Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
Even with the advances in weapons, avionics, and communication that bring situational awareness to new levels, the human element in warfare remains constant; the heightened senses, the reflexive reliance on training, the anxiety tempered with professionalism. Almost 40 years ago, during Operation Linebacker, B-52 crews were executing bombing runs over Hanoi, while flying through a hornet's nest of SAM (Surface to Air Missile) sites.
This video contains audio, with caption, of a B-52 mission over Hanoi. For those who haven't worn the uniform, or who haven't been on this type of mission, this will give you a taste, albeit a bitter one. For those who have lived this, well, … I reckon it's personal. I'm hoping my pulse will return to normal at some point. Early in the recording, one of our aircraft takes a direct hit. The buzzers you will hear signal open parachutes, though several on board were killed instantly. As the mission continues, you will hear the pilot and crew navigate a seemingly endless maze of SAM sites, and SAM launches as they continue to their target. According to the ticker, this recording lasts just under 10 minutes, but it must have been hellishly long for the aircrew.
If you have ten minutes to spare, listen to what these men did for each other, and for you. Just as those who currently wear the uniform sign their oath to the Constitution in blood, so too did those who served in Vietnam. Their valor and fidelity will not be forgotten.
- Comment (25)
- · Quote
- · UnfollowFollow (3)
- Pages:
- 1
- 2
Comments:
Sep '11
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
I expect that somewhere in the U.S. Air Force archives there is recorded audio of my father's fellow pilots urging him to get out of his RF-84 as it plummeted to earth.
I hope to never hear it.
And I would be distressed in the extreme to learn that somebody had put it up on the Internet for other people to enjoy.
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
John Murdoch: I expect that somewhere in the U.S. Air Force archives there is recorded audio of my father's fellow pilots urging him to get out of his RF-84 as it plummeted to earth.
I hope to never hear it.
And I would be distressed in the extreme to learn that somebody had put it up on the Internet for other people to enjoy. · 15 minutes ago
John, please accept my thanks to your father and your family for the sacrifices made on our behalf. I certainly didn't intend to post this video for anyone's enjoyment. The percentage of Americans who serve is so small, and destined to grow smaller still as the military is cut. My goal now, much as it was when on active duty, is to bring their valor to life and honor their sacrifice. It was not, I assure you, to cause you any distress. But again, my sincere thanks to you and your family, sir.
Jul '11
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
Our soldiers are to be honored and that was very moving. Nonetheless, from Rolling Thunder and beyond, our politicians set the targets(many useless) and the rules of engagement (ridiculous) that doomed that war. I have talked with many dozens of Vietnam era pilots and heard the bitterness they have for having their hands tied over and over regarding bombing missions and my overwhelming thoughts listening to this tape were how they did it for each other and that had military leadership been given leeway to win the war it would have been over by 67 instead of escalating.
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
Absolutely. Agreed 100 percent.
Jul '11
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
One current patient of mine told me they bombed the same abandoned anti-aircraft site 15 times while the actual sites, placed in "sensitive" civilian areas were off limits including when they were being shot at repeatedly by them. That should sink in some, your brothers are being shot down and killed and you cannot bomb or strafe the perpetrators because of Washington DC. The utter stupidity boggles the mind and it seems we really have not learned that much still.
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
DocJay, my buddy and military retiree Bob Lee, refers to the Rules of Engagement as Rules of Enragement, and appropriately so. Sadly, when I read that the bad guys in Afghanistan can take shots at our people, but if they drop their weapons and flee, they are no longer a legal target. They live to fight another day, and our hands are tied,...and we are in danger of losing yet again. You're right. It truly boggles the mind.
Sep '10
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
Just listened. Agreed, Dave--we should never forget.
I wasn't old enough then, but I've read about it. For those who haven't, imagine flying a bomber straight and level to the target while SA-2 missiles--described as "telephone poles moving at Mach 3"--are flying through your formation.
Sep '10
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
Two good sources on this: Jack Broughton's Thud Ridge and On Yankee Station by John Nichols and Barrett Tillman. Both classics.
Jul '11
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
John Murdoch: I expect that somewhere in the U.S. Air Force archives there is recorded audio of my father's fellow pilots urging him to get out of his RF-84 as it plummeted to earth.
I hope to never hear it.
And I would be distressed in the extreme to learn that somebody had put it up on the Internet for other people to enjoy. · 1 hour ago
I've been thinking about this. I have a tape I've never played for anyone(I only listened once) of my dad having a breakdown after operating in a mash unit in quang tri ?sp for 36 hours straight on a whole mess of messed up kids, many of which did not make it. I feel strange even sharing the info but it relates to your desire to keep some things in life private.
Jun '10
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
On October 6, 1944, my father's Sherman entered a field somewhere near the German-Belgian border. As they moved into the field, German 88 mm cannon opened up and my father's tank was soon hit. One man was hit in the chest and didn't make it out, another lost a leg, and my father lost most of his upper right arm (think of the bicep area with the bicep gone).
While that was different than this audio from fliers over Hanoi, something was very much the same: you weren't sure from one minute to the next what would happen, but you just kept on doing your job.
I, for one, appreciate the audio, if only because you can hear the tension in the voices of professionals doing a very dangerous job. In a small way, it helps me understand a bit of what my father and millions of others felt when they entered combat.
Edited on April 2, 2012 at 8:49pmJun '11
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
Not just the pilots. It was my dad's first diplomatic post... he still can't talk about Vietnam without getting ticked about the cluster we executed.
Also, I don't buy the last point. Wasn't our general staff/command (pre-Abrams) lackluster above the brigade/division? Would they have known what to do with "leeway"?
Dec '10
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
Take It Down! Take It Down! .. Now, Pull Up!
May '11
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
My brother just retired a Major after 20 years in the USAF as a Nv./Radar Nav. (Bombadier) in the 52. He dropped bombs in Serbia and served a tour on the ground in the 'Stan. Even he is in awe of what the 52 crews did over Hanoi.
Jun '10
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
Download and read:
www.afhso.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-101013-045.pdf
Apr '11
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
Dave, thank you so much for putting things like this up here; there are so many of our brave men who are so entirely unjustly embarrassed by things like this, and, while it makes the rest of us all look bad, it also gets us cut off from what even our own relatives went through because they didn't want to brag or upset anyone.
I remember growing up and so many of the old warhorses talking away and in what I thought had been a fairly easy fashion and now they are suddenly all gone and I realized all I had learned from them was where to find the best prostitutes and who had drank the most awful homemade liquor and had no idea how bad things actually were.
Even David Bellavia remarked at what loss he was at knowing what to expect when it came to fighting simply because they don't make movies that are even remotely real because that would upset people. That was his reason for writing House to House.
Oct '11
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
That sounds like a Fan Song painting them at the start. I had forgot about the audio jamming but immediately recognized the piccolo and noise jammers. Its amazing how your mind can be trained to sort through all that racket and pick out what you need. We cruised in at 600 knots at 200 ft AGL doing SAM suppression for the Buffs. It was infuriating and sad to watch them burning and falling out of the sky as we went in. We would lay a string of twelve 500 pounders across the SAM site, usually with spectacular results. Sometimes we would rise up to a 1,000 ft AGL on egress so the search radars could see us and hopefully draw some attention off the Buffs. A few times we turned around and went back in at medium altitude just to try and draw some SAMS off the Buffs when they were having a very bad night. The NVs called us Whispering Death because they couldn't hear us coming and the first they knew we were around was when the bombs went off. The Vark is my avatar on Ricochet and I still love that plane.
Oct '10
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
Thanks Dave. I found the rest of the segments on Youtube. As it happens the next day, I flew an Air Force A-7D over Route Pack 6 as part of fighter attack force striking and destroying a Hanoi power plant.
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
Absolutely. And it all comes back like second nature when you hear recordings like this.
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
While this is like reading plain English to me, it may be fairly indecipherable for others. Have you thought of expanding your story to a full post? I have some questions,..but they'll keep for now.
And thank you, Sir, for your service.
Re: Audio of a B-52 Mission Over Hanoi
Aeromir, thank you for your service, Sir. As I suggested to Fastflyer, I wonder if you might consider putting some of your experiences in one or more posts? So many people, all around us, have no idea of the contributions that were made by people all around them. Just an idea, respectfully tendered.
Were you based out of Thailand? One of my old units spent some time flying A-7s out of Korat Royal Thai AFB, I believe.