As another Lame Cherry exclusive in matter anti matter.
Most of us are going to be patriot raped again over the Vietnam War in Ken Burns' schlockumentary on PBS this coming season, in which it will follow the Burns scripts of Blacks won the war the Whites could not fight, and there will be a lot of soul searching and remorse, blaming Americans.
Most us of have been well informed enough to know now by evidence that John McCain while in Vietnam was a traitor to America in aiding the enemy communists and a danger to all the other pilots in the United States Armed Forces.
Too much of Vietnam is propaganda whining of liberals and now old men who like McCain giving Veterans a bad name. It is in this reality that the Lame Cherry wills to make known to you the best and bravest Air Force Pilot of the late stages of the Vietnam War in what a Hero really is.
His name is Major Bob Lodge. On May 7th, 1972 AD in the year of our Lord, he had dinner with another officer in Bill McDonald, where Lodge confessed that he could not ever allow himself to be captured by the enemy, because he simply knew too many military secrets as a 3 time ace in the United States Air Force.
It was a fact that went unnoted until 3 days later on May 10th, 1972 when Bob Lodge would give his life for America in the greatest sacrifice of real heroism.
The story of May 10th is simple as it began with the Air Force flying MIGCAP, combat air patrol against North Vietnamese MIGs where 120 fighters and bombers were launched. Lodge would lead Oyster 1 flight in cover.
Bob Lodge had a plan that day, as Bob Lodge always had a combat plan, as he was an innovator in fighter tactics. Often on night patrol he and his WSO, weapons system officer, Roger Locher would broadcast they had a weapon's system of aircraft failures to get the MIG's to come up and play with them.
Lodge also with the new LORAN or laser guided bombs the jets dropped, invented a plan which used the coordinates of a point offset from the target to establish a side way spacing of the aircraft for proper dive angle. At 10,000 feet the dive angle would be 30 degrees, and at 15,000 feet the dive angle was 45 degrees. Implementing this attack plan from height, allowed for better dive angles from the pilots maintaining them and accurate delivers of the payloads.
With Bob Lodge, there were no John McCain diving to 3400 feet, in being too low and AAA batteries downing your craft.
In this case on May 10th, Lodge established a low BARCAP, (Barrier Combat Air Patrol) northwest of Bullseye or Hanoi, North Vietnam, where they would catch MIGs on intercept flying at 22,000 feet above their position.
The MIG's appeared at 0942 hours and Lodge climbed his F 4's to meet them as his Combat Tree (A military radar spoofer and identifier of enemy aircraft which was top secret) revealed MIG's ahead.
Lodge fired an AIM 7 as he rocketed his F 4 at Mach 1.4 to close as his lead had "open fire" at the MIG's as no Americans were in the flight area ahead, but the AIM 7 failed as most did. Lodge locked on a second missile on the unseen MIG's ahead and was met with a fireball as the invisible craft exploded.
Lodge continued on with combat and was about to down another MIG when 4 other MIG 19S joined the fight, led by Nguyen Manh Tung, who climbed to Lodge's six (rear) and closed.
Oyster 2 leader, 1st Lt. Markel called a warning that MIG's were on Lodge's tail, but Lodge was padlocked to the MIG he was firing on, and launched an AIM 7E 2.
The NVA pilot opened up with 30 mm cannon shells and Tung pulled away easily as Lodge's F 4 became slow, as the cannon fire had blown out the hydraulics on the F 4, and its right engine blew up.
Fire spread forward in the jet, and the rear cockpit manned by WSO Locher glowed bright orange from the flames. Locher turned on full oxygen and told Lodge to eject, but Lodge refused and ordered Locher to eject.
Lodge had the aircraft inverted and Locher ejected moments before Bob Lodge augered his F 4 into the ground, as he was not going to be captured at any cost, tortured for secrets and sell out his America. Death was the Heroic and only course for Major Bob Lodge of the United States Air Force.
In a strange recompense, the NVA pilot, Nguyen Manh Tung, ran out of fuel as he was landing, came in too fast, overshot his runway, and his MIG flipped over and killed him.
There is a saying which is of the Lame Cherry that in most cases the Heroes die on the battlefield and the cowards end up in Congress and wear service caps looking for attention. Bob Lodge was the epitome of American Honor.
It is a disgrace that this Hero is not known. He needs to be remembered and the others forgotten.
Bio, Lodge, Robert A.
LODGE, ROBERT ALFRED Remains returned 30 September 1977 Name: Robert Alfred Lodge Rank/Branch: O4/US Air Force Unit: ... Robert A. Lodge was the pilot of the F4D, ...Maj Robert Alfred "Bob/Bobby" Lodge (1941 - 1972) - Find A ...
ROBERT ALFRED LODGE. *** US Air Force Academy Cemetery ... *** Major Lodge was a member of the 432nd Tactical ... Major Robert A. Lodge was the pilot of the F ...
Robert Lodge had the Right Stuff.
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