Saved from the scrapheap

A longtime symbol of American military strength will adorn to entrance to the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport following the delivery of a Douglas A-4 Skyhawk on Friday.

The inoperative jet, which had been sitting at the Sabreliner plant at Perryville Municipal Airport, will become a showpiece at the entrance to Cape Girardeau Regional Airport, manager Bruce Loy said.

The 1-1/2 hour trip to Cape Girardeau saved the aircraft -- technically known as a TA-4J two-seat trainer -- from the scrapheap. It was originally sent to Sabreliner along with several others in the late 1990s for refitting and sale overseas. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the government decided against that plan. The other A-4s were sold for scrap.

Getting the airplane moved was a lengthy process, Loy said. The U.S. Navy, which owns the jet, approved the transfer in 2003. The first idea was to have the Missouri National Guard move it with a Chinook heavy-lift helicopter, but the Navy would not allow it, he said.

That led to a search for a company capable of moving the 40-foot-long, five-ton aircraft. Late Thursday, it was loaded onto a flatbed trailer for the journey down Interstate 55.

The delays led to frustration at the Navy, Loy said. "They told us to get it moved quick" about six months ago. "And about a month ago, they asked again if I could get something accomplished."

The plane needs a thorough cleaning and a coat of paint, which are both inexpensive and to be provided by volunteers, Loy said.

When the cleanup is finished, the A-4 will be placed on a concrete pad at the entrance to the airport. It will be both an eye-catcher for people passing on I-55 and a memorial to veterans, said John Farquhar, president of the Cape Girardeau Pilots Club.

"It won't take a lot of money to do what we want to do," Farquhar said. "It will just take a lot of grunt work."

The A-4 was a part of the aircraft arsenal of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps for more than four decades. Nearly a dozen foreign air forces have used the jet, and some still do.

Nearly 3,000 A-4s were built, in several versions. They carried some of America's top pilots into combat, including U.S. Sen. John McCain, who was flying one when he was shot down over Vietnam.

Approximately two dozen A-4s remain in service as training aircraft for the U.S. Marine Corps reserve.

At places along the route, taking the aircraft under highway overpasses was tricky as there was as little as 6 inches of clearance in some spots.

The delivery Friday morning brought to the airport a small group of people eager to see the plane. Some wanted a glimpse of what was in store as they work to clean it and make it presentable.

"It will take a cleaning, a light sanding and a top coat," said Brian Ozark of Ozark Aircraft Maintenance. Ozark worked at Sabreliner when the A-4s arrived. The engines are still mounted on the airframe, but it would take about $1 million to make it operational, he said.

For others on hand, the connection was more personal. Carl Gull and Mark Standrich of Commander Premier Aircraft Co. both served in the Navy. Gull flew the A-4 and Standrich maintained them while on the USS Lexington from 1972 to 1975.

The A-4 delivered to Cape Girardeau could have been on the aircraft carrier when he was, Gull said.

"It is a lot of nostalgia," Gull said of the chance to watch the jet being unloaded. "It is like seeing one of the cars you grew up with."

rkeller@semissourian.com

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