The normal complement of each squadron was 18 aircraft. The Marines operated theirs from several locations – Da Nang, Chu Lai, Marble Mountain, Phu Bai, Quang Tri, and smaller airstrips. Before the Marines withdrew in 1971 as part of President Richard M. Nixon’s phase-down, they utilized the OV-10A in almost every role for which it had been designed: Forward air controller, radio relay station, artillery spotter, helicopter escort, visual reconnaissance, convoy escort, and attack.

 

Leatherneck Light Attack

Marine purchases totaled 114 OV-10s (including 18 aircraft borrowed by the Navy), as compared with 157 bought by the Air Force. Altogether, the Marines had five active squadrons, including training unit HML-267 and VMOs 1, -2, -5, and -6, plus two Reserve units – VMO-4 at Grosse Ile Municipal Airport, Mich., and VMO-8 at Los Alamitos, Calif. The Air Force, initially less enthusiastic, began training OV-10A pilots through its 4409th Combat Crew Training Squadron, later redesignated the 549th Tactical Air Support Training Squadron, at Hurlburt Field, Fla. This was the home of the Air Commandos, later called Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC).

In late 1968, Broncos equipped the 23rd TASS, at NKP, which conducted some of its operations over North Vietnam in a much more hostile environment than the OV-10 had been designed for. Later, the Air Force stood up the 19th and 20th TASS in South Vietnam. Each of the three OV-10 squadrons flew into harm’s way often.

The “guns/no guns” policy was inconsistently applied and, for much of the war, it was common to observe armed and unarmed Broncos on the same ramp.

One type of OV-10A combat mission in Southeast Asia lasted 4-1/2 to 5 hours. Normal mission configuration included a 230-gallon fuel tank on the centerline, two LAU-59 rocket pods with 2.75-inch “Willy Pete” white phosphorus marking rockets on the weapon sponsons, and, if armed, 2,000 rounds of 7.62 mm ammunition for the two M60 machine guns in each sponson.

Air Force OV-10s operated both with and without the M60 guns. This was the result of frequent reversals of command policy. A Bronco combat loss attributed to “unnecessary heroics” involving use of the M60s was generally followed by an order to remove the guns. Aircraft would fly without their M60s until the policy changed. The “guns/no guns” policy was inconsistently applied and, for much of the war, it was common to observe armed and unarmed Broncos on the same ramp. Navy and Marine Corps Broncos almost always flew with their guns in place. In late 1970, the OV-10 was scheduled to replace the A-1 Skyraider in the rescue support (“Sandy”) mission; however, after a hard second look, the OV-10 was determined to lack the ordnance capacity and endurance required for the mission. The A-7 aircraft drew the job instead. The Air Force version didn’t use the name Corsair II associated with the Navy A-7.

Many Air Force OV-10 day missions were flown with a single pilot as crew. Night missions frequently made use of a second crewmember, usually another pilot, but not always. FANs (Forward Air Navigators) flew back seat on lengthy and demanding night missions in Cambodia and Laos. Linguists sometimes flew in the rear cockpit to coordinate air strikes in support of ground operations involving indigenous troops who spoke little or no English.

 

Bennett and Bronco

On June 29, 1972, Capt. Steven L. Bennett of the 20th TASS, Da Nang, flying with a Marine observer in his back seat, was assisting a South Vietnamese platoon pinned down by strong opposition near Quang Tri.

In a cockpit rapidly filling with smoke, Bennett – who could have ejected safely – coaxed his ship out to sea.

With no fighters-bombers available and no external ordnance of his own, Bennett pitted his OV-10A Bronco with its four machine guns against North Vietnamese troops and ground fire in a furious, air-ground duel. Bennett’s OV-10A was hit by a newly introduced weapon – the SA-7 Strella shoulder-mounted missile.

Homing on the heat of the aircraft’s engines, the missile inflicted fatal damage to Bennett’s Bronco. The hit also disabled his back-seater’s LW-3B ejection seat and integral parachute. In a cockpit rapidly filling with smoke, Bennett – who could have ejected safely – coaxed his ship out to sea. With wingman Capt. Darrel Whitcomb escorting him, he attempted a risky ditching as the only way to save his observer. The observer escaped the sinking Bronco with difficulty but was unable to extricate Bennett, who lost his life and posthumously received the Medal of Honor.

The Navy, which happened to be program manager for the Bronco program, borrowed 18 OV-10s and assigned them to “brown water” duty supporting riverine operations and supplanting UH-1E Huey helicopters of HAL-3, the “Seawolves.” The OV-10A, with its speed, range, and heavy armament, became the answer to river ambushes that had decimated the UH-1E fleet.

Squadron VAL-4 “Black Ponies” was established on Jan. 3, 1969.  The Black Ponies reached the combat zone in March and began fighting in April 1969, initially from Binh Thuy and Vung Tau. The Navy was alone in employing the OV-10A solely as an attack aircraft – flying the craft on convoy escort and carrying an SUU-11 7.62 mm mini-gun pod on the fuselage centerline pylon. The Black Ponies participated in initial strikes during the May 1970 incursion into Cambodia, escorting river convoys along the Mekong River corridor into Cambodia.

Boeing, which absorbed North American, says it can produce a 21st century version of the OV-10 for modern conflicts if enough interest is shown by potential buyers.

VAL-4 was withdrawn from Vietnam and disestablished in 1972, ending the Navy’s use of the Bronco. Surviving airframes were returned to the Marine Corps. The Air Force’s 23rd TASS was still on duty when the war ended in 1973.

Improved versions of the Bronco served in Marine units during Operation Desert Storm. Today, Navy special operations forces are evaluating the upgraded OV-10G Bronco as a possible tool in future warfare. Boeing, which absorbed North American, says it can produce a 21st century version of the OV-10 for modern conflicts if enough interest is shown by potential buyers.

 

North American OV-10A Bronco

Type: Two-seat forward air control aircraft

Powerplant: Two 715-horsepower (533 kW) Garrett T76-G-410/412 turboprop engines

Performance: Maximum speed, 281 miles per hour (452 km/h); Service ceiling, 24,000 feet (7315 m); range, 576 miles (927 km)

Weights: Empty weight 6,893 pounds (3127 kg); maximum takeoff weight, 14,444 pounds (6,552 kg)

Dimensions: Wingspan 40 feet (12.19 m); length, 41 feet 7 inches (12.67 m); height 15 feet 2 inches (4.62 m); wing area 290.95 square feet (27.03 square meters)

Armament: Five fuselage and sponson hardpoints for up to 3,600 pounds of bombs, rocket launchers, or gun pods, plus two underwing pylons carrying up to 600 pounds each for bombs, fuel tanks, or Sidewinder air-to-air missiles, among other ordnance. Four M60 7.62 machine guns, two in each sponson.

First flight: July 16, 1965 (YOV-10A)