Cessnas In Uniform

The second most prolific of Cessna’s military line was the well known 0-1 Bird Dog. The (which was similar to the Stinson Sentinel, of which 3000 were also employed by the US military) first flew in 1950 and was designed as a FAC and liaison aircraft. Though the 0-1 served in Korea it is best remembered as the most prolific FAC platform of the Vietnam conflict. A grand total of 3418 O-1s were produced and the type eventually saw service in the colours of no less than 16 nations including Austria, Canada, Brazil, Japan, Pakistan, Norway, Laos, Vietnam, Italy, Korea and Spain.

Another light Cessna to gain fame in Vietnam was the 0-2, a military version of the Model 337 Skymaster. This push/pull twin carried a varied and useful COIN (Counter Insurgency) warlord in addition to having excellent agility and low-level speed. The 0-2 first flew in 1967 and saw 479 examples produced for service with six nations. The 0-2 was powered by two 210 hp Continentals and could carry a variety of stores, including 7. 62 mm rapid-fire Miniguns on four underwing hardpoints. Another Cessna renowned for its combat performance in Vietnam was the A-37 Dragonfly. The Dragonfly was a heavily modified version of the T-37, of which Cessna built 1272 for use with USAF as primary jet trainers, and could uplift more than two tonnes of armament. The Dragonfly carried an internal Minigun and was ideal in the COIN role in which it was applied. Total A-37 production was 577 aircraft and the type served with five nations including Colombia, Vietnam and Guatemala.

Primary training is what Cessna is best known for and so it is not surprising to find that aspiring aviators in the USAF first get their wings aboard a Cessna product. It is ironic that the world’s largest air arm commences flight training on one of the simplest ab initio trainers available. This is the T-41 Mescalero, basically a 172 Skyhawk in uniform. The Mescalero takes the student through his first 30 hours at which point he then transfers to another Cessna product, the previously mentioned T-37B. A total of 544 T-41s were built for the USAF between 1964 and 1976 in two separate production batches while the aircraft also has served with the air arms of Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Colombia, Peru and Ecuador.

Some of these aircraft would make ideal purchases as military surplus once their careers are finished, indeed probably the best example of this would be the U-3, which is basically Cessna’s famous and much respected310 twin. The U-3, of which a total of 196 were built, entered USAF service as the L-27A in 1957. Initial versions were powered by twin 240 hp Continentals while later variants had 285 hp Continentals and full IFR avionics. These aircraft were primarily used in the light utility role and today represent excellent buys on the civil market.

So, as Cessna heads towards 1985 with a minimal single-engine production line and with Beech, Lear and Fairchild largely having taken over the reins as small plane suppliers to the US military, it is timely to remember the world’s largest producer of GA aircraft has also, since 1940 been a major producer of military aircraft.