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As with so many military aircraft designs, the A-6 Intruder, known originally as the YA2F-1, had some pretty ambitious features that never really panned out. The jet's swiveling exhausts were one of them.
The mid to late 1950's were an incredible time for aerospace engineering as the world came to grips with the vast possibilities that jet power provided. The A-6 Intruder came out of a requirement for a deep penetrating all-weather precision attack platform. As part of this requirement, the Navy wanted the aircraft to be capable of short takeoffs and landings (STOL), even though it would mainly be hurtled from the decks of aircraft carriers via steam catapults and "trapped" back on deck via the use of a hook and arresting cable. Nonetheless, Grumman moved forward with the design requirements and came up with the Intruder's unique silhouette that some describe as "a flying tadpole."
Bunty BrownUTyler Rogoway
4/09/14 7:43am
I read this headline just as Danger Zone came on my Pandora 80s station. I highly recommend reading the article as it plays. Preferably wearing Aviators.