Cessna O-1G Bird Dog The O-1G was a two-place observation and liaison aircraft developed from the commercial Cessna Model 170 in 1949. Originally designated L-19s, Bird Dogs were used by the U.S. Air Force, Army and Marine Corps for such tasks as artillery spotting, front-line communications, medical evacuation and pilot training. In Southeast Asia, the O-1s became a USAF forward air control aircraft. A forward air controller (FAC), often an experienced fighter pilot, flew in a specific geograph

The O-1G was a two-place observation and liaison aircraft developed from the commercial Cessna Model 170 in 1949. Originally designated L-19s, Bird Dogs were used by the U.S. Air Force, Army and Marine Corps for such tasks as artillery spotting, front-line communications, medical evacuation and pilot training. | National Museum of the U.S. Air Force

104 reactions | The Cessna L-19/O-1 Bird Dog is a military liaison...

#OTD in 1975, South Vietnamese Air Force Major Buang-Ly stole a Cessna O-1 Bird Dog and landed on USS Midway with his wife and 5 children to escape North Vietnamese forces. Buang made several passes over the carrier to drop notes asking for the crowded deck to be cleared. The Midway's CO Captain Lawrence Chambers ordered $10 million worth of helicopters that had been used to to carry evacuees from Saigon to be pushed overboard so that Buang could land. | U.S. Naval Institute