Below is a list of the places I've found on the web which have helped me learn more about my Father's experience as an F-100 fighter pilot in Vietnam, his Air Force career, and a few other interesting places that you might find useful. Remember that web sites appear and disappear almost daily. If you find something invaluable you are well advised to copy it onto your own drive and back it up for safekeeping, because the next time you return you could see a "404-Not Found" error instead of what you were looking for.

David Foote was a pilot with the Royal Australian Air Force squadron stationed at Phan Rang. His excellent web site includes a panoramic picture of the Air Force Base, and photos of the planes that flew out of there, as well as the nearby beach and "Strip." His Guestbook is a great place to read firsthand experiences posted by other people who were at Phan Rang.

My Dad graduated from Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas where he was a star pitcher on the baseball team. I didn't know until I began research for this web site that Texas Tech has a substantial collection of Vietnam related material. I hope to be able to donate some items in my Dad's name someday. Check out Resources on the Vietnam Conflict at Texas Tech University.

"An Attack on Phan Rang" is a recollection by Craig Lord, former Sentry/Dog Handler at the Air Force Base which well describes how the site was under regular enemy fire.

"Scramble at Phan Rang" is a picture which you can view online and download - it illustrates members of the 120th TFS Colorado Air National Guard racing to their F-100's on the flightline at Phan Rang.

The Children of Vietnam Veterans web site serves a vital purpose - to quote directly from their web site:

Who We Are

We are children of Vietnam Veterans...
we come from all walks of life.
The common bond that holds us together
is that we had a parent that served in a war
that some will always remember,
and some would like to forget.
Some of our parents are on The Wall,
some of them are still fighting the war,
but all of them are heroes.
We are here to help each other,
in good times & also the bad.
To better understand the past,
and to look forward to our future.
We share experiences & hope to educate others
through our websites, writings, discussions, & life events.

Among other excellent information, the Children of Vietnam Veterans web site includes a very helpful page on how to obtain your parent's military records.

F-100 Super Sabre Archives has a great collection F-100 pictures, and a catalog of F-100 serial numbers.

After my Father returned to the states from his Vietnam tour he was stationed at England AFB in Alexandria, LA, where he trained pilots from the South Vietnamese Air Force how to fly the A-37 "Dragonfly" fighter jet. The A-37 Fighter Squadrons of the South Vietnamese Air Force are detailed on this web page by the Vietnamese Air Force Veterans Association North California Chapter. This site includes service dates, locations, and even patches worn by members of the squadrons. I plan to contact them via email to see if any of the pilots remember my Father from their training days.

Great Aviation Quotes: Combat is some great reading for insight into the Fighter Pilot mentality.

Our first "overseas" assignment was when my Father was stationed at Wethersfield AFB, Essex, England in the early 60's. He flew F-100's with the "Fighting 55th" Tactical Fighter Squadron. Maureen and Jim Tansey have established a thriving web site dedicated to servicemen and their families who served at RAF Bentwaters and RAF Woodbridge (nearby USAF installations), as well as those at Wethersfield.

Speaking of Wethersfield, I have longed to return to Hempstead, Essex, UK to see our old house (Rosedale Cottage on Blogdon's Hill), my old school, and visit the kind people next door (Frank and Mabel Hardy) who used to give us tea and cake every afternoon at "tea time." Thanks to the internet, I was able to discover that Wethersfield still exists, though the USAF turned it over to the British Ministry of Defence back in 1990. Check out "Air Field Hunting III" to see what the main gate looks like nowadays. I still hope to go back someday and drive along the same roads my Dad used to motor down in his bug-eyed Austin-Healey Sprite.

This web site was created by Glenn Chase on a Power Macintosh for Father's Day, 1999 and remains a work in progress.