Tailhook Daily Briefing

The Spad that Started it All!

Historic Navy Spad

Douglas Skyraider A-1H BuNo 135332

Introduction: This is the story of the service-life highlight and preservation afterlife of a Douglas Skyraider that performed honorably in the service of the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Air Force, and the Vietnamese Air Force. A-1H, Bureau Number 135332, was accepted by the Navy at Douglas’ El Segundo plant on 12 August 1954. The highlight of BuNo 135332’s service was its historic action in Attack Squadron 145 (VA-145) as lead aircraft on USS CONSTELLATION’S (CVA-64) Operation Pierce Arrow strike on North Vietnamese PT boats at Lac Chao on 5 August 1964 in retaliation for the Gulf of Tonkin Incident. Thus, BuNo 135332 was a historically significant participant in initiating the U.S. air war against North Vietnam.

Through the efforts of Charles M. Tallichet, Jr. and other former Air Force personnel, this plane was rescued from storage at RTAF Takli in 1978 and presented, in flying condition, to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (NASM) in 1983. Twenty-five-years later, she still resides at their Garber Facility in Suitland, Maryland awaiting refurbishment.

The Gulf of Tonkin Incident

Early August 1964. Commander Task Group 77.5, embarked aboard USS Ticonderoga (CVA-14) in the eastern South China Sea, had missions of providing air support for South Vietnamese and U.S. operations in-country as well as military backup, well over the horizon, for destroyer(s) conducting DeSoto ‘Freedom-of-the-Seas’ and SIGINT Collection Operations along the Southeast Asian littoral. One or two DeSoto ships would generally steam along in daylight hours, parallel to the coastline at about the 12-mile territorial-waters line then claimed by most communist countries; head out to sea at nightfall; and come back to the 12-mile-offshore patrol in the morning.

North Vietnamese Reactions: The North Vietnamese were sensitized to naval incursions near their waters because nasty PTFs operated by the South Vietnamese under OpPlan 34A, a very sensitive, closely held operation at that time, attacked shore installations along the North Vietnamese coast on the evening of 31 July and again toward midnight 3 August. Although none of this appeared to be coordinated tactically on the U.S. Navy side, it appeared to the North Vietnamese that the DeSoto Patrol, currently USS Maddox (DD-731), was a participant in coordinated naval provocations; thus they sent out motor torpedo boats to attack Maddox mid-afternoon on 2 August. The ship called  Ticonderoga for support and a flight of VF-51 and VF-53 F-8U Crusaders, already airborne and led by Commander Jim Stockdale was diverted to assist. Along with Maddox gunners, the Crusaders used Zuni rockets and 20-mm cannon to leave one PT boat burning dead in the water with damage to two others. USS Turner Joy (DD-951), who had been providing services for the carrier group two hundred miles to the south, was immediately sent to join Maddox on the now more hazardous DeSoto Patrol.

Two days later, the evening of 4 August, both Ticonderoga and Constellation received urgent requests for help from Turner Joy who believed PT boats were attacking the DeSoto Patrol ships again. This PT attack was later proven imaginary but seemed real to some on-scene at the time. These action(s) became known as the Gulf of Tonkin Incident. President Johnson’s order to strike targets on the North Vietnamese mainland in retaliation, Operation Pierce Arrow, on 5 August enlarged the battle from the sea, where we had been providing South Vietnam in-country air support, onto the territory of North Vietnam.

Pilot Recollections: Ten of the known surviving VA-145 pilots contributed to these descriptions of preparations and flight actions on 4/5 August 1964. Their views from Ready Room 4 and A-1 cockpits are preserved as much as possible in the text of the action beginning in the next paragraph.

BuNo 135332 in Hong Kong: While the 2 August Gulf of Tonkin Incident was taking place, A-1H Douglas Skyraider NK507, BuNo 135332 was safely tied down aboard Constellation anchored by Green Island, Crown Colony of Hong Kong. The evening of 2 August saw many VA-145 pilots enjoying themselves at the Eagle’s Nest Bar at the top of the HK Hilton. About 2100, someone came to the party and informed the group that all leave and liberty were canceled and all hands were to report to the ship. Fortunately, liberty was granted the next day to allow the crew to collect their purchases from the Hong Kong tailors and the China Fleet Club.

 Constellation Underway: The ship got underway about 0800 on 4 August and headed for the Gulf of Tonkin. That evening, just after the movie in Wardroom One started, the three attack-squadron Operations Officers were tapped on the shoulder one-by-one and told to report to Strike Planning. Shortly after that, all the other attack pilots were pulled out of the movie to report to their ready rooms. In response to USS Turner Joy’s call for help, pilots were briefed on their new mission to fly cover for the destroyers for the night. Meantime, Flight Quarters was called away and the A-1s were loaded with four 260-lb. fragmentation bombs on the wings and a flare pod on the centerline. John Westerman had ‘the mother of all colds’ thus was Squadron Duty Officer on 4 August.

Destroyer Support Flights: Hal Griffith, squadron X.O., led a typical four-plane DD-support flight with Jim Crummer, wingman; Sam Catterlin, section leader;  and Tom Durant, his wingman. This flight launched around midnight and  

arrived in the Gulf of Tonkin above a low overcast only to be told by the destroyers ‘don’t come down here, we’re not sure what’s going on.’ Eventually the flight dumped their ordnance and headed home, logging 4.4 hours night time with 4.2 actual instruments. This flight was typical and at least one flight got beneath scattered clouds as the weather gradually improved toward morning but no pilots reported seeing any torpedo boats on these flights which continued through the night into mid-morning hours. The last DD-support flight that night was a section flown by Mel Blixt and Kenn Brooks. This was also Mel’s first flight as VA-145’s new C.O. They launched about 0400, logging an uneventful 5.1 hours, a quarter of it night time, and recovered a little after 0900.

Preparations for Pierce Arrow: Tom Durant, VA-145 Maintenance Officer, asleep after his night flight, was roused shortly before dawn [5 August] by the Maintenance Chief knocking on his stateroom door saying he needed Tom to test hop 135332 at first light. He logged a 1.5-hour test flight in 135332 and certified the aircraft now in UP status. Tom returned to the ready room midday and was greeted by the strike group getting ready to man aircraft. Tom recalled asking Jim Hardie where they were going and the response was, “Up to bomb some boat yard.” Kurt Anderson, the Squadron Duty Officer on 5 August, didn’t get to fly on this auspicious day but assisted preparations in Ready Room 4 for the historic flights.

BuNo 135332 Strikes Lac Chao: The squadron Operations Officer, Sam Catterlin, led a flight of four aircraft ordered to strike the PT boats located in an estuary at Lac Chao. The Air Intelligence Officer [AIO] gave them good aerial photos of the target and they launched about 1300 in partly cloudy weather. Sam led the flight, flying A-1H NK507/BuNo 135332, with wingman Gary Hopps, section leader Jim Hardie, and his wingman Dick Sather. They launched from Constellation with four LAU-3 [19 x 2.75” folding-fin aircraft rockets] pods each, plus full ammunition for their four 20-mm cannons. As soon as they had a little altitude, they could see smoke from the burning fuel depot at Vinh which had been hit two hours earlier by aircraft from Ticonderoga. As Sam’s flight approached the coast near Lac Chao, a thundercloud was between the target and the Spad division. Jim Hardie reported that they circled to the north and, as they cleared the clouds near Lac Chao, they spotted two larger gunboats about a half-mile from the coast and north of Lac Chao. The boats were firing at the flight as they approached. Sam led the flight to attack from northwest to southeast, pulling up out to sea. As they rolled in, the pilots saw three other boats to their north partly hidden by offshore rocks. Those boats were firing at the Spad flight too. The pilots attacked in single file but reported that they remained at fairly close intervals.

One A-1H Damaged, One Downed. On the first attack, Jim Hardie fired one rocket pod on the left boat and, as he pulled up, he felt a big ‘thump’ as if someone had kicked the underside of the aircraft on the port side. His hydraulic gauge fluctuated wildly so he pulled the hydraulic bypass handle. He then noticed fuel streaming by his port drop tank so he jettisoned the tank, fearing fire from tracer rounds. Jim reported his aircraft checked OK except for the hydraulics, so he turned back to attack the targets. Sam, Gary, and Dick were on their last rocket run from northwest to southeast when Jim saw an explosion in the air and the fireball crash into the sea. It was Dick Sather, the first Navy combat loss of the air campaign. Jim fired another LAU-3A pod as Sam and Gary were clearing to sea. Jim then reversed and went back to attack the boats again and saw both smoking and one dead in the water. He fired his two remaining rocket pods on the moving boat and cleared to sea; Sam reported that Jim’s rockets put the second boat out of action. Sam and Gary checked Jim’s aircraft visually and saw only one hole in the area of the port wing root.

Return to Ship: Meanwhile, four A-4’s from VA-144 arrived and put the other three PT boats out of action. The A-4’s left first to return to Constellation and Sam led Gary Hopps and Jim Hardie back to the ship. Jim landed last as he had no flaps or brakes due to his hydraulic system damage. Jim trapped and held in place by tension on the arresting cable while the flight deck crew and plane captain chocked his wheels and put ‘stiff knees’ on his landing gear. It was a long day’s activity; the Skyraider strike pilots each logged 5.5 hours of flight time. Jim commented that had he not made it aboard, he still had fuel to bingo to DaNang with gear and flaps down. Back in Ready Four, Jim was very upset with their squadron AIO, LTJG Jim Farquhar, who, before the mission, said the North Vietnamese gunners’ aim would be poor because of lack of practice.

Strike on Hon Gay: Hal Griffith led a second strike of four A-1s to the northern-most Pierce Arrow target at Hon Gay. Bob Hansen was his wingman with Jim Crummer section leader and Jim Thigpin as his wingman. Because of insufficient time, the ordnance gang was unable to load and fuse the desired ordnance load, thus this strike also went with a less than desirable load of four LAU-3 and full ammo for their 20-mm guns. The Spads launched first and proceeded at low level toward the targets; the A-4 Scooters launched later and were to arrive on station at Hon Gay for a coordinated strike. Unfortunately, the A-4s arrived early and started the attack. Buy the time the Skyraiders arrived the PT boats were underway and maneuvering. Antiaircraft fire was relatively heavy and varied from small automatic weapons to 37 mm, 57 mm, and some 85 mm weapons. The A-1H pilots reported doing the most damage with their 20-mm cannons. All four Spads returned safely after the 5.4-hour flight. A-4 pilot Everett Alverez was shot down and captured on this strike at Hon Gay.

BuNo 135332 Transferred & Stricken: After 3,455 flight hours of loyal service in seven Navy Attack Squadrons and WestPac deployments aboard four Attack Carriers, Douglas Skyraider A-1H BuNo 135332 was transferred to the USAF [MASCD] at Davis-Monthan AFB, Tucson, Arizona on 19 September 1967. She was officially stricken from Navy lists on 14 November 1967.

Above: BuNo 135332 is second one in from the left.

USAF & VNAF Service: For the next five years she served in Air Force units at Hurlburt Field, Florida and in Southeast Asia mostly training Vietnamese Air Force [VNAF] pilots. BuNo 135332 was transferred to the VNAF on 25 August 1972 and operated by them until the demise of the U.S.-backed government in April 1975, whereupon she was evacuated to the Royal Thailand Air Force Base Takli.

Rescued and Given to Smithsonian: On 9 August 1978, a U.S. Air Force letter transferred aircraft ownership from RTAF Takli to “Yesterday’s Air Force” [YAF], a California aircraft preservation group. Three other A-1Hs were also rescued from the RTAF at that time. Mr. David C. Tallichet, YAF & Military Aircraft Restoration Corp., flew 135332/N39148 from Long Beach to Andrews AFB and traded our Spad to the Smithsonian on 2 May 1983 for a C-123K his group wanted more.

Status of BuNo 135332: This Skyraider has been at NASM’s Garber facility for 25 years and still sports the USAF Sandy camouflage she wore during her last years of service. Navy veterans have interacted with NASM over the last four years to advance the cause that the most significant, documented historic action of this aircraft was her 5 August 1964 Pierce Arrow mission with the Navy and to urge her refurbishment and display to the American people accordingly.

Responses have fairly consistently stated that the decision on presentation of the aircraft will not be made until the new restoration building of Phase II at Udvar-Hazy Center near Dulles is completed in 2011 or later and that the decision will consider “all relevant facts related to the rich history of this particular artifact…” Thus, as of mid-2008, we are at an impasse concerning the fate of our historic Navy aircraft, BuNo 135332.

History of BuNo 135332:
Delivered to US. Navy as 135332, Aug. 1954.
– Accepted by BuAer Rep El Segundo under BuAer Contract No. 52960, Aug. 12, 1954.
– Transferred to FasRon 12, NAS Miramar, Aug. 17, 1954
– Transferred to VA-125, NAS Miramar, Oct. 18, 1954.
— Total flight hours 183.
— VA-125 deploys for WestPac cruise aboard USS Hancock (CVA 19), Aug. 31, 1955.
— VA-125 back at NAS Miramar, March 14, 1956.
– Transferred to Overhaul & Repair Facility, NAS Alameda, March 27, 1956
– Transferred to VA-96, NAS Alameda, Aug. 8, 1956
– Transferred to VA-196, NAS Alameda, Feb. 27, 1957
— VA-196 deploys for WestPac cruise aboard USS Bon Homme Richard (CVA 31), June 12, 1957
— VA-196 back at NAS Alameda, Dec. 9, 1957
– Transferred to Storage Facility, NAS Litchfield Park, May 19, 1958
— Total flight hours 1,534.
– Transferred to Overhaul & Repair Facility, NAS Quonset Point, Aug. 16, 1963
– Transferred to VA-145, NAS Alameda, Feb. 16, 1964
— VA-145 deploys for WestPac cruise aboard USS Constellation (CVA 64), May 31, 1964
— Pierce Arrow strikes against North Vietnam; Gulf of Tonkin Incident response. Aug. 5, 1964.
— VA-145 back at NAS Alameda, Feb. 28, 1965
– Transferred to VA-95, NAS Lemoore, May 25, 1965.
– Transferred to VA-122, NAS Lemoore, June 21, 1965.
– Transferred to Naval Aircraft Repair Facility, Quonset Point, Feb. 4, 1966.
– Transferred to NAS Lemoore, May 9, 1966.
— Total flight hours 2,665.
– Transferred to VA-52, NAS Lemoore, May 20, 1966.
– VA-52 deploys for WestPac cruise board USS Ticonderoga (CVA 14), Oct. 15, 1966.
– Transferred to NAS Cubi Point, April 28, 1967.
— Total flight hours 3,455.
– Transferred to MASCD, Davis-Monthan AFB, Tucson, Sept. 19, 1967.
— Total flight hours 3,455
– Stricken from Navy lists, Nov. 14, 1967.
Transferred to US Air Force as 135332, 1967.
– Served in 4410th and 4407th Combat Crew Training Squadrons and
    1st Special Operations Wing at Hurlburt Field, FL
— Used to train Vietnamese Air Force [VNAF] pilots, 1967-1972.
— Deployed to SEASIA.
– Transferred to VNAF as 135332, Aug. 25, 1972.
— Flown to Thailand to avoid capture.
— Transferred by USAF letter from RTAF, Takli, to “Yesterday's Air Force".
    Mr. David C. Tallichet [YAF] also rescued three other A1-Hs from the RTAF, Aug. 9, 1978.
Yesterdays Air Force, Chino, CA, 1978-1983.
– Registration N32612 reserved but not taken up.
– Stored in original military configuration, Long Beach, CA, Jan. 1980-1983.
Military Aircraft Restoration Corp, Chino, CA, 1983-1992.
– Registered as N39148.
– Ferried by David C. Tallichet from Long Beach to Andrews AFB, April 30 to May 2, 1983.
National Air & Space Museum, Washington D.C., 1983-2008
– Traded to NASM for C-123K.
– Stored, awaiting restoration at Gerber Facility, MD.

Ten surviving pilots contributed to this record and are listed in order of appearance in the text. Those that contributed pilot narratives are indicated by ***. Their personal recollections are blended into a third-person presentation herein with as little editing of their original words as possible.

VO-67 No Tailhook but a Great Naval Aviation Tale

This is a previously-hidden true-story about the Navy VP (Patrol Aviation) community. A Navy P2V squadron, VO-67, recently received a PUC (Presidential Unit Citation), 40 years after their heroic deeds. Read on . . .
OBSERVATION SQUADRON SIXTY-SEVEN (VO-67) by Larry W. Gire

At the height of the Vietnam War, a secret Navy 12-plane squadron arrived at the Nakhon Phanom Air Commando base in Thailand. The squadron aircraft were old, retired from service, P2V-5F anti-submarine patrol planes that had been considerably modified into armed, jungle green, gun ships. Of course, every would-be comic that saw them at Nakhon Phanom asked, what’s the Navy going to do, hunt for subs in the Mekong River?

The North Vietnamese were moving massive amounts of munitions by truck and troops down the Ho Chi Minh Trail undetected in mid-1966. Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara was opposed to attacking North Vietnam military targets and infrastructure and to stopping the movement of war materials into North Vietnam by mining their harbors as advocated by the military. In the fall of 1966, he ordered the military to submit a proposed plan for an anti-infiltration system designed to stop or greatly reduce the flow of men and war material from North Vietnam into South Vietnam.
The quickest solution available was to modify and employ the Navy's sonobuoy (a listening device used to detect submarines underwater). Implanting sonobuoys in the jungle canopy could detect the movement of NVA trucks and troops. The converted sonobuoys, dubbed 'Acoubuoys', were camouflaged jungle green and parachuted into the jungle, where they snagged in the top jungle canopy, and hung unseen high off the ground. Sensitive microphones that replaced the hydrophones could pick up the sound of truck and troop movement below.

The Navy had a number of older anti-submarine aircraft in its inventory with sonobuoy racks installed and capable of delivering the modified listening devices. The Navy determined that available P2V-5Fs would be the quickest and the best delivery platform to modify for implanting the modified sonobuoys along the Ho Chi Minh Trail.

By this stage of the war the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) had heavily fortified the trail with highly mobile ZPU-23mm, 37mm, and some radar controlled 57mm guns. Survivability of the slow, lumbering P2V-5F in this environment was questionable. But the need was urgent; our troops in South Vietnam were taking heavy casualties. The Defense Department decided to deploy the P2V-5Fs to provide an interim capability until Air Force F-4 jets could be modified to take over the task.

The initial overhaul was done in three phases at the Martin Aircraft Company in Baltimore, MD. This overhaul and replacement of electronics included installing new self-sealing bladder fuel tanks (capable of holding 2800 gallons of fuel and sustaining small arms and shrapnel hits), and painting the aircraft a flat, jungle green. After this modification, the aircraft were re-designated as an OP-2E.

Modifications to the aircraft continued well into the deployment and operational phase of the squadron. Much of the modification work was done by the VO-67 squadron maintenance organization. The APS-20E submarine search radar, with its large radar dome, and the MAD gear and  boom (used to magnetically detect submerged submarines) were removed. Wingtip tanks were removed and extensive armor plating was added, primarily in the bombardier's nose station, cockpit, flight deck, and the aft gunner's stations to protect the crews. Two under wing SUU-11 six-barreled mini guns were installed. A 'Chaff' dispenser was added aft where the MAD boom had protruded. LORAN C, a new version of the Long Range Aide to Navigation, replaced the old LORAN system used by the Navy at that time, and was used to drop sensors during the monsoon season. Internal mounts for M-60 machine guns were installed at both hatches in the after station of the OP-2E aircraft. These hand-held 7.62mm guns fired 550 rounds.

To facilitate egress for the crew forward of the wing beam to bail out, the deck hatch to the nose gear tunnel was enlarged. Threat-detection electronics and terrain-clearance radar were added. Bomb bay racks were fabricated to carry additional Acoubuoys. A Norden bomb sight was installed in the Plexiglas nose of the OP-2E. This was the result of the added mission of implanting the Air-delivered Seismic Detection Sensor (ADSID) that presented a problem that the old P2V aircraft was not equipped to handle. The addition of the J-34s to the P2V-5Fs had reduced the under-wing launch stubs from 16 to 8 stations. VO-67 overcame this shortage of stations by using MER weapon racks that could hold three ADSIDS on each of these eight stations. However, the real problem was the lack of an accurate delivery system for the ADSIDs. Navy patrol plane pilots dropped sonobuoys and torpedoes at low altitude by sight or timing and needed an accurate means of dropping the ADSID from 2500 feet or higher.

The Norden bomb sight had been used extensively in WW-II and had been installed in the Navy's PB4Y-2 aircraft. VO-67 requested Norden bomb sights and after demonstrating their accuracy at Eglin AFB, Pentagon officials agreed that the Norden bomb sight was what was needed and had the Rock Island Arsenal overhaul twelve bomb sights (for this they had to locate and recall retired WW-II Norden bomb sight technicians).

An Air Force Norden bomb sight instructor, Lt Col Conrad Brown, was found and sent to Alameda to help train the bombardiers. Lt Col Brown located a battered copy of a WW-II training film on the Norden bomb sight at the Smithsonian Institute. He had it shipped PRIORITY ONE to VO-67 and used it to train the Squadron bombardiers. Lt Col Brown deployed with the squadron to continue training the VO-67 third pilots who developed into qualified bombardiers.

The first flight of three OP-2Es departed Alameda on 6 November 1967 for Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Force Base (NKP) in Thailand led by CAPT Wallace 'Wally' Sharp. The last flight of three OP-2Es arrived at Nakhon Phanom on 15 November 1967. Much credit for the smooth deployment must be given to the Air Force Military Air Transport service for the professional job they did in moving the rest of the squadron.

Eighteen C-141s arrived at Alameda right on schedule. Because of the runway landing-weight limitations at Nakhon Phanom, each C-141 was limited to 45,000 pounds of cargo. One after another they were efficiently loaded and departed with loads ranging from large electronic vans to administrative files. In all, they airlifted 629,021 pounds of VO-67 personnel and cargo to NKP.

The personnel compliment of VO-67 when they arrived at NKP was 1 Captain, 8 Commanders, 3 Commander Selectees, 5 Lieutenant Commanders, 40 junior officers, 23 Chief Petty Officers, 220 rated enlisted personnel, and 14 Airmen. They also had 5 civilian representatives attached to the squadron; 1 from Lockheed, 1 from Hazeltine, 1 from Martin Marietta, and 2 from Sandia Lab.

On arrival at Nakhon Phanom, the VO-67 pilots immediately began flying combat missions with the Air Force FACs (Forward Air Controllers) in the small Cessna O-2A (Nail) aircraft to familiarize themselves with the Ho Chi Minh Trail and enemy gun emplacements. The Air Force FAC pilots helped the newly arrived Navy pilots tremendously. The FAC pilots became a valuable intelligence asset to the VO-67. CAPT Sharp initiated a close working relationship shortly after VO-67's arrival at NKP by inviting the FAC pilots to a party with the VO-67 pilots at the NKP Officer's club. The FACs flew every day and night and kept track, for their own survival and that of the strike aircraft they marked the targets for, of where the North Vietnamese moved their antiaircraft guns. The FACs that had flown the night before provided the latest NVA triple-A firing positions for the following day's VO-67 combat missions.

Close friendships developed among the Air Force FAC and Navy pilots; two of them were highly instrumental in the later rescue of seven VO-67 crew  members after their plane was hit by AAA fire and they bailed out over hostile territory. The Air Force O-2A FAC, A-1E, and Navy VO-67 pilots at Nakhon Phanom quickly bonded into a mutual respect support group.  Each VO-67 crew was responsible for planning their own assigned missions. They studied the NVA triple-A gun positions and terrain to determine the safest flight path and altitude profile in and out of the target area. Some missions were as simple as diving from 12,000 feet on the sensor implant heading, leveling off at drop altitude, slowing to drop airspeed, laying the sensor string, and climbing back to 12,000 feet and heading home. Drop altitude for the Acoubuoys was always 500 feet. The ADSIDS were dropped from 2,500 feet and later 5,000 feet.

Missions in heavy areas of enemy AAA concentrations required the crews to use terrain masking wherever possible. The high karst outcroppings in some target areas were ideal for this tactic. Some called for jinking dives to sensor implant altitude and numerous heading changes to the target to avoid the anti-aircraft gun emplacements. Acoubuoy drops in heavily defended areas were made by running into the area at tree top level, popping up to 500 feet, laying the sensors, dropping back to the deck and flying the safest route out.

On 11 January 1968, the VO-67 Executive Officer (XO), CDR Dell Olson, was on an Acoubuoy drop mission over the Ho Chi Minh Trail; at 9:57 AM radio contact with his aircraft was lost (the FAC working the mission had also lost visual contact with the OP-2E). Two other OP-2Es were working the trail that morning. They tried to reestablish radio contact with Crew 2. One OP-2E went under the overcast and spent three hours searching the area. There were some karst outcropping in the area but it was mostly dense jungle. The base of the overcast was above the highest terrain in the area so they were able to search the whole area. The jungle was so dense in most places that a plane crashing into it would not leave a discernible entry point and the crash could not be seen from the air. No trace of the Crew 2 aircraft was found by the searching VO-67 aircraft.

On 23 January an Air Force A-1 located a suspected crash site. On 25 January an O-2 from Nakhon Phanom photographed the site. Photo interpretation determined that the wreckage was that of BUNO 131436, Crew 2's aircraft. It was located on the north side of a cliff, 150 feet below the 4,583-foot ridgeline. Due to the hostile environment in the crash site area, it was decided not to insert an Investigation and Recovery team.

On February 17, 1968, CDR Glenn Hayden and his Crew 5 were dropping Acoubuoys over the trail in Laos. He had two F-4 escorts out of DaNang and an O-2A FAC spotter. After coming off his first target run, CDR Hayden reported that they had been hit by small arms fire in the starboard wing but were continuing on with their second assigned target run. During the second run, the fighter escort radioed to the OP-2E that its starboard engine was on fire; CDR Hayden acknowledged and reported that he was aborting the mission and returning to base.

The F-4s climbed through the overcast with the intention of joining the OP-2E on top and escorting him back to base. The last radio transmission they heard from the OP-2E was, 'We're beat up pretty bad .....' The F-4s dropped back down below the overcast and found the burning wreckage of the OP-2E; no parachutes were seen nor were emergency beepers were heard.

Ten days later, VO-67 suffered its third combat loss on 27 February. CDR Paul Milius's OP-2E was shot down while implanting sensors in Laos. The aircraft was flying at 5,000 feet above the jungle tops.

There weren't any 57mm radar controlled guns reported to be in the area of his drop, but if it wasn't that, it had to be the best 37mm gun crew in the world. No flack was spotted before the aircraft was hit, so it almost had to be a direct hit on the first salvo. The aircraft was hit in the radar well area where the old APS -20E radar had been removed. One crewman, PO2 John F. Hartzheim, was killed instantly. The hydraulic and electrical systems were severely damaged and the aircraft immediately filled with acrid smoke and fumes. CDR Milius ordered his crew to bail out. He remained at the controls of the stricken aircraft until the remaining seven crewmen had successfully bailed out.

One O2 FAC pilot, Major Sam Weaver, flew alongside MR-7 as the crew bailed out and kept a plot where each crewman had landed. Another FAC pilot, Major Phil Maywald also came to assist in the rescue. The 'Sandy', A- 1H aircraft, that provided fire protection for downed airmen, and the rescue helicopters, better known as the 'Jolly Greens' and 'Buffs', were soon on the scene. Sandys were from the 602nd Fighter Commando Squadron and helicopters from the 37th Air Rescue Squadron at Nakhon Phanom participated in the rescue along with other Air Rescue Recovery Squadrons from DaNang and Udorn. The FACs vectored the helos to each of the downed crewmen. Since they were in a very hostile area, the helos wasted no time in picking up the crew and getting out of there.

CDR Milius was seen to bail out, but never located and listed as MIA. He was promoted to the Rank of Captain on 1 July 1972. On 26 April 1978, he was officially pronounced 'presumed killed in action' and posthumously awarded the Navy Cross. On 23 November 1996, the Aegis Guided Missile Destroyer Milius (DDG 69) was commissioned in his honor at the Ingalls Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, Mississippi.

On 29 February 1968, two days after MR-7 was shot down, the last one of the 12 fully modified OP-2Es arrived at NKP. With the three losses, VO-67 was now a nine-plane squadron. MR-11 was repainted to MR-7 and the rescued members of Crew 7 continued to fly as a crew.

The North Vietnamese Tet offensive of 1968 was an all-out effort to take the U. S. Marine Base at Khe Shan. On 22 January 1968 VO-67 commenced implanting extensive Acoubuoy sensor fields around the combat base and its approaches to assist in lifting the siege of the Marine stronghold.
The special bomb bay racks to hold additional Acoubuoys in the OP-2E were used for the first time in the close-in support of Khe Shan. These Acoubuoy flights were classic mission profiles of Squadron developed tactics and what they had trained for in California and Florida. The OP-2Es came into the area skimming above the jungle tree tops or rivers, popped up to 500 feet, laid their string of sensors, dropped back down on the deck, and got the hell out of there as fast as the old, lumbering patrol planes would take them!

Estimates of the number of North Vietnamese that took part in the siege of Khe Shan vary, but most agree there were upwards of 20,000 NVA troops supported by tanks and anti-aircraft weapons. The latter accounted for eight U.S. aircraft during January and February. VO-67 flight crews that participated in implanting Acoubuoys in defense of Khe Shan were awarded the Navy Commendation Metal with Combat 'V' for missions that were, '-- of the very highest priority' and for achieving their goals, '-- despite poor weather, rugged terrain and enemy defenses which included surface-to-air missiles and anti-aircraft guns'.

On May 25 1968, the Chief of Naval Operations set the date for the disestablishment of VO-67 as of 1 July 1968. At that time the mission was to be taken over by the Air Force's 25th Tactical Fighter Squadron.

In June of 1968, the squadron received a message from the Navy disestablishing VO-67. As of 1 July 1968, the squadron no longer existed; personnel were ordered to return to the States for further assignment. The last squadron combat mission implanting sensors was on 25 June 1968. VO-67 lost 25% of its aircraft in combat and 20 crewmen, less than half of what the planners had expected and predicted. This was due to the outstanding airmanship of one of the finest multi-engine squadrons ever assembled.

However, a large part of the credit must be given to the Air Force FAC pilots at NKP and the training and intelligence they provided the VO-67 pilots. They taught the VO-67 pilots the Ho Chi Minh Trail and how to survive in the air spaces over it. The FAC pilots returning from night missions would mark the maps in NKP Intelligence with the location of the AAA guns they saw firing. This knowledge was an invaluable contribution to the survival of the OP-2E missions the next day.

CAPT Sharp became fast friends with Lt Col Palaster, the Commanding Officer of the O-2 FAC Squadron, as did many of the VO-67 pilots. He was so respected that when he was promoted to full Colonel while at Nakhon Phanom, the officers of VO-67 threw him a traditional Navy 'wetting down' party and made him an Honorary Naval Aviator. The FAC pilots flying the little O2 aircraft came from Air Force fighter, attack, and even SAC commands and their daring and courage was respected by all the Air Force, Navy, and Marine pilots in the Vietnam War. The Navy and VO-67 owe a deep debt of gratitude to these brave pilots and good friends.

How many American and South Vietnamese lives were saved by the courage and sacrifices of VO-67 in successfully planting sensors along the Ho Chi Minh Trail and around Khe Shan will never be known. The Air Force reported that truck kills tripled, for a like period, after the sensors were implanted and used to detect and pinpoint targets. Senior Marine officers estimated at casualties at the siege of Khe Shan would have been double that experienced if it had not been for the sensors implanted by the VO-67 Navy crews.

________________________________

U. S. To Honor Members of Squadron in 'Secret War'
By Chris Vaughn, Star-Telegram Staff Writer

Not many men in the military are eager to join a brand-new unit, where they don't know people, don't know what they'll be doing and don't have a proud unit lineage.

But the Navy assured the men it would be good for their careers. So some men volunteered and a lot more were drafted to join Observation Squadron 67, so named because that was the year it was born.
After a while the men took to calling themselves "the Ghost Squadron" because they felt forgotten, participants in a secret war that neither the U.S. nor the North Vietnamese wanted to acknowledge was being waged next door to Vietnam.

Silenced for decades by their classified missions over Laos, the men finally in recent years began to speak publicly of their war, a decision that would ultimately lead to a rare historic correction by the Navy.

Forty years after the squadron's actions, VO-67 has been awarded the Presidential Unit Citation, the highest decoration for combat valor a unit can receive. Some of the surviving 300 members of that squadron will be on hand for the ceremony in front of the U.S. Navy Memorial.

"It's special after all these years," said John Forsgren, a young sailor who served in the squadron and lives in Arlington. "But it's also bittersweet. How do you get proud of something that you did 40 years ago? There's a bit of a feeling of 'Why didn't they recognize the unit 30 years ago?'"

The Presidential Unit Citation is reserved only for the most valorous combat units, and it's worth noting that far fewer of them were awarded for the Vietnam War than Medals of Honor. A unit receiving the citation is the equivalent of every man receiving a Navy Cross.

Ensign Laura Stegherr said Navy Secretary Donald Winter received "relevant, new and verified" information about the squadron's actions in Laos that warranted the decoration.

VO-67 wasn't really an observation squadron, though they pretended they were. Their unit patch reflected the ruse, showing an airplane sending signals to the ground. In reality, it was the opposite -- the squadron was listening to what was happening on the ground, not interfering.
"It was so secret that not many top people in the Navy knew the squadron existed or what we did," said Ed Landwehr of Fort Worth, a navigator and bombardier on Crew 4.

The idea came from Defense Secretary Robert McNamara, who was unhappy with the results of the bombing campaign in North Vietnam and wanted some other way to interdict supplies into South Vietnam. His answer was "Igloo White," the code name for his plan to create an "electronic barrier" at the Demilitarized Zone.

The Ho Chi Minh Trail was largely under triple canopy jungle, hard to detect and busiest at night. Using dropped microphones and seismographic sensors would be a way for the military to gain intelligence on what was moving down the trail, when and how much. Then they could call in air strikes.

"We didn't find out what we would be doing until right before we deployed," said Herb Ganner of Hurst, a navigator and bombardier on Crew 1.

What the pilots and crews had to do sounds simple enough -- take off from an airfield in Thailand, fly a short distance into Laos and drop the camouflaged sensors along the trail. The men flew only in the day, usually every other day, and could expect to be airborne no longer than a couple of hours.

But the Ho Chi Minh Trail, the lifeblood of the war for the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong, was a very hostile place for air crews, particularly slow-moving, virtually defenseless ones flying at only 500 to 1,000 feet.

"The missions were short-lived, but they were adrenaline-pumped," Ganner said.

The Navy prepared for a loss rate of upward of 60 percent to 70 percent, which the men found out about while they were in Thailand.

"They tried to reassure us that the loss rate was not necessarily those killed," Ganner said, "but that it meant the airplanes would be so damaged that they would be out of commission."

It never got that bad. But within a span of six weeks in 1968, it felt like it was. Twenty men from three crews died in January and February 1968, the time of the huge Tet Offensive.

After all these years, the survivors of VO-67 still wince at the memories of Jan. 11, when the first crew did not come home.

Tony Bissell of Bedford was a petty officer on another plane that day, and he can still remember the awful silence on the radio as Crew 2 did not answer any communication. Later that night, the officers' club was packed wall to wall with men getting stupid drunk. Nine men dead in a second.
"We didn't have to buy a single drink that night," Bissell said. "The Air Force guys were very sympathetic."

Interservice rivalry seemed to take a back seat to the men's shared missions and misery. To this day, the men of VO-67 credit the Air Force forward air controllers in Thailand for saving their hides many times because of their knowledge of the trail.

Each crew had its own identity, and rarely did they ever share with each other their specific missions. The less the men knew the better.

"We knew how susceptible we were to getting shot down," Ganner said. "I used to carry a Geneva Convention card and my ID tags. I never took my wedding ring, my wallet, anything personal."
At least once the "Ghost Squadron" came out of hiding to participate in the acknowledged war. In January 1968, the Marines at Khe Shan were under siege by thousands of North Vietnamese. VO-67 was ordered on low-flying missions to drop sensors around the Marine base, so more accurate fire could be leveled. Their citation says they "contributed to saving countless lives."

As for their careers in the Navy, the men said VO-67 failed to help them at all. In fact, most of them believed it hurt their promotion chances because no one in the Navy had heard of it.
Still, the belated recognition matters to many of them, for both reasons large and small.
"I've talked about it recently with my wife of 19 years, and she will say, 'I don't believe you,'" Forsgren said, laughing. "This is vindication."

The men flew the Lockheed P-2 Neptune, a 1950s-era anti-submarine patrol airplane. The squadron's planes were heavily modified for the mission, including the addition of M-60 machine guns, an armored belly and a jungle-green paint scheme.

The squadron was based at Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Force Base, just across the Mekong River from Laos. Their primary mission was over the Ho Chi Minh Trail in Laos, but they also performed missions in South Vietnam.
Twenty men of VO-67 died in Southeast Asia in three incidents. One is still missing in action, Cmdr. Paul Milius, who earned a Navy Cross for allowing seven crewmen to bail out of their badly damaged aircraft before going down. The Navy named a destroyer for him in the 1990s.

The squadron flew combat missions for nine months and sustained a 25 percent loss rate. It was disestablished in July 1968, and the Air Force took over the mission until 1972

____________________________________

For more great information on VO-67, visit the VO-67 Association at their website here: http://www.vo-67.org/vo67_opening.html.  Special thanks goes to the association and Larry Gire, the association's historian for the story and the opportunity to share with Tailhookers around the world. ED.

Just a Very Cool Photo!

Couldn't pass this one up...

Sorry no details...  Anyone want to caption?

Loss of an Icon of a sort...

First an apology to our loyal readers, for the lack of recent updates.  Due to a family emergency YHS has been TDY in Jacksonville FL for the past week. (Things are looking better here now...)

Too bad the same cannot be said for an Iconic landmark in Navy lore...

 

Before....                                                After..... 

I've lost that love'n feeling...  of ribs, pulled pork and brew.!!!

Was how Tailhooker, Ken Schoeni, opened his e-mail calling my attention to the death of a San Diego Icon!  That's right Kansas City Barbeque in the heart of San Diego is no longer!  (At least for now!) The well known rib joint was the scene of the famous line "Goose!!! You Big Stud!... Take me to Bed or Lose me forever!"  Yep the sleazy bar scene in Top Gun!

More than just a movie setting, the Kansas City Barbeque really was a hang out of many o' Tailhooker over the years, not quite like Trader John's in P-cola mind you... hmmm but both gone now just the same. 

From the San Diego Union:

"“It's gutted,” said Maurice Luque, San Diego Fire-Rescue Department spokesman. “It's destroyed.”

...Luque estimated damage at $250,000 to the structure and $150,000 to the contents, not including the cost of decades of memorabilia, including photographs and props from the film. Dozens of Navy caps and license plates hung on walls and ceilings.

Firefighters found Navy flight helmets inside the dining area – melted.

For those of us who grew up in San Diego, KC BBQ was real, the food in my Southern Raised opinion was ok... I've had better Barbeque... but the fun back in the days before Top Gun to be had... wow.  The juke box will be missed as will the memories.

John C. McGinley, Star of Scrubs Flies with the Blues

One of my favorite actors, John C. McGinley (whom you may know from Scrubs, Platoon, The Rock, or even Point Break) had the opportunity to take the press flight with the Blues recently.

He seemed to be properly impressed, and amazingly enough not nearly the wise ass he portrays in his many rolls.  I was a bit disappointed actually I would have loved to hear what Dr. Perry Cox would have had to say about breaking the sound barrier, or pulling six and a half G's in the break over El Centro.

Either way it's a fun Video... Enjoy...

 

Still petitioning for my ride!!! 

-ED...

Yokosuka Bids Farewell to USS Kitty Hawk

YOKOSUKA, Japan (May 28, 2008) The aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk departs its forward-deployed operating base of Yokosuka, Japan for the last time. Kitty Hawk is the oldest active warship and the only conventional-powered aircraft carrier in the Navy. Kitty Hawk will be replaced by the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73). U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Shawn Cole (Released).

USS Kitty Hawk was the third "Forward Deployed" US aircraft carrier to be stationed in Yokosuka, following USS Midway and USS Independence and she will be relieved by the first nuclear powered aircraft carrier to be stationed in Yokosuka, the USS George Washington (CVN-73). Like Midway before her, Kitty Hawk leaves Yoko as the oldest active ship in the US inventory (next to the USS Constitution).  With her age comes a respect of all those who served aboard and gained their "Navy Experience" on the decks of this great warship.

Kitty Hawk's next stop is Pearl Harbor, before her return to CONUS for her eventual decommissioning.

Did Y'all Watch the Same Show?

Many of us affiliated with the Naval Aviation community were drawn to our televisions last week to watch the PBS series "CARRIER."  Most I suspect with a bit of a suspicious tilt of our head as to how our beloved community would be portrayed.

The 10 part series covered the entire 2005 deployment of the USS Nimitz (CVN-68) and her embarked Air Wing 11.  The series delved into some fairly controversial subjects, oft avoided in polite conversation about what takes place onboard including race relations, sexual tension on a mixed gender warship, religious issues, family issues, political issues and yes it even showed that some of the navy is not an adventure... unless cleaning urinals and sinks is your definition of adventure.  However the series did cover many of the experiences most of the readers of TDB are all too familiar with, from "Crossing the Line", to cyclic ops, to the "Night in the Barrel" (who knew the days of 15 straight bolters or wave-offs was not a thing of the past!)

Whatever your opinion of the series, favorable, unfavorable, indifferent, amused, nostalgic or indignant, I find it interesting how different people SAW the special through their own prismic view.  To which I point yon gentle reader to the "PBS Ombudsman" site, where selected letters and comments about the series are presented... below are a few select nuggets but I  highly recommend you navigate on over to PBS Ombudsman to see it in its entirety. [Link]

I have never been so drawn to watch a show as this one. I became addicted to it within 5 minutes. I served 2 years in the US NAVY and I miss that dearly! Thank you for flooding my brain with memories that I will cherish for a lifetime!

Robin Stephens, Acworth, GA

___________

Carrier — I expected a show about carrier operations. Instead, I get a show that interviews the 'carrier rats.' Just 'loved' the parts about — "Oh yes, we have a lot of homos and lezzies on board. We are not supposed to get involved with physical relationships, but nobody is going to tell me how to run my life." Nobody is going to tell me?? Too many young, immature & recalcitrant jerks within our military nowadays!!

WEO, East Orange, NJ
USAF veteran

____________

It is crystal clear to me that the pseudo-documentary "Carrier" is nothing more than recruitment propaganda for the military. We have had to endure endless hours of this justification for war which is broadcast continually during prime time and even throughout the night. It seems to have been carefully coordinated for broadcast just when Gates is sending another carrier to the Middle East to justify a possible attack on Iran. While I support those serving in the military, this type of glorification of the military as a "family or fraternity" does not match the lack of support for the veterans coming back from war. Mel Gibson is the producer of this series so it is no wonder that it presents the military as "cool and patriotic". If PBS continues to broadcast pro-military programs another unjustified war could actually happen, only this time it will be nuclear.

J Hirschinger, Loomis, CA

_____________

Carrier. War is about killing. War kills people; war kills towns and countries. This fact remains no matter how magnificently you portray our military heroes or how miraculous the technology. The PBS series did an excellent job of showing our military might and the valor of our service people. Because we can, PBS appears to be saying we should go to war with (Iran), with or without just cause. Go team! Rah, rah, rah!

Carol Seideman, Boulder, CO

_____________

I, a financial supporter or PBS, am disgusted by the PBS series "Carrier". Why is the last vestige of rational American journalism presenting such a single-minded militaristic viewpoint? Is this what PBS is all about? Is this what PBS supports? Is this a balanced and international viewpoint presentation of what America should stand for? Is this lifestyle and worldview what young Americans should strive to emulate? Navy? Marines? Military Industrial Complex. Unfocused youth. Confused foreign policy. You've lost a lover of the old PBS.

Paul Bhorjee, Bethesda, MD

______________

My family and I have enjoyed the series Carrier so much. It is a brilliant show and I will be sad to have it end. It is entertaining and informative, and from the opening moments, so very engaging. It is wonderful.

B. Rose, Stratton, ME

______________

This is not the kind of programming I would choose to support. While it was interesting, engaging and like watching a soap opera, or reality TV as a Salon.com reviewer suggested. To me, it was ultimately propaganda for the Navy. If this boat is part of Iraqi Freedom, then show us Iraq. Show us what war really looks like. Show us our soldiers injured, dying, being transported back home in body bags. Show us the crying, terrified children, whose parents have been killed, whose homes are blown up, whose families are torn apart. Show us the largest immigrant crisis in the world, caused by the US invasion of Iraq. Show us what war really looks like. Carrier missed the mark and sank under the weight of its own message.

Cynthia Smith, Portland, OR

Perspective is all about Viewing Angle!

By the way, if you missed any of the series it is all available online at http://www.pbs.org/weta/carrier/ .

"We're Not Breeding Any New Intruders!"

These words were spoken numerous times throughout this year's Intruder Reunion!  And... We're not! 

I had the honor this past weekend in San Diego to meet hundreds of gathered Intruder Pilots, BNs, Tech Reps, their families and friends. I listened to their stories accurate as a Cracker Jack Prized Watch, laughed at their jokes, smiled with them as their joy overflowed at the first sight of long ago friends and comrades not heard from in 30 years, and I cried with them too as they raised their glass to missed friends left long ago... eternally young.

The compassion in the rooms was tangible, hugs and vice grip handshakes abounded.  These men are INTRUDERS and always will be.  And there is something to be said and yes even possibly envied for being able to claim that moniker.  At least one sure felt that in their company.

These men flew and fought in a truly unique aircraft.  Beauty is said to be in the eye of the beholder... or in this case the crew of an Intruder!  The A-6 in its many variants with the exception of a few bumps here, and a few radio fins there, and a giant chin pimple called a TRAM, the overall airframe remained throughout its historic career much as it was when she first rolled off the Grumman Iron Works assembly line in 1960... she was a flying DRUMSTICK!

But despite having looks only a mother could love, the A-6 piloted by heroic crews, earned a reputation, even legacy, no other aircraft can match.  And I do mean Crews... the Intruder is a 2 man aircraft, Pilot and Bombardier Navigator  (BN) and it takes these two to make this aircraft the formidable weapon she became known as.

Featured Speaker, and A-6 transplant (from Vigilantes of all planes!), Admiral Fox Fallon, alluded to the uniqueness of this great airplane in that the crew sat side by side instead of the more common tandem arrangements familiar to most in NAVAIR since WWII.  This seating allowed for unique communication between Pilot and BN, one could recognize trouble or confidence in a simple look exchanged between crewmates.   Navigation advice could easily be exchanged without the need for the later "Banana on a Broomstick" method employed NFO's in F-4's and F-14's.  Also, the Intruder's mission often required single aircraft going in a night, low level, without the benefit of today's modern conveniences of NVG's or FLIR's... without their crewmate they would indeed be "Alone."  This is also why a number of Intruder crews would be lost without benefit of a clear accounting for the causes or knowledge of their final resting.

It was these unique men, that openly shared their stories of, "Aw Gee, we were just doin' our job... that black night... on one engine... inverted... with the RADAR crapped out... in the mire... and both generators sounding like coffee grinders, when we dropped all 18 slicks in the smoke stack of that there COMMIE power generator!"  "Shur was a fun firework show that night!"... "Then Sheeeaught, we had to return to the damn dutch rollin' boat... by the way, Paddles is STILL A LYIN' SUMBITCH! I was not high! The hook skipped!"

As I mentioned there were not only crewmates here, there were also the wives and other family members of these fine men here as well.  And believe me the stories to be heard from these women were equally awe inspiring, albeit from a different perspective.  The trials and tribulations these women had to endure being Officer's Wives, CO's Wives, Mom's to their own kids as well as in many cases a Mom to the Newlywed JO's wives in a world that would be foreign enough had it simply been Naval Aviation... without the war, demonstrated a different breed of heroics, but recognizable none the less.  There were many tears at seeing the wives not seen in these many years as well... but most of our tears were shared for one cherished wife especially... Tonya Clark.

February 18, 2004

Lieutenant Alan Clark was in the last Navy plane shot down in Vietnam; remains identified January 2004 and he was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

He was the love of her life. Her husband. Her soulmate. Her everything.

"I just didn't want him to go," says Tonya Clark.

Alan Clark went. He went to Vietnam. And before it was all over, the A-6 Navigator based out of Whidbey Island Naval Air Station, would make history.

His shipmate from the USS Midway would write about him in his book: "I felt the tears pouring down my cheeks," Jim Horsley says.

Alan's wife would be haunted by the question: What if? What if the war had ended just two weeks earlier?

January 10, 1973. Lieutenant Alan Clark's plane was shot down. It was the last Navy plane shot down in the war. Pilot Jim Horsley searched for the two Navy flyers.

"With my oxygen mask on, I'm sobbing tears," says Horsley.

They found nothing. Two weeks later, the Vietnam War ended. Troops started coming home.

"I remember when the guys came back. It was so hard seeing them flying in and they had the missing man formation and that was just so difficult," says Tonya.

For the next 31 years, Navigator Alan Clark and his pilot remained missing.

"When you go to war it's a hard thing," says Clark. A hard thing leaving your wife -- your pregnant wife -- to go to war.

Tad Clark was just two months and 10 days old when his father was killed in Vietnam.

"He never got to hold him and see him!" Tonya said.

Tad never met his father, but he would do something that would have made him proud. He followed in his footsteps. Tad Clark is an Air Force Pilot and Thunderbird!

"He just wanted to be a fighter pilot all of his life," says Tonya Clark.

... Tonya always had faith that one day, the military would find Alan.

And they have. Alan Clark's remains were finally found and identified through DNA. In 2004, his shipmates and family helped bury Navy Lieutenant Alan Clark, the recipient of the Purple Heart, at Arlington National Cemetery.

"You just can't help by feel grateful and say 'Oh God this is so amazing' It is amazing," says Tonya Clark.

Tonya's soulmate; her best friend; her everything, is home.

Tonya was as beautiful as ever, and we were all thrilled to see her there!

The Intruder is long gone, now relegated to a museum piece or a gate guard, or a reef in a nearby ocean.  But these crews are still with us, to share with us their knowledge, their humor, their warmth, their love of flying, their love for their fellow man... But we're not breeding any more of them.  So I highly recommend getting to know these men while you can, the tales are great, and 100% truthful. ;-)   Below are but a sampling of the images of this reunion. 

YHS had the opportunity to intrude on VA-115's special moments (nepotism will do that, right Hoagy?) thus many of the photos are of the men and wives of the ARABS of 1972-73.  But if you have good digital images of friends at the Intruder reunion, please send them to me, I am compiling and creating a public image gallery of as many as I can gather.  I will post all there for free download for all!  Captions and info about the subjects of the images are very welcomed.

 

 

Ready Room 5 Dedication, complete with ship's bell calling to order, and Red Bull Air Races off the port side competing for our attention!

VA-115 Circa '72-'73

And finally Tonya Clark!  Our Hero!

UPDATE:  Thanks to folks like, Larry Yarham and Paul Barrish we are beginning to add to our collection of Reunion Photos!  And rather than posting them all here I have created a repository Gallery of all of the submitted photos for your viewing pleasure!  Click the hyperlink below and visit the gallery...

Intruder Association 2008 Reunion 

Please feel free to add your comments for clarification of individuals in the images, I will work to update the captions accordingly.  Also once in the gallery simply click on the larger image to see a variety of size options available for free downloads and if you are not computer savvy you can also order prints direct from the site!

Here's a few for a taste...

PLEASE! If you have other photos of the Intruder Reunion, please send them to me at carmichaelj@comcast.net I will gladly write an addendum to this article and include them in the planned gallery which I will identify here once I have it established.

Thank you Intruders!  It was a blast!

Editor, John Carmichael

Intruders Coming to San Diego! This Weekend!

The 2008 National Navy/Marine Intruder Reunion is being held from 01-04 May in San Diego, CA.

A special and exciting reunion program has been planned. Feature events include the Intruder Ready Room Dedication on board the USS Midway, a day at MCAS Miramar that includes a golf outing, the dedication of the recently restored A-6 at the Flying Leatherneck Museum and a Happy Hour at the World Famous Miramar O'Club.  An elegant San Diego cocktail cruise will end the day for those desiring to participate.

A hotel "Ready Room" with a panoramic view of Mission Valley will be open to all during the entire event so that folks can gather and meet old friends.  The hotel also has poolside rooms perfect for individual squadrons/groups to rent for their own reunion ready room.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:

Thursday, 01 May
Hotel check-in and reunion registration.  Welcome reception at the Town and Country poolside with heavy hors d'ourves and no-host bar. The hotel ready room will be open for late-night drinks and conversation. 

Friday, 02 May
Hotel check-in and reunion registration.  Golf at MCAS Miramar Golf Course followed by the dedication of a Marine A-6 at the Flying Leatherneck Museum, Miramar. Invited guest speaker is Major General USMC (ret), A-6 pilot and Astronaut Charles Bolden.  Following the dedication, the Miramar O'Club will host a Happy Hour with heavy hors d'oerves.  A San Diego Harbor cruise with heavy hors d'oerves and a no-host bar is also available that evening.  The hotel ready room will be open for late-night drinks and conversation.

Saturday, 03 May
Intruder Association membership meeting in the morning followed by the dedication of the World Class Intruder Ready Room on the USS Midway, San Diego Aircraft Carrier Museum.  All attendees will have a 3-day pass to the USS Midway allowing ample opportunities and time to tour all the superb displays and areas of the Midway.  The coat & tie Reunion Banquet will be in the Convention Center of the Town & Country and will feature a no-host cocktail hour to renew old friendships, an excellent dinner and a featured guest speaker. The hotel ready room will be open for late-night drinks and conversation.

Sunday, 04 May
Early Bird breakfast of coffee and pastries in the hotel "ready room" for those catching early flights.  A reunion send-off buffet breakfast at a hotel restaurant starts at 0800 for those who are not as rushed.

The hotel "Ready Room" with a panoramic view of Mission Valley will be open to all during the entire event so that folks can gather and meet old friends.

For More Information Visit the INTRUDER ASSOCIATION

Editors Note:  I will be in attendance at many of the Intruder Events and look forward to meeting all of you.  If you see me standing around, please feel free to introduce yourself, you will always have a willing listener of ALL of the ENTIRELY TRUTHFUL stories I am sure to hear!

- John Carmichael, Editor, Tailhook Daily Briefing

CARRIER... Coming to the Small Screen Near You!

PBS is marketing its upcoming series "Carrier" as:

"...a 10-part series filmed aboard the USS Nimitz, [it] is a character-driven immersion in the high-stakes world of a nuclear aircraft carrier. The programs follow a core group of film participants, from the admiral of the strike group to the fighter pilots to the youngest sailors, as they navigate personal conflicts around their jobs, families, faith, patriotism, love, the rites of passage and the war on terror."

After viewing an in depth preview of the series, it looks very well done, and unlike many Engineering style shows on networks like "The Discovery Channel" this series does indeed focus on the core of the US Navy... the people!

Understand that not all presented in this series will be a positive reflection of the life aboard a deployed aircraft carrier.  It has moments where the effects of difficult work, long separations, and personality conflicts are unabashedly presented.  Actually this is a small portion of the whole presentation and is to a degree refreshing in exposing some of the less "talked about" experiences on the boat.

Not to worry, much is also presented about the higher honor of "Serving a cause, greater than yourself!"  With plenty of intelligent thoughtful reflections on what it is to serve in today's United States Navy! 

This is not a recruiting film, however with it's "Up front" and "forthright" presentation, it may certainly serve to better condition potential Navy recruits (both officer and enlisted) that the Navy is not a movie but a life.  A life full of tradition, stories, fun times, difficult times and even impossible times... but it will teach!

Here's some thoughts on why the navy even allowed such unprecedented access to the sailors on the ship, expressed by Chief of Naval Operations, Adm. Gary Roughead:

"...You get unvarnished views from junior personnel about their hopes, aspirations, and challenges of life in the Navy aboard the carrier.  We did not get between the film crews and the Sailors.

...This production although not an all-inclusive picture of the Navy, will give potential recruits and those who influence them a glimpse of what life is really like in the Navy.  We want the American people to know, understand and appreciate the contribution our Sailors make each and every day while deployed around the world.  We also want them to know us, not as a monolithic bureaucratic entity, but as a diverse organization of individual Americans who have set aside the comforts of home and have put themselves on the line to serve a greater cause.  You already know how inspiring our people are, but few in our Nation get to see our people in an operational environment."

All good in YHS' opinion.