SEA mission inquiry, 21st TCS

[Guest]

I wish to find out more about a mission my father, Major Frank Camstra (AC), was involved with on or around 25 Dec 1967 in “Vietnamâ€. He was with the 21st TCS in Naha and flew a lot of Blind Bat missions and other covert/ non-covert stuff between 1966-68. After about 2 years and back in the States, the family was first informed of this event when he was to be the recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross. I was about 13-14 years old at the time and was present at the medals ceremony at Hanscom Field AB, MA. This is what I can recall through Dad:

*Covert operation of some kind, way North where you're not suppose to be, Dec 1967.

*Dad was piloting a black bottom C-130.

*The mission was completed and he was flying home in enemy territory at early dawn.

*His aircraft was struck by a SAM on the starboard wing disabling both engines and causing a hydraulic related flap control problem. The aircraft was stubbornly flyable, but could not climb.

*An F-104 flew along side, as slow as possible with full flaps dragging, to access damage. There was a four foot hole between the dead starboard engines.

*A mountain range was between them and home. Unable to climb, it was decided to ditch the aircraft in a river bed (enemy territory) and hope for the best.

*The controlled crash landing took place and the whole crew survived. Onboard explosive charges were set to intentionally destroy the aircraft.

*The closest help arrived by a chopper via aircraft carrier, plucked them out of there, and took them all safely home.

*I believe the whole crew may have been DFC recipients.

I suspect Dad was duty bound to be quiet all these years about the details of this and other missions and he certainly was, even after a few Jim Beams. Does this story ring a bell with anyone?

Other info:

*One C-130 he may have flown was O 60-0472 and I suspect there were others.

*Dad was an avid photographer and took beau-coup slide shots with his state-of-the-art of the time, Canon Pellix. I've posted some of the South East Asia ones here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/50081620@N06/

*Sadly, Dad has Alzheimer disease and I've felt his work should be presented and shared.

Also, I want to thank Sam McGowan for pointing me in the right direction.

[bobdaley]

I can't find anything like that in the history, could you see if you could get the date off the citation and I'll try to research it more. On my way out to Hanscom today.

Bob

[Skip Davenport]

Glenn Thanks for posting the photos from your dads collection.

[Guest]

I can't find anything like that in the history, could you see if you could get the date off the citation and I'll try to research it more. On my way out to Hanscom today.

Bob

Hope I'm not too late for this. I had to email the folks at home for that information. Mom has the citation and is going to figure out how to scan it and send it to me. Got the dates.

Date of the action was 1 Dec 1967.

Date of medal presentation was 1 Apr 1969.

It would be wonderful if you could find any additional info and I appreciate your help. Thanks.

Glenn

[bobdaley]

If your dad was flying a black bottomed Herk in the 21st TCS in Dec 67 ( probably 21st TAS, as the name change occurred in 1966) he most likely was flying a Blind Bat C-130A.

I have a copy of the DOD losses of all fixed wing aircraft in SEA, and I have a very well written history of aircraft losses in SEA by a British Historian. Neither the DOD study or the book have anything about an A model loss in that time period.

They do have listed the 2 Blind Bat losses, in May 68, and Nov 69, but in both those shoot downs all were killed. They also list a black bird E model loss in NVN and an E model lost bombing a bridge in NVN. They also list all 6 AC130's lost in SEA.

I researched all the records I have of C-130A's and can not find any that might have "crashed in a riverbed". Could they have possibly nursed the plane back to a landing?

I'll keep looking, this is an interesting mystery to me.

Bob

[Guest]

Bob,

Thank you for the reply. Attached is Dad's citation. I'm going to try and have Mom quiz Dad a bit on this. His long term memory tends to be better that the short. Also, I'm relatively sure his C-130 had a black bottom, as I remember him speculating that the early morning light may have contributed to him being targeted because of it. Additionally, I did error on one thing, the fighter that was along side was an F-4. I was thinking F-4, but wrote F-104. It was an F-4 Phantom, as I recall.

Again thanks for your help. I'll let you know if I hear anything more.

Glenn

[bobdaley]

That definitely sounds like a blind bat mission. I bet Ralph Krach and Sonny and some more of the Blind Bats may have some info. I'll keep looking for one that might have crash landed in a river bed.

Bob

[Guest]

I have a little more info. Two possible crew members involved may have been Vincent Markalonis (navigator) and/or Bill Jackson (his room mate at Ubon). I found a way underexposed Bat crew photo (crew of seven) that I think shows them with Dad. Also, in the photo is the C-130 forward port door opened showing the last two numbers of 3 or 8 followed by 2 on the steps. Photo is dated spring 1967.

Dad, a rather humble fellow, really wasn't one to add much color to stories, particularly for one as this. I am tempted to conclude, that if not much more comes out of this, that the river crash landing and rescue by chopper may have been their alternate plans if they had failed to go over this mountain range to get home. All together which means MY cranial archives got a bit re-arranged. Hopefully, something will pan out of these postings!

Thanks,

Glenn