| Date: 7 August 1966 |
| Aircraft type: F-105F Thunderchief |
| Serial Number: 63-8358 |
| Military Unit: 354 TFS, 355 TFW |
| Service: USAF |
| Home Base: Takhli |
| Name(s): |
| Capt Edward Larson (Survived) |
| Capt K A Gilroy (Survived) |
| Ten minutes after Maj Gideon was shot down an Iron Hand flight of Thunderchiefs attacked a SAM site in support of a raid on a marshalling yard on the northeast railway when it was engaged by another SAM site about 12 miles north of Haiphong. The F-105F Wild Weasel (call sign Mambo) leading the flight fired a Shrike missile at a SAM radar signal but was then hit and damaged by an SA-2 at 13,000 feet. The cockpit was badly damaged when the 20mm ammunition drum exploded and the aircraft caught fire. Capt Larson jettisoned the canopy to clear the cockpit of smoke and turned the aircraft south to cross the coast. However, a few miles south of Hon Gay the crew were forced to eject as the fire burnt through the aircraft’s controls. Both men, who were on their 11th mission, were picked up from the sea by a USAF HU-16B Albatross that came under mortar fire from one of the many islands just off the coast. The Albatross was flown by Maj R H Angstadt who was killed on 18 October. Mike Gilroy completed two combat tours in Southeast Asia and flew a total of 119 missions. |
You may return to your search results, go to the Search Form, or go back to the Home Page.