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RVN Dirt Field!


simc17
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I am trying to remember/find the name of a dirt field in Vietnam that was "kinda" hairy to get into! You landed on an upslope and from the unloading area on the opposing end a C-130 would go out of sight and then come over the ridge in full reverse! You landed one direction (on the uphill slope) and took off the other direction. Anybody remember the name?!! Thanks,

Clod

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http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/vietnam/airfields.htm

Lists most of the operational airfields and gives coordinates. Some of the jungle cuts were temporary for operations support. Come in over the trees, flaps to 50 , cut power and full reverse on impact. Shake your teeth loose.

You just described my very first assault landing in country. I'll never forget it. I had the extra head set on and remember the AC saying something about mortars as well as small arms fire, but your all familiar with all that. After 48 years what I still remember is the terrific cloud of red dirt, the roots still sticking out of the freshly bulldozed runway, and the deafening noise. Could have happened yesterday!!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Pretty similar to my experience! I had just passed my AC combat check and was supposed to fly to 10,000 foot runways for a couple three days a week or something! We were coming out of DaNang and mother called and said we needed to go into "that" airfield. I told the controller that I was a "brand new AC and limited to big runways." No response. I called him back and asked if copied. His response was, " I heard that you were an AC and we need a C-130 into "Whatever," now." I went, the navigator (an old major and I was but a one LT) had a big one, reported me to the DO when we got back, yada, yada, yada.....! The DO chewed me out for not calling in to the CRB CP first but then bought me a drink at the Herky Hill Club!! Man was that great flying or what?!!

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Appreciate that but I just can't seem to find it. I've looked at my map as well and just not sure. There has got to be a video out there somewhere! The reason I'm looking for the field and then maybe a video is for a crew resource management course. Thanks, Clod

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Appreciate that but I just can't seem to find it. I've looked at my map as well and just not sure. There has got to be a video out there somewhere! The reason I'm looking for the field and then maybe a video is for a crew resource management course. Thanks, Clod

You are right about the video. I have seen it, but can't find it either. I searched U-Tube and came up with nothing on that. Not sure where I saw the video, but I have seen one of a bird disappearing behind the hump and then coming over it.

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OK, maybe I have found something. There was a couple of videos made while I was there and some of the 776 TAS was in them. That is probably where I saw the video. I found a link to one of them online, but the link doesn't work. The only place I can find anything about it is one of the videos is archived by Texas Tech. It is not available online. Not sure how you can get to it. Might only be available for viewing there. I copied the info and have a link. The name of the video was "Anything, Any Time, Any Where". There is some clips from the video floating around too.

Item Number

998VI0618

Record Number

67742

Title

C-130 Hercules, Vietnam Operations

Language

English

# of Media

1

Creation Date

Undated

Collection

Vietnam Archive Collection

Media Type

Moving Image (VHS)

Length

60:00 min/sec

Copyright Statement

Traditions Military Videos

Publisher

Traditions Military Videos

Physical Location

CS63.3

Online Status

Item Not Available Online

Description

C-130 Hercules: Anything, Anytime, Anywhere. This video contains three films produced in the 1960s about the C-130. The first film is an overview on the aircraft, described as the most "powerful, versatile and widely used" plane of the day. You'll see clips of the early versions of the plane, beginning with the A model built in 1956 through the camouflaged E model used during the Vietnam War. There are close-ups of the plane cockpit instruments, the passenger area. You'll see the C-130 land on ice and on carriers. The second film is a walk-through of the C-130. It's various sections and equipment (inside and outside the plane) are featured. There are plenty of close-ups and good detailed information. The third film features the 463rd Tactical Airlift Wing operating in Vietnam. You'll follow a unit on some of its missions and witness the logistics of dropping a 15,000 pound bomb in the jungle for the purpose of clearing the land for a runway. You'll also hear crewmen talk about the C-130 and from military passengers, who hopped around Southeast Asia aboard the versatile aircraft. This video also contains a short five-minute segment on the important role the C-130 played during the Siege at Khe Sanh, with film clips of the aircraft supplying the Marines through various types of air-drops. You'll see the aircraft delivering 200-300 tons of supplies a day, dropping bombs around the Marines perimeter to keep the NVA from massing and taking fire by enemy motars.

Citation

C-130 Hercules, Vietnam Operations, Undated, Vietnam Archive Collection, The Vietnam Center and Archive, Texas Tech University. Accessed 21 Jan. 2015. <http://www.vietnam.ttu.edu/virtualarchive/items.php?item=998VI0618>.

Pub. Credit Line

998VI0618, Vietnam Archive Collection, The Vietnam Center and Archive, Texas Tech University

Added: 24 Feb 2002[updated: 27 Nov 2013]

___________________________________________________________________________________

If the landing video is not in that one there was another video named "The Way It Is". The introduction was by John Wayne. The landing video might be in it.

Both of them could possibly be online somewhere, but I have not been able to find them.

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I may have missed something in one of the above replies, but wasn't there a video narrated by John Wayne about flying out of CCK and Vietnam? I remember watching it during commander's call back in the 1960's. In it, there was a C-130 taking off and disappearing from sight and then reappearing zooming overhead. Also, a crew was interviewed after landing long and having to back out of a minefield, if I remember correctly. CRS, ya know.

Don R.

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The name of the film is "The Way It Is ", The Tactical Airlift Story. Made in 1972 as a USAF/DOD Info film. Narrated by John Wayne. Googled it but could not find anything on it except it is on J.W's credits. Saw it in FE school at Sheppard back when I was a mere child. Ha Ha. Bill

Edited by Spectre623
more info
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OK guys,

Here we go again!!!! I have the DVD's that ya'll lookin' for. The clip that has the dirt strip landing (the one where the airplane disappears for a bit) is indeed "The Way It Is" with an opening monolog by John Wayne. This thing has been duped a gazillion times, but is still viewable. Seems to me I have another DVD dedicated to the Herk. I'll look for it. If you want one or both, PM me with pertinent information and I'll burn a copy for ya !!

tinwhistle aka Chris

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Old Ban Me Thout...never will forget when we landed there just before dark with a full load of palletized 55 gallon drums of MOGAS for the SF guys. Called them on the radio to unload us with their forklift. No way they said, to close to dark...bou-coo VC. Well the AC said we ain't taking this stuff back to CRB so everybody on the flt. deck except the pilot went to the back lowered the ramp and started rolling drums off till the aft pallet was empty . Then we chained that pallet to the end of the ramp so it was dragging . As we flipped over the drums we rolled them off the ramp as the AC taxied forward. There was about a million big grasshoppers all over the pallets and we crushed them as we rolled the drums and it turned into a huge gooey slippery mess. The drums broke the dragging pallet in half so we unhooked it left it and took off. That's the way it WUZ !! ha, ha Bill :)

Edited by Spectre623
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Excellent pics John. There is also a Clark B model (QW) sitting in one of the pictures with a row of Jeeps off the left wing. It has #1 prop cuffed ready for a buddy start. It has a forklift sitting at the ramp. Probably the one they wouldn't send out to us when I was there, ha ha . Can anyone make out the tail number...looks like maybe 61-0959 which was a QW 774TAS Clark bird. Great pics though. Bill

Edited by Spectre623
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  • 4 months later...

I recognized one of my CO- Pilots...John Grillo..he was one of the Mission Hackers from the George Elwood days.. We were crew of the month one month...blocked out 16 days in a row on time...I remember the mission he was talking about. We evacuated a plane load of RVN and brought them to Saigon... Sadly several didn't last through the trip...

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