I about cried having to leave half of what might have been my last meal. Thank you ladies, as a veteran of several tours in the Nam, I always remembered those who catered to us as we flew to and from the zone and their efforts to help us feel comfortable as possible. It was important to stay upbeat, to act like every one of the men was coming home. Nonetheless, it reached Guam as planned on March 15th. The young men on the way over were full of Bravado and Spirit, and many on the return trip were just grateful to finally be going home and overcome with gratitude about leaving that hell hole in one piece. Phnom Penh, against a background of advancing NVA troops in Vietnam, it describes the relations among the crew and their motivation and features a pet cockroach named Hiram and a 'mother' to the crew aged 13. If I remember correctly I went over on Continental and came back on United. Available now to pre-order at Flying Tigers. All rights reserved. Flugzeugfotos und Luftfahrtfotos - Fotos ansehen, suchen oder hochladen! The airliners were not just used to bring the soldiers home, but to fly them into the war zone as well. The first of the "stretched" airfreights, it carried a payload of 110,000 pounds at 550 miles per hour over a 3,000 mile range. Wonderful memories. Opens in a new window or tab. Itprovides a unique insight into the economics and marketing of inter-national airlines. I remember we had trouble on departure from Travis and then landed at Hickham and had to spend the night awaiting a replacement aircraft. Each of the awesome giants flies more than 200,000 pounds of cargo at 575 miles per hour over a 3,500-mile range. 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. Flying Tigers on Airline History JP Airline Fleets 87/88 . Opens in a new window or tab. Carrying 50% more cargo than the DC-4 and carrying it 70 miles per hour faster, the company's gross revenues quickly reached the $25-million mark in 1953. Later that day, in a small town pegged to a secondary road in southern Maine near the New Hampshire state line, a cab pulled up in front of the Sargent home. What aviation news will you check out next? started from veterans of the world war two "flying tiger" fighter wing in china, these pilots saw a need to air deliver cargo in the far east. By all accounts, the predawn hours of March 15, 1962, were dreary at Adak Naval Air Station in Alaska as a Flying Tiger pilot attempted to make a refueling stop. (1974 -1989) After 1989 Mr Narita 806 in Polar Colors HISTORY This exhibition, based on extensive interviews with the key participants of the airlift operations, provides insight into their experiences serving aboard the Freedom Birds. I remember how kind and understanding these ladies were to we soldiers going to a war zone. Flew over on Military Transport (think it was a 141) The flight was a complete 3 stooges movie MATS had trouble w/plane. This was a very good and interesting article. I do not dwell on the negatives of that war , but there will always be a part of those of us that served in Vietnam that we would prefer to live without. WELCOME to The FLYING TIGER Antiques & Vintage Historical Artifacts Website!!! 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. The soldiers on Flight 739 were on a mission to do whatever the government told them to do, Kirk said. Flying Tiger Line Flight 739 went missing on March 16, 1962, with 93 U.S. Army soldiers on board. . The picture below shows a full plane of troops heading to Vietnam on a Flying Tiger Flight. . Sixty years ago, as the U.S. was becoming more involved in the opening salvo of the Vietnam War, a Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellation was making its way west. I sat on the left side isle with a window seat just to the rear edge of the left wing. I dont remember the faces of the flight attendantsprobably because I was so overwhelmed by my own emotions going to war and coming home. with stopovers in Honolulu and Wake Island before arriving in Guam. Over 20 families gathered in May to witness the unveiling of a new memorial in Columbia Falls, Maine, dedicated to the victims of Flying Tiger Line Flight 739. Some of the now-adult children of those on board speculate that the flight made it, but that passengers were captured, Kirk said. Just reading this article brings tears to my eyes. In 1962, the Vietnam War was far from over. Finally the plane started to move down the runway faster and faster. Stay informed: Sign up for our daily and weekly aviation news digests. (1966-1969), The Douglas DC-8-63F was a new breed of aircraft that had a far reaching effect on the continuing growth for the airfreight industry. She learned then that the Flying Tiger Line, also known as Flying Tigers, specialized in troop transports. I do remember the door opening and it was like a blast furnace! $375.00. Click on Links for More information About Each Plane. 2019 by the San Francisco Airport Commission. By this time the airline's personnel had gained such expertise in shipping challenging pieces of freight that the attitude in the industry was, "if Tigers can't move it, nobody can." Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Air Jet Advance Flying Tiger Cargo Airlines 1:200 B747 Freighter Model Airplane at the best online prices at eBay! That motto lasted until the airline was taken over by Federal Express in the late 1980's. Flying Tiger aircraft were chartered to transport troops and supplies from the United States to Asia; Flying Tigers later received a cargo route award to Japan, China, and Southeast Asia. Flying Tiger Line 747-200 In April of '75, with the collapse of the South Vietnamese government, Flying Tigers evacuated its own personnel and other refugees from Saigon. Not a good way to start the year! Flying Tiger aircraft were getting old and worn, but their flight attendants were still top notch. These were to take place in Honolulu, Wake Island, Guam, and the Philippines (Clark Air Base). Their service to our military was so much more than just being a flight attendant on their way over or coming home. He tried to grab it but I told him If she had wanted him to have it she would have given it to him. With that I went back to reading. This article is an important read. This presumed death toll made it the worst accident involving the Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellation. There was no indication in this message or in any other of difficulties, ICAO said. Shared with Public Cleaning up today and found this binder. The cabbie just handed out this yellow paper and drove off, Kirk said. Thank you ladies, Im one of those boys. Thank you for writing this story, it was way overdue. $27.95. MAAG THAILAND . In one of the seats was Army Specialist Donald Sargent, who had joined the Army and became a Ranger as a way to escape a life of near certain poverty in his hometown of Cornish, Maine. The aircraft was transporting 93 U.S. soldiers and three South Vietnamese from Travis Air Force Base, California to Saigon, Vietnam. . Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. When I went over in 66, it was courtesy of the USAF on a C-141no flight attendants there, just jump seats and the infantry TOE and basic load down the center of the aircraft. (1957 - 1967), Flying Tigers acquired the first turbine-powered air-freighter placed in service when it purchased a $55-million fleet of Canadair CL-44s in 1961. a light greenish blue Color photograph of Flying Tiger Line's Lockheed L-1049H Super Constellation N6921C. 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. Thanks for the ride! In the Vietnam airlift, Flying Tigers provided strategic flights from the US to numerous military bases throughout the Pacific and Southeast Asia geographic region. I remember well my Flying Tiger trips. I remember the silence upon arrival and cheering when wheels went up leaving. I have always appreciated the kindness that was shown by the stewardesses on our trip home, if only the rest could have been as kind! It was her name, address and telephone number with the instructions that if it didnt work out between me and my fiance after I came back to give her a call because she saw something in me that she had been looking for. For the Vietnam generation of U.S. military veterans, this phrase meant only one thing; the aircraft that brought them home at the end of their tours. It was a vivid reminder we were entering a war zone. According to the Aviation Safety Network, it first flew in 1957, and had amassed a total of 17,224 hours. Almost all US scheduled and charter carriers with appropriate equipment operated to Vietnam. It was really a struggle to decide what was right or what was wrong, said Okicich. However, despite an eight-day search covering hundreds of thousands of square miles of the Pacific Ocean, no trace of the aircraft or its 107 occupants could ever be found. By the mid-1960s, it was flying scheduled transpacific all-cargo routes and in the late 1980s, it was acquired by Federal Express. Flying Tiger was my airline of choice. I stopped a stewardess to inquire if they had any other reading material on board. Not certain but I believe Delta may have been one exception. I have never heard this or found any reference on it, but I knew it would be of interest - AB Quickview. Then all the guys just could not be held down by the stewerdesses and they did not even try to quiet the guys. June 69. The company had a contract to fly U.S. servicemen into Vietnam and to bring troops home after their tours were complete. The women say its what helped them keep their sanity, a support network that allowed them to face the heartbreak of the job as the true cost of the war emerged. The six man recon team was on an observation mission near Fire Support Base Alpine, about six miles east of the Laotian Border. Thanks, DRS. Afraid that at any moment a rocket or mortor could could take the jet down. Not Flying Tigers but nevertheless an unforgettable flight. One of the seven people on boardthe flight engineerwas killed in a fire that destroyed the aircraft and all its contents. In accordance with the government directives and in the interest in protecting the health of our visitors, the Aviation Museum & Library is currently closed. The women working the cabin on those flights were still known as stewardesses, not flight attendants, and they walked like fashion models down the aisles. And he said, I gotta get out of Cornish. As Captain Dwight Small, a pilot for Flying Tiger Line, recalls, It was pretty hairy, especially in the early days. When you went to school for Pan Am, they showed you how to do your makeup and your hair. Thank you Jason for a story well told. Her sentiments are echoed by Judy Meyer, who flew for United Air Lines, It was some of the best flying I ever did. 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