Skyraider Added to Lineup for Korea 75th Commemoration

The Military Aviation Museum in Virginia Beach, Virginia, is scheduled to bring its Douglas AD-4 Skyraider to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh in July as part of the 75th anniversary commemoration of the start of the Korean War. The aircraft was built as an AD-4 in 1949 at the Douglas plant in El Segundo, California, and was deployed three times during the Korean War — the first time from May to November 1950 on the USS Valley Forge (CV-45). Its next deployment was on the USS Essex (CV-9) from June 1951 to March 1952 before it returned to the USS Valley Forge for a final tour from November 1952 to June 1953.

AirVenture’s commemorations for both the 75th anniversary of the start of the Korean War and the 80th anniversaries of VE/VJ Day will focus on the incredible leap in aviation technology in the era between 1945 and 1950. While piston-powered aircraft such as the Skyraider still played a major role in military operations, the emerging jet age was soon to shift the dominant percentage of fighter and bomber aircraft. This year also marks the 80th anniversary of the Skyraider’s first flight, which occurred on March 18, 1945.

The Military Aviation Museum had previously stated its goal to bring its Messerschmitt Me 262 fighter jet reproduction to Oshkosh this year. Flight preparations for that aircraft are continuing in Virginia.