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It was July 1967, Da Nang, South Vietnam and as usual for most A6 missions, a dark and stormy night with the A4's and F8's tied down to the flight line. Ed Weber (Capt. Edward Weber) the B/N and I were scheduled for one of the ground radar controlled bomb runs (TPQ) directed to VMA (aw) 242 each night. These missions were an unexpected economy of assets utilization and certainly not done with purposeful intent. The "economy of utilization" was the ability of the squadron to use the non-system birds (aircraft) while providing a long time on station and superb ordnance carrying capability for the TPQ controllers. The favored bomb load was twenty-eight Mk 82 bombs (500 pounds) The TPQ missions were rotated through the air crews just like the "Tally-ho" and "Rolling Thunder" missions. The "Tally-ho", TH, was armed reconnaissance flights over the southern tier of North Vietnam. "Rolling Thunder" was for the more heavily defended areas in the northern tiers. The "in country" TPQ missions presented the mind numbing hazard of bombing controlled from the ground i.e.: "maintain heading of 270, airspeed 250kias and 20,000 feet�5 miles to target�..standby, standby�..mark mark"��"turn right to 350�..maintain 250kias and 20,000 feet�..your target is now 15 miles"�etc., etc. This went on for however many runs were required or desired in most combinations of 1 to 28 bombs. At the conclusion of each run we were given the map co-ordinates, target description and unit supported. "Co-ordinates 12345678, suspected harboring sites, in support of IIIMAF." was a typical communication. The target descriptions were creative if not humorous i.e. "fighting holes", elephant tracks", suspected vehicle storage sites", in other words no one really knew what was there. Kind of like the kids game "Battleship" where you might get lucky and do some damage. I knew to certainty that I hit the ground. THE MISSION The pre-flight briefing was to a word "brief". Ed and I confirmed the mission number, controller frequencies and call sign, bomb load and fuse settings, fuel load, switch and knobology, emergency procedures, launch times, anticipated recovery times, current and forecast weather and divert fields. Our assigned aircraft was DT-5. (This was 242's second DT-5. The first one was lost in a mid-air collision over Virginia prior to deployment.) The aircraft pre-flight took longer but, checking 28 fuses, arming wires and bomb racks takes time. The pre-flight start, taxi and take-off was comfortably routine. Hand-offs among various agencies was routine, as was the final requirement of positive radar contact with the TPQ controller. The bombing runs were again routine, including the 10% that did not clear the racks. I can say with pride, we destroyed more "elephant tracks" and "fighting holes" sometimes complete with such descriptions as 3'x3'x5'. I guess the 3 foot depth addressed the needs of the "vertically challenged" VC. The return to Da Nang was routine with a TACAN/GCA recovery. After clearing the runway DT-5 was taxied up to the re-fueling area. REFUELING The re-fueling area was actually a Marine Corps innovation for re-fueling aircraft at forward sites without 5,000-gallon tank trucks or permanent fuel storage and transfer facilities. The TAFDS (Tactical Air Fuel Dispensing System) consisted of 6 10,000 gallon interconnected rubberized bladders, protected by shallow earthen berms and sandbags. There were several re-fueling points adjacent to the flightline of each squadron in the MAG. Modern jet fighter and attack aircraft have single point re-fueling systems that require aircraft electrical power to sequence the various internal valves. Therefore, the use of a limited inventory external power unit was required. The alternative and preferred method was "Hot Re-fueling" i.e., re-fueling was done with the engines running, aircrews on board and when re-fueling is completed the aircraft is taxied to the parking area. Towing the aircraft becomes unnecessary which relieved the workload on the always short-handed GSE shop. THE ROUTINE STOPS HERE Ed and I were directed to the re-fueling spot, stopped, chocked and the routine of re-fueling started. It was about 2200 (10PM). For the aircrew it meant cleaning up the cockpit, unbuckling and start to unwind. For the ground crew it meant hooking up and fueling the aircraft and insuring that all the necessary safety pins where placed in the landing gear and bomb racks. The routine ended with what we assumed was the first rocket or mortar round impacting in the fuel pit area. The announcement came as one hell of an explosion and flames. There was no time to think, just react. My immediate reaction was to secure the engines and abandon the aircraft but I couldn't go down the pilots boarding ladder because of the burning fuel beneath the aircraft. Ed's reaction was of course as immediate but he could not go down his side either because of the flames below. The result was a mid-air, or rather a mid cockpit collision because I was going out Ed's side and Ed was equally intent upon coming out my side. Size prevailed, Ed was bigger and we opted for my side. Ed went out and over the left wing. I started to follow but pause because the flames seemed less intense. In fact, I felt I could and did descend the port boarding ladder, hastily I might add. Ed went off the left wing tip that was some 6-7 feet above the tarmac. I sprinted through puddled burning fuel to a safe dry place well beyond the aircraft with my heels afire but fading fast. There was then the realization that maybe only one round had hit. But why? Leaving that thought as quickly as it came, our attention was now focused on several of the ground crew fighting the fire and more courageously removing fuses from at least 3-500 pound bombs to preclude setting off a high order detonation. Very brave Marines, doing what Marines do best-selfless devotion to duty. FAILSAFE Now what really happened. The A6 has a single point re-fueling fitting and access to it is below and slightly aft of the left engine intake. The female side of the coupling is on the fueling hose and the male coupling is on the aircraft. Fuel cannot flow if the coupling hardware is not seated properly. In this instance however, the re-fueling hardware failed and jet fuel under high pressure turned the fuel hose into an uncontrolled fire hose that the ground crewmen could not handle. Raw fuel was ingested into the port engine and the area below the aircraft was flooded with JP. The immediate result was a J-52 explosion and fires not a VC rocket or mortar attack. The one lucky round theory was shot to hell. However, the real rocket attack occurred a few days later when the hangar and the flightline took several direct hits from Soviet built 122mm rockets. Those magnificent young Marines shut down the TAFDS fuel pumps, successfully fought the fire, defused the bombs and watched Ed's aerial escape and my "winged mercury" dash out of the flames. IN RETROSPECT DT-5 was a minor disaster and indeed a "Crispy Critter". To add insult to the situation, when Crash Crew showed up the aircraft was covered with the foulest smelling protein firefighting foam imaginable. DT-5 is memorialized on pg. 68 of the VMA(aw) 242 Cruise Book, circa 1967. In fact Ed Weber's picture appears above the picture of DT-5. DT-5 was sent back to the States and did return some years later to VMA (aw) 224 and continued flying. A most troubling thing for me has been the fact that I cannot recall the names of those Marines on the ground that acted so heroically. Thanks again Marines!
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