The F-8 Crusader was a US carrier-based jet fighter aircraft which was used by the US Navy and the US Marine Corps during the Cold War. It was designed by John Russell Clark and manufactured by the American aviation company Vought. The F-8 prototype first flew on March 25, 1955, and the first units were delivered to the US Navy in March 1957, serving in the Vietnam War from 1965. One of its variants, the RF-8 Crusader, was a photo-reconnaissance development and was operated longer by the US Navy than any of the fighter versions. Along with the U-2 reconnaissance aircraft, it played a crucial role in the Cuban Missile Crisis, providing essential low-level photographs.
The F-8 Crusader was a supersonic fighter which was fitted with variable-incidence wings which pivoted by 7° out of the fuselage on takeoff and landing. This afforded increased lift due to a greater angle of attack without compromising forward visibility because the fuselage stayed level. Simultaneously, the lift was augmented by leading-edge slats drooping by 25° and inboard flaps extending to 30°.
Specifications (Vought F-8 Crusader)
Engine: one Pratt & Whitney J57-P-20A afterburning turbojet.
Maximum speed: 1,225 mph, or 1,975 km/h(Mach 1.86) at 36,000 ft (11,000 m).
Range: 1,735 mi (2,795 km) with external fuel.
Length: 54 ft 3 in (16.53 m).
Wingspan: 35 ft 8 in (10.87 m).
Crew: one
Weapons: four 20mm (0.79 in) Colt Mk 12 cannons in lower fuselage; four AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles; twelve 250 lb (113 kg) Mark 81 bombs.
F-8 Crusader Documentary (Video)
[...] knock out Ham Rung bridge near Thanh Hoa. The MiG-17 leader, Lt. Pham Ngoc Lan, spotted a group of Vought F-8 Crusaders of the VF-211, USS Hancock, and shot-up the F-8E flown by Lt. Cdr. Spence Thomas, which would [...]