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[4S_Vega]

A-1 Skyraider new 3d by Barnesy V1.0

This mod replace old CY6 Skyraiders, so air.ini entries are the same

Based on original mod

AD-4 air.AD4  1 NOINFO  usa01 DESERT
A-1H air.A1H  1 NOINFO  usa01 DESERT
A-1J air.A1J  1 NOINFO  usa01 DESERT

AD-4      Douglas AD-4 Skyraider, 1950
A-1H      Douglas A-1H Skyraider, 1960
A-1J      Douglas A-1J Skyraider, 1962

The piston-engined Skyraider was designed during World War II to meet United States Navy requirements for a carrier-based, single-seat, long-range, high performance dive/torpedo bomber, to follow-on from earlier types such as the Curtiss SB2C Helldiver and Grumman TBF Avenger. Designed by Ed Heinemann of the Douglas Aircraft Company, prototypes were ordered on 6 July 1944 as the XBT2D-1. The XBT2D-1 made its first flight on 18 March 1945 and in April 1945, the USN began evaluation of the aircraft at the Naval Air Test Center (NATC). In December 1946, after a designation change to AD-1, delivery of the first production aircraft to a fleet squadron was made to VA-19A.

The AD-1 was built at Douglas' El Segundo plant in Southern California. In his memoir The Lonely Sky, test pilot Bill Bridgeman describes the routine yet sometimes hazardous work of certifying AD-1s fresh off the assembly line at a rate of two aircraft per day for delivery to the U.S. Navy in 1949 and 1950.

The low-wing monoplane design started with a Wright R-3350 Duplex-Cyclone radial engine, later upgraded several times. Its distinctive feature was large straight wings with seven hard points apiece. These gave the aircraft excellent low-speed maneuverability, and enabled it to carry a large amount of ordnance over a considerable combat radius and loiter time for its size, comparable to much heavier subsonic or supersonic jets. The aircraft was optimized for the ground-attack mission and was armored against ground fire in key locations unlike faster fighters adapted to carry bombs, such as the Vought F4U Corsair or North American P-51 Mustang, which were retired by U.S. forces before the 1960s.

Shortly after Heinemann began design of the XBT2D-1, a study was issued that showed for every 100 lb (45 kg) of weight reduction, the takeoff run was decreased by 8 ft (2.4 m), the combat radius increased by 22 mi (35 km) and the rate-of-climb increased by 18 ft/min (0.091 m/s). Heinemann immediately had his design engineers begin a program for finding weight-saving on the XBT2D-1 design, no matter how small. Simplifying the fuel system resulted in a reduction of 270 lb (120 kg); 200 lb (91 kg) by eliminating an internal bomb bay and hanging the bombs, drop tanks and rockets from the wings or fuselage; 70 lb (32 kg) by using a fuselage dive brake; and 100 lb (45 kg) by using an older tailwheel design. In the end, Heinemann and his design engineers found over 1,800 lb (820 kg) of weight savings on the original XBT2D-1 design.

The Navy AD series was initially painted in ANA 623 Glossy Sea Blue, but during the 1950s following the Korean War, the color scheme was changed to light gull grey (FS26440) and white (FS27875). Initially using the gray and white Navy pattern, by 1967 the USAF began to paint its Skyraiders in a camouflaged pattern using two shades of green, and one of tan.

Used by the USN over Korea and Vietnam, the A-1 was a primary close air support aircraft for the USAF and VNAF during the Vietnam War. The A-1 was famous for being able to take hits and keep flying. There was added armor plating around the cockpit area for added pilot protection. It was replaced beginning in the mid-1960s by the Grumman A-6 Intruder as the Navy's primary medium-attack plane in supercarrier-based air wings; however Skyraiders continued to operate from the smaller Essex class carriers.

The Skyraider went through seven versions, starting with the AD-1, then AD-2 and AD-3 with various minor improvements, then the AD-4 with a more powerful R-3350-26WA engine. The AD-5 was significantly widened, allowing two crew to sit side-by-side (this was not the first multiple-crew variant, the AD-1Q being a two-seater and the AD-3N a three-seater); it also came in a four-seat night-attack version, the AD-5N. The AD-6 was an improved AD-4B with improved low-level bombing equipment, and the final production version AD-7 was upgraded to a R-3350-26WB engine.

For service in Vietnam, USAF Skyraiders were fitted with the Stanley Yankee extraction system, which acted in a similar manner to an ejection seat, though with a twin rocket pulling the escaping pilot from the cockpit.

In addition to serving during Korea and Vietnam as an attack aircraft, the Skyraider was modified to serve as a carrier-based airborne early warning aircraft, replacing the Grumman TBM-3W Avenger. It fulfilled this function in the USN and Royal Navy, being replaced by the Grumman E-1 Tracer and Fairey Gannet, respectively, in those services.

Skyraider production ended in 1957 with a total of 3,180 having been built. In 1962, the existing Skyraiders were redesignated A-1D through A-1J and later used by both the USAF and the Navy in the Vietnam War.

The Skyraider was produced too late to take part in World War II, but became the backbone of United States Navy aircraft carrier and United States Marine Corps (USMC) strike aircraft sorties in the Korean War (1950–1953), with the first ADs going into action from Valley Forge with VA-55 on 3 July 1950. Its weapons load and 10-hour flying time far surpassed the jets that were available at the time. On 2 May 1951, Skyraiders made the only aerial torpedo attack of the war, hitting the Hwacheon Dam, then controlled by North Korea.

On 16 June 1953, a USMC AD-4 from VMC-1 piloted by Major George H. Linnemeier and CWO Vernon S. Kramer shot down a Soviet-built Polikarpov Po-2 biplane, the only documented Skyraider air victory of the war. AD-3N and -4N aircraft carrying bombs and flares flew night-attack sorties, and radar-equipped ADs carried out radar-jamming missions from carriers and land bases.

During the Korean War, AD Skyraiders were flown only by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps, and were normally painted in dark navy blue. It was called the "Blue Plane" by enemy troops. Marine Corps Skyraiders suffered heavy losses when used in low-level close-support missions. To allow low-level operations to continue without unacceptable losses, a package of additional armor was fitted, consisting of 0.25–0.5 inches (6.4–12.7 mm) thick external aluminum armor plates fitted to the underside and sides of the aircraft's fuselage. The armor package weighed a total of 618 pounds (280 kg) and had little effect on performance or handling. A total of 128 Navy and Marine AD Skyraiders were lost in the Korean War – 101 in combat and 27 to operational causes. Most operational losses were due to the tremendous power of the AD. ADs that were "waved-off" during carrier recovery operations were prone to perform a fatal torque roll into the sea or the deck of the aircraft carrier if the pilot mistakenly gave the AD too much throttle. The torque of the engine was so great that it would cause the aircraft to rotate about the propeller and slam into the sea or the carrier.


On 26 July 1954, two Douglas Skyraiders from the aircraft carriers USS Philippine Sea and Hornet shot down two Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force La-11s off the coast of Hainan Island while searching for survivors after the shooting down of a Cathay Pacific Skymaster airliner three days previously, by La-9s.

 As American involvement in the Vietnam War began, the A-1 Skyraider was still the medium attack aircraft in many carrier air wings, although it was planned to be replaced by the A-6A Intruder as part of the general switch to jet aircraft. Skyraiders from Constellation and Ticonderoga participated in the first U.S. Navy strikes against North Vietnam on 5 August 1964 as part of Operation Pierce Arrow in response to the Gulf of Tonkin Incident, striking against fuel depots at Vinh, with one Skyraider from Ticonderoga damaged by anti-aircraft fire, and a second from Constellation shot down, killing its pilot.

During the war, U.S. Navy Skyraiders shot down two North Vietnamese Air Force (NVAF) Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 jet fighters: one on 20 June 1965, a victory shared by Lieutenant Clinton B. Johnson and Lieutenant, junior grade Charles W. Hartman III of VA-25; and one on 9 October 1966 by LTJG William T. Patton of VA-176. Using their cannons, this was the first gun kill of Vietnam. While on his very first mission, Navy pilot LTJG Dieter Dengler took damage to his A-1H over Vietnam on 1 February 1966, and crash-landed in Laos.

As they were released from U.S. Navy service, Skyraiders were introduced into the Republic of Vietnam Air Force (VNAF). Skyraiders were also used by Air Force Special Operations Command for search and rescue air cover. They were also used by the USAF to perform one of the Skyraider's most famous roles: the "Sandy" helicopter escort on combat rescues. On 10 March 1966, USAF Major Bernard F. Fisher flew an A-1E mission and was awarded the Medal of Honor for rescuing Major "Jump" Myers at A Shau Special Forces Camp. USAF Colonel William A. Jones, III piloted an A-1H on 1 September 1968 mission for which he was awarded the Medal of Honor. In that mission, despite damage to his aircraft and suffering serious burns, he returned to his base and reported the position of a downed U.S. airman.

After November 1972, all A-1s in U.S. service in Southeast Asia were transferred to the Republic of Vietnam Air Force (VNAF). The Skyraider in Vietnam pioneered the concept of tough, survivable aircraft with long loiter times and large ordnance loads. The USAF lost 201 Skyraiders to all causes in Southeast Asia, while the Navy lost 65 to all causes. Of the 266 lost A-1s, five were shot down by surface-to-air missiles (SAMs), and three were shot down in air-to-air combat; two by North Vietnamese MiG-17s.


On the night of 29 August 1964, the first A-1E Skyraider was shot down and the pilot killed near Bien Hoa Air Base; it was flown by Capt. Richard D. Goss from the 1st Air Commando Squadron, 34th Tactical Group. The second A-1 was shot down on 29 April 1966, and the third A-1, Pilot Capt. Grant N. Tabor, was lost on 19 April 1967; both were from the 602 Air Commando Squadron (ACS). The fourth A-1 Skyraider was from Navy Squadron VA-25 flying a ferry flight from Cubi Point (Philippines) to Coral Sea and was lost to two Chinese MiG-17 on 14 February 1968. Lieutenant (j.g.) Joseph P. Dunn, USN, had flown too close to the Chinese held island of Hainan, and had been intercepted. Lieutenant Dunn's A-1H Skyraider 134499 (Canasta 404) was the last U.S. Navy A-1 lost in the war. He was observed to survive the ejection and deploy his raft, but was never found. Initially listed as MIA, he is now listed as KIA and posthumously promoted to the rank of Commander. Shortly thereafter, A-1 Skyraider naval squadrons transitioned to the A-6 Intruder, A-7 Corsair II or Douglas A-4 Skyhawk.

In contrast to the Korean War, fought a decade earlier, the U.S. Air Force used the naval A-1 Skyraider for the first time in Vietnam. As the Vietnam War progressed, USAF A-1s were painted in camouflage, while USN A-1 Skyraiders were gray/white in color; again, in contrast to the Korean War, when A-1s were painted dark blue.

In October 1965, to highlight the dropping of the six millionth pound of ordnance, Commander Clarence J. Stoddard of Attack Squadron 25 (VA-25), flying an A-1H, dropped a special, one-time-only object in addition to his other munitions – a toilet.

Credits

Barnesy: all 3d works, Import, adaptation, new meshes, new parts, textures, pilots, heir edits, cockpits, concept, research, and all the other stuff involved to bring this bird into IL2
TON 414
 Java Code work, FM, slot, load outs, animations, adjustments of original mod
DonA: 50s Skins
Russel R. Smith: LT America skins
Henry William: VA35 USS SARATOGA & VA65 skins
Tim piglet Conrad: VA176 USS INTREPID skins
Dreamk: weapons
Western: weapons
Vega:FM, loadouts & Java

WARNING!! TO RUN THIS MOD YOU NEED:


JET ERA
https://www.sas1946.com/main/index.php/topic,15649.0.html

COMMON UTILS
https://www.sas1946.com/main/index.php?topic=40490.0

WEAPONS PACK VER. 1.3
https://www.sas1946.com/main/index.php/topic,48603.0.html

WESTERN WEAPONS PACK GENERATION 2016
https://www.sas1946.com/main/index.php/topic,53426.0.html

SAS Engine MOD western Full-pack
https://www.sas1946.com/main/index.php/topic,52489.0.html

Air Ground Ordnance pack by Dreamk
https://www.sas1946.com/main/index.php/topic,55355.0.html


Download link
https://www.mediafire.com/file/5zdy5kovr5n19tj/A-1_Skyraider_V1.0_20180116.rar


Link for fast installation patch into BAT*
https://www.sas1946.com/main/index.php/topic,57018.0.html

*
If you have problem with it, you can drop the stand alone version into #JTW3 folder, and rename it "!A-1_Skyraider" to be sure

[danperin]

Awesome! Thank you, guys! 

[ecf111]

I was just going to tackle some more CY6 skins, but this will make life easier! Thanks for the conversion, and super huge thanks to Barnesy and team for the original FM version.

[SAS~Bombsaway]

Thank you everyone for all the hard work.

Tried your fast update for BAT. Planes would not show in arming screen. I took out the Bat 3D updates folder and put in the folder from this page and now they show.

Brand new BAT install, nothing added to JTW untill these.

[4S_Vega]

Tnx for report, i will check it!

[DU30]

Fantastic work, thank you very much

[SAS~Storebror]

Really nice.
Also the cooperation, much appreciated.

Cheers!
Mike

[Gaston]

Same problem as Bombsaway. I choose other solution : installed original A-1H mod from FM, and now, it works !

[4S_Vega]

Same problem as Bombsaway. I choose other solution : installed original A-1H mod from FM, and now, it works !

Gaston, that is another mod, don't have these loadouts

You can add main download link to BAT if needed, anyway i'm looking into it

Anyway, if you have problem with it, you can drop the stand alone version into #JTW3 folder, and rename it "!A-1_Skyraider" to be sure

BTW Uploaded new BAT link

[4S_Vega]

This mod use HD skins

who have blank QMB needs to turn on HD skins mod

[Gaston]

Will try full version, so ! will need to size down the skins... I do not like HD mod... I have always been thinking HiRez should remain as an option, not an obligation...

EDIT

Have done it, also downsized skins for non-HD use. Also, has deleted FM version. Now only yours. Works without any problem, except one detail :




As you can see, looks like plane is damaged... before being used ! do not know why this happens (even before modifying, looking the tgb and tga were like this...). A bug in your default skin ? too bad, because it looks nice... if possible to have it as a bmp, for the skin folder, would be nice !

[Stefan SG]

Dear Gaston,

Please try this non HD skin fix.

https://www.mediafire.com/file/avxzfjalw24p8j1/Skyraiders_non_HD_default_skin.zip

Best regards,
Stefan