The Don Englebreston Collection

Cessna O-2 Skymaster 'USAF 86861' in Flight — Possible First-Flight Photograph

Cessna O-2 Skymaster 'USAF 86861' in Flight — Possible First-Flight Photograph

A Cessna O-2 Skymaster banks against a summer sky, its twin tail booms and push-pull propeller configuration clearly visible. Used by Forward Air Controllers during the Vietnam War to mark targets and coordinate airstrikes, the O-2 played a vital, if unglamorous, role in the air war over Southeast Asia. This photograph is believed to document an early or first training flight for a young Air Force pilot. Project: 219008