Its instructors were subject-matter experts who used real-world intelligence to help trainees grow as fighter pilots.
That's where TOPGUN began, Hill Goodspeed, a historian at the National Naval Aviation Museum, says via email: "The resulting Navy Fighter Weapons School literally changed the face of the air war over North Vietnam as seen in the improved kill ratios against enemy fighters."īased at Naval Air Station Miramar in San Diego, the program that emerged was rigorous and demanding. One of its many recommendations was that the Navy establish an advanced training school for fighter pilots. "While the experience in air-to-air missilery is the highest it has ever been, formal missile system training is still largely a 'boot-strap' operation in many areas," the report said. The Navy’s assessment of the preparedness of its own flight crews was brutal. Just one kill had been achieved for every 10 firing attempts over a three-year period, the Naval Air Systems Command wrote in a document informally known as the Ault Report.Ĭhristopher Browne, a former naval flight officer that trained in the program in the early 1980s (above), says the pilots were the "difference between success and failure for the carrier." When naval officials reviewed their own air-to-air missile performance in 1968, they gave themselves a dismal grade. Navy, which played an essential role in the air war over Vietnam, the situation was unacceptable. But the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong flew them in dogfights with a frustrating-and deadly-level of daring and success.įor the U.S. They weren’t built for dogfights in the air-their original intent was to intercept the bombers cruising at altitude and dropping ordinance straight down from on high. North Vietnam's air force was equipped with MiG 17s, a Soviet-designed aircraft that was surprisingly effective.
military, 58,220 American troops were killed in Vietnam, the vast majority before 1970. Though the proxy war's biggest toll was on the Vietnamese people-it took the lives of an estimated 2 million civilians, 1.1 million North Vietnamese and Viet Cong, and an estimated 250,000 South Vietnamese soldiers-the conflict proved deadly to American troops, too. troops were at a disadvantage in the air war over southeast Asia. Window.dataLayer = window.And by 1968, it was painfully clear that U.S. Place of processing: Ireland – Privacy Policy – Opt Out. Personal Data collected: Tracker Usage Data. Only in exceptional cases, the IP address will be sent to Google's servers and shortened within the United States. The anonymization works by shortening the IP address of the Users within the borders of the member states of the European Union or other countries that are members of the Agreement on the European Economic Area. This Google Analytics integration anonymizes your IP address. Google may use your Personal Data to contextualize and personalize ads in its advertising network. Google uses the Personal Data collected to track and examine the use of this Application, compile reports on its activities and share them with other services developed by Google. Google Analytics (GA4) is a web analytics service provided by Google Ireland Limited (“Google”). The C-2A provided support to the Carrier Strike Groups during Operations Desert Shield, Desert Storm, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.Īs told on Quora by Andy Burns, Surface Warfare & Flight Officer at United States Navy, the C-2A is also the most desirable aircraft for a Naval Aviator. The cargo ramp can be opened in flight, allowing for airdrops of supplies and personnel. Straight-in rear cargo loading and unloading allows for fast turnaround on the ground or carrier flight-deck. A cargo cage system provides restraint for loads during ship launches and landings. The interior arrangement of the cabin can accommodate priority cargo like jet engines, passengers, litter patients and critical spare parts.
‘My flight students always looked at me like I was nuts when I told them to go C-2A Greyhound COD, but it really is the best deal in Navy Air,’ Andy Burns, Surface Warfare & Flight Officer at US Navy.Īlthough the US Navy C-2A fleet is in process of being replaced by the CMV-22B Osprey, the Greyhound still provides rapid airborne logistics capability to the carrier strike force across a full range of sea basing military operations.Īs a derivative of the E-2 Hawkeye, the C-2 has a common wing with the Hawkeye but has a widened fuselage and a rear loading ramp.