The Intruder was equipped to carry and launch a nuclear bomb, although that capability was never utilized. Together, the BACE systems greatly reduced the Maintenance Man-Hours per Flight Hour, a key index of the cost and effort needed to keep military aircraft operating. This equipment was manufactured by Litton Industries. There were two levels, known as "Line BACE" to identify specific malfunctioning systems in the aircraft, while in the hangar or on the flight line and "Shop BACE", to exercise and analyze individual malfunctioning systems in the maintenance shop. These were known as Basic Automated Checkout Equipment, or BACE (pronounced "base"). Hence, the aircraft was provided with automatic diagnostic systems, some of the earliest computer-based analytic equipment developed for aircraft.
It was felt that this could lead to extraordinary maintenance requirements, to identify and isolate equipment malfunctions. The Intruder was also equipped with the " Deceleron", a type of airbrake on the wings with two panels that open in opposite directions in this case, one panel goes up, while another goes down.įor its day, the Intruder had surprisingly sophisticated avionics (electronics systems), with a high degree of integration. A very similar wing would be put on pivots on Grumman's later supersonic swing-wing Grumman F-14 Tomcat, as well as similar landing gear. The wing was also designed to provide good maneuverability with a sizable bomb load. The A-6's wing was very efficient at subsonic speeds compared to supersonic fighters such as the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II, which are also limited to subsonic speeds when carrying a payload of bombs. The incorporation of an additional crew member with separate responsibilities, along with a unique cathode ray tube (CRT) display that provided a synthetic display of terrain ahead, enabled low-level attack in all weather conditions. The cockpit uses an unusual double pane windscreen and side-by-side seating arrangement in which the pilot sits in the left seat, while the bombardier/navigator sits to the right and slightly below. This feature was initially included on prototype aircraft, but was removed from the design during flight testing. The jet nozzles were originally designed to swivel downwards for shorter takeoffs and landings. He later played a lead role in the design of the Grumman F-14 Tomcat and the Lunar Excursion Module. The A-6's design team was led by Lawrence Mead, Jr.
The prototype YA2F-1 made the Intruder's first flight on 19 April 1960. The company was awarded a contract for the development of the A2F-1 in February 1958. Navy announced the selection of Grumman on 2 January 1958. Following evaluation of the bids, the U.S. Proposals were submitted by Bell, Boeing, Douglas, Grumman, Lockheed, Martin, North American, and Vought. It released a request for proposals (RFP) in February 1957. Navy published an operational requirement document for it in October 1956. YA2F-1 showing the original tilting tailpipesįollowing the good showing of the propeller-driven AD-6/7 Skyraider in the Korean War, the United States Navy issued preliminary requirements in 1955 for an all-weather carrier-based attack aircraft.
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