Company test pilot LaVerne Brown makes the first flight of the Douglas XBT2D-1, the prototype of the A-1 Skyraider, at El Segundo, Calif. The Navy will put this aerial dump truck to great use as an attack aircraft in Korea and in Vietnam. The Air Force will also use the “Spad” (as USAF pilots called it) in Vietnam as an attack aircraft and to cover rescue missions.
The Department of the Air Force wants to launch a construction boom with its fiscal 2027 budget, more than doubling its request over 2026, according to budget documents.
