Comrade Richard Pasini

The 366^th Tactical Fighter Wing - DaNang

In the Spring of 1965, Richard Pasini enlisted in the United States Air Force, looking for travel and adventure.
After basic training in San Antonio Texas, Pasini went on to attend a year in electronics school at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi Mississippi, located on the Gulf Coast.

At the time, Biloxi was named ‘The Riviera of the South’ for some reason that the Chamber of Commerce dreamed up.

However, for the airmen stationed at the base, the local gentlemen of the town did not appreciate the troops sharing their environment and female companionship. It was safer to travel about in groups on the weekend evenings, to avoid unfriendly confrontations with the locals.

After completing the course as a ground radio electronics technician, Pasini put in for overseas service, placing Italy and the Europe as preferred assignments. As fate would have it, Richard’s class was unfortunate in being chosen for ‘remote duty assignments’, and he wound up acquiring a one year tour at Sondestrom Air Base in Greenland.

As the saying went, “There is a woman behind every tree in Greenland!”. Of course, there are no trees in Greenland. But there were several months of total darkness in the freezing winter, along with musk ox and caribou that wondered about and had to be scattered from the landing field occasionally. There were also rabid fox that the Air Police got to shoot, and lots of waterfowl that stopped during their summer migration in small ponds that dotted the mountainous terrain. After a delightful year in this northern wilderness, Pasini again put in for Italy, Europe, and the Bahama Islands, wishing for warmer surroundings.

Once again, the wisdom of the Air Force prevailed, and Richard found himself cross training into the electronic warfare equipment specialty field at Hollowman Air Force Base in New Mexico. The base is on the outskirts of the White Sands Proving Ground, a desert environment. Pasini did enjoy working on electronic warfare systems associated with the B – 57 Cambera Jet Bombers. Squadron pilots would fly training missions for other military branch radar personnel in the area.  After several months of intensive training, the word was passed that the technicians would be getting orders for the Vietnam War Theater. Pasini figured he would get a head start on his fellow airmen and put in papers to be stationed in Thailand. Being stationed in Thailand was a primary goal of single airmen, since the duty was reported as being tops in South East Asia, with possible living arrangements off base, and the local people being very friendly to GIs. Once again, fate entered the picture and Pasini was stationed at DaNang Air Base located on the northern seacoast of South Vietnam.

The night Pasini landed at DaNang Air Base a few days after Christmas 1967, the black  sky was blazing with flares drifting down on the base perimeters. Marine troops were searching for possible enemy infiltrators.

 The bright spot of the tour for Pasini was that he was attached to the 366^th Tactical Fighter Wing (TFW), with the nickname ‘The Gunfighters’. The designation had been recently won when wing  pilots shot down several Soviet MIG fighter aircraft in dogfights, using the 20 mm Gatling gun pods slung under the aircraft bellies .  The aircraft consisted of three squadrons of McDonald Douglas F-4D Phantom II fighters, the most versatile and rugged aircraft in the fighter category in the Vietnam War Theater.  The F-4D’s carried a wide variety of missiles and bombs, accomplishing staffing and bombing missions. In short order, Richard was assigned to the 366^th Avionics & Electronics (A & E) Squadron and was working on electronic warfare equipment systems. This included testing radar transmission pods, repairing and removing radar homing and warning systems components which were hidden in compartments located all over the aircraft. His favorite task was to climb up to the aircraft cockpit and perform a final system test, just as the pilots were closing down the canopy preparing to take off. With dual jet engines, it was an awesome sight and sound to see pairs of these F-4D’s blast off the flight line with afterburners, especially at night. Pasini considered it a privilege to be able to service these aircraft.

Starting on January 31,1968, the infamous ‘Communist TET Offensive’ took place.

Instead of  sustaining a weekly Viet Cong and North Vietnam Army rocket and mortar attack, DaNang Air Base absorbed numerous attacks from the enemy. The Air Force facility, as well as the Marine facility that was located on the other side of the flight line, sustained casualties and considerable damage, along with other military installations throughout South Vietnam.

Shortly thereafter, a second major incident occurred off the coast of South Korea, where the North Korean Navy attacked and illegally captured the U.S.S. Pueblo. The Pueblo was an American intelligence ship and the attack promoted an international crisis. American fighter-bomber aircraft units from around the world, along with support personnel, were quickly dispatched to South Korea as an Air Force show of strength. A small contingency of volunteers from DaNang, including Pasini, was assigned to Kunson Air Base on the south cost of South Korea. For more than a month, the extra aircraft and troops were held in a tense standoff with the North Koreans. When it became apparent that a fighting situation was not immanent, several support units were withdrawn, with the DaNang contingency returning to their base. A stop off in transit in Japan was a welcomed relief.

The one year tour of duty at DaNang Air Base passed quickly if not smoothly, and Pasini was looking forward to becoming a civilian once again. Rather than being assigned for a few months at a base in Louisiana, Pasini opted for an ‘early out’, and was honorably discharged from the Air Force on December 28, 1968. For services rendered during his tour of duty at DaNang Air Base, Pasini was awarded the Air Force Commendation Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal with Two Bronze Stars, the National Defense Service Medal, and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal. During his previous duty stations, Pasini also received the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award and the Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon.