The High-Flying Reconnaissance Plane That Could Take Off Almost Anywhere – SlashGear

The OV-10 Bronco’s primary use case was as a support aircraft for use in the skies above Vietnam. As such, the aircraft had to be able to take off and land on short, improvised runways. It turned out that this capability was exactly what the Vietnam theater called for, and the two Marines’ prototype fit the bill perfectly. 

The Bronco also utilized landing gear with a heavy trail arm mechanism and 6.5 feet of clearance between the ground and fuselage. As well, the wingspan measured just 40 feet from the tip of one wing to the other. These features made the OV-10 a potent tool in the unconventional conflict space of Vietnam. 

The aerial vehicle was purchased by the U.S. Department of Defense for use by the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps (under what was known as the tri-service program). 157 OV-10A Broncos were delivered to the U.S. Air Force between July 1968 and April 1969, and 114 were built for the Navy and Marine Corps (logistically part of the Navy’s organizational structure).

The OV-10 was a fairly slow plane, achieving cruising speeds of 223 miles per hour and a top out at 281. The aircraft’s altitude ceiling was 26,000 feet and it enjoyed a range of 1,240 miles. The aircraft packed a serious punch, though. 

Its armaments included four M-60C machine guns within the aircraft itself, with an additional 3,600 pounds of additional, external munitions. These typically included AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles, 2.75/5.00-inch folding fin aerial rockets (FFAR), and various medium-weight bombs.