RIPPLE SALVO… #582… ON THIS DAY FIFTY YEARS AGO MAJOR CLEMENTS WAS NAILED BY A MIG-21 AND BEGAN ANOTHER KIND OF FIGHT FOR LIFE… but first…
Good Morning: Day FIVE HUNDRED EIGHTY-TWO of a study in the history of the !965-1968 air war of the Vietnam conflict–it was secretly referred to as Operation Rolling Thunder… 50 years later, and it is still a secret… or might as well be…
9 OCTOBER 1967…HEAD LINES from The New York Times on a cloudy Monday in New Yawk…
Page 1: “CRITICISM OF WAR MOUNTS; JOHNSON DEFENDS POLICIES: Survey Finds Discontent”… “Public support for the Administration’s conduct of the war in Vietnam has declined measurably in recent weeks, with increased sentiment for less military action and more negotiation. This is the conclusion from a survey of Governors and Congressmen who were asked by The New York Times to gauge any shift in opinion on the Vietnam issue among their constituents. More than two-thirds of the public officials replying to the questions reported rising criticism of the war as it is now being prosecuted, some of it from people who favor further intensification but the preponderance from those who want a more limited commitment or an end to the conflict…”… Page 1: “PRESIDENT FIRM IN SPEECH”… “President Johnson vowed in a Saturday night speech that he would not play for popularity in the opinion polls by abandoning any of his major policies at home of abroad. Surveying his low estate in the polls before an audience of party contributors, the President said he was getting much advice on how to escape his troubles ‘cheaply and fast.’ But his plan, he said, is asking for tax increase, to go on fighting discrimination and working for the poor. ‘I have made my choice,’ Mr. Johnson asserted. ‘And I pray that I–and we–will have enough of that bravery, unselfishness and wisdom Jack Kennedy said we would need to see it through all the way.’ “… Page 41: “Johnson And His Top Advisors Stand Firm On Vietnam Policy”… “President Johnson and his advisors–aides and cabinet officials–regard the nation’s growing impatience with the war as a serious detriment to their policy, but not as a persuasive reason for changing it.”…
Page 1: “Mansfield Bids Soviets Act in U.N.–Back The View of Bombing Halt in Resolution, He Urges”... “…challenged the Soviet Union today to initiate a resolution in the United Nations Security Council calling for an end of United States bombing of North Vietnam…if the Soviets are convinced that a bombing cessation would lead to negotiations then it should put its conviction into a formal resolution and present it for the consideration of the Security Council.”... Page 1: “MARINES WILL STOP GIVING PURPLE HEART FOR MINOR WOUNDS”… “The USMC have decided to stop giving the Purple Heart medal for minor wounds in order to halt a drain on manpower from the Vietnam War…a Marine is eligible to leave Vietnam altogether after he receives his third Purple Heart…the Purple Heart should be awarded for wounds caused directly or indirectly in hostile action and requiring the attention of a Medical doctor… no award for a break in the skin, contusions and bruises treated at Corpsmen level”… (How about a splinter?)...Page 30: “Atom Blast to be Simulated at U.S. Installation”... “Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland… will test shielding of missiles and tanks from radiation… a potent reactor will soon generate bursts of neutrons and gamma rays identical to those created by an above-the-ground atomic explosion… use to determine how best to shield tanks, planes, ships, etc (how about tow legged critters?)... Page 33: “Eisenhower Joins War Policy Unit–New Organization Seeking ‘Peace With Freedom” “… “President Eisenhower said the terms hawk and dove indicate extremism, and that he had joined the organization dedicated to what he called ‘a more sensible Vietnam war policy.’ “
9 OCTOBER 1967…OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER… New York Times (10 Oct reporting 8-9 Oct ops): Page 1: “U.S. PLANES BOMB ENEMY COMPOUND–Missiles Said to be Stored in Suburb of Haiphong–Strike is First in Area”... “United States Navy pilots today bombed a military area in the suburbs of Haiphong where, a spokesman said, the North Vietnamese assembled and stored helicopters and missiles. Pilots from the carrier Constellation said after the predawn raid that they could see fires burning from a distance of twenty miles. The military spokesman said the Navy carrier planes first bombed the military barracks area in the early morning yesterday. The compound apparently has been removed from the Pentagon’s list of restricted targets. the spokesman added that the sprawling area, three miles southeast of the center of Haiphong, contained 70 barracks and 20 support buildings. Carrier pilots also bombed the Catbi airfield , a mile southwest of the barracks area. They reported a number of explosions. The air base, which is capable of handling MIG fighters, was attacked for the first time a day earlier.
“In the Hanoi area, an American plane was shot down by a MIG-21 during a fight between F-105 Thunderchiefs and four enemy fighters. A spokesman said that the MIGs had attacked as the Thunderchiefs made bombing runs on the Quangkien railroad causeway 39 miles northeast of Hanoi. It was the 25th United States plane shot down by MIGs in the war and the 695th American plane lost in the North. American pilots have claimed 84 MIGs shot down. (The downed F-105 was piloted by MAJOR JAMES A. CLEMENTS as reported below)...Two more MIGs made passes at another flight of Thunderchiefs attacking a surface-to-air missile site 28 miles northeast of Hanoi. The MIG-21, which can fly at twice the speed of sound is the latest model delta-wing fighter built by the Soviet Union. The only MIG-21s based in North Vietnam have been based at Phucyen airfield 14 miles north of Hanoi. Phucyen and Gialam are the only two bases in the North capable of handling MIG’s that have not yet been attacked by United States planes.”.... Page 4: “23 Dead in C-130 Crash”… “United States officials disclosed today that a C-130 transport plane crashed into a mountainside in South Vietnam Sunday, killing the 23 Americans aboard. The official said that the wreckage on the side of a mountain on the northern coast of South Vietnam was not sighted until today”…
“Vietnam: Air Losses” (Chris Hobson) There were two fixed wing aircraft lost in Southeast Asia on 9 October 1967…
(1) LTJG L.I. CUNNINGHAM was flying an A-4E of the VA-164 Ghostriders embarked in USS ORISKANY and participating in a strike on a pontoon bridge at Nao Quan in Route Pack II. After completing the mission and while en route back to the carrier, his trusty Skyhawk flamed out. He was unable to get a relight and was forced to eject. He was rescued by a Navy helicopter to fly, fight and love again… By Humble Host count, this was the 20th Carrier Air Wing 16 aircraft lost on this combat cruise...
(2) MAJOR JAMES ARLEN CLEMENTS was flying an F-105D of the 34th TFS and 388th TFW on an afternoon wing attack against the Quang Hien Rail Road Causeway about 25 miles northwest of Hanoi and had completed his bomb run when jumped by one of four MIG-21s that came in shooting. MAJOR CLEMENTS took an Atoll air-to-air missile up his tailpipe and was unable to fly his faltering Thunderchief any further than a few miles north of the target before having to eject. He was captured immediately and began a five and a half-year fight to survive in the brutal North Vietnamese prisoner-of-war prison system.
RIPPLE SALVO… #582 (1) Humble Host proudly posts this POSTHUMOUS tribute to one of the bravest of the brave…
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER… GALLANTRY AND INTREPIDITY IN ACTION… LIEUTENANT COLONEL JAMES ARLEN CLEMENTS, UNITED STATES AIR FORCE… SILVER STAR… 11 OCTOBER TO 13 OCTOBER 1967…
“The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the SILVER STAR to LIEUTENANT COLONEL JAMES ARLEN CLEMENTS, United States Air Force, for GALLANTRY AND INTREPIDITY in action in connection with military operations against an opposing armed force during the periods 11 October to 13 October 1967, while a Prisoner of War in North Vietnam. Ignoring international agreements on treatment of prisoners of war, the enemy resorted to mental and physical cruelties to obtain information, confessions, and propaganda materials. Lieutenant Colonel CLEMENTS resisted their demands calling upon his deepest inner strengths in a manner which reflected his devotion to duty and great credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.”…
“The President of the United States of America… presents the Distinguished Flying Cross with Combat V to Major James Arlen Clements...for heroism while participating in aerial flight as an F-105 Thunderchief Pilot over North Vietnam on 8 October 1967. On that date, Major Clements was a member of the lead flight of a strike force executed against a high priority military target. Despite marginal weather conditions, and while under withering fire from hostile forces, Major Clements pressed his attack to the optimum and delivered his ordnance precisely on target…”
“… presents a Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster in lieu of a Second Award of the Distinguished Flying Cross to Major Arlen James Clements...for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight as an F-105 Thunderchief Pilot over North Vietnam on 17 September 1967. On that date, Major Clements, as a member of a flight of four, successfully attacked an important military target. Despite intense anti-aircraft fire, Major Clements pressed his attack doing considerable damage to this important target….”
“… presents a Second Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster in lieu of a third award of the Distinguished Flying Cross to Major James Arlen Clements…for extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight as a F-105 Thunderchief Pilot over North Vietnam on 29 August 1967. On that date, major Clements was a member of a flight of four F-105’s which successfully struck a high priority military target in North Vietnam. In spite of heavy defenses, Major Clements placed his bombs in the target area destroying several rail cars and making multiple railcuts…
Among Lieutenant Colonel Clements other combat awards are numerous Air Medals, the Legion of Merit with Combat V, and the Prisoner of War Medal… He was a courageous fighter pilot who went down fighting –cancer– in 1997 aged 64 years. On this date, the fiftieth anniversary, of his adventure at Quang Hien Rail Road Causeway and a brush with a MIG-21, he is remembered for his fighting spirit and brave heart with admiration and respect…
RIPPLE SALVO… #582… (2) On 9 October 1967, the CIA presented the President a six page “detailed analysis” under the title: “THE CONSEQUENCES OF A HALT IN THE BOMBARDMENT OF NORTH VIETNAM.”… The President was under heavy pressure to “halt the bombing” by the Doves. The CIA was tasked to provide him rationale for the continuation of OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER. Needless to say, this was a crucial issue and the President needed all the help he could get… A one page summary of the analysis is at: (It is worth the read):
https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1964-68v05/d351
RTR QUOTE for 9 October: Lieutenant Colonel James Clements, 1977: “… about my POW experience. I don’t remember ever talking to another POW who doubted his country or the American people. I always had faith in America and the American people and there was never for a second any doubt.”…
Lest we forget… Bear