Home Page : Feature Stories : Last Updated VIETNAM REPORT
PART 1 --- DANANG
EVACUATION
By: Captain Marius Burke. Jr. This article was first printed in the Air America Log Oct,Nov,Dec 1989 Volume 6 No.4 The Danang Fiasco really began
on the 17th of March 1975. Reports
had been received regarding heavier than normal unfriendly activity between
Hue and Quang Tri. The more information that was received, the less inclined
I was to launch the scheduled ICCS (International Control Commission
Services) helicopter to Quang Tri that morning.
Contact was made with the Indonesian Air Operations representative of
the ICCS to discuss the matter. He blandly informed me that a chopper
was not required. Apparently
the military situation had gotten so bad that all the ICCS
delegates had abandoned Quang Tri the night before and had gone by road to
Hue. They had not considered it
necessary to inform us of that situation before we might have sent our
aircraft to an area that had likely been overrun! Reports
continued to come in regarding activity north of Hue which indicated the
presence of North Vietnamese tanks in the area but there was
little other apparent activity. Some pressure was expected to be put on Hue
but the word put out by the customer was that it was nothing to
be alarmed about. On the
I 18th of
Match, the first enemy shelling was experienced at Hue.
The following day
I recommended to the OSA customers that perhaps their representatives in Hue
should be pulled out each night. They
disagreed. Thus, the tone for
future events was set At
about 7 PM on the 19th, I received a call from Roy Lewis stating
that there was an emergency situation at Hue due to heavy shelling and
reported nearby tank activity. He
wanted helicopters sent up to evacuate his people.
Since our normal flying activities were limited to daytime
operations, this was truly considered an emergency.
Two crews were organized and we departed Danang about 8 PM.
Upon arrival about 40 minutes later we had to wait for some time
since not everyone was ready to go. Finally,
everyone was ready and we headed back to Danang.
Some ground fire was received on the return trip but it could not be
determined if it was friendly or unfriendly.
Actually irrelevant, I guess. Upon
returning to Danang, a request was received from the ICCS delegation to
evacuate their personnel from Hue. We again launched, arriving at Hue
around 10:30 PM. We waited for almost 45 minutes for passengers to show up.
None did. At that point we were at low fuel state and had to depart. I
was informed the folloving day that they had not completed packing!
Obviously, their sense of urgency was for less than ours. Crew
members involved in this mission included Captains Gehring, Lannin,
Hitchman and Mechanics Gil and Pacariem. On,
20 March the situation at Hue appeared to be less tenuous.
Customers were going to Hue in, the morning and
returning to Danang in the evening. However, it was noted that refugees
were filtering south in ever increasing numbers. This exodus increased as
shelling of Hue began once more.
Finally, on the 23rd of March, an urgent call was received to
evacuate all remaining customers due to heavy enemy activity in the area.
This was accomplished. Hue
was considered lost as of the
evening of the 23rd. On
the morning of the 24th a call was received from the Polish
representative of the ICCS wanting us to schedule a flight to Hue
that afternoon. To digress a little... the ICCS was composed of
representatives from Poland and Hungary who essentially represented
the North Vietnamese interests and the Indonesians and Iranians who
represented the South Vietamese/U. S. interests.
Their mission was supposedly to monitor the cease fire
or peace accords. This
involved transporting them behind enemy lines by airplane or helicopter.
Air America, interestingly enough, had this contract.
The dedicated aircraft were painted with the ICCS logos, etc. When we
flew those aircraft we were supposed to wear different The
weather had been very marginal over the past few days; ceilings were running
from 20 to 100 feet with rain throughout the area.
One helicopter was launched for Quang Ngai (about a 30 minute flight
south of Danang) early in the morning for normal administrative purposes.
The windshield wipers burned out en route and because of the adverse
weather, the crew aborted the mission and returned to Danang.
A few hours later word was received that Quang Ngai was under attack.
An evacuation of all appropriate personnel was necessary immediately. Two
aircraft were launched in an attempt to get through the weather.
A low level flight over the ocean was undertaken and three shuttles
with personnel and records were made between
Quang Ngai and Chu Lai which was considered a secure area.
Quang Ngai was written off that afternoon. On
the 25th a recon flight was made with the objective of finding
alternative safe landing destinations in the event an evacuation of Danang
became necessary. The closest
satisfactory safe area appeared to be the islands approximately ten miles
off the coast of Danang which were occasionally used as bombing practice
ranges. However, the
Consulates contention was that the security at the islands was
questionable, even at that time and my plans to position fuel there were
quashed. From
the 23rd on I had begun spending 24 hours a day at the base in
order to ensure that at least one helicopter and crew would be available in
the event problems arose and/or ground traffic in and out of the air base
gates was stopped. On the night
of the 23rd the base was hit by rockets.
However, no other incoming was experienced until the day after the
final mass evacuation took place on the 29th. It
soon became obvious that our nonessential personnel needed to be evacuated
from Danang. Although extra
company aircraft were coming up to take people out, there generally were no
extra seats for our employees. A
seat belt waiver was requested to allow more people on board each aircraft
but it was not authorized. It
took what seemed forever to convey the seriousness of the situation to the
folks in Saigon. Finally, a waiver was granted and we were able to legally (at
least by the company) add more people to the departing flights.
Nevertheless, we still encountered difficulties getting company
nonessential personnel and dependents on the airlifts.
In fact, at one time I was told by a U.S. Consulate official that Air
America personnel had no right to ride on departing Air America
aircraft but rather should go by boat!
With that comment a short discussion ensued, in which I threatened to
shut down all Air America flight operations.
Our people were finally given appropriate consideration. Just before dawn on the 26th,
about 400 refugees from Quang Tri and Hue appeared on our ramp and informed
me that they were waiting to go out on the airlift heading south which was
now in full swing. They stated
that they were given approval to come aboard the air base by the Base
Security Officer. I managed to
convince them to clear the ramp and they then set up camp outside our gate.
As the airlift progressed, this crowd seemed to act as a catalyst and
pretty soon was increased by thousand and they began breaking through the
barriers we had erected to keep the ramp clear for arriving aircraft.
Two Vietnamese Generals on the scene were asked to control the crowd
but their only reply was that they were incapable of doing anything about
the situation. Im sure the
only reason they were there was to make sure their families got out on the
airlift.
Communications and coordination between my office and the OSA
warehouse next door became increasingly difficult and reached the point
where I was forced to literally take over all air operations functions.
Games had to be played because the ramp was overrun with people.
Aircraft were told to park at various areas of the field, passengers
bussed out, etc. Finally the
Consul General, Mr. Al Francis, attempted to appease the refugees by
dedicating the next arriving 727 solely for their use if they would promise
to maintain order. This gambit
failed, with the result that on the 27th he called off the World
Airways airlift. Attempts were
still made by company aircraft, with marginal success.
By this time the VNAF had compromised all our radio frequencies and
as soon as an aircraft landed they would be hot on its heels with a caravan
of vehicles loaded with their people.
An aside ... For some time I had requested that out Xray Bell 204's (
N registered Bell 204B's) which had small cabins and small fuel tanks with
resulting short range, be replaced by our longer ranged Foxtrot
models. Only one of three was replaced. This created problems later
on with our ability to adequately perform certain missions. Very specific
instructions from Saigon were given me regarding not utilizing the ICCS H
model Bell ( which not only had greater
range but also greater passenger carrying capability) for anything
but official ICCS missions. In
the end we had one ICCS H model, two X ray models and one Foxtrot model. It was decided to cut operations personnel
to the absolute minimum and keep only one pilot per aircraft and no Flight
Attendants or Flight Mechanics, planning instead to utilize the Filipino
ground mechanics who could do double duty and who also had good local
contacts. It appeared that Saigon just didn't realize the seriousness of our
situation despite many requests that replacement crews and cargo not be sent
to Danang. There was no longer time to worry about complying with
regulations. The crews present were asked to decide whether or not they
wished to stay since I planned no relief after crews were designated. Terry
Olson specifically requested to stay till the end and the other crews said
they would stay if needed. Nevertheless, replacements and cargo continued to
show up. Crews were simply loaded back aboard the aircraft and sent home,
Unfortunately, this took up seats we could have used for other people having
to leave. One night we worked until midnight unloading unneeded cargo so we
could get passengers out first thing in the morning. All of this simply
slowed down the airlift and clogged up our ramp. Fuel
was another vital consideration. I
fully expected that should the situation deteriorate, Shell Oil would not be
available to provide fuel and we obviously could expect little or no support
from the military (This turned out to be so). A search was made for drummed
fuel that we could cache away. None was readily available in Danang. Saigon
seemed to have little interest in helping us out in this respect, instead
referring us back to Shell in Danang, After many requests we finally
received 12 empty drums from Saigon that were in such poor condition that
only two were usable! We spent many nights searching for empty drums in the
area and attempting to salvage them for our purposes. Some of the few we did
finally manage to obtain were eventually put to good use. I was beginning to
wonder if Saigon hadn't already been taken over by the other side! The
day after Quang Ngai fell, Captain Braithwaite was dispatched to Saigon with
our fifth aircraft, an X ray model that had been replaced the day before by
a Foxtrot model. With the loss of Quang Ngai, refueling became a major
consideration for X ray models. Chu Lai was reported to be secure so it was
scheduled as a refueling point to enable the aircraft to make it to Quin
Nhon, the next available refueling site. Braithwaite's aircraft was loaded
with evacuees and launched. As he attempted to refuel at Chu Lai, Unfriendly
elements opened fire, wounding his Flight Attendant and one passenger. He
managed to get airborne and return to Danang. Among other hits, one was
taken in a rotor blade spar and another in the engine, requiring changes of
both. By now it was apparent
that the situation had reached a critical stage and the ARVN and VNAF were
doing little or nothing to stem the unfriendly advances.
Danang was becoming increasingly isolated. We had one rotor blade in stock but
required an engine from Saigon.
A request was immediately sent
out, but despite the arrival of several aircraft that day, (incidentally,
all loaded with unneeded cargo) no engine showed up. Finally, late the
following evening the replacement engine arrived. Much of that night was
spent installing it and running FCF's (Functional Check Flights). It was
again dispatched to Saigon the following day carrying some of the drummed
fuel we had stashed away so it could bypass Chu Lai. Despite the tremendous loss of territory
surrounding Danang, the word from the powers that be was that there would
definitely be a stand and the city would not be allowed to fall into enemy
hands On the night of the 26th, a
number of late evening administrative flights were flown, the last aircraft
landing after 8:00 PM. Shell
had agreed to retain enough people to support us if we promised to evacuate
them when the time came. However,
on this evening, we ran into problems.
Access to our camp by normal means was blocked off.
The only way to get to it was by going to the end of the field and
then up the taxiway. The tower
refused Shell permission to do this. After
much running around I decided to take the truck myself and drive it through,
thinking the VNAF might be more willing to deal with an American.
Unfortunately, in the meantime, the Shell driver left with the truck,
driving it to their compound and locking it up. This left us with three aircraft in a low fuel state.
Not a very desirable situation under the circumstances.
After some significant negotiations with the VNAF, permission was
given allowing us to refuel across the field at their refueling pits.
At this we breathed a little easier. On the 27th, the situation was
relatively unchanged except that we had literally thousands of people camped
out in our operating area. They
werent overly unruly but made it clear they would not leave until an
aircraft took them away. Hundreds
of people were also camping out in the OSA compound and travel between the
two areas was almost impossible. That
afternoon, after making some local administrative flights, one of the OSA
customers got out of my aircraft and left his special radio behind.
I decided to hold on to it. All
crews had now been instructed to spend the night at the field.
Around 9:00 PM I attempted to go downtown and retrieve personal
belongings as well as those of Captain Stergar who was back in the States on
leave. Upon arrival at the gate
I met some of the Filipino mechanics who had been spending the last few
nights at the field and who had gone downtown to get some of their
belongings. The gate was closed
except for military traffic and the guards would not let them or their
vehicles back on the base. I
then walked out the gate and attempted to drive one of the vehicles in.
This resulted in some heated discussions with the gate guards for
almost an hour, finally terminating with the guards shooting into the air
with their weapons indicating that discussions were ended.
I got the picture. I
parked the vehicle and attempted to walk back in, permission was refused.
After another 30 minutes of discussions, they finally let me in but
refused to allow the Filipinos entry. I
instructed them to go to the company hostel downtown and spend the night.
A VHF radio had been installed there for such a situation and they
were to check in upon their safe arrival (the phone was no longer working).
This was accomplished and they were advised to return to the base in
the morning. If that were not
possible, we made plans to pick them up at a prearranged spot by helicopter.
Around midnight a call was received from the hostel stating there was
shooting in the neighborhood and houses were being ransacked.
The hostel was reputed to be the next target.
Instructions were given for all personnel to leave and proceed down
the block to the customer OSA motor pool which was considered secure.
I attempted to contact Saigon with these latest developments, but no
contact could be made.
For the last week I had been camping out in our administrative
office. When I first came up to
Danang, things were rather busy and I never bothered getting the safe
combination form our Vietnamese accountant. Just the day before, Saigon had delivered that months
payroll and it was now sitting in the safe just opposite my cot.
The accountant was off base and after the events of the evening I
wished I had the combination should the accountant not be able to return to
base. At approximately 2:00 AM
the radio that I had acquired that day suddenly came alive.
A voice, apparently that of the OSA Chief, Mr. Greeley, made a call
instructing someone to get his people down to the docks immediately.
A few more calls followed and finally the folks in the OSA warehouse
next door were asked how many Americans they had at the base.
The reply was 13. (It
was obvious. This did not
include us!) They were then
told to get in a vehicle, leave the base immediately and go to the docks. I waited a short while for the expected call but when it
became obvious that none would be forthcoming, called next door and asked
what was going on. The answer
was, I dont know, except that we have been told to get off the
base. I then asked what we
were supposed to do. The reply
was do the best you can. When
asked if that meant we were on our own, I received an answer in the
affirmative. It was at this time that I sent a message to Saigon stating
it appeared the end was imminent.
A short time later the OSA group returned saying the gates were
closed and they would try in the morning when curfew was lifted at 6:00 AM,
but that we should be alert that help might be needed from us!
It was at this point that I roused the rest of our crews and other
employees at the field, informing them preparations were being made to
depart. That is, if the many
people camped out on the ramp would let us.
The previous day the airstrip at Marble Mountain had been cleared of
debris for possible contingency use and time distance planning had been
accomplished for what appeared the only viable alternate destination after
leaving Danang; Cu Le Re Island. This
small volcanic looking island about 10 miles off the coast of Quant Ngai was
only about a mile in diameter but was renowned for its garlic.
It also had a small airstrip.
During the night, all our people surreptitiously carried minimal
personnel belongings out to the helicopters.
They then waited behind the hangar.
It was planned to attempt departure just prior to first light when
most folks would still be half asleep.
All four aircraft would start up simultaneously and as soon as that
happened our passengers would make a run for it and we would all
depart
hopefully.
Fortunately, we had enough edge to accomplish just that; although by
the time we were lifting off the crowd was heading for us enmasse and quite
a few were hanging on the skids as we departed.
Fog was just beginning to form.
A C-46, almost over Danang, piloted by Captain Bill Shaver, was
advised of the situation and asked to attempt a landing at Marble Mountain
to pick up our passengers. It
landed just prior to the runway being masked completely by fog.
Two more trips were made to the Air America ramp in an attempt to
police up any recognizable stragglers.
This was difficult inasmuch as it was necessary to hover over what
was not a panicky crowd and try to snatch up only those people we could
identify. We were almost
dragged down many times and naturally ended up with many people we didnt
necessarily want. On the last
try there appeared to be no one else to pick up save one of our utility men
who kept running away whenever we hovered near him. The rotor downwash apparently frightened him more than the
fear of being left behind. About
this time some people in the crowd began firing at us and we were forced to
depart.
While we were still hovering over the crowd looking for employees,
mechanic Gil decided to tell me what was sitting inside our locked hangar.
Apparently, the night before, the paymaster for the German Hospital
came to our facility in one of their ambulances.
I believe he was Filipino and a friend of the mechanics.
He had the hospital payroll which was in excess of $250,000 with him
in the ambulance. Apparently,
due to all the commotion, he was unable to properly distribute the money.
At the same time he was concerned about having that money with him
for fear he would be held up. Thus,
the ambulance and the money were locked up in our hangar overnight for sake
keeping. It was still in the hangar as we hovered outside. I
told Gil that under the circumstances he was welcome to got get it.
I would let him off and come back to get him.
He wisely demurred. It
was funny how little money meant at a time lake that.
While en route to Marble Mountain with our load of evacuees, a call
was received from our OSA friends requesting help since they could not
get off the airfield. We were
informed that they were being followed by a number of vehicles full of
people whom they could not get away from. Instructions were given for them to reverse course and head
for the tennis court area where we would rendezvous and attempt to pick them
up before those following could catch up.
This was accomplished and their pursuers were discouraged from
getting aboard by a display of fire power on the part of our passengers.
Everyone was deposited at Marble Mountain where the C-46 was still
standing by. All was quiet at
this strip and the C-46 departed after being fully loaded.
It was reported some days later the unfriendly pursuers were
actually indigenous OSA employees. What
was most regrettable was that we could have gotten all of them out.
One by one, as we burned down to minimum fuel for the trip to Cu Le
Re Island, the aircraft departed. Weather
became very marginal, with 100-200 foot ceilings and ¼ mile visibility as
we proceeded south. I followed
the two Xray models since my ICCS H model had greater fuel capacity. Captain Carpenter, in 12F was the last to depart, being about
10 minutes behind me. For some
reason he did not feel he could make it to the island because of the weather
and returned to Marble Mountain where the weather was a little better.
He made contact with a Volpar, which was able to land and pick him
up. The
trip out to the island was tedious at best. With no navigational facilities,
one had to fly strictly time, distance and heading, hoping the island would
appear before we ran out of fuel. Fortunately, things worked out and shortly
after arrival the weather
cleared up and the Volpar was able to land and join us. It had enough fuel
on board to enable us to top off one X Ray model. Captain Olson volunteered
to accompany me back to Danang., in an attempt to find other personnel. We
estimated about 1-=15 minutes
time on station with our fuel load. Upon
arriving in the area we called the tower, and asked if they would give us
some fuel. Their reply was, "No fuel for Americans." We persisted,
telling them we were there to help Vietnamese and after much deliberation
they consented. "But only us and no else." We topped off and
attempted to recover 12F at Marble Mountain. It was still intact, however,
in the pilots haste to leave, he had failed to turn off the battery and
everything was dead. Batteries were switched, 12F started, and subsequently
refueled. In return for fuel, however,
the tower required one aircraft to work for them hauling military
personnel and their dependents from the
airfield to Deep Water Pier where barges were docked for evacuation
purposes. During
this time contact was made with the America Consul General, Mr. Francis, and
I carried him to various places while he attempted to assist in evacuating
additional people. While he was
visiting the various command posts, we searched the area and located about
30 additional Air America employees and their dependents who were trapped
off base. They were deposited
at the boat docks for further evacuation.
As it began getting dark, the base fuel pits closed down (apparently
out of fuel) and we had to depart. All
attempts to get Mr. Francis to leave with us were fruitless since he had
just received information that General Truong, who had the reputation as one
of the toughest commanders in Vietnam and also one of the most arrogant, was
purportedly planning to commit suicide.
Francis felt it was his duty to prevent this from happening (I would
have let him). We were asked to
come back in the morning to pick him up if he hadnt already departed by
boat at that time. We
reluctantly departed for the island where we refueled and proceeded to Nha
Trang for the night. Additional drummed fuel had been brought out to the island
for our use. Two
Foxtrot models from Nha Trang were loaded with four drums of fuel each for
an early morning departure the next day.
Captain Goodwin accompanied me with Captains Olson and Coalson flying
the other aircraft. There was
to be a Volpar overhead to provide support and communications and a Caribou
was to position additional fuel at the island. Danang
was a shambles when we arrived. Aircraft,
tanks, trucks, etc., were abandoned all over the area.
The aircraft apparently were out of fuel. But it appeared that many of the trucks and tanks had
been driven into the ocean in an attempt to connect with boats and ships
offshore. Rockets were
impacting the airfield and small arms fire was received from all areas of
the city. The Consulate was on
fire. A Search was commenced
for Mr. Francis with no success. Finally
a large group of people were spotted in the French compound.
A note was dropped to them asking the whereabouts of Francis and
telling them to proceed to Landing Zone 48, which was the nearest landing
area, if they wanted to be picked up.
Shortly thereafter some vehicles departed the compound and headed for
LZ 48. Upon arriving, they were
turned back due to large crowds and small arms fire.
They returned to the compound. Since
there was not room to land, a low pass was made, snatching two Frenchmen on
the skids. Quite a bit of fire was received from the area surrounding
the compound as well as from the tanks that were outside the walls.
The two evacuees had some interesting stories to relate regarding the
previous nights happenings but had no knowledge of Francis
whereabouts. They were not
overly concerned about the fate of their compatriot as who were left behind,
saying. We Frenchmen can get
along with these people. We
eventually landed on a small sandbar in the middle of Danang harbor to hot
refuel from the drummed fuel on board using had pumps.
VNAF personnel were constantly calling upon us with their survival
radios to pick them up. We were
continuing our search over the city when suddenly a 727 was spotted turning
base for landing. All
frequencies, including Guard were tried in an attempt to make contact and
warn them not to land. No
response was received. The
aircraft landed and stopped about three quarters of the way down the runway.
It was immediately surrounded by troops and vehicles. (At this time few civilians could be seen at the Airfield.
But there were thousand of military troops.)
About five minutes later the pilots began speaking with the tower.
Only at that time did the crew finally acknowledge our transmissions.
They had apparently been reading us all along but chose not to
answer. This
was a World Airways aircraft with the President, Ed Daly, on board. They had apparently been refused permission to take off from
Saigon but did so anyway. In
what appeared to be a grandstand play, they had their traffic manager and a
UP photographer on board who was supposed to record this life saving
mission. When asked what they
were doing, the crew responded, You wouldnt believe us is we told
you. My reply was that they
better take off and get out right away if they could.
No response. They then
taxied to the north end of runway 17 Left and were again surrounded. By now the runway was littered with bodies of overturned
vehicles. I suggested they go
to 17 Right and take off as it was relatively open although there was still
some sporadic incoming in the area. A
noncommittal response was again given.
About this time I gave up hope of their getting off the ground and
was trying to figure out how we could possibly pull them out by helicopter.
It looked hopeless. Suddenly
a panicked American voice came up on the radio from the tower.
He identified himself as Joe Rizzo and screamed for someone to save
him. More problems!
With this the 727 taxied down the runway, across to the taxiway in
front of the tower and stopped. About
20-30 seconds passed at which time I informed them that both runways were
now unusable and their only chance was to take off on the taxiway from where
they were. We think you'
right was heard from the 727 and with that they began a takeoff from
midfield on the taxiway. As it
started rolling it narrowly missed a stalled van on the side of the taxiway
but a motorcycle coming from the opposite direction smashed into the
aircraft, hurling its driver into the infield. It was still on the ground as it ran off the end of the
taxiway but somehow became airborne after blowing through several small
structures a the end of the field. It
was some time after they took off before we could get a report if Rizzo had
made it on board or not. Finally,
they called saying he was on board. However,
it seemed the UP photographer had been left behind and we were asked to pick
him up. But where
and how?
Small arms fire was again picking up as we let down in an effort to
spot this individual. Finally,
the photographer made it to the tower and began calling for help.
He was instructed to go to the far end of the field which was
relatively deserted at the time. We
would try to make a pickup there. He
departed and the Vietnamese tower operator kept us appraised of his progress
until he was out of his sight. The
tower operator pleaded with us to save the photographer, saying we were his
only chance of getting out. We
made a low level run to see if we could spot our man.
He was found between runways closely followed by six soldiers, all of
whom got on board with him. The
tower operator thanked us profusely and then asked us for a favor.
If we could pick up his wife and children, he would stay behind until
his last dying breath. We
couldnt refuse a a request like that under the circumstances so Olson and
Coalson, who had more room, effected a rendezvous and picked up a group of
people, which fortunately included the tower operators family.
By this time we were at minimum fuel and had to leave for Cu Le Re
Island. After almost five hours
in the Danang area, contact was finally made with our (?) Volpar.
Apparently, the customer at Nha Trang had a better use for it and had
dispatched it on a courier run to Can Tho, south of Saigon, instead.
It had just been released to support us?
The pilot relayed that Mr. Francis was on a boat in the harbor and we
were to pick him up. At this
particular point in time that was impossible due to our fuel state and
passenger load. Since it
appeared he was safe aboard a ship, we felt our job was done.
We refueled at the island and arrived in Nha Trang about 9:30 PM.
During this entire operation we were plagues by what seemed to be a
lack of urgency on the part of the powers that be in Saigon.
They probably couldnt believe what was happening.
We couldnt either! However,
what disturbed us more was the manner in which we were apparently viewed by
the customers. Although I
thought I had been taken into their confidence, it turned out I was not made
privy to the overall evacuation program.
We were expected to provide all support to the customers, but our
fate was apparently of no conern to them.
Had we not been able to take off on the 28th, I wonder
what support we would have gotten. I
expect none.
On
the brighter side, with few exceptions, all our personnel performed
admirably. However, a small
group of individuals went far beyond the normal call of duty.
Without their efforts we wouldn' have come close to accomplishing
what was done. They are
Captains T. Olson and T. Coalson; Mechanics J. Gil, B. Pacariem and B. Phee.
Well done! |
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