| Republic of the
Philippines |
| August 31, 1972 |
| Dear Mother &
Daddy, |
| I'm in the Philippines,
waiting for a flight out of here to Thailand. We're supposed to
fly out of here at 5:00 a.m. in the morning. We flew all night in
an Air Force C-130, and we got here this morning about 5:00
...
Squadron 533 is beginning to
fly single plane missions at night in North Vietnam. They're
flying in about 500 feet above ground, which is low enough to
keep them out of the SAM (surface-to-air missile) environment, so
it should be pretty safe.
I hope Karoni has been over to
see you every couple of days. I sure miss her. Give her a kiss
for me.
I guess I better close and go
get something to eat.
|
Love,
Ron |
| Nam Phong,
Thailand |
| September 3, 1972 |
| Dear Mother &
Daddy, |
| Well, I've been here three
days now, and there's no doubt in my mind as to why they call
this place "The Rose Garden..." They just got electricity in the
tents two days before I arrived. There is no hot water, but we
do, at least, have a shower now.
The heat and humidity are
really bad. I don't know how I can help from losing weight. Even
as bad as things are, if I had a choice of being here or in
Iwakuni, Japan, I'd choose here. I knew just about half of the
people in the squadron before I got here, so I feel right at
home.
I've got to go to "New Guy
School" every night next week before I will be able to fly. My
first mission will probably be next Saturday or Sunday. In a way,
I'm looking forward to it; on the other hand, I'm scared to death
just thinking about it ...
Tell Don & Larry I said hello,
and give Karoni a kiss for me.
|
Love,
Ron |
| Nam Phong,
Thailand |
| September 6, 1972 |
| Dear Mother &
Daddy, |
| I went up on a test hop this
morning. The scenery is beautiful, but I still wouldn't give
fifteen cents for the whole country.
I've got two more nights of
"New Guy School" before I can fly in combat. I'm looking forward
to it now. I'm sure I'll be a little nervous, but the prospect of
being shot down doesn't scare me the way it did when first
arriving.
I've been here for six days and
have spent a total of ninety cents. I should have coins when this
experience is over.
No one has any idea how long
we'll be here. The C.O. seems to think we'll be back in Japan by
Christmas. That would be the best present I can think of, not
that I don't like it here, but a bed with a mattress would be
nice.
I guess I'd better close. Give
Karoni a kiss for me.
|
Love,
Ron |
| Nam Phong,
Thailand |
| September 8, 1972 |
| Dear Mother &
Daddy, |
| I flew combat mission #1 and
combat mission #2 today. We flew over south of DaNang and bombed
an outpost that the South Vietnamese were trying to retake. We
then landed at DaNang and reloaded with eighteen five hundred
pound bombs.
We had lunch and then we headed
off again. You've read about Quang Tri in the papers. That's
where we headed for mission #2. I was a little nervous on mission
#1; in fact, I didn't sleep too well last night for worrying
about it. When I found out we were going to Quang Tri, my heart
stepped up about twice what it should have been. That's a really
hostile area, and I was a little bit scared, although I expected
to be more terrified than I was.
Fear is a strange thing. I was
more afraid on my first day at Texas A&M than I was today. I
guess fear is something with which you have to learn to live. As
long as you can keep it under control, it's no
problem.
I'm scheduled to fly mission #3
tomorrow so I'd better go to sleep. I love you both very much.
Kiss Karoni for me.
|
Love,
Ron |
| Nam Phong,
Thailand |
| September 16, 1972 |
| Dear Mother and
Dad, |
| It's hard to believe another
week has already passed. It's hard to remember what day of the
week it is when everyday is just the same. We are working seven
days a week ...
I've averaged about one combat
sortie a day so far. It's going to be a really long year over
here if the war doesn't end soon. The ball game is entirely
different over here now than it was two or three years ago. I
know people who spent a year flying over here and didn't get shot
at but once or twice the whole time they were here.
I've only been flying missions
for two weeks. Already I know what it feels like to be doing a 45
degree dive toward the ground and having 37mm rounds exploding
right in front of the aircraft. The missions are tense to say the
least.
Will you check to see if I am
registered to vote ? The more I read about George McGovern, the
more I despise him.
The day has been long so I must
hit the rack. Tell Don & Larry I said hello. Kiss Karoni for
me.
|
Love,
Ron |
| Nam Phong,
Thailand |
| September 26, 1972 |
| Dear Mother &
Daddy, |
| I've finally started to
receive some mail. Mail call and a shower at the end of the day
are just about all we've got to look forward to.
Sorry that my letter writing
has slowed down. The only exciting thing around is the combat
missions. If I wrote you about them, you'd only worry more than
you already do.
I just came back from Bangkok.
You can't believe how nice it was to sleep on a bed with a
mattress and clean sheets, to have running water and aflush
toilet. The city of Bangkok is dirty, but we stayed at a really
nice hotel. We had a great time sitting around the swimming
pool.
The pilot I fly with all the
time is Jim Chipman. He is a Mormon from Utah who did missionary
work after he graduated from high school. Needless to say, we
stayed out of trouble in Bangkok.
I've flown twelve combat
sorties so far. I received my first air medal right before we
left for liberty. Since I got here, I've flown more than anyone
else in the squadron ...
Dad, I really appreciated your
letter. Things haven't changed that much since WWII. I can't say
my heartbeat is down to normal on these missions, but most of the
fear is gone.
Give Karoni a kiss for
me.
|
Love,
Ron |
| Nam Phong,
Thailand |
| September 29, 1972 |
| Dear Mother &
Dad, |
| Christmas came early this
year. We got steel racks with mattresses today. You can't imagine
how nice a bed is until you go without one for a month.
I'm not getting to fly as much
now as I did when I first arrived. We have twenty-one aircrews
which means if everyone did their share, we wouldn't get to fly
but once every three days. I flew my fourteenth mission today, so
I've averaged a little more than one every two days since I
started flying.
I got letters from Larry and
Grandma yesterday. They were both mailed three weeks ago
...
I ran into Bob Black the other
day. He and I lived in the same form our first two years at
A&M. It's a small world.
Karoni probably won't remember
me when I get home. I sure do miss her. Give her a kiss for me.
It's been a long day, so guess I'd better close.
|
Love,
Ron |
| Nam Phong,
Thailand |
| October 2, 1972 |
| Dear Mother &
Dad, |
| Sorry to be so long about
writing, but I've been kind of sick the past couple of days. I'm
o.k. now. I just had a virus that is going around ...
The base where Ralph Crow [a
close friend from Texarkana who Ron met at Texas A&M] is
stationed was his by a rocket attack last night. I don't know the
extent of the damage or if anyone was hurt.
I sent Karoni twenty dollars
for her second birthday. I sure miss her. Give her a kiss for
me.
|
| Love,
Ron
|
| Nam Phong,
Thailand |
| October 5, 1972 |
| Dear Mother & Dad, |
| It's beginning to get cool
here at night. The cooler weather makes it nice for sleeping, but
makes the shower at night more of a daily task instead of a
highlight. They're supposed to rig up a device to produce hot
water for the showers, but they haven't been very successful
yet.
My flying has slowed down
considerably. I haven't flown but twice in the last week. I had
more combat missions than anyone else in the squadron last month,
but I'm off to a slow start this month.
I can't believe that Karoni is
already two years old. Jana sent me a picture of her talking on
the phone. I can't believe how grown up she looks. I think she is
getting even cuter. Giver her a kiss for me. Tell Don and Larry I
said hello.
|
Love,
Ron |
|