All language subtitles for Air.Warriors.S06E05.OV-10.Bronco.WEB.h264-CAFFEiNE[eztv]

Narrator:
Faster than a helicopter,

More maneuverable than a jet,

The ov-10 bronco offers
more bang for the buck

Than either one.

Man: The ov-10 was
the swiss army knife

Of military aviation.

Narrator:
This rugged little warbird

Fills a critical role
for troops on the ground.

Man: The ov-10 was always there,
just one radio call away.

Narrator: And it devours
its enemies

In even the most
challenging missions.

Man: It was an aircraft

That you could take just about
anywhere and use it.

Narrator: This is the story
of a 50-year-old plane

That came out of retirement
to fight a new kind of war.

Man: It can do things

That we can't do
with modern-day aircraft.

Narrator: It has everything
it needs to find, fix,

And finish the enemy.

Man: We took the aircraft

And put a lot of things
on that aircraft

That it was not designed to do.

♪

[distant gunfire]

Narrator: 2015.

Iraq.

Operation inherent resolve.

[explosion]

U.S.-Trained forces battle isis
for control of their country.

America promises to support
its allies on the ground

With superior airpower.

[jet roaring]

But winning an air war is
difficult and expensive.

High-flying jets cost thousands
of dollars an hour to operate

And can't hang over
the fight long enough

To guarantee accuracy
in this gritty urban war.

In the senate,
u.S. Leaders are anxious

That their strategy
isn't working.

John mccain: 5,000 air strikes
have been conducted.

75% of the air strikes returned
without having dropped a weapon.

That's not a very
impressive number.

Narrator: To win,
the pentagon knows

It will have to get creative.

What it needs is
a down and dirty aircraft

For a down and dirty war.

The aircraft it turns to:
The 50-year-old ov-10 bronco.

[click]

[whirring]

Rugged, maneuverable,
and versatile.

The ov-10 bronco is a little
warbird with a big mission:

Do anything that
the ground troops need.

Eric huppert: The ov-10 bronco
is one of the most versatile

Aircraft that the united states

Military ever produced.

Narrator: 42 feet long
with a 40-foot wingspan,

The bronco is one of
the lightest attack aircraft

In the united states' arsenal.

Its weight: Just 7,200 pounds.

To fly it, a two-person crew--

One in the front seat
to fly and fight,

Another to lock in
the target in back.

Huppert: The pilot up front,
his job was to fly the airplane,

Kill the targets
when they found them,

And then coordinate
all of the fighters

That were coming into
the battle space overhead.

The back seat of the bronco
is filled

By the weapons system officer,

Whose main job was to operate
the sensor systems.

Narrator: It's a plane designed
to get in close,

Sniff out its target, and make
the call about who to attack.

May 2015.

A team of ov-10 broncos arrives

At a top-secret air base
in northern iraq.

They're part of
a special operations program

Called combat dragon ii.

Phil clay: The purpose
of combat dragon ii

Was to find an aircraft
that could fight isis.

Narrator: Commander phil clay
is a light attack expert

And the officer in charge
of combat dragon ii.

Clay: We had a hypothesis
that we needed to prove.

Our theory was that we could
employ this low-cost solution

And be equally,
if not more effective,

In how we fight the war.

Narrator:
Special operations commanders

Know it's a wild idea:

Flying a 50-year-old plane that
hasn't seen glory since vietnam.

When they bring their plan
to the pentagon,

The pushback is intense.

Clay: The f-18s, the f-22,
the joint strike fighter,

They consume a large part
of our aviation budget.

So it's difficult to say

I'm going to take some
of that money away

And put it into
a low-cost solution.

Narrator: But the promise
of a light attack aircraft

That can win an urban war
is too tempting to resist.

Congress gives the program
$20 million

And 82 days to prove its worth.

August 2015.

The ov-10 broncos get
an urgent request.

70 miles away in mosul,

American allies desperately need
the ov-10's help.

Clay: The kurdish military,
as we call them, the peshmerga,

Had been captured by isis and
had overthrown their captors,

And were trying to escape.

Narrator: For the last year,

The kurds have been
america's faithful partner,

Holding down an 80-mile stretch
of the front lines

And stopping isis
from gaining more ground.

Clay: We knew that if
the military forces

Were to be recaptured by isis,
they would probably be killed.

Narrator: Ov-10 pilots get
into the plane quickly

And fly off toward mosul.

This is just the kind of mission

Combat dragon ii
was designed to do.

Clay: There was
a sense of urgency.

There was a sense of commitment
and dedication to get there

And make sure that we were
protecting our coalition forces

As we would any u.S. Force.

Narrator:
20 minutes after takeoff,

The bronco reaches its target

And circles at 10,000 feet.

Pilots scan carefully
over the city below.

Clay: Mosul is an amazing place.

It's not war-torn and tattered
like we all tend to think.

It's very much a thriving
metropolis of activity,

Which makes it
problematic for us

In trying to conduct
operations there.

Narrator: In this
urban battleground,

Bronco crews have to be able
to separate the bad guys

From the friendlies,

Or risk killing the very people
they're trying to help.

Clay: We know we have
to fight a war.

But we need the ability
to identify the difference

Between a child, a man, a woman.

'cause we want to get it right.

Narrator: Letting its crew
get eyes on the target

Is a key part
of the bronco's mission.

Its bug-eyed canopy
offers a perfect view

Of the battlefield below.

Huppert: These windows are
bowed out from the side,

So all the pilot has to do is
nudge the stick a little bit

And stick his head
over the side,

And he's looking straight down.

Narrator: Another asset:
Turboprop engines.

They let the bronco
hang over the battlefield

For as along as it needs.

Huppert: One of the main
advantages of a turboprop

Over a jet engine

Is that the airplane
doesn't have to carry

Anywhere near as much fuel
as a jet does

In order to remain airborne
for the same amount of time.

With the maximum amount of fuel
this airplane can take,

The turboprop will give you

About five and a half hours
of flying time.

Narrator: That's five and half
hours of hunting

For enemy soldiers or
friendly troops in need of help.

Against isis, the bronco crew
will need every minute.

High over mosul, the ov-10 crew
scours the ground

For insurgents,

Looking carefully
for signs of ill intent.

Man on radio:
Pkc and ak-47 fire. Over.

Man on radio:
Roger, is it coming

From your south southwest
still?

Clay: We're going
from car to car.

We're going from people that
are walking on the streets.

And when we find one
that we believe is isis,

We go through our checklist.

Are they flying a flag?
Do we see weapons?

Are there groups?
Are they adult-aged males?

Narrator: Finally,
their persistence pays off.

They spot a group of armed men

Entering a building known to be
an isis stronghold.

Clay: This was a building
that was on a hit list

Of an executable strike
if need be.

We know we have to go and
shoot rockets into the building.

♪

Narrator: The bronco's
go-to weapons--

Its rockets, roughly
three and a half feet long.

Huppert: These are the rocket
pods that the bronco carried.

These are seven-shot
rocket pods,

But they also make
big barrel ones,

Which are up to
19-shot rocket pods.

Narrator: Two short stub wings,
called sponsons,

Are on each side
of the aircraft.

Together, they give the bronco
another 300 pounds of firepower.

Huppert: These are
the ov-10 sponsons.

Basically they're a suitcase
for our guns.

There's four 7.62 mini guns
with 500 rounds apiece per gun.

Underneath the sponson also
is a hard point,

Outboard and inboard, where
we can hang external stores,

Sensors, bombs, rockets,
or missiles.

Whatever situation
you were going into,

You could load the airplane up.

Narrator: For combat dragon ii,
the rockets are modified

With a new feature, designed
specifically for urban combat.

It's called the advanced
precision kill weapon system.

Clay: It's a derivation
of the old unguided rocket

That we'd been flying
for ages and ages.

We unscrew the warhead
off of the front,

Screw on
a laser guidance package,

And then put the warhead
on top of that.

Narrator: These laser-guided
rockets explode

With surgical accuracy.

Their blast radius
is just 15 feet.

At least that's what
ov-10 pilots hope.

These new guided rockets
haven't been used in combat.

It's up to the broncos
of combat dragon ii

To find out if they really work.

High above mosul, the ov-10 team
radios the command center,

Checking to see if they've been
cleared to make the strike.

Clay: We have to make sure

That we're not going
to harm anybody else.

Let's make sure we're not going
to damage any other structures.

We have another
two and a half hours of fuel

On board this aircraft,
so we're not in any hurry.

Let's make sure
we get this one right.

Narrator: Intelligence verifies
that the men in the building

Are isis insurgents,

And gives the bronco
the ok to fire.

The bronco crew knows that
this is their moment of truth.

Shooting a rocket into
a building in an urban area

Is the kind of mission

That only a close-in
attack aircraft could do.

The bronco crew
gets ready to fire.

A lot's riding
on what happens next.

Clay: From the time
that you fire,

You have about 20, 25 seconds.

It's the 25 seconds

Of it's going to either
make this program

Or it's going to
break this program.

♪

Narrator: August 2015.

Mosul, iraq.

An ov-10 bronco fires
three laser-guided rockets

Into a building filled
with isis insurgents.

[explosions]

Clay: They actually
detonated inside,

So it trapped
the isis members inside.

We saw how the concept
of light attack works

And how we can make sure that
the people that we need to kill

Are going to be the ones
that we kill.

Narrator: The bronco's success

Catches the pentagon's
attention.

Perhaps a low-cost aircraft
can fight in an urban war

And succeed.

Clay: It was a huge win
for that aircrew.

It was a huge win for the ov-10.

It's that type of artisan
professionalism

That has made the ov-10 combat
dragon ii program a success.

Narrator: The ov-10
was just a call away

When america's allies needed it.

But the concept of
air assistance took flight

Almost 100 years ago.

Darrel whitcomb: The idea
of using power from above

To help the ground forces

Goes back to the beginning
of aviation.

Narrator:
Colonel darrel whitcomb

Is an air force historian
and author

Who served three tours of duty
in vietnam.

Whitcomb: Once we had aircraft,

We realized that this had
direct application

In the field of battle,

Because now we have
these devices

Which will allow us to outflank
our enemy from above.

Narrator: In world war I,

Aviators bomb and strafe
enemy soldiers...

[explosion]

Barely coordinating
with troops on the ground.

[gun fires]

By the end of the war,

There's no doubt that aircraft
are a powerful new weapon.

But turf wars
in the army air corps

Lead to squabbles
about how to use them.

Some see planes as
a mobile artillery force

To support the army's movement.

Others want to bomb far behind
the front lines,

And believe that airpower

Will soon make
the ground war obsolete.

Whitcomb: Aviation-minded
generals said, wait a minute,

We can do a lot more
with those aircraft

Than support the ground forces.

We could go in, and we could
bomb their supply depots,

Troop convoys,
fuel supply lines,

Fuel supply depots,

So that we don't have to fight
tomorrow's battle.

Narrator: At the start
of world war ii,

The army air corps sends
attack planes and bombers

Deep into enemy territory,

Leaving front line troops
largely on their own.

Roger connor: Airplanes would
attack key infrastructure,

Like bridges or road junctions,

And it would attack columns
on the March.

Narrator: Roger connor
is a curator

In the national air and space
museum's aeronautics department.

Connor: They were not designed
for attacking troops

In the field, because often
they couldn't put their bombs

Within more than a half mile
of their intended aim point.

Narrator: The army comes up
with a solution:

Giving soldiers a two-way radio

So they can talk
to fighter-bombers

To call in strikes.

Connor: The coordinates of an
enemy position were given out,

And it was entirely up to
the pilot to try and figure out

What they were shooting at

And how to approach that target
and what weapons to use.

Narrator: Allowing
an infantryman

To call in air strikes
proves dangerous.

Misjudging where
to drop ordnance

Too often leads
to friendly fire.

Whitcomb: That was always
a very serious concern,

Because when you're
conducting an airstrike,

The ordnance that you put in

Doesn't really care
who it kills.

Connor: The problem was that
they would have no understanding

Of how the aircraft performed.

They didn't understand what the
pilot would see from the air.

Narrator: In normandy,

Generals fine tune
the close air support concept.

The soldier gets replaced
with an air corps pilot,

And the air strikes' accuracy
immediately improves.

Connor: Because he knew
the performance of the aircraft

And he knew how
to set up an attack,

He could talk that pilot

Precisely onto
that enemy position

And engage it in the most
effective manner possible.

Narrator: The position soon gets
a name: Forward air controller.

It becomes part of the allies'
strategy for winning the war.

It appears that
the air-ground relationship

Is finally on the right track.

But as soon as the war is over,

Aviation-minded generals push

For a different kind
of airpower to be the star.

Whitcomb: There were those who
felt that long range bombing

Was such a unique mission that
it had to have its own service,

And so that led, ultimately,

To the creation of the air force
in 1947.

Narrator: The new air force
quickly builds up its fleet

Of high-flying bombers.

They believe that wars
will be won with airpower,

Not by troops on the ground.

The army doesn't agree

And worries that their soldiers
will be left out.

Whitcomb: One of the things
that was not really sorted out

Was this idea of the effective
use of u.S. Air force firepower

Now in support
of the united states army.

They hadn't really
thought down to the idea

Of who would support
the army forces in the field.

Connor: Everything now was
oriented towards nuclear combat,

Strategic bombers, and even
the development of missiles.

And the idea of close
supporting troops in the field

Really kind of receded
into the background.

Narrator: 1950. Korea.

The united states sends troops
into south korea

To fight back an invasion
from the communist north.

Air force generals soon find

It's a tough place
for an air campaign.

Connor: Forces were
moving rapidly,

And they were moving
over terrain

That was mapped quite poorly.

So, it was very difficult
for the pilot

To sort out friend from foe.

Whitcomb: At one point,

General macarthur was
so concerned about this

That he didn't even
want the air force

Flying anywhere
near the front lines.

Narrator: It's a huge blow
to the fledgling air force.

They scramble
for a quick solution.

Connor: The tactics
used in normandy

Did not work in this situation,

Because the front lines
were changing so fast,

And because jet aircraft
were now moving,

Covering a lot more ground
than they had before.

So, a new type of forward
air controller was required.

Narrator: The air force
soon has a brainstorm--

To put the forward
air controller in the air

Rather than on the ground.

They turn to the t-6 texan,

An aircraft used to train pilots
since before world war ii.

Connor: It was certainly
an obsolete aircraft.

But it had a good combination
of speed, visibility.

You could put a rear observer
in there with a radio

And talk these fast-moving jets
onto a target

In fairly short order.

So, it was making the best
of a bad situation.

Narrator: The t-6s log
thousands of hours,

Completing 40,000 sorties
in support of ground troops.

Whitcomb: The need for
the forward air controller

Had become obvious.

However, after the war was over,

It was kind of like
we forgot all of that,

And the old rivalries

Between the air force
and the army

About who controls
what and when

Were never really,
really resolved.

Narrator: In 1956,
the united states military

Holds a conference in seoul

To discuss the future
of forward air control.

But no agreement
on the ground-air doctrine

Can be reached.

Whitcomb: Unfortunately
we had to learn that again.

We had to learn it the hard way.

[gunfire]

Narrator: December 1961.

Vietnam.

The south struggles to defend
itself against guerrilla attacks

From the communist north.

President kennedy commits
to expanding support

For america's southern allies.

Yet again, america's air force
finds that the planes they have

Aren't right for the job.

Whitcomb: One of the challenges
that we immediately recognized

Was the fact that we're dealing
in a jungle environment.

And we're dealing
with guerrilla forces.

Connor: Fighting rebels
in the jungle

Falls under the category
of counterinsurgency warfare.

It means fighting an enemy

That's often carrying all
their supplies on their back

In jungle that might hide
their movements.

And so, an airplane is
a very useful tool,

Because, particularly
if you can get down low enough,

You can spot things

That might not be visible
at all from the ground.

Narrator: By 1963,
the air force

Has almost 5,000 airmen
in vietnam...

And brings in an observation
plane called the o-1 bird dog

To help ground troops
call in strikes.

Whitcomb:
Forward air controllers

Were flying the o-1
because that's what we had.

But as the war wore on,

It became obvious that the o-1s
were not sufficient

For what we needed to do.

Narrator: The o-1 has
no armor and no weapons,

Making it vulnerable
to artillery fire.

Over 450 are shot down
over the course of the war.

Whitcomb: It was obvious
we needed something else.

We needed something that could
fly higher, a little bit faster,

Had longer range,

And had some ability to deliver
some light strike.

Connor: There just wasn't
an aircraft like that

In the inventory at the time.

And going forward,

The requirements for
a counterinsurgency aircraft

Began to evolve.

Narrator: Late 1963.

The department of defense
requests design proposals

For a light attack
counterinsurgency aircraft.

The winner: North american
aviation's ov-10,

An aircraft developed in the
garage of marine corps aviators

Major w.H. Beckett and
lieutenant colonel k.P. Rice.

Connor: Rice and beckett
realized

That counterinsurgency warfare
was getting to be a big thing.

And they understood that if
you could have an aircraft

That could operate
from short strips,

Was easy to maintain,
easy to fly,

And could carry
pretty good payloads,

It could be a formidable
opponent on the battlefield.

Narrator: In 1965,
the ov-10 bronco

Has its first test flight
in columbus, ohio...

Undergoing extensive trials

To ensure its ruggedness
and reliability.

♪

By 1968, the military
takes ownership

Of the brand new aircraft.

Its destination: Vietnam.

1968.

The mekong delta.

U.S. Navy river boats patrol
the vast system of waterways,

Trying to prevent
the communist vietcong

From moving weapons
and supplies.

Whitcomb: The mekong delta
was a guerrilla-type war.

And over the years,
the united states navy

Was taking their navy seal teams
down there

And doing a lot
of special operations.

Narrator: Providing air support,

Uh-1b huey gunships,
called seawolves.

The seawolves fight tough,

But the navy doesn't
have enough of them.

Their other problem:
Limited weapons and range.

What the navy needs is
a fixed-wing attack squadron

That can fly low and
provide enough firepower

To keep navy vessels safe.

They set their sights
on the brand new ov-10.

March 1969.

Binh thuy, vietnam.

The 36 naval officers
and 110 enlisted men

Of the navy's new ov-10
light attack squadron four

Arrive, ready for battle.

Kit lavell: We called ourselves
the black ponies,

Because the ov-10 is
called the bronco.

Narrator: Lieutenant kit lavell
flew 243 missions

With the black ponies
in the mekong delta.

Lavell: On the side of the
aircraft we had a black pony.

We used the ov-10 unlike
anybody used the ov-10 before.

We were the only user to use it
as an attack aircraft.

We took the aircraft and put a
lot of things on that aircraft

That it was not designed to do.

Narrator: The ponies fly heavy.

19 2.75-inch rockets

And 16 supersonic 5-inch
zuni rockets

Are the usual load.

Lavell: The way we used them,
they were very accurate.

The zuni rockets is what
everybody on the ground

Really wanted when we came in

To fly close air support
for them.

Narrator: The black ponies
quickly become

The guardian angels
for the troops on the ground.

In their first two years, they
log over 39,000 flight hours

And destroy over
6,500 enemy outposts.

Lavell: We would check in
with all of the units,

Every unit we could think of,
all the boats, you know,

The swift boats,
the patrol boats,

And would try
to find some business.

Narrator: November 1971.

The base gets word that
there are troops in contact.

Lavell and his wingman
answer the call.

Lavell: About one o'clock
in the morning

I was awakened
from a deep sleep.

It was a base being overrun
by north vietnamese soldiers.

We were needed to get out there

And save them
from being overrun.

Narrator: Lavell and his wingman
bolt out the door

And head straight
for their planes.

Six minutes later,

They find themselves flying
over a pitch-black jungle,

Scanning desperately
for the friendly base.

[radio chatter]

After nearly three years
of combat,

They can tell where
they're headed, even at night.

Lavell:
I knew all of the little,

We called them squigglies,
you know,

Little tributaries of canals
and rivers and streams.

You would know
from practicing this,

And looking at it,
and flying it so often,

You would know it day and night.

Narrator: Finally, a glowing red
spot in the forest

Catches their attention.

Man on radio:
Ok, 1-1-2, that's it,

If you can see the fire
down there.

Lavell: We found
the forward firebase

Quite by accident, almost.

It was burning in the middle.

Narrator: The ground controller
radios in with the story.

Man on radio:
We're still receiving it--

Automatic weapons fire.

Narrator: The vietcong
have destroyed the base

In an all-out attack.

Now the friendlies
hide in the jungle,

Surrounded and waiting
for the ov-10s' help.

Lavell: They had been
receiving mortar fire.

And they left the base

Because they were being mortared
and machine-gunned.

There were three sets
of bad guys

Converging on the good guys.

Narrator: Locating the troops
is difficult.

The jungle canopy hides
much of the action below.

If they want to provide
close air support,

The ov-10s first have to
light up the ground.

Lavell: You had to know
where the good guys were,

You had to know where
the bad guys were.

You had to have positive
identification of that

Before you could
prosecute a target.

Narrator: The solution:
Paraflares--

Phosphorus flares
on small white parachutes.

A 30-second burn means lavell
has to spot his target quickly.

Lavell: It had a million
candlepower of light.

Very, very, very bright.

And it would swing, and it would
throw shadows on the ground.

Narrator: But lavell
and his wingman

Know that the light
is a double-edged sword.

Lavell: The problem
with that, though,

Is it made us sitting ducks.

Because as soon
as we drop a flare,

Then the bad guys on the ground
can see us.

When we're under
3,000 feet or so,

You know that they can get you
with ak-47s.

Narrator: The vietcong unleash
relentless machine gun fire

Upon the ov-10s.

The aircraft quickly maneuver,
trying to avoid the enemy fire.

Lavell: We were jinking
the aircraft around.

We'd drop the nose, turn left,
turn right, pull up.

You try to play hide-and-seek
from the enemy.

Narrator:
Lavell and his wingman reset

With a new sense of purpose.

The flares offer
just enough light

For lavell to get a glimpse
of the friendlies.

Radioing the ground controller
confirms the location...

And a problem.

The vietcong are
just 300 feet away.

Lavell readies his rockets
and does a quick calculation.

The trapped soldiers are
too close to the enemy

To guarantee they'll survive
a rocket blast.

Lavell: The first thing
that came through my mind

Was they're inside
that kill radius.

About three meters above
the ground it will explode.

And if you're inside that,
you know,

The probability of
you getting killed

Is about, I think, six-tenths
or seven-tenths.

Narrator: Lavell radios the
soldiers to share the bad news.

Man on radio: Five, seven
recoilless in there. Over.

Narrator: The friendlies counter
with a desperate plea.

Enemy soldiers are
closing in fast.

If lavell doesn't take action,

There's no way that
the friendlies will last.

Lavell carefully prepares
his rockets to fire.

[firing]

This will be the test
of his life.

[gunfire]

Lavell: It's missions like this
that stick with you,

And those are the ones
that I wake up thinking about

Or dreaming about still
46 years later.

[explosion]

♪

Narrator: November 1971.

U minh forest, vietnam.

[rockets firing]

Lieutenant kit lavell fires
a pod of zuni rockets

Straight into enemy troops

And perilously close to the
friendlies they are attacking.

The radio is silent.

Lavell waits anxiously.

Then...

Man on radio:
Ok, 1-1-2, that's it.

Lavell: As we were orbiting,
we got the radio call.

And he said, "you're released
from the target.

Good job, black ponies."

We took it to mean that we did
what we needed to do.

Huge sigh of relief.

Narrator: Lavell and his team
head back to their base,

Exhausted.

Lavell: We were drained.

We were just so tired.

Narrator: But the night
is only just beginning.

Lavell: We were about
six minutes away

From being back at the base,

When we got a call
over the radio

Saying, "black ponies,
can you come back?"

At first we thought,
are you asking us to come back

After we rearm and refuel?

But then we realized,
by the tone of his voice,

That no, he meant right now.

[gunfire]

Narrator: A group
of north vietnamese troops

Has survived lavell's strike
and is barreling down

Upon the friendly forces
trapped in the base.

Lavell immediately turns
his ov-10 around,

But makes a horrific discovery.

Lavell: I realized, well,
we didn't have any ammunition.

Narrator: The black ponies must
make a difficult decision.

Lavell consults his wingman.

Lavell: I said,
"what do you think?"

And bubba said,
"hey, we got flares."

I knew exactly what was going
through bubba's head.

Narrator: Lavell and his wingman
decide to use

Their remaining paraflares
to trick the enemy

Into thinking they are
a fresh pair of planes.

Lavell: You know,
they have to assume the worst,

That we're different aircraft,
and we're all armed and ready

To do, you know, exactly what
the first group of pilots did.

Our intention was
to totally disorient

What was left
of the enemy there,

To make them think that we could
put in a full air strike.

Narrator: As they approach
the outpost,

Lavell and his wingman
precisely mimic their actions

From their last air strike.

Lavell: So, when we came back,

We did the initial flying
over the outpost,

Like we did the first time.

We went and dropped the flares
right on top of these guys,

From a couple of different
directions,

Until we got them all dropped.

And that seemed to do the trick.

Narrator: Paraflares rain down
upon the enemy,

Tricking them into thinking
another air strike is imminent.

The south vietnamese use the
confusion to their advantage,

Launching a stiff defense
against remaining enemy forces.

Lavell: We orbited high
for a couple of minutes,

And then we got the word
from the, the senior advisor

That, "you did a good job,
black ponies."

That gave us, you know,
kind of the, the assurances

That the bad guys were getting
away from there, retreating.

Narrator: Lavell and
his squadron head for home,

Having used every last one
of their munitions.

Back at base, lavell learns

That every friendly
survived the attack.

Lavell: In the middle
of the combat mission,

You don't have a chance
to think about things,

And if you did, you're probably
doing something wrong.

But on the way back,
or once you get on the ground,

You think about it,
it's a lot different.

Narrator:
For his actions that day,

Lavell receives
the distinguished flying cross.

The ov-10 bronco helps the
black ponies cement their legacy

As an elite fighting force.

Lavell: The ov-10, the way
that the black ponies flew it

In vietnam, was the perfect
close air support aircraft.

It saved a lot of lives.

I still have a placard
that I have at my office,

46 years later, and it says
when you're out of ov-10s,

You're out of close air support.

Narrator: While the ov-10 fights
its way across the mekong delta

With the black ponies,

The air force comes up with
other ways to use the new plane.

Connor: Because the ov-10
was built

With a fairly spacious airframe,

And because it had been built
with a lot of hard points,

It was easy to modify.

Narrator: In 1971, the air force
modifies 15 ov-10s

With new equipment

To increase their
precision strike capabilities.

The project is called pave nail.

When a modified ov-10 teams up
with an f-4 fighter-bomber,

The result is an extremely
accurate air attack.

Here's how it works:

The weapons systems officer
in the ov-10

Detects an enemy target
using a scope

And designates it with a laser.

The laser communicates with
a long range navigation system

Called a loran.

The ov-10's loran receiver

Uses radio signals
from ground transmitter stations

To pinpoint the target's
exact coordinates.

The ov-10 crew passes
the information

To the crew of an f-4,

Who feed the data into
their weapons delivery system.

The f-4 crew positions
their aircraft,

And the ov-10 crew
laser designates the target.

Then, the f-4 releases
its laser-guided bomb.

The ov-10 crew keeps the laser
fixed on the target,

Guiding the bomb to
its final destination.

[boom]

♪

Whitcomb: Initially,
the goal was to use them

To better find
and destroy trucks

Along the ho chi minh trail.

We start monkeying with
this stuff and realize,

Hey, this machine
can do a lot more

Than just go out and
find trucks to destroy.

Narrator: Ov-10 pilots
soon discover

That the pave nail system
is uniquely equipped

For another key mission:
Search and rescue.

April 1972.

The north vietnamese army
launches an offensive

Against the south vietnamese
and their u.S. Allies.

It's the largest attack
in the war.

Three days in,
they manage to shoot down

An american douglas
eb-66 destroyer.

[explosion]

The navigator has
top secret information

About the united states'
electronic warfare program.

His capture would be a huge
advantage for enemy forces.

The air force knows that
its high-flying fighters

Can't get low enough to pinpoint
the downed airman's location.

They call on the one plane
that can: The ov-10 bronco.

A day after the shootdown,

Two pave nail ov-10 pilots
gear up

To take part in a massive
search and rescue operation.

Richard atchison:
We were not about to leave

Any survivor on the ground.

No, we will go to the ends of
the earth to pull somebody out.

Narrator:
Captain richard atchison

Flew in the 23rd tactical
air support squadron in vietnam.

Atchison: I knew as an ov-10
weapons systems officer

That we had to go in,

Because we were the one that
could precisely locate him

And then kill the guns,
cut the roads,

Anything that you can do to
keep the bad guys off of him.

Narrator: Just before sunrise,
the ov-10s head into vietnam.

Their first task: Pinpointing
the downed airman's location.

They rely on their loran device
to navigate the jungle below.

Atchison: We knew the general
area that he was in.

So, I felt very confident in our
capability to find the survivor.

Narrator: Atchison radios
down to the airman,

Letting him know
they'll be coming in low.

Atchison: We just dove down and
then came right back up again.

And when he said,
"you're over the top of me,"

We hit the reference button
on the loran system

So that we did get
a very accurate location.

Narrator: A close look
at the ground

Tells the ov-10s right away

That saving the downed airman
is going to be a challenge.

He's stuck on the wrong side

Of a north vietnamese offensive
thrust, 30,000 men strong.

Atchison: We could see
an awful lot of enemy forces

On the ground--trucks, tanks,
that type of thing--

Moving through that area.

We had no idea that we were
facing that size of an enemy.

Pretty evident that this was
going to be one fistfight.

Man on radio:
Guys, keep it open,

Keep your eyes open,
keep it moving.

Narrator: The pave nails
quickly activate their system

And start clearing in flights
of loran-equipped f-4 phantoms.

Atchison: We started doing

Our normal forward
air controller duties,

Which is to destroy targets.

It was a very target-rich
environment.

Narrator:
For the rest of the day,

American forces work
the ground over,

Taking out as many
north vietnamese forces

As they possibly can.

♪

[explosion]

The broncos act
as forward air controllers,

Managing the battle space
and marking the targets

For the f-4s to fly in
and drop bombs.

Atchison: We had navy
and air force aircraft

Dropping bombs on those targets.

We were kind of
the orchestrator.

Narrator: Bronco pilots
fly on rotation,

Hoping to bring in
a rescue chopper

As soon as it's safe.

Atchison: When we felt that
we needed to take a break,

We would go back out over
the water north of da nang,

Orbit over the ships,
take a drink of water,

Do whatever we wanted to do,

And then when we felt like
we were ready to go,

We'd just turn around
and go right back in.

[explosion]

Man on radio: Straight ahead
about 400 meters.

Narrator: A day later,
the downed airman

Is still in enemy territory, and
the ov-10s are getting weary.

North vietnamese anti-aircraft
weapons offer non-stop attacks.

Atchison: I can remember being
shot at with two missiles.

The first one we saw, came up
and arced over the aircraft

And came right down toward us.

And I looked at that,

And I thought, man,
this is going to hurt.

And that missile went off
and just went like this.

The fragments came out
and stopped

Before it got to our aircraft.

Narrator:
Midway through the day,

Atchison heads back to base.

Another ov-10 comes in
to relieve him.

Moments later,
his radio crackles

With the worst kind of news:

The ov-10 has just been
shot down.

Two of his pave nail brothers

Are now somewhere in
north vietnamese territory, too.

Atchison: If you're going
to go into a fight,

Then you're going
to have to expect

Some losses in that fight,

But what we were doing,
it wasn't working.

We knew that.

Narrator: Three downed
american crewmen.

30,000 north vietnamese
soldiers.

With the rescue mission
swiftly going downhill,

Ov-10 pilots will need to come
up with a new plan, and fast.

♪

1972.

South vietnam.

Captain richard atchison
and his ov-10 bronco

Are trying to rescue
three downed americans,

Surrounded by over 30,000
enemy soldiers.

Atchison: There was no doubt
in any one of our minds

That we were going to do
whatever needed to be done

To get them out.

[anti-aircraft fire]

Narrator: Five days after
the first crewman is downed,

The mission takes a turn
for the worse.

The air force brings in

A super jolly green giant
helicopter

To attempt a rescue.

The north vietnamese are ready.

They greet it with a barrage
of anti-aircraft fire.

It erupts into a giant fireball,
killing all six men aboard.

Atchison: After the jolly
got shot down,

We had to come to the conclusion

That we did not have
enough aircraft

To continue to support this.

That you were losing
too many airplanes.

So, we needed to have
a new plan.

Narrator: American forces
come up with a new strategy:

While rescue choppers try to
locate the newly downed aircrew,

The downed navigator will
slowly make his way

Out of enemy territory

With the ov-10 as his guide.

Atchison: We provided him
with the information

On the direction he should go.

We did not stay over him,

Because we did not want
to compromise him.

But we were always there
in case he got in trouble,

We could go in and help him.

[radio chatter]

Narrator: Ov-10s
feed instructions

To the airman on the ground,

Using their pave nail system
to carry out strikes

If the enemy gets too close.

Man on radio: We got him!
Look at that beauty go!

[explosions]

Narrator: On April 12,
10 days after being shot down,

The navigator is finally rescued
by american forces.

It becomes known as bat-21,

The largest air rescue mission
of the vietnam war.

The other two downed aircrew
also survive,

Although one is captured
and remains a p.O.W.

For the rest of the war.

Over the course of the war,

Broncos are a key part
of search and rescue operations

And destroy numerous
enemy convoys.

Whitcomb: If you think
of airpower as a fist,

The ov-10 was the finger
of the fist.

We were the ones who found
the targets and pointed the way.

We were the key link between
our air and ground forces,

And I think that, more than
anything else, is our legacy.

Narrator: By the time
the war ends,

Vietnamese
surface-to-air missiles

Have become too much of a threat
to the low-flying plane,

Shooting down almost 70%
of the 81 ov-10 broncos lost.

Whitcomb: We realized
that there were areas

That were just too dangerous,
even for the ov-10s.

Narrator: After vietnam,

The air force retires
the bronco for good.

The marine corps keeps faith,

Modifying 17 broncos for better
performance after dark.

These new ov-10ds are equipped
with bigger engines

And an infrared
observation system.

In 1991, the marine corps
gives the bronco

Another shot at glory,

Deploying two ov-10 units
in operation desert storm.

The sa-7 surface-to-air missile
quickly halts their heroics.

Whitcomb: They were
absolutely devastating

For aircraft like the ov-10.

We had no warning device

Other than visually seeing
the missiles themselves.

Narrator: In just a month,
two have been shot down.

The bronco is removed
from the front lines.

Whitcomb: I think
it was pretty obvious

That after desert storm

Aerial warfare had kind of
passed the ov-10 by.

Narrator: In 1995,
after 27 years of service,

The ov-10 bronco is
officially retired.

Since then, the versatile ov-10

Has enjoyed a robust
civilian life.

Broncos are a key part

Of the state department's
anti-drug efforts in colombia.

Nasa uses the aircraft
for aeronautical research.

And in california, 15 ov-10s fly

With the department of forestry
and fire protection.

In 2015, the bronco
comes out of retirement--

Navy and special operations
commanders send it to iraq.

The ov-10s exceed expectations,

Racking up 134 sorties
and 120 combat missions

Over 82 days.

Inspired by
the bronco's success,

The air force is
considering adding

A permanent light attack
aircraft to its arsenal.

Clay: They're asking for
upwards of $4 billion

To buy somewhere in the number
of 300 light attack aircraft,

And hopefully see something
like the ov-10.

Narrator: In almost 50 years
of existence,

The ov-10 has proven to be
a tough and reliable fighter.

Lavell: The ov-10 looked
a lot like a guppy,

But it fought like a shark.

It saved a lot of lives.

♪

[explosions]

Narrator:
It's a legendary aircraft--

Versatile, brave,

And flown by some of america's
toughest pilots.

Atchison: It was an aircraft
that you could take

Just about anywhere and use it.

Narrator: The ov-10...

A guardian angel
of metal and glass,

Hovering over the battlefield

And delivering just what
the ground troops need.