I stopped off at my local HobbyTown to treat myself to a 40th birthday present. (siiiiiiigh) Anyway, as someone who builds 99.9% WW2 models, I decided to take a break from the ordinary and get myself a jet.
Monogram has re-released their A-4 Skyhawk which can be built as either a Blue Angels plane or as John McCain’s A-4. According to the instructions, his was an A-4E. In the kit itself are the parts needed to add the avionics hump. Since I am not well versed in the little nuances and variants of Viet Nam era jets, can anybody tell me what would be the correct thing to do for John McCain’s jet? Would it be with or without the camel hump?
I guess I’ll be learning more about jets as the kits roll on. I was doing some more internet browsing late last night and I saw that there was basically an early and a late -E version. One with the hump and one without respectively.
I’ve always liked the look of the A-4 with the hump and, while tempted to use it, I care more about the historical accuracy and I’ll build McCain’s plane sans hump.
You could do T R Swartz’s A-4, the first man to take down a Mig with a Zuni rocket! For those of you who don’t know, a Zuni is an unguided air to ground rocket.
I interviewed him for a Timeless Voices interview, great man with amazing stories.
Ditto, no Avionics “hump”. McCain was flying A4E Bu. No. 149959 with VA 163 (The Saints) off of the U.S.S. Oriskany. The aircraft had the # 300 on the nose. Do a web search and you will find several pictures of the aircraft before it was shot down. IIR it was his flight leaders (squadron leader?) aircraft he was flying that fateful day.
FWIW, In Navy squadrons the “X00” aircraft would have the CAG’s (air group commander) name on it, while “X01” would be assigned to the squadron CO and “X02” to the squadron XO.
In reality pilots seldom ever fly the aircraft assigned to them with their name painted on the canopy.
The more I learn, the more I learn that I know so little. LOL! I guess I’m kind of confused a little. Was McCain flying with VA 163 when he got shot down or was he with another squadron either then or perhaps before that? I’m looking at the decal placement and painting guide for the Monogram kit. It shows John McCain’s A-4E from VA-45 “Klansmen” from the USS Forrestal, June 1967, BuNo 149996. Is what’s shown on the instruction sheet correct?
IIRC, he flew two or three tours over NVN off both the Forrestal and Oriskany, and he actually extended his time there and transferred to make up one units shortfall in pilots.
Here is the listing of his downing from Skyhawk.org
And if you look carefully in the video of the fire on the Forrestal you can see him climbing out onto the refueling probe of an A-4 to get away from the fireball.
