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With the Trumpeter 1/32 A-6A Intruder almost on the horizon, here are a couple of interesting A-6A loads:

VA-85 Black Falcons USS Kitty Hawk CVA-63 1968:

http://naval.aviation.museum/emuwebdoncoms/objects/common/webmedia.php?irn=2886

VA-165 Boomers USS Ranger CVA-61 1967/68:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/A-6A-CVA-61_with_AIM-9D_NAN6-68.jpg

Jari

edit: a couple of more:

http://www.jamercer.com/jsrvn/cruisebk/225-061.jpg

http://www.jamercer.com/jsrvn/cruisebk/225-062.jpg

Edited by Finn
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We (VA-196) had about half dozen Sidewinder rails in squadron and saw them load the rails from time to time (SEA in '72) but didn't see any AIM-9's ever fly off the boat during that cruise (we had mix of A's, B, D). We also had the rails again on the next cruise but again, never saw them fly off the boat with them.

I was told they had been used a few times on the SEA cruise before I joined the squadron ... that it just depended on the Mig threat at the time.

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Sidewinders were included in the Weapons Loading Manual,,,,cleared for all 4 wing stations,,,,that chart is old enough that it included MBRs as options with MERs, so, it must have been along with the first A-6A cruise

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Could be wrong, but that first photo in the OP; are those not AGM-45 Shrikes it's carrying? In that case, would that not make it an A-6B ("Ironhand" missions) and not an A-6A?

Marc B.

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yes, those are Shrikes,,,,but, there are two reasons that is not an A-6B carrying them

one is that the A-6A was cleared for Shrikes very early in the program

the other is that there was no A-6B yet at the time of the VA-85 first Kittyhawk cruise

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  • 5 years later...
On 6/27/2012 at 12:43 AM, Finn said:

Pretty sure this one was an A-6B from the VA-75 Sunday Punchers, as they were the A-6 squadron on the Kitty Hawk in 1968. Interesting load with Shrikes and Snakeyes!

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55 minutes ago, mrvark said:

Pretty sure this one was an A-6B from the VA-75 Sunday Punchers, as they were the A-6 squadron on the Kitty Hawk in 1968. Interesting load with Shrikes and Snakeyes!

 

It is pic of VA-85 but from 1967 not 1968. (Also VA-75s 1968 NH tail codes were inline and they had black modex with white drop shadow, the white modex and shifted tail codes in pic also confirm it's VA-85)

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10 minutes ago, Alpagueur said:

thanks. which versions carried the ALQ-100 antenna? Bravo only or Alpha, too?

Why Trumpeter does not include these antennas on their kits?

They all got them (and EA-6A too). The -100 was introduced around 1968 and retrofitted to earlier airframes.

 

Trumpeter 1/32 and Hobby Boss 1/48 A-6A kits do include them, they're part of the pylons - but their version of the antenna is not shaped well (way too thin). The Es didn't have them. 

Edited by ziggyfoos
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17 hours ago, ziggyfoos said:

It is pic of VA-85 but from 1967 not 1968. (Also VA-75s 1968 NH tail codes were inline and they had black modex with white drop shadow, the white modex and shifted tail codes in pic also confirm it's VA-85)

 

I checked a couple of sources and don't see that VA-85 was using A-6Bs at that point. However, from Thornborough & Mormillo's Iron Hand, it appears that A-6As were carrying AGM-45s then; interesting.

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2 hours ago, mrvark said:

 

I checked a couple of sources and don't see that VA-85 was using A-6Bs at that point. However, from Thornborough & Mormillo's Iron Hand, it appears that A-6As were carrying AGM-45s then; interesting.

OT - but if anyone is interested in the subject of SEAD (from a US perspective), I highly recommend the above book.  Unbelievable details on the subject (it mentioned that Shrikes were originally developed to arm nuclear weapon equipped A-4's so they could take out Russian and Chinese radars in support of their SIOP missions).   Good mix of technical details and "there I was..." anecdotes.  

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1852606053/ref=x_gr_w_bb_sout?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_bb_sout-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1852606053&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2

 

 

Edited by 11bee
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On 7/1/2018 at 6:02 PM, 11bee said:

OT - but if anyone is interested in the subject of SEAD (from a US perspective), I highly recommend the above book.  Unbelievable details on the subject (it mentioned that Shrikes were originally developed to arm nuclear weapon equipped A-4's so they could take out Russian and Chinese radars in support of their SIOP missions).   Good mix of technical details and "there I was..." anecdotes.  

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1852606053/ref=x_gr_w_bb_sout?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_bb_sout-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1852606053&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2

 

I already got the Tony's book and I really love the A-6B (pat/arm) with AGM-78s :wave:

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