Colonel Tomb: Difference between revisions
Content deleted Content added
Got Milked (talk | contribs) |
Wasianpower (talk | contribs) m →Notable USAF/USN and VPAF losses/victories on 10 May 1972: more suitable link |
||
| (16 intermediate revisions by 11 users not shown) | |||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{Short description|Mythical flying ace}} |
{{Short description|Mythical flying ace}} |
||
{{ |
{{About|the mythical pilot|the author|Nguyễn Tuân}} |
||
[[File:Vietnam People's Air Force MIG-21 (4324).jpg|thumb|The MIG-21 N. 4324 of the Vietnam People's Air Force. This fighter aircraft |
[[File:Vietnam People's Air Force MIG-21 (4324).jpg|thumb|The MIG-21 N. 4324 of the Vietnam People's Air Force. This fighter aircraft, flown by various pilots, was credited with 14 kills during the Vietnam War.]] |
||
'''Colonel Tomb''', also |
'''Colonel Tomb''', also '''Nguyen Toon''' (Nguyễn Tuân) or '''Colonel Toon''' was a mythical [[Vietnam People's Air Force|North Vietnam Air Force]] [[Flying ace|fighter ace]] loosely based on a North Vietnamese pilot from the 921st [[Fighter aircraft|Fighter]] Regiment named [[Nguyen Van Coc]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2018-05-29 |title=Inventing the Enemy: Colonel Toon and the Memory of Fighter Combat in Vietnam |url=https://balloonstodrones.com/2018/05/30/inventing-the-enemy-colonel-toon-and-the-memory-of-fighter-combat-in-vietnam/ |access-date=2022-06-13 |website=From Balloons to Drones |language=en}}</ref> Tomb allegedly shot down 13 [[United States|American]] aircraft during the [[Vietnam War]]. According to legend, he was killed in action on May 10, 1972, by the U.S. Navy [[F-4 Phantom]] crew of pilot Lt. [[Randy "Duke" Cunningham]] and [[radar]] operator [[William P. Driscoll|Lt.(jg) William "Irish" Driscoll]].<ref name="One Day">Ethell and Price 1990, pp.189–190.</ref><ref>Air Power History 1995 -- Volumes 42-43 - Page 60 "Tactical number 4326 supposedly belonged to the infamous Col. Nguyen Toon (also known as Col. Tomb), and wore thirteen red stars on its nose. At times, Toon's existence has been questioned, for while he led the NVAF in kills, he trailed all ..."</ref><ref>Peter B. Mersky F-8 Crusader Units of the Vietnam War 1998 - Page 60 "The long-running discussion about whether the VPAF's top ace, 'Colonel Tomb', actually existed may at last have been resolved to an extent. There were several skilled VPAF pilots, and there appears to have been at least a dozen aces ..."</ref> It was later revealed by historians that there had been no such [[colonel]] in the North Vietnam forces.<ref name=":0" /> |
||
The name "Colonel Tomb" rose to prominence among U.S. Navy aviators during the latter part of the war. Photos of a North Vietnamese [[MiG-17]] with the tail number 3020 bearing numerous red victory stars contributed to the rumor, and was occasionally identified as the Colonel's aircraft. However, it was normal practice in the [[Vietnam People's Air Force|Vietnamese People's Air Force]] to add victory stars to an aircraft for all claims in the aircraft, regardless of the pilot flying it. A photo of a [[MiG-21]], with tail number 4326, was reported in a Vietnamese official magazine to have been flown by at least nine different airmen. This aircraft also had numerous red victory stars. Six of its pilots received the title "Hero of the People's Armed Forces".<ref name="One Day"/> Information on Toon/Tomb's life and career was never published by the North Vietnamese, nor did they release a photo of him. MiG-17 number 3020 was confirmed shot down and destroyed, on May 10, 1972, by Cunningham and Driscoll following a protracted air fight.{{ |
The name "Colonel Tomb" rose to prominence among U.S. Navy aviators during the latter part of the war. Photos of a North Vietnamese [[MiG-17]] with the tail number 3020 bearing numerous red victory stars contributed to the rumor, and was occasionally identified as the Colonel's aircraft. However, it was normal practice in the [[Vietnam People's Air Force|Vietnamese People's Air Force]] to add victory stars to an aircraft for all claims in the aircraft, regardless of the pilot flying it. A photo of a [[MiG-21]], with tail number 4326, was reported in a Vietnamese official magazine to have been flown by at least nine different airmen. This aircraft also had numerous red victory stars. Six of its pilots received the title "Hero of the People's Armed Forces".<ref name="One Day"/> Information on Toon/Tomb's life and career was never published by the North Vietnamese, nor did they release a photo of him. MiG-17 number 3020 was confirmed shot down and destroyed, on May 10, 1972, by Cunningham and Driscoll following a protracted air fight.{{Citation needed|date=December 2022}} |
||
Much of the information the U.S. obtained about the North Vietnamese air force came from radio signals intelligence or "[[SIGINT|SigInt]]", which monitored enemy radio transmissions. Though Tuân is a Vietnamese name, Toon and Tomb are not. It is likely that a name similar in sound to Tomb was used as a |
Much of the information the U.S. obtained about the North Vietnamese air force came from radio signals intelligence or "[[SIGINT|SigInt]]", which monitored enemy radio transmissions. Though Tuân is a Vietnamese name, Toon and Tomb are not. It is likely that a name similar in sound to Tomb was used as a radio [[callsign]], and was responsible for the creation of the story of a Colonel Tomb.<ref name="One Day"/> Complex psychological factors have also contributed to the creation of the story of the epic aerial duel against the alleged high-ranking Vietnamese fighter ace and his demise.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Haskins |first=Dr. Michael |date=2018-05-29 |title=Inventing the Enemy: Colonel Toon and the Memory of Fighter Combat in Vietnam |url=https://balloonstodrones.com/2018/05/30/inventing-the-enemy-colonel-toon-and-the-memory-of-fighter-combat-in-vietnam/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210614020226/https://balloonstodrones.com/2018/05/30/inventing-the-enemy-colonel-toon-and-the-memory-of-fighter-combat-in-vietnam/ |archive-date=2021-06-14 |access-date=2022-05-31 |website=From Balloons to Drones |language=en}}</ref> |
||
| ⚫ | |||
| ⚫ | The story of the epic aerial combat duel between North Vietnamese MiG-17 pilot Colonel Tomb and the American F-4 crew of Lt. Randy "Duke" Cunningham and Lt.(jg) William P. Driscoll was popularly featured with [[Computer animation|CGI]]-based reenactment of the battle scenes on ''[[History (American TV network)|The History Channel]]'' in the |
||
| ⚫ | {{Blockquote|text=''"I could see a Gomer leather helmet, Gomer goggles, Gomer scarf...and his intent Gomer expression... I began to feel numb. My stomach grabbed at me in knots. There was no fear in this guy's eyes as we zoomed some 8000 feet straight up."''|sign=Lt. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, describing his canopy-to-canopy encounter with Colonel Tomb in the pilot episode of ''Dogfights'' and in his combat memoirs of May 10, 1972<ref>{{Cite web |title=When Duke Was King |url=https://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2005/dec/15/when-duke-was-king/ |access-date=2022-05-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220512195152/https://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2005/dec/15/when-duke-was-king/ |archive-date=2022-05-12 |quote=The American aviators called their adversaries "Gomers," after the hapless TV character Gomer Pyle. Cunningham says he saw the pilot "...with his beady little Gomer eyes, Gomer hat, Gomer goggles, and Gomer scarf."}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=When Duke Was King |url=https://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/1984/mar/29/cover-the-deadly-circle/ |access-date=2022-05-31 |website=sandiegoreader.com |quote="I could see a Gomer leather helmet, Gomer goggles, Gomer scarf...and his intent Gomer expression," Cunningham writes in his book about the air war. "I began to feel numb. My stomach grabbed at me in knots. There was no fear in this guy's eyes as we zoomed some 8000 feet straight up."}}</ref>}}The re-enactments of the duel between the high-ranked Vietnamese MiG-17 fighter pilot and F-4 Phantom II crew of Lt. Cunningham and Lt.(jg) Driscoll on The History Channel's ''Dogfights'' ended the segment with the claim that "''a [[Surface-to-air missile|SAM]] did what no Vietnamese fighter pilot could do; shoot down the F-4" o''f Lt. Cunningham/Lt.(jg) Driscoll.<ref>{{Cite web |last=KILLERS |first=MIG |date=2018-05-09 |title=Showtime 100 Vs Colonel Toon: the most epic 1 V 1 dogfight in the history of naval aviation |url=https://theaviationgeekclub.com/showtime-100-vs-colonel-toon-the-most-epic-1-v-1-dogfight-in-the-history-of-naval-aviation/ |access-date=2022-06-24 |website=The Aviation Geek Club |language=en-GB}}</ref> |
||
== May 10, 1972, by VPAF records == |
== May 10, 1972, by VPAF records == |
||
The 'MiG-17F' no. ''3020'' was a license-made [[Shenyang J-5]] attached to the VPAF's 923rd Fighter Regiment, and was flown by at least two of the six [[List of Vietnam War flying aces|VPAF's MiG-17 fighter aces]], including [[Nguyễn Văn Bảy]] and [[Lê Hải]]; both of whom survived the war, with Lê retiring as a Senior Colonel.<ref>Toperczer, 2015, pp. 146-147.</ref> Like all combat-ready VPAF MiG-17s, these were painted a green and brown camouflage by 1967, and were affectionately called ''con rắn'' (snakes) by their ground crew.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://wio.ru/korea/dz-v2en.htm | title=Vietnamese Lethal Snakes }}</ref> |
The 'MiG-17F' no. ''3020'' was a license-made [[Shenyang J-5]] attached to the VPAF's 923rd Fighter Regiment, and was flown by at least two of the six [[List of Vietnam War flying aces|VPAF's MiG-17 fighter aces]], including [[Nguyễn Văn Bảy]] and [[Lê Hải]]; both of whom survived the war, with Lê retiring as a Senior Colonel.<ref>Toperczer, 2015, pp. 146-147.</ref> Like all combat-ready VPAF MiG-17s, these were painted a green and brown camouflage by 1967, and were affectionately called ''con rắn'' (snakes) by their ground crew.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://wio.ru/korea/dz-v2en.htm | title=Vietnamese Lethal Snakes }}</ref> |
||
The beginning of the ''[[Operation Linebacker]]'' [[air interdiction]] campaign against [[North Vietnam]] in May 1972 proved to be especially bloody for both sides of the air war; four of the 923rd FR's MiG-17s were dispatched against a large strike-force of [[Grumman A-6 Intruder|A-6 ''Intruders'']], [[LTV A-7 Corsair II|A-7 ''Corsairs II'']]s and F-4 ''Phantom II''s targeting the bridges around [[Hải Dương]] on 10 May 1972. Although outnumbered, the VPAF pilots attacked the strike-force, and in the ensuing melee, MiG-17 pilot Do Hang was shot down by AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles fired from Lt. Duke Cunningham/Lt.(jg) Willy Driscoll's F-4, and although the MiG-17 pilot Do Hang was able to eject, he was then killed by [[M61 Vulcan|20mm gunfire]] from |
The beginning of the ''[[Operation Linebacker]]'' [[air interdiction]] campaign against [[North Vietnam]] in May 1972 proved to be especially bloody for both sides of the air war; four of the 923rd FR's MiG-17s were dispatched against a large strike-force of [[Grumman A-6 Intruder|A-6 ''Intruders'']], [[LTV A-7 Corsair II|A-7 ''Corsairs II'']]s and F-4 ''Phantom II''s targeting the bridges around [[Hải Dương]] on 10 May 1972. Although outnumbered, the VPAF pilots attacked the strike-force, and in the ensuing melee, MiG-17 pilot Do Hang was shot down by AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles fired from Lt. Duke Cunningham/Lt.(jg) Willy Driscoll's F-4, and although the MiG-17 pilot Do Hang was able to eject, he was then killed by [[M61 Vulcan|20mm gunfire]] from American fighter/attack aircraft making strafing passes at him while descending underneath his parachute; two more MiG-17s were shot-down by the F-4s of Lt. Cunningham/Lt.(jg) Driscoll and Lt. Connelly III/Lt. Blonski, and pilot Tra Van Kiem was [[Killed in action|''KIA'']], while Nguyen Van Tho bailed out and survived and the MiG-17 piloted by Ta Dong Trung, who pursued the A-7s out to sea without scoring any hits, was able to return to base.<ref>Toperczer, 2015, pp. 174-175.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Enemy Aircraft Shot Down by Naval Aviators in Southeast Asia |url=https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/library/online-reading-room/title-list-alphabetically/b/by-sea-air-land-marolda/enemy-aircraft-shot-down-by-naval-aviators-in-southeast-asia.html |access-date=2022-06-24 |website=NHHC |language=en-US}}</ref> |
||
The F-4s however, now flying about 10 km north of Hải Dương, were intercepted by a pair of [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21|MiG-21MF]]s piloted by Vu Duc Hop and [[Lê Thanh Đạo|Le Thanh Dao]] of the new 927th FR whom were effectively vectored by [[Ground-controlled interception|GCI]] against the Phantoms; Vu Duc Hop and Le Thanh Dao each firing [[K-13 (missile)|R-3S]] "Atoll" missiles at their selected targets, had found their marks respectively against the F-4s of Lt. Cunningham/Lt.jg Driscoll and Cdr. Blackburn/Lt. Rudloff, and while Cunningham/Driscoll were able eject out at sea where they were rescued, Blackburn/Rudloff were seen to have successfully ejected from their stricken Phantom by the Americans, and while their parachutes were observed to have gone down over land, only Lt. Rudloff was ever on the [[Prisoner of war|''POW'']] manifest by North Vietnamese records.''<ref name="militaryhistorynow.com">{{Cite web |date=2013-06-10 |title=Name That Toon - Was North Vietnam's Most Feared Flying Ace A Myth? |url=https://militaryhistorynow.com/2013/06/10/name-that-toon-was-north-vietnams-most-feared-flying-ace-a-myth/ |access-date=2022-05-10 |website=MilitaryHistoryNow.com |language=en-US |quote=Some sources have argued that the famous North Vietnamese flier was a complete fabrication. Hanoi propagandists supposedly conjured up the deadly ace to bolster morale on the home front or possibly to scare American pilots. Others claim that the mythical pilot wasn’t a concoction of enemy publicists at all, but rather a figment of American pilots’ imaginations.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hankins |first=Dr. Michael |date=2018-05-29 |title=Inventing the Enemy: Colonel Toon and the Memory of Fighter Combat in Vietnam |url=https://balloonstodrones.com/2018/05/30/inventing-the-enemy-colonel-toon-and-the-memory-of-fighter-combat-in-vietnam/ |access-date=2022-05-10 |website=From Balloons to Drones |language=en |quote=The existence of Colonel Toon in the mind of an American pilot may have provided a psychological comfort zone if a North Vietnamese pilot should out-fly him or, even worse, shoot him down... Why does this controversy – and others like it – continue to plague the memory of the Vietnam War? Possibly because losing a war is psychologically devastating... Toon may not exist, but what he represents as a way of dealing with the psychological trauma of warfare, is all too real.}}</ref><ref>Toperczer, 2015, pp. 175, 240.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Vietnamese Aces - MiG-17 and MiG-21 pilots |url=http://acepilots.com/vietnam/viet_aces.html |access-date=2022-05-10 |website=acepilots.com |quote=Readers familiar with American military aviation may have heard of the legendary Vietnamese ace, Col. Toon (or Col. Tomb). Why is he not listed here? Because, he was precisely that, "legendary"... he was a figment of the American fighter pilots' imagination and ready room chatter. (In fairness to the Americans, "Col. Toon" may have been shorthand for any good Vietnamese pilot, like any solo nighttime nuisance bomber in WW2 was called "Washing Machine Charlie.")}}</ref>''<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bio, Rudloff, Stephen A. |url=https://www.pownetwork.org/bios/r/r085.htm |access-date=2022-05-10 |website=www.pownetwork.org}}</ref> The remains of Cdr. Harry L. Blackburn were returned to the Americans on 10 April 1986 and positively identified as his later that year.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vietnam Air Losses Search Results |url=https://www.vietnamairlosses.com/loss.php?id=2871 |access-date=2022-05-01 |website=www.vietnamairlosses.com |quote=Both crew were seen to eject and to land only about 100 yards apart. Lt Rudloff was temporarily blinded during the incident and was taken to the Hanoi Hilton but he had no further direct contact with his pilot... A report that Cdr Blackburn committed suicide by swallowing a cyanide pill circulated after the prisoners returned from Hanoi, but this seems fanciful and cannot be substantiated. His remains were handed over by the Vietnamese government on 10 April 1986 and positively identified in November of that year.}}</ref> |
The F-4s however, now flying about 10 km north of Hải Dương, were intercepted by a pair of [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21|MiG-21MF]]s piloted by Vu Duc Hop and [[Lê Thanh Đạo|Le Thanh Dao]] of the new 927th FR whom were effectively vectored by [[Ground-controlled interception|GCI]] against the Phantoms; Vu Duc Hop and Le Thanh Dao each firing [[K-13 (missile)|R-3S]] "Atoll" missiles at their selected targets, had found their marks respectively against the F-4s of Lt. Cunningham/Lt.jg Driscoll and Cdr. Blackburn/Lt. Rudloff, and while Cunningham/Driscoll were able eject out at sea where they were rescued, Blackburn/Rudloff were seen to have successfully ejected from their stricken Phantom by the Americans, and while their parachutes were observed to have gone down over land, only Lt. Rudloff was ever on the [[Prisoner of war|''POW'']] manifest by North Vietnamese records.''<ref name="militaryhistorynow.com">{{Cite web |date=2013-06-10 |title=Name That Toon - Was North Vietnam's Most Feared Flying Ace A Myth? |url=https://militaryhistorynow.com/2013/06/10/name-that-toon-was-north-vietnams-most-feared-flying-ace-a-myth/ |access-date=2022-05-10 |website=MilitaryHistoryNow.com |language=en-US |quote=Some sources have argued that the famous North Vietnamese flier was a complete fabrication. Hanoi propagandists supposedly conjured up the deadly ace to bolster morale on the home front or possibly to scare American pilots. Others claim that the mythical pilot wasn’t a concoction of enemy publicists at all, but rather a figment of American pilots’ imaginations.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hankins |first=Dr. Michael |date=2018-05-29 |title=Inventing the Enemy: Colonel Toon and the Memory of Fighter Combat in Vietnam |url=https://balloonstodrones.com/2018/05/30/inventing-the-enemy-colonel-toon-and-the-memory-of-fighter-combat-in-vietnam/ |access-date=2022-05-10 |website=From Balloons to Drones |language=en |quote=The existence of Colonel Toon in the mind of an American pilot may have provided a psychological comfort zone if a North Vietnamese pilot should out-fly him or, even worse, shoot him down... Why does this controversy – and others like it – continue to plague the memory of the Vietnam War? Possibly because losing a war is psychologically devastating... Toon may not exist, but what he represents as a way of dealing with the psychological trauma of warfare, is all too real.}}</ref><ref>Toperczer, 2015, pp. 175, 240.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Vietnamese Aces - MiG-17 and MiG-21 pilots |url=http://acepilots.com/vietnam/viet_aces.html |access-date=2022-05-10 |website=acepilots.com |quote=Readers familiar with American military aviation may have heard of the legendary Vietnamese ace, Col. Toon (or Col. Tomb). Why is he not listed here? Because, he was precisely that, "legendary"... he was a figment of the American fighter pilots' imagination and ready room chatter. (In fairness to the Americans, "Col. Toon" may have been shorthand for any good Vietnamese pilot, like any solo nighttime nuisance bomber in WW2 was called "Washing Machine Charlie.")}}</ref>''<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bio, Rudloff, Stephen A. |url=https://www.pownetwork.org/bios/r/r085.htm |access-date=2022-05-10 |website=www.pownetwork.org}}</ref> The remains of Cdr. Harry L. Blackburn were returned to the Americans on 10 April 1986 and positively identified as his later that year.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vietnam Air Losses Search Results |url=https://www.vietnamairlosses.com/loss.php?id=2871 |access-date=2022-05-01 |website=www.vietnamairlosses.com |quote=Both crew were seen to eject and to land only about 100 yards apart. Lt Rudloff was temporarily blinded during the incident and was taken to the Hanoi Hilton but he had no further direct contact with his pilot... A report that Cdr Blackburn committed suicide by swallowing a cyanide pill circulated after the prisoners returned from Hanoi, but this seems fanciful and cannot be substantiated. His remains were handed over by the Vietnamese government on 10 April 1986 and positively identified in November of that year.}}</ref> |
||
== Notable USAF/USN and VPAF losses/victories on 10 May 1972 == |
== Notable USAF/USN and VPAF losses/victories on 10 May 1972 == |
||
List of notable kills/losses of the air battles of this day in the Vietnam War.<ref>Toperczer, 2015, pp. 240.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Phantom Over North Vietnam |url=https://www.defensemedianetwork.com/stories/naval-aviation-through-the-decades-phantom-over-north-vietnam/ |access-date=2022-05-10 |website=Defense Media Network |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="militaryhistorynow.com"/><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.defensemedianetwork.com/stories/naval-aviation-through-the-decades-phantom-over-north-vietnam/ | title=Phantom over North Vietnam }}</ref> |
List of notable kills/losses of the air battles of this day in the Vietnam War.<ref>Toperczer, 2015, pp. 240.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Phantom Over North Vietnam |url=https://www.defensemedianetwork.com/stories/naval-aviation-through-the-decades-phantom-over-north-vietnam/ |access-date=2022-05-10 |website=Defense Media Network |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="militaryhistorynow.com"/><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.defensemedianetwork.com/stories/naval-aviation-through-the-decades-phantom-over-north-vietnam/ | title=Phantom over North Vietnam }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=THE WALL OF FACES |url=https://www.vvmf.org/wall-of-faces-profile/ |access-date=2024-05-11 |website=Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund |language=en-US |quote=On 10 May 1972, Captain Harris was flying his F-4E PHANTOM on a combat mission over North Vietnam when he was attacked by a MiG-19. The flight leader of the mission observed Captain Harris' aircraft burst into flames shortly before it crashed. There were no radio transmissions heard from the stricken aircraft, and no one in the flight saw any parachutes or received any emergency beeper signals. In August 1978 the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) unilaterally turned over the remains of Air Force Captain DENNIS EDWARD WILKINSON, the Weapons Systems Officer aboard the F-4E. The remains of Captain Harris were returned in 1997.}}</ref> |
||
{| class = "wikitable sortable" |
{| class = "wikitable sortable" |
||
|- |
|- |
||
| Line 46: | Line 42: | ||
|VPAF |
|VPAF |
||
| |
| |
||
|KIA ([[ |
|KIA ([[Attacks on parachutists|strafed to death while descending under parachute after ejection]]) |
||
|- |
|- |
||
|[[Lê Thanh Đạo|Le Thanh Dao]], MiG-21 |
|[[Lê Thanh Đạo|Le Thanh Dao]], MiG-21 |
||
| Line 62: | Line 58: | ||
|3 kills/3 total |
|3 kills/3 total |
||
|Maj. Lodge (KIA)/Capt. Locher (rescued) |
|Maj. Lodge (KIA)/Capt. Locher (rescued) |
||
|- |
|||
|Capt. J.L. Harris / Capt. D.E. Wilkinson, F-4 |
|||
|USAF |
|||
| |
|||
|Capt. Harris (KIA)/Capt. Wilkinson (KIA) |
|||
|- |
|- |
||
|[[Đặng Ngọc Ngự|Dang Ngoc Ngu]], MiG-21 |
|[[Đặng Ngọc Ngự|Dang Ngoc Ngu]], MiG-21 |
||
| Line 72: | Line 73: | ||
|1 kill (F-4 of Lodge/Locher) |
|1 kill (F-4 of Lodge/Locher) |
||
| |
| |
||
|- |
|||
|Le Van Tuong, MiG-19 |
|||
|VPAF |
|||
|1 kill (F-4 of Harris/Wilkinson) |
|||
|KIA (landing accident) |
|||
|- |
|- |
||
|Cao Son Khao, MiG-19 |
|Cao Son Khao, MiG-19 |
||
|VPAF |
|VPAF |
||
|1 kill |
|1 kill |
||
|KIA ([[Friendly fire|FF]]) |
|||
|KIA |
|||
|- |
|- |
||
|} |
|} |
||
| ⚫ | |||
| ⚫ | The story of the epic aerial combat duel between North Vietnamese MiG-17 pilot Colonel Tomb and the American F-4 crew of Lt. Randy "Duke" Cunningham and Lt.(jg) William P. Driscoll was popularly featured with [[Computer animation|CGI]]-based reenactment of the battle scenes on ''[[History (American TV network)|The History Channel]]'' in the premiere episode of the 2006 [[television]] series ''[[Dogfights (TV series)|Dogfights]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Watch Dogfights Full Episodes, Video & More {{!}} History Vault |url=https://watch.historyvault.com/shows/dogfights |access-date=2022-05-31 |website=watch.historyvault.com}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=Dogfights (TV Series 2005– ) - IMDb |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0906873/ |language=en-US |access-date=2022-05-31}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=Dogfights |url=https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Series/DogFights |access-date=2022-05-31}}</ref> |
||
| ⚫ | {{Blockquote|text=''"I could see a Gomer leather helmet, Gomer goggles, Gomer scarf...and his intent Gomer expression... I began to feel numb. My stomach grabbed at me in knots. There was no fear in this guy's eyes as we zoomed some 8000 feet straight up."''|sign=Lt. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, describing his canopy-to-canopy encounter with Colonel Tomb in the pilot episode of ''Dogfights'' and in his combat memoirs of May 10, 1972<ref>{{Cite web |title=When Duke Was King |url=https://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2005/dec/15/when-duke-was-king/ |access-date=2022-05-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220512195152/https://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2005/dec/15/when-duke-was-king/ |archive-date=2022-05-12 |quote=The American aviators called their adversaries "Gomers," after the hapless TV character Gomer Pyle. Cunningham says he saw the pilot "...with his beady little Gomer eyes, Gomer hat, Gomer goggles, and Gomer scarf."}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=When Duke Was King |url=https://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/1984/mar/29/cover-the-deadly-circle/ |access-date=2022-05-31 |website=sandiegoreader.com |quote="I could see a Gomer leather helmet, Gomer goggles, Gomer scarf...and his intent Gomer expression," Cunningham writes in his book about the air war. "I began to feel numb. My stomach grabbed at me in knots. There was no fear in this guy's eyes as we zoomed some 8000 feet straight up."}}</ref>}}The re-enactments of the duel between the high-ranked Vietnamese MiG-17 fighter pilot and F-4 Phantom II crew of Lt. Cunningham and Lt.(jg) Driscoll on The History Channel's ''Dogfights'' ended the segment with the claim that "''a [[Surface-to-air missile|SAM]] did what no Vietnamese fighter pilot could do; shoot down the F-4" o''f Lt. Cunningham/Lt.(jg) Driscoll.<ref>{{Cite web |last=KILLERS |first=MIG |date=2018-05-09 |title=Showtime 100 Vs Colonel Toon: the most epic 1 V 1 dogfight in the history of naval aviation |url=https://theaviationgeekclub.com/showtime-100-vs-colonel-toon-the-most-epic-1-v-1-dogfight-in-the-history-of-naval-aviation/ |access-date=2022-06-24 |website=The Aviation Geek Club |language=en-GB}}</ref> |
||
==See also== |
==See also== |
||
| Line 84: | Line 94: | ||
*[[Vietnam People's Air Force]] |
*[[Vietnam People's Air Force]] |
||
*[[Nguyễn Văn Cốc]] |
*[[Nguyễn Văn Cốc]] |
||
*[[Ghost of Kyiv]], an unidentified Ukrainian flying ace later acknowledged as a myth |
|||
*[[Ghost of Kyiv]], an unidentified flying ace of the [[Ukrainian Air Force]] who was claimed to have shot down six aircraft during the first day of the [[2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine]] and up to 40 in less than two months but was later acknowledged to be a [[propaganda]] myth.<ref name="wp_2022-05">{{cite news|last=Beachum|first=Lateshia|date=2 May 2022|title=The 'Ghost of Kyiv' was never alive, Ukrainian air force says.|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/05/01/ghost-of-kyiv-propaganda/|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|access-date=2 May 2022}}</ref><ref name="bbc_2022-05">{{cite news|last=Laurence|first=Peter|date=2 May 2022|title=How Ukraine's 'Ghost of Kyiv' legendary pilot was born|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-61285833|work=[[BBC]]|access-date=2 May 2022}}</ref><ref name="israel_2022-05">{{cite news|last=Lajka|first=Arijeta|date=2 May 2022|title='A super-hero legend': Ukraine admits 'Ghost of Kyiv' fighter pilot is a myth|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/ukraine-admits-ghost-of-kyiv-fighter-pilot-is-a-myth/|work=[[The Times of Israel]]|access-date=2 May 2022}}</ref> |
|||
==Notes== |
==Notes== |
||
| Line 90: | Line 100: | ||
==References== |
==References== |
||
{{reflist}} |
|||
'''Bibliography''' |
'''Bibliography''' |
||
{{Refbegin}} |
{{Refbegin}} |
||
*Ethell, Jeffrey and Alfred Price. ''One Day in a Long War''. London:Guild Publishing, 1990. |
*Ethell, Jeffrey and Alfred Price. ''One Day in a Long War''. London:Guild Publishing, 1990. |
||
* Toperczer, Istvan, ''MiG Aces of the Vietnam War'', Schiffer Publishing, Ltd., 2015; {{ISBN|978-0-7643-4895-2}}. |
* Toperczer, Istvan, ''MiG Aces of the Vietnam War'', Schiffer Publishing, Ltd., 2015; {{ISBN|978-0-7643-4895-2}}. |
||
{{refend}} |
|||
==Further reading== |
==Further reading== |
||
| Line 106: | Line 116: | ||
[[Category:Disputed flying aces]] |
[[Category:Disputed flying aces]] |
||
[[Category:Nonexistent people used in hoaxes]] |
[[Category:Nonexistent people used in hoaxes]] |
||
[[Category:North Vietnamese Vietnam War flying aces]] |
|||
[[Category:Fictional fighter pilots]] |
[[Category:Fictional fighter pilots]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:Legendary Vietnamese people]] |
||
[[Category:Fictional Vietnam War veterans]] |
[[Category:Fictional Vietnam War veterans]] |
||
[[Category:Fictional colonels]] |
[[Category:Fictional colonels]] |
||
Latest revision as of 21:05, 25 October 2024
.jpg)
Colonel Tomb, also Nguyen Toon (Nguyễn Tuân) or Colonel Toon was a mythical North Vietnam Air Force fighter ace loosely based on a North Vietnamese pilot from the 921st Fighter Regiment named Nguyen Van Coc.[1] Tomb allegedly shot down 13 American aircraft during the Vietnam War. According to legend, he was killed in action on May 10, 1972, by the U.S. Navy F-4 Phantom crew of pilot Lt. Randy "Duke" Cunningham and radar operator Lt.(jg) William "Irish" Driscoll.[2][3][4] It was later revealed by historians that there had been no such colonel in the North Vietnam forces.[1]
The name "Colonel Tomb" rose to prominence among U.S. Navy aviators during the latter part of the war. Photos of a North Vietnamese MiG-17 with the tail number 3020 bearing numerous red victory stars contributed to the rumor, and was occasionally identified as the Colonel's aircraft. However, it was normal practice in the Vietnamese People's Air Force to add victory stars to an aircraft for all claims in the aircraft, regardless of the pilot flying it. A photo of a MiG-21, with tail number 4326, was reported in a Vietnamese official magazine to have been flown by at least nine different airmen. This aircraft also had numerous red victory stars. Six of its pilots received the title "Hero of the People's Armed Forces".[2] Information on Toon/Tomb's life and career was never published by the North Vietnamese, nor did they release a photo of him. MiG-17 number 3020 was confirmed shot down and destroyed, on May 10, 1972, by Cunningham and Driscoll following a protracted air fight.[citation needed]
Much of the information the U.S. obtained about the North Vietnamese air force came from radio signals intelligence or "SigInt", which monitored enemy radio transmissions. Though Tuân is a Vietnamese name, Toon and Tomb are not. It is likely that a name similar in sound to Tomb was used as a radio callsign, and was responsible for the creation of the story of a Colonel Tomb.[2] Complex psychological factors have also contributed to the creation of the story of the epic aerial duel against the alleged high-ranking Vietnamese fighter ace and his demise.[5]
May 10, 1972, by VPAF records
[edit]The 'MiG-17F' no. 3020 was a license-made Shenyang J-5 attached to the VPAF's 923rd Fighter Regiment, and was flown by at least two of the six VPAF's MiG-17 fighter aces, including Nguyễn Văn Bảy and Lê Hải; both of whom survived the war, with Lê retiring as a Senior Colonel.[6] Like all combat-ready VPAF MiG-17s, these were painted a green and brown camouflage by 1967, and were affectionately called con rắn (snakes) by their ground crew.[7] The beginning of the Operation Linebacker air interdiction campaign against North Vietnam in May 1972 proved to be especially bloody for both sides of the air war; four of the 923rd FR's MiG-17s were dispatched against a large strike-force of A-6 Intruders, A-7 Corsairs IIs and F-4 Phantom IIs targeting the bridges around Hải Dương on 10 May 1972. Although outnumbered, the VPAF pilots attacked the strike-force, and in the ensuing melee, MiG-17 pilot Do Hang was shot down by AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles fired from Lt. Duke Cunningham/Lt.(jg) Willy Driscoll's F-4, and although the MiG-17 pilot Do Hang was able to eject, he was then killed by 20mm gunfire from American fighter/attack aircraft making strafing passes at him while descending underneath his parachute; two more MiG-17s were shot-down by the F-4s of Lt. Cunningham/Lt.(jg) Driscoll and Lt. Connelly III/Lt. Blonski, and pilot Tra Van Kiem was KIA, while Nguyen Van Tho bailed out and survived and the MiG-17 piloted by Ta Dong Trung, who pursued the A-7s out to sea without scoring any hits, was able to return to base.[8][9]
The F-4s however, now flying about 10 km north of Hải Dương, were intercepted by a pair of MiG-21MFs piloted by Vu Duc Hop and Le Thanh Dao of the new 927th FR whom were effectively vectored by GCI against the Phantoms; Vu Duc Hop and Le Thanh Dao each firing R-3S "Atoll" missiles at their selected targets, had found their marks respectively against the F-4s of Lt. Cunningham/Lt.jg Driscoll and Cdr. Blackburn/Lt. Rudloff, and while Cunningham/Driscoll were able eject out at sea where they were rescued, Blackburn/Rudloff were seen to have successfully ejected from their stricken Phantom by the Americans, and while their parachutes were observed to have gone down over land, only Lt. Rudloff was ever on the POW manifest by North Vietnamese records.[10][11][12][13][14] The remains of Cdr. Harry L. Blackburn were returned to the Americans on 10 April 1986 and positively identified as his later that year.[15]
Notable USAF/USN and VPAF losses/victories on 10 May 1972
[edit]List of notable kills/losses of the air battles of this day in the Vietnam War.[16][17][10][18][19]
| Crew member(s) | Service/Unit | Kills/Total | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lt. R.H. Cunningham / Lt.(jg) Willy Driscoll, F-4 | USN | 2 kills (the MiG-17s of Do and Nguyen or Tra)/5 total | Shot down/rescued |
| Lt. M. Connelly III / Lt. J.T. Blonski, F-4 | USN | 1 kill (the MiG-17 of Nguyen or Tra)/2 total | |
| Cdr. H.L. Blackburn / Lt. S. Rudloff, F-4 | USN | Cdr. Blackburn (KIA)/Lt. Rudloff (POW) | |
| Do Hang, MiG-17 | VPAF | KIA (strafed to death while descending under parachute after ejection) | |
| Le Thanh Dao, MiG-21 | VPAF | 1 kill (F-4 of Blackburn/Rudloff)/6 total | |
| Vu Duc Hop, MiG-21 | VPAF | 1 kill (F-4 of Cunningham/Driscoll) | |
| Maj. R. Lodge / Capt. R. Locher, F-4 | USAF | 3 kills/3 total | Maj. Lodge (KIA)/Capt. Locher (rescued) |
| Capt. J.L. Harris / Capt. D.E. Wilkinson, F-4 | USAF | Capt. Harris (KIA)/Capt. Wilkinson (KIA) | |
| Dang Ngoc Ngu, MiG-21 | VPAF | 1 kill/7 total | (KIA, 8 July 1972) |
| Nguyen Van Phuc, MiG-19 | VPAF | 1 kill (F-4 of Lodge/Locher) | |
| Le Van Tuong, MiG-19 | VPAF | 1 kill (F-4 of Harris/Wilkinson) | KIA (landing accident) |
| Cao Son Khao, MiG-19 | VPAF | 1 kill | KIA (FF) |
In mainstream media
[edit]The story of the epic aerial combat duel between North Vietnamese MiG-17 pilot Colonel Tomb and the American F-4 crew of Lt. Randy "Duke" Cunningham and Lt.(jg) William P. Driscoll was popularly featured with CGI-based reenactment of the battle scenes on The History Channel in the premiere episode of the 2006 television series Dogfights.[20][21][22]
"I could see a Gomer leather helmet, Gomer goggles, Gomer scarf...and his intent Gomer expression... I began to feel numb. My stomach grabbed at me in knots. There was no fear in this guy's eyes as we zoomed some 8000 feet straight up."
The re-enactments of the duel between the high-ranked Vietnamese MiG-17 fighter pilot and F-4 Phantom II crew of Lt. Cunningham and Lt.(jg) Driscoll on The History Channel's Dogfights ended the segment with the claim that "a SAM did what no Vietnamese fighter pilot could do; shoot down the F-4" of Lt. Cunningham/Lt.(jg) Driscoll.[25]
See also
[edit]- List of Vietnam War flying aces
- Vietnam People's Air Force
- Nguyễn Văn Cốc
- Ghost of Kyiv, an unidentified Ukrainian flying ace later acknowledged as a myth
Notes
[edit]- ^ a b "Inventing the Enemy: Colonel Toon and the Memory of Fighter Combat in Vietnam". From Balloons to Drones. 2018-05-29. Retrieved 2022-06-13.
- ^ a b c Ethell and Price 1990, pp.189–190.
- ^ Air Power History 1995 -- Volumes 42-43 - Page 60 "Tactical number 4326 supposedly belonged to the infamous Col. Nguyen Toon (also known as Col. Tomb), and wore thirteen red stars on its nose. At times, Toon's existence has been questioned, for while he led the NVAF in kills, he trailed all ..."
- ^ Peter B. Mersky F-8 Crusader Units of the Vietnam War 1998 - Page 60 "The long-running discussion about whether the VPAF's top ace, 'Colonel Tomb', actually existed may at last have been resolved to an extent. There were several skilled VPAF pilots, and there appears to have been at least a dozen aces ..."
- ^ Haskins, Dr. Michael (2018-05-29). "Inventing the Enemy: Colonel Toon and the Memory of Fighter Combat in Vietnam". From Balloons to Drones. Archived from the original on 2021-06-14. Retrieved 2022-05-31.
- ^ Toperczer, 2015, pp. 146-147.
- ^ "Vietnamese Lethal Snakes".
- ^ Toperczer, 2015, pp. 174-175.
- ^ "Enemy Aircraft Shot Down by Naval Aviators in Southeast Asia". NHHC. Retrieved 2022-06-24.
- ^ a b "Name That Toon - Was North Vietnam's Most Feared Flying Ace A Myth?". MilitaryHistoryNow.com. 2013-06-10. Retrieved 2022-05-10.
Some sources have argued that the famous North Vietnamese flier was a complete fabrication. Hanoi propagandists supposedly conjured up the deadly ace to bolster morale on the home front or possibly to scare American pilots. Others claim that the mythical pilot wasn't a concoction of enemy publicists at all, but rather a figment of American pilots' imaginations.
- ^ Hankins, Dr. Michael (2018-05-29). "Inventing the Enemy: Colonel Toon and the Memory of Fighter Combat in Vietnam". From Balloons to Drones. Retrieved 2022-05-10.
The existence of Colonel Toon in the mind of an American pilot may have provided a psychological comfort zone if a North Vietnamese pilot should out-fly him or, even worse, shoot him down... Why does this controversy – and others like it – continue to plague the memory of the Vietnam War? Possibly because losing a war is psychologically devastating... Toon may not exist, but what he represents as a way of dealing with the psychological trauma of warfare, is all too real.
- ^ Toperczer, 2015, pp. 175, 240.
- ^ "Vietnamese Aces - MiG-17 and MiG-21 pilots". acepilots.com. Retrieved 2022-05-10.
Readers familiar with American military aviation may have heard of the legendary Vietnamese ace, Col. Toon (or Col. Tomb). Why is he not listed here? Because, he was precisely that, "legendary"... he was a figment of the American fighter pilots' imagination and ready room chatter. (In fairness to the Americans, "Col. Toon" may have been shorthand for any good Vietnamese pilot, like any solo nighttime nuisance bomber in WW2 was called "Washing Machine Charlie.")
- ^ "Bio, Rudloff, Stephen A." www.pownetwork.org. Retrieved 2022-05-10.
- ^ "Vietnam Air Losses Search Results". www.vietnamairlosses.com. Retrieved 2022-05-01.
Both crew were seen to eject and to land only about 100 yards apart. Lt Rudloff was temporarily blinded during the incident and was taken to the Hanoi Hilton but he had no further direct contact with his pilot... A report that Cdr Blackburn committed suicide by swallowing a cyanide pill circulated after the prisoners returned from Hanoi, but this seems fanciful and cannot be substantiated. His remains were handed over by the Vietnamese government on 10 April 1986 and positively identified in November of that year.
- ^ Toperczer, 2015, pp. 240.
- ^ "Phantom Over North Vietnam". Defense Media Network. Retrieved 2022-05-10.
- ^ "Phantom over North Vietnam".
- ^ "THE WALL OF FACES". Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. Retrieved 2024-05-11.
On 10 May 1972, Captain Harris was flying his F-4E PHANTOM on a combat mission over North Vietnam when he was attacked by a MiG-19. The flight leader of the mission observed Captain Harris' aircraft burst into flames shortly before it crashed. There were no radio transmissions heard from the stricken aircraft, and no one in the flight saw any parachutes or received any emergency beeper signals. In August 1978 the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) unilaterally turned over the remains of Air Force Captain DENNIS EDWARD WILKINSON, the Weapons Systems Officer aboard the F-4E. The remains of Captain Harris were returned in 1997.
- ^ "Watch Dogfights Full Episodes, Video & More | History Vault". watch.historyvault.com. Retrieved 2022-05-31.
- ^ Dogfights (TV Series 2005– ) - IMDb, retrieved 2022-05-31
- ^ Dogfights, retrieved 2022-05-31
- ^ "When Duke Was King". Archived from the original on 2022-05-12. Retrieved 2022-05-31.
The American aviators called their adversaries "Gomers," after the hapless TV character Gomer Pyle. Cunningham says he saw the pilot "...with his beady little Gomer eyes, Gomer hat, Gomer goggles, and Gomer scarf."
- ^ "When Duke Was King". sandiegoreader.com. Retrieved 2022-05-31.
I could see a Gomer leather helmet, Gomer goggles, Gomer scarf...and his intent Gomer expression," Cunningham writes in his book about the air war. "I began to feel numb. My stomach grabbed at me in knots. There was no fear in this guy's eyes as we zoomed some 8000 feet straight up.
- ^ KILLERS, MIG (2018-05-09). "Showtime 100 Vs Colonel Toon: the most epic 1 V 1 dogfight in the history of naval aviation". The Aviation Geek Club. Retrieved 2022-06-24.
References
[edit]Bibliography
- Ethell, Jeffrey and Alfred Price. One Day in a Long War. London:Guild Publishing, 1990.
- Toperczer, Istvan, MiG Aces of the Vietnam War, Schiffer Publishing, Ltd., 2015; ISBN 978-0-7643-4895-2.
Further reading
[edit]- Toperczer, István, "MiG-17 and MiG-19 Units of the Vietnam War", Osprey Publishing Limited, Botley, Oxford, UK, 2001, ISBN 1-84176-162-1.
