Gerald Maclennon's Blog - Posts Tagged "bombs"
Sailors to the End: The Deadly Fire on the USS Forrestal and the Heroes Who Fought It
the book is written by Gregory A. Freeman
On that July morning in 1967, nobody but God knew that by sunset 134 sailors and navy aviators would be dead with just as many injured, some terribly burnt. Our carrier, USS Oriskany CVA-34, steamed over to aid and assist the Forrestal during the emergency. Supplies and sailors were transported between the two ships via Sikorsky choppers. I volunteered to assist during the terrible overload down in sickbay. I did everything from mopping up puke to extracting bomb shrapnel from the bleeding bodies of 18-year-old enlisted men... and of course, just comforting them in whatever manner I could while they awaited treatment. Naturally, the wounded were triaged, taking the worst first. I wrote about the Forrestal incident in my book, "God, Bombs & Viet Nam" but I must admit Gregory Freeman has done a much better job. He is an excellent and prolific writer. I wish I could be half as skilled.
On that July morning in 1967, nobody but God knew that by sunset 134 sailors and navy aviators would be dead with just as many injured, some terribly burnt. Our carrier, USS Oriskany CVA-34, steamed over to aid and assist the Forrestal during the emergency. Supplies and sailors were transported between the two ships via Sikorsky choppers. I volunteered to assist during the terrible overload down in sickbay. I did everything from mopping up puke to extracting bomb shrapnel from the bleeding bodies of 18-year-old enlisted men... and of course, just comforting them in whatever manner I could while they awaited treatment. Naturally, the wounded were triaged, taking the worst first. I wrote about the Forrestal incident in my book, "God, Bombs & Viet Nam" but I must admit Gregory Freeman has done a much better job. He is an excellent and prolific writer. I wish I could be half as skilled.
A second look at Stephen Coonts' "Flight of the Intruder"
The book, "Bloody Sixteen" written by CDR Peter Fey, USN-retired, inspired me to buy and read "Flight of the Intruder," written by his friend and fellow Navy Pilot, Stephen Coonts. The purchase was something I should have done 33 years ago when Coonts first published it. I don't recall why I did not. Perhaps it was because the movie, "Flight of the Intruder," was so bad, I figured the book would be, also. Negative! The book is a great study on the emotions and attitudes of the pilots. I didn't realize they were as pissed off as I was regarding the s**t targets of North Vietnam... risking their lives, for example, by taking out a grove of trees where military trucks might be hiding... but usually weren't.
I looked at the Wikipedia page regarding this great book and the not-so-great film -- both entitled "Flight of the Intruder." I had to chuckle when I read about Stephen Coonts' effort to get published, because I've 'been there, done that' as well. Back in the 80's, he sent manuscripts and letters of inquiry to 36 publishers... 30 refused to look at it, 4 rejected it, and today, he's still waiting to hear back from 2 of them. Ha, as if he really cares. Ultimately the book was published by United States Naval Institute Press, Annapolis. And as follow-up, Coonts received a valuable endorsement of his book by bestselling author, Tom Clancy, and then, unexpectedly, favorable comments by then sitting president, Ronald Reagan, which sent sales skyrocketing. Clancy endorsed Coonts. Coonts endorsed Fey.
I've often said... I wonder where the pilots went when in port at Subic & Cubi Point. Author Fey touched on it briefly... of course, the Cubi Officers Club. They were equal to us enlisted grunts... Hell, more so in drunken antics. Author Coonts goes into that in detail. Funny thing is... even though I lived at Naval Air Station Cubi Point, Philippines, for a year, I had no idea (still don't) where the Cubi Point Officers Club was located -- probably up on a distant hilltop surrounded by jungle... far out of earshot.
In the book, "Flight of the Intruder," Coonts expressed the guilt he feels/felt for killing people who are not the real enemy, such as poor rice farmers. He talks about how easy, how sanitary it is, to release his bombs and fly away, noticing only a puff of smoke in the distance... and how he intentionally blocked thoughts of little girls' bodies being ripped apart by the force of the bomb explosions. It does my heart good to know the pilots had these very human emotions. Once, during our 1967 deployment, our photo recon squadron mis-targeted a building. The photo interpreters said it was for ammunition storage. On our recommendation, the attack birds took it out. BDA revealed it could very well have been a schoolhouse full of kids. Not sure. That still bugs me... brings tears to my eyes. And I was not the pilot but I was one cog in the gears of the killing machine. Maybe if it really was a just war (by political science definition) I would have felt okay about the killing and destruction. But probably not.
[SPOILER ALERT]
I can understand why Jake Grafton (read: Coonts) wanted to disobey orders by flying directly into downtown Hanoi, dropping his bombs on Communist Party Headquarters instead of dropping them on peasants who were just as horrified by the senselessness of the Vietnam Air War as Jake was... as I was. You see, because president LBJ and his henchmen were micromanaging the war from the White House VIP dining room, the majority of strategic targets were declared off-limits. The general attitude among those fighting the damn war was, "Let's either fight to win or get the hell out of here."
1975, after losing 58,000 Americans, Presidents Nixon and then Ford finally threw in the towel. What an embarrassment
Flight of the Intruder.
Bloody Sixteen: The USS Oriskany and Air Wing 16 during the Vietnam War
I looked at the Wikipedia page regarding this great book and the not-so-great film -- both entitled "Flight of the Intruder." I had to chuckle when I read about Stephen Coonts' effort to get published, because I've 'been there, done that' as well. Back in the 80's, he sent manuscripts and letters of inquiry to 36 publishers... 30 refused to look at it, 4 rejected it, and today, he's still waiting to hear back from 2 of them. Ha, as if he really cares. Ultimately the book was published by United States Naval Institute Press, Annapolis. And as follow-up, Coonts received a valuable endorsement of his book by bestselling author, Tom Clancy, and then, unexpectedly, favorable comments by then sitting president, Ronald Reagan, which sent sales skyrocketing. Clancy endorsed Coonts. Coonts endorsed Fey.
I've often said... I wonder where the pilots went when in port at Subic & Cubi Point. Author Fey touched on it briefly... of course, the Cubi Officers Club. They were equal to us enlisted grunts... Hell, more so in drunken antics. Author Coonts goes into that in detail. Funny thing is... even though I lived at Naval Air Station Cubi Point, Philippines, for a year, I had no idea (still don't) where the Cubi Point Officers Club was located -- probably up on a distant hilltop surrounded by jungle... far out of earshot.
In the book, "Flight of the Intruder," Coonts expressed the guilt he feels/felt for killing people who are not the real enemy, such as poor rice farmers. He talks about how easy, how sanitary it is, to release his bombs and fly away, noticing only a puff of smoke in the distance... and how he intentionally blocked thoughts of little girls' bodies being ripped apart by the force of the bomb explosions. It does my heart good to know the pilots had these very human emotions. Once, during our 1967 deployment, our photo recon squadron mis-targeted a building. The photo interpreters said it was for ammunition storage. On our recommendation, the attack birds took it out. BDA revealed it could very well have been a schoolhouse full of kids. Not sure. That still bugs me... brings tears to my eyes. And I was not the pilot but I was one cog in the gears of the killing machine. Maybe if it really was a just war (by political science definition) I would have felt okay about the killing and destruction. But probably not.
[SPOILER ALERT]
I can understand why Jake Grafton (read: Coonts) wanted to disobey orders by flying directly into downtown Hanoi, dropping his bombs on Communist Party Headquarters instead of dropping them on peasants who were just as horrified by the senselessness of the Vietnam Air War as Jake was... as I was. You see, because president LBJ and his henchmen were micromanaging the war from the White House VIP dining room, the majority of strategic targets were declared off-limits. The general attitude among those fighting the damn war was, "Let's either fight to win or get the hell out of here."
1975, after losing 58,000 Americans, Presidents Nixon and then Ford finally threw in the towel. What an embarrassment
Flight of the Intruder.
Bloody Sixteen: The USS Oriskany and Air Wing 16 during the Vietnam War
Burial of the USS Oriskany
SUE: Amazing! I had to look up the ship - quite a history and now an artificial reef for divers. What a trip that would be! Glad they kept her intact (for the most part)
MAC: The USS Oriskany (CVA-34) now lies under 200 feet of the Gulf of Mexico. She was scuttled on purpose to create an artificial reef. She's open for business for SCUBA adventurers. Joe Dietrich, a photo interpreter shipmate, did a SCUBA dive on her... said it was eerie to see the compartments where we lived and worked submerged.
The Oriskany had a stellar history especially in Vietnam. One of my new friends, CDR Peter Fey, USN-retired pilot and Top Gun instructor, has written a book about the Oriskany and my airwing in particular during our Vietnam "cruise" of 1967. It's well worth the money to read if you're interested in naval aviation during war. The book is "BLOODY SIXTEEN" referring to our Carrier Air Wing-16 (CVW-16). His book is true military history and was approved for publishing by the DOD (Dept of Defense).
My book is a surly & gritty account of that particular cruise as seen from a grunt's point of view (a photo reconnaissance tech's POV). I call it "God, Bombs & Vietnam" using my pen name, Gerald MacLennon.
Bloody Sixteen: The USS Oriskany and Air Wing 16 during the Vietnam War
God, Bombs & Viet Nam: Based on the Diary of a 20-Year-Old Navy Enlisted Man in the Vietnam Air War - 1967
MAC: The USS Oriskany (CVA-34) now lies under 200 feet of the Gulf of Mexico. She was scuttled on purpose to create an artificial reef. She's open for business for SCUBA adventurers. Joe Dietrich, a photo interpreter shipmate, did a SCUBA dive on her... said it was eerie to see the compartments where we lived and worked submerged.
The Oriskany had a stellar history especially in Vietnam. One of my new friends, CDR Peter Fey, USN-retired pilot and Top Gun instructor, has written a book about the Oriskany and my airwing in particular during our Vietnam "cruise" of 1967. It's well worth the money to read if you're interested in naval aviation during war. The book is "BLOODY SIXTEEN" referring to our Carrier Air Wing-16 (CVW-16). His book is true military history and was approved for publishing by the DOD (Dept of Defense).
My book is a surly & gritty account of that particular cruise as seen from a grunt's point of view (a photo reconnaissance tech's POV). I call it "God, Bombs & Vietnam" using my pen name, Gerald MacLennon.
Bloody Sixteen: The USS Oriskany and Air Wing 16 during the Vietnam War
God, Bombs & Viet Nam: Based on the Diary of a 20-Year-Old Navy Enlisted Man in the Vietnam Air War - 1967
