.

[jackc144]

Its the Orginial A-10 Hog!!!

[mwp62]

Yep, the son of the P-47 and daddy of the A-10.

[markvinas31]

OV-10 and A-10 has quite some resemblance.

[Dogmeat1950]

p-47 was the Originial hog

[Maggi4]

That was more like the Jug, wasn't it?

[Dogmeat1950]

who the hell gave me a thumbs down!? P-47 thunderbolt was the Original hog, why in the hell do u think the A-10 is called the thunder bolt 2.

[wcsdancerrick]

hey any body out there remember 316th Tiger Squadron in Da Nang..?

[winnslaw]

"The ARVN called it/them "Crazy Water Buffalo!"

[rickb731]

the last of the tail draggers

[ask412]

What a machine, the pinicle of propeller driven war birds.

[cajunhornet60]

Great Video...

20th SOS Nha Trang AB

1968-69

Sergeant USAF

saw some Spads land at Nha Trang

[militaria81]

great video!!!!