abstract
| - The North American Rockwell OV-10 Bronco is a turboprop light attack and observation aircraft. It was developed in the 1960s as a special aircraft for counter-insurgency (COIN) combat, and one of its primary missions was as a forward air control (FAC) aircraft. It can carry up to three tons of external munitions, internal loads such as paratroops or stretchers, and can loiter for three or more hours. The United States Air Force acquired the Bronco primarily as an FAC aircraft. The first combat USAF OV-10As arrived in Vietnam on 31 July 1968 as part of "Operation Combat Bronco", an operational testing and evaluation of the aircraft. These test aircraft were attached to the 19th Tactical Air Support Squadron, 504th Tactical Air Support Group at Bien Hoa Air Base in South Vietnam. At least 157 OV-10As were delivered to the Air Force before production ended in April 1969, with 64 Broncos lost during the war. In the late 1980s, the USAF started to replace their OV-10s with OA-37B and OA-10A aircraft. Unlike the Marine Corps, the USAF did not deploy the Bronco to the Middle East in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, as it believed that the OV-10 was too vulnerable. The final two USAF squadrons equipped with the Bronco retired the OV-10 on September 1, 1991.
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