OV-10 BRANCO

OV-1OA "BRONCO"
Light Attack Squadron FOUR (VAL-4), headquartered at Binh Thuy in the heart of the Mekong Delta, flies and maintains OV-1OA "Bronco" aircraft in support of Operation Game Warden patrols. A second detachment located in Vung Tau patrols the Rung Sat Special Zone southeast of Saigon.

VAL-4"s "Broncos", usually flying in teams of two, provide close-in air support for Brown-water Navy river patrols and for allied ground operations near waterways.

The squadron was commissioned January 3, 1969 and in March arrived in South Vietnam where operations began on April 10, 1969.

Characteristics
WING SPAN	40 Feet
SPEED	180 - 200 Knots
PATROL ENDURANCE	Two to three hours
ENGINES	Two turbo-prop engines/l75 horsepower each
ARMAMENT	(a) four M-60 machine gun mounts (b)two 19 shot 225 rockets (c) eight inch rockets (d) Mark IV pod - 20mm gun with 750 rounds (e) three mini-gun pod:
CREW	Two pilots
MISCELLANEOUS	Can carry six ground troops or two medevacs in fantail portion
SQUADRON COMPLEMENTT	36 officers and 110 enlisted personnel

This information is from Public Affairs Office documents contributed by:
Larry Bissonnette