A-4 Skyhawk Top Speed: How Fast Is The Fighter Jet?

The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk was a single-seat, single-engine attack jet that was first delivered to the United States Navy in 1956. As one of America's aircraft that could carry a tactical nuclear bomb as well as a light aircraft perfect for aircraft carrier missions, it became a Navy favorite. In 1959, a pilot was able to set a world speed record with the Skyhawk of over 695 mph – however, at sea level during normal operation, its maximum speed was closer to 673 mph. Early Skyhawks had Curtiss-Wright J65-W-2 engines for their power plants, which produced 7,200 pounds of thrust. The Douglas Aircraft Company delivered production models with the single Pratt & Whitney J52-P-6A engine that pushed out 8,500 pounds of thrust.

Its speed isn't impressive by modern standards but considering this came off the heels of World War II, when turbojet technology was barely pioneered, it was a considerable leap. It wasn't just the speed that made the Skyhawk a favorite, though — it was its weight. Before the A-4 came about, there was a concerning trend of combat planes getting heavier. The Skyhawk eased some of those concerns as it went in the opposite direction. Fully loaded, it only weighed 24,500 pounds. Meanwhile, the F-4 Phantom II fighter jet that was in operation at the same time had an empty weight of 28,000 pounds — fully loaded, it was 54,600 pounds.

Its reduced weight went on to contribute to its impressive combat radius of 2,525 miles. Two early models flew 2,082 miles non-stop without any in-flight refueling.

The Pratt & Whitney engine in later Skyhawks consumed less fuel, improving its range by about 25%. Douglas went on to produce about 3,000 units total across 20 variants of the A-4 Skyhawk that were primarily used by the United States Navy and Marine Corps — though, other nations took deliveries of the Skyhawk, including Israel, Argentina, and Australia. Each variant received significant upgrades. Early models only had three hardpoints for external stores that added up to a total of a 5,000-pound payload. Later iterations added two additional hardpoints, allowing the aircraft to carry up to 8,200 pounds.

It cut into enemy aircraft with its two 20-millimeter cannons and carried an assortment of bombs, missiles, rockets, and gun pods when it needed to deal serious damage as well as fuel pods to increase its range. During the Vietnam War, the Skyhawk logged more combat missions than any other naval aircraft. It took on missions that required bridges taken out, power plants demolished, and air support for troops on the ground. 

The attack jet also found itself as the aircraft of choice for the USN flight demonstration team, The Blue Angels, from 1974 to 1986 before it was replaced by the F/A-18 Hornet. Moreover, the real-life TOPGUN school went on to adopt the Skyhawk as an adversary aircraft because of its nimbleness.