RIPPLE SALVO… #144… WYNN FOSTER AND DIETER DENGLER… but first…
Good Morning: Day ONE HUNDRED FORTY-FOUR of an historic period of “limited war” fought in the skies of North Vietnam…
23 JULY 1966… ON THE HOME FRONT PAGES OF THE HOME TOWN PAPER… NYT… A warm and sunny Saturday at the Statue of Liberty…
Page 1: “1000 Policemen Move To Stem Brooklyn Unrest”…More than 1000 extra policemen moved into the racially troubled East New York section of Brooklyn section of Brooklyn last night to contain outbreaks of violence. The movement of the police followed a plea by Mayor Lindsay for calm and a pledge by Police Commissioner Howard Leary of an ‘all out effort’ to maintain order in the tense tenement neighborhood. Mr. Leary also asked parents of teenagers to keep them home after dark. By 3AM there had been scattered incidents but no major outbreaks in the section which was shaken Thursday night by the slaying of a 14-year old Negro boy and clashes between white and Negro teenagers.”… “The Unrest In Brooklyn: The Causes”… “Poverty, neglect, blight, crime, ethnic tensions, and racial fighting are among some of New York’s youth gangs combine into an explosive formula in the East New York Brownsville section of Brooklyn…Typically, the burglaries, robberies, and arson that plague the area, and the rapid decay in housing, are traced by the remaining whites to the newcomers–the Negroes and Puerto Ricans–and by either of the two groups to the other.”…
Page 1: Article by writer John Finney: “Rusk Sees Peril In Widening War; Urges Prudence”…”Secretary of State Dean Rusk said today that more intensive steps against North Vietnam such as the bombing of the port of Haiphong could lead to a broadened conflict with the danger of nuclear conflagration. Mr. Rusk urged support for the Johnson administration’s policy of ‘firmness with prudence’–a policy he said was designed to keep open the possibility of a peaceful settlement without widening the war. The question of intensifying the war was put to the Secretary of State during an appearance before the International Platform Association, an organization of professional speakers. The question– Why don’t we bomb Haiphong and to hell with Russian shipping?–drew sharp applause and a stern answer. Rusk: “We would make this into a much larger war very quickly. It would be the easiest thing to do. all we would have to do is turn our backs for five minutes and let events take their course.” But since 1945, he observed, in such cases as the Greek civil war, Korea, and the Cuban missile crisis, the United States has followed a policy of firmness with prudence, attempting in each confrontation with the communist world to limit the conflict. The policy is one the administration is following in Vietnam. Through the bombing of North Vietnamese communication lines and oil stores the Administration is attempting to limit the ability of the Hanoi regime’ to infiltrate men and supplies into South Vietnam. The objective in Vietnam, he said, “is to establish peace, not destroy somebody else. When it comes to increased pressure against North Vietnam one must always take into account the possibility that such steps will move us into greater conflict.” the theme of Mr. Rusk’s warning was not entirely new, but the emphasis was. In the past when the possibility of such steps as mining or bombing Haiphong has been raised, he has customarily offered the comment that the supplies flowing through North Vietnam’s principal port were not the main source of the aggression in South Vietnam and that the military benefits were not worth the risk. Today Mr. Rusk stressed the danger that the conflict could be broadened into a general war. Behind this shift there seemed to be an awareness that as the American military involvement deepens in Vietnam the Government is coming under increasingly political an public pressure to take more punitive military action in Vietnam. Mr. Rusk placed the blame for failure to achieve a negotiated settlement on the other side, which is not willing to talk except on the basis of surrender by the United States and South Vietnam. He was pessimistic about the chances of achieving negotiations either through the United Nations or through Soviet intercession in Hanoi.”….
Page 1: “Navy POW Saved After 23-Day Trek”…”A Navy pilot shot down over communist Laos territory more than six months ago was plucked from the jungle by a helicopter this week after a daring escape from a prison camp and a grueling march through rugged terrain. The escape was disclosed today by the United States military command. Some details were withheld to protect other prisoners who might have been involved. The rescued pilot was a Navy Lieutenant who had been held by the Communists for five months. He had marched through the jungle for 23 days when he was seen from the air in what was called a one-of-a-kind sighting. A rescue operation was set up and an Air Force helicopter was sent in and picked him up. The pick up was made in the southern part of Northern Vietnam near the demilitarized zone that separates North and South Vietnam. The lieutenant was suffering from severe malnutrition and was virtually in a state of shock when he was rescued. His condition is now listed as satisfactory. His name is being withheld…”
(Humble Host reminds that the Lieutenant who escaped captivity and was rescued was LT DIETER DENGLER, a VA-145 Spad driver, operating from USS Ranger, who was shot down and captured by the Pathet La0 in Laos on 1 February 1966. He escaped on 29 June and evaded recapture until rescued by chance 23 days later. He was subsequently awarded the Navy Cross and his book, “Escape From Laos,” was also a great movie)…
23 JULY1966… OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER…New York Times (24 July reporting 23 July ops) Page 7: “In the air war United States jets again attacked targets in North Vietnam. An A-4 Skyhawk from the carrier Oriskany was lost in the area of Vinh 180 miles north of the border’ the pilot bailed out and was rescued at sea (this is COMMANDER WYNN FOSTER, COMMANDING ATTACK SQUADRON 163). Today American headquarters announced that an F-105D Thunderchief had been shot down 25 miles south-southwest of Hanoi. The two-man crew is listed as missing. The losses brought to 307 the number of United States planes officially listed as downed over North Vietnam. The headquarters said the raids had concentrated on oil installations and communications lines in the Red River valley and around Vinh and Thanh Hoa in North Vietnam’s southern panhandle.”… “VIETNAM:Aircraft Losses” (Chris Hobson): Three aircraft lost…
(1) COMMANDER WYNN FOSTER was flying an A-4E of the VA-163 Saints embarked in USS Oriskany …Chris Hobson reported the flight…
On the 23rd the Oriskany flew a major strike on a POL storage site seven miles north of Vinh. The raid was led by CDR WYNN FOSTER, commanding Officer of the VA-163 Saints, who was flying his 23rd combat sortie. soon after the formation crossed the coast north of Vinh at 12,000 feet en route to the target CDR FOSTER’S aircraft was shaken by the close detonation of a 57mm AAA shell smashed the cockpit and severed the pilot’s right arm just below the right shoulder. CDR FOSTER looked down to see his right hand resting on the aircraft’s radio console. The aircraft’s wing was also damaged resulting in a slow fuel leak. Bleeding profusely and in danger of losing consciousness completely. CDR FOSTER managed to fly out to sea using his knees to hold the control column as his left arm held the shattered remains of his right arm and tried to stem the flow of blood. He realized he would probably not be able to make it back to the carrier even if the aircraft could reach it, so he flew to the nearest ship (the SAR destroyer USS Reeves) and ejected about 20 miles offshore. He was picked up by a boat from the SAR ship, transported to a hospital at Cubi Point a week later and onward to the United States. A long period of convalescence and rehabilitation followed and he was fitted with a prosthetic right arm. COMMANDER FOSTER successfully regained active duty and retired from the Navy as an 0-6 in 1976. He was an excellent writer and left us two books: “Captain Hook,” the story of his life as a tailhooker, and “Fire on The Hangar Deck,” the story of the October 1966 fire on the Oriskany. Captain Hook was the nickname he acquired that served him well through the last decades of his life…
(2) MAJOR GENE THOMAS PEMBERTON and MAJOR BENJAMIN BIRD NEWSOME were flying an F-105D of the 354th TFS and355th TFW out of Takhli on a Wild Weasel flight in support of a strike in the area of Phuc Yen. “It was thought that the aircraft was flying at high altitude and may have been hit by an SA-2 missile. The Thunderchief crashed just north of Hoa Lac and the fate of the air crew is unknown although there appears to be indications what they were captured and killed or died in captivity.”…MAJORS PEMBERTON and NEWSOME were killed in action and perished on the battlefields of blue high above North Vietnam fifty years ago this day… they are remembered with respect and brotherly admiration…
(3) CAPTAIN WILLIAM WARD SMITH was flying an O-1E Bird Dog of the 20th TASS and 505th TAGC out of Danang in support of Operation Hastings and the Marines fighting at the “Rockpile” near the DMZ and was Killed in Action in a collision with a Marine helicopter… CAPTAIN SMITH gave his life and fifty years as a husband and father to fight for our country as of this day in 2016…
RIPPLE SALVO… #144… It is rare day when the stories of two incredibly determined fighters for personal survival are presented for the appreciation, admiration and respect of all Americans. How well deserved were their respective medals: Lt Dengler the Navy Cross and Captain Hook Foster the Silver Star. That rare day was fifty-years ago today…
Lest we forget… Bear ………. –30– ………..