My Five

 Well...Let me start off with wishing all y'all a relaxing, peaceful, memory filled Memorial Day.

While you're standing around having an adult recreational beverage while tending the smoking of the Brisket (it's a state law in Texas.  Brisket must be served, smoked, on Memorial Day.  Punishment for non-compliance is said to be severe.  I don't know, I've never broken the law.)

Stay on Target, juvat! 

Yes, oh esteemed Sarge of mine!

While you are standing guard on your brisket, I'd like to tell you about a five-some I remember on this day and their stories.

I was stationed at Holloman AFB in October of '84. I'd been checked out as an instructor for a very short time.  I was getting ready for a mission that was going to one of the local airspace areas in Eastern New Mexico.  The Supervisor of Flying Hot Line rang and when the Duty Officer answered there were a couple of  "Yes, Sir's" then he hung up, walked over to the schedule and drew a line through all the flights that were going to those areas.  (Airspace use was tight with two Fighter Wings at the base and another one near Clovis NM, so going to another area generally wasn't an option.)

In any case, my flight was one of the cancelled.  I asked the duty officer what had happened.  He told me there had been an accident on one of the low levels below the airspace and while the investigation was going on, the airspace was closed.

Later that afternoon, more information was available.  A single ship F-111 sortie had hit the ground on a low level flight,  no ejection was attempted.  The Instructor Pilot on the mission was Capt Alan J. Pryor.  He went by Joe.  I knew that because he'd been in my ROTC detachment at Texas Tech.  I'd also worked with him pumping gas into airplanes at the Lubbock airport.  He'd graduated the December before me, been an IP in ATC after UPT, then got the 'Vark as his post ATC reward.  The Accident Report could not find a cause.  They hit the ground at an estimated 700 knots.  Doubt they even realized it happened.

I couldn't find a picture of Joe, but this video will give you a bit of a feel for an F-111 at low level.  Looks like it's in England, which means they aren't as fast or as low as they would be in NM.

While still stationed at Holloman, I'd trained an A-10 driver who was going through the IP course.  He had just gotten married and had bought a house across the street from us.  Good guy.  Could shoot the gun and drop bombs quite well.  Didn't have a lot of experience at air to air, but caught on pretty quickly.  In any case, it's now 1987, and I'm fully checked out in the Eagle.  I'm in the squadron and the duty officer asks me if I'd been assigned at Holloman.  I said I had and he asked me if I knew a Ross LaTorra.  I told him I did.  He told me he'd just been killed in a mid-air.  

That sucks the air right out of ya'.  He'd been on an Air-to-air ride with two students, one in his front seat and one solo on his wing.  During the last engagement before RTB, the solo student lost sight of lead and thinking lead was below him, pulled up.  unfortunately, lead was inverted directly above him.  Ross and his student were killed instantly.  The solo student managed to eject and was rescued.  If interested, here's more details. 

Ross as a Air Force Academy Cadet

So, I've left Kadena and am about half way through ARRRMMMMEEEE Training Sir! when the Air Force Colonel in charge of all the Air Force Majors (~20) going through the school, calls me into his office.  Now, remember, at Kadena, I was a Flight Commander in charge of ~10 guys.  (That means I wrote their performance report and got to sit in on and receive the butt chewings when they screwed up).  Later on, I was the Assistant Operations Officer, the third in command of the Squadron.  I got to make coffee.  But, the guys in my Flight were MY Guys.  

So, being a lowly Major with no responsibilities other than not embarrassing the Air Force at an Army School, I wonder what the Colonel wants.  I knock and go through the usual pleasantries of entering a senior officer's office. (Hint: it involves a salute and an mentioning of name and rank).  He asks me to sit down (uh-oh).  

Then he says, "juvat, I know you were in the 12th TFS at Kadena until recently."

"Yes, Sir"

"Well, Apparently there was an accident last night involving the 12th and one of the pilots is missing presumed dead."  

Since virtually all of our flying was above the Pacific, it's a pretty good assumption.

I ask if he has a name.

Captain Robert Schneider, call sign "Rocket".

My heart sank.  Not only was he in my squadron, he'd been in my flight and indeed was my wingman.

I gulped a couple of times and might have blinked quite a bit, then asked if he had any details.  All he said was that apparently there had been a mid-air collision.  I asked about the other jet.  It had safely recovered.

Unfortunately, Rocket's airplane was seen to fly into the water.  The accident report later said that minimal damage had occurred to either airplane, but that the horizontal tail of the jet that recovered had pieces of canopy and blood on it.  The only good news is Rocket never knew what hit him.

I'd always heard that, in the Fighter World, losing a wingman is one of the hardest things to get over.  I agree.

Rocket is in the first standing row.  The aft fin of the missile is pointing at his head.  Sorry, this is the only picture I could find.

 

Next on my list, is Ed Rasimus.  Ras, as he was known, died of Cancer in 2013.  Why do I remember him on Memorial Day?  YGBSM!

Ed flew two tours in Vietnam, one in the F-105 and one in the F-4.  Both involved flying missions in North Vietnam.  Hanoi at the time was supposedly the most heavily guarded target in the history of aviation.  I had the honor to have him as my IP when I was going through the AT-38 IP course when I was assigned to Holloman.  The man knew how to fly the jet and it was extremely rare that I was able to bring "weapons" to bear on him.  So rare, that I'm pretty sure he "let me" when I did.  Post Vietnam, he made Major the very first time it was possible.  But another trait of his was he would tell you exactly what he thought without sugar coating.  Evidently, he did this to a General who didn't take it well.  Ed retired as a Major.  Another reason he's one of my heroes.

He's also an accomplished writer.  If you haven't read his books, you should, cheapest ride in a fighter cockpit you'll ever get.

Love the Fighter Pilot 'stache and the "I can kick your ass anytime I want" smile. Describes Ed to a T.

Finally, there's one more on my Memorial day list.  Not in the Air Force, not even in the Military.  Rather, he did his duty in the State Department.  That would be Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens.

He gave his last full measure on Sept 11, 2012 in Benghazi Libya at the hands of terrorists attacking US sovereign territory.  That episode, and our governments handling thereoff, still bothers me and I will not forget it.  RIP Ambassador.

Only one of these 5 died in "combat", the others risked it all to be the best they could be in case they were needed in combat.  Ed proved he could do it when needed.  I have no doubt the other 3 could have also.

Rest in Peace, Warriors!