| Date: 21 December 1965 |
| Aircraft type: A-6A Intruder |
| Serial Number: 151781 |
| Military Unit: VA-85 |
| Service: USN |
| Home Base: USS Kitty Hawk |
| Name(s): |
| Cdr Billie Jack Cartwright (KIA) |
| Lt Edward Frank Gold (KIA) |
| On board the Kitty Hawk when it arrived off Vietnam in late November was VA-85, the Navy’s second Intruder squadron. The Intruder’s introduction to combat with the Independence in July had been something of a disaster with four aircraft lost, three of them destroyed by their own bombs. It was confidently expected that VA-85 would perform better, although not all the aircraft’s advanced electronic systems were yet operating satifactorily. However, VA-85’s Intruders did have a radar warning receiver fitted which would alert the crew when their aircraft was being tracked by enemy radar.
The squadron lost its first aircraft during a night attack on a road bridge on the outskirts of Haiphong. Several Intruders were making coordinated runs over the bridge but one aircraft (call sign Buckeye 801) failed to call in over the target. The radar operator in an orbiting E-2 Hawkeye over the Gulf of Tonkin reported that the aircraft’s radar return disappeared from his screen about 20 miles north of Haiphong on the way to the target. Two other aircraft noted SAM firings in the area but no hits were reported. The approach to the target was over mountainous terrain and the penetration altitude was 4,000 feet. The standard procedure at that time to counter a SAM was to dive towards the ground to attempt to break the missile’s radar lock. It was surmised that the Intruder attempted this manoeuvre at night over the mountains and flew into the ground. VA-85 had got off to a bad start but the loss was made even worse as the aircraft was flown by Cdr Cartwright, the Squadron’s CO. The Squadron never really recovered from this disaster and went on to lose a further six aircraft during the cruise. Lt Gold’s remains were handed over and identified in January 1995. |
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