Posted on Dec 31, 2022
MiG-21 'Blows Away' A B-52 Bomber: How Did Russian-Origin Jet Manage To Shoot Down The Invincible...
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LTC Jack Christiensen,
Not sure if you flew the Strato Fortress during the Linebacker 1 and 2 Campaigns?
I'm just wondering if you could corroborate any of what you read in this story?
I would like any input from any United States Air Force personnel who served in Vietnam.
Not sure if you flew the Strato Fortress during the Linebacker 1 and 2 Campaigns?
I'm just wondering if you could corroborate any of what you read in this story?
I would like any input from any United States Air Force personnel who served in Vietnam.
MiG-21 'Blows Away' A B-52 Bomber: How Did Russian-Origin Jet Manage To Shoot Down The Invincible...
Posted from eurasiantimes.comPosted in these groups: 
11BX: Bomber Pilot
Vietnam War
Combat
11FX: Fighter Pilot
12BX: Bomber Combat Systems Officer
11BX: Bomber Pilot Vietnam War Combat 11FX: Fighter Pilot 12BX: Bomber Combat Systems Officer
Edited 2 y ago
Posted 2 y ago
Responses: 5
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I flew in Linebacker 1 but not 2. First night of Linebacker 1 was the first time we ever actually saw the results of our strike. We were lead of a 3 ship to hit fuel storage tanks in Haiphong, left quite a fire behind. Now the how they were able to shoot down a Buff was a crewmember complaint throughout all Arc Light combat operations
SAC controlled the B-52s even though they were operating in Southeast Asia. So, SAC dictated all ROEs from Omaha and gave just about zero authority for local commanders to make changes. Throughout the Linebacker missions the ROEs dictated straight and level one mile spacing between aircraft in a cell from the Initial Point (IP) to the target and standardized post target turns with all aircraft maintaining altitude and the 1 mile spacing.
Through years of B-52 strikes the Vietnamese were able to figure this pattern out and developed defenses based on timing off the lead B-52 from IP and post target.
Their missiles and aircraft would be radar silent until after lead dropped and actually attack based on timing before switching on radar.
Local commanders and aircrews saw and complained about this for years but it wasn't until a pretty disastrous Linebacker 2 raid on December 26 (my home squadron lost a crew that night) that SAC relented and allowed local commanders and aircrews to vary from their ROEs.
Hope that helps.
SAC controlled the B-52s even though they were operating in Southeast Asia. So, SAC dictated all ROEs from Omaha and gave just about zero authority for local commanders to make changes. Throughout the Linebacker missions the ROEs dictated straight and level one mile spacing between aircraft in a cell from the Initial Point (IP) to the target and standardized post target turns with all aircraft maintaining altitude and the 1 mile spacing.
Through years of B-52 strikes the Vietnamese were able to figure this pattern out and developed defenses based on timing off the lead B-52 from IP and post target.
Their missiles and aircraft would be radar silent until after lead dropped and actually attack based on timing before switching on radar.
Local commanders and aircrews saw and complained about this for years but it wasn't until a pretty disastrous Linebacker 2 raid on December 26 (my home squadron lost a crew that night) that SAC relented and allowed local commanders and aircrews to vary from their ROEs.
Hope that helps.
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LTC (Join to see)
Thank you for your and first line experience and knowing of others who made the ultimate sacrifice bombing North Vietnam. I knew you had something to add that wasn't in the article!!
SFC Ralph E Kelley Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen SFC David Reid, M.S, PHR, SHRM-CP, DTM SFC Dr. Jesus Garcia-Arce, Psy.D Amn Dale Preisach
SFC Ralph E Kelley Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen SFC David Reid, M.S, PHR, SHRM-CP, DTM SFC Dr. Jesus Garcia-Arce, Psy.D Amn Dale Preisach
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Amn Dale Preisach
LTC (Join to see) would you rather your years of service be forgotten or would you care for those friends of yours to just think of your Experiences you may tell them to be welcomed like an evening with you showing your vacation trip on a white screen flipping through the slides.
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Amn Dale Preisach
LTC (Join to see) better to have a penchant for learning the history rather than you simply being dismissed and forgotten.
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An interview from the CCCP-trained North Vietnamese pilot after the Cold War ended.
https://theaviationgeekclub.com/former-north-vietnamese-mig-21-pilot-explains-how-he-was-able-to-shoot-down-a-usaf-b-52-during-operation-linebacker-ii/
https://theaviationgeekclub.com/former-north-vietnamese-mig-21-pilot-explains-how-he-was-able-to-shoot-down-a-usaf-b-52-during-operation-linebacker-ii/
Former North Vietnamese MiG-21 pilot explains how he was able to shoot down a USAF B-52 during...
Former North Vietnamese MiG-21 pilot explains how he was able to shoot down a USAF B-52 during Operation Linebacker II
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Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen
You might have to re-read to discern the subtle difference between Vietnamese/Soviet/Russian and US pilot training. The Vietnamese pilot had the target acquired but had to ask permission to attack.
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LTC (Join to see),Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen I just got a reply from a BUFF driver who was in LBII.
No, unsubstantiated rumors and outright lies on the part of a cocky Vietnamese pilot. All of the BUFFs lost in LBII were the result of being hit by SAMs.
Realistic contemporary Vietnamese historians agree that the only MiG to intercept a BUFF was the one flown by Col Dinh Rang Vu and I was a witness to that intercept
No, unsubstantiated rumors and outright lies on the part of a cocky Vietnamese pilot. All of the BUFFs lost in LBII were the result of being hit by SAMs.
Realistic contemporary Vietnamese historians agree that the only MiG to intercept a BUFF was the one flown by Col Dinh Rang Vu and I was a witness to that intercept
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SSgt Jim Gilmore
LTC (Join to see) An additional side note, Capt Dave Volker was the BUFF driver who was on the receiving end of those SAMs. A few years ago, Dave flew to Hanoi and met with Col Dinh Rang Vu. It was aired on TV in Vietnam. I'll see if I can get a link for you.
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SSgt Jim Gilmore
Here's the link to the Vietnam TV broadcast.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/zdtxla1kheaj2ye/VTV%20Hanoi%20Interview%20with%20Translation.mp4?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/zdtxla1kheaj2ye/VTV%20Hanoi%20Interview%20with%20Translation.mp4?dl=0
VTV Hanoi Interview with Translation.mp4
Shared with Dropbox
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LTC (Join to see)
SSgt Jim Gilmore yes, it's interesting how the veterans who met after the war and became friends.
This kind of reminds me of the book A Higher Call.
This was just the opposite, a luftwaffe pilot decides not to shoot down a B-17 because it had been shredded to bits so bad and he thought that it was dishonorable to shoot down a plane that was so wounded. The loop of a pilot could have been executed for treason and the crew of this bomber were sworn to secrecy because the story would have hurt the war effort. After the war, the American pilot found the German pilot and they became friends. The German pilot had moved to Canada.
https://www.airandspaceforces.com/article/valor-when-an-enemy-was-a-friend/
Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen SFC Ralph E Kelley SFC David Reid, M.S, PHR, SHRM-CP, DTM SFC Dr. Jesus Garcia-Arce, Psy.D SFC Dr. Jesus Garcia-Arce, Psy.D Amn Dale Preisach
I have this book and it's a good read. This German pilot flew for the luftwaffe before World War ii. His dad was a World War I veteran. He was Catholic and he did not really believe the Nazi cause. He also was able to escape with his ground crew from North Africa when Rommel was being routed.
This kind of reminds me of the book A Higher Call.
This was just the opposite, a luftwaffe pilot decides not to shoot down a B-17 because it had been shredded to bits so bad and he thought that it was dishonorable to shoot down a plane that was so wounded. The loop of a pilot could have been executed for treason and the crew of this bomber were sworn to secrecy because the story would have hurt the war effort. After the war, the American pilot found the German pilot and they became friends. The German pilot had moved to Canada.
https://www.airandspaceforces.com/article/valor-when-an-enemy-was-a-friend/
Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen SFC Ralph E Kelley SFC David Reid, M.S, PHR, SHRM-CP, DTM SFC Dr. Jesus Garcia-Arce, Psy.D SFC Dr. Jesus Garcia-Arce, Psy.D Amn Dale Preisach
I have this book and it's a good read. This German pilot flew for the luftwaffe before World War ii. His dad was a World War I veteran. He was Catholic and he did not really believe the Nazi cause. He also was able to escape with his ground crew from North Africa when Rommel was being routed.
Valor: When an Enemy Was a Friend | Air & Space Forces Magazine
Brown's B-17 was perhaps the most heavily damaged bomber to return from combat. It survived because of an enemy's act of chivalry.
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LTC (Join to see)
SSgt Jim Gilmore yes, it's interesting how the veterans who met after the war and became friends.
This kind of reminds me of the book A Higher Call.
This was just the opposite, a luftwaffe pilot decides not to shoot down a B-17 because it had been shredded to bits so bad and he thought that it was dishonorable to shoot down a plane that was so wounded. The loop of a pilot could have been executed for treason and the crew of this bomber were sworn to secrecy because the story would have hurt the war effort. After the war, the American pilot found the German pilot and they became friends. The German pilot had moved to Canada.
https://www.airandspaceforces.com/article/valor-when-an-enemy-was-a-friend/
Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen SFC Ralph E Kelley SFC David Reid, M.S, PHR, SHRM-CP, DTM SFC Dr. Jesus Garcia-Arce, Psy.D SFC Dr. Jesus Garcia-Arce, Psy.D Amn Dale Preisach
I have this book and it's a good read. This German pilot flew for the luftwaffe before World War ii. His dad was a World War I veteran. He was Catholic and he did not really believe the Nazi cause. He also was able to escape with his ground crew from North Africa when Rommel was being routed.
This kind of reminds me of the book A Higher Call.
This was just the opposite, a luftwaffe pilot decides not to shoot down a B-17 because it had been shredded to bits so bad and he thought that it was dishonorable to shoot down a plane that was so wounded. The loop of a pilot could have been executed for treason and the crew of this bomber were sworn to secrecy because the story would have hurt the war effort. After the war, the American pilot found the German pilot and they became friends. The German pilot had moved to Canada.
https://www.airandspaceforces.com/article/valor-when-an-enemy-was-a-friend/
Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen SFC Ralph E Kelley SFC David Reid, M.S, PHR, SHRM-CP, DTM SFC Dr. Jesus Garcia-Arce, Psy.D SFC Dr. Jesus Garcia-Arce, Psy.D Amn Dale Preisach
I have this book and it's a good read. This German pilot flew for the luftwaffe before World War ii. His dad was a World War I veteran. He was Catholic and he did not really believe the Nazi cause. He also was able to escape with his ground crew from North Africa when Rommel was being routed.
Valor: When an Enemy Was a Friend | Air & Space Forces Magazine
Brown's B-17 was perhaps the most heavily damaged bomber to return from combat. It survived because of an enemy's act of chivalry.
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