Vietnam thunderheads

Although beautiful to look at from the C-130, these bad boy thunderheads were nothing to flirt with as they ruled the skies. Thunderstorms very quickly could form under the hot unstable air especially in the afternoon over Vietnam. They could top out at over 50,000 feet, well above our cruising altitudes. Dodging these weather systems was a must … even flying close in the clear air under the expanding thunderstorm anvils lurking above could place the aircraft in severe turbulence and even hail. “Sucker hole” was a term used by pilots to describe small tempting clear-air spaces between thunderstorm cells that could quickly disappear once you entered into them. Plenty of sick bags were needed on such days if we were hauling green passengers even when keeping a healthy 20 mile distance rom the clouds.