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Lockheed C-130 Hercules — - TAN SON NHUT AIR BASE, SAIGON, VIETNAM 1966 C-130 ON THE RAMP
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Lockheed C-130 Hercules —

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TAN SON NHUT AIR BASE, SAIGON, VIETNAM 1966 C-130 ON THE RAMP

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Gary Schenauer
Sam, I am always interested in looking up the histories of aircraft, and a pic taken so long ago (1966 ... I was 16 yrs/old; two years before I enlisted) of a C-130 in SEA was certain to be a snap of an aircraft with a "story," so I looked into this one.
This Hercules is a C-130B (reg. 60-0301). There is an official USAF photo of it on the web (black & white pic) that was taken when it was in SEA. Of great interest; however, is the rescue mission it survived in August, 1966, at Vo Dat, when it arrived at the Vo Dat airfield (which was a "quagmire" of mud due to a just-ended downpour) as the 100+ troops on the ground were under attack. The north end of the airfield had already been overrun and was under the control of the NVA when this C-130 appeared. ( "Trash Haulers: The Story of the C-130 Hercules Troop Carrier/Tactical Airlift " ... Author: Sam McGowan)
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Also, after outliving its usefulness to the USAF, 60-0301 went on to serve in another nation's military: the Royal Jordanian Air Force. It now lists as wfu and I am quite certain it is nothing more than scrap metal by now.
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I truly appreciate you sharing this photo, Sam. You have a 5-star pic here of a 5-star aircraft that withstood the worst from Mother Nature and from a hostile attacking force and brought 100+ men to safety. *****
SAM PIERCEPhoto Uploader
Thanks to everyone for the views, votes and comment, they are appreciated.
Tom Vance
Good stuff Gary!

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