@ Merritt Island, FL
September 2021
Based on the F-8 Crusader, the Corsair II was developed as a replacement for the A-4 Skyhawk, with greater range and payload. First fleet delivery was October 1966 with final retirement in May 1991. This example is displayed here at the Brevard Veterans Memorial Center. Delivered in 1971, this Corsair II (BuNo 156804) saw action over Vietnam while assign to the USS Constellation and USS America. Acquired in 2014, this plane is on loan from the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola. It bears the markings of VF-147 Argonauts, the first squadron to fly A-7s in Vietnam. In the foreground is a 500lb Mk 82 Snake eye bomb with retarding petals deployed. The petals increase the drag of the bomb, slowing its descent and allowing the delivery aircraft to safely pass over the target before the bomb explodes. iPhone 12 Pro photo.
