Recently, “mysterious” drones flew over the United States. Photo journalist, law enforcement and the military regularly use state-of-the-art drones.
Hobbyists purchase off-the-shelf versions. Like many grandparents, we bought our grandson a backyard use drone.
During the Vietnam War, my dad came across an aviation article saying Russia alleged the United States was using drones in Vietnam. Dad was pretty sure the article described what he believed his son-in-law had transferred into with the military.
The air force had recently relocated my husband John, to Arizona and then school to train for the C-130 aircraft. The C-130 is a four-engine plane designed to carry out specific missions.
The “C” designation means it is conversable and can be operated for either cargo or passengers depending on the plane’s interior arrangement.
Long declassified, John’s then new military job was clandestine – top secret with 90-day rotations in Vietnam doing drone surveillance. The U.S. government believed the Russians were supplying the North Vietnamese with long range surface-to-air-missiles. High flying drones, with fish-eye lens could photograph enemy supply routes so our military could cut them off.
“Drones could accomplish what the U-2 could in terms of bringing home photographic intelligence, but a drone could do it without getting pilots captured or killed. Ideally, drones could perform missions that fell into three categories: dull, dirty and dangerous.
“Dull meant long flights during which pilots faced fatigue flying to remote areas of the globe. Dirty included situations where nuclear weapons or biological weapons might be involved; Dangerous meant missions over denied territories where shoot-downs were a political risk.”
Attached to the C-130 wing, drones were then detached over enemy territory. Their film canisters later retrieved by helicopter and processed for pinpointing bomber targets. The Middle East conflict prompted development of a new generation of combat drone – the Predator.
Shrouded in secrecy, Vietnam era drones were early robots used for dangerous war zone aerial missions. The C-130 is still the most robust and dependable military aircraft. Newer models were used in Iraq.
To honor those who served in Vietnam, Vietnam Veterans Day is March 29th.
