RIPPLE SALVO… THE STORY OF A NAVAL AVIATOR AT WAR 75 years ago… Jack “Dusty” Kleiss …but first…
Good Morning: Day FOUR HUNDRED FIFTY-ONE of remembering the warriors and events of an air war fought fifty years ago…
30 MAY 1967… HEADLINES from The New York Times on a fair Tuesday that was Memorial Day in 1967...
ARAB-ISRAELI MIDEAST CONFLICT: Page 1: “U.S. Said to Weigh Plan For Ending Aqaba Blockade”… “The Johnson Administration was reported today by congressional sources to be considering a possible compromise solution to the Middle Eastern crisis under which the Gulf of Aqaba would be open to all ships immediately except those flying the Israeli flag.”...Page 1: “Mideast Breathing Spell Supported by U.S. and U.N.”... “The United States led six other nations today in a movement to win unanimous Security Council backing for Secretary General Thant’s appeal that the Council use its powers to get a breathing spell in the crisis in the Middle East. Soviet Union opposed while Israel and Egypt remain uncompromising in Aqaba.”...Page 1: “Israel and Egyptian Units Trade Shots at Gaza Strip” for almost an hour after the Egyptians opened fire on soldiers and citizens, One Israeli soldier was wounded.” …
Page 1: “High Court Voids Fair Housing Ban in California Law”… “The Supreme Court declared unconstitutional today the voter-approved amendment to the California Constitution that gave property owners ‘absolute discretion’ in resale and rental of housing. In a 5 to 4 ruling the Supreme Court’s decision that the amendment, known as Proposition 14 amounted to racial discrimination.”…Page 1: “Ruling Protects Citizens Rights”... “The Supreme Court ruled today that Congress lacks the Constitutional authority to pass laws that strip American citizens of their nationality without their consent.”… Page 1: “Justices Widen Right of Police to Seize Evidence From Homes”… “Prosecutors were given broader powers by the Supreme Court today to use evidence seized by the police in lawful searches of suspects homes.”… Page 1: “Teachers Demand $6500 To Start”... “The United Federation of Teachers claiming that an increase of $1000 above current starting salary is required.”... Page 7: “Air Force Holds 3,700 In Service”… “The Air Force, pinched for experienced pilots and other seasoned officers…delays retirements for an extra year of service.”…Page 7: “General Walt, Outgoing Commandant of the Marine Corps: American forces will have to stay in South Vietnam for 10 to 15 years.”… Page 6: “Saigon Proposes Way to End War”… “Tran Van do, South Vietnam’s Foreign Minister made public today a proposal that the war in Vietnam be ended by restating the provisions of the armistice of 1954.”…
30 MAY… The President’s TS Daily CIA Briefing (sanitized) Top Item: ARAB STATES-ISRAEL: Diplomatic maneuvering and pronouncements continue to hold center stage. There have been no significant troop movements in the last 24 hours, but Egyptian, Syrian, and Israeli forces remain ready to spring…Israel Hawks are muttering about the government’s inaction…and a general sense of frustration and puzzlement is said to have developed since Eshkol’s temporizing statement Sunday night. Sentiment is growing for the inclusion of Moshe Dayan, the Army’s 1956 hero, in the cabinet. The tactics of the present Army leadership are likely to prevail, however…. The Soviets continue to avoid taking a clear-cut position on the Gulf of Aqaba question. Moscow is meeting Egypt’s urgent military needs. We still have no confirmation of press reports that an American ship was fired on near the Gulf of Aqaba. The only warning shot we know of was directed at a Danish freighter Sunday. The ship was subsequently permitted to enter the Strait of Tiran and the Gulf…
30 MAY 1967… OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER… New York Times (31 May reporting 30 May ops)…Page 1: “U.S. Attack Keeps MIG Field Closed”... “Air Force fighter-bombers attacked Hoa Lac airbase 20 miles west of Hanoi, keeping the airport out-of-operation by again blowing up the runways and taxiway. This was the ninth raid against Hoa Lac and 16th since air bases were first attacked on April 24. It takes North Vietnamese workers about six days to repair damaged airfields, so airfield attacks have been spaced to the keep the runway cut and closed to MIG operations. Other pilots concentrated on railroad yards and bridges around Hanoi as clearing weather permitted strikes in the northern part of the country for the first time in several days. One Phantom jet was shot down in the southern part of North Vietnam. Both crew members were rescued. It was the 563rd plane lost in North Vietnam since 1965. (North Vietnam claims the shoot down over Yen Bai province was the 1,973rd downed American aircraft of the war)….Thunderchief fighter-bombers struck three railroad yards northeast of Hanoi cutting tracks and damaging rolling stock. In the attack on the Bac Giang yard 28 miles northeast of the city, pilots bombed a railroad and highway bridge. A spokesman said the bridge crumbled under the attack.
Navy pilots bombed the Phuly railroad and highway bridge 35 miles south of Hanoi. Carrier pilots also destroyed or damaged a railroad bridge and a highway bridge near Thanh Hoa, 85 miles south of Hanoi…a spokesman at Saigon headquarters declined to comment on reports that targets close to Hanoi and Haiphong had been placed off-limits in a new easing of the air war…he could not comment on the rules of engagement…
The last strike at one of the North’s major cities was on last Friday when Navy Skyhawk pilots bombed a power plant in Haiphong. The weather has been bad in the north since.
“Vietnam: Air Losses” (Chris Hobson) there were three fixed wing aircraft lost in Southeast Asia on 30 May 1967…
(1) 1LT MICHAEL WALTER THOENNES was flying an A-4E of the VMA-121 Green Knights and MAG-12 out of Chu Lai and striking Viet Cong buildings in Hiep Doc 20 miles west of Tam Ky in South Vietnam and was hit by intense automatic gunfire while carrying an attack to 500-feet. 1LT THOENNES did not eject and went in with the aircraft… He perished on the battlefield on Memorial Day 1967… fifty years ago…
(2) COMMANDER JAMES PATRICK MEHL, XO of the VA-93 Blue Blazers embarked in USS Hancock, was flying an A-4E and leading the Iron Hand section supporting a strike on the Do Xa transshipment point 15 miles south of Hanoi when hit by an SA-2. He was unable to fly the aircraft clear of the heavily defended area and was captured after ejecting. COMMANDER MEHL was released from POW internment in 1973…
(3) MAJOR W.C. SCHRUPP and CAPTAIN T.R. MACDOUGALL were flying an F-4C of the 480th TFS and 366th TFW out of Danang on an armed road reconnaissance about 20 miles northwest of Dong Hoi in southern North Vietnam when hit by ground fire. They were able to fly their battle damaged Phantom more than thirty miles to a position 15 miles at sea before having to eject. They were rescued by a Navy ship… to fly and fight again…
RIPPLE SALVO… #451… “NEVER CALL ME A HERO” by Jack “Dusty” Kleiss with Timothy and Laura Orr… Humble Host calls to your attention a great read for June. Dusty Kleiss was among the best of the best at the straight down dive bombing that was the tactic that gave Naval Aviation the advantage at Midway, which was fought 75 years ago this coming week. The book hit the shelves a few days ago and should be available. There is no shortage of reading and viewing material on the internet and the shelves of old Naval Aviators, so why another one? I found the Kleiss delivery of the 75-year old story full of new details on every aspect of a Naval Aviator’s life in the late 30s and 1940s. This is a first person account by one of the last living story tellers who was there with the Japanese carriers in his bomb sight at Midway, and didn’t miss. Good pictures, so-so charts.
If you aren’t into reading about Midway on this 75th anniversary and you live in the Hampton Roads area you might want to sign up and attend a FREE all-day symposium — “The Tide Turns: Battle of Midway“– on Friday, 2 June. The Hampton Roads Naval Museum has a speaker lineup that has made the Battle of Midway a significant part of their respective lives. On hand will be four participating authors: (1) Elliott Carlson (“Joe Rochefort’s War); Anthony Tully (“Shattered Sword’); Walter Bourneman (“The Admirals”); and, Timothy Orr (“Looking Skyward’)…
Aye, and here’s the rub: Timothy Orr and his wife Laura spent four years assisting Dusty Kleiss write “Never Call Me A Hero”… I betcha’ Tim Orr shows up with a box of the Dusty Kleiss books to sign… For reservations call: 757-322-3168…seating is limited for the FREE full day symposium at the Hampton Roads Naval Museum…Friday, 2 June from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the MacArthur auditorium…
History is the teacher…take a teenager when you go…. buy him/her a copy of the Dusty Kleiss biography and tell the kid to Go Navy Air… CARRIERS FOREVER… ( In a week there will be three big decks in the Sea of Japan)… been there done that, wish I was there…
CAG’s Quotes for 30 May: BILLY GRAHAM: “Courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others stiffen.”… NATHAN HALE: “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.”…
Lest we forget… Bear…