Tag Archives: Prototype

25 March 1955

John W. Konrad in the cockpit of the prototype Vought XF8U-1 Crusader, Bu. No. 138899. (Vought Heritage)
John W. Konrad in the cockpit of the prototype Vought XF8U-1 Crusader, Bu. No. 138899. (Vought Heritage)

25 March 1955: Chance Vought Aircraft Corporation experimental test pilot John William Konrad took the first prototype XF8U-1 Crusader, Bu. No. 138899, for its first flight at Edwards Air Force Base in the high desert of Southern California.

The new fighter had been transported from the factory at Dallas, Texas, aboard a Douglas C-124C Globemaster II, on 3 March 1955. It was reassembled and all systems were checked. Taxi tests began on 14 March.

During the first flight on 25 March, the Crusader went supersonic in level flight. It was able to maintain supersonic speeds (not only for short periods in a dive) and was the first fighter aircraft to exceed 1,000 miles per hour in level flight (1,609 kilometers per hour).

Chance Vought test pilot John W. Konrad talks with engineers following the first test flight. (Chance Vought Aircraft Corporation photograph via Bill Spidle’s “Voughtworks” http://voughtworks.blogspot.com)

The F8U Crusader has a unique variable-incidence wing which can be raised to increase the angle of attack. This created more lift at low speeds for takeoff and landing aboard aircraft carriers, but allows the fuselage to remain fairly level for better forward visibility.

The test program went so well that the first production airplane, F8U-1 Crusader Bu. No. 140444, made its first flight just over six months after the prototype’s.

Prototype Vought XF8U-1 Crusader during a test flight, 25 March 1955. (Vought)
Prototype Vought XF8U-1 Crusader Bu. No. 138899 during a test flight, 25 March 1955. (Vought Heritage)

The Chance Vought F8U-1 was nearly identical to the prototype XF8U-1. It was a single-place, single-engine swept-wing fighter designed to operate from the United States Navy’s aircraft carriers. The F8U-1 was 54 feet, 2.75 inches (16.529 meters) long with a wingspan of 35 feet, 8 inches (10.871 meters) and height of 15 feet, 9.1 inches (4.803 meters). With wings folded, the airplane’s width was reduced to 22 feet, 6 inches (6.858 meters).

The Crusader’s wing angle of incidence was adjustable in flight. It had a total area of 375 square feet (34.8 square meters). The leading edges were swept aft to 47°, and the outer panels had a 1 foot, 0.7 inch “dog tooth.” The wings had 5° anhedral, while the horizontal stabilator had 5° 25′ dihedral. The stabilator’s leading edges were swept 50°.

Its empty weight was 15,513 pounds (7,037 kilograms) and maximum takeoff weight was 27,500 pounds (12,474 kilograms).

Prototype Chance Vought XF8U-1 Crusader in landing configuration. (Vought Heritage)

Early production aircraft were powered by a Pratt & Whitney J57-P-4 engine. This was a two-spool, axial-flow turbojet engine with a 16-stage compressor and 3-stage turbine. The J57-P-4 had a normal power rating of 8,700 pounds of thrust (38.70 kilonewtons); military power, 10,200 pounds (45.37 kilonewtons), and a maximum rating of 16,000 pounds (71.17 kilonewtons) with afterburner. The engine was 20 feet, 10 inches (6.350 meters) long and 3 feet, 5 inches (1.041 meters) in diameter.

The F8U-1 had a cruising speed of 494 knots (569 miles per hour/915 kilometers per hour). Its maximum speed was 637 knots (733 miles per hour/1,180 kilometers per hour) at Sea Level—0.95 Mach—and 860 knots (990 miles per hour/1,180 kilometers per hour) at 35,000 feet (10,668 meters)—Mach 1.50.  It had a service ceiling of 42,300 feet (12,893 meters) and combat range of 1,280 nautical miles miles (1,473 statute miles/2,371 kilometers).

The F8U Crusader was known as “The Last of the Gunfighters” because it was the last American fighter aircraft to be designed with guns as the primary armament. It carried four Colt Mark 12 20-mm autocannon with 500 rounds of ammunition. It could also carry two AIM-9 Sidewinder infrared-homing air-to-air missiles.

Because of a high accident rate, the Crusader has also been called “The Ensign Killer.”

Vought XF8U-1 Crusader parked on Rogers Dry Lake, Edwards Air Force Base. (Vought)
Vought XF8U-1 Crusader Bu. No. 138899 parked on Rogers Dry Lake, Edwards Air Force Base. (Vought Heritage)

The Vought F8U Crusader was in production from 1955 through 1964 with a total of 1,261 built in both fighter and photo reconnaissance versions.

Vought XF8U-1 Crusader Bu. No. 138899 parked on Rogers Dry Lake, Edwards Air Force Base. (Vought Heritage)

During five years of testing, Bu. No. 138899 made 508 flights. It was donated to the Smithsonian Institution in 1960. The restored prototype is now at The Museum of Flight, Seattle, Washington.

According to information recently discovered by The Museum of Flight, fighter pilot, test pilot and future astronaut John Herschel Glenn, Jr., made his first flight in a Crusader when he flew Bu. No. 138899 on 4 May 1956. According to Glenn’s logbook, he made two flights in the prototype on that date, totaling 2 hours of flight time. Many thanks to Mike Martinez, a docent for the museum for providing this information.

The Vought XF8U-1 has been restored by The Museum of Flight at Paine Field, Stattle, Washington. (The Museum of Flight)
The first of two prototypes, Chance Vought XF8U-1 Crusader, Bu. No. 138899, has been restored by The Museum of Flight at Paine Field, Seattle, Washington. The Crusader’s variable incidence wing is in the raised take-off/landing position. (The Museum of Flight)

John William Konrad was born 25 November 1923 at San Diego, California. He was the second of three children of  William Konrad, a salesman, and Emma Louise Stensrud Konrad.

Konrad became interested in aviation at an early age, learning to fly in a Piper Cub at the age of 15. After graduating from high school, he enlisted as a private in the U.S. Army Air Corps at San Diego, 26 February 1943. Konrad was 5 feet, 3 inches (1.60 meters) tall and weighed 118 pounds (53.5 kilograms). He trained as a pilot and flew Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bombers with the 305th Bombardment Group (Heavy), stationed at RAF Chelveston, during World War II. He later flew Douglas C-47 Skytrains during the Berlin Airlift.

Konrad married Miss Harriet Marilyn Hastings at Clearwater, Florida, 11 February 1945. They would have two children.

Following the War, Konrad was selected for the first test pilot training class at Wright Field, then was assigned to Muroc Army Airfield (Edwards Air Force Base) in California, where he graduated from the Air Force Experimental Flight Test Pilot School, Class 51-C, 19 May 1952.

Konrad resigned from the Air Force in 1953 and joined the Chance Vought Aircraft Corporation in Dallas, Texas, as a test pilot. In addition the the XF8U-1 Crusader, he also made the first flight of the Ling-Temco-Vought A-7 Corsair II, and the experimental LTV XC-142 tiltwing V/STOL transport in 1964. He was appointed Director Test Operations in 1965. Konrad retired from Vought in 1988 after 25 years with the company.

After retiring, John Konrad continued to fly a Goodyear FG-1D Corsair with Commemorative Air Force.

John William Konrad, Sr., Captain, United States Air Force, died 20 September 2006 at Dallas, Texas. He is buried at the Dallas–Fort Worth National Cemetery.

John William Konrad. (Photograph courtesy of Neil Corbett, Test and Research Pilots, Flight Test Engineers)

© 2019, Bryan R. Swopes

22 March 1948

Tony LeVier in the cockpit of Lockheed TP-80C-1-LO 48-356, the prototype T-33A Shooting Star two-place trainer.
Tony LeVier in the cockpit of Lockheed TP-80C-1-LO 48-356, the prototype T-33A Shooting Star two-place trainer. (Jet Pilot Overseas)

22 March 1948: Just over one year since being injured when the prototype P-80A was cut in half by a disintegrating turbojet engine, Lockheed test pilot Anthony W. (“Tony”) LeVier made the first flight of the prototype TP-80C-1-LO, serial number 48-356, a two-place jet trainer. The airplane was redesignated TF-80C Shooting Star on 11 June 1948 and to T-33A, 5 May 1949.

Adapted from a single-seat P-80C Shooting Star jet fighter, Lockheed engineers added 38.6 inches (0.980 meter) to the fuselage forward of the wing for a second cockpit, instrumentation and flight controls, and another 12 inches (0.305 meter) aft. A more powerful engine, an Allison J33-A-23 with 4,600 pounds of thrust, helped offset the increased weight of the modified airplane. Internal fuel capacity decreased 72 gallons (273 liters) to 353 (1,336 liters).

The Lockheed T-33A Shooting Star is 37.72 feet (11.50 meters) long, with a wingspan of 37.54 feet (11.44 meters), and overall height of 11.67 feet (3.56 meters). The wings a total area of 234.8 square feet (21.8 square meters). They have an angle of incidence of 1° with -1° 30′ of twist and 3° 49.8′ dihedral. The “T-Bird” has a basic weight of 9,637 pounds (4,371 kilograms), and gross weight of 15,280 pounds (6,931 kilograms).

Lockheed TP-80C-1-LO 48-356 prototype, with P-80C-1-LO Shooting Star 47-173, at Van Nuys Airport, California. (Lockheed Martin)

Originally produced with the J33-A-23 engine, the T-33 fleet was later standardized with the J33-A-35 engine. The J33 was a development of an earlier Frank Whittle-designed turbojet. It used a single-stage centrifugal-flow compressor, eleven combustion chambers and a single-stage axial-flow turbine section. The J33-A-35 had a Normal Power rating of 3,900 pounds of thrust (17.348 kilonewtons) at 11,250 r.p.m. (96%), and 4,600 pounds (20.462 kilonewtons) at 11,750 r.p.m. (100%). It was 107 inches (2.718 meters) long, 50.5 inches (1.283 meters) in diameter, and weighed 1,820 pounds (826 kilograms).

Cruise speed for maximum range is 0.68 Mach. The maximum speed is 505 knots (581 miles per hour/935 kilometers per hour), or 0.8 Mach, whichever is lower. Service ceiling 44,700 feet (1,3625 meters). The maximum range is 1,071 nautical miles (1,232 statute miles/1,983 kilometers).¹

While the P-80 fighter was armed with six .50-caliber machine guns in the nose, the trainer was usually unarmed. Two machine guns could be installed for gunnery training.

In production for 11 years, 5,691 T-33As were built by Lockheed, with licensed production of another 656 by Canadair Ltd., and 210 by Kawasaki Kokuki K.K. For over five decades, the “T-Bird” was used to train many tens of thousands of military pilots worldwide.

TF-80C 48-356 was rebuilt as the prototype for Lockheed’s YF-94A interceptor, and then modified further to the F-94B. Sources have reported it as being stored at Edwards Air Force Base, California.

Prototype Lockheed YF-94 48-356, first flight, 16 April 1949. (U.S. Air Force)
Prototype Lockheed YF-94 48-356, first flight, 16 April 1949. (U.S. Air Force)

¹ Specifications and performance data from T-33A PERFORMANCE EVALUATION, AFFTC-TR-61-22, May 1961,  Air Force Flight Test Center, Edwards Air Force Base, California. The Project Pilot was Captain Thomas P. Stafford, U.S. Air Force. Stafford was next selected for the NASA Gemini Program, and flew Gemini 6A and Gemini 9. He commanded Apollo 10.

© 2019, Bryan R. Swopes

20 March 1945

Tony LeVier and the first prototype Lockheed XP-80A, 44-83021, in flight over southern California’s high desert, 1945. (Lockheed Martin)
Anthony W. (“Tony”) LeVier

20 March 1945: Tony LeVier was conducting a test flight of the first prototype Lockheed XP-80A, 44-83021, near Muroc Army Air Field (now known as Edwards Air Force Base).

The XP-80A was developed from the original XP-80 prototype, but was larger to incorporate a more powerful General Electric I-40 turbojet engine in place of the original Allis-Chalmers J36 (a license-built version of the British Halford H.1B).

The I-40 was a single-shaft turbojet which used a double-inlet, single-stage, centrifugal-flow compressor, fourteen straight-through combustors and a single-stage axial-flow turbine. The engine had a maximum speed of 11,500 r.p.m. and produced 4,000 pounds of thrust (17.79 kilonewtons). The I-40 was 48 inches (1.22 meters) in diameter and weighed 1,820 pounds (826 kilograms). The I-40 would be produced by Allison Division of General Motors as the J33 series.

General Electric I-40 turbojet engine cross section. (NASA)

At 15,000 feet (4,572 meters), LeVier put the XP-80A into a dive, intending to level off at 10,000 feet (3,048 meters) for a high-speed run. However, at 11,000 feet (3,353 meters), the single-stage turbine inside the jet engine failed and fragments tore through the prototype’s fuselage. The tail section of the airplane was cut off and the XP-80A went out of control.

An example of a turbine failure in a Lockheed P-80. (San Diego Air and Space Museum)

The XP-80A was not equipped with an ejection seat and LeVier had difficulty getting out, but finally escaped at about 4,000 feet (1,219 meters).

44-83021 crashed near the town of Rosamond and was completely destroyed. Tony LeVier’s parachute was swinging and he was severely injured when he hit the ground. His injuries kept him from flying for the next six months.

Lockheed XP-80A 44-83021 (U.S. Air Force)
Lockheed XP-80A 44-83021 (U.S. Air Force)

The Lockheed XP-80A was a single-place, single engine prototype fighter. It was 34 feet, 6 inches (10.516 meters) long with a wingspan of 39 feet, 0 inches (11.887 meters) and overall height of 11 feet, 4 inches (3.454 meters). It had an empty weight of 7,225 pounds (3,277 kilograms) and gross weight of 9,600 pounds (4,354 kilograms).

Armament consisted of six Browning .50-caliber AN-M2 machine guns with 300 rounds of ammunition per gun.

Two XP-80As were built. These were followed by twelve YP-80A Shooting Star service test aircraft. The Lockheed P-80A Shooting Star was ordered into production with an initial contract for 500 aircraft. This was soon followed by a second order for 2,500 fighters.

Wreckage of XP-80A 44-83021 loaded on a flat bed trailer. (U.S. Air Force)
Wreckage of XP-80A 44-83021 loaded on a flat bed trailer. (U.S. Air Force)

© 2019, Bryan R. Swopes

20 March 1935

The second prototype Grumman XF3F-1, Bu. No. 9727, photographed 10 January 1936. (U.S. Navy, Naval History and Heritage Command, NH 44277)

20 March 1935: At Farmingdale, New York, test pilot James H. (“Jimmy”) Collins took the Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation’s prototype XF3F-1, Bu. No. 9727, for its first flight. Collins made three flights that day.

[According to serial number authority, Joe Baugher, three XF3F-1 prototypes had the same manufacturer’s serial number, 257, and the same U.S. Navy Bureau of Aeronautics serial number, 9727. Two of them were destroyed during flight testing.]

Grumman XF3F-1 Bu. No. 9727, with landing gear extended. (San Diego Air & Space Museum Archives, Catalog #: 17_000148)

The XF3F-1 was a prototype fighter built for the United States Navy. It was a single-place, single-bay, wire-braced biplane with retractable landing gear. The airplane was of all metal construction. It was a development of the F2F, then in production.

Grumman XF3F-1 Bu. No. 9727. (Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation 2815)

Collins  had performed nine dive tests of the XF3F-1. He began the tenth and final test at 6:05 p.m., 22 May 1935. After climbing to 20,000 feet (6,096 meters), he put the biplane into a full power, vertical dive. At a speed of 400 miles per hour (644 kilometers per hour), he pulled out of the dive at 8,000 feet (2,438 meters) but the airplane’s propeller and wings were torn off. An accelerometer indicated that the airplane had sustained a force of 14 gs. The airplane crashed into the Pinelawn Cemetery.

Witnesses at the scene (which included Collins’ sister, Mrs. Elizabeth Collins Joyhard) said that Collins was still alive when he was pulled from the wreckage. He is reported to have said, “Pull me out boys. I’m all through. Never mind wiping my face, I’m done.” ¹

For these tests, he was to have been paid $1,500. On his last day, he had told friends that he planned to stop flying and pursue a career as an aviation writer.

Grumman XF3F-1 Bu. No. 9727 (San Diego Air & Space Museum Archives, Catalog #: 16_003712)

The XF3F-1 used the same engine as the production F2F-1: An air-cooled, supercharged 1,534.94 cubic inch (25.15 liter) Pratt & Whitney S1A2 Twin Wasp Jr. (R-1535-72) two-row, 14-cylinder radial. This was a direct drive engine with a compression ratio of 6.75:1 requiring 87-octane gasoline. The supercharger impeller ratio was 12:1. The R-1535-72 was rated at 650 horsepower (485 kilowatts) at 2,200 r.p.m. at 7,500 feet (2,286 meters), and 700 horsepower (522 kilowatts) at 2,250 r.p.m. for takeoff.

Grumman F3F-1, Bu. No. 0211, s/n 274. This airplane crashed at sea near NAS Miami, March 1942. (San Diego Air & Space Museum, Roger Bilstein Collection 00032)

The production F3F-2 was 23 feet, 2 inches (7.061 meters) long with a wingspan of 32 feet (9.754 meters) and height of 9 feet, 4 inches (2.845 meters). The total wing area was 260 square feet (25.16 square meters). It had an empty weight of 3,285 pounds ( 1,490 kilograms), and maximum takeoff weight of 4,795 pounds (2,175 kilograms). Unlike the XF3F-1, the F3F-2 was powered by a Wright R-1820-22 rated at 950 horsepower. It had a maximum speed of 264 miles per hour (425 kilometers per hour) at 15,000 feet (4,572 meters), Its maximum rate of climb was 2,750 feet per minuted (14 meters per second), and the service ceiling was 33,200 feet (10,119 meters). It had a range of 980 miles (1,577 kilometers). The F3F-2 was armed by a .30-caliber Browning M1919 machine gun with 500 rounds of ammunition, and a .50-caliber Browning M2 machine gun with 200 rounds.

In August 1935 the U.S. Navy contracted for 54 F3F-1s. The first one was delivered 29 January 1936. A total of 147 F3Fs were built between 1935 and 1938. The F3F was the U.S. Navy’s last biplane fighter. The type was retired in 1943.

James H. Collins was born 25 April 1904, the second child of John Collins, an Irish immigrant to the United States, and Ella E. Ray Collins. His father died when Jimmy was four years old, and his mother, when he was 11. He then lived with an aunt and uncle.

Collins attended Central High School, Akron, Ohio, and worked nights at the B.F. Goodrich rubber factory. After graduating, he enrolled at the University of Akron. He was a member of the Lambda Delta Chi (ΛΔΧ) fraternity.

In 1924, Collins entered the U.S. Army Air Service Primary Flying School at Brooks Field, San Antonio, Texas, and then went on to the Advanced Flying School at Kelly Field, also in San Antonio. He was in the same class as Charles A. Lindbergh. After graduating, he was commissioned a second lieutenant in the New York National Guard, and assigned to the 102nd Observation Squadron, 27th Division Air Service, at Miller Field, Staten Island, New York.

During the Great Depression, Collins’ service with the New York National Guard did not provide full time employment. He had to work at other jobs, which included returning to B.F. Goodrich. In 1925, he  briefly returned to the University of Akron, then volunteered for six months active duty with the 94th Pursuit Squadron at Selfridge Field, Harrison, Michigan. He served as assistant engineering and operations officer. He was then commissioned as a lieutenant in the regular Air Service, United States Army. He was assigned as an instructor at March Field, near Riverside, California and back at Brooks Field.

Unable to complete a formal university degree, Collins decided to gain the equivalent of a liberal arts degree through self study. It was around this time that he became a communist. He considered emigrating to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.

In 1927, Lieutenant Collins resigned his commission. He then worked as an inspector for the Department of Commerce, the federal agency overseeing civil aviation in the United States. That was followed by employment as chief test pilot for the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company, Hammondsport, New York.

Test Pilot, by Jimmy Collins, © 1935, by his wife.

In 1932, Jimmy Collins married Miss Dolores Lacy. They would have two children, Darr, named after a friend of Jimmy’s, and Susan Ann Collins. With the depression ongoing, Collins often lived away from his family, having sent them to live with his older sister in Oklahoma. By doing dive tests, he had hoped to earn enough money to bring them back to New York.

James H. Collins’ remains were cremated at the Fairfield Mortuary, Garden City, New York, then spread from an airplane over the Atlantic Ocean off Jones Beach at 6:05 p.m., 29 March 1935.

Jimmy Collins was the author of Test Pilot, published after his death by The Sun Dial Press, Garden City, New York.

¹ Daily News, Vol. 16, No. 232, Saturday, 23 March 1935, Page 6, Column 1

© 2023, Bryan R. Swopes

18 March 1945

LaVerne Brown, Director of Flight Test, Douglas Aircraft Company, in the cockpit of the first XBT2D-1 Dauntless II prototype, Bu. No. 9085. (Photograph courtesy of Neil Corbett, Test and Research Pilots, Flight Test Engineers)
LaVerne Ward Browne, Director of Flight Test, Douglas Aircraft Company, in the cockpit of the first XBT2D-1 Dauntless II prototype, Bu. No. 9085. (Photograph courtesy of Neil Corbett, Test and Research Pilots, Flight Test Engineers)

18 March 1945: At the Naval Airplane Factory, El Segundo, California (at the southeast corner of Los Angeles Airport, now best known as LAX), Douglas Aircraft Company Director of Flight Test LaVerne Ward (“Brownie”) Browne took the prototype XBT2D-1 Dauntless II, Bu. No. 9085, for its first flight.

He later commented, “I wish I could tell of some dramatic incident that occurred. There wasn’t any. I just floated around up there for an hour and a half and brought her down. But I did do something that’s unprecedented, I believe, for a first trip. The airplane handled so well that I put it through rolls and Immelmanns to check it for maneuverability.”

The first prototype Douglas XBT2D-1 Dauntless II, Bu. No. 9085. In this photograph the airplane has a propeller spinner. (San Diego Air and Space Museum archive)
The first prototype Douglas XBT2D-1 Dauntless II, Bu. No. 9085. In this photograph the airplane has a propeller spinner. (Douglas Aircraft Company)

The XBT2D-1 would be ordered into production as the Douglas AD-1 Skyraider.

Designed by Douglas’ Chief Engineer, Edward Henry Heinemann, the XBT2D-1 was a single-place, single-engine attack bomber capable of operation from the U.S. Navy’s aircraft carriers. The prototype was 39 feet, 5 inches (12.014 meters) long with a wingspan of 50 feet, ¼ inch (15.246 meters) and overall height of 15 feet, 7½ inches (4.763 meters). The airplane had an empty weight of 10,093 pounds (4,578 kilograms) and maximum weight of 17,500 pounds (7,938 kilograms).

The first four XBT2D-1 prototypes were powered by an air-cooled, supercharged, 3,347.662-cubic-inch-displacement (54.858 liter) Wright Aeronautical Division R3350-8 (Cyclone 18 779C18BB1) twin-row 18-cylinder radial engine rated at 2,100 horsepower at 2,400 r.p.m., and 2,400 horsepower at 2,600 r.p.m., for takeoff. The next 20 airplanes built utilized the R3350-24W (Cyclone 18 825C18BD1) which had a takeoff power rating of 2,500 horsepower at 2,900 r.p.m.

Both engines had a compression ration of 6.5:1 and a propeller drive reduction ratio of 0.4375:1. They differed in external dimensions and weight, with the –24W being both longer and heavier.

Test pilot Brown in teh cockpit of Douglas XBT2D-1 Dauntless II Bu. No. 9085 during a test flight. (Douglas Aircraft Company)
Test pilot LaVerne Brown in the cockpit of Douglas XBT2D-1 Dauntless II Bu. No. 9085 during a test flight. (Douglas Aircraft Company)

The XBT2D-1 had a maximum speed of 375 miles per hour (604 kilometers per hour) at 13,600 feet (4,145 meters) and normal cruise speed of 164 miles per hour (264 kilometers per hour).

The first XBT2D-1, Bu. No. 9085, was sent to NAS Patuxent River, Maryland, for further testing. The second, 9086, went to NACA Ames at Moffet Field, California, where it underwent testing from 11 March 1946 to 4 September 1947.

The second prototype XBT2D-1, Bu. No. 9086, was tested at the NACA Ames Research Center, Moffet Field, California, from 11 March 1946 to 4 September 1947. (NASA)
The second prototype XBT2D-1, Bu. No. 9086, at the NACA Ames Research Center, Moffet Field, California, 18 June 1946. (NASA)

3,180 Skyraiders in 11 variants were built at the Douglas Aircraft Company’s El Segundo, California, plant from 1945 to 1957. The attack bomber was widely used during the Korean War and the Vietnam War. It was utilized for many purposes but is best known for its close support missions during combat rescue operations. After 1962, the AD-series aircraft still in service were redesignated A-1E through A-1J.

Douglas XBT2D-1 Skyraider Bu. No. 9086 at NACA Ames Research Center, 18 June 1946. (NASA)

The most numerous Skyraider variant was the AD-6 (A-1H), of which 713 were produced by Douglas. The AD-6 was 38 feet, 10 inches (11.836 meters) long with a wingspan of 50 feet, 9 inches (15.469 meters) and overall height of 15 feet, 8¼ inches (4.782 meters). Its empty weight was 11,968 pounds (5,429 kilograms) and gross weight was 18,106 pounds (8,213 kilograms). The maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) for the AD-6 was 25,000 pounds (11,340 kilograms).

Douglas AD-4 Skyraider of VA-195 taking off from USS Princeton (CV-37) circa 1950–52 (U.S. Navy)
Douglas AD-4 Skyraider of VA-195 taking off from USS Princeton (CV-37) circa 1950–52 (U.S. Navy)

The Douglas AD-6 was powered by an air-cooled, supercharged, direct-fuel-injected, 3,347.662-cubic-inch-displacement (54.858 liter), Wright Aeronautical Division R-3350-26WA (Cyclone 18 836C18CA1) twin-row 18-cylinder radial engine, with water/alcohol injection. This engine has a compression ratio of 6.71:1. The R-3350-26W has a Normal Power rating of  2,300 horsepower at 2,600 r.p.m., and a Takeoff/Military Power rating of 2,700 horsepower at 2,900 r.p.m., using 115/145 aviation gasoline. The engine drives a four-bladed Aeroproducts constant-speed propeller with a diameter of 13 feet, 6 inch (4.115 meters) through a 0.4375:1 gear reduction. The engine is 4 feet, 7.62 inches (1.413 meters) in diameter and 6 feet, 6.81 inches (2.002 meters) long. It weighs 2,848 pounds (1,292 kilograms), dry.

The AD-6/A-1H Skyraider had a cruise speed of 198 miles per hour (319 kilometers per hour) and a maximum speed of 322 miles per hour (518 kilometers per hour). The ceiling was 29,400 feet (8,961 meters) and its combat radius carrying 2,000 pounds (907 kilograms) of ordnance was 275 miles (443 kilometers).

A U.S. Marine Corps Douglas AD-2 Skyraider of VMF-121 parked at airfield K-6, Pyongtaek, South Korea, 1952. The hard points under the wings are fully loaded with bombs.
A U.S. Marine Corps Douglas AD-4 Skyraider, Bu. No. 127874, of VMF-121 is parked at airfield K-6, Pyongtaek, South Korea, 1952. The hard points under the wings are fully loaded with bombs. The aircraft is painted overall glossy sea blue. (Navy Pilot Overseas)
Douglas AH-1H Skyraider 52-137593 (U.S. Air Force)
Douglas AH-1H Skyraider 52-137593 of the 602nd Special Operations Squadron. (U.S. Air Force)

The AD-6 Skyraider was armed with four 20mm AN-M2 autocannons, with two in each wing, and 200 rounds of ammunition per gun. The guns fired explosive projectiles with a muzzle velocity of 2,850 feet per second (869 meters per second), and had a rate of fire of 600–700 rounds per minute. The AD-6 could carry 8,000 pounds (3,629 kilograms) of bombs, rockets, gun pods and external fuel tanks from the 15 hard points and pylons under the wings and fuselage.

A Douglas A-1H Skyraider of the 6th Special Operations Squadron dive bombing a target during a close air support mission, Vietnam, 1968. (U.S. Air Force)
A Douglas A-1J Skyraider, 52-142016, of the 6th Special Operations Squadron, dive bombing a target during a close air support mission, Vietnam, 1968. (U.S. Air Force)

Many United States Navy and Marine Corps Skyraiders were transferred to the U.S. Air Force. The Air Force retained the Navy’s Bureau of Aeronautics serial numbers (“Bu. No.”) but added two digits corresponding to the fiscal year in which each airplane was originally contracted. This resulted in serial numbers similar, though longer, than customary in the Air Force and Army numbering system.

The oldest Skyraider in existence is XBT2D-1 Bu. No. 9102. Formerly on display at NAS Oceana, Virginia Beach, Virginia, the airplane was transferred to The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City for restoration and preservation.

This is the Douglas A-1H Skyraider flown by LCOL Jones, 1 September 1968. Though it was extensively damaged by anti-aircraft gunfire and the subsequent fire, 52-139738 was repaired and returned to service. On 22 September 1972, -738 was shot down over Laos. It was the last Skyraider shot down during the Vietnam War.
Douglas A-1H Skyraider 52-139738, 1st Special Operations Squadron. Lieutenant Colonel William A. Jones III, commanding the 602nd Special Operations Squadron, flew this airplane on 1 September 1968 during a Combat Search and Rescue mission for which he was awarded the Medal of Honor. On 22 September 1972, -738 was shot down over Laos. It was the last Skyraider shot down during the Vietnam War. (U.S. Air Force)

LaVerne Ward Browne was born at Orange, California, 9 December 1906. He was the third child of Edwin J. Brown, a farm worker, and Phebe Alice Proctor Brown. He studied law at the University of Southern California (USC).

“Mystery Plane” poster. (Monogram Pictures Corporation)

In 1928, Brown learned to fly at the Hancock College of Aeronautics, Santa Maria, California. He then worked as a pilot for Transcontinental and Western Airways, flying the Douglas DC-2. He was also commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army Air Corps Reserve.

Browne married Miss Dorothy Leonore Bach at Los Angeles, California, 28 January 1926. They had a daughter, Barbara May Browne, born 6 December 1926, but later divorced. One 12 June 1933, Browne married Harriette Fitzgerald Dodson at Norfolk, Virginia.

From 1931 to 1941, under the pseudonym “John Trent,” Browne performed in sixteen Hollywood movies, including “I Wanted Wings,” with William Holden, Ray Milland and Veronica Lake. He played the character “Tailspin Tommy Tompkins” in four: “Danger Flight,” “Sky Patrol,” “Stunt Pilot,” and “Mystery Plane.”

Browne worked for Douglas Aircraft Company from 1942 to 1957. He died 12 May 1966 at Palos Verdes, California, at the age of 59 years.

“John Trent” (LaVerne Ward Browne) portrayed “Tailspin Tommy Tompkins” in four Hollywood movies. (Monogram Pictures Corporation via IMDb)

© 2017, Bryan R. Swopes