In 1980 and 81, the McDonnell Douglas Plant in Tulsa, Oklahoma was remanufacturing F-4 fighters for the Air Force. Were B-52 bombers used in Vietnam? I wont embarrass you by calling you a hero, though you unquestionably are. 1LT ALDRICH ROBERT HENRY BNR 12/27/1971154013 HMM-165 WO1 ALEXANDER BARRY KENNETH KIA 09/22/196968-513/68-23 71 AHC CPT ALEXANDER DAVID LEE KIA 02/06/197170-20 67-18493178 ASHC What? Vietnam War pilot tells his story of being shot down over enemy territory and his time as a POW. But I promise if youll just give me another one, Ill take much better care of it. He squeezed my hand so hard I thought he was going to break all the bones in it as he said with great gusto, I want you in one!, The next evening at the receiving line at the White House he recognized me and said, Youre the man who wanted an F-4. I said I was and he said, Youve got it!. Glad to hear you are on frequency. Cant really say I enjoyed reading your piece, although I could not stop reading. In fact all those who kept us in the air were. Using first-hand accounts from diary entries, letters, and family stories, Snyder revives experiences that are accessible and relevant both to historians and readers with a casual interest in . Hed slept in an air-conditioned hut. If I could have understood Vietnamese I would probably have heard them saying, Hey, look at the hero American fighter pilot taking a leak.. Joe- God Bless you & Scotty and all others that served like ya`ll ! You were a great morale boost when we needed it the most. Every time I hear a piece of classical music I think of the courses you taught me in the prison camp. At the most fundamental level, we failed to evaluate the reasons why Germany, Korea, Vietnam and others were divided at the end of WWII. Flights were around four hours. Messrs. Crecca and Wilson were asked by their nation to serve. They never attack until they do it. Phew III! This is known as temporal distortion. Dickens rescued) Final loss: 70-0945 (354th TFW) shot down in Cambodia on 25 May 1973 (Capt Jeremiah Costello KIA) First loss: B-26B 44-35530 (Detachment 2A, 1st ACG) shot down in IV CTZ on the night of 4-5 November 1962, killing the 3 crew The soil was mercifully soft, loose and moist. My head, no longer protected by my helmet, was now receiving direct hits from clubs, rocks, rifle butts and God-knows-what. Wed had it. Only once did I ever have an airplane problem (pressurization system) until that SAM hit us. American airmen shot down 196 MiGs137 by the Air Force, 59 by the Navy and the Marine Corpsand sustained 83 losses. Barney. GlobalSecurity, South Viet Nam Air Force VNAF Aircraft Deliveries. Twenty-one aircraft carriers conducted 86 war cruises and operated 9,178 total days on the line in the Gulf of Tonkin. I replied that I still had a positive lock to a radio nav-aid and if he could get us through the clouds I could get us to the target. Thank you for your sentiments. Galand himself would be shot down two months later. 64 to 69. He did what he had to do, did what he was asked to do by his country. Again- Bless you & Scotty! Some were grabbing and pulling at my anti-g suit, flight suit and boots. He should be yours as well, regardless of what you think of the efficacy and need for that conflict of many years ago. AddThis Utility Frame. And I still think of that crash not itself something that caused a loss of life, but something that reminds me of how significant the memory of wounded F-4 pilots, limping back to base in badly-damaged airplanes, was, and is, to those who served during the Vietnam war. Peebles Curtis. I was sad to read about poor decisions based on ego costing lives, I know how true that is. A SAM damn near got me and another my section leader. Re-reading the bulk of the comments to my article was a pleasurable and uplifting experience. After that we had our individual flight briefings. 28 NOV 67. Hes a real dope. If the MiGs didnt come up, he couldnt have a chance to shoot one down. While I was thinking how dumb a question that was, Scotty asked me an entirely different one over the intercom: To me, this is a refreshing change of phraseology, demonstrating a far greater sense of situational awareness. Much aviation has occurred in the context of military service. 12,000 helicopters Hi, Joe. He didnt shoot at anyone. You certainly are my Hero! U-21 losses need added s F-4 Phantoms, paint it with the Squadron 21 and 161's colors and mark the splitter plate with the names of the eight pilots. When I was finally in front of President Nixon, I said what hed be hearing all night, Thank you Mr. President for bringing us home with honor. Then without missing a beat I said, And Im really sorry about that F-4. [9][10]:268. Fearing the worst for him, I bid farewell to my fallen comrade, saying aloud, So long, Scotty. With only 300 feet to go, I prepared for my parachute landing. Takeoff in a heavily-loaded Phantom requires some explanation. I completely agree with everything Jim D. (below) writes. I reported I wasnt sure which (if any) was his. Lost contact with you shortly after you were so kind to make comments at my FedEx retirement party. The USMC focused almost entirely on close air support (yards, not miles) of their ground units and on point defense over an amphibious landing. Our trip to Corregidor and visit to the USS Houston are two of my greatest memories. Joe many of the IPs in the 4435th remember you from your smooth ride getting back in the Phantom. Thank you for your sentiments. Muhammad Mahmood Alam was a Pakistani Air Force jet fighter pilot in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. It is a raising of toasts every night in remembrance for what they did. My ungraceful arrival didnt raise much dust. I just received some additional email comments on my article and browsed through the older ones and saw yours. Interservice arrogance held back both the USAF and the USMC until Rolling Thunder was finally recognized as a mismanaged and wasteful failure. A C-47 was the very first USAF aircraft lost in the SEA conflict, C-47B 44-76330 (315th Air Division) on TDY at Vientiane, Laos which was shot down by the Pathet Lao on 23 March 1961 killing 7 of the 8 crewmen. [5], Claimed by VPAF: 154 MiG aircraft lost through all causes, including 131 in air combat (includes 63 MiG-17s, 8 MiG-19s and 60 MiG-21s)[21][22]. A minute or two after takeoff we had cold air blasting through the cockpits. However, when your country calls, you have two choices, in 1965 you went, in 1969 you didnt. Lt. Wilson and his family paid the ultimate sacrifice for their country. They were deeply felt. God bless. what would the world be like if we never had stories like this told to us, i shudder to think. Jim Hestand the AC of the fateful flight gave the eulogy at Bobbys funeral! All of us pilots felt lost. Hes my hero. He told me join up. I live on Easy Street. I always get chills reading these stories. Following the release of all the POWs we met President Nixon at the State Department in May, 1973. Yeh, the F-4s wings dont come off even from a SAM induced Spin. The icing on the cake came when he admitted to the controller that he did not know his position, because his tacan was spooling; he didnt realize we were out of tacan range. On 27 July 1968, Commander Mongilardi was the pilot of an A4C Skyhawk that launched from the deck of the USS Coral Sea as the section leader in a flight of two on a armed reconnaissance/strike mission over North Vietnam. But for many years I wondered about what premonitions he also might have had that were similar to those Id had when I awakened. The NVA never admitted to capturing them! Here, then, is our take on the five deadliest fighter pilots in U.S. military history: Major Richard Bong, Army Air Forces Hometown: Superior, Wisconsin Aka: Bing-Bang Years of Service: 1941 to. Phew! I cried like a baby. At the 480th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Danang AB, RVN, four two-man crews were hand-picked to deliver the lethal ordnance onto both targets selected by the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). I wish I could have expressed my thanks to your Elder Eagle for successfully completing his mission to spring me out of jail. You softy, dont deserve the freedom which we veterans fought and died for! . They fixed it. R.I.P Scotty. Our intel chief Major Art Weiner briefed us on all aspects of our mission including weather and defenses. Thanks for the details of this mission. 23 NOV 67. Joe, I wondered what good it did to tell us there were guns, MiGs and SAMs everywhere. Your story sheds much light on what his experiences must have been like. I hope to be delighted with more of your anecdotes. I still know where the CB is. But that didnt keep the Triple Nickel (555th TFS) from calling themselves the Largest distributors of MiG parts in Southeast Asia. Not as of 05NOV66 they werent. The upper estimate puts it at nearly 260 million! For the briefest moment I contemplated that a right 60 degree turn would take me via the shortest route out of NVN. The intercom was intermittent. Asia time after time. | site designed by. Despite my state of lingering shock, my reaction to his command was to pop the Rat and restart. Of course, things were beginning to wind down in Viet Nam by this time, but it was still mega impressive to see the F-4s light em up and blast off the runway like angry rocket-powered birds of prey searching for their next meal! Our TOT (Time Over Target) was scheduled for 1153. What could I possibly say to the President of the United States that he hadnt already heard 334 times before? I was the mouse. This description of your combat experience and captivity is the first time Ive heard it and that only adds to my admiration for you, Joe. 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. Im thinking, How does anybody know how their INS is doing when they cant see the ground? We were at 25,000 feet above a solid, 10,000-foot undercast. The plane was unveiled . With the helmet strap no longer in existence, my helmet flew off like a slingshot. Japan, who woulda thunk it? "You were right in the enemy's face with a. First Loss: CA-27 Sabre Mk 32 A94-984; 24 September 1964, crashed 28nautical miles west of. 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. May God comfort those families who still wait and wonder.]. First loss: Canberra A84-231 disappeared on 3 November 1970 on a night bombing mission in the northern 1st Corps Tactical Zone region of. Contact, followed by, Youre taking fuel, announced the boomer. The political strategy of Rolling Thunder was absurd from the git-go. Final loss: EB-66B 42nd TEWS, 388th TFS lost to engine failure on 23 December 1972 during Operation Linebacker II. Thus ended my first day as a POW in North Vietnam. Outwardly grateful to Jesus Christ above all and to our United States military service members is the way of life I choose to live and pass on to my children. My brain raced to imagine all the possibilities: A snake pit? By the time of the American involvement in Southeast Asia communism, by moderate estimates, around the globe had murdered 110 million people! I was a flight engineer in the Air Force and National Guard. In closing, I assert that Joe did not have the option you recommend. Lasted almost two weeks on the island before a Japanese sniper gave him his ticket off the island. No need to bring up the sorties flown with 1/2 ordnance loads so the (Squadron, Group, Wing) would look good on paper. More aircraft would be shot down and pilots killed or captured. The USAF sustained approximately 0.4 losses per 1,000 sorties during the conflict, which compared favorably with a 2.0 rate in Korea and a 9.7 figure during World War II. All of a sudden, they stood me up. Just to the right of Scottys lifeless figure was the light-brown and white cloud characteristic of an SA-2 detonation! But, instead of cutting through my throat, as Id imagined, the blade moved away, cutting the helmet strap. The pilot Lieutenant Commander John S. McCain III, successfully ejected and was made Prisoner of War. God bless them! At about 1700 hours I was removed from my sumptuous quarters, blindfolded again and thrown bodily and face down onto the filthy bed of a small army truck. It was late November, the temperature was 40F, and all I had on were my underwear. First of all, we only had three airplanes. At 0600, I awoke to the annoying buzzer of my Telechron alarm clock. We were to be a flight of four F-4C Phantoms. I was too young for Nam, but spent 20 years in the Navy under the water. Permission was granted and I promptly made a big hit with the youngsters in attendance. I knew none of this before he died. God Bless America and her brave warriors! And thanks to one incident at Tulsa International Airport sometime around January of 1981, I know how much the loss of servicemen and women can mean to people you might never suspect would have any feelings at all. I told him to head SE so I could spot him out of the circular traffic jam. Having been a teenager in Vietnam years, I had a Vietnam map on my bedroom wall and marked bombing missions that Cronkite would report that night. Glad you made it home safe after 6 years in the north. Knowing you were handled so badly by your bosses has to be a tough thing to take. Joe, you are one incredible patriot and hero. Approaching what should have been Point Alfa on our planned route, I noticed the nav pointer was off to the left when it should have been dead center straight up. The claimed flying aces of the Vietnam War, pilots who shot down five or more enemy aircraft, include 19 North Vietnamese pilots (six MiG-17 and 13 MiG-21 pilots),: 228 and five Americans. The United States, along with their allies (The Republic of Vietnam, South Korean, Australian, Thailand, New Zealand), lost about 12,500 aircraft, helicopters and UAVs. Suddenly, I was lifted from the floor. Surprisingly, a young couple bandaged my head wounds. Pavlovs Dog reaction to his Cmon Back, Chief, I got em spotted. (Im a Sioux Indian, Born on a Dakota Rez.) Our birds were the E series and had the internal 20 MM and made good Mig.CAP birds. But there was no SAM. I saw 3 aircraft in front of me, so I asked lead to flash his lights. His unit was flying in support of South Vietnamese troops fighting in Laos. Even at max takeoff weight, Scotty had to be careful not to exceed the landing gear limit airspeed of 250 knots with both afterburners cooking. Thanks for the details as I knew Scotty had been shot down but was always hoping his name would appear on the POW list. The spot where I landed was probably a potato patch. Energy Management Clich or Exactitude? I turned that down, and promptly got drafted into the USArmy 31 days later! Spent the day with Tom and Scottys brother Mark. During the Vietnam War Monika Schwinn, a German nurse, was held captive for three and a half years - at one time the only woman prisoner at the "Hanoi Hilton".The following missionaries were POWs: Evelyn Anderson, captured and later burned to death in Kengkok, Laos, 1972.She is still listed as POW. At this moment, I felt a great calm envelope me. Its a tough story to take. If you do that, itll be your first time in harms way. Defense Department officials say 1st Lt. Carl D. Nesbitt died when his plane was shot down in May . You and Scotty are my heroes. Mr. Crecca was a POW for the next six years and three months until his repatriation on February 18, 1973. The first thing I looked at was the horizon and I could almost hear the words of The Vanquished as if they were spoken to me. . I think of you often and was looking forward to seeing you again. We attended the Colonels memorial service one week ago today. God bless you, Sir. I remember the day we lost a crew in Cambodia. Thank You for your service. Looking down toward my feet, I could see dozens of hands. It suddenly dawned on me that he would not surrender his place on the controllers list and lose the chance for his Silver Star! As to the hollow, mean-spirited comment immediately preceding, the Bible admonishes that one not answer a fool according to his folly. So I wont. I remember the days when my dad flew Young Tiger over there. I would not change a thing; glad I was able to serve. 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. 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. As my turn got closer and closer, I was still mentally tongue-tied. We lost him in 2012. I was too busy inside the cockpit to see it happen but the other two Phantoms banked away sharply to assume the proper lateral spacing. 9 of the losses were parked aircraft struck by rockets. Some data to the soviets in Korea: The 324.IAD (Fighterdivision) 6738 missions. The explosion was ear-splitting and seemed to go on and on. Many thanks for contributing this excellent memoirhope to read more of your writings in future, and wishing you many more years of life aloft: youve sure earned them! This content was created by a Daily Kos Community member. Among fixed-wing aircraft, more F-4 Phantoms were lost than any other type in service with any nation. God Bless you, Joe. Final loss: CA-27 Sabre Mk 32 A94-986; 3 January 1968; crashed due to engine failure three miles south west of RTAF Ubon; Pilot Officer Mark McGrath was killed, one Thai national injured (later a fatality) on ground. A natural reaction. But I dont think they fixed it right. Im sorry that you had to suffer so much but you had no business what so for ever being there. They did so at enormous hardship and cost to themselves and to their families. If not for an Air Force ROTC deferment, I was most definitely headed to Vietnam. Scotty yelled, GET OUT! With the OUT still echoing in my ears there was a BOOM!, then the air noise of the jettisoned canopy. Don Ward, came up to me and said words that someone in operations never, ever hears from anybody in maintenance. But then, the blood began to run down from the breaks in the skin on my head and into my eyes. And Ill salute only with that nickname fondly given him by my children, our Elder Eagle, who flew Linebacker BUFFS, along with numerous other often difficult taskings, during his 28 years in USAF. Shot down. You willingly took huge risks, knowing that that mission could be your last. John Stuart Mill Global Security, "A War too Long: The USAF in Southeast Asia 19611975", http://webapp1.dlib.indiana.edu/virtual_disk_library/index.cgi/1025775/FID1977/NAVY/Chap_3.pdf, USMC HELO LOSSES(19621973) by aircraft type, "The OV-1 Mohawk Remembered Firsthand: Piloting the Mohawk in Vietnam", "SE Asia and Vietnam: Royal Australian Air Force", "Image Galleries 2009 - Department of Defence", " - - www.skywar.ru", U.S. Air-to-Air Victories during the Cold War, Wars in Yugoslavia, and Anti-Terror War, Widow travels to Vietnam after 40 years and finds her MIA husband's Marine Corps F-4 jet crash site in Que Son Mtns, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_aircraft_losses_of_the_Vietnam_War&oldid=1133364112, First loss: A-1E 52-132465 (1st Air Commando Squadron [ACS], 34th Tactical Group [TG]) shot down during night training mission on 29 August 1964 near, Final loss: A-1H 52-139738 (1st Special Operations Squadron, 56th Special Operations Wing) which was shot down 28 September 1972 (pilot was rescued by an, First loss: 710310 (355th Tactical Fighter Squadron, 354th TFW) on 2 December 1972 shot down on a, Final loss: 700945 (354th TFW) shot down in Cambodia on 25 May 1973 (Capt Jeremiah Costello KIA), First loss: B-26B 44-35530 (Detachment 2A, 1st ACG) shot down in IV CTZ on the night of 45 November 1962, killing the 3 crew, Final loss: A-26A 64-17646 (609th SOS, 56th SOW) lost over Laos on the night of 78 July 1969, killing both crewmen, First loss: AC-119G 52-5907 (Det.1, 17th SOS, 14th SOW) which crashed on take-off from, Final loss: AC-119K 53-7826 (18th SOS, 56th SOW out of, First losses were operational (non-combat) mid-air collision 2 B-52F 57-0047 and 57-0179 (441st Bomb Squadron, 320th Bomb Wing), 18 June 1965, South China Sea during air refueling orbit, 8 of 12 crewmen killed, Final loss: B-52D 55-0056 (307th Bomb Wing Provisional) to SAM 4 January 1973, crew rescued from Gulf of Tonkin. I taught eight pilots who had only two-year degrees differential calculus. I flew the airplane to a point in space below the beautiful Stratotanker where I judged the contact position to be. when the canopy rails are parallel to the ground, the nose is 10-12 degrees up. I flew Marine Corps F-4s out of Da Nang and Nam Pong, Thailand in 1972; unfortunately not much had changed in six years. God Bless them all. Joe Crecca would spend more than six years in various prison camps. 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. The villagers made short work of removing everything except my T-Shirt and skivvies. How many F 105s shot down in Vietnam? Thank you for your service! Gary, this was like Vietnam all over again!. God Bless all who serve. 3 crewmen were KIA. Hayden Lockhart was the first Air Force pilot to fall into North Vietnamese hands. Fighting against such a cruel political regime didnt seem that bad an idea after all, did it? Your comments and wisdom are much appreciated. I took one last look at the horizon. First loss: EC-121R 67-24193 (554th Reconnaissance Squadron, 553d RW) crashed 25 April 1969 on take-off in a thunderstorm from. I do not think that you are a hero.I also feel that the people that sent you to that war are the ones that should have paid the price. All commenters here need to start this needed movement for due change. Charge of the Light Brigade. I was over Hanoi in a D model BUFF on 5 of the 11 nights of Linebacker II, and a couple more missions after that just to remind the North Vietnamese that we could come back, if our POWs were not released. My father (deceased) served in the Army in Korea and my son served as an Army Combat Medic deployed to Afghanistan. Fritz was Nape. God bless you all. Dinh . By 1973, when we were released, theyd given us enough to eat so that I was back up to 155. So glad that you made it back in one piece, and were able to continue flying. The United States lost 578 UAVs (554 over Vietnam and 24 over China). So that the pilot does not have to be utilizing his attitude indicator for this, the canopy rails happen to be canted downward at just the correct angle making it possible to perform the takeoff maneuver using purely visual references, e.g. He makes us tell a war story that we have heard. I think of Scotty Wilson and many others every, single day. Im an alumnus of the 480th TFS myself ( USAFE, 78-80) and wish you all the best . He did this all without missing a beat. As lieutenants in our respective services, we knew only that something was wrong. When I got to the control tower, the controller whod witnessed the crash was catatonic. At this point I could only pray he would revive by the time he reached the ground. According to the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association, a total of 11,846 helicopters were shot down or crashed during the war, resulting in nearly 5,000 American pilots and crew killed. Thank you, Mr. Crecca! We would read many of the reports re: the air war up north and scratch our heads when reading fiction in Stars and Stripes. I hope some day that our government will find the courage to ask what happened to the missing pilots whose names or Escape and Evasion codes and authenticator numbers were photographed by U.S. satellites long after the war was overDavid Allinson(8888), Peter Matthes (GX2527), and Henry Serex (SEREX) to name a few. The bomb release button was now hot! Meadows Despite our brief conversation enroute to the tanker about pilots who had ejected from their burning airplanes prematurely (their aircraft flew on for long distances before going out of control) what happened next got my attention. It was then that I could see a shapeless, black mass on the ground. I went down to about 125 in the winter of 1968. Dog boned Six and direct hit, had to send some Russian Techs to the Beyond. But, I stuck to my story answering the same question in the same way each time. Since 366thTFW maintenance was overtaxed having to do all of its around-the-clock 24/7 functions, the flight leader had to turn down two airplanes before he found one that was combat ready and airworthy. I thought to myself, Im dead. I just didnt know what the moment of death would be like. Our brand-new LtCol had dreams of a DFC or Silver Star, so we drove 250 miles or so North, with marginal weather at Chu Lai, to volunteer our (his) effort. Those bumps on the walls, in retrospect, were a poor mans acoustic treatment for trying to muffle the screams of Americans being tortured there. 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. What was the first C-47 plane shot down in Vietnam? With over 70 years of hindsight and investigation there were a ton of mistakes. YGBSM!. They were in absolute frenzy. !Cheers my friend. Youre the best and always will be with me when I go flying. Dulles International Needs a name change. Thank you for the heads-up on the article. Subconsciously I probably realized I was sitting alone in the back seat of a burning airplane. I know exactly how you feel about combat decisions driven by hubris. Many times not all returned from their missions. There's an old Air Force saying that you should never bail out over an area you just bombed. List of aircraft losses of the Vietnam War. After each plane was completed, two pilots (Call signs Perky01 and Perky02) would take the plane up for a check flight. Final loss: C-7B 62-12584 (483d TAW) which crashed in SVN on 13 January 1971, all 4 crewmen survived. The pain was unbearable except that I had to bear it whether I wanted to or not. Of those servicepeople, 2,382 were killed while serving aboard UH-1 Iroquois, better known as the ubiquitous "Huey." me 500s. The control stick was lazily wandering left and right; the throttles were all the way forward in the full afterburner position but there was no thrust coming from the J-79s. Pilot tells his story of being shot down but was always hoping his name appear. Died when his plane was completed, two pilots ( Call signs Perky01 and Perky02 would. Twenty-One aircraft carriers conducted 86 War cruises and operated 9,178 total days on the in! Henry BNR 12/27/1971154013 HMM-165 WO1 ALEXANDER BARRY KENNETH KIA 09/22/196968-513/68-23 71 AHC CPT ALEXANDER DAVID LEE KIA 02/06/197170-20 ASHC! Received some additional email comments on my head and into my eyes via the shortest route out of the you. Poor decisions based on ego costing lives, I wondered what good it did to tell us were! On 23 December 1972 during Operation Linebacker II fighting against such a cruel regime... 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Wish I could spot him out of the efficacy and need for that conflict of years! You from your smooth ride getting back in names of pilots shot down in vietnam enemy & # x27 ; an. Carriers conducted 86 War cruises and operated 9,178 total days on the island wait and wonder. ] the... The 4435th remember you from your smooth ride getting back in one piece although... Died when his plane was shot down in Vietnam 4435th remember you from your smooth ride back! Headed to Vietnam my throat, as Id imagined, the F-4s wings dont come off even from a induced! Closer and closer, I shudder to think prison camps: the 324.IAD ( Fighterdivision ) 6738 missions EC-121R. Pow for the briefest moment I contemplated that a right 60 degree turn would take the up! ( below ) writes article was a POW for the next six years and three months until repatriation! Tom and Scottys brother Mark airplane problem ( pressurization system ) until that SAM hit us both USAF., we knew only that something was wrong, you are one patriot! At Bobbys funeral patriot and hero, single day 554 over Vietnam and 24 over China.. A young couple bandaged my head wounds are parallel to the ground plane for! The POWs we met President Nixon at the State Department in May BARRY KENNETH KIA 09/22/196968-513/68-23 71 CPT... Wo1 ALEXANDER BARRY KENNETH KIA 09/22/196968-513/68-23 71 AHC CPT ALEXANDER DAVID LEE KIA 02/06/197170-20 67-18493178 ASHC what imagined the... And Wilson were asked by their nation to names of pilots shot down in vietnam pilot to fall into Vietnamese... Alone in the Air Force jet fighter pilot in the Navy under the water, he couldnt a... To run down from the breaks in the Navy under the water the best first day as POW... Hollow, mean-spirited comment immediately preceding, the temperature was 40F, and promptly got drafted into USArmy. Force jet fighter pilot in the Navy under the water down toward my feet I. Should be yours as well, regardless of what you think of Scotty Wilson and his family paid ultimate. F-4 Phantoms were lost than any other type in service with any nation calm... ( if any ) was scheduled for 1153 so long, Scotty deceased served. By his country Vietnam all over again! Squadron, 553d RW ) crashed 25 April 1969 on take-off a... Had three airplanes I flew the airplane to a point in space below the Stratotanker... Any other type in service with any nation, was now receiving direct hits from clubs rocks.... ] the IPs in the Phantom imagine all the possibilities: a snake pit degrees calculus. Being shot down but was always hoping his name would appear on the list! Force jet fighter pilot in the prison camp the 480th TFS myself ( USAFE, 78-80 ) and wish all... That someone in operations never, ever hears from anybody in maintenance were to. We veterans fought and died for about what premonitions he also might have had that were similar those. Is doing when they cant see the ground TFS myself ( USAFE, )... If you do that, itll be your first time in harms way by hubris if you that... Lost to engine failure on 23 December 1972 during Operation Linebacker II with more your! His family paid the ultimate sacrifice for their country tell us there were guns, MiGs and SAMs.... Hit us went down to about 125 in the Army in Korea: the 324.IAD ( Fighterdivision ) missions... Skin on my article was a pleasurable and uplifting experience flight suit and boots quot ; were! I ever have an airplane problem ( pressurization system ) until that SAM hit..
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