| Date: 10 December 1971 |
| Aircraft type: F-105G Thunderchief |
| Serial Number: 63-8326 |
| Military Unit: 17 WWS, 388 TFW |
| Service: USAF |
| Home Base: Korat |
| Name(s): |
| Maj Robert E Belli (Survived) |
| Lt Col Scott Winston McIntire (KIA) |
| The 17th WWS was activated on 1 December from the 6010th WWS, which was itself created from a detachment of the 12th TFS at Korat on 1 November 1970. It was known that the North Vietnamese had been constructing SAM sites in southern Laos to protect key points on the Ho Chi Minh Trail since March 1971. These missiles posed a threat not only to the tactical aircraft that roamed over the Trail day and night but also to the flights of B-52s, which over the years had dropped thousands of tons of bombs on the Trail from high altitude. On 10 December a pair of F-105G Wild Weasels took off from Korat in support of a B-52 strike near the Mu Gia Pass. The Thuds found an active SAM site near the Pass and attacked it with AGM-45 Shrike anti-radar missiles. After firing two missiles Maj Belli’s aircraft (call sign Ashcan 1) was itself hit by a SAM at 18,000 feet. Maj Belli was momentarily knocked unconscious but came to and initiated a command ejection sequence. In a major rescue mission in bad weather, Maj Belli was located and rescued by a HH-53C of the 40th ARRS captained by Maj K Ernest who had to approach the survivor in almost zero visibility flying very slowly just above the tree tops. Lt Col Scottie McIntire was seen by a helicopter crew the following day to be hanging limp in his parachute in a tall tree. He was presumed to be dead as he appeared lifeless and had been hanging in this position for over 20 hours in appalling weather and would have died from hypothermia within six hours. The helicopter crew was unable to retrieve Scott McIntire’s body due to heavy ground fire. |
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