OV10 Bronco Shot Down

[fullerwe]

On December 22, 1972, an OV10 Bronco was shot down north of Phu Bai and south of the DMZ by a heat seaking missle. I was flying a US Army U21 on a classified mission in the same area and followed that aircraft down while coordinating a massive rescue effort that included a US Naval ship with medical services, helicopters, and US Airforce fighter jets. The pilot and backseat AO punched out at 800 feet. The pilot's parachute did not deploy and he died on impact. The backseat AO, callsign "Wolfman 44" landed without incident, ran over to the pilot and told me that he was bleeding from the ears and looked to be dead. The helicopter crew from Da Nang picked up both bodies and proceeded out to the waiting US Naval ship. Later I received a "thank you" plaque from Wolfman 44, but I never got to talk with him. If he's still around, I'd like to find out his thoughts on that particular day.