Reply #9: Love the guard, hate the AWOL. [View All]

[DemoTex]

MAYDAY! MAYDAY! MAYDAY! Misty 23, Misty 23, Misty 23! FLAMEOUT! FLAMEOUT! FLAMEOUT!

Crazy Cat 912, do you see Misty flight? Flight of four F-100 fast-facs below you and to the left?

I've got three, Portcall. There is a cloud layer below ... tops about seven thousand. Looks like Misty 23 went into the clouds.

Misty 21 on guard, Misty 23 ... Misty 23!

Misty 21, this is Crazy Cat 912, looks like 23 is down. We have DF capability. We will set up for SAR.

Misty 21 this is Hillsboro on guard............ Misty 23? Misty 23? Misty 23?

This happened to me in November, 1970. I was Crazy Cat 912. The Misty flight were four F-100 Fast-Facs from Phan Rang. The Mistys were one of the few, if not the only, Air Guard units in Vietnam. They flew with flasks of vodka in their survival vests (Stars & Stripes, 1971) and fearlessly marked the big anti-aircraft guns on the Ho Chi Mihn trail. Guys with guts. Most over 40. Some lawyers, some bankers, some doctors. I loved the Misties. We never found Misty 23. RIP 23. Bless the guard and their damn F-100s.