North American RA-5C Vigilante US NAVY HA4701 Hobby Master 1:72

Hobby Master Air Power series North American RA-5C Vigilante US NAVY 156624 Reconnaissance Attack Squadron Six (RVAH-6), USS Kitty Hawk, 1971. Item: HA4701 Scale 1:72 True 1/72 scale Professionally painted Great attention to detail All markings are Tampoed (pad applied) Option to display the model on a stand that is provided Model can be shown with the landing gear in the down or up positions Canopies can be displayed open or closed Crew figures Extremely heavy metal with a minimum of plastic Highly collectable The North American A3J Vigilante first flew on August 31, 1958 and was in service until November 1979. Originally designed as a Mach 2 all-weather bomber; the aircraft eventually had a new role of high-speed reconnaissance. In 1962 the Vigilante received new designators, the original A3J-1 became the A-5A, A3J-2 became A-5B while the reconnaissance version A3J-3P became the RA-5C and first flew June 30, 1962. The Vigilante was the largest and fastest aircraft to operate from an aircraft carrier. The RA-5C was heavily used in the Vietnam War. North American RA-5C 156624 was one of the last Vigilantes to be manufactured and was accepted by the USN in January 1970. The first assignment was with Reconnaissance Attack Squadron 6 (RVAH-6) “Fleurs” that spent 1970 and 1971 on a cruise aboard USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63) West Pac Cruise. During 1972-73 the aircraft deployed aboard the USS America (CVA-66). The RVAH-6 moved to Florida and spent time aboard the USS Forrestal (CVA-59) in 1974. The next three years saw the aircraft move to RVAH-5 “Savage Sons”, RVAH-9 “Hoot Owls”, RVAH-12 “Speartips” and time on the USS Constellation (CVA-64) and USS Independence (CV-62) before returning to RVAH-6. RA-5C 156624 made its final flight in mid-1978 and is displayed at the National Naval Aviation Museum at NAS Pensacola, Florida wearing AJ-601 from its last cruise aboard the USS Nimitz. Specifications for the North American RA-5C Vigilante Crew – 2 / tandem twin cockpits x Pilot in front cockpit, Reconnaissance Attack Navigator in the rear Number of Aircraft – 91 new built, converted aircraft 43 A-5A and the first 6 A-5B = 140 Dimensions Length – 76 ft 7 in (23.3 m) Wingspan – 53 ft 2in (16.2 m) Height – 19 ft 5 in (5.9 m) Weight Empty – 37,500 lb (17,000 kg) Maximum – 79,600 lb (36,100 kg) Performance Engines – 2 x General Electric J79-GE-10 turbojets with each engine producing 17,859 lbs of thrust. Speed Maximum – 1,320 mph (2,125 km/h) Service Ceiling – 52,100 ft (15,900 m) Range – 2,050 miles (3,300 km)