Maj. Wilson told me of the bombing runs they would make in the Corsairs, and how exciting they were. He said that, at some point, they installed some armor plate under and behind the pilot's seat to give a measure of protection against anti-aircraft fire. The problem was that due to space limitations they had to keep the armor plate very narrow. He laughed and said that when you dropped the bomb(s) or fired the missiles and then pulled the stick back to climb out of danger you learned to squeeze yourself into a very narrow profile to allow that narrow plate to provide as much "cover" as possible.
I was part of a reserve attack squadron, VA-205, for some 4 1/2 years. Like you, we also had A4 Skyhawks. Our squadron logo was a green diving falcon. I was in ground support and would attach the probe and huffer to the belly of the jet to start it for the pilot, who was strapped in. We communicated via hand signals. I can vividly remember bringing the rpms up to where the pilot wanted them, him giving me the signal to stand by, and him lighting the engine off. I also hot fueled the A4s at times. Exciting stuff for a country boy.
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