It flew at 200 miles per hour, carried 13,000 pounds of cargo and had a range of 900 miles. Great article with great info, I remember in 1968 when I went. +C $19.78 shipping estimate. What I do remember is that the plane had a very unpleasant odor and the food was cold. He graduated high school and he could have gone to work in the woods, or he could have joined the military, Kirk, his niece, told FLYING. What aviation news will you check out next? It broke my heart the way they were treated a few years later, especially knowing I had been in attendance on their flight into a war zone, and wondered how they had faired in the return to the USA. I too was older at 25 and remember them well. On Wednesday morning in Sacramento, as many as 30 former flight attendants for the airline are reuniting to honor servicemen killed in the war. The men were superstitious that the plane would crash it would be just their luck to die in a dumb accident on the verge of getting home. All rights reserved. All four were Lockheed L-1049H Super Constellations. Top Rated Seller Top Rated Seller. These men and their flight crew perished in what would become one of the biggest aviation mysteries out of the Vietnam War era. Next stop was Yokota Japan. If you've . Patch , 45th TRANSPORTATION Company FLYING TIGER AIRLINES Vietnam War Patch , s4 | Collectibles, Militaria, Militaria (Date Unknown) | eBay! Not one of us said a word in the dark as we watched the plane sitting there with jet engines idling. Click on Links for More information About Each Plane. However, these were not military aircraft, but commercial airliners under contract by the U.S. Air Force Military Airlift Command (MAC) and served by civilian crews and flight attendants. Family members, like Kirk, continue to lobby for adding the soldiers names to the Vietnam Memorial, and this past summer, a bill was introduced in the U.S. Senate that would pave the way for their inclusion. Its a way to look back, said one woman planning to attend, Ann Price Montgomery, who joined Flying Tigers in 1968. In a review of evidence, investigators later determined that access to flight line and ramp areas in Honolulu, Wake Island, and Guam allowed unchallenged access to anyone desiring entry, including non-military aircraft. Jason Fagone is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Was processed out of the Army at Fort Lewis, got a military standby flight for$11. Suspected Chinese Spy Balloon Detected Over the U.S. DARPA Narrows Down Liberty Lifter Design Competition, USAF Awards Electra $85M Contract for eSTOL Aircraft, Navy Awards Textron Aviation $113M Contract for Multiengine Trainers, AOPA Names Regional Flight School, Instructor Award Winners, Biden Makes Unprecedented Surprise Trip To Ukraine, NTSB Launches Investigation Into 777s Sudden Loss of Altitude. thank you. Its variants seat 242 to 335 passengers in typical three-class seating configurations. . AU $196.32 20% off + AU $5.80 postage. As their deaths did not occur in the Vietnam combat zone, their names were . So they tried to keep it light. It brought back memories from 68. Free shipping for many products! During the Korean War, Tigers planes provided air transport services for personnel and cargo from the west coast of the US to various military bases throughout the Pacific area. This Is Your Captain by Reyne OShaughnessy, Flying Tiger Memories by Guy Van Herbruggen & Charles Kennedy, Tiger 747 by Guy Van Herbruggen/Charles Kennedy, DC-8 & The Flying Tiger Line by Guy Van Herbruggen & Charles Kennedy. Great article, spot on! At 8:22 a.m. on March 16the time when FTL 739s fuel would have officially run outthe flight was declared lost. According to the Aviation Safety Network, it first flew in 1957, and had amassed a total of 17,224 hours. Was I really in a real war??? Dont remember who flew me over my second trip in Dec. 71. 60 Years Missing: The Mystery Of Flying Tiger Line Flight 739, marked the first day of the Vietnam War Campaign, USAF Shot Down 3 Unidentified Objects That Posed Threat To Civilian Aircraft, U.S. Military Collecting Debris From Downed Spy Balloon. His 93 U.S. military passengers, three South Vietnamese soldiers and the 11 civilian crew members aboard Flying Tiger Line Flight 739 disappeared on their way from Guam to the Philippines.. No one was home, but a neighbor walked up to the car. Know now that I was stunned , medical shock, at suddenly the war down below, behind me , was gone. He was pulled back in on a special mission, handpicked by [President] John F. Kennedy, Kirk said. Nearly two hours into the flight, the pilot radioed Guam with the aircrafts position, notifying air traffic control that it was on track to land in the Philippines shortly after 3 a.m. The C-47 could fly 7,500 pounds of cargo over a range of 600 miles at 150 miles per hour. Originating at Travis Air Force Base, California, the Military Transport was scheduled for fueling stops at Honolulu, Wake Island, Guam, Clark AFB and was to terminate in Saigon. The decent angle brought the entire plane to silence while they considered the reason for that radical decent. I went over in February 1970. Then all the guys just could not be held down by the stewerdesses and they did not even try to quiet the guys. I remember one of the attendants wishing my a HAPPY BIRTHDAY. Several of these commercial flights left daily from military air bases on the west coast, ferrying newly trained soldiers across the Pacific Ocean to war - replacements not only for those injured and killed soldiers, but also for those young men who survived their twelve month war and were now going home. I just stood there in my bedroom looking out the window for a very long time,saying to myself Did that really happen??? Very interesting. Each of the awesome giants flies more than 200,000 pounds of cargo at 575 miles per hour over a 3,500-mile range. It was really a struggle to decide what was right or what was wrong, said Okicich. B-747-100 Flying Tigers was the first airline to operate Boeing 747 passenger aircraft converted into efficient air freighters. Remember the pungent fish smell and heat as we deplaned. When you went to school for Pan Am, they showed you how to do your makeup and your hair. In addition to the emotional impact, the flight attendants risked physical harm while flying to military bases in an active combat zone. Eventually, in 1988, FedEx bought the airlines parent company, absorbing its routes and bringing the rough-and-tumble era of cargo aviation to a close. Its ultimate destination was the Vietnamese city of Saigon, to which it was transporting 96 soldiers. I only wish that I could stand before these wonderful ladies. each of us inside were scared because for the first time non of us were wearing helmets, flack jackets, no weapons or ammo. Some years ago I made contact with one of those stewardesses and found out about their reunions. Freedom Bird. Despite the intensity of the operations, many flight attendants found the military contract flights rewarding and continued to serve on them for years. December 31st, 1968 at the age of 20 we flew from Travis AFB to Anchorage Alaska. Ninety-three of these were enlisted with the US Army, with the remaining three being from South Vietnam. On the other hand, airlines from Australia, Singapore, India, Vietnam, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Switzerland, Denmark, Turkey, Kazakhstan and Russia all fly direct to Phuket - Thailand's . I have never heard this or found any reference on it, but I knew it would be of interest - AB Circa 1968-1972 Vietnam War CASI Continental Air Services Inc Shirt Type 1st Officer Wing RARE Item: aircw60001sw. We all wanted to get home, but wondered if this old crate could get us there. Capable of lifting 7,000 pounds over a version of the famed DC-3. I know the feelings, having done the flights in 68 & 70. Three Vietnam service members were also among the passengers. The big, glamorous airline back then was Pan Am. The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Renton Factory in Washington. From 1945 to 1989 Flying Tigers management, mechanics, office staff, flight attendants, pilots and crew members worked together to build an airline that became a legend. Sweet Jesus, I was back in the USA ; The cabbie just handed out this yellow paper and drove off, Kirk said. Travel the world, the ad said. Thank you stewardesses. I have grieved for them ever since. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. I was Infantry so I knew I had reason to be worried, but these ladies put us all at ease, as much as was possible .. one of the truly great memories Im thankful to have .. We went out to the airstripvery early in the morning in a vehicle. She laughed. Today. The Flying Tigers were reactivated as the Marine Corps' second CH-53A squadron and re-designated Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 361 at New River North Carolina as part of Marine Aircraft Group 26, 2d Marine Aircraft Wing. (LogOut/ My birthday is January 1st. Tiger Air Flights To Vietnam Tiger Air is one of the few low-cost airlines currently operating in Vietnam. Flying Tiger Line flight 739 was a multi-leg charter service that originated at Travis Air Force Base in the US state of California. where we are found aloft These ladies were great listeners and very supportive. And many didnt know what to think, caught between respect for the military and horror over the fates of the boys on their flights. The company said it needed flight attendants. I now have a new group of Vietnam vets to admire and respect. With the DC-8, Flying Tigers was able to inaugurate daily international schedules on routes linking the major markets of the U.S. and Asia. Mel Beers ret first sergeant . Vintage Flying Tigers Airline 1981 Timetable from/to Greece - Flying Tiger Line. I remember we had trouble on departure from Travis and then landed at Hickham and had to spend the night awaiting a replacement aircraft. The flight attendants were as depicted in this article, both going and coming home. Flying Tigers was a mechanism of the war she opposed. View Product. Like you were going to hang around. Within a matter of hours, the carriers losses would get much worse. She had many stories. To kill time many of us went to the Officers Club, with the flight attendants in tow, and proceeded to party. Prices were available within the past 7 days and start at $363 for one-way flights and $690 for round trip, for the period specified. God Bless those women who helped me on those hours headed home to start to feel like I might still have some humanity left in me. Her byline has appeared in numerous online and print publications including Al Jazeera America, USA Today, ForeignPolicy.com and US News & World Report. Great, I had the opportunity to fly w/those ladies one great experience,,! I went to Nam aboard a ship which very nicely cut 21 days off my tour. Flying Tiger Line was the first scheduled cargo airline in the U.S., founded by ex-military pilots in 1945. meets a very pale blue, The soldiers on Flight 739 were on a mission to do whatever the government told them to do, Kirk said. Conditions were, however, well within the weather minimums set for the airline at the landing strip of a 400-ft ceiling and three-quarter-miles visibility, a report later noted. She then asked me Why of all the Corpsmen/servicemen on this plane was I the only one that didnt ask for her address and telephone number? I told her that (1. Change). Not certain but I believe Delta may have been one exception. Hamburg, 27 February 2023 - EGYPTAIR took delivery of its first A321neo from Airbus' Delivery Centre in Hamburg, making the airline the first African operator of the aircraft.. EGYPTAIR has specified a high comfort, two-class configuration with 16 Business class seats and 166 Economy class seats, and will increase the airline's single aisle capacity to the Middle East, Africa and Europe. First time over in July 68 I was a 29 year old Warrant Officer pilot and flew on a Seaboard World stretch-8 (DC-8-50) that was only a couple of years old but what I remember about the flight was that the plane was dirty and worn and the flight attendants were older than me. We turned off our running lights to avoid ground fire.. At 11:15PM June 29, 1968 I left Bien Hoa airport on a Trans International DC-10. The Secretary of the Army has asked me to express his deep regret that your son Specialist Donald A Sargent was a passenger aboard a chartered aircraft that was reported missing while in flight over the Pacific Ocean on 15 March 1962, the telegram read. Opens in a new window or tab. Add to Cart. Opens in a new window or tab. Having climbed to a cruising altitude of 18,000 feet, the aircraft reported its position as being 1340N 1400E just under an hour and a half into the flight. Specifically equipped with weather monitoring equipment and scientific instrumentation, one 707 (Aircraft N322FT), gained fame as the "Pole Cat." The aircraft operating the flight was a Lockheed L-1049H Super Constellation registered as N6921C. Some of the now-adult children of those on board speculate that the flight made it, but that passengers were captured, Kirk said. we sat silently in the darkness almost trying to will ourselves into that jet thru the air. Although the fledgling Flying Tiger Line was in a precarious financial situation during its early years, it enjoyed extraordinary growth throughout most of the 60's, and eventually emerged as the industry's foremost all-cargo carrier. Very good article. All deals. Ardith (Vignati) Willner We crossed over the international dateline and it became the 2nd of January. Very nice ,brings back feeling that are mostly good ones.Thank you ladies.I flew into DANANG twice the 2nd fight was with the Flying Tigars and a year later they flew me back to the states. Breen went from being gung ho about the war to suspecting the government was lying and thinking the war was a mistake. One of the seven people on boardthe flight engineerwas killed in a fire that destroyed the aircraft and all its contents. Flying Tiger Line Flight 739 was a Lockheed Super Constellation aircraft, which is pictured here. Her sentiments are echoed by Judy Meyer, who flew for United Air Lines, It was some of the best flying I ever did. Although these women were an integral part of the Vietnam War experience, their contributions are largely unknown outside of the veteran community. Thats funny. 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