Our story’s main character was manufactured at the Douglas Aircraft Company plant in Long Beach (California) and was delivered to the United States Navy on 06/01/1964 bearing Bureau of Aeronautics Number 151095.
In nearly three decades of operational service, it logged a long and intense activity in both training and combat duties ranging from the Vietnam War to the Naval Fighter Weapons School (NFWS) “Top Gun”.
But its starring moment came in the mid-1980s, when it became known worldwide by participating in Top Gun 1986, the movie released on 05/16/1986 where it was one of the planes that simulated enemy MiG fighters challenging F-14 Tomcat crews to hone their best air-to-air fighting tactics.
Flown by instructor pilot, Major Rick “Jester” Heatherly (played by Canadian actor Michael Ironside), it made Pete “Maverick” Mitchell (Tom Cruise), Nick “Goose” Bradshaw (Anthony Edwards) and their classmates feel “the need for speed”…
At times during the filming of Top Gun in 1986, Ironside admitted that he felt insecure about his performance as a military character: He thought that he was not doing well and that his acting felt very forced.
One day, a junior officer who was running past him, stopped short and saluted Ironside (who was dressed as his character) because the young man thought that he was facing an actual, higher ranking, Navy officer.
Ironside chided him, saying “slow down”, to which the young lieutenant replied “sorry! Yes sir!”… then the actor felt comfortable and more relaxed about his characterization.
Born in the sixties
Skyhawk #13265 started its operational career with VA-81 “Sunliners”, deploying to the Mediterranean Sea aboard aircraft carrier USS Forrestal from 06/01/1964 to 12/15/1967.
On 05/01/1966 it moved to NAS Cecil Field, Florida, returning to the Mediterranean Sea aboard aircraft carrier USS Shangri-La between 09/29/1966 to 05/20/1967.
In 12/1968, it was deployed to fight in Vietnam with the U.S. Marine Corps, being based at Chu Lai (South Vietnam) with VMA-223.
On 01/29/1973, as a member of VMA-311, it left Vietnam after carrying out a total of 54,625 combat sorties and dropping 105,000 tons of artillery during the conflict.
At the beginning of the 1980s, it was reassigned to the NFWS, which was originally established as a “school” within VF-121, a Replacement Air Group (RAG) with F-4 at NAS Miramar.
NFWS was tasked with providing post-graduate level air combat maneuver (ACM) training and used the resources of VF-126 with their A-4s in the aggressor role, its first class beginning on 03/03/1969.
The school evolved in 01/1972 into a detachment from VF-121 and continued to use Skyhawks and maintenance support personnel from VF-126.
Instructors flew the A-4s and each aircrew that passed as a student brought with them their own squadron maintenance personnel and their own squadron aircraft.
In 07/1972, NFWS received full squadron status and committed itself to run postgraduate courses for Navy pilots, while VF-126 continued as the adversary unit, supporting the F-4s and F-14s at NAS Miramar.
After finishing its activity as a Top Gun aggressor fighter, it was assigned to Naval Aviation Depot North Island (California) during 1990 and completed its extensive operational career at VC-5 squadron flying from NAS Cubi Point (Philippines) through its 03/1992 discharged.
Variants:
- A-4E (1964).
Identities:
- BuNo 151095 (1964).
Owners and operators:
- VA-81 “Sunliners” “AJ-410” USS Forrestal (06/01/1964), VA-106 “Gladiators” USS Intrepid (12/15/1967), VA-83 “Rampagers” USS Shangri-La (07/28/ 1967), VA-106 “Gladiators” USS Intrepid (12/15/1967), VMA-223 ” Bulldogs” Chu Lai, South Vietnam, (12/31/1968), VMA-211 “Wake Island Avengers” MCAS Iwakuni, Japan (01/22/1970), VMA -311 “Tomcats” “WL-17” Chu Lai, South Vietnam (06/29/1970), VMA-211 “Wake Island Avengers” “CF-5” MCAS Iwakuni, Japan (12/07/1973), VMA-131 “Diamondbacks” “QR-61”, Marine Air Reserve Training Detachment (MARTD) NAF Willow Grove, Pennsylvania (09/19/1976), MARTD NAS South Weymouth, Massachusetts (09/23/1977), H&MS-49 Detachment South Weymouth, Massachusetts (01/16/1979), VMA-322 “Fighting Gamecocks” “QR-61” NAS South Weymouth, Massachusetts (1980/1981),Naval Fighter Weapons School (NFWS) “555” then “55” (1987/1988) NAS Miramar, California (03/06/1985), Naval Aviation Depot (NADEP) MCAS Cherry Point, North Carolina (09/01/1989), Naval Aviation Depot North Island, California (06/19/1990), VC-5 “Checkertails” “UE-03” NAS Cubi Point, Subic Bay, Republic of the Philippines (08/31/1990).
Fate:
Struck off charge 1992 and preserved at NAF Atsugi, Japan. Currently kept in Tokushima-Ken, Japan.
Internet references:
Perfiles en Detalle, Forgotten Jets, Skyhawk Association, Gary Verver, Wikimedia Commons, John Margie, Shizuha and Takafumi Hiroe, Facebook Cinefilos Rebeldes, Facebook Fanaticos de TopGun, Angelo Romano collection, Keith “Sven” Svendsen, Lt.Col., USAF “Ret”
