tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post4829694217188881480..comments2024-03-28T22:08:48.577-07:00Comments on Chant du Départ: Brass OnesOldAFSargehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-46522120345694351412015-06-04T00:42:22.533-07:002015-06-04T00:42:22.533-07:00Virgil, I 'think' it got lumped into the T...Virgil, I 'think' it got lumped into the Tet offensive and unless somebody actually digs that up, it kinda goes by the wayside. If I remember correctly, and that's a LOOSE assumption, by 68, very few of the reporters were ever leaving Saigon, most were relying on the press releases from MAC-V. And the threat of dying in Saigon could have prevented any reporter from going into the field.Old NFOhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16404197287935017147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-64048201515276013812015-06-04T00:42:15.302-07:002015-06-04T00:42:15.302-07:00Virgil, I 'think' it got lumped into the T...Virgil, I 'think' it got lumped into the Tet offensive and unless somebody actually digs that up, it kinda goes by the wayside. If I remember correctly, and that's a LOOSE assumption, by 68, very few of the reporters were ever leaving Saigon, most were relying on the press releases from MAC-V. And the threat of dying in Saigon could have prevented any reporter from going into the field.Old NFOhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16404197287935017147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-68335748323662191702015-06-03T04:50:44.464-07:002015-06-03T04:50:44.464-07:00From my research so far I think it was part of the...From my research so far I think it was part of the general malaise surrounding Tet. After all, the "journalists" like Cronkite had already surrendered. That particular individual did NOT cover himself with glory.<br /><br />Your comment was the first I'd heard of Kham Duc, haven't written the post yet because there's just too much to read and digest. Our men fought well.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-9099902127666599852015-06-03T04:48:23.853-07:002015-06-03T04:48:23.853-07:00Good data points Cajun, thanks!Good data points Cajun, thanks!OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-86106821397081050472015-06-03T04:47:36.935-07:002015-06-03T04:47:36.935-07:00Oh yeah!Oh yeah!OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-57930800665299193862015-06-03T04:47:18.627-07:002015-06-03T04:47:18.627-07:00I'll have to go back and read that. Good assum...I'll have to go back and read that. Good assumption though as to who took the photo.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-16774606696435382892015-06-03T01:59:15.692-07:002015-06-03T01:59:15.692-07:00Sarge, those are the kind of msns where you come b...Sarge, those are the kind of msns where you come back and while taxiing in, think "Damn, I <i> knew</i> I should have worn my brown flt suit today!" :)virgil xenophonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14577165785872035948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-14376642005844729102015-06-03T01:51:32.810-07:002015-06-03T01:51:32.810-07:00Funny thing, for an action which produced an MOH a...Funny thing, for an action which produced an MOH and a slew of DSCs & Silver stars, knowledge of the Kham Duc battle seems to have never made it contemporaneously state-side into the general consciousness of the American public--or even to many in every branch of the armed services save for those (like me) who were directly involved.virgil xenophonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14577165785872035948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-25460776454870485852015-06-03T00:43:21.675-07:002015-06-03T00:43:21.675-07:00Yep, he and a lot of others clanked when they walk...Yep, he and a lot of others clanked when they walked... In answer to WSF, normally the aircrew 'might' have received a lesser medal for the event where a MOH was given. The Navy LT on the left in the photo with Johnson was LT Clyde Lassen. His two crewmen, ADJ3 West and AE2 Dallas got Silver Stars for their part in the rescue. Old NFOhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16404197287935017147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-36193903103141840432015-06-02T18:40:11.980-07:002015-06-02T18:40:11.980-07:00I didn't pay attention and see the paginator a...I didn't pay attention and see the paginator at the top of the site. There was another Air Force Cross awarded on that day. LtCol Alfred Jeanotte flew a second C-123 but couldn't land. From the citation, it appears he acted as a "FAC": for Col Jackson. Perhaps he took the picture you've got of Col Jackson's aircraft on the ground.juvathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09096708575138552532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-48117290248205229172015-06-02T15:59:41.333-07:002015-06-02T15:59:41.333-07:00FACs have always been heroes in my book.FACs have always been heroes in my book.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-22274959462894303302015-06-02T15:59:04.839-07:002015-06-02T15:59:04.839-07:00Sounds, um, exciting?
(Way too exciting...)Sounds, um, exciting?<br /><br />(Way too exciting...)OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-66685744222392364302015-06-02T15:57:53.059-07:002015-06-02T15:57:53.059-07:00Excellent points Suldog. Some Wikipedia articles a...Excellent points Suldog. Some Wikipedia articles are quite good, others, not so much.<br /><br />And seeing as how you are a professional, I defer to your wisdom in these things.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-44150607350162004142015-06-02T15:56:12.076-07:002015-06-02T15:56:12.076-07:00Great site, thanks Juvat.
It has to be the same a...Great site, thanks Juvat.<br /><br />It has to be the same action, details are too similar to be coincidental.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-88247043408974943362015-06-02T15:18:08.010-07:002015-06-02T15:18:08.010-07:00PS: W.O. the O-2 FACS from DaNang, O-1s from Quang...PS: W.O. the O-2 FACS from DaNang, O-1s from Quang Ngai City and O-2s from Pleiku to talk us down into tgt area, point out direction of gnd-fire and mark tgts we would have been totally worthless.. Those guys ALL has big brass ones as they had to operate well below the magic 1500' minimums to avoid small arms gnd fire because of wx conditions.virgil xenophonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14577165785872035948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-31617129845085984722015-06-02T15:03:05.032-07:002015-06-02T15:03:05.032-07:00Those last two days were even worse than that phot...Those last two days were even worse than that photo depicts--especially for fast movers. I flew 4 sorties out of DaNang in support as the GIB of the flight lead each time. The wx was heavy clouds w. gnd fog plus smoke from constant wpns fire all combining to almost totally obscure any tgts, plus one had to drop down in IMC conditions blind over the ridge-line into the valley before breaking out into vmc conditions that were FAR from "in the clear" w. only seconds to acquire a tgt before taking heavy gnd fire. (And don't forget to reset the altimeter prior to approaching the mountains prior to letdown!) And then a quick pull-up to clear the oppo ridge-line and egress the hot tgt area. Fun all around..virgil xenophonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14577165785872035948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-55756680586926167532015-06-02T14:53:46.936-07:002015-06-02T14:53:46.936-07:00God bless him.
I love reading your history posts....God bless him.<br /><br />I love reading your history posts. You make things come alive in ways I usually don't encounter.<br /><br />Regarding Wikipedia: Great resource for the big picture on things, but always best to cross-reference, if possible. As you probably know, I do some work as a fact checker for Discover magazine. One of the first things I was told was that Wikipedia would NOT be accepted as a definitive source. I was told that it could be extremely useful for an overview of any subject I with which I wasn't familiar, and the references at the bottom of any article could end up being a good source, but on its own, no.Suldoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07778845367184916684noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-61906855972463172102015-06-02T14:45:08.488-07:002015-06-02T14:45:08.488-07:00According to this site there were also 3 Air Force...According to this <a href="http://www.homeofheroes.com/members/02_AFC/cite_3rvnA.html" rel="nofollow">site</a> there were also 3 Air Force Crosses awarded for valor that day. One was to a Major Jesse W. Campbell. Details of the Citation are very similar to Col Jackson's to include the rocket failing to explode. Perhaps he was the co-pilot.<br />The other two Air Force Crosses went to two C-130 pilots for similar actions albeit with 130s.juvathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09096708575138552532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-23984522794450158742015-06-02T13:10:04.878-07:002015-06-02T13:10:04.878-07:00Not to my knowledge, I looked but didn't see a...Not to my knowledge, I looked but didn't see any mention of the crew.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-60015789191231327242015-06-02T12:17:08.800-07:002015-06-02T12:17:08.800-07:00Were any crew members recognized?Were any crew members recognized?Well Seasoned Foolhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16670165728759453075noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-62639706570986479222015-06-02T12:15:38.224-07:002015-06-02T12:15:38.224-07:00The Colonel's picture struck me the same way, ...The Colonel's picture struck me the same way, a friendly grandfather, not some "super warrior."<br /><br />You can't just a book by its cover.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-55708164040975710112015-06-02T11:38:40.021-07:002015-06-02T11:38:40.021-07:00I remember reading about this in Air Force Magazin...I remember reading about this in Air Force Magazine shortly after it happened. I also remember thinking that it took some guts to do it. <br /><br />The pictures (and drawing) of the Colonel reinforce my confusion. Movies have built the "look" of a hero. Very few of the actual Heroes I've met or read about look like Conan the Barbarian or even John Wayne. They tend to look like regular folk. Col Jackson looks like someone's friendly grandfather. Yet, he gulped twice and flew towards the sound of the guns.<br /><br />Large Brass Ones, indeed!juvathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09096708575138552532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-18227059708752574992015-06-02T08:10:29.963-07:002015-06-02T08:10:29.963-07:00Massive.Massive.OldAFSargehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15935839956936191547noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7684531976778247960.post-78406215562140273252015-06-02T07:57:31.882-07:002015-06-02T07:57:31.882-07:00VERY big. VERY big. Rev. Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04588179227576383679noreply@blogger.com