The A-4 Skyhawk is a lightweight, single-engine attack aircraft. The first A-4 was delivered to the Navy in 1956 and to the Marine Corps in November 1962, and 765 A-4 aircraft have been sold worldwide. It was one of the most effective and versatile light attack aircraft produced. The Skyhawk served in military units in 9 countries for 34 years, and a total of 2,096 aircraft were produced in various models. The mission of an A-4 attack squadron is to attack and destroy surface targets in support of the landing force commander, escort helicopters, and conduct other operations as directed. The A-4 is a cantilever low-wing monoplane with 33-degree swept-back wings, a single-seat, high-performance light attack and ground support aircraft with outstanding low-speed control and stability during takeoff and landing. There were numerous models of the A-4 in use in various branches of the service. All models have two internally mounted 20mm cannons and are capable of delivering conventional and nuclear weapons under day and night visual meteorological conditions. The A-4M uses a heads-up display and computer-aided delivery of its bomb load with the angle rate bombing system. The last Marine Reserve Squadron, VC-8, to use the A-4 had two squadrons of A-4s with 12 aircraft each. These aircraft were removed from duty in 2003.