Special Ops: Four Accounts of the Military's Elite Forces

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Special Ops: Four Accounts of the Military's Elite Forces Page 99

by Orr Kelly


  Lehman, Navy Secretary John F., Jr., 110, 129, 137, 138, 140, 144, 186, 197, 217

  Lemoore Naval Air Station, 103, 130, 156, 209

  Lenox, G. W. (“Corky”), 49, 78, 98, 101, 128, 136, 147, 214, 219

  LEX fence, 149

  Libya, 135

  Libya, attack on, 182, 189; Breast, Rear Adm. Jerry, 182; A-6 bombers, 181; A-7 light bombers, 181; Bengazi, 184; Benina Airbase, 184; Benson, Chief Petty Officer Kurt, 181; Col. Muammar Qaddafi, 184; F-111 bombers, 183; F-14 fighters, 181; F/A-18s’ role, 184; Ferguson, Capt. R. H., 181; Gulf of Sidra, 183; HARM missiles, 184; Jones, Lt. Comdr. Dave, 185; Kelso, Adm. Frank, 183; Line of death, 183; Lockard, Capt. John (“Spider”), 185, 189; Tripoli, 184; U.S.S. Coral Sea, 181; U.S.S. America, 181

  Lockard, Capt. J. A. (“Spider”), 147, 223

  Loss of consciousness, 168

  LTV, 46, 53, 107; files protest, 55

  Machine gun, 17, 74

  Malan, Adolph (“Sailor”), 160

  Marines, 134, 140, 158, 180

  Maritime Strategy, 197

  Martin, Lt. Dave (“Red Bone”), 176

  Matlock, Comdr. John, 220, 222

  McCullough, AMS-1 Larry A., 217

  McDonald, Adm. Wesley L. (“Wes”), 115, 130, 218

  McDonnell Douglas, 70, 101, 106, 110, 128, 138, 144, 149, 205, 211

  McDonnell, Sanford N. (“Sandy”), 50, 144

  McManus, Charles J., 213

  McNamara, Defense Secretary Robert S., 7

  Meatball, 153

  Mechanical backup control, 90

  Meyers, Charles, advocates lightweight fighter, 14

  Michaelis, Adm. Frederick (“Mike”), 36, 65, 89, 213, 214

  Midway Island, 32

  Miller, Lt. Kevin, 220

  Miramar Naval Air Station, 120

  Missiles, Soviet, AS-4 Kitchen, 3

  Missiles, U.S., Cruise missile, 5; Phoenix, 5, 130; Sidewinder, 5, 87, 154, 161; Sparrow, 5, 71, 119, 161; Walleye, 5

  Mitchell, Brig. Gen. William (“Billy”), 25

  Moorer, Adm. Thomas, 5

  Morane-Saulnier (World War I aircraft), 17

  Murray, Russell II, 107, 127, 218

  Nagumo, Vice Adm. Chuichi, 31

  Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), 4, 5, 8, 78, 143

  Navy Fighter Weapons School (Top Gun), 119, 173

  Newman, Gerhard, 114

  Nighttime landing, 153

  Norfolk Naval Air Station, 206

  Norris, Lt. Comdr. Bob, 222

  North Vietnam, 165

  Northrop Corp., 43, 70, 95, 101, 118, 144, 149, 151, 213; files suit, 129

  Norway, 189

  O’Neill, House Speaker Thomas (“Tip”), Jr., 107

  Olds, Robin, 165

  Operational Test and Evaluation Force (COMOPTEVFOR), 136

  Operational Test and Evaluation, 135

  Operational flight trainer, 157

  Ostfriesland sunk by bombers, 26

  Packard, David, 13

  Partington, Rear Adm. James W, 156, 220

  Patuxent River Naval Air Station, 108

  Pearl Harbor, 27, 187

  Pensacola, 22

  Perkins, Marine Capt. S. T. (“Perk”), 113

  Petersen, Vice Adm. Forrest S., 107, 79, 215

  Physiology of flight, 206

  Pickering, Frank E., 99

  Piddle pack, 176

  Pilot Training Manual, 221

  Point Mugu Naval Air Station, 120

  Politics, 105, 139

  Post, marine Lt. Gary, 109

  Pratt & Whitney, 49, 96, 100, 106, 111

  Prince of Wales sunk, 31

  Programmable radar, 69, 215

  Radar, 71; and gun, diagram, 74

  Rainkie, Capt. Dean, 223

  Range of F/A-18, 139, 172, 185; limited, 64, 137

  Rapp, George, 100; 216

  Reliability and maintainability, 65, 101, 200

  Repulse sunk, 31

  Revolt of the admirals, 38

  Riemer, Burton A., 106, 108, 110, 216, 217

  Rodenbaugh, William (“Bill”), 93, 216

  Roll rate problem, 124

  Salisbury, Robert L., 215

  Schoultz, Vice Adm. Robert F. (“Dutch”), 112, 136, 217

  Sea Control Ships, 11

  Sea of Norway, 3, 189

  Senate Appropriations Committee, 14

  Senate Armed Services Committee, 13

  Seymour, Vice Adm. Richard M., 131, 198, 219

  Shepherd, Lt. Comdr. Bill, 179, 221

  Sherman, Adm. Forrest P., 38

  Sherwood, Aviation Fire Control Chief Randall J., 222

  Ships, Japanese Navy, Akagi, 30; Hiryu, 30; Kaga, 30; Musashi, 33; Shokaku, 30; Soryu, 30; Yamato, 29, 33; Zuikaku, 30

  Ships, U.S. Navy, U.S.S. America, 89, 181; Antietam, 40; Birmingham, 20; Constellation, 9, 135, 162, 174, 187; Coral Sea, 154, 180, 181, 183, 205; Enterprise, 4, 27, 79; Forrestal, 41; Hancock, 40; Hornet, 27; Independence, 186; Kennedy, 186; Langley, 25; Lexington, 26; Pennsylvania, 21; Ranger, 26, 187; Saratoga, 26; United States, 37 Valley Forge, 41; Vinson, 11; Wasp, 27; York-town, 27

  Shows, marine Maj. Rick, 166

  Simulators, 90, 157

  Situational awareness (SA), 165, 209

  Snyder, Donald, 51, 150, 214, 220

  South Korea, 200

  Spain, 199

  Spangenberg, George, 59, 214

  Sperry Corp.’s Flight Simulation Division, 157

  Stanwood, First Class Metalsmith Rory, 223

  Steinman, Lt. Victor, 209, 210, 215

  Strike Warfare Center (Strike U), 186

  Strohsahl, Rear Adm. George, Jr., 140, 141, 144, 147, 150, 219

  Stuart, Lt. Comdr. Jack, 222

  Sullivan, Lt. Steven, 220

  Supercarriers, 11

  Switzerland, 200

  Taranto, British attack on, 28

  Thayer, Paul, 47

  Thayer, Lt. Comdr. Rich, 222

  Thompson, Robert H., 45, 83 119, 211 215

  Tiger team, 144, 147

  Tkach, Mike, 76, 170, 215

  Tomcat-Hornet team, 178

  Tripoli, 183

  Turbofan engine, 98

  Turbojet engine, 98

  Tyler, Marine Capt. Doug, 156

  U.S. Navy, future role of, 197

  Up-chit, 206

  Vaughn, Comdr. Tom (“Smooth Dog”), 176, 188, 221

  Velocity vector, 87, 156

  Vertical tails, cracks in, 143, 145, 146, 149; 220

  VFA 25 Fist of the Fleet, or Fisties, 174

  VFA 125 Rough Raiders, 156, 159

  VFA 113 Stingers, 174

  VFA 106 Gladiators, 159

  VFA 132 Privateers, 222

  VFA-137 Kestrels, 222

  Vietnam War, 9, 42, 136, 186

  Villar, Marine S.Sgt. Howard, 222

  VMFA 314 Black Knights, the first squadron of Hornets, 173

  VMFA 451 222

  Vortex, 149

  VX-4 Evaluators, 120, 171

  VX-5 Vampires, 171

  Waldner, J. C, 111, 217

  War with Soviet Union, naval role, 189; air force AWACS, 191; American submarines, 190; Backfire bombers, 192; Badger bombers, 192; Bear bombers, 192; Dougherty, Rear Adm. William A., Jr., 188, 192; E-2C Hawkeye, 191; EmCon, 190; F/A-18, 192; HARM, Harpoon and Maverick missiles, 193; Iceland, 189; Kola Peninsula, 189; marines, 190; MiG-31 Foxhound, 195; Northern Fleet, 192; Phoenix missiles, 193; Sea of Japan, 196; Sea of Okhotsk, 196; SU-27 Flanker, 195

  War Plan Orange, 32

  Warsaw Pact, 197

  Water survival course, 206

  Weapons Tactics Trainer, 157

  Weaver, Capt. John C, 130, 141, 219

  Weight growth, 53

  Weinberger, Defense Secretary Caspar W, 144

  Welch, Lt. Rodger, 178

  Westinghouse, 70

  Whitehouse, Arch, 19

  Wilcox, Harvey, 55, 111, 213

  Willoughby, Willis (“Will”), 65, 78, 98, 99, 130, 175, 2
00, 214

  Woolsey, Navy Undersecretary R. James, 126, 218

  World War I, 18

  Wright, Orville, 19

  Yale University, 23

  Yamamoto, Adm. Isoroku, 29

  Zeppelin, Count Frederick von, 23

  Zumwalt, Adm. Elmo, 8, 10

  From a Dark Sky

  For my brother, Jack Kelly

  CONTENTS

  Preface

  PART I

  Birth of the Air Commandos

  1

  The Day Thursday Came on Sunday

  2

  The Reluctant Warriors

  3

  A “Grandiose Scheme”

  4

  Deep in Enemy Territory

  5

  Aerial Invasion of Germany

  PART 2

  Behind the Lines in Europe

  6

  The Carpetbaggers Are Born

  7

  Enemy Territory—in the Dark

  8

  D-day and Beyond

  9

  Jack of All Trades

  10

  Action in the South

  11

  The Final Days

  PART 3

  Korea and Beyond

  12

  Drawdown and Rebuilding

  13

  Rebirth and Decline

  PART 4

  The Longest War

  14

  They Called It Jungle Jim

  15

  Leading the Way

  16

  Death From the Sky

  PART 5

  Through the Looking Glass

  17

  The Secret War

  18

  Butterflies and Ravens

  19

  The Third War

  PART 6

  Son Tay and the Mayaguez

  20

  Destination: Hanoi

  21

  “Utter Chaos” at Tang Island

  PART 7

  Hostage Rescue Efforts

  22

  Operation Rice Bowl

  23

  Back to Teheran

  24

  Not Quite Ready

  25

  Panama—Getting It Together

  PART 8

  New Challenges

  26

  The Gulf War and Beyond

  Image Gallery

  Glossary

  Sources

  Index

  Preface

  Special operations has ranged in size, over the years, from a small part of the bigger Air Force down to a virtually invisible part. But whether they called themselves Air Commandos or Carpetbaggers, Ravens or Butterflies, Nimrods or Spectres, whenever the going got tough, the special operators made their mark. They were the ones called on to do the unusual jobs—often the “impossible” jobs—that other Air Force units couldn’t, or wouldn’t, do, whether it involved flying low, slow, and alone in the dark behind enemy lines or introducing unique new weapons such as the fixed-wing gunship or the Pave Low helicopter.

  Two things have struck me most in my research on the half-century history of Air Force special operations. One is how remarkably rich and varied that history has been. The other is how the history of special operations has so often been the story, not of groups or wings or squadrons, but of resourceful, innovative, and often strikingly courageous individuals or very small groups of individuals.

  Almost always the story quickly focuses down to the exploits of individuals—whether it is the extraordinary adventure of John Carney, alone in the dark Iranian desert preparing a landing site for the attempt to rescue American hostages from Teheran in 1980, or Bob Leonik, thinking of himself as an orchestra conductor as he piloted his helicopter and its small crew into Iraq to begin the Desert Storm offensive a decade later, or Ron Terry, bucking the opposition of the brass and using his own credit card to get the fixed-wing gunship into combat.

  Unfortunately, this volume can give credit to only a small number of the many men who have made their mark on special operations over the years. I have chosen to highlight the accomplishments of a few to give the reader a sense of the accomplishments of the many who have also served with distinction.

  Because their units are small and their assignments special and often very secret, the special operators have never fit comfortably into the bureaucratic structure of the big Air Force. Traditionally, a career in special operations has been one of the surest ways to avoid becoming a general. That tradition may be changing now, and perhaps that change is to be regretted. The history of special operations offers plentiful evidence that those who are best at this special work are often those who don’t aspire to become generals and are genuinely surprised on those rare occasions when they find stars on their shoulders.

  Most military histories focus on the actions of the generals because they are the ones who make the large decisions and have the most influence on the course of events. The reader will find this history different. Much of what special operators do is done by enlisted men and relatively junior officers, and this is their story.

  The reader may be especially intrigued to read of the little-known combat controllers, or special tactics teams, as they are now called. Trained to swim like a Navy SEAL, fight like a member of the Army’s elite Delta Force, and parachute with the Rangers, they also have the special skill to set up and run a busy airfield in the dark behind enemy lines. Recently, they have taken on the added responsibility of caring for the wounded and injured during airfield assault operations. Most of the combat controllers and all of the pararescuemen, or PJs, as they are called, are enlisted men.

  Probably to the discomfort of many of those mentioned in this book, I have followed the Air Force practice of using the words air commando as a kind of convenient blanket term for all of special operations. But many men identify themselves with their own specialty rather than the broader blanket term. A Carpetbagger considers himself a Carpetbagger, a Raven considers himself a Raven, and a Nimrod prides himself on being a Nimrod.

  The Carpetbaggers and the Ravens have their own separate reunions. The Nimrods attend the annual air commando reunion but tend to remain off by themselves. And even the Air Commandos of World War II, who gave their name to the concept, segregate themselves into two groups—the 1st Air Commandos, who served in Burma, and the 2d and 3d Air Commandos, who came later and served as more traditional military units in the Pacific.

  I have tried to keep the use of military designations and acronyms from being any more burdensome to the reader than it has to be, inserting explanations—or translations—of military terminology wherever necessary.

  Some confusion is unavoidable, however. A prime example is the Douglas Invader aircraft. Known in World War II as the A-26, it was called the B-26 during the late 1940s and the 1950s, only to revert to the A-26 designation during the war in Southeast Asia. It was always basically the same plane—not to be confused, of course, with the World War II–era Martin B-26 Marauder. I have used the designation current at the time. There are other terms, unfortunately, which have dual meanings. The acronym CAS, for example, stood for Controlled American Source—a term for Central Intelligence Agency operations in Laos—but also means “close air support.” For the reader still in doubt despite context and explanatory notes, I have included an extensive glossary.

  For help in research for this volume, I owe a debt of gratitude to a number of people.

  Mrs. Yvonne Kincaid, librarian at the Air Force history center at Bolling Air Force Base in Washington, D.C., guided me through the voluminous microfilm and paper records on file there. My research there was supplemented by a visit to the Air Force Historical Research Agency library at Maxwell Air Force Base, Montgomery, Alabama, where the originals of many of the records duplicated at Bolling, plus additional records, are available. Essie Gay Roberts was most helpful during my visit to Maxwell.

  Herb Mason and his assistant, Clay McCutchan, at the Air Force Special Operations Command
history office at Hurlburt Field, Florida, at first apologized for having so little material—and then began pulling detailed reports off their shelves going back to World War II. Of particular value were reports and original documents saved and collected by Col. Robert Fish, a commander of the Carpetbaggers in Europe during World War II. Fish and his neighbor, Col. J. W. Bradbury, USAF retired, who served with the Carpetbaggers and has collected a good deal of information about their contacts with the resistance force, were particularly helpful during interviews in San Antonio, Texas, where they now live.

  Another invaluable source of anecdotal information was the past issues of the Air Commando Association Newsletter, in which many special operators had told their personal stories.

  For my account of the operations of the Air Resupply and Communications Service in the 1950s I am indebted to Carl H. Bernhardt, Jr., of Cheshire, Connecticut, who sent me a complete file of the Air Resupply and Communications Association’s newsletter on a computer diskette.

  Air Force public affairs officers at Hurlburt and Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico, were particularly helpful in setting up interviews. At Hurlburt, I had the help of Shirley Sikes, Lt. Sean McKenna, and Sandy Henry, who keep their office running. At Kirtland, a week of interviews was ably managed by Senior Airman Jim Fisher, whose performance far exceeded his pay grade.

  For an insight into what it is like to do the kind of flying special operations crews routinely do, I am indebted to Lt. Col. Michael E. Homan, Maj. Robert Abernathy, and Capt. Ed Meyer and their crews. With them, in a series of flights, I spent more than nine hours in the air in the Pave Low helicopter, flying through the New Mexico mountains in the dark at two hundred feet, refueling from an HC-130 Combat Shadow tanker—again in the dark—and flying formation and landing at rough landing zones in the mountains with the aid of night-vision goggles.

  I am indebted to MSgt. Timothy Hadrych, with whom I flew at Kirtland, for permitting me to use the remarkable pictures he took during the rescue of Lt. Devon Jones during Desert Storm.

  Particular thanks are due to Col. William Hudspeth, Chair of the Department of Special Operations Forces at the Air University at Maxwell Air Force Base, for reviewing my manuscript for accuracy. The opinions expressed and any remaining errors are, of course, my responsibility.

 

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