The Black Knights of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 314 [VMFA-314]  were located In Marine Aircraft Group 13 at Chu Lai, South Vietnam during the period September 1966 to August 1967.  VMFA-314 Phantom pilot Marine First Lieutenant Mike Carson and his RIO/GIB [Radar Intercept Officer/Guy In Back] Marine Captain Bud Haye were assigned to the morning Hot Pad in F4B Buno [Bureau Number] 152266.  The two F4B aircraft on the CAS [Close Air Support] Hot Pad were loaded with 12 D-2 [Mark 82] 500 pound Snake-eye bombs per aircraft rigged for delivery in the retarded mode.  The ordnance was used for emergency support of troops in contact with the enemy.  The two Marine Officers had flown as a flight crew many times before and were good friends.  Both men read the most recent maintenance yellow sheet discrepancy write-ups and were satisfied with their aircraft assignment.  From the line shack, they proceeded to the flight line to pre-flight their Phantom.

No problems were found with their pre-flight of the aircraft or the bomb load. The crew then climbed up to the cockpit and checked their respective ejection seats before stepping into the dual cockpits.  The plane captain took his position in front of the Phantom to lead the pilot through the start and before taxi check list items. All the checks were completed and the aircraft made ready for taxi and takeoff.  The crew then left their helmets in the cockpits ready for donning and taxi out if scrambled by the Air Wing.  Mike and Bud climbed down from the aircraft and went to the nearby Hot Pad Ready Van to await the Scramble call.  Most often the Hot Pad meant sitting for hours ready to launch in 5 minutes when scrambled and then being relieved by another flight crew without ever being launched. 

May 16, 1967 was different.  The crews of the two Hot Pad Phantoms idled away two hours when suddenly the launch horn sounded and Mike picked up the red phone.  The Operations Duty Officer directed the Scramble, "Emergency Mission.  Troops in contact with .50 Caliber Machine Guns.  North of Con Thien at the north side of the DMZ.  Contact Landshark Charlie on button yellow passing Phu.Bai."  The crews raced to their Phantoms where the Plane Captains were already standing by.  The Plane Captains helped the aviators with their shoulder harness locks and pulled the safety pins from the seat and canopy ejection systems, showed them to the flight crew and then stowed the pins in a retainer pocket on the side of the seats.  The Plane Captains climbed down from the cockpits and ran to the front of the aircraft to signal the engine starts and final checks.  The start procedures were expedited and in a couple of minutes the engines were running, the landing gear safety pins were pulled, the Crew called Ground Control on the UHF radio and the flight of two F4Bs began taxiing out to the arming area at the takeoff end of the runway. 

The F4Bs were faced toward a safe area.  The ordnance crew ran around the Phantoms pulling pins and arming the MERs [multiple ejector bomb racks] under each wing while the aircrew kept their hands up and visible to the arming crew leader.  Upon receiving a thumbs up from the ordnance crew, the aircrew called for and received clearance for takeoff.

A last check of engine instruments and flight controls was accomplished on the runway, the brakes were released and the throttles moved to the Afterburner position.  The powerful shove of Combat Rated Thrust from the ABs slammed the aviators backs against the ejection seats and the shrieking phantoms rapidly accelerated down the runway.  It was approximately 10 AM when Mike and Bud launched out of Chu Lai in a section of two F4B aircraft.

The flight proceeded up the coast, staying well clear east of Da Nang Air Base in route to Phu Bai and then to Dong Ha.  Radio contact was made with all controlling agencies while heading north.  After passing Dong Ha TACAN, they headed out the 312 Radial to 32 nautical miles where an O-1 Birddog FAC [Forward Air Controller] was waiting to mark the .50 Caliber machine guns that was their target.  The Black Knight flight checked in on the the Birddog FAC's operating frequency and received a quick brief on the hot .50 Cal target that was keeping  the Grunt Marines hunkered down and inflicting casualties.  After establishing mutual visual contact between the FAC and the two F4Bs, the Birddog pilot rolled upside down, pulled the O-1's nose down to the target, quickly rolled upright and launched a Willy Peter [WP White Phosphorous] 2.75 inch rocket to mark the target.  The Birddog pilot then rapidly bent his spotter plane  back around to the safer airspace south of the enemy gun position.  The FAC described the clock position and distance of the target from the WP smoke rising from the pock-marked jungle terrain .  The Phantoms called the target in sight and were immediately cleared in "Hot" by the FAC.

The Delta two Snake-eyes were designed for a 0-15 degree dive angle with a low level release at 50 to 1000 feet depending on the dive angle used and an airspeed of 350-450 knots.  The Marine Corps minimum altitude rules of engagement for ordnance delivery north of the DMZ was 4000 feet AGL [Above Ground Level].  The accuracy of retarded fin snake eye bombs was diminished greatly with each additional 500 feet of delivery altitude.  Consequently, pilots normally kept their aircraft within the most accurate delivery parameters which increased the probability of being hit by enemy small arms fire

The flight elected to make multiple runs.  The first run with the Snake-eye Retarded Fin mode drops were successful with no visible enemy AAA fire being received during the run.  Mike and Bud were in their second run when they felt a thump and the Phantom lurched left and then began uncontrollably rolling left.  Mike yelled, " We're hit.  We must have lost part of the wing!  I can't control this Bird."  Mike and Bud simultaneously shouted, "Time to get out!"  Both men ejected during a time when the rolling Phantom was passing through the upright stage of a roll at a very low altitude.

The ejection systems worked perfectly and both men were soon on the ground.  Mike ended up in a tree and began working his way down.  Mike had no idea where Bud had landed from his position.  He later learned  that Bud landed in a bomb crater.  The aviators quickly shed their parachutes and pulled out their emergency radios to aid in the rescue attempt they hoped would be forthcoming.  Their mission became escape and evasion.  The O-1 Birddog was circling overhead their position but was under constant ground fire as the NVA tried to shoot down the FAC to thwart any rescue effort.  The vulnerable O-1 was soon driven away by the heavy fire.  Mike heard the automatic anti-aircraft [AAA] banging continuously until the Birddog was out of sight.  Soon, NVA soldiers were heard by Mike and peering from his jungle growth hiding place behind a downed tree he observed them passing several yards away in their search for Mike and Bud. 

A Navy Skyraider A-1 assumed control of the rescue and called for the divert of all available armed aircraft.  In a few minutes, Navy, Air Force, and Marine aircraft were making multiple hot runs on the enemy gun positions.  Mike recalls that the attacking aircraft put on a show of force that he would never forget.  Mike took shelter under the downed tree and watched the ordnance deliveries of the attacking aircraft. 

A Jolly Green appeared from the south and flew directly over their positions near the clearly visible burning F-4.  Their attempt  to rescue the downed pilots was cut short when the NVA opened up with extremely heavy ground fire.  After taking multiple hits from the AAA, the Jolly Green limped back to the south and returned to Da Nang.  It was a depressing sight for the survivors.  The Skyraider called for more attack aircraft.  Mike remembers the day becoming quite long with lots of ordnance being expended to save them and then the sharp disappointment as the NVA shot up the rescuers.  The air support that followed the departure of the damaged rescue helicopter shook the ground like continuous earthquakes.  The echoing booms from the bombs, rockets and napalm detonating all around had Mike's ears ringing.  Once again the enemy firing stopped.  The FAC sent the Attacking aircraft high and dry.  A second Jolly Green came toward the downed F-4 from the south.  Mike watched the big chopper head toward a position that he figured was Bud.  As the Jolly Green slowed  to hover the banging of AAA commenced.  The NVA opened up again with heavy automatic weapons fire.  Puffs of smoke marked the impact of enemy fire on the side of the Jolly Green.  The newly arrived Jolly Green took multiple hits.  The rescuers trailed smoke as they pulled up the collective, turned south and flew back to Da Nang.

The Navy Spad [A-1] pilot radioed to Mike and Bud, "Get your heads down!  We're going to suppress Charlie's fire!"  The downed aircrew took cover and moments later a barrage of CBUs [Cluster Bomb Units] hit all around their positions and in the surrounding jungle.  The CBU did the trick.  Everything was deathly quiet around them.  Another Jolly Green was soon overhead and another rescue attempt was commenced.  The Jolly Green went to a position that Mike figured was Bud's location.  Soon Bud was hoisted up to the rescue helicopter.  Mike broke from under the tree into an open area as the Jolly Green moved towards his location.  Soon the helicopter was overhead and the sling was dropped within easy reach.  Mike climbed into the sling and was lifted up towards the helicopter open hatch as the Big Bird turned toward the DMZ and the safety of Dong Ha, South Vietnam.  Machine gun fire was loud and continuous, but it was the crewmembers of the Jolly Green using their automatic weapons as they raked the terrain around the downed Phantom to keep the NVA heads down.  As Jolly Green PJ, Joseph M. Duffy, pulled him into the cabin Mike saw his partner Bud for the first time since their ejection that morning.  Mike and Bud were plucked out of the impact area just before sunset.  What a relief is was for them to be out of danger and back into friendly hands.  Mike and Bud owed their very lives to courageous Air Force Pilot Thomas R. Johnson and his brave crew.  The two survivors were carried to Dong Ha where the local medics gave them a physical and an intelligence debrief about their shoot down and their experiences during their time on the ground.  Then, the crew was further medivacked to Phu Bai where another round of physicals and intelligence debriefings were conducted.  But it was not over yet, the crew were then transported to Da Nang where, as you may have guessed by now, another physical examination and intelligence debrief was done.  All Mike had to say about the physical exams was, "The squid doctors have cold fingers!"

Mike Carson and Bud Haye spent the night at Da Nang.  The next morning on May 17, 1967 they were back at MAG-13 at Chu Lai with the rest of the Black Knights of VMFA 314 celebrating their successful escape from the Valley of Death.  The following morning Mike was on the flight schedule for another combat mission as though nothing unusual had happened within the previous 48 hours.  Just another day delivering ordnance in an "Air to Mud, people to pieces" world.  Mike says, "By the way, my XO, Major Duke Brandon and others up the proverbial Chain of Command chewed my rectal orifice royally for making that second run in a hot area that far north."

Mike says that there isn't much movie potential in his story but it was sure an eye-opening, attention getting, extraordinarily exciting day in his life." 

I say "Amen, Mike Carson!  That would be one hell-of-a day in the life of any Warrior!"