Misty Vietnam – Unofficial History

Historians have a hard time defining the exact dates of the war in Vietnam. When the Vietnamese defeated the French at the battle of Dien Bien Phu in 1954, Americans began to fill the western power vacuum in an effort to keep Southeast Asia from falling to the Communists. When President Kennedy was elected, he sent advisors; then, sent more advisors, and the U.S. became officially “involved”. 1964 saw the infamous Gulf of Tonkin incident, when, according to President Lyndon Johnson, North Vietnamese torpedo boats attacked an American ship. Congress passed the “Gulf of Tonkin Resolution,” and the President committed U.S. troops.

“Misty” was the radio callsign used by the F-100F Fast Forward Air Controllers (Fast FACs) during the Vietnam War. There were 157 pilots officially assigned to fly missions over North Vietnam from 15 June 1967 – 19 May 1970. 21 other attached pilots flew occasional missions. There were also Intelligence Officers, Flight Surgeons, and Maintenance Officers assigned. It was a small, tight-knit group of special people given a difficult task in a terrible war. Of the 157 Mistys, 34 were shot down (22%). Eight others were shot down when not flying with Misty (total 28%). Two Mistys were shot down twice. There were seven KIA, four POWs, and [as of Jan ’10] 42 are now deceased. There was also one Medal of Honor winner, two Air Force Chiefs of Staff, six general officers, a winner of the Collier Trophy, the Louis Bleriot Medal, the Presidential Citizen’s Medal of Honor, and the first man to fly non-stop, un-refueled around the world. By any measure this was an unusual group of men

Mighty Thunder is proud to provide RTR readers with the link below for the full story on the Misty Fast Forward Air Controllers and their dangerous mission in North Vietnam, 1967 to 1970.

Misty Vietnam – Unofficial History