Ugly But Effective: The Vought A-7 Corsair II

Few remember the Vought A-7 Corsair II. The Navy attack jet simply lacked the cultural presence to make any sort of staying impact – despite serving for one quarter century. The reason, I suspect, is because the A-7 was quite ugly.

Making an Impact

While the average member of the public may not track military aircraft, most seem to have a general awareness of the basics. Many aircraft gain some mainstream traction either through their use in entertainment, or through some sort of policy/budgeting debate. The F-14 and F/A-18, for example, were featured in the Top Gun franchise and resultingly gained presence amongst the general public. To a lesser extent the A-6 gained exposure through Flight of the Intruder; the F-16 through Iron Eagle. Other aircraft, like the B-1, the A-10, and the F-35, were in the news frequently—thanks to development or budgeting debates—enough to have become somewhat recognizable. Still, other aircraft simply serve before being decommissioned and, ultimately, fading entirely from the public’s conscious. The A-7 is one such aircraft.

As a quick aside, the A-7 was featured in a film, The Final Countdown, starring Kirk Douglas and Martin Sheen, albeit in a limited role.

Anyways, the A-7 was a capable aircraft, despite its lack of cultural staying power. Carrier-compatible, the A-7 entered service in 1967, at the beginning of the Vietnam War, as an intended replacement for the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk. The A-4 stayed in service, however, meaning that the A-7 never did serve as a direct replacement for the A-4. Nevertheless, the A-7 was integrated into the Navy as a valuable attack aircraft.

The distinguishing performance feature of the A-7, perhaps, was its subsonic flight speed. In an era where jets were being made to push the speed envelope, to break the sound barrier, the A-7 was designed to fly about as fast as a commercial airliner. The reason: subsonic jets could be made smaller and cheaper and were simpler to maintain.

Derivative of a Gunfighter

The A-7 was derived from Vought’s F-8 Crusader, a single-engine, supersonic, air superiority jet that was known as “The Last of the Gunfighters.” The F-8 was first flown in the 1950s, and served with the US Navy until 1976. The A-7 would adopt the general layout of the F-8, only shorter, with a stubbier nosecone—making for an ungainly appearance. Yet, despite the A-7’s appearance, the jet would perform admirably. Notably, the A-7 could perform rapid aileron rolls, even when weighed down with its impressive six-ton payload, which happened to make for double the payload capacity of the A-4. In addition to a massive payload capacity, the A-7 had impressive range—again double that of the A-4—making the A-7 an effective candidate for bombing missions.

The pilots noted that the A-7 was easy to fly, with excellent forward visibility. Although the jet was not perfect, lacking stability on crosswind landings, suffering from poor stopping performance, and lacking adequate thrust (which would later be addressed with an upgraded TF30-8 engine). The pilots also gave the A-7 a nickname, perhaps the most enduring feature of the now-obscure aircraft: “SLUF,” which stands for “Short Little Ugly F****.”

Harrison Kass is a defense and national security writer with over 1,000 total pieces on issues involving global affairs. An attorney, pilot, guitarist, and minor pro hockey player, Harrison joined the US Air Force as a Pilot Trainee but was medically discharged. Harrison holds a BA from Lake Forest College, a JD from the University of Oregon, and an MA from New York University. Harrison listens to Dokken.

Image: Wikimedia Commons.