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The F-8 Crusader was designed by Vought in response to a US navy requirement for a carrier-based supersonic fighter. It became apparent in the early 50s that,that the navy needed this capability. The airforce was ahead of the navy in that regard with their airplanes, having gotten several supersonic airplanes out there, and it became obvious that that was the way to go.

On March 25th 1955, the prototype Crusader first took flight and mark one was exceeded. The single-seat fighter featured a variable incidence wing, that could be pivoted up seven degrees and acted as a speed brake to reduce landing speed. It was equipped with a push button autopilot and a search and fire-control radar system for enhanced all weather operation. Armament consisted of four twenty millimeter cannon and four Sidewinder air-to-air missiles.

On July 16th 1957, Major John Glenn set a coast-to-coast speed record of 3 hours and 23 minutes in a Crusader, making it / the first nonstop transcontinental flight to average supersonic speed.

In 1962, it was the Crusader that went in low and fast to photograph the Cuban missile sites during the crisis. The crusader was used by both US marines and US navy during the Vietnam War, and had a kill ratio of 19 to 3. The best of any American fighter during the war. A patch was issued to commemorate this great plane.

You are looking right at the pilot, and the inscription on it is when you're out of F-8's, you are out of fighters. And the guy's got a tear in his eye, and, and so that was kind of our feeling. The crusader was the last American fighter with guns as the primary weapon and served as a front-line fighter and photo-recon aircraft for over 30 years.