Dark Eagles: A History of the Top Secret U.S. Aircraft

by Curtis Peebles

  Another senior officer to fly the MiG 17 was Marine Corps Gen. Marion Carl. He had become the first marine ace over Guadalcanal in the dark early days of World War II. On August 25, 1947, he set a world speed record of 650.6 mph (Mach 0.82) in the Douglas D-558-I Skystreak. On August 21, 1953, he set a world altitude record of 83,235 feet in the Douglas D-552-II Skyrocket. He had also served as commander of the first marine jet fighter squadron and flew secret reconnaissance missions over Communist China.

  He was a living link between the days of propeller fighters and the missile-armed, supersonic fighters of the 1960s.

  General Carl was flown to "a secret desert site" in a T-33 trainer. He flew two missions in the MiG 17, totaling 1.7 hours of flight time. (He was not allowed to log the time, of course.) The first was a simulated dogfight with several F-8s, while the second was with A-4s. Carl was very impressed with the MiG 17's maneuverability. It could be stalled flying straight up and allowed to fall off but would be under full control within 1,500 to 2,000 feet.

  The only drawback he noted was the cockpit size — pilots over six feet tall were cramped.

  While at Groom Lake, General Carl ran into one of the security precau-tions surrounding the MiGs. About midday, the ground crews began pulling the MiGs into the hangars. Carl asked about this and was told a Soviet reconnaissance satellite would soon pass overhead. It was a clear day, so the MiGs were being hidden to prevent any photos being taken of them by the satellite.[661]

  In spite of the valuable lessons learned from the MiG program and from Top Gun, the future of both programs was by no means assured. High-level support was needed. Air-combat training was dangerous, and several aircraft had been lost in accidents. In one simulated dogfight with a MiG 17, a brand-new F-4 was lost when it went into a flat spin. The crew ejected at the last moment. The Vietnam War was also winding down — there had been only one MiG 21 shot down since the bombing halt in 1968.

  Top Gun and Have Drill had produced a small group of navy pilots skilled in the art of air combat, but they had yet to prove the value of their training. Just after midnight on March 30, 1972, the North Vietnamese Army launched the Easter Offensive. On May 8, President Richard Nixon ordered the mining of North Vietnam's ports and the start of the Linebacker I bombing campaign.

  Two days later would come the greatest dogfight in the history of jet aviation.

  THE CUNNINGHAM-TOON DOGFIGHT

  On May 10, 1972, the F-4J crew of Lt. Randall H. "Duke" Cunningham and Lt. (jg) William R. "Willie" Driscoll was assigned to an air strike on the railyards at Hai Duong, located halfway between Hanoi and Haiphong.

  Cunningham and Driscoll had already shot down two MiGs — a MiG 21 on January 19 and a MiG 17 on May 8. As the strike force neared the target, twenty-two MiG 17s, MiG 19s, and MiG 21s rose to challenge the navy planes.[662]

  Cunningham and his wingman, Lt. Brad Grant, dropped their cluster bombs on a storage building. As Cunningham looked to his right at the building, two MiG 17s were coming in from the left. Grant saw them and radioed a warning, "Duke, you have MiG 17s at your seven o'clock, shooting." Driscoll also saw the MiGs as two black dots approaching fast and yelled, "Break port." Cunningham could see the muzzle flash from the lead MiG. The MiG 17s were moving fast, so he knew the controls would be hard to move. He turned toward the lead MiG, and it overshot the F-4.

  Cunningham recalled later, "The MiG driver just didn't have the muscle to move that stick." While Grant chased off the second MiG 17, Cunningham reversed and fired a Sidewinder. The MiG 17 was within the missile's minimum range at launch, but due to the MiG's high speed, the distance had opened to 2,500 feet when the Sidewinder hit. The MiG 17 was blown apart. The whole engagement lasted only fifteen seconds.[663]

  Cunningham evaded a MiG that attempted to follow him by using his afterburner to accelerate to 600 knots. Cunningham and his wingman then climbed to 15,000 feet. Below them were eight MiG 17s in a defensive circle with three F-4s mixed in. Cunningham later wrote, "The scene below was straight out of The Dawn Patrol." The F-4s had slowed to 350 knots and were vulnerable. Cunningham told Grant to cover him, then dove toward the circle.

  As they did, one of the F-4s broke from the circle and nearly collided with Cunningham's plane. It was flown by Comdr. Dwight Timm, the second in command of VF-96. Following behind his plane were a MiG 17 about 2,000 feet away; a MiG 21, 3,000 feet behind; and, unseen by Timm or his RIO, Jim Fox, a MiG 17 in his blind spot below and to the outside of the plane.

  As Cunningham closed on the three MiGs, Driscoll warned him, "Duke, we have four MiG 17s at our seven o'clock." They had broken out of the circle and were pursuing his F-4. For the moment, they were out of range, but Timm's arcing turn was allowing them to close the distance. Then Driscoll gave another warning, "Duke, look at two o'clock high." Cunningham looked up and saw two bright flashes — two MiG 19s beginning a diving firing pass on the F-4. Cunningham reversed and the two MiG 19s flew past.

  Cunningham was in a lag pursuit with the MiG 17 on Timm's wing, but one of the MiG 17s was now within firing range of Cunningham's F-4. Flying at 550 knots, he could outrun the MiG, but he had to turn to stay behind Timm. This allowed the MiG 17 chasing Cunningham to close the range with his plane. Cunningham told Driscoll to watch the MiG 17 following them. When it opened fire, Cunningham straightened out to open the range.

  He then turned back toward Timm's F-4 and yelled for him to break right.

  Timm, thinking he had evaded the two MiGs (and still not aware of the third MiG), turned right. The fast-flying MiG 17 was not able to follow, and Cunningham had a clear shot.

  Cunningham fired a Sidewinder, which homed in on the MiG 17's hot exhaust and destroyed it. Just as the missile hit, Timm and Fox finally saw the MiG 17. It turned into a fireball, and the North Vietnamese pilot ejected.

  So far, only about two minutes had passed. It was Cunningham and Driscoll's fourth kill; they were now tied with air force Col. Robin Olds as top-scoring American aviators of the Vietnam War. But the day's events were not yet over.[664]

  Now, two or three of the MiG 17s pursuing Cunningham had closed in.

  Four more MiG 21s were also bearing down on the F-4. It did not seem possible they could escape. Driscoll yelled, "Break! Break! Give me all you've got." Cunningham turned toward the MiG 21s. Moments later, they were alone in the sky. Cunningham had become separated from his wingman, and it was time to leave. Cunningham turned toward the coast.[665]

  As they headed east, Driscoll kept watch behind them for any MiGs that might try to catch them, so it was Cunningham who spotted the next MiG 17, ahead and slightly below them. Cunningham altered course to make a close, head-on pass. This prevented the MiG pilot from using the lateral separation to make a quick turn. Cunningham could then outrun the MiG.

  As they closed the distance, the nose of the MiG 17 lit up as the pilot fired his guns. Cunningham hauled back on the stick and went into a vertical climb. He expected the MiG 17 would continue on. When Cunningham looked back over his ejection seat, it was with considerable shock that he saw the MiG 17, also in a vertical climb. Cunningham could see the North Vietnamese pilot's leather helmet, goggles, scarf, and even the expression on his face. Cunningham recalled, "There was no fear in this guy's eyes."[666]

  The MiG 17 began to fall behind, and Cunningham lit the F-4's afterburner. As he rolled over the top, the MiG 17, on the verge of a stall, nosed over and fired its guns. Normally, North Vietnamese pilots would fire a continuous stream. This pilot fired only a brief burst, to conserve his ammunition. Driscoll recalled, "It was like, who is this guy?… He knew exactly what he was doing."[667]

  Both planes began to descend and started a vertical rolling scissors. In this maneuver, the planes would go into a weaving climb whenever one flew lower than the other. This forced the opposing plane to overshoot.

  Whenever the F-4 pulled out in front, the MiG pilot would fire a short burst.

  Each time Cunningham made a maneuver, the MiG 17 would counter h
im.

  Cunningham was holding his own, but the F-4 was losing speed faster than the MiG 17. It was now down to 200 knots, and Cunningham decided it was time to "bug out." He lowered half flaps, then made a looping turn at a right angle to the MiG's flight path. The F-4 dove away with full afterburner.

  Before the MiG could follow, Cunningham had accelerated to 500 knots and was out of range.

  He then turned back toward the MiG 17. The two planes met in a head-on pass, then went into a vertical climb. Again, as they descended, the planes began a rolling scissors. Neither plane could get enough of an advantage for a killing shot. Again, the F-4 slowed to 200 knots. When Cunningham saw the MiG's nose turn slightly, he extended his own turn to the outside of the MiG's flight path. Cunningham then pulled into a vertical loop.

  Remembering the previous escape maneuver, the MiG pilot also pulled up into a loop to counter. The two planes passed each other going in opposite directions. Cunningham continued through the loop, extended out under the thrust of the afterburners, and was quickly out of range. With the F-4's speed back up, he turned again, into the fight. Neither pilot attempted to run; one plane would go home, the other would be shot down.

  As the two planes headed toward each other in their final pass, Cunningham pulled up into a climb. The MiG 17 did the same, then turned toward the F-4. As it did, Cunningham pulled the throttles to idle, lowered the flaps, and popped the speed brakes. The F-4 went from 550 to 150 knots, and the MiG 17 overshot. The MiG 17 was now 500 to 1,000 feet ahead of the F-4, too close for a Sidewinder. Both planes were on the verge of a stall — at low speed and nose high. Cunningham had to use full afterburner.

  Using only the F-4's rudder to avoid stalling, he rolled in behind the MiG.

  The MiG pilot saw the F-4 cross into his plane's six o'clock position, then lost sight of the plane. He made a maximum turn to the right to keep the F-4 in sight, but the MiG 17 stalled. Its nose went down, and the pilot dove away to regain flying speed.

  Cunningham, his own plane near a stall, pulled up the flaps and air brakes, dove, and swung to the right to increase separation. The MiG continued to dive away, attempting to run, and Cunningham pulled in behind the MiG. Now 3,000 feet behind the MiG, Cunningham fired a Sidewinder.

  It homed in on the MiG's afterburner. There was a small flash, then a burst of flame and black smoke. The MiG 17 flew into the ground. The pilot did not eject.[668]

  Cunningham and Driscoll were now the first American aces of the Vietnam War. But they were still far from home. As they headed toward the coast, an SA-2 missile damaged their plane. Both hydraulic systems failed, and Cunningham had to use the rudder, throttle, and speed brakes to control the plane. For twenty miles, he fought to control the F-4. Just as it crossed the coast, an explosion shook the plane. Cunningham and Driscoll ejected and landed in the mouth of the Red River. As American planes chased off patrol boats, junks, and a freighter, they were picked up by marine helicopters. They were soon returned to the USS Constellation, to be greeted by the entire crew.[669]

  On May 10, 1972, eleven North Vietnamese MiGs were shot down — eight by the navy and three by air force pilots. Two air force F-4s were lost to MiG 19s. During the remainder of the war, the navy kill ratio climbed to 8.33 to 1. In contrast, the air force rate improved only slightly to 2.83 to 1.[670]

  The reason for this difference was Top Gun. The navy had revitalized its air combat training, while the air force had stayed stagnant. Most of the navy MiG kills were by Top Gun graduates, Cunningham among them. Top Gun was soon made a separate command, ending the need to beg, borrow, or steal aircraft, fuel, or supplies. The air force also saw the need and, starting in 1975, began the Red Flag exercises. This went far beyond Top Gun, in that Red Flag was a war game involving not only fighters but attack aircraft, bombers, and transport in simulated combat against units that mim-icked Soviet forces.[671]

  Yet behind the success of Top Gun, there was Have Drill. The Cunningham dogfight is an example. The maneuvers he used in that epic fight were all taught at Top Gun. But they had been originally developed as part of Have Drill. These included the use of high speed to counter the MiG 17's maneuverability, the close head-on pass, turning away at a right angle to the MiG's flight path, and the pilot-RIO teamwork. Cunningham and Driscoll had used all these to survive and triumph, even when outnumbered by seven or eight to one. And when it was one on one.

  "IT WAS LIKE, WHO IS THIS GUY?"

  There was one loose end, however. Cunningham called the pilot he had fought in the fifth kill the best he had ever faced — to quote Driscoll, "Who is this guy?" Clearly, he was not a typical North Vietnamese pilot. Cunningham was later told, based on intercepts of North Vietnamese radio traffic, that he was "Colonel Toon" (also spelled "Tomb"). He was described as being the North Vietnamese air force's leading ace with thirteen kills. A MiG 21 with thirteen kill markings was thought to be his.[672]

  An examination of North Vietnamese propaganda, however, revealed no mention of a pilot named Toon or Tomb.[673] The North Vietnamese were quite willing to describe the exploits of their pilots, even while the war was going on. Toon and Tomb are also not standard Vietnamese names. In the two decades since the dogfight, there has been considerable speculation about the identity of Colonel Toon.

  The day after the fight, the North Vietnamese announced the death of Col. Nguyen Van Coc, a MiG 17 pilot with nine claims (including the only F-102 shot down during the war). It was not stated that he had been shot down, however. Cunningham doubted that Coc was Toon. It has also been speculated that he was a Soviet, North Korean, or even Warsaw Pact pilot.

  In the early 1990s, former Soviet pilots stationed in North Vietnam indicated that Toon was actually the nickname given by the Soviets to a North Vietnamese pilot named Pham Tuan. Tuan, however, survived the war. In 1980, he was selected by the Soviets to make an eight-day flight to the Salyut 6 space station. He subsequently became a senior air force officer.[674]

  From these fragments, it is possible to reconstruct the events of May 10, 1972. The MiG 17 pilot Cunningham and Driscoll shot down was, in fact, Col. Nguyen Van Coc. Despite Cunningham's doubts, several factors point in this direction. The rank, timing of his death, type of aircraft he flew, and skill level all match. More important, Colonel Coc was the North Vietnamese air force's highest scoring ace with nine kills. This would match the claim that Toon was also the top ace.[675]

  The story of a North Vietnamese pilot with thirteen kills was apparently based on the photo of a MiG 21 with thirteen stars painted on its nose. The thirteen kill markings were the total for the plane, however, and were claimed by several pilots.[676] It seems likely that the story of a hotshot pilot named Toon and the thirteen-kill MiG 21 were connected.

  It is possible that Tuan was aloft during May 10, 1972, and, with the confusion of the large numbers of North Vietnamese MiGs in the air, was mistaken for the pilot Cunningham shot down. Radio intercepts are often difficult to interpret. One need only recall the decades of confusion from the intercepts made during the shooting down of Powers's U-2.

  In the end, all that matters is that the two best pilots met in the sky that day. They flew their aircraft to their limits, and Cunningham won — thanks to a Black program.

  U.S. MiG OPERATIONS IN THE 1970s

  With the end of the Vietnam War, U.S. MiG operations seem to have undergone some changes. The navy's Have Drill program was ended; the air force now had sole control of the MiGs.[677] Top Gun and Red Flag had their own "Aggressor units," which used Soviet-style tactics. Top Gun used A-4s to simulate MiG 17s, while F-5s stood in for MiG 21s. They did not need the special security of the MiGs, and the flight characteristics of the aircraft were close enough for training.

  The MiGs still had a role, however. During the early 1970s, the prototypes of the F-14, F-15, and F-16 fighters made their first flights. This new generation of U.S. fighters was designed with the lessons of Vietnam in mind. They were much more agile than the F-4; they also packed a 20mm c
annon — something the original F-4 lacked. The MiGs might have been used in tests of these new fighters. This would allow development of tactics for the new fighters, much as the Have Drill tests were used to develop F-4 tactics. The orientation flights for senior officers also continued.

  It appeared that the U.S. MiG operation grew to squadron size. During the Vietnam War period, it appears that there were two MiG 17s and two MiG 21s (the two captured Syrian MiG 17s, the original MiG 21, and 007).

  At some point, according to reports, four of the captured Algerian MiG 21s were also sent by Israel to the United States.[678] If true, this would raise the total to eight MiGs (two MiG 17s and six MiG 21s). The MiG operations were based at the former A-12 test hangars at the north end of the Groom Lake complex.

  With a squadron-sized force, there was also need for a formal unit to operate them. This was the 4477th Test and Evaluation Squadron, also known as the "Red Eagles." Its unit patch featured a red-eagle design with a white or black star.[679] The MiGs had less flamboyant markings — the MiG 21s were in bare metal with only the U.S. star and bar insignia on the nose.[680]

  Part of the attraction of working on a Black airplane project is the challenge. The U-2 and A-12 pushed the limits of aviation technology. The MiGs, in contrast, were ordinary operational fighters. Still, they posed a challenge — the challenge of keeping them flying. The simple and cheap design of the MiGs helped in this regard. It was reported that the MiG 17s were flown 255 times without a "down."[681]

  Still, high-performance jet aircraft require regular maintenance. This means a supply of spare parts. Soviet jet engines were known for having a short operating lifetime. Tires were also a problem — they were good for only a few landings before replacement. It was reported that one of the reasons U.S. MiG operations were kept so secret was the problem of clandestine parts support (especially engines). The work done on the MiGs was described as "first rate."