Chance Vought (F8U) F-8K Crusader

Chance Vought (F8U) F-8K Crusader. . , The Crusader was the first supersonic fighter designed for service on an aircraft carrier. It was the fastest aircraft ever flown from Intrepid. Popular with U.S. Navy and Marine Corps pilots, the Crusader saw extensive combat during the Vietnam War (1955-1975). It served primarily as an escort fighter, protecting ground attack aircraft from North Vietnamese MiG fighter jets., The most innovative feature of the Crusader was the variable-incidence wing. The entire wing pivoted up to seven degrees. This capability provided greater flight control at low speeds and improved visibility for the pilot during carrier landings. The Crusader was the last Navy fighter designed with internally mounted cannons. For this reason, Crusader pilots like to call themselves the "Last of the Gunfighters.", During the Vietnam War, Intrepid participated in Operating Rolling Thunder (March 1965-November 1968), an aerial bombing campaign against North Vietnam. Intrepid's primary mission was to bolster the ground attack. Fighter aircraft like the Crusader were deployed in small units of four aircraft, called detachments. Detachments of fighter squadron VF-111 flew Crusaders from Intrepid during its second and third deployments to Vietnam., On September 19, 1968, Intrepid pilot Lt. Tony Nargi fired a Sidewinder missile from his Crusader and shot down a North Vietnamese MiG-21. The Crusader on display is painted to look like the airplane flown by Nargi.,

Length: 54 feet 3 inches (16.5 m) , Wingspan: 35 feet 8 inches (10.8 m) , Height: 15 feet 9 inches (4.8 m) , Empty Weight: 17,836 pounds (8,090 kg) , Max Weight: 29,000 pounds (13,155 kg) , Top Speed: 1,322 miles per hour (2,128 kph) , Ceiling: 52,350 feet (15,956 m) , Crew: One , Armament: Foru 20mm Colt Mk cannons with 144 rounds per gun, four AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles and eight Zuni 5-inch folding-fin rockets

, [Captions:] , An F-8C Crusader of fighter squadron VF-111, the "Sundowners," taxis forward to the flight deck catapult for its next mission over North Vietnam. Its distinctive markings include the shark mouth painted on the jet engine intake. AIM-9 Sidewinder air-to-air missiles are mounted on the sides of the fuselage., The RF-8G Photo Crusader was designed to carry only cameras to the battlefield. The most distinguishing features of the Photo Crusader, besides its lack of guns, are the camera windows on the sides of the forward fuselage.