PHOTO EVIDENCE
OF THE USE OF HERBICIDES
AT ALL MILITARY BASES
OCCUPIED BY U.S. PERSONNEL
IN THAILAND (1961 - 1975)
Ground Zero: Thailand Direct Exposure
Assessment Model *
* March, 2008 Institute of Medicine of the National Academies
Arguement @ Herbicide Agents sprayed on Base Interior ( Online)
and
disspelling the VARO Myth @ direct exposure
(Acting) Under Secretary of V.A. Benefits P.W.Dunne
in coordination with Senator Danial K. Akaka, Chairman for V.A. Committee
using unsubstantiated conclusions
deny Thailand Veterans direct exposure to Agent Orange
in Thailand ! - October 6, 2008 .. quietly (learned of 5/21/09)
Ironically, just before Memorial Day
and an appropriate reflection of betrayal by Congress and V.A.
Revelations in the official military community have uncovered official documents
that will aid all Thailand veterans in submitting their disability claim for the
direct cause of their medical condition associated with the exposure of herbicides
in Thailand. This photo evidence sheet will contain links to the
various key documents as well as other photo links that you may want to print
separately and then attach to your claim filings for either the V.A. regional
office or the Board of Veteran’s Appeal.
JUSMAG (THAILAND)
Mission Policy on Base Defense
in Thailand
Key Passages:
"[Approval] obtained from the US Embassy. Coordination [effected] with the local US Consul"
Scope: "[to conduct] soil sterilization and/or defoliation operations
on or around US Occupied installations" [in Thailand] Cited by VARO/Waco in
Priesman *
* Note: claim was filed prior to declassified document available; therefore, research
[by] “service department” (USAF) required. Notice the use of ambiguous term
“airports.” **
** It is ambiguous, certainly, from the standpoint of db/searches on keywords.
Details
Office of the Secretary of Air Force (SAF)
Letter to Congressman Lane Evans (June 30, 2005)
Source:
Letter
Key Passage (Admission):
44th Engineer Group (Construction) - 1966
Operational Reports for POL Drum Storage Facility (Korat)
Project 9LC 66-30 (9th Logistics Command in Joint Task Force)
Project is suddenly canceled.
Source:
44th Engineer Group (Construction) History
"Connedting the Dots" - Crap and More Crap
and then Army Disgrace.
Brown Death - Grass Color 101
.. courtesy of Dow Chemical
Addendum:
History of the use of herbicies in S.E.A.
A correlation @ 'Nam and Thailand
Vegetation Control on and around bases
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"In light of these facts, the answer to vegetation control in the base interior as on the perimeter appeared to be herbicides.”
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Project Southeast Asia CHECO Reports
"Base Defense in Thailand"
Classified "SECRET"
Addition: Paper on the perspective @ NKP
By Phil Carroll, a Security Police Sentry Dog Handler’s Perspective
An extract of the report was released on or about September 21, 2007
by the U.S. Air Force Declassification Office at the Pentagon in
Washington, D.C.
Contemporary Historical Examination of Current Operations (CHECO)
The continued classification of this report as "Secret" creates a vaccuum for all
U.S. personnel that served in Thailand during the Vietnam War.
Furthermore, with the declassificaiton of a State Department JUSMAG Memo
supporting the basis that the
ROE * (Rules of Engagement) directed by the
U.S. Embassy in Bangkok, Thailand was standard operations for "soil sterilization"
and/or vegetation defoliation in Thailand.
* After learning of the declassified USAF CHECO report extract, less the ROE section,
a letter requesting same from the same FOIA source at the USAF AFDO/Pentagon was made
on 20 Dec 07; no response as of 13 Nov 09,
BVA Videoconference Hearing.
For complete details, key excerpts,
click here.
Excerpt Illustration
(Option 2 - Excerpt)
Preface
This excerpt was prepared to focus on the key issues found in the released extract
of the USAF CHECO report. Here is an example of a key issue found
on pg-58 regarding the use of herbicides.
Pg-57
Chapter III
Physical Defenses and Limitations
Introduction
This chapter briefly considers four aspects of physical defenses as they existed in Thailand from 1968 to 1972.
[No] effort is made to duplicate concepts discussed in PACAFM 207-25,
[Two] CHECO reports on base defense concepts and measures in the Republic of Vietnam
provide additional information.
See footnote 123.
Active and Passive Defense Measures
The first "ring of defense" within the bounds of USAF responsibility was the
base perimeter, usually composed of fence lines and other integrated [next page]
Pg-58
[defenses,]
all designed to expose the enemy to an increased risk of observation and detection.
No base considered itself secure because of an inpenetrable perimeter[,] See footnote 124.
[To] further aid in observation,
herbicides were employed to assist in the difficult task of vegetation control.
Use of these agents was limited by such factors as the ROE and supply problems.
Pg-64
Limitations
Geographic constraints provided many problems in the USAF base defense posture in Thailand.
Contiguous population centers at many of the bases severly limited opportunities for both observation
and effective counterfire.
Further, tropical vegetation sided by seasonal monsoon rains
grew almost faster than it could be controlled.
Dense jungles were rated as the greatest threat
to the defenses at U-Tapao.
See footnote 137. Other natural features such as streams [next page]
Pg-67
U.S. Embassy's ROE also provided several limitations on physical defenses.
[Soil] sterilization
and herbicide use was also approved in 1969, but these were subject to extensive coordination with local RTG
authorities
and final permission from the Embassy.
They could only be used on areas within the perimeter
and under
no circumstances could the vegetation control agents be used to clear areas of observation to fire off-base.
This lengthy [next page]
Pg-68
[process,] and the inability to go beyond the fences,
significantly limited the use of those agents at many bases.
See footnote 145.
The 1969 ROE required advanced approval of the Ambassador for all "new weapons" introduced into Thailand.
See footnote 146.
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U.S. Army - U.S. Navy & Marine Bases in Thailand
It is a very sad commentary that these branches of the military services have
not provided any official documents that indicated the use of herbicides in
Thailand at their (U.S. occupied) installations. Therefore, we
have had to resort to presenting photos that will show any reasonable person
(a) herbicide drums stored for use or recycled for other uses, eg, trash
containers in the billeting areas of camps; (b)
brown grass areas
indicating the area was sprayed with herbicides so that no future vegetation
would grow for many months, and under the tropical environment that is Thailand,
with average rainfall very high -0- including the "Monsoon Season" with
torrential rains, the commands could manage the on-going maintenance.
CITING LEGAL PRECEDENCE FOR DIRECT CAUSE CLAIMS OUTSIDE VIETNAM
FINDINGS OF FACT
2. Diabetes mellitus is related to the veteran's active service.
CONCLUSION OF LAW
Diabetes mellitus was incurred in service. 38 U.S.C.A. §§
1110, 5102, 5103, 5103A (West 2002); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.159,
3.303 (2004).
REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION
Analysis of Claim
[during] his personal hearing, the veteran
alleged that he developed diabetes mellitus as a result of
his exposure to herbicide agents while serving on active duty
in Guam. His military occupational duties as an aircraft
maintenance specialist allegedly required him to work in an
air field, the perimeter of which was continuously brown due
to herbicide spraying every three months. The veteran also
alleges that he recalls seeing storage barrels at the edge of
the base, which he now knows housed herbicides. Following
discharge, Anderson Air Force base in Guam, where the veteran
was stationed, underwent an environmental study, which showed
a significant amount of dioxin contamination in the soil and
prompted the federal government to order a clean up of the
site.
Service connection may be granted for disability resulting
from disease or injury incurred in or aggravated by service.
38 U.S.C.A. § 1110 (West 2002); 38 C.F.R. § 3.303 (2004).
Service connection may also be granted for any disease
diagnosed after discharge when all of the evidence, including
that pertinent to service, establishes that the disease was
incurred in service. 38 C.F.R. § 3.303(d).
[For] the showing of
chronic disease in service there is required a combination of
manifestations sufficient to identify the disease entity, and
sufficient observation to establish chronicity at the time,
[When] the fact of
chronicity in service is not adequately supported, then a
showing of continuity after discharge is required to support
the claim. 38 C.F.R. § 3.303(b).
In some circumstances, a disease associated with exposure to
certain herbicide agents will be presumed to have been
incurred in service even though there is no evidence of that
disease during the period of service at issue. 38 U.S.C.A.
§ 1116(a) (West 2002); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.307(a)(6), 3.309(e)
(2004).
For the complete excerpt, please
click here
regarding "service-connection."
Veterans outside Vietnam, eg, Thailand
(Exposure to herbicide agents, eg, agent orange)
Filing Your Claim per Direct Cause
.. and not "presumptive exposure"
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In the excerpt of the USAF CHECO Report above, you will see comments on
the need for such herbicide defoliation because otherwise, it would be a
significant problem.
Camp Sinthope Sarakham, ASA, CIA
809th Engineer Battalion Hqs in the Norheast
(Note the recycled durms around the buildings in the photo.)
Two photos from the 809th Motor Pool showing stored herbicide (striped) drums (1967):
809th Engineer Battalion Motor Pool (1967)
DOD denies all such use of herbicide agents
in Thailand
except for the testing noted in a non-descript
article or report named
Pre 65 DFL Spray Operations "RUN"
quote:
DOD List for Spraying Herbicides
Outside of Vietnam
Note - conflict reported 11 Oct 07 by Franco
No action was ever taken to make the correction
to this list ...
See Confrontation @ Whistle Blower
The government attempt to cover-up
the use of Herbicides in Thailand
directly contradicts uncovered (and classified *
reports of its use by JUSMAG/Thai,
USAF CHECO Report;
SAF Letter to Congressman
- written by a USAF Colonel, Legislation Liaison
* MAG/Thai 3 Dec 07 and USAF 21 Sep 07 (Extract Release Only**)
** Created 18 Feb 73 and to this day remains "SECRET"
SAF Inquiry was on 30 Jun 05
How much evidence does a veteran have to show???
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Thailand (Exposed)
EIGHT KILOMETRES up the dusty road north out of Hua Hin in Thailand there is an airstrip called Bo Fai. During the invasion of Vietnam the Americans took it over. There they mixed together chemicals. Justa few -- Merphos, Dimethoate, Dicamba, Tordon, Endothal, Tributil Phosphate, Diquat, Triazophos, Butylated Hydroxy Toluene and of course those old favourites Benzene, 2-4D and 2-4-5T. Then from a variety of military planes they dropped them on the Vietnamese. They called it `Agent Orange'.
Between 1962, when Kennedy began his chemical bloodbath against the Vietnamese people, and 1975, when the Americans ran from the country, the US Air Force dropped 50 million litres of Agent Orange on Vietnam, according to the Pentagon.
And it is not over in Hua Hin. To get tourists to come to Hua Hin they need a proper airport, so in 1998 they started digging up Bo Fai. And guess what they found? The Americans had simply buried Agent Orange in barrels at the end of the runway. Of course Agent Orange, being what it is, had corroded its way out into the surrounding soil. Dioxin poisoning was everywhere.
At first no-one knew what to do. The Thai Government system is hugely corrupt, massively influenced by the ever-menacing hand of the military and often open to bribery due to their pitiful resources.
The IMF and the World Bank have openly encouraged Thailand to have `zero investment' in environmental protection and therefore encourage foreign capital. There is no way to prosecute anybody in Thailand for dioxin poisoning because there are no effective laws against it.
So back at Bo Fai the Government carried on as normal. They decided to dump it. Unfortunately for them, they dumped it on land owned by a relative of a local official, Khunnawut Orsuwan. Then they covered it over with asphalt. The Government is blaming the construction company and says it has `asked the local police to discuss the matter with the Hua Hin airport authority'.
Eventually the Government was forced to get the soil analyzed. By whom? The trusty US Environmental Protection Agency of course. But even the US Government had to admit to some kind of contamination. When the report was released the Thai Government astoundingly heralded it as a clean bill of health. `It (the dioxin) poses no threat,' chirped Sirithan Pairoj-Boriboon, the deputy secretary to the Ministry Of Science, whilst the Ministry's Chief Inspector Supavit Piamphongsant said it was `within acceptable levels'. These acceptable levels are 50 times above the standard set for dioxin contamination in the soil in the US, at 2.02 parts per billion. Liability is denied by the US Government and so far it has refused to comment. No doubt it hopes the controversy will just seep away.
[Source: "Buried but alive: Agent Orange is still on active duty in Thailand" @
BNET]
"TCDD is a persistent environmental toxin; it bioaccumulates, and it is extremely teratogenic (causes birth
defects). In short, spraying Agent Orange in Vietnam * resulted in an environmental disaster which is still affecting people over three decades later."
[Source: "Collateral damage: the toxic legacy of Agent Orange" @
The Next Hurrah]
* Could have been just as easy Thailand.
1965 Internal DOW Chemical Memo
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Korat - Camp USARTHAI (1967)
Army Specialist Ron Renfro
Notice walkway renovated (concrete) and drums painted white (1968)
"Brown Death" .. was all around us; in some cases
on us; .. in the air, our water, food .. death
Camp USARTHAI (US Army - Thailand)
Camp Map (From side-to-side: < 100 m)
Main Gate
"Country road; across the railroad tracks, into Korat ...
Camp dismantled end of 1968
Perimeter Jungle
Living Quarters (Messhall closed)
Camp USARTHAI - Korat (1967-68)
Housegirls going home, taking a path on camp perimeter...
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Camp Perimeter Access Road
EM Club
Camp Movie Theater *
(* To the left, along the perimeter;
out of photo, but in the left photo)
Note the "brown death" grase ...
North Perimeter / Jungle outside
(Photo taken during closing/
dismantling the camp)
Note Perimeter Access Road;
note defense bunker
Tennis Court
A "stones through away"
from defense bunker
camp perimeter ...
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"Brown Death" (Continued)
Camp Friendship - Korat (1967-68)
Our hospital: 31st Field Hospital - Korat (1968)
Camp Friendship
Korat, Thailand
"We weren/t sprayed on,
we were emersed
in the shit!"
"Enjoy a movie, be exposed..."
.. and, places we all ate at, the mess hall (Camp Friendship - 1968)
Camp USARTHAI
Korat, Thailand
re: Camp Space Management
Latrines placed in perimeter space
Note: in photo jungle beyond the wire
(and position of access road)
Housegirls'
washing machines beyond camp defense bunkers
and in the camp perimeter, ie, herbicides.
9th Logistics Command
Pre-1967
1967
Outdoor Theatre
Note: cloud shadow in foreground, not "green" - palms only "green."
And, green in b&w photos looks dark (coloration/contrast);
while (dead) brown looks
grey.
See 9th Log photo above, right. Camp USARTHAI trails
photo in the deadly grounds;
Singha Cinema camp theatre
(in perimeter)
"Brown Death" (Continued)
Camp Friendship - Korat (1967-68)
Photo Credits: Army Specialist Mark Olson
"We weren't sprayed on, we were emersed in the shit!"
Mark Olson, Camp Plumber with Thai Nationals Assistants
"Brown Death" (Continued)
Camp Friendship - Korat (1967-68)
Army Specialist John Strain, 697th Engineers
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This photo is of the S-4 Yard Camp Friendship, I worked there for
over a month putting a fence around perimeter, welding the fence to the
post, some of the time you were on your hands an knees and there was not
anything growing in that yard, not even a weed!
John
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.. all around was unnatural earth, sprayed with herbicides
to control vegetation growth as well as for security
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Left to right Ramey, Fugil, Brown and McReynolds I took the photo and
remember it well, it was dirty,dusty and no grass or shade! I can
remember the Thai worker at Camp USARTHAI spraying the ditch where the
concertina wire was located so they wouldn't have to pull or mow the
grass and remember them running the mosquito fogger a couple times a
week between the hootches and around the Mess hall to kill the insects
etc. sure wish I had taken pictures of all those activities.
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Deployment to Satahip
In early 1969 after closing Camp USARTHAI and living at Camp Friendship
for a few months, the 697th moved to Satahip and Camp Samae San to help
finish construction of the camp structures and pipe.
The U.S. Army Engineers was the
backbone of
construction.
As a member of the advance party, taking my motorcycle and wife,
we took the under construction "Bangkok Bypass," covered with "red dirt"
in Satahip. - SP/5 Frank Picchione
"Brown Death" (Continued)
Camp Friendship - Korat (1967-68)
Constructing a Patio Area in Camp Billeting Area
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U.S. Army Medical Dispensary
Camp Friendship
.. surrounded by "brown death"
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"Brown Death" (Continued)
Camp Samae San - Satahip (1969)
Army Specialist Danny Hippensteel
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A few words about
camp access roads ...
Whether an army camp,
or an
air base,
the access road
is for "quick access"
to defense responses,
and always associated
with the camp perimeter;
as is the "fall back"
bunkers
taking up defense positions
Perimeter Barriers
Concentina Wire
and/or
fencing
is generally used.
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.. "Friendship Highway"
BANGKOK BYPASS BETWEEN SATAHIP AND KORAT
- Members of the 538th Engr Bn
Year: unknown; est. 1967
Monsoon Season'63
When the camp flooded, those deadly toxins
with an estimated life of 3 years (short)
moved; move all over the place!
The DOD/VA/government National Disgrace ...
See last page for details. Now, NKP ...
The "lone drum" (with a stripe no less)
sitting outside a tent or hootch
in Nakon Phanom (NKP)
Year: est. 1967
But, we did not spray in Thailand (near U.S. personnel.)
No, we sprayed on'em!!!
Now, that we have exposed the "Secret" USAF CHECO Report
@ "Base Defense in Thailand,"
we know these photos
of air force billeting at [fill in the blank]
"U.S. occupried installation"
exposed the personnel to herbicides - big time!
Nakhon Phanom RTAFB - 1966
Herbicide Drums tell no lie .. exist? See photo(s).
Camp Foster (1968) @ "Bridge over the River Kwai"
".. [not] near U.S. personnel" - ESG/U.S. Army
Besides Herbicides, many petrol (POL) products
shipped in 55-gallon drums, but only herbicides
had color-coded stripes indicating the agent type ...
.. no stripes (POL for vehicle maintenance)
Motor Pool Area
Vehicle
Maintenance
POL Drums
Agent [Stripe Color] Drums - Herbicides
Characteristics of a Herbicide Drum
"Agent Orange," like all the other agents,
got its name from the large stripe painted
around the middle of the drum it was contained in.
Agent (Striped) Drums
Petrol (POL) Drums
.. except one (left in photo)
Agent Drum has tell-tale stripe
and note the end of the drum
characteristically painted too.
ORANGE AEROSOL DISCOVERED
Meanwhile, the military continued to learn just how toxic Agent Orange could be. On October 23, 1969, an urgent message was sent from Fort Detrick, Maryland, to MACV concerning cleaning of drums containing herbicides. The message provided detailed instructions on how to clean the drums and warned that it was particularly important to clean Agent Orange drums.
"Using the (Agent) Orange drums for storing petroleum products without thoroughly cleaning of them can result in creation of an orange aerosol when the contaminated petroleum products are consumed in internal combustion engines. The Orange aerosol thus generated can be most devastating to vegetation in the vicinity of engines. Some critics claim that some of the damage to vegetation along Saigon streets can be attributed to this source. White and Blue residues are less of a problem in this regard since they are not volatile."
Not only was Agent Orange being sprayed from aircraft, but it was unwittingly being sprayed out of the exhausts of trucks, jeeps and gasoline generators.
In March 1969, Lt. Col. Jim Corey, deputy chief of CORDS in I Corps reported to his boss, R.M. Urquhart, unusual defoliation in Da Nang.
"A large number of beautiful shade trees along the streets in the city of Da Nang are dead or dying," Corey wrote. "This damage appears to be entirely a result of defoliation chemicals."
There was no evidence of insect or fungus damage to the vegetation, according to the memo.
"In every instance of tree and garden plot damage," Corey wrote, "empty defoliant barrels are either present in the area or have been transported along the route of the damage."
The use of herbicides was not confined to the jungles. It was widely used to suppress vegetation around the perimeters of military bases and, in many instances, the interiors of those bases.
Editorial:
It is important to recognize the "contamination factor" in that recycled drums,
and the "aerosol factor" either indirectly or directly in manual (on-the-ground)
spraying of herbicides "on or around" U.S. occupied (military) installations
can affect all U.S. personnel at such sites. Now, another common
way such (sprayed) herbicides can be inadvertenly exposed to is flooding of
such installations either in the common rains and seasonal monsoon rains.
Spraying an area, such as the perimeter, or other sites on base
can contaiminate many things beyond the control of those administering same.
And, drums were reused...
See "Related Question,"
below.
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Myth: "There were no 55-gallon drums.
They were barrels." Wrong.
Barrels 101
Barrels had vertical, narrow ribs and a "lid" and grip handles on the two sides.
55-gallon drums had two large horizontal ribs that were perfect
for agent color-coded drums in the middle area.
Illustrations:
Standard Barrel
Trash Barrel (Painted)
POL Drums (Black):
Motor Pool
Upright
Question: Why were the barrels later replaced with
drums .. noted by the walkway changes?
You have to wonder why
our barrels
were replaced with 55-gallon drums, at a
later time based upon the walkway improvements, ie,
concrete fill.
Could it be that Hq had a need for standard barrels versus 55-gallon drums.
Only the folks involved know, and no one is talking.
Related Question: Why were the hootches, and
other structures, eg, mess hall, raised? Periodic flooding.
Thailand as a part of Southeast Asia had a "rainy season" called "Monsoons."
In this period, normally in the Summer months, there would be
flooding, and the engineers knew this and created a raised foundation.
Saved a lot of structure furnishings (and soldier boots.)
An interesting point was brought up regarding (conceded) herbicide spraying
"around" a base or camp, ie, perimeter. It seems that two
VAROs conceded the use on the perimeters, and granted (only) security personnel
that "stepped foot on the perimeter," well, they didn't and they did.
They were certainly exposed to the spraying area, and took up defense positions
in proximity of the sprayed perimeter areas.
For sure, these same VAROs would have to concede that these toxins had
a life expectancy of greater than 1 or 3 years; therefore, would be subject to
flooding conditions, and the natural process of spreading in the immediate area.
JUSMAG policy states "on or around" and not just around, though,
for approved herbicide (use) spraying.
What does "Brown Death" look like
from the air? .. brown.
| Vietnam |
Thailand |
An Khe
Qui Nhon to An Khe
Pleiku *
Korat Complex (1964**)
Air Base (Later)
NKP (1972)
Built by Naval SeaBeas
| | | |
* As you can see, Pleiku base was located in a dangerous combat area; therefore "Heavy Brown" treatment !
** 2LT Mac Alan Thompson, USA, retired in Thailand credit for photo. See
story in "Thailand (Exposed)"
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|
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Photo Credit: 2LT Mac Alan Thompson, USA CE
525th Engr Det (Util) & HHC 44th Engr Gp
Camp Friendship (Feb '64 - Feb '65)
"I took it while climbing up to altitude for a skydive at Korat spring of 1964.
Easy to approximate date the photos as I was a 2nd LT Engr with the 525th Engr Detch (Utility)
& 44th Engr Gp (Const) HHC. I was there Feb '64-Feb '65. First jump was on 9 May 1964.
The photo was taken prior to August 1964 since that's when the USAF arrived in mass and
construction started in that large empty space between Camp Friendship and the runway."
Recent photo of LT with his Thai wife,
Sunee, at a Thai military gathering, RTA SGU party 9 Apr 05.
Bio
Some of LT Thompson's other duties included supervision of payrolls for Thai local nationals in the Korat area.
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The road from Korat; Camp USARTHAI to
Korat RTAFB
and the perimeter
access road around the flightline.
The same road that the
public bus transportation *
takes; exposed? .. right. Camp Friendship
first; RTAFB second.
* Photo taken at the Camp USARTHAI gate, heading for
Korat RTAFB (Note photo taken later after construction;
spraying.)
Perspective: Camp USARTHAI gate, looking towards
Korat; note the "vegetation" on the right. **
** Yes, that's the camp perimeter to the left (of the samlor,) .. gee, I feel like
a security guard already .. you know, exposed!
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Korat Complex (Camp USARTHAI is not shown)
Camp Friendship
(Close Up)
(1964) - Korat Army / Navy forces established a beachhead.
1962
U.S. Naval Mobile Construction Battalion Three (MCB 3)
Aerial (1997)
and
Perimeter Road
See (FAQ)
Brown Death - Grass 101
Barracks Area
NKP
- Nakhon Phanom RTAFB (1972)
Here is an illustration of the type of rain conditions (monsoons)
encountered in S.E.A.
1962 - Aerial Photos of construction by the Navy:
Dec '62
#1
#2
Quoting the U.S. Naval Mobile Construction Battalion Three (MCB 3) website:
"We were only approximately three weeks from finishing the entire job when the monsoon rains started. They were several weeks early that year. Because of the rain, we could not finish the airstrip at this time.
A decision was made that everyone would return to homeport in Port Hueneme, California while the rains were coming down, except for a detachment of 35 Seabees who would remain in NKP. The detachment OIC was Ltjg. George E. Fowler and the mission was to maintain drainage at the airfield site, maintain the construction equipment and make sure that it would be ready to go back to work when the rains stopped, and to tear down a portion of the base camp that would not be required in November when everyone returned to finish the work."
First Flight Crews Arrive at NKP
36 ARsq (we were the Air Rescue Service/Squadron in those days)
I remember the living and operating conditions best. We had always had support units which provided meals, quarters and specialized maintenance. NKP was, when we arrived, just a PSP runway.
There were three tin roofed huts and an outhouse, which the SeaBees left when they built the runway. Someone had dumped some cases of C rations, some bunks and 55 gal drums of JP-4 on the ramp. We were on our own for everything else.
Shortly after we arrived, two communications NCOs were sent to set up a mobile radio station. This was our only link to the rest of the world. All traffic had to be manually coded and decoded, so we learned to use words sparingly. Operational control was provided by the Command Post at Saigon. Administrative support was provided from Bangkok.
No one in the unit had any combat experience [from WWII or the Korean War], nor did we receive any briefing on what to expect. We did a lot of guessing and hoped the bad guys were as dumb as we were. Fortunately, we had no rescue missions while I was there.
We did, however, make some modifications to the aircraft. Much of the area we were to cover was at the maximum range of the HH-43 and at high altitude. We removed all doors for weight and carried 2 - 55 gal drums of JP-4 in a wood rack in the cabin. I believe we intended to land and hand pump the fuel into the aircraft tank. We also traded for two BAR's which we mounted on ropes firing aft from the cabin.
In the meantime the Air America pilots told us to do something with the 43 paint job. We had been deployed into a combat situation with silver and day-glo orange paint.
(Another indication a lot of people, including our unit, was really not aware of what we were getting into). Air America gave me 5 gallons of OD (olive drab) paint and some brushes. We at least got rid of the day-glo.
After assembling the 43s and test flying them we took off on a dark night, with virtually no aids other than a compass, across the jungle, low level, for NKP. While we were assembling the 43s in Udorn a 2nd MOB (communications) had arrived at NKP. They had a vehicle with a rotating beacon on top. This we used as guidance as we neared NKP. With our arrival "Rescue 2" was born.
It readily became apparent that we were ill prepared for combat operations; the day-glo paint was only the beginning. We developed flying tactics consisting of flying two 43s in formation, in clouds as much as possible to reduce visual contact by ground forces. Perhaps one of the best known early problems was the hoist cable length of 100 ft. In a jungle of 300 ft. trees the hoist was useless.
The first few days we spent living under an open shed. We then took over a couple of the former SeaBee's metal buildings which had been Thai occupied. One we used for officer barracks, the other for enlisted. A field kitchen was sent in after weeks of C rations.
After some time of this type of living we were able to contract for quarters in NKP. The quarters were known as The Civilized Motel and were not much of an improvement but at least it had running water and no, or at least fewer, snakes and scorpions. It was later learned that the motel was supposedly operated by North Vietnamese VC sympathizers.
Forward to 1968 - I (Morse) clearly recall the attitude of a number of the troops about NKP. Not too complimentary, but it sure beat 1964! The PSP runway was still there when I arrived in June 1968 but was replaced during the dry season. No big deal for the Jollys, but the others appreciated the change.
Addition: Paper on the perspective @ NKP
By Phil Carroll, a Security Police Sentry Dog Handler’s Perspective
Excerpt:
The point of all this history, at least for this little essay, is there was ample reason for the heavy security
at NKP. There was good reason for the Security Police and K-9 guards there to be just a little on edge.
Many, including the Captain quoted above, believe that the reason we weren’t attacked more often was
our obvious, in-depth defensive system. We had:
- a deep, totally herbicide-denuded perimeter with barbed wire fence, triple concertina razor wire,
tanglefoot, electronic pressure sensors, mines, more concertina, more barbed wire, and bright,
directional perimeter lighting;
- a series of high guard towers all around the perimeter;
- machine-gun bunkers backing up the towers;
- numerous security posts manned by the 300-man combat-trained Security Police Squadron with
M-16s and M-60s;
- nighttime K-9 patrols by 65 sentry dogs and handlers
(call sign “Nightfighter”), each with a CAR-15
and 10 magazines of 5.56;
- six to eight patrol dogs and handlers, similarly armed;
- 81 mm mortar teams, with pre-registered coordinates all over the base for flare missions;
- roving machine-gun armed truck patrols;
- M113A1 “Track” Heavy Weapons Teams;
- XM706E2 “Commando” armored car Quick Reaction Forces pre positioned and on call;
- an H-3 “Knife” helicopter patrol, all night every night, ready to probe the jungle
outside the wire
with an intensely bright searchlight;
- AC-119 “Stinger” gunship flare missions around
the perimeter whenever the intelligence guys asked for it, or in response to an alert by one of the
security or K-9 posts;
- A-1 Skyraider fighter/bombers, AC-119 Stinger gunships, well-armed OV-10
Broncos and CH-53 Super Jolly Green Giant helicopters that could get guns into the air as quickly as needed.
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See NKP Witness Testimony found in
FAQ page
Here is the quoted excerpt of the email from
Paster Terry Hagendorn, WV:
C. My barracks was on the base perimeter (cf. the attached aerial
photo of NKP RTAFB). I witnessed Thai women spraying the jungle
growth directly across the perimeter fence on at least three times,
during my tour at NKP. They kept a 100 meter area of the ground
out side the fence completely bare to the ground.
The first time I saw the people in the perimeter, I was surprised
and a little scared. I didn’t think that anyone should be in
there. Frankly, I thought that they might be insurgents.
I asked “Kop”,, our hootch “houseboy”
“Who are they?”
He said proudly, “My wife.”
I asked, “What are they doing?”
He said, “Kill grass.”
There were five or six women. Each had a two tank backpack-type
sprayer with a hand sprayer. The tanks were translucent white
plastic. They were supplied by a man in a small white pickup with
two drab green barrels of herbicide. Each woman wore heavy clothing
covering their arms and legs. Each had a scarf tied around her face
like a mask and each a straw hat tied closely down over their heads
with a scarf. The women were saturated with spray on the front of
their clothes by spray back caused by the wind. I remember that one
woman had an infant bundled in a baby blanket which she tied around
her neck and carried the baby slung in the front. I saw that small
children had been left on a blanket under a tree in the area already
cleared. They were sleeping or playing.
D. My claims of the spraying herbicides—including Agent Orange—are
corroborated by the following:
Airman Wayne Hogstad, NKP RTAB (1967-68)
“I was stationed at Nakhon Phanom (NKP) Royal Thai Air Force Base from April 1967 to April 1968
and was assigned to the 56th Security Police Squadron working 2230 to 0700.
While at NKP, I witnessed a C-123 Caribou Aircraft with spray equipment mounted under their wings,
and also a big tank used for holding a liquid substance. Next to the C-123 were
barrels
with an orange strip around the middle of the barrel all the way around.
Once, during the day shift, I rode with a mobile unit Security Alert Team around the NKP bases
perimeters. On the east perimeter * we saw a Civil Engineering truck with a gas engine
powered sprayer in use. The crew told us that they were spraying foliage
growing in the perimeter fences.”
Illustration Purposes Only:
Perimeter (Air Force * Barracks and Access Rd)
* Base unknown, but it ain't army, facilities are too nice.
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----- Original Message -----
From: TKH
To: Franco Picchione
Sent: Thursday, April 23, 2009 5:00 AM
Subject: Re: AIRMAN WINTESSES AO SPRAYING AT NKP
Frank,
Here are some pictures showing the location of Camp Tarbox
(named for 6908th's first commander) and the location of my hootch.
Terry
Aerial Photos @ Camp Tarbox ** at NKP:
Zoomed In @ Hootch
Wide Angle
.. Mekong (18 km)
** Camp Tarbox is on the east perimeter.
U-Tapao??? Answer: No
Photo Narrative:
This photo, taken at Cam Ranh Bay, shows a B-52 and a commercial Boeing 707 on the East ramp. The B-52s didn't normally land at Cam Ranh unless they had maintenance problems and couldn't make it back half way across the Pacific to their home base.
[at Anderson AFB, Guam,
or back to U-Tapao RTAFB, Thailand.]
Source:
C-7A Caribou Association
The purpose of having a sheet for this photo is the "drums."
Notice the use of drums to create, may be, flight line/taxi-way borders
so as not to go into the sands. They have been painted in
yellow (for caution) and of course, they are (more importantly) the same
(exact) size.
Background:
Phu Cat Air Base is just north of Qui Nhon on the coast.
See Map (red asterisk)
Phu Cat - Chartered Commercial
.. including
Flying Tigers
(DC-8)
This Continental Boeing 707,
a cargo version,
was offloading at Phu Cat.
Source:
C-7A Caribou Association
An Airlift Boeing 707
"Freedom Bird" at Phu Cat.
Source:
C-7A Caribou Association
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Jungle Vegetation 101
Excellent orientation for VARO staffers
Agent Orange/Herbicides -
..
on or around
.. U.S. occupied installations
The Policy of the
U.S. Embassy (Bangkok, Thailand,)
in coordination with the military liason of
JUSMAGTHAI.
Policy Memo @ "Base Defense in Thailand"
(Declassified 3 Dec 2007)
Contradiction??? Or, cover-up?
The ESG (United States Army & Joint Services
Environmental Support Group * )
research indicated that
"herbicides were not sprayed
near U.S. personnel in Thailand. "
* In a letter from the Director @ ESG ..
.. sure, the 55-gallon trash drums
are simply coincidental ...
* drums can be painted.
(with or without stripe *)
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