From the Book
The “as the crow flies” distance from U-Tapao to Hanoi is 580 nautical miles (nm). There are other important locations off the map. Andersen Air Force Base, Guam is 2,279 nm from Hanoi. Offutt Air Force Base, Omaha, Nebraska, is 6,884 nm from Hanoi.
The Chain of Command
B-52 Cell Formation
The standard B-52 cell formation was flown with “number two” flying 1 nautical mile behind on a 45° angle to the right, and “number three” flying 2 nautical miles behind to the left. Position was maintained using radar but required extra maneuvering when turning, especially when the turn was opposite. Number 3, for example, was likely to fall behind in a turn to the right.
Credit: Technical Order 1B-52C-1, 10 July 1970
Crew positions in the B-52D. The layout was similar in the B-52G, except the gunner sat forward with the rest of the crew
Favorite Photos
The B-52 Bomber
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress took its maiden flight in April 1952 and quickly became the primary bomber of the U.S. Air Force, a role it continues to fill seventy years later. It faired poorly against the Surface to Air Missile threat in the closing days of the Vietnam War because it was employed using World War II doctrine though outfitted with state of the art electronic countermeasures.
I’ve collected a number of photos showing the airplane at its finest.
Photo: A B-52 coming in for landing at U-Tapao, Thailand, 30 October 1972
The Strategic Air Command (SAC)
The Strategic Air Command was born with the United States Air Force in 1947 as the Cold War heated up, but then lost its way during the sixties during the Vietnam War and was finally “disestablished” in 1992.
Photo: B-52 wreckage at the Vietnam Military History Museum, taken 27 May 2012
The Draft
1,857,304 men were drafted between August 1964 and February 1973. Starting in 1969, this was done by a draft lottery.
Prisoners of War / Missing in Action
The United States listed 2,646 Americans unaccounted for during the Vietnam War. Of those, 1,350 were thought to be Prisoners of War (POW) or Missing in Action (MIA). During Operation Homecoming, from February through April 1973, 591 POWs were released to U.S. authorities and the remains of 700 were identified. What of the remaining numbers?
SA-2 Surface to Air Missile (SAM)
The Soviet SA-75 Dvina Surface to Air Missile (NATO Code Name SA-2 Guideline) had long been lethal to U.S. Aircraft, downing over 100 U.S. Navy and Air Force aircraft before Rolling Thunder. The B-52s had an awesome suite of electronic countermeasures thought to be invulnerable to the SA-2. That was true, until 1972.
Linebacker II
Video: Wings Over Vietnam Part VIII (posted on YouTube)