| Date: 7 August 1966 |
| Aircraft type: F-105D Thunderchief |
| Serial Number: 60-0499 |
| Military Unit: 333 TFS, 355 TFW |
| Service: USAF |
| Home Base: Takhli |
| Name(s): |
| Capt John Henry Wendell (POW) |
| Aircraft type: F-105D Thunderchief |
| Serial Number: 61-0140 |
| Military Unit: 333 TFS, 355 TFW |
| Service: USAF |
| Home Base: Takhli |
| Name(s): |
| Maj Willard Selleck Gideon (POW) |
| Sunday 7 August turned out to be one of the most expensive days for the US air services so far during the war with a total of eight aircraft destroyed and seven airmen lost. ‘Black Sunday’ saw several major strikes on POL storage facilities throughout North Vietnam. The strikes were to be protected by Iron Hand flights that would tackle any SAM sites that posed a threat to the bombers.
One of the first strikes of the day was against a POL storage site near Hoang Lien, 20 miles north of Hanoi. As Capt Wendell’s Thunderchief (call sign Atlanta) commenced its dive onto the target from 10,000 feet it was struck by an SA-2 SAM and began to disintegrate. Capt Wendell ejected and was taken prisoner. A few minutes later as the same flight was finishing its attack, Maj Gideon’s aircraft (call sign Atlanta) was hit in the tail by AAA as it pulled up to 6,000 feet. The aircraft quickly became uncontrollable and Maj Gideon was also forced to eject 12 miles east of Kep joining Capt Wendell in captivity. Both men were released on 4 March 1973. Maj Gideon’s aircraft was painted as ‘The Lone Star Special’. |
You may return to your search results, go to the Search Form, or go back to the Home Page.