Author Topic: A-rabs at War  (Read 1291 times)

Offline Gman

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Re: A-rabs at War
« Reply #15 on: March 19, 2017, 10:58:29 PM »
Great vid Nefarious, interesting.  I grew up a few years on an air base that had a huge yearly show, the 2nd largest in Canada yearly, and my mom was a teacher at the air base, and always volunteered us to have pilots/crew that would fly in board with us for a few nights.  In 1992 we had a couple A6 guys, Lt. Dan "Buster" Brown from VA155 Silver Foxes stayed with us, and got a good chuckle at all my early flight sim stuff and the thousands of questions I pelted him and his nav guy with over dinner.  Showed me all around their bird at the show, really interesting to sit in it too, the seats are really staggered in there.  They had just served on one of the CVs during the first Gulf War, and were selling squadron tshirts that had images of them hitting targets with bombs - he said they dropped a lot of unguided heavy (2000lb/etc) bombs, with great accuracy, and the buildings blowing up on their tshirts proved this.

Such a great bird, a shame the USN never replaced it with something else, as good as the SuperHornet is, nothing has had the range or load that the Intruder had, as well as its ability to fly and fight in very bad weather and at low altitudes, IMO. 

Offline MiloMorai

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Re: A-rabs at War
« Reply #16 on: March 20, 2017, 09:26:51 AM »
Great vid Nefarious, interesting.  I grew up a few years on an air base that had a huge yearly show, the 2nd largest in Canada yearly, and my mom was a teacher at the air base, and always volunteered us to have pilots/crew that would fly in board with us for a few nights.  In 1992 we had a couple A6 guys, Lt. Dan "Buster" Brown from VA155 Silver Foxes stayed with us, and got a good chuckle at all my early flight sim stuff and the thousands of questions I pelted him and his nav guy with over dinner.  Showed me all around their bird at the show, really interesting to sit in it too, the seats are really staggered in there.  They had just served on one of the CVs during the first Gulf War, and were selling squadron tshirts that had images of them hitting targets with bombs - he said they dropped a lot of unguided heavy (2000lb/etc) bombs, with great accuracy, and the buildings blowing up on their tshirts proved this.

Such a great bird, a shame the USN never replaced it with something else, as good as the SuperHornet is, nothing has had the range or load that the Intruder had, as well as its ability to fly and fight in very bad weather and at low altitudes, IMO.

VA155 never flew A6s.

Offline Hungry

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Re: A-rabs at War
« Reply #17 on: March 20, 2017, 09:39:27 AM »
"I would gladly pay you Tuesday for a Hamburger today"

Offline jskibo

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Re: A-rabs at War
« Reply #18 on: March 20, 2017, 12:55:40 PM »
VA155 never flew A6s.

They were an NAS Whidbey Island A-6 Squadron when I was at NASWI.  There's a park up there named after the two Aviators they lost in the Gulf war.
« Last Edit: March 20, 2017, 02:10:49 PM by jskibo »
Jacque in AH3
Jacque in WB
Jacque in WWIIOL

Offline Nefarious

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Re: A-rabs at War
« Reply #19 on: March 20, 2017, 02:02:36 PM »
There was a player and CM by the name of silverfox who served with VA155 and its Intruders.
There must also be a flyable computer available for Nefarious to do FSO. So he doesn't keep talking about it for eight and a half hours on Friday night!

Offline Old Sport

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Re: A-rabs at War
« Reply #20 on: March 22, 2017, 11:07:55 AM »
Nice vid.  :salute

Thanks for posting that.  Interesting evaluation how they end up to a easy setup.  Can not imagine they will change it anymore but you never know.

Just to mention that naval versions of the F-4 had a nose gear extension position for cat shots (I think by filling the strut with nitrogen, but don't remember), that you can see happen in the vid. That gave the plane more angle of attack during the cat shot. To try to make that extended nose strut also sturdy enough for the load of a cat shot was evidently too much, so they used the bridal. Two freaking big hooks in the underside shoulders where the wings met the fuselage.

Offline Nefarious

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Re: A-rabs at War
« Reply #21 on: March 23, 2017, 06:32:51 AM »
Nice vid.  :salute

Just to mention that naval versions of the F-4 had a nose gear extension position for cat shots (I think by filling the strut with nitrogen, but don't remember), that you can see happen in the vid. That gave the plane more angle of attack during the cat shot. To try to make that extended nose strut also sturdy enough for the load of a cat shot was evidently too much, so they used the bridal. Two freaking big hooks in the underside shoulders where the wings met the fuselage.

I was just discussing that recently with my dad, when I found a picture of FAA F-4K Phantoms operating on board the USS Independence in 1973-75. The FAA Phantoms nose gear actually extended higher than that of the USN F-4J. The reason being they needed an even higher AOA on board the Ark Royal for Launch.

Sometime around the same time, VMFA-531 operated from the Ark Royal as well, I've seen picture so somehow they were able to launch from the Ark Royal without the even higher extension that the FAA F-4Ks had.

There must also be a flyable computer available for Nefarious to do FSO. So he doesn't keep talking about it for eight and a half hours on Friday night!

Offline FLOOB

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Re: A-rabs at War
« Reply #22 on: March 23, 2017, 08:05:47 AM »
What has this got to do with the Arabs?
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Offline Nefarious

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Re: A-rabs at War
« Reply #23 on: March 23, 2017, 08:27:36 AM »
What has this got to do with the Arabs?

LoL, that was the squadron name of VA-115, the Fighting Arabs or A-rabs.
There must also be a flyable computer available for Nefarious to do FSO. So he doesn't keep talking about it for eight and a half hours on Friday night!

Offline Old Sport

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Re: A-rabs at War
« Reply #24 on: March 24, 2017, 09:10:40 AM »
Sometime around the same time, VMFA-531 operated from the Ark Royal as well, I've seen picture so somehow they were able to launch from the Ark Royal without the even higher extension that the FAA F-4Ks had.

Just a wild guess, but perhaps they launched pretty clean, without ordnance, maybe only AIM 7's and 9's. Photos have ye?

Offline Nefarious

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Re: A-rabs at War
« Reply #25 on: March 24, 2017, 10:38:31 AM »
Just a wild guess, but perhaps they launched pretty clean, without ordnance, maybe only AIM 7's and 9's. Photos have ye?

Looks completely clean with the exception of a 600 gal centerline.

http://www.urbanghostsmedia.com
There must also be a flyable computer available for Nefarious to do FSO. So he doesn't keep talking about it for eight and a half hours on Friday night!

Offline mikeWe9a

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Re: A-rabs at War
« Reply #26 on: March 26, 2017, 03:22:59 PM »
On the F-4 there also look to be "hold back" straps which drop/break away when the catapult launches the fighter.  These would be to keep the aircraft from rolling forward and allowing slack to develop in the bridle.  If there is significant slack, then the fighter won't be smoothly pulled, but rather 'yanked' when the slack is taken up by the accelerating catapult.

Mike

Offline Ramesis

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Re: A-rabs at War
« Reply #27 on: March 26, 2017, 03:30:17 PM »
A little known fact about Crusaders ... raising the wings
was not for talking off but for landing... allowed the pilot
to see the deck/runway because of its high landing speed
At least from what I undertstand  :cheers:

"Would you tell me, please,
 which way I ought to go from here?
 That depends a good deal on where
 you want to get to. Said the cat."
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