North American A-5 Vigilante

North American Aviation · United States · first flew 1958 · bomber

The North American A-5 (originally A3J) Vigilante was a US Navy carrier-based supersonic bomber, notable for a unique linear bomb bay that ejected weapons rearward between the engines.

Recognition (WEFT)

W — Wings	Mid-mounted, swept
E — Engines	2 × turbojet, fuselage-mounted
F — Fuselage	twin engines buried in the fuselage sides with fuselage-side intakes
T — Tail	Conventional

WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.

Spot it by:

twin engines buried in the fuselage sides with fuselage-side intakes
distinctive linear bomb-bay tunnel running between the engines
tall swept fin with a high-mounted slab tailplane

Recognisable by its slim area-ruled fuselage, twin engines buried with fuselage-side intakes rather than underwing pods, and a tall fin with a high-mounted slab tailplane.

Specifications

The North American A-5 Vigilante has a length of 23.32 m (77 ft).
It has a wingspan of 16.16 m (53 ft).
Typical crew: 2.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

First flown in 1958, it entered fleet service in 1961 as the Navy's primary nuclear strike aircraft, but the unconventional bomb bay proved unreliable and most airframes were converted to the RA-5C reconnaissance configuration during the Vietnam War.

Variants

Variants include the original A-5A strike bomber, the improved A-5B, and the RA-5C reconnaissance conversion that became the type's main operational role.

Where you'll see it

Retired from US Navy service by 1979 as other platforms took over its mission; none remain in service and it had no UK operators.

Related aircraft

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