B-52 at Utapao During 1072 Christmas Bombing Campaign

 Pictured is B-52 at Utapao Royal Thai Airbase during the 1972 Chistmas bombing (aka Linebacker 2) North Vietnam. In the background the tails of several more Buffs can be seen. Moderate security was present as is evident per the razor wire in foreground. Our C-130 crew witnessed subsequent B-52 raids over Hanoi via proximty and radio transmissions that were very harrowing.

Get Me Outta Here!

 Please get me outta here!

C-130 Ground Maintenance

 C-130 ground maintenance ... can't recall airbase but it must have been major location given size of control tower. A Follow Me maintenance vehicle with air/electrical cart in tow providing power to the aircraft while engines are shut down. Appears to be special purpose Military 707 on far side of C-130 (not a KC-135 (707) refueler.

Rocket Damaged Gooney Bird

 Heavily damaged wing and fuselage of C-47 Gooney Bird on ramp at Bien Hoa 1972. Damaged occured from an unexpected  midday rocket attack. We dodged a bullet as you can partially see our C-130 parked on the other side of the C-47.

C-130 Turboprop Egine Machanics

 Literally immersed in their work, two C-130-E engine mechanics working on port side, outboard Allison T56-A-7A turboprop engine on intensely hot ramp at DaNang 1972. Good comparison showing the scale of the complex hybrid systems.

Crew Quarters at Tan Son Nhut Saigon

On base Flight Crew quarters at Tan Son Nhut Saigon. Luxuarious accommodations campared to troops in the field. Despite spending many months there strangely I cannot remember ever eating there - where, when, or what? I do know there was plenty of beer though.

 

155mm Howitzers at Natrang

 155mm Howitzers lined up on ramp at NaTrang Airbase 1972. Newly delivered with breaches and barrels wrapped for protection from elements during deployment.

C-119 Flying Boxcar at Tan Son Nhut

 C-119 Flying Boxcar taxiing past revetments at Tan Son Nhut Airbase Saigon 1972.  The C-119 first appeared in 1947 and was used extensively in Korean and Vietnam wars. It was noteworthly for being able to take a beating while in flight. A C-119 gunship version existed known as Stinger. Not the most luxurious ride given no cabin pressurization and loud, smoke belching, oil spitting engines.

C5A Front Nose Loading at Tan Son Nhut

 Giant C5A unloading cargo on ramp at Tan Son Nhut Saigon. Via it’s landing gear carriage the plane could squat down lower to facilitate loading/unloading cargo. In addition to standard rear cargo door the C5 nose could lift up as pictured for front end loading.

B52s Heading North During Christmas 1972 Bombing

Not overly interesting photo but the story behind it is. These are B-52s with high altitude contrails heading north over South Vietnam as part of Linebacker 2, sometimes referred to as the Christmas Bombings, a strategic bombing campaign conducted by the USA against targets in North Vietnam from 18 December to 29 December 1972, The operation was the final major military operation carried out by the US during the conflict, and the largest bombing campaign involving heavy bombers since WW2. While flying routine C-130 cargo sorties in South Vietnam, we could hear distressed emergency guard channel calls from B-52 aircrews as they were under attack from SAMs. Number of B-52s shot down were around 15 with several more bing heavily damaged beyond repair. At least a dozen or more fighter aircraft were also lost during the operation.

C-130 Loadmasters

 C-130 loadmasters offloading cargo pallet via cargo bay roller system on to fork awaiting fork lift. Na Trang Vietnam 1972.

Young C-130 Pilot

 Young First Lt. Air Force C-130 pilot from 345 TAS waiting on the loading ramp at Tan Son Nhut Air Base in Saigon 1972.

C-130 Loading at Clark Airbase Philippines

 Clark AFB Philippines 1972. Loading cargo on to C-130-E with distinctive flat top Mt. Arayat in the distance east of Clark. Clark was a major military medical center for Southeast Asia during Vietnam War. The base was subsequently buried and closed after being buried under volcanic ash from 1991 Mount Pinatubo eruption west of the field.

C-130 Drop Zoze Controller and Smoke

 Drop zone (DZ) coordinator on ground communicating on hand held radio with approaching C-130 readying for cargo or airborne troops air drop. If appropriate for situation smoke canisters are used to help locate target area and gauge direction and variability of winds near the ground. In addition balloons were sometimes launched to gauge wind direction and speed at altitude.

C-130 Revetments TanSonHnut Under Storm Clouds

C-130E parked in revetment at Tan Son Nhut Air Base in Saigon 1972. The usual afternoon thunderheads are building with short but sometimes intense thunder, lightening, and downpours to come.