MOULTRIE, Ga. — An Air Pressure veteran from Berlin would be the keynote speaker for the annual veterans breakfast Nov. 5.
The breakfast will start at 8 a.m. at C.A. Grey Junior Excessive Faculty cafeteria with this system to start out at 9 a.m.
Ronald Horn of Berlin might be telling of his experiences in the course of the Vietnam Battle.
In a biography offered to advertise the breakfast, Horn mentioned he obtained his grasp’s diploma in aerospace engineering in 1964 and was assigned to McClelland Air Pressure Base in California on a seven-year dedication to repay the Air Pressure for his schooling.
“Since I solely had eight extra years till retirement, I assumed we might be there till I retired,” Horn mentioned. “That sounded nice to all my household, particularly my spouse. Within the earlier 18 years of married life, we had skilled 14 strikes!”
The Air Pressure had different concepts. Simply six months later, he was requested to just accept a reassignment to supervise flight security within the Pacific area. After some discussions and negotiations, Horn wound up assigned to Hickman AFB in Hawaii, the place Horn can be in command of flight security for all transport, utility and helicopter plane within the Pacific Air Pressure stock.
“That consisted of 16 various kinds of plane strung everywhere in the Pacific,” Horn mentioned. “I had by no means flown any of them or had any data of their missions. To make it worse, an lively warfare was happening in Vietnam and several other of the plane had been concerned within the warfare.”
Horn’s job was to obtain accident stories and plane loss stories, evaluate them, touch upon them and supply suggestions for corrective motion. The primary month, he obtained stories of twenty-two C-123 cargo planes misplaced, together with most of their crews and cargo, together with 4 C-130s. The following month was one other 22 C-123s and 5 C-130s.
“At that time I went to see my boss, Col. Franklin, the inspector common for Pacific Air Forces, who reported on to the four-star commander of the Pacific Air Forces,” Horn mentioned. “I defined to him that the lack of 44 C-123s and 9 C-130s in two months was not sustainable. We may neither construct alternative plane that quick nor may we prepare and exchange crews that shortly. He requested me what I steered, and I mentioned, ‘I don’t know what is going on on.'”
Horn’s proposal was to go to Vietnam, fly with the crews and see what should be blamed for the planes to go down. Franklin agreed and offered him with a letter from the four-star commander of the Pacific theater that might enable him to return and go from South Vietnam as wanted, journey wherever within the nation and keep so long as essential. The admiral licensed him the best precedence on transportation from all American forces and people of the South Vietnamese army.
“This letter proved to be completely superb,” Horn mentioned, “and no person questioned it.
“For the rest of my three-year tour, I spent a complete of 18 months in nation flying with my items,” he mentioned.
Horn’s biography didn’t reveal what he realized concerning the airplane crashes. Tom Davis, chairman of the Veterans Exercise Committee, which sponsors the veterans breakfast, mentioned that is anticipated to be the main target of his presentation Nov. 5.
All veterans are welcome.
