Douglas A-4G Skyhawk – 216/NZ 6216, RNZAF, New Zealand, July 1984

Hobby Master 1/72 scale HA1431: Douglas A-4G Skyhawk 216/NZ 6216, RNZAF, New Zealand, July 1984. Production run of 500 models.

Length 6.75 inches Wingspan 4.75 inches

Douglas Skyhawk A-4 Bu 155061 made its maiden flight on July 31, 1967. The aircraft was assigned to VA-155 in October 1968 and reassigned to VA-212 in 1969 where it spent time in Vietnam War. In 1971 the aircraft was sold to the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and delivered to VF-805 as N13-155061 (RAN code 874). In 1983 874 was withdrawn from service until July 1984 when it was sold to New Zealand. The aircraft became NZ6216 and converted to a “K” variant and later donated to the Omaka Museum, New Zealand.

Designed to replace the antiquated, propeller-driven AD Skyraider, the A-4 Skyhawk was first flown on June 22, 1954. Douglas exceeded the original design requirements by delivering a carrier-capable aircraft that was only half the Navy’s weight specification and so compact that it did not need folding wings. The A-4 was the first to use “buddy” air-to-air refueling (an A-4 could refuel other aircraft of the same type), which was helpful when operating in remote locations where dedicated tankers were impractical. The A-4 served the US Navy until 2003 and remained the preferred warplane for the Marine Corps until the 1980s, even after the introduction of the A-7 Corsair II.