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  • Maj. James Harding: 101 North Vietnam O-1 FAC Missions

    Maj. James Harding had the remarkable and unique achievement of flying 101 missions over North Vietnam in the O-1, a light, single-engine forward air control aircraft. Harding flew a total of 596 combat missions in Southeast Asia, and he was awarded the Air Force Cross while flying an A-1 Skyraider

  • Misty FACs

    Misty FACs (forward air controllers) flew at low altitude, spotting and marking enemy targets in heavily-defended areas in Laos and North Vietnam. This all-volunteer group had a quarter of their number shot down during these extremely hazardous missions. U.S. Air Force FACs normally flew slow,

  • Mobile and Dependable: Prime BEEF and RED HORSE in Southeast Asia

    Responding to worldwide emergencies, the U.S. Air Force deploys teams of civil engineers to support its mission. For emergency civil engineer support, Prime BEEF (Base Engineer Emergency Force) teams can respond within hours. When operations require support above the normal base civil engineer

  • Maj. Ralph Dresser

    Maj. Ralph Dresser was the Ranch Hand commander from the fall of 1965 to the fall of 1966. During this time, the number of spray aircraft doubled and enemy reaction to the defoliation program increased considerably. Dresser took an active hand in command by regularly leading spray missions, and he

  • M117 General Purpose Bomb

    The M117 is a 750-pound general purpose bomb that can be employed in several different configurations. The basic M117 dates from the Korean War and uses a low-drag tail fin for medium and high-altitude deliveries. The M117R (Retarded) uses a special fin assembly providing either high-drag or

  • Martin Marietta AGM-62 Walleye I

    Although designated an air-to-ground missile (AGM), the Walleye was actually an unpowered glide bomb with a nose-mounted television camera to guide it to the target. The Walleye's camera sent an image of the target to the pilot's television screen. Once the pilot "locked" onto the target, he

  • Martin Marietta AGM-12C Bullpup B

    The AGM-12C was a larger version of the Bullpup air-to-ground radio-guided missile. It was carried by U.S. Air Force F-4 and F-105 fighters during the Southeast Asia War.The AGM-12C entered U.S. Air Force service in 1965 and carried a 1,000-lb semi-armor-piercing warhead. The pilot or weapons system

  • Martin AGM-12B Bullpup A

    Developed in the 1950s, the Bullpup became the first successful guided tactical air-to-ground missile used by the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Air Force. The radio-guided, rocket-propelled Bullpup missile could accurately hit a small, heavily-defended target like a bridge. The pilot tracked two flares on

  • Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21PF “Fishbed-D”

    The MiG-21 is one of the world's most famous jet fighters. This Soviet-made aircraft first flew in 1955, and more than 50 countries have used various versions. Western forces code-named the MiG-21 "Fishbed," and some versions have flown well into the 21st century. The USSR built more than 10,000

  • Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17F

    The Soviet MiG-17 (NATO code-name "Fresco") was designed to replace the famous MiG-15 of the Korean War. Although similar in appearance to the MiG-15, the MiG-17 had more sharply swept wings, a longer fuselage, an afterburner, and better speed and handling characteristics. The first flight of a