Number 93 in Osprey's Combat Aircraft series is on the A-6 Intruder and its role in the Vietnam War. The A-6 was a result of the Navy's desire to have a 'medium attack' aircraft to fit in between the light attack planes such as the A-4 Skyhawk and the heavies such as the A-3 Skywarrior. It was required for the aircraft to be able to operate at night and in somewhat inclement weather. Previously, these sorts of operations were done by specialized units flying aircraft like the AD-5N Skyraider.

It was decided to have both the pilot and the weapons system operator sit side by side in a rather wide cockpit and this turned out to be a great way to provide good crew coordination, something that one doesn't get with one guy sits behind the other as in today's two seat strike aircraft.

Anyway, Grumman got the contract for their A2F and as often happens, a lot of new and untried equipment was part of the package. The aircraft suffered through the usual teething troubles, most of it to do with the bombing/navigation suite. Like the later F-111, the A-6 was designed to operate at low level, over rough terrain, at night and in poor weather. The system, developed by Litton eventually had the bugs worked out of it, but it took a while and initial aircraft deliveries had a system that did not work as advertised.

As the A-6 was entering into fleet service, the Vietnam War was getting serious. The first unit to build up was VA-75, the Sunday Punchers. They were also the first unit deployed to Vietnam for the first of three war cruises. Things did not go exactly as planned as several aircraft were lost. Some to flak, but some also to an issue with premature bomb detonations as the bombs went off as soon as they were released. Not good. They were replaced by VA-85 who had similar issues with premature detonation before the issue was fixed once and for all. The record for war cruises was held by VA-196 with five. Not surprisingly, most, though not all, A-6 fleet units saw combat in Vietnam. The same goes for their Marine Corps brethren.

By the time of the end of the war in 1973, 17 per cent of all A-6A/EA-6A production had been lost in combat. That totaled 84 aircraft. Though not like the losses to the F-105 community, it was still significant as the Navy did not fly as many sorties. The A-6A was replaced post war by the more capable A-6E and many older airframes were upgraded.

Author Rick Morgan takes a look at the design and development of the Intruder and the build up to get units on line for the war. As you might expect, there are a lot of 'war stories' in this one as each unit that was sent into combat is covered. As mentioned, the Marine involvement with the Intruder is covered as well, including their operations of the EA-6A, a version the Navy did not use during the war. The book is full of stats, great photos and several pages of profiles.

In all, I found the book to be a superb read about an aircraft that is often overlooked by both enthusiasts and modelers alike. Most highly recommended.

January 2013

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