https://www.thebrothersbellum.com/home daily 1.0 2021-07-31 https://www.thebrothersbellum.com/gallery daily 0.75 2024-01-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627254669050-54R98V48GSOPPYUR2VN0/B-52D_approaching_U-Tapao_1972.jpg Gallery - The B-52 Bomber The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress took its maiden flight in April 1952 and quickly became the primary bomber of the U.S. Air Force, a role it continues to fill seventy years later. It faired poorly against the Surface to Air Missile threat in the closing days of the Vietnam War because it was employed using World War II doctrine though outfitted with state of the art electronic countermeasures. I’ve collected a number of photos showing the airplane at its finest. Photo: A B-52 coming in for landing at U-Tapao, Thailand, 30 October 1972 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627301892103-5XRZVYORO4CASH6EF41U/hanoi_hilton.jpg Gallery - Prisoners of War / Missing in Action The United States listed 2,646 Americans unaccounted for during the Vietnam War. Of those, 1,350 were thought to be Prisoners of War (POW) or Missing in Action (MIA). During Operation Homecoming, from February through April 1973, 591 POWs were released to U.S. authorities and the remains of 700 were identified. What of the remaining numbers? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/9ee4744b-fa2d-4771-9edf-0bab9d296c86/b-52_cell_formation.png Gallery - B-52 Cell Formation The standard B-52 cell formation was flown with “number two” flying 1 nautical mile behind on a 45° angle to the right, and “number three” flying 2 nautical miles behind to the left. Position was maintained using radar but required extra maneuvering when turning, especially when the turn was opposite. Number 3, for example, was likely to fall behind in a turn to the right. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627303076357-G541ZAMWG6UKR9FCCMJT/student_vietnam_war_protesters_u_of_wisconsin_jan_1965.JPG Gallery - The Draft 1,857,304 men were drafted between August 1964 and February 1973. Starting in 1969, this was done by a draft lottery. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/3ebceaa1-cf06-4f5d-bf8f-19590b578ed8/b-52cd_crew_layout_to_1b-52c-1_figure_1-2-2.jpg Gallery - Make it stand out Credit: Technical Order 1B-52C-1, 10 July 1970 Crew positions in the B-52D. The layout was similar in the B-52G, except the gunner sat forward with the rest of the crew https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627337465133-7J7IDR57LJ86PMKD16MJ/sa-2-north-vietnam.jpg Gallery - SA-2 Surface to Air Missile (SAM) The Soviet SA-75 Dvina Surface to Air Missile (NATO Code Name SA-2 Guideline) had long been lethal to U.S. Aircraft, downing over 100 U.S. Navy and Air Force aircraft before Rolling Thunder. The B-52s had an awesome suite of electronic countermeasures thought to be invulnerable to the SA-2. That was true, until 1972. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627255529602-EY1GEOZJ0HN5OZIK5YAM/Vietnam_Military_History_Museum_%287459222730%29.jpg Gallery - The Strategic Air Command (SAC) The Strategic Air Command was born with the United States Air Force in 1947 as the Cold War heated up, but then lost its way during the sixties during the Vietnam War and was finally “disestablished” in 1992. Photo: B-52 wreckage at the Vietnam Military History Museum, taken 27 May 2012 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/11b0a3ac-491e-401e-b8f6-d6a64ca7cdd1/chain_of_command.jpg Gallery - The Chain of Command https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/a45da4c1-4851-40a8-899a-e69136f920db/b-52cd_crew_layout_to_1b-52c-1_figure_1-2-1.jpg Gallery - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/5990e8f4-cbac-43e2-9843-a8683685ba2f/map_of_area.png Gallery - Make it stand out The “as the crow flies” distance from U-Tapao to Hanoi is 580 nautical miles (nm). There are other important locations off the map. Andersen Air Force Base, Guam is 2,279 nm from Hanoi. Offutt Air Force Base, Omaha, Nebraska, is 6,884 nm from Hanoi. https://www.thebrothersbellum.com/links daily 0.75 2021-07-27 https://www.thebrothersbellum.com/purchase daily 0.75 2024-04-23 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/aeded27f-cbdd-4f95-b476-11068b2841e7/amazon_tbbb.png Purchase - Available now in Audibook, eBook or Print The eBook version is available for $5.99 as a Kindle book, the Kindle App is free for your phone or computer if you don’t have a reader. The paperback is available for $14.99. The audiobook is available for one Kindle credit. https://www.thebrothersbellum.com/gallery-b52 daily 0.75 2021-07-31 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627299768798-E2S7Y7P8IR8JNPPBP69W/b-52d_55-0100_dec_1972_usaf.jpg Gallery B-52 - B-52D 55-0100 during Linebacker II, Dec 1972 Photo: USAF https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627482615919-5YBF66CBBK3SIJIYIUF4/b-52_60-0005_raf_fairford_jul_2007.jpg Gallery B-52 - B-52H 60-0005, RAF Fairford, July 2007. Photo: Matt Birch, http://visualapproachimages.com https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627315528521-ACZGHOB4WXI3IB7QUGZX/b-52d_cockpit.JPG Gallery B-52 - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627298069027-ZMKF984Y6FH2XM9HA1E8/b-52h_southwest_asia_21_may_2019_usaf.jpg Gallery B-52 - A B-52H in Southwest Asia 21 May 2019 Photo: USAF https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627387652093-YA0II3WWC4F1Q44L3RMZ/b-52d_with_mk_117_bombs_andersen_afb.jpg Gallery B-52 - M117 750-lb. bombs in front of B-52D, Andersen Air Force Base, during Vietnam War. Photo: USAF https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627385771303-FA1NF2PVN9E2DX9BLZ4A/b-52_andersen_afb_guam_22_aug_2015.jpg Gallery B-52 - Make it stand out B-52s on the flight line at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, 22 Aug 2015. Photo: USAF https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627639778488-D8C4LYA4M6SGNR4SCQ6O/b-52d_ew_station_mockup_museum_of_aviation_2021-07-29a.jpg Gallery B-52 - Make it stand out Click on photo for more. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627482889567-63PHHIX85O01F99T3BEE/b-52h_60-0045_raf_fairford_matt_birch_jul_2008.jpg Gallery B-52 - Make it stand out B-52H 60-0045, RAF Fairford, July 2008. Photo: Matt Birch, http://visualapproachimages.com https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627297740632-KX0LTLVZ76BRTQ8JAFRN/b-52_near_north_pole_31_jul_2016_usaf.jpg Gallery B-52 - A B-52 approaches a tanker near the North Pole 31 July 2016. Photo: USAF https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627300196482-GJ5UV5YLV6J6B4IHMK0L/b-52ds_before_takeoff_andersen_afb_dec_1972.JPEG Gallery B-52 - B-52Ds before takeoff, Anderson AFB, Dec 1972 Photo: USAF https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627298336888-WAZXU20RFLR916FG5SQX/b-52d_south_dakota_air_and_space_museum_16_aug_2018_james_st_john.jpg Gallery B-52 - Make it stand out A B-52D at the South Dakota Air and Space Museum, 16 Aug 2018. Photo: James St. John https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627298895171-NDRFJC4Z94D7DAW0BNJW/b-52d_and_kc-135a_u-tapao_15_jan_70_usaf.jpg Gallery B-52 - A B-52D landing at U-Tapao with a KC-135A in the foreground, 15 Jan 1970. Photo: USAF https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627300632360-SBUP5HXHB2MW225OQPDL/b-52_lower_deck.jpg Gallery B-52 - Make it stand out Capt Jeff Rogers (left) and 1st Lt. Patrick Applegate in the Radar Navigator and Navigator stations of their B-52, 21 Aug 2006. Photo: USAF https://www.thebrothersbellum.com/gallery-sac daily 0.75 2021-07-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627301430821-3ENWSULDIU0C8IIAW862/sac_command_center_underground_structure_building_501_undated_offutt_afb_Center.jpg Gallery SAC - Make it stand out The underground command center at Headquarters, Strategic Air Command, Offutt AFB, Nebraska, photo undated. Photo: USAF https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627316409903-YF1DR01TK04SEH2QCICO/bgen_glen_sullivan_17adcc_usaf.JPG Gallery SAC - Brigadier General Glen Sullivan, 17th Air Division (Provisional) Commander, U-Tapao As far as I can tell, only one general officer in the chain of command conducted himself with honor and distinction, and that was General Sullivan. Many of us were taught the war was being micromanaged from the White House and that might have been true under President Johnson. President Nixon delegated this to SAC, who decided to micromanage the war from Omaha, Nebraska, twelve time zones away from the war. The Commander in Chief, SAC (CINCSAC) was clueless as were all the generals from him to the 8th Air Force. It took General Sullivan to say “no more,” and change tactics. His action saved countless lives while costing him his career. https://www.thebrothersbellum.com/about daily 0.75 2024-01-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627293806282-8T2IS4IJ7U21FKRMNF5R/brothers_bellum_cover_ebook.jpg About the Book - The Vietnamese consider Linebacker II a victory. So do we. It hastened the end of the war, so I guess we were both right. — The story follows three brothers during the build up, execution, and aftermath of the bombing campaign that the President said, “must be brutal.” It was. Ernest, the middle brother, was a B-52 Electronic Warfare Officer stationed at U-Tapao Royal Thai Navy Base in Thailand. He had complete faith in the technology and his skill in avoiding the Surface to Air Missile (SAM) threat. Stephen, the eldest brother, was a B-52 pilot who flew when the SAM threat was minimal. He had complete faith in the bomber and the Strategic Air Command’s prosecution of Linebacker II, the last air campaign of the war. Martin, the youngest brother, was a college student on draft deferment. He came to believe the war was evil as were all who fought it. All three brothers discover they were wrong. While the brothers are fictional, the bombing missions and dysfunctional rules of engagement are portrayed exactly as they happened. https://www.thebrothersbellum.com/contact daily 0.75 2021-07-26 https://www.thebrothersbellum.com/gallery-pows daily 0.75 2021-08-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627313321721-DEQY1JCDKHEUXDC6DNFM/vietnam_pows_c-141a_hanoi_12_feb_1973.JPG Gallery POWs - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1628767513193-1S8754J3ZZ0CVQ49BCSQ/image.jpeg Gallery POWs - Photo: USAF Captain Wilmer N. Grubb captured January 26, 1966 (Air Force Times) 50 years later, sons of POW look for answers in Vietnam By Kristin Davis On a snowy January day nearly 50 years ago, a Western Union driver delivered the telegram that changed Jeff Grubb's life. His father, Lt. Col. Wilmer Grubb, was missing in action, his reconnaissance plane shot down during a Jan. 26, 1966, mission over North Vietnam. Days after that fateful knock on the door of their Central Virginia home, North Vietnam released photos of Wilmer Grubb in seemingly fine health, uninjured except for what appeared to be a superficial knee wound. In the most iconic image meant to portray the humane treatment of prisoners of war, the pilot sits on the ground in his uniform while a nurse tends to his knee and a Vietnamese soldier, his gun at the ready, looks on. Yet when the remains of Wilmer Grubb were at last returned home in 1974, the Vietnamese claimed he'd died nine days after his capture from injuries sustained in the crash. It was a story his wife, Evelyn, who died in 2005, never believed. For more about their story: https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-air-force/2015/03/03/50-years-later-sons-of-pow-look-for-answers-in-vietnam/ https://www.thebrothersbellum.com/gallery-draft daily 0.75 2021-07-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627334571819-AZRF4TED0FFFIQ1RF9VQ/vietnam_protest_wash_dc_21_oct_67_frank_wolfe.gif Gallery Draft - Vietnam war protesters on Memorial Bridge, Washington, D.C., 21 Oct 1967. Photo: Frank Wolfe https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627304215865-KI4WP176JNRIGF7MDRW7/draft_card_burning_nyc_1967.jpg Gallery Draft - A draft card burning, New York City, Central Park, 15 Apr 1967. Photo: Universal Studios https://www.thebrothersbellum.com/gallery-sa2 daily 0.75 2021-07-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627338371447-HWCX9O0HZVWA1IX6EY64/snr-75m3_fan_song_e.jpg Gallery SA-2 - SNR-75M2 Fan Song E engagement radar The SA-2 was lethal but had limited fuel and time to acquire, track, and destroy its target. The SNR-72 “Fan Song” was used to acquire and track both the SA-2 and its target. It used three radar dishes: azimuth, elevation, and range. The azimuth and elevation radars had signals shaped like fans, hence the name. The SNR-75 itself was ripe for targeting by U.S. “Wild Weasel” aircraft, so the challenge for the North Vietnamese was to use it effectively in such a short time that the B-52s could not detect it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627393105775-FQ2C6TWC58ZVK37PT3AQ/sa-2_north_vietnamese_sam_crew.JPG Gallery SA-2 - North Vietnamese S-75 (SA-2) Crew Photo: USAF https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627337964670-L9H8HVO8YEB330YQLD2O/f-105d_missed_by_sa-2_missile_over_vietnam_c1966.jpg Gallery SA-2 - A U.S. Air Force F-105D Thunderchief pulls away as it was missed by a S-75 (SA-2) SAM over North Vietnam, circa 1966. Photo: USAF https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627392700837-KEZVKGKC0P2ZM28AQMUY/rf-4c_shot_down_by_sa-2_12_aug_67_near_hanoi.JPG Gallery SA-2 - RF-4C shot down by SA-2, 12 Aug 1967, Near Hanoi USAF Photo https://www.thebrothersbellum.com/gallery-ewo daily 0.75 2021-07-31 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627738603244-UX0A9GC3OB9ZV50GT00I/LoringAFB_B52EW04.JPG Gallery EWO - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627738622582-DJ1MPYNTKTBO0T38P8KO/LoringAFB_B52EW05.JPG Gallery EWO - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627738643139-HT0SOOFT1TDP39LWOBXV/LoringAFB_B52EW10.JPG Gallery EWO - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627738582356-IPVSDN771BQBC42FBKDB/LoringAFB_B52EW03.JPG Gallery EWO - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/1627738556332-0CCCFPTF7YZYJJFHNF0P/LoringAFB_B52EW02.JPG Gallery EWO - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.thebrothersbellum.com/audiobook daily 0.75 2024-03-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/3e597370-6b85-4107-92bc-bc1e3689ebf0/map_of_area.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/d4632ec1-82b7-4e6d-a7db-5d727af147b9/chain_of_command.jpg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/5c4553e0-5a83-47da-b0a2-8f5464062140/b-52_cell_formation.png https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/e3dbbf90-362f-4c8d-aa8d-0f10842cd7ec/b-52_crew_compartments.png https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60fde877bd489024841b74c8/e6c09626-0497-40dc-9363-15a89f3b46c3/b-52cd_crew_layout_to_1b-52c-1_figure_1-2-2.jpg