In the early '60 the light observation airplane of choice was the O-1 built by Cessna. It was used by the Army, Air Force and the Marines. Cheap to build, easy to fly and required the maintenance of a riding lawn mower, it could land on dirt roads and farmer's fields. However it was defenseless. Flying low and slow it was an easy target. With no armor the pilot was at the mercy of every rifle on the ground. There was even one case of an Army O-1 being damaged by a Mountanard crossbow.
The O-1 was replaced in the Air Force by the O-2 (Surprise). This craft was two engined, a pusher prop in the rear and a conventional prop up front. More maintenance and a little improvement in performance but still an easy target.
By the late '60s the Air Force had a replacement for the O-2, the OV-10. Twin turbo props, armor protection and a lot more speed. But it did require a higher level of maintenance and bigger landing areas. With its bubble canopy and no air conditioning the pilots suffered in the Vietnam heat. With no windows to open and no doors to remove the flight time of the aircraft was sometimes a function of the endurance of the pilot. OV-10s originally were only armed with smoke marking rockets. However it did not take long for field expedient weapons to appear on the OV-10. High explosive rockets, machine guns and hand grenades were common. Often the best USAF close air support came from the observation aircraft.
While the pilots of all these aircraft were trained to adjust artillery fire and conduct route reconnaissance, their primary job was to control the air strikes of the fast flyers. Equipped with radios that could talk to the strike aircraft and also with radios that could talk to ground forces the observation aircraft were able to pinpoint targets and control air strikes. One might wonder why USAF attack aircraft did not have radios that could net with the combat troops on the ground. Although not the official reason I believe it has something to do with educational levels and proper places in society. Ground troops are rather uncouth and you certainly would not want your daughter to marry one.

SPECIFICATIONS O-1G/L-19
Span: 36 ft. 
Length: 25 ft. 10 in. 
Height: 9 ft. 2 in. 
Weight: 2,400 lbs. loaded 
Armament: Generally none except smoke rockets 
Engine: Continental O-470 of 213 hp. 
Crew: two  
PERFORMANCE 
Maximum speed: 150 mph. 
Cruising speed: 115 mph. 
Range: 530 miles 
Service Ceiling: 20,300 ft

SPECIFICATIONS O-2A
Span: 38 ft. 
Length: 29 ft. 2 in. 
Height: 9 ft. 5 in. 
Weight: 4,900 lbs. loaded 
Armament: Four wing pylons can carry rockets, flares, 7.62 mini-gun pods, 
or other light ordnance 
Engines: Two Continental 10-360s of 210 hp. each 
Crew: Two 
Cost: $92,000 (1960s)
 PERFORMANCE 
Maximum speed: 199 mph. 
Cruising speed: 144 mph. 
Range: 1,060 miles 
Service Ceiling: 19,300 ft. 


 SPECIFICATIONS OV-10A
Span: 40 ft. 
Length: 41 ft. 7 in. 
Height: 15 ft. 1 in. 
Weight: 14,444 lbs. max. 
Armament: Four M60C 7.62mm machine guns in fuselage sponsons, 
plus 3,600 lbs. of mixed ordnance or gun pods carried externally. 
Engines: Two Garrett-AiResearch T76s of 715 shaft hp. each 
Cost: $480,000 (1960s)
PERFORMANCE 
Maximum speed: 281 mph. 
Cruising speed: 223 mph. 
Range: 1,240 miles 
Service Ceiling: 26,000 ft. 
 
[RETURN to TEXT]