Although the Crusader was built first and foremost as a Navy interceptor, as has often been the tradition with US fighters, a photo-reconnaissance variant was also produced by Vought. The photo-bird's first operational test came in the autumn of 1962 when its overflights of Cuba alerted the world to the likely presence of medium-range ballistic missiles on the Caribbean island. The recce Crusader's next action came during the long years of the Vietnam War. This volume is the second of two in the Combat Aircraft series devoted to the Crusader, the first title (again by Peter Mersky) having covered the F-8 fighter variants, and their MiG-killing exploits, during the Vietnam War.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
RF-8 Crusader Over Cuba And Vietnam, by Peter Mersky:
This is a very good book that provides a lot of information on a little-known aircraft that served faithfully for nearly 30 years. The author first provides a detailed account of Navy and Marine RF-8 recon missions over Cuba during the 1962 Missile Crisis. The text and photos in this section alone justified my purchase of the book. Mr. Mersky also does an outstanding job describing the aircraft's service during the Vietnam war, using accounts from the pilots who flew the missions and photo interpreters who... more info
You've seen the movie, now read the book!:
A topical subject with the release of the movie '13 days', about the Cuban missile crisis in 1962. RF-8 Crusaders were used extensively by the US to keep track of the missile sites and installations. Peter Mersky again produces an easy to read record of the aircraft, pilots and operations of a classic warplane. The section on the Cuban crisis will probably not be enough given the attention focussed on it by the above movie, but in the scheme of things, it must have been easier to find information on the... more info
