During Operation Linebacker II, two B-52D tail gunners belonging to the 307th Strategic Bomb Wing from U-Tapao RTAFB, Thailand, continued the long tradition of tail gunners from previous wars, downing two North Vietnamese MiG-21 Fishbeds
During Operation Linebacker II, two B-52D tail gunners from the 307th Strategic Bomb Wing at U-Tapao RTAFB in Thailand carried on the legacy of tail gunners from earlier wars by shooting down two North Vietnamese MiG-21 Fishbeds.
After entering service in 1955, the B-52 Stratofortress became the U.S. Air Force’s primary long-range heavy bomber throughout the Cold War, and it remains a key part of the bomber fleet today. Nearly 750 aircraft were produced before manufacturing ended in the fall of 1962, including 170 B-52Ds.
Over its long career, the B-52 established several notable records. On Jan. 18, 1957, three B-52Bs completed the first nonstop round-the-world flight by jet aircraft, a mission that lasted 45 hours and 19 minutes and required only three aerial refuelings. A B-52 also conducted the first airborne hydrogen bomb drop over Bikini Atoll on May 21, 1956.
In June 1965, B-52s began combat operations in Southeast Asia, where they were widely employed in conventional bombing missions and also gained the unusual distinction of shooting down two North Vietnamese MiG-21 Fishbed fighters.
Both MiG kills were achieved during Operation Linebacker II, the Christmas strategic air campaign launched against the industrial and logistical core of North Vietnam after the Paris peace talks collapsed. It was during this offensive that two B-52D tail gunners from the 307th Strategic Bomb Wing at U-Tapao RTAFB in Thailand carried on the tradition of tail gunners from earlier wars by bringing down two North Vietnamese Fishbeds.
These successes were made possible by the four .50-caliber M3 machine guns mounted in the rear of the B-52D, which likely made the Stratofortress the last strategic bomber to shoot down an enemy fighter. Loaded with 600 rounds and directed by the A-3A fire-control system’s search and tracking radar, the guns could be operated either by the tail gunner or remotely from the gunner’s station in the forward fuselage.
The first of the two MiG kills took place on Dec. 18, 1972, when a force of 129 bombers was launched to strike rail yards and logistical targets in and around Hanoi, along with MiG bases at Kep, Hoa Loc, and Phuc Yen. The formation included 42 B-52Ds from U-Tapao and another 87 BUFFs—both B-52Ds and B-52Gs—from Andersen Air Force Base on Guam. According to Bill Yenne’s book B-52 Stratofortress: The Story of the BUFF from Drawing Board to the Skies over Afghanistan, the bombers flew in three-aircraft cells to provide mutual ECM (Electronic Countermeasures) protection. Among them was B-52D tail number 56-0676, call sign Brown III, with Ssgt. Samuel O. Turner serving as tail gunner. During the bombing run, Brown III came under heavy attack as numerous surface-to-air missiles were launched and anti-aircraft fire of all calibers burst around the aircraft.
After reaching the target and releasing their bombs, the B-52Ds turned for home, but several MiGs were launched to intercept them. One MiG-21 was getting ready to fire its missiles at Brown III, but Turner managed to lock onto the incoming Fishbed. Once it entered firing range, he opened fire, striking the rear of the MiG and causing it to erupt in a massive fireball. The shootdown marked the first kill by a bomber crew since the Korean War, and MSgt. also confirmed it. Lewis E. Le Blanc, a tail gunner aboard another B-52, as noted by Donald J. McCarthy Jr. in his book MiG Killers: A Chronology of U.S. Air Victories in Vietnam 1965–1973.
Today, B-52D tail number 55-0676 is preserved at Fairchild AFB Heritage Park in Spokane, where it is displayed with the well-known MiG Killers emblem—a red star painted beneath the cockpit.
The second aerial victory by a Stratofortress during the Vietnam War occurred on Dec. 24, 1972—Christmas Eve. Thirty BUFFs departing from U-Tapao were assigned to strike rail yards at Thai Nguyen and Kep, located 40 miles north and northeast of Hanoi, and during the bombing run, the B-52s came under attack from MiGs. One of the fighters appeared on the radar scope of A1C Albert E. Moore, tail gunner of B-52D tail number 55-0083, Diamond Lil. He locked onto the Fishbed at 4,000 yards and fired at the radar blip until it disappeared.
As reported by Staff Sgt. Don Branum of U.S. Air Force Academy Public Affairs in the article Records detail MiG kill by ‘Diamond Lil’ tail gunner, Moore stated in his combat report that a target was detected on the radar scope at the 8 o’clock low position, 8 miles away. The crew was immediately alerted as the bogey closed rapidly and then stabilized at 4,000 yards in the 6 o’clock position. Evasive action was requested from the pilot, while the EWO was asked to deploy chaff and flares. When the target closed to 2,000 yards, notification was given that firing had begun. Fire was maintained until the radar return increased to three times its original intensity and then suddenly disappeared at approximately 1,200 yards. A total of 800 rounds was expended in three bursts.
The kill was also verified in a Tech report. Sgt. Clarence Chute, who stated that the ‘bandit’ was observed on fire and falling away. Several pieces of the aircraft exploded, and the fireball disappeared into the undercast.
B-52D tail number 55-00083 has also been preserved and is now displayed at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado. Vietnamese sources also credited a B-52 with a third air-to-air victory, claiming a MiG-21 was shot down on Apr. 16, 1972.
On Sep. 16, 1991, General George L. Butler, then commander of Strategic Air Command (SAC), announced the removal of the gunner position and the deactivation of the B-52’s guns. According to a former B-52 gunner, the decision was driven by two main factors: cost and advances in missile technology. Maintaining the fire-control system was extremely expensive, as it was the only system on the aircraft that had never been modernized and still relied on vacuum tubes. If a component failed and no replacement could be found, a new one had to be specially manufactured, which further increased costs. In addition, missile technology had progressed to the point where aircraft could be engaged beyond visual range, making the guns largely obsolete except in the unlikely event that an enemy fighter approached close enough to use its own guns against the BUFF.
A generation has passed since the BUFF last carried a tail gunner, and the time when fighter pilots had to be especially cautious about moving in behind a B-52 is long gone.
Photo by U.S. Air Force
