Vought F - 8 Crusader The Vought F - 8 Crusader ( originally F8U ) was a single - engine , supersonic , carrier - based air superiority jet aircraft built by Vought for the United States Navy and the Marine Corps , replacing the Vought F7U Cutlass . After the Navy ' s disappointing experience with the Cutlass , the Crusader was referred to by some as " Vought ' s Last Chance " after company founder Chance M . Vought . The first F - 8 prototype was ready for flight in February 1955 , and was the last American fighter with gun s as the primary weapon , principally serving in the Vietnam War . The RF - 8 Crusader was a photo - reconnaissance development and operated longer in U . S . service than any of the fighter versions . RF - 8s played a crucial role in the Cuban Missile Crisis , providing essential low - level photographs impossible to acquire by other means . U . S . Naval Reserve units continued to operate the RF - 8 until 1987 . Design and development . In September 1952 , the United States Navy announced a requirement for a new fighter . It was to have a top speed of Mach 1 . 2 at with a climb rate of , and a landing speed of no more than . Korean War experience had demonstrated that 0 . 50 inch ( 12 . 7 mm ) machine guns were no longer sufficient and as the result the new fighter was to carry a 20 mm ( 0 . 79 in ) cannon . In response , the Vought team led by John Russell Clark , created the V - 383 . Unusual for a fighter , the aircraft had a high - mounted wing which necessitated the use of a fuselage - mounted short and light landing gear . The most innovative aspect of the design was the variable - incidence wing which pivoted by 7° out of the fuselage on takeoff and landing ( not to be confused with variable - sweep wing ) . This afforded increased lift due to a greater angle of attack without compromising forward visibility because the fuselage stayed level . Simultaneously , the lift was augmented by leading - edge slats drooping by 25° and inboard flaps extending to 30° . The rest of the aircraft took advantage of contemporary aerodynamic innovations with area ruled fuselage , all - moving stabilators , dog - tooth notching at the wing folds for improved yaw stability , and liberal use of titanium in the airframe . Power came from the Pratt & Whitney J57 afterburning turbojet . The armament , as specified by the Navy , consisted primarily of four 20 mm ( . 79 in ) autocannon ; the Crusader happened to be the last U . S . fighter designed with guns as its primary weapon . They were supplemented with a retractable tray with 32 unguided Mk 4 / Mk 40 Folding - Fin Aerial Rocket ( Mighty Mouse FFARs ) , and cheek pylons for two guided AIM - 9 Sidewinder air - to - air missiles . Vought also presented a tactical reconnaissance version of the aircraft called the V - 382 . Major competition came from the Grumman F - 11 Tiger , the upgraded twin - engine McDonnell F3H Demon ( which would eventually become the McDonnell Douglas F - 4 Phantom II ) , and lastly , the North American F - 100 Super Sabre hastily adapted to carrier use and dubbed the " Super Fury " . In May 1953 , the Vought design was declared a winner and in June , Vought received an order for three XF8U - 1 prototypes ( after adoption of the unified designation system in September 1962 , the F8U became the F - 8 ) . The first prototype flew on 25 March 1955 with John Konrad at the controls . The aircraft exceeded the speed of sound during its maiden flight . The development was so trouble - free that the second prototype , along with the first production F8U - 1 , flew on the same day , 30 September 1955 . On 4 April 1956 , the F8U - 1 performed its first catapult launch from . Crusader III . In parallel with the F8U - 1s and - 2s , the Crusader design team was also working on a larger aircraft with ever greater performance , internally designated as the V - 401 . Although the Vought XF8U - 3 Crusader III was externally similar to the Crusader and sharing with it such design elements as the variable incidence wing , the new fighter was significantly larger and shared few components . Operational history . Prototype XF8U - 1s were evaluated by VX - 3 beginning in late 1956 , with few problems noted . Weapons development was conducted at Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake and a China Lake F8U - 1 set a U . S . National speed record in August 1956 . Commander " Duke " Windsor set , broke , and set a new Level Flight Speed Record of on 21 August 1956 beating the previous record of set by a USAF F - 100 , however , the world speed record of , set by the British Fairey Delta 2 , on 10 March 1956 , was not broken . An early F8U - 1 was modified as a photo - reconnaissance aircraft , becoming the first F8U - 1P , subsequently the RF - 8A equipped with cameras rather than guns and missiles . On 16 July 1957 , Major John H . Glenn , JR , USMC , completed the first supersonic transcontinental flight in a F8U - 1P , flying from NAS Los Alamitos , California to Floyd Bennett Field , New York in 3 hours , 23 minutes and 8 . 3 seconds . First fleet operators . The first fleet squadron to fly the Crusader was VF - 32 at NAS Cecil Field , Florida , in 1957 , deploying to the Mediterranean late that year on . VF - 32 renamed the squadron the " Swordsmen " in keeping with the Crusader theme . The Pacific Fleet received the first Crusaders at NAS Moffett Field in Northern California and the VF - 154 " Grandslammers " ( named in honor of the new 1 , 000 mph jets and subsequently renamed the " Black Knights " ) began their F - 8 operations . Later in 1957 , in San Diego VMF - 122 accepted the first Marine Corps Crusaders . In 1962 , the Defense Department standardized military aircraft designations generally along Air Force lines . Consequently , the F8U became the F - 8 , with the original F8U - 1 redesignated F - 8A . Fleet service . The Crusader became a " day fighter " operating off the aircraft carriers . At the time , U . S . Navy carrier air wings had gone through a series of day and night fighter aircraft due to rapid advances in engines and avionics . Some squadrons operated aircraft for very short periods before being equipped with a newer higher performance aircraft . The Crusader was the first post - Korean War aircraft to have a relatively long tenure with the fleet and like the USAF Republic F - 105 Thunderchief , a contemporary design , might have stayed in service longer if not for the Vietnam war and resulting attrition from combat and operational losses . Cuban Missile Crisis . The unarmed photo Crusader was operated aboard carriers as a detachment ( Det ) from either VFP - 62 or VFP - 63 to provide photo reconnaissance capability as RF - 8A proved ideal for the task of getting low altitude detailed photographs . During the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 , RF - 8As flew extremely hazardous low - level photo reconnaissance missions over Cuba with overflights beginning on 23 October 1962 . These were the first true operational flights of the F - 8 Crusader . Flights of RF - 8As , operating in several pairs of aircraft , with each pair assigned a different target , left Key West twice each day , to fly over Cuba at low level , then return to Jacksonville , where the film was offloaded and developed , to be rushed north to the Pentagon . These flights confirmed that the Soviet Union was setting up IRBMs in Cuba . The RF - 8As also monitored the withdrawal of the Soviet missiles . To keep score after an overflight , each aircraft was given a stencil of a dead chicken . The overflights went on for about six weeks and returned a total of 160 , 000 images . The pilots who flew the missions all received Distinguished Flying Cross es , while VFP - 62 received the prestigious U . S . Navy Unit Commendation . Mishap rate . The Crusader was not an easy aircraft to fly , and was often unforgiving in carrier landings where it suffered from yaw instability , and the poorly - designed , castoring nose undercarriage made steering on the deck problematic . It earned a reputation as an " ensign killer " during its early service introduction . The nozzle and air intake were so low when the aircraft was on the ground or the flight deck that the crews called the aircraft , " the Gator " . Not surprisingly , the Crusader ' s mishap rate was relatively high compared to its contemporaries , the Douglas A - 4 Skyhawk and the F - 4 Phantom II . However , the aircraft did possess some amazing capabilities , as proved when several Crusader pilots took off with the wings folded . One of these episodes took place on 23 August 1960 ; a Crusader with the wings folded took off from Napoli Capodichino in full afterburner , climbed to and then returned to land successfully . The pilot , absent minded but evidently a good " stick man , " complained that the control forces were higher than normal . The Crusader was capable of flying in this state , though the pilot would be required to reduce aircraft weight by ejecting stores and fuel prior to landing . In all , 1 , 261 Crusaders were built . By the time it was withdrawn from the fleet , 1 , 106 had been involved in mishaps . Only a handful of them were lost to enemy fire in Vietnam . Vietnam War . When conflict erupted in the skies over North Vietnam , it was U . S . Navy Crusaders from the USS " Hancock " that first tangled with Vietnam People ' s Air Force ( North Vietnamese Air Force ) MiG - 17 s on 3 April 1965 . Although the MiGs claimed the downing of a Crusader , Lt Pham Ngoc Lan ' s gun camera revealed that his cannons had set an F - 8 ablaze , but Lieutenant Commander Spence Thomas had managed to land his damaged Crusader at Da Nang , the remaining F - 8s returned safely to their carrier . At the time , the Crusader was the best dogfighter the United States had against the nimble North Vietnamese MiG s . The U . S . Navy had evolved its " night fighter " role in the air wing to an all - weather interceptor , the F - 4 Phantom II , equipped to engage incoming bombers at long range with missile s such as AIM - 7 Sparrow as their sole air - to - air weapons , and maneuverability was not emphasized in their design . Some experts believed that the era of the dogfight was over as air - to - air missiles would knock down adversaries well before they could get close enough to engage in dogfighting . As aerial combat ensued over North Vietnam from 1965 to 1968 , it became apparent that the dogfight was not over and the F - 8 Crusader and a community trained to prevail in air - to - air combat was a key ingredient to success . The Crusader also became a " bomb truck " in war , with both ship - based U . S . Navy units and land - based U . S . Marine Corps squadrons attacking communist forces in both North and South Vietnam . USMC Crusaders flew only in the south , while U . S . Navy Crusaders flew only from the small " Essex " - class carrier s . Marine Crusaders also operated in close air support missions . Despite the " last gunfighter " moniker , the F - 8s achieved only four victories with their cannon ; the remainder were accomplished with AIM - 9 Sidewinder missiles , partly due to the propensity of the 20 mm ( . 79 in ) Colt Mk 12 cannon s ' feeding mechanism to jam under G - loading during high - speed dogfighting maneuvers . Between June and July 1966 , during 12 engagements over North Vietnam , Crusaders shot down four MiG - 17s for two losses . The Crusader would be credited with the best kill ratio of any American type in the Vietnam War , 19 : 3 . Of the 19 aircraft shot down during aerial combat , 16 were MiG - 17s and three were MiG - 21s . But the NVAF claimed 11 F - 8s were shot down , however U . S . records only indicate 3 F - 8s lost in aerial combat , all to MiG - 17 cannon fire in 1966 . A total of 170 F - 8 Crusaders would be lost to all causes during the war . Twilight service with U . S . Navy . LTV built and delivered the 1 , 219th ( and last ) U . S . Navy Crusader to VF - 124 at NAS Miramar on 3 September 1964 . The last active duty Navy Crusader fighter variants were retired from VF - 191 and VF - 194 aboard in 1976 after almost two decades of service , setting a first for a Navy fighter . The photo reconnaissance variant continued to serve for yet another 11 years with VFP - 63 , flying RF - 8Gs up to 1982 , and with the Naval Reserve flying their RF - 8s in two squadrons ( VFP - 206 and VFP - 306 ) until the disestablishment of VFP - 306 in 1984 and VFP - 206 on 29 March 1987 when the last operational Crusader was turned over to the National Air and Space Museum . The F - 8 Crusader is the only aircraft to have used the AIM - 9C which is a radar - guided variant of the Sidewinder . When the Crusader retired , these missiles were converted to the AGM - 122 Sidearm anti - radiation missile s used by United States attack helicopters to knock out enemy radars . NASA . Several modified F - 8s were used by NASA in the early 1970s , proving the viability of both digital fly - by - wire and supercritical wing s . French Navy . When the French Navy ' s air arm , the " Aéronavale " , required a carrier based fighter in the early 1960s to serve aboard the new carriers " Clemenceau " and " Foch " , the F - 4 Phantom , then entering service with the United States Navy , proved to be too large for the small French ships . Following carrier trials aboard " Clemenceau " on 16 March 1962 , by two VF - 32 F - 8s from the American carrier , the Crusader was chosen and 42 F - 8E ( FN ) s were ordered , the last Crusaders produced . The French Crusaders were based on the F - 8E , but were modified in order to allow operations from the small French carriers , with the maximum angle of incidence of the aircraft ' s wing increased from five to seven degrees and blown flap s fitted . The aircraft ' s weapon system was modified to carry two French Matra R . 530 radar or infra - red missiles as an alternative to Sidewinders , although the ability to carry the American missile was retained . Deliveries started in October 1964 and continued until February 1965 , with the " Aéronavale " s first squadron , " Flotille " 12F reactivated on 1 October 1964 . To replace the old Corsairs , " Flotille " 14 . F received its Crusaders on 1 March 1965 . In October 1974 , ( on " Clemenceau " ) and June 1977 ( on " Foch " ) , Crusaders from 14 . F squadron participated in the Saphir missions over Djibouti . On 7 May 1977 , two Crusaders went separately on patrol against supposedly French Air Force ( 4 / 11 Jura squadron ) F - 100 Super Sabres stationed at Djibouti . The leader intercepted two fighters and engaged a dogfight ( supposed to be a training exercise ) but quickly called his wingman for help as he had actually engaged two Yemeni Mikoyan - Gurevich MiG - 21 s . The two French fighters switched their master armament to " on " but , ultimately , everyone returned to their bases . This was the only combat interception by French Crusaders . The " Aéronavale " Crusaders flew combat missions over Lebanon in 1983 escorting Dassault - Breguet Super Étendard strike aircraft . In October 1984 , France sent the " Foch " for Operation Mirmillon off the coast of Libya , intended to calm Colonel Ghaddafi down , with 12 . F squadron . The escalation of the situation in the Persian Gulf , due to the Iran - Iraq conflict , triggered the deployment of the " Clemenceau " task force and its air wing , including 12 . F squadron . 1993 saw the beginning of the missions over ex - Yugoslavia . Crusaders were launched from both carriers cruising in the Adriatic Sea . These missions ceased in June 1999 with Operation Trident over Kosovo . The French Crusaders were subject to a series of modifications throughout their life , being fitted with new F - 8J - type wings in 1969 and having modified afterburners fitted in 1979 . Armament was enhanced by the addition of R550 Magic infra - red guided missiles in 1973 , with the improved , all - aspect Magic 2 fitted from 1988 . The obsolete R . 530 was withdrawn from use in 1989 , leaving the Crusaders without a radar - guided missile . In 1989 , when it was realised that the Crusader would not be replaced for several years , it was decided to refurbish the Crusaders to extend their operating life . Each aircraft was rewired and had its hydraulic system refurbished , while the airframe was strengthened to extend fatigue life . Avionics were improved , with a modified navigation suite and a new radar - warning receiver . The 17 refurbished aircraft were redesignated as F - 8P ( P used for " Prolongé " - extended - and not to be confused with the Philippine F - 8P ) . Although the French Navy participated in combat operations in 1991 during " Operation Desert Storm " and over Kosovo in 1999 , the Crusaders stayed behind and were eventually replaced by the Rafale M in 2000 as the last of the breed in military service . Philippine Air Force . In late 1977 , the Philippine government purchased 35 secondhand U . S . Navy F - 8Hs that were stored at Davis - Monthan AFB in Arizona . Twenty - five of them were refurbished by Vought and the remaining 10 were used for spare parts . As part of the deal , the U . S . would train Philippine pilots in using the TF - 8A . They were mostly used for intercepting Soviet bombers . The F - 8s were grounded in 1988 and were finally withdrawn from service in 1991 after they were badly damaged by the Mount Pinatubo eruption , and have since been offered for sale as scrap .