MaxSez: I’ve got 200 hours in this up close and personal war bird as a young carefree FACA. The Bronco will be in a flyoff for a new US CAS piston turbo gas burner. Watch for the results. This is an extremely capable & survivable airframe. With modern avionics she’s an all weather day/nite/multi role contender. Below find a clip of this Legacy birds real time contribution in the currant Filipino ISIS insurrection.
(Vote for the IF Bronco; see OV-10 Feature)
What a cool plane. It looks like an A-10 Warthog with props. Love it.
You’re right, it does look like the A-10. Gear stance especially, plus the paint job on the nose looks vaguely familiar :-) Nice post Max.
I heard about this happening from an OV-10 pilot recently, great to see them being revived! With upgraded systems, I’m sure they’ll prove very impressive in combat!
that looks a lovely little ship to fly there Max! How many crew did you fly with?
It a 2 place dual control Aircraft Dave. Pilot/Co-Pilot, Observer-Systems Operator in tandem. Latest models has a Chin Turret with target acquisition IR/Video/Photo slaved to the weapons systems. Regards, Max
Thanks Max! I see from a bit of research that they flew off Grey Funnel Flat Tops, did you have that experience? I have only been in the back of a Lynx being cross decked to a Frigate in the middle of the North Atlantic and that was…interesting… Much respect to all Naval (and of course Marine!) drivers who achieve this on a daily basis!
@David_Lockwood… Never did a carrier go in a Bronco! Did have occasion to talk my way into a the back seat of a VMFA-212 F-4 while the S-2 for Mag-24 in Keneohe Hawaii during th 80’s. The occasion, an annual carrier re-qualification go on Oriskiney (CV-34). 2 Traps which I’ll never forget. Over the years did a lot of cross decking in a CH-46, up in the Med and off RVN. Kind of standard procedure when embarked. Never did a cross deck in the open ocean just in littoral waters, closes to the Atlantic was in the vicinity of Gib after a trans Atlantic.
(Oriskiney was scrapped she’s an artificial reef in Florida water now. One of these days I’ll visit the site, She’s at rest about 100 miles from my home in SW Florida. Last story this thread, thanks for the question and memories. Regards, Max
As long as the comparison has been brought up… how does the OV-10 differ from the A-10 in aeronautical dynamics and combat capability other than being a turboprop…and why is it not as well known as the A-10… which along with the AH64 was the primary air to ground tank killer in the first Gulf War
@Recxx No comparison my friend. The Bronco was designed as a STOL Utility/Rescap)Fac platform. The biggest things it ever killed in my memory where pack elephants along the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The bird marked a lot of targets for air strikes etc until the US retired them and gave them away to allies. Never saw one drop a snake like the filipino video. The bombs we carried where 100 lbs markers.
(Interesting the US borrowed a few and used them in Iraq in a utility role.)
The Bronco is a Rockwell design, it can carry paratroops or cargo in the large rear compartment, a great SpecOps capability which none of the contenders in the upcoming cheap CAS fly off can match. Regards, Max
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