Vietnam War

The Story of how the Skyraider became known as “Sandy” and the A-1’s first CSAR Missions

The Story of how the Skyraider became known as “Sandy” and the A-1’s first CSAR Missions

At first, this kind of mission was performed by US Navy A-1s, but by mid August 1965 the 1st ACS… Read More

1 month ago

This C-130A Hercules flew the last mission out of Vietnam before the fall of Saigon. It landed with 452 people on board, 32 of them in the cockpit, overloaded by at least 10,000 pounds.

On Apr. 29, 1975, C-130A Hercules tail number 56-0518 flew the last mission out of Vietnam before the fall of… Read More

2 months ago

US Naval Aviator recalls when an F-4 pilot had diarrhea aboard his Phantom II over North Vietnam. He continued the mission and when he returned to the carrier, he had to clean his cockpit seat.

‘When he later returned to the ship after his mission, he spent a long time cleaning his cockpit seat, after… Read More

3 months ago

That time an Air America UH-1D Huey shot down a North Vietnamese An-2 Colt Biplane

This engagement marked the first CIA air-to-air victory and the only kill achieved by a helicopter against a biplane. The… Read More

3 months ago

Outdated WWII tactics and Soviet-manned North Vietnamese SAMs: An in-depth analysis of how 15 B-52 bombers were shot down during Operation Linebacker II

While the Soviet SAMs, AAA, and Russian advisors had a lot to do with shooting down 15 B-52s and damaging… Read More

3 months ago

North Vietnamese MiG-21 Fishbed pilot tells the story of when he shot down a USAF B-52 Stratofortress during Operation Linebacker II

According to Vietnamese records, on the night of Dec. 27, 1972 North Vietnamese Air Force pilot Pham Tuan used MiG-21MF… Read More

3 months ago

US Naval Aviator explains why even though the A-4 was agile enough to serve as adversary aircraft with the US Navy, the Skyhawk was not a great fighter

‘Yes, the A-4 Skyhawk was agile. However, it takes more than agility to make a good fighter,’ John Chesire, former… Read More

3 months ago

50 Years Later: Operation Linebacker II. While the brave aircrews from the past are no longer in the USAF ranks, the B-52 Stratofortress continues to serve to this day.

Generations of aircrew have flown those B-52s and gone on to retire multiple times over. The B-52 is an eternal… Read More

3 months ago

Here’s how B-52 Tail Gunners shot down two North Vietnamese MiG-21 Fighters and turned the iconic strategic bomber into a MiG Killer

During Operation Linebacker II two B-52D tail gunners belonging to the 307th Strategic Bomb Wing from U-Tapao RTAFB, Thailand, continued… Read More

3 months ago

Behind the scenes of Flight of the Intruder movie: when the iconic A-6 flew to Hollywood

During the Vietnam War 84 A-6 Intruder attack aircraft were lost, but the toughness of the planes and their pilots… Read More

3 months ago

Col. Joe Kittinger, USAF Fighter Pilot, POW and Longtime Freefall Record Holder Passed Away

Retired USAF Col. Joe Kittinger, whose 1960 parachute jump from almost 20 miles above the Earth stood as a world… Read More

3 months ago

F-4 Phantom II pilot recalls an Exhilarating Mach 2 Test Flight

‘There it is! Mach 2.0, twice the speed of sound. I could go on, Mach 2.4 is probably within reach,’… Read More

4 months ago

How the Mohawk became MiG Killer: the story of the US Army OV-1 pilot that shot down a North Vietnamese MiG-17

The OV-1 Mohawk achieved the only US Army air-to-air victory during the Vietnam War. In 1957, the US Army identified… Read More

4 months ago

Bat 21 Gene Hambleton tells the story of when his EB-66 was shot down and recalls his harrowing rescue

"They were within two minutes of picking me up and all at once the helicopter goes up in a ball… Read More

4 months ago

The story of world’s only supersonic gun kill: the day a USAF F-4E flying at Mach 1.2 gun killed a VPAF MiG-19

On Jun. 2, 1972 a remarkable duel between a MiG-19 and a 58th TFS F-4E flown by Maj Phil Handley… Read More

4 months ago

KC-135 navigator tells the story of when his Stratotanker towed a badly damaged F-111 Fighter Bomber through the skies of North Vietnam back to Thailand

The KC-135 Stratotanker crew verified the location of the distressed F-111 Aardvark and headed north until the two aircraft were… Read More

4 months ago

The story of the US Navy A-1H Skyraider attack aircraft that dropped a Toilet Bomb while on a mission over Mekong Delta during Vietnam War

Yes, this really happened. Once again history is stranger then fiction, and a lot funnier. The photos in this post… Read More

5 months ago
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