And what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.
Skyhawk looping inside a Phantom. It's an interesting picture. The Phantom can outrun the Skyhawk but the Skyhawk can out maneuver the Phantom. Both great aircraft.
I looked pretty closely at this, and I **think** that you might be right....the leading plane is certainly a F-4, and I'm about 2/3rds convinced that the trailing plane is a T-45. The trailer has 2 seats, which might make me think that it was a TA-4, but it is labeled as "Navy" (I believe that the Marines had the TA-4 and not the Navy), and I think that we're looking at a pitot tube and not a refueling probe. If I've got that right, then it is a T-45. How and why they put these 2 together is another question.
The Navy certainly did have TA-4's.....we used them for advanced jet back in the day, and you carrier qualified in them before you got your wings. Also TA-4's were used in the Navy for adversary work, and safety chase at Pax River. The UX on the tail of the TA-4 denotes that it was doing adversary work in VC-13, likely in the 70's or 80's, so it was an air combat maneuvering event by an F-4 against a VC-13 A-4. Fun!
F-4's and T-45's were of different eras in the US inventory. I did developmental test on the T-45 and F-4's were a pleasant memory.
Current use of UX is a test and evaluation unit that flies UAS. Most TA-4s I saw in the Navy were trainers painted white and orange. The USMC flew OA-4s, which were two-seat observation aircraft. I don' think it's a T-45 as it's not orange and white, the upper portion of the aircraft comes straight back from the cockpit.
I see T-45s come through a nearby airport periodically. I presume that they're transitting between some East/Gulf Coast training base and an exercise or carrier quals off of San Diego. Most of these are, as you say, orange and white, but some are in grays or camo.
Skyhawk looping inside a Phantom. It's an interesting picture. The Phantom can outrun the Skyhawk but the Skyhawk can out maneuver the Phantom. Both great aircraft.
ReplyDeleteTo me it looks like a T-45 Goshawk.
ReplyDeleteBoth aircraft are McDonald Douglass
I looked pretty closely at this, and I **think** that you might be right....the leading plane is certainly a F-4, and I'm about 2/3rds convinced that the trailing plane is a T-45. The trailer has 2 seats, which might make me think that it was a TA-4, but it is labeled as "Navy" (I believe that the Marines had the TA-4 and not the Navy), and I think that we're looking at a pitot tube and not a refueling probe. If I've got that right, then it is a T-45. How and why they put these 2 together is another question.
DeleteCool photo nonetheless.
azlibertarian
Yeap… if it’s trailing smoke, it’s a F4….
ReplyDeleteHa! Correct!
DeleteThe Navy certainly did have TA-4's.....we used them for advanced jet back in the day, and you carrier qualified in them before you got your wings. Also TA-4's were used in the Navy for adversary work, and safety chase at Pax River. The UX on the tail of the TA-4 denotes that it was doing adversary work in VC-13, likely in the 70's or 80's, so it was an air combat maneuvering event by an F-4 against a VC-13 A-4. Fun!
ReplyDeleteF-4's and T-45's were of different eras in the US inventory. I did developmental test on the T-45 and F-4's were a pleasant memory.
I stand corrected on the Navy having TA-4s. As a former-AF guy I hope that you'll understand that many of us saw your world as mysterious.
Deleteazlibertarian
Current use of UX is a test and evaluation unit that flies UAS. Most TA-4s I saw in the Navy were trainers painted white and orange. The USMC flew OA-4s, which were two-seat observation aircraft. I don' think it's a T-45 as it's not orange and white, the upper portion of the aircraft comes straight back from the cockpit.
ReplyDeleteI see T-45s come through a nearby airport periodically. I presume that they're transitting between some East/Gulf Coast training base and an exercise or carrier quals off of San Diego. Most of these are, as you say, orange and white, but some are in grays or camo.
Deleteazlibertarian
That's Viper before he was CO, beating some guy 20 Top Gun classes before Maverick showed up, well inside the Phantom's OODA loop.
ReplyDeleteTA-4J (Navy trainer) - https://vintageaviationnews.com/restorations/doug-matthews-a-4-skyhawk-airborne.html
ReplyDelete