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So I'm planning a 1/48 KA-6D and I have the Cobra Co. conversion and Steel Beach set and have a question, how common was it for them to fly with a Buddy Pod on the center? I would think it's for a back-up for the built-in refueling system. Also, did every Intruder squadron have KA-6Ds? Thanks.

 

Duane

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Yes it was common for the tankers to carry a buddy store, as you thought, as a backup for the tankers system.  Assuming your buddy stores were in working order. They could be a pain to keep working at times.  We had one occasion where we had 5 buddy stores we just couldn’t get working. They loaded all onto one of our A-6’s to ferry back to the PI for heavier maintenance and as the plane cleared the cat and started to retract the gear all 5 stores jettisoned .... problems solved. 

I cant say all squadrons had tankers all the time but we always had more (5-6 D’s) while we were deployed than when we were home between cruises.  Some got transferred to deploying units and some went to overhaul. It’s fairly easy to find tanker pics that show them with the wrong color aft fuselage band for the squadron meaning they got transferred from another unit to cover a loss or just bring the squadron up to strength for deployment. 

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No not all Navy squadrons had KA-6Ds all the time.

VA-65 in Desert Storm is just one example, no dedicated D tanker. 

Also think it depends what period you're talking. 

Edited by ziggyfoos
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Thank you for the help Gary. The tanker intruder hasn't been done a bunch in decal form, so I'm looking at what I can do. I have a couple of the Aeromaster Nimitz Cruise sheets that have VA-35 which I'm leaning towards.

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2 minutes ago, ziggyfoos said:

No not all Navy squadrons had KA-6Ds all the time.

VA-65 in Desert Storm is just one example, no dedicated D tanker. 

Also think it depends what period you're talking. 

I'm thinking post Vietnam, but I'm still in the planning phase, maybe in the late 70s into the 80s.

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In a lot of cases the only difference in markings would be the tail number and 2 digit numbers on nose, flap, and tail tip which tou could piece together.  The aft fuselage tanker band could be painted. So if you can find a squadron you want to do and can find the decals in general you should be able to piece the tanker specific bits from the rest of the sheet or spares. I know there are VA-196 decals for tankers (Super Scale) and pretty sure there were tankers on the Furball Intruder decal sheets (48th scale).  SS did both 48th and 72nd.  If you have any other questions just ask. 

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