Vietnam War Fighter Jet Now On Display In Montgomery County
By Ian Bush
MONTGOMERY COUNTY (CBS) -- An American fighter jet looks as air-worthy as it did in 1955, when it first flew. After 9 years of restoration work by volunteers, what once was the faster fighter jet in the American fleet is back on display in Montgomery County.
The F-8 Crusader had the speed and firepower said Tom Doerr with the Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum in Horsham.
"It was, I believe, one of the first Navy planes to reach 1000 miles an hour," Doerr said. "This particular aircraft was nicknamed 'The Last Gunfighter,' because it was equipped with four 20mm cannons."
Doerr said this Navy and Marine aircraft also carried short-range heatseeker and served the U.S. well in the Vietnam War.
"This one landed here and was decommissioned on the base," said Doerr.
Long out of the sky, off the carrier, and after nearly a decade in the garage, museum president Mark Hurwitz said they're glad to have the Crusader back on view along the grounds of the old Naval Air Station.
"It's our job to keep that history alive," Hurwitz said. "Because if we don't, no one will."