stories from Vietnam & cambodia

Colonel Thomas Gardner Derrickson’s legacy spans fighter missions, test flights, and early space program training. This tribute, submitted by a fellow USAFA ’59 classmate, honors his life, his quiet leadership, and the heartbreak endured by his family after he was declared Missing in Action in Vietnam. A story of courage, friendship, and the unseen cost of war.

In the darkness over North Vietnam, RL Penn flew into the heart of Route Pack VI—where 208 AAA guns waited beneath him. This vivid account from the USAFA Class of ’59 archives captures the tension, wit, and grit of a pilot who survived the impossible. From tracer duels to a four-foot miss beneath a tanker, Penn’s story is a tribute to courage, camaraderie, and the razor-thin line between life and loss.

“Steel Six, this is Rash 31. Pop some smoke — I’ll be over you in thirty seconds.” The enemy knew we were pulling out. That knowledge fueled their desperation—and their firepower. I dropped through the clouds into chaos, rockets blazing, just twenty-five meters from our troops. The jungle lit up with smoke and gunfire. I wasn’t supposed to be there, not under those conditions. But I was. Because they needed help. And because sometimes, you fly to the sound of battle.

Colonel Robert E. Blake, USAFA Class of 1959, became the first Academy graduate to down a MiG in combat. His legacy of valor, innovation, and leadership—from Vietnam skies to the White House—continues to inspire the Long Blue Line.

After the Vietnam War officially ended, a pilot embarked on a dangerous reconnaissance mission to aid a desperate Navy rescue of American missionaries, encountering unexpected threats and shedding light on a forgotten story of survival.

I was the Operations Officer of the 14th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron in late 1973 into 1974. Things in Southeast Asia were winding down significantly, except for reconnaissance. We were flying more combat missions every day than we had crews available. Cambodia, however, had been put off-limits by the U.S. Congress after the 1970 invasion and subsequent bombing. I was in the office when an emergency photo mission was ordered by 7th Air Force. I was the only pilot availab

Story during the Vietnam conflict of a deadstick refueling. It was late May 1956 over northern Thailand. Our tankers had launched from U-Tapao and had performed a top-off refueling of fighters headed into North Vietnam. Then, we orbited in place to provide post-strike refueling for those same fighters returning to home base. It was always sad for us tanker troops when the number of returning fighters was lower than the number we had refueled inbound to their targets in bad gu

an extract from Don L. Brook's first book, “Fly to the Sound of Battle.” Brooks was an ALO/FAC flying the OV-10 Bronco.  At the time, the US was flying Top Secret missions in support of the Cambodian Army. My flight on November 23 of 1970, is one I will never forget. It was only twenty days until my tour of duty in SEA was finished, and I was looking forward to returning to "the world." The flight began routinely enough. I had the first go that morning, "Dawn Patrol."