Herky bird war hero

A Purple Heart is displayed inside the first operational C-130 in the Air Force Aug. 15, 2012, located in the Linear Air Park, at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas. During Operation Blind Bat in the 1960s this C-130A was fired upon blowing out both tires in the right wheel well and igniting a fuel line causing a fire on both the outside and inside of the aircraft injuring the loadmaster who attempted to control the fire. The loadmaster was so grateful the plane was able to return the crew and himself home he personally awarded his Purple Heart to the aircraft. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Jonathan Stefanko/ Released)

Herky bird war hero

Richard “Doc” Warner, Linear Air Park curator, displays the American flag given to the first operational C-130 Aug. 15, 2012, at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas. The C-130, registration number 55-0023, was commissioned on Dec. 19, 1956, and completed 15,569.1 flying hours, or the equivalent of flying in the air for 648 and a half days during its 33 years of service before retiring at Dyess Air Force Base on Oct. 19, 1989. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Jonathan Stefanko/ Released)

Herky bird war hero

A look inside the first operational C-130 in the Air Force Aug. 15, 2012, located in the Linear Air Park, at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas. The C-130, registration number 55-0023, was commissioned on Dec. 19, 1956, and completed 15,569.1 flying hours, or the equivalent of flying in the air for 648 and a half days during its 33 years of service before retiring at Dyess Air Force Base on Oct. 19, 1989. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Jonathan Stefanko/ Released)

Herky bird war hero

Published Aug. 17, 2012
By Senior Airman Joel Mease
7th Bomb Wing Public Affairs

DYESS AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- Those who drive past Linear Air Park on Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, drive by a decorated combat veteran -- a C-130A to be exact.

This Herky bird's story starts Dec. 19, 1956, when Registration No. 55-0023 was assigned to the 463rd Troop Carrier Wing at Ardmore AFB, Okla.
"This was the first production C-130 ever delivered to the Air Force, but it was actually available for duty Sept. 13, 1956," said Richard "Doc" Warner, Dyess AFB and Linear Air Park curator.

The distinction of being the first C-130 alone is notable; however, it's a medal that hangs just outside the cockpit entryway that denotes a certain crewmember's respect and admiration for the aircraft.

With the Vietnam conflict in full swing in the 1960s, the Vietcong regularly used the Ho Chi Minh Trail under the cover of darkness to move personnel and vital supplies from Laos into South Vietnam. The ability to stop or significantly disrupt these war supplies from reaching South Vietnam was a top priority for the United States.

"Our Herky bird was involved in Operation Blind Bat, which was an interdiction mission of the Ho Chi Minh Trail dropping flairs at night to light up the trail to see enemy movement - allowing attack aircraft to see their position," Warner said. "The problem for the aircrew was while the flares would light up the ground, the canopy of the jungle would reflect the light exposing the underside of the aircraft.

"The enemy seeing this fired upon the aircraft blowing out both tires in the right wheel well and igniting a fuel line causing a fire on both the outside and inside of the aircraft," he added. "In a desperate attempt to put the fire out the loadmaster in the back was injured and awarded the Purple Heart."

After making an emergency landing at Cam Ranh Air Base, South Vietnam, more than 300 bullet holes were discovered in the aircraft. It took seven months of repair for the plane to fly to the United States and another six months of repair in the United States for 55-0023 to return to operational duty, Warner said.

"As the story goes, the loadmaster was so grateful the plane was able to return his fellow crew and himself home safely he personally awarded his Purple Heart to the aircraft, where the medal is still proudly displayed," Warner said.

55-0023 remained in operational service until Oct. 19, 1989 when its last unit, the Chicago Air National Guard, returned the plane to its first home with the 463rd Tactical Airlift Wing. (The 463rd TCW was redesignated as the 463rd TAW in 1967 and moved to Dyess AFB in 1972.) When the aircraft arrived at Dyess it had completed 15,569.1 flying hours, or the equivalent of flying in the air for 648 and-a-half days during its 33 years of service.

While no longer located in Ardmore, Okla., it's almost as if the first operational C-130 belongs at Dyess where a new generation of Herky birds take to the sky to provide global vigilance, reach and power for the U.S. Air Force.