The United States Navy Observation Squadron
67 was purported to be an observation unit, as evidenced by the unit patch sewn into their uniforms depicting an aircraft
sending signals to the ground. However, this was merely a cover-up for their
actual mission, which involved the exact opposite: they were listening to what was happening
on the ground instead of interfering. Using dropped microphones and state-of-the-art
sensors, the VO-67's missions were set up to help the military gain intelligence on the
enemy's movement along the Ho Chi Minh trail. The missions were so secretive
that not every official in the Navy knew about the squadron or the
kind of activities they performed, and even the members were not told about their
objectives until right before deployment. However, they had luck on their side. Despite
the risks involved in their covert operations, the VO-67 team had the advantage
of flying one of the most effective and versatile aircraft of the
postwar era: Lockheed's P-2, a naval plane designed for maritime
patrol and anti-submarine warfare… War Delays In early 1941, as the world
geared up for World War 2, Lockheed Aircraft's Vega division began working
on a new twin-engined land-based patrol bomber. The aircraft, known as model 26, would
use the Wright R-3350 Cyclone engine to carry a more significant bomb load for
longer distances than other four-engined heavy bombers, like the B-17 Flying
Fortress and the B-24 Liberator. However, the model wasn’t a priority, and its engines were eventually used for
another project: Boeing's B-29 super bomber. The venture paid off, as it went on to
make history in the global conflict. Years later, in April of 1944, the
Lockheed project was given a second wind, and the US Navy ordered 15 models. The
result was the Lockheed P2V Neptune, the only American-made naval land-based patrol
aircraft ever designed solely for this purpose. The Neptune was a sizable, mid-wing bomber
with a wingspan of 103 feet and 10 inches, a height of 29 feet 4 inches, and
an empty weight of 50,000 pounds. It also featured an impressive range of armament
and anti-surface vessel weaponry. In addition to cannons and heavy caliber machine guns, the
maritime patrol bomber could carry torpedoes, mines, bombs of various weights, and even
externally-held high-explosive rockets. And inside, the P-2 was
geared for military success with state-of-the-art specialized equipment. The Neptune The Neptune's production began
in 1946 after having flown for the first time shortly after the
German surrender a year earlier. As a maritime patrol and anti-submarine warfare
aircraft, the model had impressive endurance and range, a large internal weapons bay, defensive
capabilities, and solid short-field capabilities. Such promising features were put to the test
when, from September 29 through October 1, 1947, the P2V-1 "Truculent Turtle" model flew for 11,235
miles from Perth, Australia to Columbus, Ohio, without stopping or refueling, winning a world
record that would stand for almost four decades. And although the Lockheed P-2 did
not participate in World War 2, the Neptune aircraft series became one of the most
successful post-war designs of the United States. The model proved so versatile and
effective that it spawned a series of variants in different specialized
roles, including Airborne Early Warning, nuclear weapons carrier, special-sensor
aircraft, drone controller crew trainer, Antarctic ski-plane, electronic
surveillance, gunship, and several more. The model was the standard land-based
anti-submarine patrol aircraft in its primary role, and it was intended
to operate as the hunter side of a '"Hunter-Killer" duo completed by destroyers. The Neptune also went on to
serve in the Netherlands, Japan, and many other nations after the
establishment of NATO in the late 1940s. Versatile Service While Neptune split its time
between the US Navy and Air Force, it is more remembered for its
service with the maritime branch. The model saw its first combat during the Korean
War, where Neptunes were used in mine laying, ground attack, day and night bombing and rocket
attack, and armored combat transport missions. Then, during the Vietnam War, the Army
used it for electronic warfare and night and all-weather interdiction missions.
The 1st Radio Research Company also used it to intercept low-powered tactical
voice and morse code radio signals. Furthermore, the Navy used the P-2 and
its different variants as a gunship, overland reconnaissance, and
sensor deployment aircraft, as well as in its traditional role
as a maritime patrol aircraft. It was with the seaborne branch that the
Lockheed P-2 Neptune excelled at covert and clandestine missions, participating
in a highly regarded observation squadron that went on to win one of the most
prestigious honors in the armed forces. Igloo White and Observation Squadron 67 Unsatisfied with the results of the bombing
campaign against North Vietnam, Defense Secretary Robert McNamara established Igloo White, a covert
joint military electronic warfare operation. Using the cover of darkness, dense jungle,
and bad weather conditions, North Vietnamese trucks used to carry critical supplies down the
infamous Ho Chi Minh Trail without being detected. Because large numbers of American ground
troops were not allowed into neutral Laos to stop the trucks, the plan was to use
dropped microphones and seismographic sensors to gain intelligence on the enemy’s
moves along the trail to plan for airstrikes. Then, in February of 1967, the US Navy
established Observation Squadron 67, a clandestine military intelligence
aircraft team based at the Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Force Base
across the Mekong River from Laos. Despite its name, VO-67 was not an observation
unit. Rather, the squadron flew the heavily modified OP-2E Neptune aircraft, equipped
with M-60 machine guns and an armored belly, and sporting a jungle green paint
scheme, to achieve its goals. Valor and Sacrifice The mission assigned to the men of VO-67 appeared
deceptively simple: take off from their base in Thailand, fly a short distance into Laos, and
drop air-delivered seismic intrusion detectors and acoustic seismic intrusion detectors along the Ho
Chi Minh Trail to detect enemy supply movements. However, as the lifeblood of
the war for the communist enemy, the Ho Chi Minh Trail was a hostile
environment for American aircrews. But although the missions were short-lived,
they were filled with adrenaline-pumping danger. While the service prepared for
a loss rate of up to 70 percent, the brave men from VO-67
exceeded all expectations. Nevertheless, tragedy struck when 20 men from
three crews lost their lives in three separate incidents within six weeks in 1968. One, Commander
Paul Milius, is still reported as missing in action after allowing seven crewmen to bail out of
their damaged Neptunes before going down himself. For his heroic actions, Milius earned a Navy
cross and had a destroyer named after him. Despite the losses, VO-67 flew combat missions
for nine months with only a 25 percent loss rate before being disbanded in July of 1968.
The Air Force then took over until 1972. In 2008, 40 years after the squadron's actions,
VO-67 was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation, the highest decoration for combat
valor that a unit can receive. Retiring the P-2 As one of the most significant patrol aircraft
of the Cold War, the model also participated in the Cuban missile crisis and even the US space
program. However, as the Cold War progressed in the 1960s, the P-2 Neptune was replaced
by the more modern Lockheed P-3A Orion. Even so, the type remained operational in the
Naval Air Reserve throughout the mid-1970s, primarily in its SP-2H version,
the last and most sophisticated derivative of the Neptune built for the US Navy. As active fleet squadrons continued
to update and trade their models in the mid-and late-1960s and early 1970s, the Naval Air Reserve Neptunes were eventually
replaced, and the P-2 exited the naval service. Moreover, the last US active duty patrol
squadron to operate the SP-2H, the VP-23, retired its last Neptune on February 20,
1970, while the last naval reserve patrol squadron to operate the patrol bomber,
the VP-94, retired its last model in 1978. A Global Asset The Argentine Naval Aviation branch, which had
received 16 Neptunes of different variants in the 1950s, used them prominently in 1978
during Operation Soberania against Chile, including missions over the Pacific Ocean. Then, during the 1982 Falklands War, the
last remaining two Neptunes in service carried out reconnaissance missions
over the South Atlantic Oceans. On May 4, after detecting a group of British
warships, the model helped direct an attack by two Dassault Super Étendards that successfully
sank the British destroyer HMS Sheffield. But despite one last major hurrah, the model
was forced to retire from the Argentine Air Force due to a lack of spare parts resulting from
the American arms embargo imposed years earlier. The model also served Canada, the Netherlands, and Australia and was even used
as civilian firefighting units. In Japan, the P-2 Neptune was licensed-built
by the Kawasaki corporation in the mid-1960s. Rebranded as the P-2J, with the piston
engines replaced by IHI-built T64 turboprops, the manufacturing continued much
longer than the Lockheed model, remaining in service until the mid-1980s. In the end, a total of 1,036 Neptune were
produced in seven significant variants, with the United States Navy
receiving the vast majority. The model's versatility is quite evident from
the many missions it was called on to perform, and it delivered exceptional results, truly
setting the standard for modern patrol aircraft. Thank you for watching Dark Skies! Remember
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