A3 Skywarrior

The A3 Skywarrior was the largest and heaviest aircraft designed for operation from an aircraft carrier. Intended as a strategic bomber, it is a swept ins ring monoplane design with retractable landing gear, two podded turbojets beneath the wing, and an internal weapons bay. The first flight of the type was 28 October 1952. The production version of the &rsaquony warrior was the A3D2. It served aboard eight of the Essex and Midway class US Navy aircraft carriers beginning in 1956.

Service during the Vietnam War included the KA3B refueling tanker and the EKA3B tanker and countermeasure configuration. The Skywarrior also served as trainers, personal transports, and as reconnaissance aircraft. Production ended in 1961 at 282 aircraft. The Navy retired the Skywarrior on 27 December 1991.

Skywarrior Units of the Vietnam War, by Rick Morgan Douglas A3 Skywarrior, in two volumes, by Bruce Cunningham and Birds of Feather by Steve Pace in AIRPOWER Magazine July 1988. 

MANUFACTURER: Douglas Aircraft
MAXIMUM SPEED: 610 mph
RANGE: 1,050 miles
WINGSPAN: 72 feet, 6 inches
LENGTH: 76 feet, 4 inches
HEIGHT: 22 feet, 9.5 inches
GROSS WEIGHT: 82,000 lbs

The Museum's Skywarrior is
BuNo 1: 7832, and served on the
USS Saratoga with VAQ33