RealA4EPilot Posted January 27, 2022 Share Posted January 27, 2022 Introduction of a Really Old A-4E Driver I started flying A-4s in January 1965. No matter on which side of the bread you butter your toast, that’s a bunch of years ago . . . 57 years ago to be exact. I was trained at NAS Cecil Field in Jacksonville, FL, and I flew A-4B, C, E, and F aircraft with the Blue Hawks of VA-72, the Vampires of VX-5, and the Lobos of VA-305. I also flew A-7Bs with the Silver Foxes of VA-155, but that’s a different aircraft and another story. It’s important to mention to the A-4E DCS community here that two of the three deployments I made with VA-72 I flew the A-4E, a straight or basic A-4E during the first cruise and the Shoehorned A-4E during the second cruise. Both deployments were to the Gulf of Tonkin and the Vietnam War. During those deployments I carried and/or delivered WWII fat bombs, the full line of the low drag Mk-80 series bombs, small and large Bullpup guided air to ground missiles, AN/AGM-45A Shrike anti-radiation missiles used to knock out fire control radars for Soviet supplied SA-2 Guideline surface to air missiles and anti-aircraft or flack guns, cluster munitions, napalm, 2.75 in. and 5.0 in rockets, etc. In short just about every piece of conventional ordnance the aircraft could carry. I emphasize my experience with the scooter in combat and peacetime not as an act of chest beating or horn tooting. I bring it up for one reason and one reason only. If I respond to a discussion of the A-4E, its arsenal of weapons, its electronic equipment, its configuration, its employment, tactics, or how the pilots were trained, I know of what I speak. In the vernacular of today, “Been there, done that.” Oh yeah, about the really old part. I celebrated my 80th birthday in January 2022. FWIW, during my time flying A-4 aircraft I amassed several hundred arrested carrier landings and roughly 1,500 hours of flight time in one A-4 cockpit or another. More than half the guys I flew A-4s with have flown off into the perpetually warm late summer sunset. 32 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashayar Posted January 27, 2022 Share Posted January 27, 2022 o7 Sir and Happy Birthday, even if I'm late Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Victory205 Posted January 27, 2022 Share Posted January 27, 2022 Congrats on your 80th, you are just getting warmed up. More Naval Aviators around here is a wonderful thing… Viewpoints are my own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bearfoot Posted January 27, 2022 Share Posted January 27, 2022 WELCOME! Your experience, perspectives, stories, and insight will always be welcome and appreciated, as are your years of service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slant Posted January 29, 2022 Share Posted January 29, 2022 Hey, thanks for dropping in. That's a whole lot of experience. Not flying the A-4 myself, but there are a lot of fans around here! http://www.csg-2.net/ | i7 7700k - NVIDIA 1080 - 32GB RAM | BKR! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cab Posted January 29, 2022 Share Posted January 29, 2022 Welcome aboard, sir. And Happy Birthday! So, down to business... Would you mind visiting the forum thread linked below and providing your input on whether or not the A-4E had nose wheel steering? Seems to be some controversy about that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plusnine Posted January 30, 2022 Share Posted January 30, 2022 hey, nice one. don't hesitate to reach out to the team with your thoughts, we love to hear from pilots who dealt with the real mccoy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calabrone Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 Sir although very very late but many happy birthday wishes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hiob Posted February 16, 2022 Share Posted February 16, 2022 (edited) Hey, a late Happy Birthday and Welcome from me aswell. Though I met you in other threads, I wasn't aware you introduced yourself here and that you probably single-handed raised the age average here by a couple of years! (No offence!) It's always great to have real life pilots (be it active or retired) and listen to their insights and stories. Much appreciated! And seeing an age veteran engaging in our hobby gives me hope for my personal flight-sim future! Have a good time here! btw... I don't know if you realized already, that @plusnine is the (or one of the) creators of the beloved A-4E Community Mod. So probably your best adress for giving feedback to the Skyhawk in DCS. Edited February 16, 2022 by Hiob "Muß ich denn jedes Mal, wenn ich sauge oder saugblase den Schlauchstecker in die Schlauchnut schieben?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TK-421 Posted April 14, 2022 Share Posted April 14, 2022 (edited) Hey @RealA4EPilot You wouldn't happen to have any photos of the cockpit of an A-4 set up for the AGM-12 Bullpup or the AGM-62 Walleye? I figure there was a controller joystick for both of them and a TV screen installed for the Walleye but I can't find any photos of what they actually looked like when installed inside the aircraft. Closest information I could find was this doco; Edited April 14, 2022 by TK-421 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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