Any USAFSS?

dersequim

I posted on the Wannabees thread and then realized that I have never seen any other mention of our units on this website. I was at the 6987th RSM Linkou AS. I understand that in the beginning ALL USAFSS in NAM were assigned to the 6987th. Only had one ever rotate into our unit while I was there. I was a 20250, 5/61-8/62.

blackpowdermax

dersequim....Not USAFSS, but was with the Naval Security Group (NSG), FLTSUPDET out of Danang, 71-73. I believe the 6994th SS was in Danang at that time also. Oddly enough, I did my rate training at Goodfellow AFB in Texas, so a tiny bit of USAFSS in me. [:)]

Here's a site that might bring back memories for you if you haven't seen it before.

http://www.silent-warriors.com/

dersequim

This info is from what we were told by the ONE 292XX that did rotate into our unit from SVN. They were brought in by Chopper. They had their Radio Equip, Pallets of empty Sandbags, Shovels, tents and Light Weapons (M2's maybe?). They built their site and went to work. They were protected by AR troops and SVN Regulars. Most sites were well behind the lines. They were ALL regarded as ADVISORS!!
The slides he brought were confinstated the day after he brought them into the compound, the one's who took them were wearing SUITS!
He had about 10 files full of pics from his time there. His duty there was 12mo. His tour at Linkou was to be 15mos. He disappeared when his pics left.

dersequim

BPM, We had a small NSG unit. They had one radio and an antenna that did a double 360. They worked dayshift only?
Anyway when they left for the day we would point it a LA and listen to "WOLFMAN JACK". Our commander Capt. Webb would come up sometimes and listen to AC taking off and landing at LAX and Moscow. One night he asked what my favorite radio station was. The next thing I knew the Deck was enjoying KOMO from Seattle. We used to listen to that station out of Rio Texas alot also. I used to tune it in when in Eastern Wa. Come to think of it I'll give it a shot when over there this year, it's been several years since I dialed it up. [:)]

blackpowdermax

Hah! That reminds me of listening to an old Wards Airline shortwave radio as a kid. Big long antenna and I could listen to Moscow, Quito, Ecuador, Australia, etc. I listened to a station in Oklahoma City, I think it was called KOMA, but not sure of the call sign. Good station..........

No chance to do that in Danang, all of my time was airborn.

max

32 Magnum

I was Army Security Agency - 98G2LVS and 04B2LVS - trained at Ft Bliss - 47 weeks of VN language school - 9 weeks at Goodfellow AFB in San Angelo TX for radio intercept tech. school. Spent first three+ months May - Aug 69 with 9th Inf Div on the ground in support of Inf. units in the Delta and was sent to the ASA Aviation Co. at Cam Rahn Bay in Sept of 69 located at the NAF Cam Rahn. We flew in converted P2V-7 Neptunes, over Ho Chi Minh Trail, the Army had four of these birds. We were in radio contact with Phu Bai and passed our intel (real time voice intercept) to them, then landed at Da Nang to refuel and drop off our transcript sheets and tape recording for shipment to Phu Bai. Missions were roughly 15 to 16 hours in the air with about a 1.5 hour turn around at Da Nang. I ended up earning Basic Air Medal and 23 Oak Leaf Clusters in 8 months - lots of air time in what they called Combat Support missions - we buzzed around the Arc Light target areas and the Fast Mover ground targets to pick up after action reports from the NVA ground commanders. Saw lots of 37mm and 57mm AAA - damn near sh.t my pants the first couple missions - can't dig a fox hole in an airplane. LOL. 10 emergency landings (9 on one engine, 1 complete hydraulic failure) and one complete loss of power (both engines quit - unpowered glide until the crew chief got one prop started up again - longest three minutes of my life) in air over Laos - still have some nightmares about that one.
The security services did one hell of a job, saved a lot of American and SVN lives and helped keep the NVA/VC off balance...many of them never knew what hit them - ARDF.

blackpowdermax

32 Magnum.....glad you made it back. We had a mixed bag of services at our classes at DLIWC..... ASA, USAFSS, NSG and Marines (also NSG). Good bunch of guys.

We had 3 different planes, EC-121's, EP-3B's and EA-3B's. Spent a lot of time in the EC-121's and P-3's flying a track from Vinh to Haiphong and back. Those were 10-12 hour flights though sometimes longer if the situation warranted. I was a SAM op. Later on I ended up flying in the EA-3B's, a 2 engine jet. We sometimes went out over the gulf, usually when one of the big planes had problems, but most flights were "Black Track" on the western side of NVN over Laos. No AAA (we were at 30,000 feet), but always kept our fingers crossed that they didn't manage to sneak a SAM site in there. Those flights were from 11:00 P.M. to 3 A.M. in the morning, so kind of turned into a night owl. [:D]

All of our rides were courtesy of VQ-1 and those guys did a bang up job of maintenance on the planes (and flying too). About the worst thing I ever had to worry about was a drag chute not deploying on landing (on the A-3's) and blowing a tire because of the brake heat. But even that was rare (drag chute not deploying). Here's a couple of our rides:





There was a NSG detachment at Phu Bai also, but I never got to "visit".

Barzilla....good to hear that KOMA is still operating. I used to listen to it from a small town on the western slope of Colorado.

max