Naval Air War - NHHC

NAVA L H I S TORY & H E R I TAG E C OM M A N D | T H E U. S . N AV Y A N D T H E V I E T N A M WA R

Naval Air War

e Rolling under Campaign

Norman Polmar and Edward J. Marolda

Front cover: Midway (CVA-41), a veteran of Operation Rolling under and longtime defender of U.S. interests in the Western Pacific. NHHC VN Collection

THE U.S. NAVY AND THE VIETNAM WAR Edward J. Marolda and Sandra J. Doyle, Series Editors

Naval Air War

e Rolling under Campaign

Norman Polmar and Edward J. Marolda

DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY WASHINGTON, DC 2015

? 2015 Naval Historical Foundation All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reprinted without written permission from the Naval Historical Foundation. Printed in the United States of America.

Published by Naval History & Heritage Command

in partnership with the Naval Historical Foundation 805 Kidder Breese Street SE Washington Navy Yard, DC 20374-5060 history.navy.mil

Book design by Dean Gardei and Jamie Harvey

U.S. GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL EDITION NOTICE

Use of ISBN is is the official U.S. Government edition of this publication and is herein identified to certify

its authenticity. Use of 978-0-945274-82-7 is for the U.S. Government Publishing Office Edition only. e Superintendent of Documents of the U.S. Government Publishing Office requests that any

reprinted edition clearly be labeled as a copy of the authentic work with a new ISBN.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Polmar, Norman. Naval air war : the Rolling under campaign / Norman Polmar and Edward J. Marolda.

pages cm. -- ( e U.S. Navy and the Vietnam War) ISBN 978-0-945274-82-7 (pbk. : alk. paper) -- ISBN 978-0-945274-83-4 (508-compliant pdf) -- ISBN 978-0-945274-84-1 (epub) -- ISBN 978-0-945274-85-8 (mobi) 1. Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Aerial operations, American. 2. Operation Rolling

under, 1965-1968. 3. Naval aviation--United States--History--20th century. 4. Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Naval operations, American. I. Marolda, Edward J. II. Title. III. Title: Rolling under campaign. DS558.8.P65 2015 959.704'345--dc23

2015028706

e paper used in this publication meets the requirements for permanence as established by the American National Standard for Information Sciences "Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials" (ANSI Z39.48-1984).

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Publishing Office Internet: bookstore. Phone: toll free (866) 512-1800; DC area (202) 512-1800

Fax: (202) 512-2104 Mail: Stop IDCC, Washington, DC 20402-0001

CONTENTS

Introduction

1

e Start of an Air Campaign

5

Way Down South on Dixie Station

19

Rescuing Downed Aviators

23

Countering the SAMs

29

e Bombing Campaign Heats Up

35

e POL Strikes

41

Air War at Its Deadliest

51

Tet and Rolling under

55

Learning from the Rolling under Experience

61

Sidebars

Attack Aircraft

10

Fighter Aircraft

14

Tragedy Aboard Ship

42

Frustrated Warrior: Admiral Ulysses S. G. Sharp Jr. 47

Homer Smith and the Debut of PGMs

52

Recce Aircraft

56

Acronyms

64

e Authors

65

Acknowledgments

66

Suggested Reading

66

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