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Description
| Manufacturer: | North American | |
| Base model: | A3J | |
| Designation: | A3J | |
| Version: | -3P | |
| Nickname: | Vigilante | |
| Designation System: | U.S. Navy / Marines | |
| Designation Period: | 1946-1962 | |
| Basic role: | Attack | |
| Modified Mission: | Photographic reconnaissance/Survey | |
| See Also: | ||
Specifications
| Not Yet Available |
Known serial numbers
Recent comments by our visitors
| Ed Karsin Coraopolis, PA | To Mary Monroe:
Sorry Mary, I can't be of any help. I was in the Maintenance and Engineering Training Dept. So I had little if any experiences with the pilot-navs. I taught the Electronic Techs who repaired and maintained the Bomb Nav systems. I can remember other Training personnel: Sam Cooper, Bob Mellon, Jerry, Les... Can't remember their last names. That was over 40 years ago, and my memory isn't that good. Ed 08/23/2008 @ 07:34 [ref: 22530] |
| Fred Wise Glen Burnie, MD | Dennis, I worked in a maint dept (cant remember the nbr now - hey 46 years have come and gone) Jun thru Oct of 1962 on airframes #58 thru #62.
I was a hardware electronics type from NavSecGru and didnt like just plugging/unplugging black boxes and running the tests by rote. Ended up leaving for an ET type job at NSA in Md. Did they ever figure out why the rollout feature failed those several times after an over the shoulder labs maneuver?? Our maint dept never turned up anomalies in any of the circuitry or hydraulics before I left. I remember Wild Bill, when he roared out of a parking space, blew the cover off of an air starter with the exhaust blast, nearly decapitated one of our crew, scattering the guys tools, box and all, for thirty some yards; drug the starboard wing tip on the apron as he swerved out onto the runway. Yeah I remember Bill. I think Tim Patton may have talked to him about safety after that little episode. ;-) 08/09/2008 @ 17:47 [ref: 22408] |
| Alvis Didway Madison, NC | We have a new website to honor the aircraft from its inception thru its life of service. There will be a page for each aircraft so people can post photos of the aircraft and any stories for that aircraft, Our first news letter will be coming out next week and the only photo is of the first proto type, please go to rvahnavy.com and check it out, join the forum and stand by for good things to come, thanks for your time, old RA5C mech, ADJ3 Alvis 02/09/2008 @ 14:10 [ref: 19624] |
| John Lomenick CWO2 USN Ret Millersville, MO | HI Vigi fans. I was introduced to the Vigi at Pax River, MD while assigned to Service Test in 1961. Later my squadron VAH-13 with the A3d transitioned to the RA5C in summer of 1964 at Sanford, FL. I spent 13 years with them as nonrated and advancing through Senior chief and Maintenance Chief for RVAH-12. During my career I was assigned to: RVAH-13,3,6 and 12. At one time I witnessed a "spook" Vigi (I belive it was top secret then and was attached to RVAH-12?) landing on a carrier with an unusual round sensor approximately 1 ft in diameter located about the forward portion of the "top cap" fuel cell. As soon as it landed it was covered with a red protection cover. I also think it was experimental because I never witnessed another Vigi modified with the sensor. Any one knowledgable of this once spook equipment on the Vigi? 11/23/2007 @ 21:46 [ref: 18649] |
| Mary Monroe New York, NY | To Mr. Karsin: I'm wondering if you crossed paths with my dad, Larry Monroe? He and Leroy Heath are in a photo located on another A3J page on this site (http://www.aero-web.org/specs/northam/a3j-1.htm), taken at the World Altitude Record flight (12/13/60) -- dad was B/N and Leroy was pilot. My brother and I are looking for anyone who knew him and might be willing to share an anectdote or two about him. He died young at age 52, so we've been putting together memorabilia for a while now to pass on to kids/grandkids. If you knew him, would be wonderful to hear from you. Best regards, Mary Monroe 10/05/2007 @ 11:09 [ref: 18109] |
| Ed Karsin Coraopolis, PA | I taught the Bomb Nav System of the A-3J at the Columbus, OH NA plant from 1961 to 1963. I still remember the Verdan computer that sat between the legs of the navigator, and how advanced it was way back then, as well as the TV cursor corrections made over various checkpoints on way to the target. The gyros and the stable platform, finding true north, then where north actually was. Looking at these pictures brings back so many wonderful memories of the A-3, as well as the great guys I worked with during my 20's, and now in my late 60's. I still say we had a better aircraft than the McDonnel Douglas one the government went with. Can't even remeber that plane! 01/12/2007 @ 18:06 [ref: 15172] |
| David DeVoe , MI | I was in Hutron 1 a Navy helo squadron which later became HelComSupRon1. This was in the early 60's. I was aircrew and went out regularly on short cruises on the various carriers on the west coast.
We flew aboard the Constellation once and after securing our aircraft in the hanger bay, I looked around and was surprised to see a huge shape covered with a tarp. There were a lot of people around it so I went over and asked what it was. One of the guys said it was a "Vigilante", and that it was a top secret aircraft. I had heard a little about it but had never seen one. The next day we were well out to sea and commencing flight ops. I was up in the helo flying plane guard, just laying in the door counting sharks and during one pass down the side of the ship I saw this incredibly beautiful and lethal looking aircraft come up on the elevator I knew it was the Vigilante and I watched in awe as it catted off the ship, climbed out in a sweeping turn and then flew directly under us. I just about crapped. I've always loved aircraft, built models of all the famous ones as a kid. Two of my all time favorites were the P38 Lightning and the Northrup P61 Black Widow. The Vigilante in flight just blew me away. I was about 20 at the time. I'm 64 now and can remember that day with perfect clarity. The reason for visiting this site is that the other day in Baltimore I spoke with a man whose father flew the Vigilante. Just talking about it brought back these memories and made me curious to see what info I could find on the net. So here I am. Dave ADJ3 USN 10/22/2006 @ 09:30 [ref: 14531] |
| Joe Langmeyer Charlotte, NC | I have a photo of an A3J Vigilante flying over the USS Enterprise while on a Med cruise from the NAF Sanford, Florida, home of Heavy Attack Squadrons 5,7,9&11. We also had A3D Sky Warriors. This was 1962-63. I worked for the Naval Air Mobile Training Group (NAMTG)that taught maintenance on these aircraft. 08/31/2006 @ 07:44 [ref: 14032] |
| Dennis Swing Dayton, OH | I too worked in the engineering flight test department at NAA Columbus. Time period was 1962-1963 and I saw the transition of the A3J (what lines) to the pregnant RA5C.
How many remember that one of the intended variants of the original A3J was to be a rocket propelled version whereby, after dumping the nuke from the linear bombay, a rocket, also in the linear bombay would propel the departing aircraft into a ballistic trajector as it headed home. Names such as Pilots: George Burdick, Bill (wild Bill) Morse, Ed Gillespie, John Moore, Dick Wenzel, George Hoskins, Don Humphries, and back seat guy Duane Fessenden were all heroes to me. Several of these guys bought the farm during that period and a couple more A3J\\\'s were smoked. As a new electrical engineering graduate, I didn\\\'t bring much to this party of heroes and experienced guys. Other folks I remember were Ozzie Osborn,manager of the group I was in, this group included Earl Wagner, Larry Grobe, Roy ?, Mike Elan. My project airplane was test article #11 and the aircraft number ended in 702. 702 was easily the most exercised airframe (and high time)aircraft due to the endless number of labs manuevers done on the range at Pax. In one side-view profile photo during a high G O/S manuever, you could see the fusalage arc of the otherwise straight A3J airframe. Our mission was to work with the development guys in the back of building #6 to develop and demonstrate the bomb/nav system to the Navy guys at Pax River. My aircrew was usually Bill Morse and Duane Fessenden and we spent a lot of time together at Pax. I have a number of 8\" x 10\" photos of the inside of the front seat (plywood seat and all)and some photos of the whole crew in front of 702 on the ramp at Pax. I don't have them with me at this location but can attach them when I get back to Dayton (if I hear from some interested persons at my email address). John Moore left our group in 1962 to become a manager at the Cape as part of the Apollo activity at that location. He also went on to write a popular book of his experiences called \"the wrong stuff\". A can\\\'t-put-it-down-book. I would be thrilled to hear from anyone reading this who connects to any of the above. Dennis Swing 01/13/2006 @ 13:55 [ref: 12143] |
| Don Columbus, OH | The A-3J cost four time the F4B, F110 Aircraft, had lots of gold....., too much gold. The A3 was the most beautiful plane in the air,...the A5C, RA5C with the "warm-up and take-off" Hump fuel tank was nice, but not the lines of the A3J. Many innovation, (1): linear Bomb-bay, (2): 17th stage bleed-air, (3): B.L.C. (3): Fan Tail Control(?).
So maybe I'll look at your site to see what the plane is really about. Thank You Don 10/28/2004 @ 23:22 [ref: 8524] |
