A fictional "There I was..."

[GASCAN39 7]

OVERVIEW

 

2Lt Charles "Chappy" Sinclair, flying F-105Ds with the 44th TFS, Korat Thailand in 1965.

 

FRAG INFO

MissionType/Location

Strike/Vinh Warehouses

 

TAKEOFF

0910

 

CALLSIGN

Chevy

 

SIZE PACKAGE

4

 

LOADOUT

8 750 pound bombs each

 

NARRATIVE

Awakened at 0330 by loud knocking on the door. "Mass briefing at 0400 gents" the duty hack shouted as he knocked on each door along the hall. 2 March, 1965, the day I would be aquainted with Operation Rolling Thunder. Glad I called it quits early at the O club the night before. No one was spared from this briefing, it was standing room only. An overview was given, it was to be 100% effort, all of our birds at Korat, along with the birds out of Takhli. Once the brief ended, we all rushed to the ops office to look for our flight info. I was to be part of a four ship launching at around 0900. Captain Kringelis was going to lead three of us newbies up to Vinh to bomb a warehouse. It was to be my first combat mission, having completed my famhops around the different route packs. Weather was to be scattered clouds, so plenty of visibility (for us and the Air defenses!) At 0800, we hop the line van, and head out to the jets. I have tail #406, one of our few remaining silver jets. "Maybe the sunlight off my wings will blind the gunners" I muse to myself as I depart the van. Pre flight was done fairly quickly, allowing us to be in the cockpit for a 0850 engine start. I look for Kringelis' jet to taxi for me to follow, but I see him sprint past me, heading to a spare jet. This means I will be the first out of the chocks, and as briefed will take off first. (We strived to stay on schedule, and briefed if some one had to switch jets, the order was shuffled with that guy going last) There I was, a young 2LT, leading a four ship of thuds up norht! Departure was as briefed, though with me in the lead hoping not to screw up. Heading NE, and not having to refuel due to hitting in SE corner of the North. I called "over the fence" once we crossed into the north. We had briefed a low level from the IP to the target. "Vampires, let's take it down" I called, then rolled my thud over to get down low. I leveled off and held speed at around 450-500 knots. I was startled to see two darts over my head, but remembered there were to be F-8s flying TARCAP for us. The radio was silent....for a bit. "Chevy Flight, Red Crown. Bogies, bearing 020, 50 miles, heading west" The Shangri-Las singing "Leader of the Pack" quickly disappeared from my head. "Chevy flight, arm 'em up" I said....Followed at the appropriate moment with "Chevy flight.....PULL" I started the pop up as we briefed, and at around 12 grand, rolled inverted...the rest of CHEVY falling in trail. "Target 12 low" I state, as I haul in the stick to roll into a dive. Once at the right height, and with the pipper positioned short of the target, I pickled a pair of those WWII era gp bombs and made my jet lighter. I initiate my pull out, and observe the bright flash in my mirrors, "Direct hit with secondaries lead!" I hear two state. He pickles his entire load onto the adjoining warehouses. I hear both three and four call when they rolled in. A made a circle around the area, looking for potential secondary targets. I roll in on and industrial facility near the PT Boat docks. After two passes, there is an inferno along the waters edge. The radio is alive now with multiple bandit calls. I am done for the day, and call "CHEVY flight, check in, rejoin"

"Two copy"

"Three copy"

After what seemed like forever, I called "Chevy Four, check in" No answer. "CHEVY flight, one quick pass around the target area, don't be a hero, but look for wreckage or a chute" We make one pass while forming back up, to find nothing. Three reported taking some flak, so I checked his aircraft over once back at altitude. His jet was full of holes. He had good needles in his pit, so I decided we would hit the tanker track and try for home. An older wiser pilot might have diverted. We all topped off on gas, and returned to Korat. The rest of the way home was eerie, radio silence was putting it lightly. We arrived overhead in the pattern, three trailing back early for a straight in approach. If he had a rough landing, resulting in a closed runway, we had the gas to divert. Once in the chocks and shut down, I crawled out of that hot pit, and headed to debrief. We heard nothing on our missing man, they had him listed as MIA. A rough first mission, my baptism of fire saw a great fellow pilot lost forever. We would drink a toast to him.

[+ST0RM 145]

Nice story. Sounds a lot like the real stories of the guys who routinely flew up in Pack 6. You have to love how well the TW series can sometimes immerse you.

 

Well done!

 

-S

[GASCAN39 7]

Thanks STORM. Yeah, read ALOT of Thud stories growing up. Especially loved the Lou Drendel soft bound books on the -105.