Vietnam War USAF 432nd TACTICAL RECONNAISSANCE WING Patch

Description

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This Vietnam war in-country machine-embroidered patch measures 3.5" by 3.6", used condition. Due to global pandemic, USPS delivery may be temporarily delayed.
During Vietnam war, on 18 September 1966, the
432nd Tactical Reconnaissance Wing
was activated at
Udorn Royal Thai Air Force Base
, Thailand as an
Douglas RF-4C Phantom II
wing. The wing assumed the personnel, aircraft and equipment of the 6234th Tactical Fighter Wing, which was simultaneously discontinued. At Udon, it became one of the most diversified units of its size in the Air Force.
The mission of the wing was to provide intelligence information about hostile forces through tactical reconnaissance and use its fighter elements to destroy the targets earmarked by the intelligence data provided. The wing had numerous missions in the support area. The 432d TRW accounted for more than 80 percent of all reconnaissance activity over North Vietnam.
Douglas RF-4C Phantom II
wing. The wing assumed the personnel, aircraft and equipment of the 6234th Tactical Fighter Wing, which was simultaneously discontinued. At Udon, it became one of the most diversified units of its size in the Air Force.
In addition to the reconnaissance mission, the 432nd also had a tactical fighter squadron component, with two (
13th Tactical Fighter Squadron
,
555th Tactical Fighter Squadron
) F-4C/D squadrons assigned. The squadrons flew strike missions over
North Vietnam
and the pilots and weapon systems officers of the 13 TFS and 555 TFS were credited with MiG kills.
In 1968, the
7th Airborne Command and Control Squadron
, flying specialized
Lockheed C-130 Hercules
aircraft, became part of the 432d. The squadron had been attached to the wing as a temporary duty unit from
Da Nang Air Base
, South Vietnam. Another unit assigned was the 4th Special Operations Squadron flying various (
Douglas AC-47 Spooky
and on 19 March 1969, the wing proposed a new
forward air control
program to
7th Air Force
. Calling for photo reconnaissance in conjunction with
Fast FACs
, it offered the advantage of speedier fresher
intelligence
from aerial photo interpretation. The mission was approved, and the Wing's volunteers were trained by "Misty" and "Stormy" FACs. The first combined FAC/photo mission was flown on 26 April 1969. By July, they were asked to augment the efforts of the "Tiger" FACs in the
Operation Barrel Roll
area of
Laos
. While supporting
Operation About Face
, they improvised mass bombings by 16 to 20
fighter-bombers
three times in September 1969. One of these mass raids inflicted heavy casualties on a concentration of about 1,000 communist troops. In November, they discovered 102 new targets; the following month, they found 172 more. To do this, they pressed lower than 4,000 feet altitude. In the last quarter of 1969, 21 of their aircraft suffered battle damage. They were then ordered to remain above 4,500 feet altitude to escape ground fire. Regardless of their operating altitude, their
bomb damage assessment
record was triple the average for 7th Air Force units.
In the fall of 1970 the wing was phased down as part of the overall American withdrawal from the
Vietnam War
; however, in 1972 tactical fighter strength was augmented by deployed
Tactical Air Command
CONUS-based tactical fighter squadrons being attached to the 432d in response to the
North Vietnamese invasion of South Vietnam
. In addition, the
421st Tactical Fighter Squadron
was reassigned from
Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base
. During
Operation Linebacker
, between May and October 1972, the 432d TRW had seven F-4 tactical fighter squadrons assigned or attached, (
13th
, 56th,
308th
,
414th
,
421st
, 523d and
555th
) making it the largest wing in the USAF. The three Vietnam era Air Force Aces all came from the 432d – two from the 555th and one from the 13th. The CONUS-based squadrons returned to the United States in the fall of 1972.
For any unsatisfactory reason, item can be returned within 30 days for full refund (less S&H fee).
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