Century Wings 1:72 Wings of Heroes 778979
Grumman A-6E Intruder Diecast Model
USN VA-115 Eagles, NF500, USS Independence, Yuugiri Shoot-down, June 4th 1996 | Limited Edition
1000
Pieces Worldwide |
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| 1:72 Scale | | Length | | Width |
|---|
| Grumman A-6E Intruder | | 9.25" | | 8.75" |
RIMPAC (Rim of the Pacific Excercise) is the world's largest international maritime exercise, hosted by the US Navy with participation by Pacific Rim nations including Japan, Canada, Australia and more. It was during a live-fire gunnery excercise as part of RIMPAC 1996 that the Japanese Asagiri class destroyer "Yuugiri", accidentally shot-down the US Navy A-6E Intruder, BuNo 155704, of VA-115 Eagles. The aircraft was towing a target drone approximately three miles behind it when the Yuugiri inadvertently targeted the towing aircraft, rather than the target, with its 20mm Phalanx Close In Weapons System. The Pilot, Lt. Cmdr. William Royster and Bombardier-Navigator, Lt. Keith Douglas, ejected and were immediately rescued. Since this aircraft had been specially painted as the "CAG Bird", a replacement aircraft, BuNo 155662 was subsquently re-painted in the same scheme. This aircraft was preiviously modeled by Century Wings as item CW-588783.
US Navy Attack Squadron 115 (VA-115) Eagles was the new designation given to VA-12A on July 15th, 1948. The squadron transitioned from the AD (A-1) Skyraider to the A-6 Intruder in February, 1971. The Eagles deployed many times with the A-6 on the USS Midway and later, the USS Independence. The squadron finally flight traded its A-6s for the F/A-18 Hornet in 1996 and was re-designated Navy Strike Fighter Squadron 115 (VFA-115) on September 30th, 1996.
Designed to meet a US Navy requirement for an all-weather carrier-based attack/strike aircraft, the A-6 Intruder was first flown on April 19th, 1960. The A-6 was equipped with a CRT that allowed for low-level flight in all weather conditions, a characteristic that helped it remain the US Navy and US Marine Corps' principle night and all-weather attack aircraft through the 1990s. With its large, blunt nose and lean tail, the A-6 was given a variety of unflattering nicknames, including "Double Ugly" and the "Drumstick." The A-6 served in Vietnam, the Persian Gulf, Somalia and Bosnia and was ultimately replaced by the F-14 Tomcat. © Copyright 2003-2025 The Flying Mule, Inc.
Century Wings' 1:72 scale A-6 Intruder series includes the KA-6D tanker variant and the more prolific A-6E ground attack/bomber. The A-6E variants have a hefty load of "general purpose" iron bombs and later more sophisticated ground attack weapons. The tanker is fitted with external fuel tanks under the wings and a retracted fuel transfer probe mounted aft. The large sliding canopy opens to provide a clear view of a fully rendered cockpit interior. The finer points such as turbo fan details inside the engines' intakes and pad-printing on the bottom of the model are just some of the additional highlights of this quality model.
© Copyright 2003-2013 The Flying Mule, Inc.
The Century Wings "1:72 Wings of Heroes" range presents highly-detailed, ready-made diecast models of military aircraft.
Century Wings 1:72 diecast airplanes feature:
- Diecast metal construction with some plastic components.
- Realistic panel lines, antennas, access panels and surface details.
- Pad printed markings and placards that won't fade or peel like decals.
- Opening canopies, revealing detailed cockpit interiors.
- Selected moveable control surfaces.
- Interchangeable extended/retracted landing gear.
- Presentation stand to display the aircraft "in flight".
- Detailed removable pilot and crew figures.
- Authentic detachable ordnance loads complete with placards.
- Accurately detailed underside with concealed screwheads.
- Many limited editions with numbered certificate of authenticity.
© Copyright 2003-2025 The Flying Mule, Inc.
