---
title: "This Dragonfly stung the Communists in Vietnam"
description: "Cessna converted 39 T-37 Tweets into new A-37As, dubbed \"Dragonfly.\" The converted planes performed so well, the Air Force ordered more."
date: "2022-11-03"
modified: "2023-10-19"
authors:
  - name: "Harold C. Hutchison"
    link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/haroldhutchison/"
url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/popular/this-dragonfly-stung-the-communists-in-vietnam/"
categories:
  - "Aviation"
  - "Fixed Wing"
  - "History"
  - "Tactical"
  - "Vietnam War"
  - "Wars"
---

# This Dragonfly stung the Communists in Vietnam

![a-37a dragonfly plane flying.](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/19/a-37a-dragonfly.webp>)

When you think of companies that deliver combat aircraft to the United States military, you probably think 'Lockheed' and 'Boeing' right away. Historic companies like Grumman, Curtiss, and McDonnell-Douglas might also spring to mind — but not Cessna. However, that company delivered a nifty little counter-insurgency plane: the A-37A Dragonfly.

![o-1 bird dog](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/wp-content/uploads/legacy/assets.rbl.ms/17221635/origin.jpg>)
* The Cessna O-1 Bird Dog FAC aircraft. (USAF photo)*

Over the years, Cessna delivered some slightly-modified, single-engine planes, like the O-1 Bird Dog, which was used for spotting artillery fire and by forward air controllers. The company also delivered the T-37 Tweet, which served a valuable jet trainer for over five decades — but the Tweet proved it could be more than a trainer.

![cessna t-37 dragonfly](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/wp-content/uploads/legacy/assets.rbl.ms/17276847/origin.jpg>)
* A Cessna T-37 Tweet aircraft from the 85th Fighter Training Squadron, Laughlin AFB, Texas, flies over Lake Amistad during a training mission. (Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Andy Dunaway)*

As the Vietnam War heated up, the United States was looking for a plane to support troops on the ground. To fill this need, Cessna converted 39 T-37 Tweets into new A-37As, dubbed "Dragonfly." The converted planes performed so well, the Air Force ordered another 577. The [National Museum of the United States Air Force notes](<https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/196046/cessna-a-37-dragonfly/>) that 234 of these were sent to South Vietnam.

![cessna dragonfly museum](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/wp-content/uploads/legacy/assets.rbl.ms/17276848/origin.jpg>)
* Cessna YA-37A Dragonfly in the Southeast Asia War Gallery at the National Museum of the United States Air Force. (U.S. Air Force photo)*

The fall of South Vietnam meant that a number of these planes fell into the hands of the Communist regime that ruled [Vietnam](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/lists/vietnam-war/>). However, the A-37 was soon acquired by other American allies, and also saw service with Air Force Special Operations Command as well as the Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard.

![a-37 dragonfly](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/wp-content/uploads/legacy/assets.rbl.ms/17276844/origin.jpg>)
* A-37 at Lackland Air Force Base. (Image from Wikimedia Commons)*

The A-37 had a top speed of 506 miles per hour and a maximum range of 932 miles. It could carry a pilot (for close-air support missions) or a pilot and observer (for use as a forward air controller). It was armed with a 7.62mm Minigun, which meant the Dragonfly could deliver kind of a mini-*BRRRRRT* to the enemy, and it had eight hardpoints for bombs, rockets, or guns.

![dragonfly minigun](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/wp-content/uploads/legacy/assets.rbl.ms/17276843/origin.jpg>)
* Cessna A-37B minigun compartment detail. (U.S. Air Force photo)*

## Author
WATM contributor Harold Hutchison was consulting senior editor at Soldier of Fortune magazine and is the author of the novel Strike Group Reagan. He has also written for the Daily Caller, National Review, Patriot Post, Strategypage.com, and other national web sites.