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1608 Jimmie Davis Highway Bossier City, LA 71112 www.a4skyhawk.org 22 August 2003 Re: Skyhawk Retirement Commander, Thomas J. McDonough, USN Commanding Officer Fleet Composite Squadron Eight Dear Skipper, Thank you for shouldering the bittersweet task of striking our beloved little lady from the List of active US Navy Aircraft. You won’t find a Scooter pilot who doesn’t have a story told from the heart about their time in the A-4. “…she was born in the fertile mind of a singular man. Designed, built and tested by men whose skills, experience and opinions won wars and plotted movements of nations. She was nurtured in the hands of the best the Navy had to offer and demonstrated her loyalty to those who flew her with a tangible affection carried for a lifetime." With a smile she has been compared to a high school sweetheart – “Fast” enough to be interesting but slow enough to enjoy the ride…! She was there for many ‘firsts.’ For most she was our first FLEET aircraft. Many pilots logged their first carrier landing in an A-4 which set them apart and above any other form of military aviation. In the 1960’s she shared our fear for the unknown of war but when launched from ships into battle she became both our protector and companion in the transition from observer to warrior. It might have been her first time as well and like her pilots not all returned. Who doesn’t have a picture standing beside the aircraft with their name painted on the side – another first. Whether a first or a routine task, together, we did it well for over fifty years. She has served with other nations where the language was, at first, unfamiliar but would fade as humps and lumps and bumps were added, probes bent and shortened to fit the mission of her new country. Regardless of the dialect a trust soon formed and soon the personalities of the airplane and the pilot would merge and once more she was effectively carrying out a nation’s policy. Over time a rallying cry emerged that overcomes language barriers and politics. A phrase that ties all members of her team into one family. A simple phrase recognized by all who flew her and best explains the almost mystic feeling between the aircraft and her pilots. Please raise a glass for all of us who couldn’t be at the ceremony but who have slipped the surly bonds of earth in an A-4 to dance the skies on laughter-silvered wings and become a part of A-4’s FOREVER. God bless our nation, our navy and the memory of the A-4 Skyhawk. A-4’s FOREVER, Whiz! Dave “Whizzer” White, DDS Founder, Skyhawk Association |