A-37 Dragonfly

 

The Cessna A-37 Dragonfly, or Super Tweet, is a United States light attack aircraft developed from the T-37 Tweety-bird basic trainer in the 1960s and 1970s. The A-37 had improved engines giving it a speed advantage over its training aircraft predecessor. The A-37 had an air-conditioned cockpit but was not pressurized. It had full blind-flying instrumentation along with radio and radar installations, FM communications, Tecan direction finder, VHF communication and VOR/LOC, glideslope, marker beacon and interphone. It also had a non-computing gunsight, a gun camera, and a strike camera.

The A-37 served with distinction during the Vietnam War and in peacetime service afterwards largely with the air forces of developing nations throughout the world where a simple to maintain and easy to fly Attack aircraft was particularly desired. Nearly 600 A-37s–attack modifications of the T-37–were built.

A-37B 71-0790 was built in 1971 specifically for the South Vietnamese Air Force. The aircraft saw combat during the final phase of the Vietnam War (efforts are underway to determine the exact South Vietnamese Wing and Squadron in which the aircraft served). Following the war 0790 became a part of the Vietnamese People’s Air Force until it was sold in the 1980’s to an individual in France before being imported into the United States.

Seized by the Department of Justice, A-37B, serial number 71-0790, was donated to the March Field Air Museum in 1991.