One Hundred Years of Flight USAF Chronology ... - The Air University
One Hundred Years of Flight USAF Chronology ... - The Air University
One Hundred Years of Flight USAF Chronology ... - The Air University
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
1972–73<br />
December 18: President Richard M. Nixon directed the resumption <strong>of</strong> fullscale<br />
bombing and mining in North Vietnam—an operation known as<br />
LINEBACKER II. SSgt. Samuel O. Turner, <strong>USAF</strong>, became the first<br />
B–52 tail gunner to shoot down an enemy airplane.<br />
1973<br />
January 8: Capt. Paul D. Howman, <strong>USAF</strong>, and 1st Lt. Lawrence W. Kullman,<br />
<strong>USAF</strong>, flying an F–4D Phantom, scored the last aerial victory <strong>of</strong> the<br />
Vietnam War when they shot down a MiG southwest <strong>of</strong> Hanoi, North<br />
Vietnam, with a radar-guided AIM–7 missile.<br />
January 27: In Paris, North Vietnam and the United States signed an “Agreement<br />
on Ending the War and Restoring Peace to Vietnam.” <strong>The</strong> ceasefire<br />
was set to begin on January 29.<br />
January 28: A B–52 Strat<strong>of</strong>ortress crew performed the last Operation ARC<br />
LIGHT sortie, bombing enemy targets in South Vietnam at 0628 hours<br />
local time. This operation had continued since 1965.<br />
February 12: Military <strong>Air</strong>lift Command pilots initiated Operation HOME-<br />
COMING, flying the first <strong>of</strong> 590 released American prisoners <strong>of</strong> war<br />
from Hanoi, North Vietnam, to Clark <strong>Air</strong> Base in the Philippines. <strong>The</strong><br />
operation concluded on April 9.<br />
March 28: <strong>The</strong> last <strong>USAF</strong> aircraft departed South Vietnam.<br />
May 15: Operation AUTHENTIC ASSISTANCE began. In six months, <strong>USAF</strong><br />
airplanes airlifted 9,250 tons <strong>of</strong> food, seed grain, medical supplies, and<br />
vehicles to and within the African countries <strong>of</strong> Mali, Chad, and Mauritania<br />
to relieve the victims <strong>of</strong> drought and famine.<br />
May 25–June 22: In a space mission, three U.S. astronauts repaired the Skylab<br />
space station, which had been damaged during its launch, so that<br />
it could conduct orbital research.<br />
July 1: Military conscription (the draft) in the United States ended, but the<br />
Selective Service continued to register young men <strong>of</strong> military age.<br />
July 15: An A–7D Corsair II <strong>of</strong> the 354th Tactical Fighter Wing, based in<br />
Thailand, flew the last combat mission <strong>of</strong> the Southeast Asian War. All<br />
told, since February 2, 1962, the <strong>Air</strong> Force had flown 5.25 million sorties<br />
over South Vietnam, North Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, losing<br />
2,251 aircraft—1,737 to hostile action and 514 for other operational<br />
reasons.<br />
August 20: <strong>The</strong> United States began an airlift <strong>of</strong> 2,400 tons <strong>of</strong> relief equipment<br />
and supplies to Pakistan for the victims <strong>of</strong> flooding. <strong>The</strong> airlift<br />
112