[Vhfcn-l] TET

Fri Jan 31 13:44:20 EST 2020

Saw my first Neptune Bombers as my Dad called 
them doing a straight in on the ILS to Quonset 
NAS quite often as they returned from patrols 
over the Atlantic. They came in off the Atlantic 
and were a beautiful sight. Now as an old man I 
get to see their replacements flying the traffic 
pattern her at Corpus Christi NAS.  The 
replacement is the P3V or Orian. Good sounding 
aircraft.  They fly the Gulf of Mexico and 
Pacific looking for drugs. My next door neighbor 
is a sensor operator who make regular trips to 
central and south America. They generally operate 
for a week at a time when they go out.

Air Vietnam in Saigon had a DC3 on the ramp and a 
couple of C-46's. Don't recall seeing the DC3 
leave but now and then the C-46's disappeared for 
a day of so then returned.  Then there were also 
the two 727's  parked next to the Heliport. 
PA&E  had a Carribou and did not know that as in 
71 the AF had them although there could have been 
some with the Air America guys compound down the 
ramp.  The shoved one into the hangar where our 
office was on the second floor back wall.  That 
surprised us.  Especially when a bunch of 
American guys showed up and started unloading 
boxes and stacking them in a corner. I walked 
down there and as I approached the tail one of 
them approached me and asked me to please keep 
walking and not approach the ramp. I stopped and 
gave him the Old Sarge stare while taking in the 
M16 slung over his shoulder and a pistol on his 
waist and decided to go back to our office where 
we watched until they were done and pulled it 
back out of the hangar and the bunch of guy left 
and got into a van down below and outside our window. Drove off!
During my tow tours in Vietnam first in the 
Highlands out of the Golf Course in An Khey and 
second in Saigon at Air Vietnam  I never saw a N 
model Huey. Flew all around the Highlands to 
include DaNang and other places and never had one 
pass us or us pass one.  Same thing in the Saigon 
area where we flew our Test Flights out of Tan 
Son Nhut  to Vung Tao and back and never saw a N 
model.  Mosty VN were CH-34's and basic 
Hueys.  We used to Beep Beep Cobras as we would 
sneak up and do a high speed "pass them by" but 
the VNAF did not have them. Once had a A1E tried 
to sneak up on us from behind but I saw him 
coming as I was looking over the ramp and 
reported it to the GIF's. "Keep your eye on him 
Chief."  Next words from me were...he is coming 
up on the right side same flight level. He flew 
along with us for a minute or two when Larry 
said, "See how he takes this."  Pulled us back 
until we had Zero airspeed hover at somewhere 
around 150 knots.  He zoomed (at that point not 
being able to slow with us) off and made a circle 
around and I followed from the back and just 
keeping an eye on what had become a dark speck 
off the left side way out there and picked him up 
off the ramp getting larger and larger and warned 
the GIF's that his is hauling ass and looks like 
he will pass us on the right side. We were back 
up to about 150 when he came by as if we were 
still at a Hover, hauling butt like a bullet. 
Guard Channel spoke up with a Beep Beep. We were 
all laughing.  Caught at our own game!

Well some time later we are sitting in our office 
when I see this AF Col sneaking up on our open 
door and he is smiling to himself and he leans in 
and lets out a BEEP BEEP loudly.  Larry shouts 
out "It was you!"  and jumps up and is shaking 
his hand and we who were on the flight are 
laughing once again.  He was a F4 jock from 
Taiwan who came down to check us out regularly 
and the main reason was he did the Test Flights 
of the AIE's at completion of their wing spar 
modifications the Air Vietnam did under an AF 
Contract.  After he had test flown them usually 
had 2 of them at a time VNAF pilots would show up 
and off  they would go in their new to them and 
clean home to where ever they came from.

He explained that he was headed back into Saigon 
when he notice a Chinook out there with Primer 
Paint all over and figured it was us guys. Larry 
told him that I picked him up behind us and kept 
him informed of his position until he pulled up 
even with us. But we did not know it was you and 
decided to have a bit of fun by going into a 
hover.  When you came by like a bat out of hell 
we knew that somehow we had been had.    He 
wanted to know why we didn't catch his Texas 
Accent on the beep beep.  Ha!  Got another story 
about the Colonel getting a lesson on flying a 
Hook but it will have to wait.  Have told it 
before a long time ago.  Matches up with the 
Vietnamese calling I land now or I turn left now.

I got to catch up and ask John if he remembers 
the 3 maybe 4 Heliports around the edge of Tan 
Son Nhut.  Some parts of my memory got erased 
back in Sept when I had my Minnie Stroke.  They 
all began with "Hotel then a number which as I 
remember was Johns place as Hotel three and were 
Hotel 6 and AMMC was Hotel 7.  Then there was the 
AF Crash rescue H43 chopper place. Never heard 
their place mention as a Hotel anything.

Chris the Bigfoot

At 04:49 PM 1/29/2020, you wrote:
>I have flown on a c-47,,,,,Â Â  By the way Happy Birthday, Sir.
>
>Bill Wells
>
>â€œThose who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary
>safety deserve neither liberty nor safetyâ€.
>
>Benjamin Franklin
>
>
>From: <mailto:vhfcn-l at lists.vhfcn.org>Bruce E. Carlson via Vhfcn-l
>Sent: Wednesday, January 29, 2020 4:36 PM
>To: <mailto:wwells62 at gmail.com>wwells62 at gmail.com
>Subject: Re: [Vhfcn-l] TET
>
>Back in 70/71 ferried TH-55s from Ft Wolters to 
>the boneyard at Davis-Montham AFB.Â  Both times 
>flew back as a pack on ARMY C-47s.
>
>Respects -- Bruce
>
>From: Richard Lewis via Vhfcn-l
>Sent: Wednesday, January 29, 2020 4:25 PM
>To: Bruce Carlson
>Subject: Re: [Vhfcn-l] TET
>
>The aircraft you saw really surprised me. can 
>not imagine the army having those aircraft. I 
>did fly on Carabuo (spelling) but soon after they were turned over to the AF.
>
>Richard lewis
>Msg, USA {ret}
>
>Â Â Â Â  On Monday, January 27, 2020, 8:33:12 PM 
>MST, PAUL BIELECKI <pbpilot27 at comcast.net> wrote:Â
>Â
>Â I think some might be surprised at what the 
>Army flew. Had the privilege of seeing a couple 
>of Army DC3s, one early on when at basic at Fort 
>Polk. In Nam saw some army Neptuneâ€™s and old 
>converted B25s at Nha Trang. They had been 
>junked but did a double take first time I saw them.
>
>Paul B
>Long knife 27, Dustoff 12, Masher 11
>
>Sent from Xfinity Connect App
>
>
>
>------ Original Message ------
>
>From: Richard Lewis via Vhfcn-l
>To: Paul Bielecki
>Sent: January 27, 2020 at 4:01 PM
>Subject: Re: [Vhfcn-l] TET
>
>Flew DC-3 in the Army. Was this in WW2.?Richard 
>lewisMsg, USA {ret} On Monday, January 27, 2020, 
>1:15:07 PM MST, Terry McCollum via Vhfcn-l 
>wrote: Back years ago our little group of 
>missfits called the Wyoming Association of 
>Vietnam Veterans celebrated a TET Survival 
>Party.  We held our gala event at a place named 
>the GOLDEN DRAGON.  It was owned and operated by 
>a family that had escaped during the period of 
>the Killing Fields.  The owner and I were good 
>friends, he had beena pilot in the Cambodian Air 
>Force flying DC-3s and since that was the last 
>airplane I flew an the Army we spent lotsof time 
>talking about the old Gooney Bird.I hope you 
>helicopter types wont mind my story about a 
>great fixed wing.Terry 
>McCollum_______________________________________________Vhfcn-l 
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