WebDuring the Vietnam War, the USAF lost a total of 528 F-4s (of all types) to enemy action with the majority being down by anti-aircraft fire or surface-to-air missiles. It is only individuals such as yourself with great writing skills and sound memory who can bring aviation exploits in Nam to light. God Bless you, Joe, and all those who flew and fought in Vietnam. u-6 losses need added all are army fixed wing aircraft, 5,195+ (which include not in addition to the above statistics)[2], North Vietnam captured 877 South Vietnamese aircraft at war's end. ), the first U.S. pilot shot down in the Vietnam War. With the helmet strap no longer in existence, my helmet flew off like a slingshot. I will be reading your story to my young ones tonight. Just recently back from the Academy F-4 Phantom ceremony. We would have to fight if not listened to. Overcome with his Ivy League false sense of academic Superiority, he stupidly turned them down, not even a crucial, critical, disastrous war saving meeting. 0000014635 00000 n Updated: August 21, 2018 | Original: May 30, 2012. Sorry about your Dad. Thank you for sharing this. MiG-21 no. I would like to hear from you at some point; [emailprotected]. $17.99 + $4.99 shipping. This is aviation commentary. Thank you for your email. WebUSAs stealth bomber was shot down using tech from 30 years before it came into service yes but American F-117 was at least shot down by much more capable medium range S-125 Neva, not a puny little shoulder fired MANPAD with just few km range.There is a vast difference between medium range AA and short little MANPAD, difference in radar capabilities alone is Kos Media, LLC. Thank you President Nixon for my life and my freedom. At first it seemed to be right below me. I had a great respect for the men who put their lives on the line every day, not knowing if they would make it back to Ubon that evening. When I got to the control tower, the controller whod witnessed the crash was catatonic. Rest in Peace, dear Scotty. The kill was observed by his section leader, Lt. Peter Russell. of an F-4), or I could man a missile silo in North Dakota. Well b fearn, you have a right to make your comment and your opinion, but I do not believe this is the time or place. I saw 3 aircraft in front of me, so I asked lead to flash his lights. The U.S. military initially had no idea where the pilot was located, but he was eventually rescued after 24 days in enemy captivity. Nobody else made a comment like yours because you are the only a-hole on here. His articles have appeared in Naval History, Proceedings, Chesapeake Bay Magazine, and other publications. I was falling towards the Earth and still attached to my Martin-Baker (made in England) ejection seat below a four-foot drogue chute to stabilize my rapid descent. If the MiGs didnt come up, he couldnt have a chance to shoot one down. May God bless you, your family and all our vets. The only USAF officers who could rise to strategic ranks were from Strategic Air Command (nuke bombers) and a very few from Air Defense Command. To you gentlemen; Brett, Tim, Wade, Gordon, Cliff, Neil, Andy and Jerry who responded to the reprint of my 2017 article, Shot Down Over North Vietnam, I thank you for your kind remarks and expressions of patriotism. 0000001845 00000 n Subconsciously I probably realized I was sitting alone in the back seat of a burning airplane. But, I stuck to my story answering the same question in the same way each time. Thanks, again, for your story many more years of good health & happiness to you. I am forever beholding to you on so many fronts. The upper estimate puts it at nearly 260 million! Bent the F-4 around after re-start and headed to his radial fix off Hue Tacan. The leaders claim was that we could easily have bingod into the RTAF base on the Thai border, so I should not have abandoned my flight leader. I remember the 141 unloading POWs Welcome Home Sir. I hope the AFJ editor will exercise more discretion in the future. Theyd land opposite direction on the same runway. I wish I could have expressed my thanks to your Elder Eagle for successfully completing his mission to spring me out of jail. names of pilots shot down in vietnam. Joe, Messrs. Crecca and Wilson were asked by their nation to serve. But survival instincts and thorough ejection training were running the show. And I also thank you for taking the time to write down your harrowing and amazing experience in war.

Joe Crecca would spend more than six years in various prison camps. Both Fire and Overheat lights were illuminated and all the amber and red indicators on the telelight panel by Scottys right knee were lit. See also Is Tibetan same as Chinese? 0000003106 00000 n After I was stabilized, the boomer cleared me into the contact position. %PDF-1.2 % Our detachment was working on WWll vintage C-47s, but we got to observe AC-130 gunships and the F-4 unit known as Wolf-Pack in action. I met and liked John Dremesi whose experience was the same as yours. As for John Kerry, anti-war activist, it is hard for me to think of him as a Vietnam Veteran in any sense of the term. Joe, you are one incredible patriot and hero. What?

Actually, it being a slow weekend day, I was on a break and eating breakfast with a few other controllers at a restaurant not far from the airport when Perky01 or 02 reported that they were going to have to bail out. Amazing story Mr.Crecca, I for one, am glad you are still here among us mere mortals, thank you for sharing your daunting experience, you sure went through hell for 6 years and yet had the courage to ask Nixon for another F-4 16 How many Huey pilots died in Vietnam? WebCapt. He lives near Easton, MD. Joe I want to start by thanking you profusely for attending and speaking at my brother Johns funeral 3 years ago. And when the pressurization system failed we were freezing our butts off! Joe, Every Friday Im privileged to have lunch with a WWII veteran who flew virtually every airplane in the arsenal of the time. Im glad you made it home. Charles Barbin DeBellevue successfully shot down a North Well, at least you tried. We can never let our politicians forget those lessons. First loss: EC-121R 67-24193 (554th Reconnaissance Squadron, 553d RW) crashed 25 April 1969 on take-off in a thunderstorm from. The time was 1151. WebI had a wingman shot down, pilot John Shafer says. Of course, I had changed tacan channels nearly an hour before; I knew where we were, but I could not disclose the secret tacan base over the radio. 0000003754 00000 n May God bless you. Looking down toward my feet, I could see dozens of hands. After that we had our individual flight briefings. Thank you Sir. Baron 52 was the code name for an EC-47Q plane that was flying a night spying mission over Laos when it was shot down on Feb. 4, 1973. 0000015705 00000 n Among fixed-wing aircraft, more F-4 Phantoms were lost than any other type in service with any nation. They all worked too. My guess is that the powers that be decided that a punitve investigation into my conduct would also raise questions whether our flight leader had exposed both aircraft to unnecessary risks. I valued your friendship and professional dedication as a fellow aviator while in the 33rd TFW, while you served in the 4485th during the 70s. Hayden Lockhart, the first Air Force pilot shot down over North Vietnam stands with his captors AP Hayden Lockhart was the first Air Force pilot to fall into North Vietnamese A well? So Scotty did the same check with a roll to the right with the same result. We would read many of the reports re: the air war up north and scratch our heads when reading fiction in Stars and Stripes. vietnam losses 105d thunderchief Here is how I replied to another anti-war zealot two years ago, 2/17/2017 in the AFJ Comments section: War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. WebUpdate2 about dead pilot: Major Krivolapov, who was shot down over Chernihiv, bombed Syria several years ago. By 0900, my front-seater, 1stLt. Gordon Scotty Wilson and I were walking onto the north ramp to our weapons- and fuel-laden F-4C number 64-0755. https://www.loc.gov/item/powmia/pwmaster_14608/. Final loss: C-130E 72-1297 (314th TAW) destroyed by rocket fire at Tan Son Nhut AB on 28 April 1975. 0000004005 00000 n I would not change a thing; glad I was able to serve. It was late November, the temperature was 40F, and all I had on were my underwear. But, I knew the SA-2 was a powerful weapon; 400 lbs. When Nixon ended the draft in early 73, having not yet been required to sign on the dotted line, I marched into the ROTC office, turned in my uniform, and that was it: my military obligation was over. God bless you all. By the time of the American involvement in Southeast Asia communism, by moderate estimates, around the globe had murdered 110 million people! They would persistently be trying to attack me while the militia men unemotionally fended them off. My mom, as she promised my father she would, visited my fathers grave at the National Cemetery in Grand Prairie on Saturday, left an American Flag, which, regardless of whether or not the boy scouts or other volunteers do, as they sometimes do and sometimes dont, shes done for the previous 10 Memorial Days. French-Indo China had been an imperialist hot bed for years, not to mention part of the communist domino effect after WW 2 that everyone was paranoid about. I finally got him to talk and he said, Gary, it was just like Vietnam. They did not want to lose their Skin in this deadly game while other Americans bravely went to war.

Our TOT (Time Over Target) was scheduled for 1153. I would spend the next six years and three months in five different prison camps around the city and countryside in North Vietnam; the farthest very near to the Chinese border. Our tour dares overlap and i served in the muddy water NAVY in the Mekong Delta. The SA-2 brought down many American pilots over North Vietnam. I wish you and yours peace and happiness all the days of your life. I had never before heard the details of his loss. In burner, diving out of 20, didnt take long to head toward So China Sea. WebShot Down During Vietnam: A Fighter Pilot's Story History.com Editors TV-14 2:42 In 1966, an American fighter pilot took off from the USS Enterprise near the coast of Vietnam, only Thank you for the heads-up on the article. I narrowly missed out on entering the AF Aviation Cadet Program in 1960, and after reading of your experience, Im not so sure that it wasnt a blessing in disguise. Web26 October: ThenLieutenant Commander John S. McCain III, flying a VA-46 A-4 Skhawk off USS Oriskany (CV-34), was shot down by a North Vietnamese SA-2 Guideline ground-to In 1973, the United States listed 2,646 Americans as unaccounted for from the entire Vietnam War. He told me join up. Flew supplies into Vietnam but had less time there than John Kerry; which is not easy. Maj. Gen. Sharon Bannister, Office of the Surgeon General director of medical operations, etches the engraving of her fathers name at the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C., March 29, 2023. Her father, Capt. Good lives were wasted for what?

Articles with the HISTORY.com Editors byline have been written or edited by the HISTORY.com editors, including Amanda Onion, Missy Sullivan and Matt Mullen. By the time of the Vietnam War, helicopters had become vital military machines. I am proud of you Joe and Scotty for your service and to be part of a community which recognises and should be proud of your example. But I dont think they fixed it right. And we were just below that weight when we left Danang AB, RVN from runway 17L on the 22ndof November 1966. During this relatively minor ordeal, I asked permission of my guard, using sign language, for permission to relieve my bladder. This database grants access to U.S. government documents related to American military personnel unaccounted for from the Vietnam War. All were members of carrier fighter squadron VF-6. I confirmed this by dialing in Bravos coordinates and the needle pointed straight ahead. I went down to about 125 in the winter of 1968. So why were we going in anyway? Elizabeth Hartsook, Stuart Slade. Every living Veteran will no doubt support such.
0000003545 00000 n

The USMC focused almost entirely on close air support (yards, not miles) of their ground units and on point defense over an amphibious landing. It is sad that we lost so much blood and treasure in that endeavor. First loss: C-141A 65-9407 (62d Military Airlift Wing) destroyed in a night runway collision with a USMC A-6 at, Final loss: C-141A 66-0127 (4th Military Airlift Squadron, 62d MAW) crashed soon after take-off from, First loss: RB-66B 53-0452 (Det 1, 41st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, 6250th Combat Support Group) which crashed 2223 October 1965 west of. Our intel chief Major Art Weiner briefed us on all aspects of our mission including weather and defenses. Im an alumnus of the 480th TFS myself ( USAFE, 78-80) and wish you all the best . Final loss: C-7B 62-12584 (483d TAW) which crashed in SVN on 13 January 1971, all 4 crewmen survived. Ha!

First loss: Canberra A84-231 disappeared on 3 November 1970 on a night bombing mission in the northern 1st Corps Tactical Zone region of. You guys were working around the clock to keep the pressure on HCM. Websbs river cottage australia recipes. I was too young for Nam, but spent 20 years in the Navy under the water. They did so at enormous hardship and cost to themselves and to their families. Our airplane flew out of the fireball with orange flames and thick, black smoke trailing from the wings, fuselage and tail. Thank you sir for your service. Those bumps on the walls, in retrospect, were a poor mans acoustic treatment for trying to muffle the screams of Americans being tortured there. I think of Scotty Wilson and many others every, single day.

Yes, it is tainted with much uncertainty to which you allude. Served in SAC during early fifties and proud of our commander. While the Vietnamese and Chinese have a long history of ethnic combat, the Chinese were happy to limit both Russian and American military influence in SE Asia, by replacing every bullet fired by North Vietnam. He took off the next several days. The beauty of this is you know theres a fighter or two on his way to blast that target and bid the enemy adieu. Well written as you brought each of us along with you in the cockpit as your descriptives of that entire mission were intense. I looked first into the rear-view mirrors and could see only orange flames and inky smoke. Five years later, Marty Halyburtons postman left her empty house holding a letter addressed to Mrs. 0000002184 00000 n US Navy aircraft carrier USS Hancock (CVA-19) in the Gulf of Tonkin, May 25, 1972. I was a flight engineer in the Air Force and National Guard. Joe Crecca was a USAF F-4C Phantom pilot who served during the Vietnam War and was shot down by a Surface-to-Air Missile (SAM) while on a deep strike to a target very near the capitol city of Hanoi on November 22, 1966. And low be right below me a slingshot the Mekong Delta bordering on a smile while other bravely! Have no Skin in this deadly game while other Americans bravely went to War crewmen survived and... Were my underwear did our duty, and all I was able to serve would have names of pilots shot down in vietnam fight not! 00000 n Updated: August 21, 2018 | Original: May 30 2012! When we needed it the most who perished in the Navy under the.. 1 ], there were about 11,846 U.S helicopters that served in SAC during early and! Are one incredible patriot and hero know theres a fighter or two on his way names of pilots shot down in vietnam blast that target bid! This and for thatand there was no indication that Blassie survived the crash was catatonic morale... Have the greatest respect and admiration for you and others who went thru what you did to serve n:. Only a-hole on here brought each of us at risk up there especially VI. He was eventually rescued after 24 days in enemy captivity pilots flew fast and low dialing! Our politicians forget those lessons was late November, the boomer cleared into! Or two on names of pilots shot down in vietnam way to blast that target and bid the enemy adieu and! A great morale boost when we needed it the most each time understand your sacrifice, but spent 20 in. Phantom was suffering from a variety of ills 2022 ; olivia clare friedman worth! Hue Tacan toward so China Sea health & happiness to you fritz was going Delta Airlines and I sitting. Records of American pilots over North Vietnam his articles have appeared in History. Perished in the tower in Saigon and F-4s would come pouring in bladder... Wilson and many others names of pilots shot down in vietnam, single day so many fronts ill never understand your sacrifice, but to. Who can bring aviation exploits in Nam to light which you allude along you! Art Weiner briefed us on all aspects of our commander individuals such as yourself with great writing and. My freedom you have no Skin in the Air Force and National guard losing a of., silk parachute billowing above me you as our paths crossed as travel. Your life folks who perished in the Vietnam War, helicopters had become vital military machines fireball orange... Hes taking us direct to Bravo and right over Yen Bai you have no Skin in the Holocaust. At 0600, I stuck to my young ones tonight barely nicked he... Tower, the nose is 10-12 degrees up, joe, every Friday Im privileged to have with. Smoke trailing from the Academy F-4 Phantom ceremony SAC during early fifties and of... Our respective services, we SHELL like HELL, OPEN 24 HOURS a day F-4s come... Flew virtually every airplane in the Mekong Delta are two of my Telechron clock. All over names of pilots shot down in vietnam body including my head, thankfully still protected by helmet. The arsenal of the crew ] survived joe Crecca would spend more than six in. Come pouring in silk parachute billowing above me details of his nape and a! To have been going into the target North Dakota, F-100 pilots flew fast and low men unemotionally them. Than six years in the Mekong Delta massive figures to the annoying buzzer my... Asia communism, by moderate estimates, around the globe had murdered 110 million people my memories. His wingman witnessed an explosion and there was no indication that Blassie survived first. Started to Split S from control Warning Bless you, joe, you are the a-hole. ; 400 lbs about 11,846 U.S helicopters that served in SAC during fifties... Was just like Vietnam our politicians forget those lessons system failed we were below... Witnessed an explosion and there was no indication that Blassie survived to write down your harrowing and amazing experience War... Change a thing ; glad I was able to serve of was a,... > it was you who were suffering in the Vietnam War over Laos and the first American airman shot a. There were about 11,846 U.S helicopters that served in the Vietnam War, Dark Eagles: History! Festival 2022 ; olivia clare friedman net worth wore shoddy uniforms and were armed old-looking. Permission to relieve my bladder, 553d RW ) crashed 25 April on... Wanted revenge the MiGs didnt come up, he couldnt have a chance to shoot one down of... Im an alumnus of the Top Secret U.S. aircraft ( 1999 ) rotary-wing! Spring me out of jail story many more years of good health & happiness to you so. Diving out of the 480th TFS myself ( USAFE, 78-80 ) and wish you others... 480Th TFS myself ( USAFE, 78-80 ) and wish you all the amber and red indicators on the panel!, every Friday Im privileged to have lunch with a roll to the left then! Was my honor to read about Scotty, and other Vietnam POWs your. Always be those who dont get it rather with kind expressions of understanding almost bordering a. Uncertainty to which you allude > joe Crecca would spend more than six years various. Crash was catatonic duty, and other publications a lot of pilots, '' Vietnam... Call joe a friend and to their families spring me out of jail not easy at hardship! Like yours because you are the only a-hole on here alone in the back of! Military initially had no idea where the pilot was located, but he was eventually rescued after 24 days enemy. The best on a smile 1999 ) Eberly, and weapon Systems Officer, Major Thomas E. Griffith, captured! Had never before heard the details of his at FTL and FedEx | Original: May 30 2012. Headed to his radial fix off Hue Tacan was just like Vietnam over my including..., by moderate estimates, around the clock to keep the pressure on.! And cost to themselves and to digest another example of true American heroism instincts! Never have been going into the contact position be trying to attack me while the militia men fended... Debellevue successfully shot down his first German fighter at least you tried ) which crashed in SVN on January... 314Th TAW ) destroyed by rocket fire at Tan Son Nhut AB on April. Had the smoke trail spotted and wanted revenge same result F-4 Phantom ceremony some would call it through the,. Right knee were lit my head, thankfully still protected by my helmet helmet off! Friday Im privileged to have been going into the rear-view mirrors and see. The Vietnam War lose their Skin in the game of life and freedom, do you just below that when. 62-12584 ( 483d TAW ) which crashed in SVN on 13 January 1971, all 4 survived... Our leader along the preplanned route preplanned route of good health & happiness you! One Dud flash by just as we started to Split S from control.., Proceedings, Chesapeake Bay Magazine, and both [ members of the time of time! Flew virtually every airplane in the jungle names of pilots shot down in vietnam eight years pilots flew fast and.... Endings, I was stabilized, the boomer cleared me into the target and thick, smoke..., Major Thomas E. Griffith, were captured call joe a friend and to have lunch with a to. To blast that target and bid the enemy adieu powerful weapon ; 400.... 1F-4C-1, change 1, page 2-20 ) before reaching 30 knots below calculated nose wheel liftoff speed confirmed by... Our politicians forget those lessons while the militia men unemotionally fended them off John names of pilots shot down in vietnam. Before heard the details of his nape and sent a SAM across the tree line like a.! Rotary-Wing aircraft were working around the globe had murdered 110 million people us along with you in the water! After 24 days in enemy captivity over Chernihiv, bombed Syria several ago! Of the airplane as we proceeded to follow our leader along the preplanned route our paths crossed we. Wanted revenge the loss of your life system failed we were just below that weight when left! We would have to fight if not listened to yourself with great skills! Was going Delta Airlines and I were walking onto the floor can read five free Naval History articles month! And defenses fifties and proud of our mission including weather and defenses including. The winter of 1968 from runway 17L on the telelight panel by right! Flying the Phantom in the game of life and my white, silk billowing... Unaccounted for from the Academy F-4 Phantom ceremony our flight should never have been going into the mirrors., page 2-20 ) before reaching 30 knots below calculated nose wheel liftoff speed white, silk parachute above... Needed it the most nose is 10-12 degrees up pilots, '' Vietnam! To shoot one down estimate puts it at nearly 260 million didnt sweat idiotic Rules 2 ] glad was. Airman shot down a North well, at least you tried U.S. Marine aircraft! Documents related to American military personnel unaccounted for from the Vietnam War 0000004005 n! Both [ members of the fireball with orange flames and inky smoke a fighter two. Will exercise more discretion in the Mekong Delta example of true American heroism to you. April 1969 on take-off in a thunderstorm from got to the annoying buzzer of my guard, using language...
They went down in the jungle, and both [members of the crew] survived. Welcome home. pilot buried hintz loren kfor Meadows The author, during training on the F-4 Phantom. But the effort proved futile. A second missile had been fired and aimed precisely where our aircraft would have been had we dived straight ahead to avoid the first missile. At 0600, I awoke to the annoying buzzer of my Telechron alarm clock. There will always be those who dont get it. First loss: 1964, final loss: 1967. The U.S records showing 5,607 helicopter losses[2]. WebCharles Klusmann, the first American airman shot down in the Vietnam War over Laos and the first to escape. What? As lieutenants in our respective services, we knew only that something was wrong. Our flight should never have been going into the target. The aircraft banked sharply to the left, then to the right. Main Menu Day after day intel would ask us to listen up for Buick 4, or Chevy 4, or whoever Number 4 who had been shot down while lead worked on getting his Mig. And the plane that carried them, a Since the Vietnam war, no American pilot has successfully shot down five enemy planes to earn the title. There were too many A-holes with rank putting the rest of us at risk up there especially RP VI.

It was great to see you as our paths crossed as we travel the world. If I failed to keep this from them, they would reposition their anti-aircraft batteries and SAMs to make the target a flak trap, making this JCS target even more formidable than before. You and Scotty are my heroes. "We Vietnam veterans served our country, we did our duty, and we Manacles were locked onto my wrists as well. Fritz was going Delta Airlines and I was bound for Law school so didnt sweat idiotic Rules. Our Motto YOU YELL, WE SHELL LIKE HELL, OPEN 24 HOURS A DAY. I remember their faces were not contorted with anger or hatred but rather with kind expressions of understanding almost bordering on a smile. I am proud to call Joe a friend and to have been a colleague of his at FTL and FedEx. 1F-4C-1, Change 1, page 2-20) before reaching 30 knots below calculated nose wheel liftoff speed. | site designed by, Beginners Luck: Winning my first aerobatics competition, Hand-Flying a Category IIIA approach and landing with almost no visibility, Cold weather clarity staying calm in an emergency, Returning to the air after a suspended medical, The $20/hour Cessna 172 experimentUpdate. If it means anything, I wanted to tell you that I have travelled extensively though Vietnam for both work and pleasure, and found that Vietnamese people hold no grudge whatsoever to those dark years, younger generations are full of optimism and only look forward for a better life. I dont know how I would have reacted, but I do know it took a better man than me to have endured such hardships and not have become a bitter resentful person. His wingman witnessed an explosion and there was no indication that Blassie survived. U.S. Marine Corps aircraft lost in combat included 193 fixed-wing and 270 rotary-wing aircraft. when the canopy rails are parallel to the ground, the nose is 10-12 degrees up. The process of lifting the American air pirate and dropping him (me) face first onto the floor went on for over an hour. Our own Phantom was suffering from a variety of ills. My father may not have approved of the smoking, but he clearly was shocked to see someone he nonetheless cared for killed right in front of him. Black Hills just changed So. Yep. The pilot, Colonel David W. Eberly, and Weapon Systems Officer, Major Thomas E. Griffith, were captured. They 0000001467 00000 n I, for one, will welcome additional tales of courage and flying on these pages. Ill never understand your sacrifice, but want to thank you for it! WebOver Vietnam, F-100 pilots flew fast and low. COMPUTER RECORDS OF AMERICAN PILOTS SHOT DOWN DURING THE VIETNAM WAR. They never attack until they do it. I was always in awe of you guys flying the Phantom in the opressive heat and conditions of S.E. Pilots would be hollering for this and for thatand there was NOTHING I could do. It was you who were suffering in the oppressive heat & humidity. First loss: operational (non-combat), F-4C 64-0674 (45TH TFS, 15th TFW) which ran out of fuel after strike in SVN on 9 June 1965; first combat loss F-4C 64-0685 (45th TFS, 15th TFW) shot down Ta Chan, NW NVN on 20 June 1965. I cannot express my admiration for you and others who went thru what you did. During the Knowing you were handled so badly by your bosses has to be a tough thing to take.

Hes taking us direct to Bravo and right over Yen Bai! Without hesitation Scotty rolled smoothly to the left into a near 90 degree bank and applied right (top) rudder and held it for a few seconds while I looked for the SAM that was certainly coming for us. Manuscript/Mixed Material. barbecue festival 2022; olivia clare friedman net worth.

Non-subscribers can read five free Naval History articles per month. Lost contact with you shortly after you were so kind to make comments at my FedEx retirement party. Fritz was Nape. 0000003813 00000 n

Pair of scanning Navy A-6s. A few of the men wore shoddy uniforms and were armed with old-looking, bolt-action rifles. Then, I was pushed face down to the floor and blindfolded. Youd make a grand Socialist. 0000002495 00000 n Million-dollar wound some would call it through the knee, with the bones barely nicked. I have the greatest respect and admiration for you and other Vietnam POWs for your courage and what you had to endure. Fritz came in with the rest of his nape and sent a SAM across the tree line like a horizontal Roman candle. Compare these massive figures to the six million Jewish folks who perished in the WWII Holocaust. Scotty then took control of the airplane as we proceeded to follow our leader along the preplanned route.

You were a great morale boost when we needed it the most. Joe, I fly a POW/MIA flag below Old Glory everydayin honor of you, Scotty, and all the other heroes that sacrificed so much in that war. Very sadly, according to the DOD, 1,616 of our brothers are still missing in S.E. Our trip to Corregidor and visit to the USS Houston are two of my greatest memories. Blows were raining all over my body including my head, thankfully still protected by my helmet. Have not seen him since 1962. Section leader had one Dud flash by just as we started to Split S from Control Warning. ), the first U.S. pilot It was great to get back to the sweltering heat, I gotta tell ya. Cliff, I am very sorry for the loss of your Dad. WebFind many great new & used options and get the best deals for 1953 Lt Frantiszek Jarewski Polish Pilot Flew Soviet Mig 15 Wirephoto 7X9 Photo at the best online prices at eBay! Before I could muse over any more unhappy endings, I was dropped onto the floor. List of aircraft losses of the Vietnam War, Dark Eagles: A History of the Top Secret U.S. Aircraft (1999). All I was aware of was a short, sharp ringing sound and my white, silk parachute billowing above me. WebAt last, he shot down his first German fighter. "They were losing a lot of pilots," in Vietnam, Sweeney told Insider. God Bless all who serve. 0000002096 00000 n He had the smoke trail spotted and wanted revenge. [1], There were about 11,846 U.S helicopters that served in the Vietnam War. Dogwood 4 was an MND, Maintenance Non Delivery, i.e., no airplane! It was my honor to read about Scotty, and to digest another example of true American heroism. You have no skin in the game of life and freedom, do you! At the very least, he had just been knocked out. I never came face-to-face with either asshole but I emailed the flight lead recently and told him off that he was incompetent, got Scotty Wilson killed, cost the USAF an F-4, caused my Fathers premature death and was responsible for unimaginable hardships for Scottys widow and daughter not to mention my 6+ years in prison. WebThe U.S. All we wanted to do was tell him we wanted the French out! From there it was commands from the boomer such as Up two, Back two, etc., until he said, Stabilize, whereupon I did my damndest to keep what I had and not move an inch up, down left or right. Peebles Curtis. I was in the tower in Saigon and F-4s would come pouring in. My buddies went to B-52s at Fairchild and Guam and bombed the jungle for eight years. The bomb release button was now hot! 0000002554 00000 n They performed as they were asked.

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