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UNITED STATES NAVAL AVIATION 1910-1995

1972-Contin ued

copter into NVN since 1968. HC-7 Det 110 continued

its rescue efforts and by the end of 1972 it had suc-

cessfully conducted 48 rescues during the year, 35 of

those under combat conditions.

17 August The Naval Material Command and the

Air Force Systems Command reached an agreement

relating to Navy and Air Force responsibilities for air-

craft engine production at the Pratt & Whitney Aircraft

Divisions, East Hartford, Conn., and West Palm Beach,

Fla. The Memorandum of Agreement provided that an

Air Force Deputy Plant Representative and staff be

assigned to the Naval Plant Representative Office

(NAVPRO) to represent the F-15 Program Director on

F-15 matters and to advise the NAVPRO on the in-

plant management of Air Force engine programs.

29 August John Konrad, Vought Aeronautics test

pilot, made the first flight in a two-place version of the

A-7E that the company had developed to demonstrate

to the Air Force and the Navy the advantages of such

a configuration for use as an advanced trainer or for

such tactical duties as electronics countermeasures.

31 August Although Marine Corps air efforts were

concentrated in SVN, the Marines contributed signifi-

cantly to U.S. efforts in NVN to prevent offloading and

transportation of supplies from Chinese merchant

ships at Hon La and Hon Nieu. HMA-369, with seven

AH-lJ helicopters, using the Cobra weapons system,

operated from Denver (LPD 9) against water transport

traffic in late June, and from Cleveland (LPD 7) in

early August. HMA-369's operations during August

were extended to include night surveillance and

attack. In addition HMA-369 helicopters served as

airspotters for naval gunfire and as airborne tactical

controllers for fixed-wing aircraft attacking lucrative

targets.

The Navy flew 4,819 sorties in August against NVN.

The downward trend of Navy attack sorties in SVN

continued during July and August. The stepped-up

campaign in the Mekong Delta accounted for a sharp

rise in Marine Corps air activity in SVN. The Marine

Corps air effort rose from 8 percent of the total air

effort in SVN during May to 43 percent during August.

11 September VMFA-333 flying off America

downed a MiG-21 near Phuc Yen airfield in North

Vietnam. This was the only MiG kill for the

Navy/Marine Corps during September and brought the

grand total of MiGs downed by Navy/Marine Corps

pilots to 55 since the war began.

30 September During September the number of

Navy tactical air attack sorties decreased from the level

flown in August. There were 3,934 Navy tactical air

attack sorties flown into NVN, down by about 800

from the August total. During July and August, more

than 45 percent of the Navy armed reconnaissance

sorties were at night. However, in September, only 31

percent of the armed reconnaissance sorties were

flown at night. In SVN the Navy flew 1,708 tactical air

attack sorties, a decrease from the level flown in

August. About half of the Navy's tactical air sorties

were close and direct air support sorties in SVN.

Marine Corps activity stayed relatively high during

September because of stepped-up ground activity in

the Mekong Delta. Marine Corps tactical air sorties for

September were 1,296. Carriers operating on Yankee

Station during the month of September were Hancock,

Kitty Hawk, Midway, Saratoga, Oriskany and America.

1 October The first two F-14 Tomcat squadrons

were formed at NAS Miramar San Diego, Calif. The

new squadrons carried the designations VF-l and VF-

2. These squadrons were established to receive the

Navy's first new fighter plane in 14 years, the

McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II was introduced in

1958.

8 October The first F-14 Tomcat, the Navy's new

sophisticated fighter, was delivered to VF-124. VF-124

was designated the F-14 training squadron for all F-14

fighter squadrons of the Pacific and Atlantic Fleet.

23 October The U.S. ended all tactical air sorties

into NVN above the 20th parallel and brought to a

close Linebacker I operations. This goodwill gesture of

terminating the bombing in NVN above the 20th paral-

lel was designed to help promote the peace negotia-

tions being held in Paris, France. During May through

October, the Navy flew a total of 23,652 tactical air

attack sorties into NVN. U.S. tactical air sorties during

Linebacker I operations helped stem the flow of sup-

plies into NVN, thereby limiting the operating capabili-

ties of North Vietnam's invading army. Carriers

involved in Linebacker I operations were Enterprise,

Constellation, Coral Sea, Hancock, Kitty Hawk,

Midway, Saratoga, Oriskany and America.

31 October During October the total number of

Navy tactical air sorties into NVN was 2,661. Tactical

air sorties into SVN during October were 2,097 and

1,599 for the Navy and Marine Corps, respectively. Air

operations in SVN followed the general pattern of the

ground war. NVN increased their small-scale attacks

throughout SVN in an apparent effort to gain territory

before a possible cease-fire. Thus, the main objective