Medal of Honor Recipient Colonel George "Bud' Day's F-100F

I've been reseaching tail codes for the 355 F-100Fs. A relative ejected from 56-3886 in Jan 1969 while they were still at Phu Cat. I can't find any pictures of that specific tail number.  Conincidentally, I was assigned to the 612 FS in the 80s after they retired the Phantoms and got new F-16s.

Nice to see you here, Joe.

Vietnam Air Losses by Chris Hobson shows the jet was F-100F 56-3954. If the plane was on the 612th's roster it would have this tail marking: large HS in white (or very pale gray) and in smaller white the numbers 954. Just to the left of the white numbers would be the even smaller black lettering  AF over 0-63.

Henk Sharringa's  web site shows the plane was assigned to the 35th TFW at Phan Rang (no squadron given) and transferred to the 416th TFS on the very  day it was lost, and then assigned back to the 612th TFS at Phan Rang that same day. That totally confuses the possible answers to your question

Typically an F-100 operational squadron would only posses two F-100F models. Misty's use of at least 4 per day would put a strain on the wing's use and maintenance of them. So Misty would use any F model that was able to fly and could be spared by another squadron on the base. So, when Misty lost a plane, it wasn't necessarily from the 612th, or later the 416th.

During my tour at Tuy Hoa (Oct '69-Sep'70) Misty lost so many Fs that 5 more were ferried in from the training base in Arizona. I also have seen photos of early Misty pilots standing in front of an F at Phu Cat, but the F was from a squadron at Tuy Hoa with SS tail codes - "on loan" to Misty. As a matter of Fact, Bud Day's plane - the Misty F-100F with his name on the side- was from the 309th TFS at Tuy Hoa with SS-951 on the tail.

All that leads to the point that the tail code on 954 when it was shot down needs to be determined by another source. I don't know what source that would be, but I can try to find out via F-100 friends.
 

That's some list.  Why have some of the tail codes been highlighted in red?

There are also a few missing:

I can see this one because they didn't carry tail codes, but had A.D.C. badges on the outer tails.

The 354th TFW, tail code MB, TDY to Korat

in 1974 the 34th TFS had to trade their F-4Es to the Wolf Pack and in return the picked up their old "D" models.

On a side note, in 1974 the 3rd TFS changed the color of their tail codes:

That one would be F-100F 58-1215 with the 531st TFS, 3rd TFW out of Bien Hua. http://www.chancefac.net/TailCodes/Tail_Codes.htm

Cheers!

Ben

Who owned this one?

Henk Scharringa's F-100 web site ( http://www.supersabre.org/ ) shows 954 assigned to the 612th that day. That info was taken from the USAF aircraft data cards. He's got copies of the whole set for the F-100!.

Henk's is a pay site (worth the $, if you're an F-100 nut!), but there is also F-100.org, which has a ton of F-100 photos, too.

Ben

It was definately an F model F-100.  The last 3 digits of the tail # were 954.  Front seat pilot was Captain Corwin "Kip" Kippenhan, personal call sign Misty 13.  Bud Day, Misty 1,  was in the back seat that day and their mission call sign was Misty 31.

The 37 Tactical Fighter Wing was the parent unit at Phu Cat Air Base.  It consisted of 4 squadrons, the 174, 355, 416 and 612 Tactical Fighter Squadrons.  The Misty's were for the most part, assigned to the 416 Squadron.

Tail codes are:

174 TFS = HA

355 TFS = HP

416 TFS = HE

612 TFS = HS

So, in all probability, Colonel Day's aircraft had the HE tail code.

Darwin, O.F.  

Tried in here?

http://www.mistyvietnam.com/index.html