B-26K with US Air Force pilots and ground personnel
The B-26K Counter Invader aircraft began to enter service with the US Air Force in the spring of 1964. By April 1965, the USAF had received all the ordered copies. By this time, American forces in Vietnam were in dire need of an anti-guerrilla aircraft, and in the spring of 1966 the decision was made to deploy the B-26K to Southeast Asia. Based on airfields in Thailand, they performed combat missions in Laos. Since Thailand did not allow bombers to be based on its territory, from May 1966 these aircraft were temporarily designated as attack aircraft - with the designation A-26A. And because the actions in Laos were considered unofficial, the counter-invaders based in Southeast Asia did not have national insignia. These attack aircraft performed most of their combat missions in the dark. The reason for this was the means of Vietnamese air defense, which posed a serious danger to piston aircraft at low speeds.
