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Posted on 11/03/2003 12:00:27 AM PST by SAMWolf
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 are acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated.
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| Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel free to address their specific circumstances or whatever issues concern them in an atmosphere of peace, understanding, brotherhood and support. The FReeper Foxhole hopes to share with it's readers an open forum where we can learn about and discuss military history, military news and other topics of concern or interest to our readers be they Veteran's, Current Duty or anyone interested in what we have to offer. If the Foxhole makes someone appreciate, even a little, what others have sacrificed for us, then it has accomplished one of it's missions. We hope the Foxhole in some small way helps us to remember and honor those who came before us.
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Robin Olds and Birth of the Wolf Pack  The North Vietnamese thought they were attacking bomb-laden F-105s. What they ran into was Robin Olds and the Wolfpack, flying Phantom F-4s.  Mig Sweep By Walter J. Boyne On Jan. 2, 1967, with aircraft losses in Southeast Asia on the rise, the United States Air Force resorted to an elaborate combat sting. The mission, called Operation Bolo, constituted an electronic Trojan Horse concealing the hard-hitting F-4 Phantoms of USAF's 8th Tactical Fighter Wing within a radiated image that simulated bomb-laden F-105 Thunderchiefs.  Despite adverse weather and a few surprises, the "MiG Sweep" did what it was designed to do: trick the increasingly elusive MiG-21s of North Vietnam into engaging F-4s rigged for aerial combat. Until the latter part of 1966, MiG aircraft had not been as great a threat to USAF strike forces as the Surface-to-Air Missiles and anti-aircraft fire. Ironically enough, the introduction of the QRC-160 (ALQ-71) electronics countermeasures pod on the F-105s changed this. The QRC-160 was effective in neutralizing the radar controlling the SAMs and flak, and the resilient North Vietnamese responded by increasing their use of MiG fighters to prey on vulnerable F-105s configured for bombing. Operating under ground control, and making maximum use of both cloud cover and the almost benevolent American rules of engagement, the enemy aircraft were adroitly employed. The MiGs, especially the later model MiG-21s armed with heat-seeking missiles, sought to attack the strike flights and make them jettison their bomb loads prior to reaching the target areas. Their mission was fulfilled if the Thuds were forced to drop their bombs prematurely, but they tried to score kills wherever possible.  The MiG-21 was a short-range day fighter-interceptor and the first major production version of the popular MiG-21 series. The aircraft pictured here is painted and marked as a MiG-21PF of the North Vietnamese Air Force during the Vietnam War. USAF Museum photograph. The air war in Southeast Asia, while unique in many respects, harkened back to earlier conflicts in terms of the relative missions, forces, and equipment. As in World War II and Korea, the mission of US forces was to obtain air superiority, destroy the enemy air forces, and conduct long-range bombing operations. The mission of the enemy forces was to defend their most important targets by choosing to engage the American bombers on a selective basis. There were other parallels. To achieve the air superiority mission, the American fighters had to have a long-range capability and still be able to defeat the enemy fighters over their own territory. What the Mustangs and Sabres did in their wars, the F-4 Phantom II was required to do in Southeast Asia. Flights of F-4s, carrying a mixed ordnance load of bombs and missiles, would be sandwiched in between Thud flights at four- or five-minute intervals. If the F-105s in front or behind were attacked, the F-4s would drop their bombs and try to engage. If they were not, the F-4s would drop bombs right along with the Thuds.  A final, tragic parallel is the price paid to execute the missions that were often laid on for statistical rather than tactical reasons. Flying Phantoms or Thuds was dangerous work. As a single example, by late 1967, more than 325 F-105s had been lost over North Vietnam, most to SAMs and anti-aircraft fire. The North Vietnamese air force consisted of slow but heavily armed and maneuverable MiG-17s and a handful of modern delta-wing MiG-21s. The MiG-17s were semiobsolete but still effective in their defensive role. (The MiG-19 did not enter service with the North Vietnamese air force until February 1969.)  The MiG-21 Fishbed was roughly half the size of the Phantom and was designed as a high-speed, limited all-weather interceptor. It could carry two cannons and two Atoll infrared homing air-to-air missiles which had been developed from the US AIM-9B Sidewinder. At altitude, the MiG-21 could outfly the F-4 in almost all flight regimes. It had spectacular acceleration and turning capability. At lower altitudes, the F-4s used their colossal energy in vertical maneuvers that offset the MiGs' turning capability, for they lost energy quickly in turns at low altitudes. The MiG-21s were operated under tight ground control. They typically sought to stalk American formations from the rear, firing a missile and then disengaging. If engaged, however, its small size and tight turning ability made the MiG-21 a formidable opponent in a dogfight.  MIG 21 Fishbed The Phantom had been intended originally to be a fleet defense aircraft, but it proved to be versatile in many roles, including reconnaissance, Fast Forward Air Control, Wild Weasel, bombing, and air superiority. The F-4Cs were armed only with missiles, although gun pods could be fitted. The air war in Southeast Asia had grown progressively intense, and Dec. 2, 1966, became known as "Black Friday" when the Air Force lost five aircraft and the Navy three to SAMs or anti-aircraft fire. Air Force losses included three F-4Cs, one RF-4C, and an F-105. The Navy lost one F-4B and two Douglas A-4C Skyhawks. These ground-fire losses were accompanied by the marked increase in MiG activity during the last quarter of 1966. Because the rules of engagement prohibited airfield attacks, the men of the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing were determined to blunt the enemy's efforts by luring the MiGs into air-to-air combat and then destroying them. The reluctance of the MiG-21s to engage did not mean that the North Vietnamese pilots were lacking in either courage or skill. At the time, the US estimated that there were only 16 MiG-21s in the theater, and the enemy had to employ them selectively to maximize their utility.  Brig. Gen. Robin Olds, USAF (Ret.), recalls himself as the proverbial "new boy on the block" with the 8th TFW, as yet unproven in the jet air war of Southeast Asia. When he arrived at Ubon RTAB, Thailand, as a colonel, to assume command of the Wolfpack on Sept. 30, 1966, Olds, who was 44 and stood six feet two, struck some as more the Hollywood concept of a combat commander than an Air Force regular officer. This was, at least in part, because he was married not to the girl next door but to film star Ella Raines.  Son of Maj. Gen. Robert Olds, one of the most influential generals in the Army Air Corps, the new commander of the 8th was a World War II ace. Olds would later remark that he never flew one mission over Germany that was as tough as any mission over Hanoi. Olds' war-ace status was marred somewhat by a reputation for being a maverick. Olds had often argued forcefully against contemporary Air Force training. He was an outspoken advocate of intensive training in the arts of war he learned in Europe. Unable to wangle his way into the Korean conflict, he had continued to press for training in strafing, dive-bombing, and other conventional warfare techniques at a time when US fighters were being adapted to carry nuclear weapons and fight a nuclear war. His advice, though not well received, was a realistic forecast of what would be required for war in Southeast Asia.  Olds knew he would have to prove himself to the combat-hardened veterans of the 8th as a leader in their war. He wished to use his past beliefs in a plan that would confirm his present status. He had first presented his idea for a MiG ambush to Gen. Hunter Harris Jr., Pacific Air Forces commander. Harris ignored him. Olds next went to the commander of 7th Air Force, Gen. William W. "Spike" Momyer. It was in early December 1966, at a cocktail party in the Philippines, that Olds edged next to Momyer. After a few polite remarks, Olds said, "Sir, the MiGs are getting pesky" and went on to describe ways to bring them to battle. Momyer's expression of deep disinterest didn't change. He moved away, leaving Olds with the uncomfortable impression that he had blown a good opportunity.      |
AA-2 ATOLL
K-13 (R-3 or Object 310)
PL-2 / PL-3 / PL-5
The 24 September 1958 Chinese acquisition of an American AIM-9B Sidewinder missile marked the beginning of a breakthrough in the development of Soviet air-to-air missiles. The missile, fired from a Taiwanese F-86 Sabre aircraft, lodged without exploding in a Chinese MiG-17. The missile was sent to Toropov's engineering office to be copied, and the product the K-13, long the most popular Soviet air-to-air missile. The Sidewinder had a number of valuable features, not least of which was the modular construction that facilitated ease in production and operation. The simplicity of the AIM-9 was in marked contrast to the complexity of contemporary Soviet missiles. The Sidewinder's infrared-guided homing head contained a free-running gyroscope and was much smaller than Soviet counterparts, and the steering and in-flight stabilization system were equally superior. Gennadiy Sokolovskiy, later chief engineer at the Vympel team, said that "the Sidewinder missile was to us a university offering a course in missile construction technology which has upgraded our engineering education and updated our approach to production of future missiles."
The Soviets soon made advances over the original Sidewinder model, making dozen of modifications to the initial design. In 1960 series-production of the K-13 missile (also called R-3 or Object 310) began. In 1962 the R-3S (K13A or Object 310) became the first version to be produced in large numbers, though its homing operation took much more time (22 seconds instead of 11 seconds). In 1961 development began of the high-altitude K-13R (R-3R or Object 320) with a semiactive radar head, which was entered service with combat aircraft in 1966. The training versions were the R-3U missiles ("uchebnaya", barrel with a homing set, not fired from an aircraft) and the R-3P ("prakticheskaya" differing from the combat version by absence of an explosive charge). The RM-3V (RM denoting "raketa-mishen" [target-missile] served as an aerial target. During late 1960s the Vympel team began working on the K-13M (R-13M, Object 380) modification of the K-13 missile, which in 1973 was certified as an operational weapon. It has a cooled homing head, a radio rather than optical closing-in igniter, and a more potent warhead. Analogous modifications of the R-55 resulted in the R-55M missile. The last version of the K-13 is the R-13M1 with a mofified steering apparatus.
The K-13 missile was produced in China as the PL-2 (updated versions PL-3 and PL-5) and also in Romania as the A-91. The PL-5E [Pili = Thunderbolt, or Pen Lung = Air Dragon] air-to-air missile has a maximum mobility overload of 40g, exceeding the 35g of the AIM-9L of the United States. Mobility overload a unit for measuring the mobility of aircraft. The larger the value the better the aircraft can adapt to violent mid-air mobility. An air-to-air missile with a great overload means that the attacked side is less likely to escape the attack). The speed of the missile is Mach 2.5 (2.5 times sound speed) and its maximum range is 14,000 meters.
Specifications
Year 1961
Type short-range missile
Modifications AA-2 - infra-red guidance
AA-2-2 "Advanced Atoll" - semi-active radar guidance
Wingspan (AA-2) 0.45 m
Wingspan (AA-2-2) 0.53 m
Length (AA-2) 2.8 m
Length (AA-2-2) 3.0 m
Diameter 0.12 m
Launch weight 70 kg
Max. speed 2850 km/h
Maximum range 6.5 km
Propulsion solid propellant rocket motor
Guidance passive infra-red homing or semi-active radar homing
Warhead proximity-fuzed blast fragmentation, 6 kg
Service USSR, India, South Yemen, Romania, Afghanistan, North Yemen, North Vietnam, Albania, Nigeria, Uganda, Iraq, Poland, Syria, Algeria, Sudan, Morocco, Somalia, Angola, Bangladesh, Peru, Yugoslavia, Mozambique, China, Libya, Hungary, Laos, North Korea, Ethiopia, East Germany, Finland, Czechoslovakia, Cuba, Bulgaria.
Cloned Sidewinders - The K-13A/AA-2 Atoll
The Atoll traces its genealogy to the early AIM-9B. Numerous stories exist on how the AIM-9 fell into communist hands. One suggests a turncoat German officer drove some friendly GRU agents to a Luftwaffe base and loaded an AIM-9 into a truck, subsequently transporting it across the Iron Curtain. Another more probable story refers to a dogfight between the Nationalist Chinese and Red Chinese over the Formosa straights in the early sixties, during which an AIM-9B embedded itself in the fuselage of a Shenyang F-6 fighter where it failed to detonate.
Whichever way it transpired, the communists by the late sixties deployed a missile which was very hard to distinguish from the AIM-9B. Many USAF aircraft in Vietnam fell to sniping tail aspect GCI hits by Atoll firing MiG-21s or F-8s, and the Atoll has since become the most common heatseeking missile in Third World use.
Like the AIM-9B, the Atoll requires a skilled user to be effective at its best, and therefore in Third World confrontations the weapon has been of questionable usefulness. Well, at least it looks like a Sidewinder !
The Sidewinder has stood the test of time, and spending 40 years at the cutting edge is a tribute to its original designers, who can be justly proud of their basic design. While its newer derivatives may look different and use different guidance principles, they will all trace their ancestry to the Naval Weapons Centre's original fifties program. The Sidewinder must be acknowledged as the most successful heatseeking missile design of all times.
A sort of urban legend has sprung up surrounding these air battles. According to a widely-reported story, during one of these air battles, one of the Sidewinders failed to explode when it struck the tail of a MiG. The MiG pilot managed to stagger back home, and found upon landing that the unexploded Sidewinder missile was still jammed in his tailpipe. This Sidewinder missile was passed along to Soviet intelligence, and the Soviets promptly proceeded to copy the design virtually bolt-for-bolt, producing the K-13 (AA-2 "Atoll") air-to-air missile.
Building a copy of a MiG-21 Fishbreath from flattened Coors cans.
MiG Pilot; The Final Escape of Lt. Belenko by John Barron is interesting. September 6, 1976. Developed to counter the B-70, but the B-70 was cancelled due to missile defenses.
Q: When you were growing up in Russia the book Spartacus, by Howard Fast, was an inspiration to you. What was inspiring about it?
Belenko: As brief as possible, you can't keep a free soul in a cage. You can't keep eagle in a cage. I'm talking about Spartacus. And that's a very short answer to the influence of that book.
Thus did Johnson--on the first business day after Kennedy's funeral--reverse the latter's NSAM 263 of Oct 63 calling for withdrawal of advisers 1000/mo. [Hint: A rough draft was found dated several days before JFKs Dallas accident.]
Fine, Kennedy had to go--but:
Johnson's ROE's and target list nitpicking and refusal to bomb Hanoi and mine Haiphong turned military victory into political defeat.
Here's to the hottest of eternities for Landslide Lyndon.
Recommend Flight of the Intruder.
Also recommend an AIM-9 up the six of the REMFs courtmartialing Col. Alan West.
Powell and Armitage and the lace pantaloons restrict ROE's in Iraq.
The correct balance in my own "new tone" is one each daisy cutter per individual terrorist celebration.
Hi, Saddam!
And one of these babies per square kilometer of Tikrit, Faluja and any other recalcitrant demos.
There are many names on that black wall in Washington, put there by Washington, including some, I unfortunately contributed to, until I 'learned'.
Thanks for your service. I don't envy you the memories of having to work under those restrictions.
As brief as possible, you can't keep a free soul in a cage. You can't keep eagle in a cage.
Something the Communists never learned and our Liberals still have to learn.
I did. LOL. I was the seventh post. ;)
It was a great story wasn't it. Thanks for the link, I hope everyone gets to see it.
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