She
stands alone in her own corner of the park. She is the first one you see as you
approach the well-manicured green lawn. Dressed in black with splashes of green
and gray, with the red numbers 56-676 denoting her birth and name on her nose
and tail. A bright red star on her side near her nose gives testimony to her
greatness.
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Her
nickname is BUFF, (big ugly fat fellow ?) but she is not fat. Actually, her body
is long and slender. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and those who have
taken her on “dates” do not concur with the description of ugly. She was
born in Wichita, KS and spread her wings for the first time in August 1957 with
the 92nd Bomb Wing at Fairchild AFB, WA. Her early life was spent carrying crews
on training missions for the unthinkable horror of nuclear war, and crouched
at the ready on the alert pad waiting for that war that thankfully never came.
676
spent her early life moving as often as those who flew her. She had homes at
Glasgow AFB, MT, Ellsworth AFB, SD, Sheppard AFB, TX, Pease AFB. Nil, Fairchild AFB,
WA, McCoy AFB, FL, Carswell AFB, TX, Edwards AFB, CA, Dyess AFB, TX, Andersen
AFB, Guam, and U-Tapao AB, Thailand.
The
Vietnamese War saw her making numerous trips from the states to bases in
Southeast Asia. Crews at Andersen and U-Tapao flew her on bombing missions in
support of the war. Her time of glory came in 1972 during the Linebacker II
campaign. She was flying out of U-Tapao on the night of the 18th of December as
a part of the B-52 force striking targets in the capital city of North Vietnam,
Hanoi. She was number three in the cell formation. As they approached the
heavily defended target area, they were met with numerous SAMs (surface-to-air
missiles) defending this strategic area.
The
cell did not divert or turn back, but pressed on to their assigned target.
The
intensity of the SAMs increased as they neared the bomb release point. Amidst
this brilliant (and deadly) display of fireworks they released their weapons,
made their break and proceeded outbound. Surviving the SAM threat, they then
became a target for enemy aircraft. The defense team’s sensors picked up the
MIG radar as it tracked them for an attack.
The
gunner, S/Sgt Samuel 0. Turner, from March AFB, CA, picked up the MIG on his own
radar system shortly thereafter. In just a few seconds the MIG’s radar locked
on the bomber and SSgt Turner locked on the MIG in return as it came in low,
climbing rapidly to intercept. As he tracked the MIG he picked up a second
fighter about seven miles out at 8 o’clock. The second aircraft was stabilized
and apparently waiting his turn to make a run at the bomber. The first MIG came
into firing range and Turner fired a burst. He observed a gigantic explosion
behind his aircraft. He checked visually where he thought the MIG would have
been and saw nothing. He rechecked his radar and except for the fighter at 8
o’clock had no returns. That MIG turned away after a few seconds and was not
seen again.
This
was the first fighter kill by a B-52. As
they left the threat area the aircraft commander told the others in the cell,
“I think we got one” and they knew what he meant. The crew in the number two
BUFF saw the whole thing.
The
kill was confirmed by their gunner, MSgt Louis LeBlanc. Upon landing, 676 was
adorned with a bright red star under the pilot and copilot’s windows on each
side of the aircraft.
676 spent the next few years rotating through the states
and ended back in Guam in 1983. Her final flight was the end of an era as it was
the last flight of any D model, thus the call sign Last 01. A ceremony was held
at Andersen prior to her departure and then the 43rd Strategic Wing.
E-mail, mailing
and web addresses:
Contact: Armed Forces and
Aerospace Museum, 5813 E 4th Avenue, Spokane Valley , WA 99212-0308.
http://www.armedforces-aerospacemus.org
