The final installment of my TOPGUN Scooters effort - for now. The jet famously shown in "Top Gun" flown by "Jester" and "Viper" in various scenes - depicted as it flew operationally with NFWS through the mid-late 80s based on available photo references.
TOPGUN 555: A-4E BuNo 151095 "'Viper's' A-4 awaits its real master Bob 'Ice' Ffield, outside Miramar's Hangar One. Althoiugh some have accumulated almost 30-years of mostly ACM flying, the A-4 more than holds its own against the latest Navy fighters. The 'Mongoose' used by all (adversaries) is a stripped down, souped-up version of the A-4E powered by an uprated Pratt & Whitney J52P-8 engine that produces nearly 11,000 pounds of thrust without being afterburner capable. Though it is subsonic, with a 1:1 thrust to weight ratio it can outclimb anything but an F-16, and its tight, high-G turning ability, especially at lower altitudes, makes it a merciless opponent in a dogfight." Aggressor Aircraft, Chuck Stewart.
