A-7s at the boneyard....

Navy Chief

Navy Chief

Senior Member
I don't know when this picture was taken. But it always saddens me in a way to see pictures of aircraft at the boneyard, Davis-Monthan AFB.

A-7 Corsairs.......

Navy Chief
 
Chief,
I spent 9 yrs @ Davis-Monthan....one of the most 'striking' memories I have of the "boneyard" is the shear amount of "A models" of the F-14/15/16 that were stored there...
 
navychief said:
I don't know when this picture was taken. But it always saddens me in a way to see pictures of aircraft at the boneyard, Davis-Monthan AFB.

A-7 Corsairs.......

Navy Chief
Click to expand...




Me too Chief - what an incredible waste of prime real estate ! What the hell are we saving 200-300 A-7's for ? We probably don't have many Navy jocks that are qualified anymore in them and NOBODY'S going to buy them.

Is there some other residual value that I'm unaware of that justifies the expense and use of space ?
 
I have fond memories of watching the A-7s of the Ohio Air National Guard flying maneuvers over my home county...my childhood home was right smack dab in the middle of their flight zone. Of all the military jets that I have installed, which isn't all that many, the Iris freeware A-7 is the one I fly the most often.

I agree that it is a waste of those beautiful aircraft, of land usage, and tax payer money storing them. Donate some to museums, sell some to private pilots, give one or two to me, then melt down the rest and replant that land with some trees and grass.

OBIO
 
Just "across the street" from the boneyard is the Pima Air & Space Museum, one of this area's hidden treasures. The number of planes on display is impressive, and the ones being worked on "in back" are pretty impressive too. When I was there last year I saw a B58 and a B36 in the process of being restored. That radial in my avatar was taken there too. Unfortunately it was a rainy day, so most of my outdoor pics are pretty muddy.
 
I always wanted to buy an old A-7 cockpit simulator. Years ago, I corresponded with a guy who had a USAF A-7D cockpit he was restoring. Lucky b......d.

NC
 
Here is the info I found.

By 1981, with the exception of the A-7Ds used in the F-117A program, the last active-duty Corsairs were reassigned to ANG squadrons by the 23d Tactical Fighter Wing at England Air Force Base, Louisiana. Many active duty pilots missed the performance and sophistication of the Corsair. The A-7Ds used by the 4450th Tactical Group in Nevada were either retired or sent to ANG units in 1989.
F-16s began replacing the Air National Guard Corsairs beginning in the late 1980s and the last were retired in 1993 by the ANG units at Rickenbacker ANGB, (Ohio); Des Moines International Airport/ANGB, (Iowa); Tulsa International Airport/ANGB, (Oklahoma); and Springfield-Beckley Municipal Airport/ANGB, (Ohio).
U.S. Navy A-7 Corsairs began being phased out of the fleet during the mid-1980s with the arrival of the McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) F/A-18 Hornet. The last Navy A-7s were retired by the last fleet operational squadrons (VA-46 and VA-72) in May 1991 shortly after their return from Operation Desert Storm.
Some of these surplus aircraft were passed to Greece, Thailand and Portugal; however by the end of 1998, with the exception of some airframes used as static displays, all US A-7s were disposed of by the AMARC at Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona.
The Hellenic Air Force purchased new A-7H aircraft in moderate numbers. The last two squadrons that used the aircraft were the 335th and 336th. The A-7 remains still in limited operational use by the latter, as the type is gradually being retired, to be replaced by newly purchased F-16s.
The Portuguese Air Force selected the A-7P (modified A-7A/B models) and flew them extensively from 1981 onward. The reliability and exceptional range allowing unrefueled routine flights to the Madera Islands and Lajes AB in the Azores.
 
A few years back,at Victoria Air Maintenance, in Victoria, B.C, One of the Early T-28 customers there, Rich Sugden, I think, Was having an A-7 restored to airworthy status.Don't know what the status of the project is these days. How'd ya like to have that kind of cash. We had started a T-2 for the same bloke, I think, back when I was a sprog there in the early '90's.
3/7charlie
 
Thank you, Safn1949, for your post!

A friend of mine, Fred Sanders, had sent me the A-7 picture. Fred is an ex USN A-7 pilot, and I correspond with him almost daily. I have previously posted cartoons that Fred drew.

NC
 
djscoo said:
Razbam is...:kilroy:
Click to expand...

Oh yes. RAZBAM is most definitely working on the SLUF!

I sent Ron every book, magazine, and document I had on the aircraft.

I can guarantee a LOT of work, and then some, is going into this one.

Go NAVAIR

Navy Chief
 
yay! SLUF.... but yeah saddens me to see them like this, think of the A-7 as your favourite dog, years of being loyal and always there, then the next day it's run away.... i'll always have fond memories of the A-7, back in Greece these were always one of my favourites to hear about, 335 'Tigers' used them, hope Razbam include a greek paint :jump:
 
Chief, weren't they cut up for scrap like all the others there at Davis-Monthan AFB, or is it just storeage?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top