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Capt Michael Brennan (Mike)
to remember
Brennan, Herbert, Col.
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On 26 November 1967, Colonel Herbert O. Brennan, pilot and 1st Lt. Douglas C. Condit, co-pilot, comprised the crew of an F4C, call sign Pinhead 1, that departed DaNang Airfield as the lead aircraft in a flight of two. Their morning strike mission was against enemy truck traffic moving toward the Ban Karai Pass on its way to the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Pinhead flight's briefed flight path was from DaNang Airfield northwest paralleling the coastline, then ingressing into North Vietnam 30 miles northwest of Channel 109 to proceed to the target area. Their return was to be by the reverse route.
During the heat of battle, Pinhead 2 did not see any hostile ground fire directed at the lead aircraft, and while they did not see any parachutes, they did hear two emergency beepers coming from an area very near the crash site. At 0942 hours, moments after the lead aircraft was downed, search and rescue (SAR) efforts were initiated. Each time search aircraft passed over the crash site, they received enemy ground fire. The pilot of an A1E Sandy reported light to moderate small arms fire in the target area along with .50 caliber heavy weapons fire. All SAR operations were suspended one hour after both beepers ceased transmitting. At that time Herbert Brennan and Douglas Condit were both listed Missing in Action.
Brennan was a full Colonel who had a distinguished Air Force career spanning 20 years. Even though he was not required to serve in Vietnam, he willingly volunteered for a tour of duty there. His prior assignment was as an instructor at the United States Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado.
His status was changed from MIA to Died While Missing Oct 18, 1974.
The location of his remains is unknown.
Other Comments:
He attended West Point, graduating in 1947. (class of Alexander Haig and others.).
Some notes:
Newspaper account of 1954, states he was a veteran of the Korean War. On this occasion, he piloted a C-54 with one engine feathered, the other in trouble, bringing the aircraft safely down on a hillside, thus avoiding crashing in Pittsburg. (Stars and Stripes, 3 Feb 1954).
In 1956, he was a major at Bentwaters, England
Vietnam War/Counteroffensive Phase III Campaign (1967-68)
From Month/Year
June / 1967
To Month/Year
January / 1968
Description This period was from March 9, 1967-March 31, 1968. On March 10, 1967. Seventh Air Force F-105s and F-4s bombed a new target. the Thai Nguyen iron and steel plant. 30 miles north of Hanoi. The Rou.mo Tnuuoaa bombing campaign continued with strikes against bridges. petroleum storage. cement plants. and power transformer stations near Hanoi. USAF and naval aircraft also conducted armed reconnaissance over most of North Vietnam. Missions against major supply routes from China targeted railroad yards. repair facilities. bridges. and support areas. Early in August 1967 American air attacks against the Paul Doutner Bridge in I-lanoi knocked out the center span. Poor weather in the first 3 months of I968 forced U.S. aircraft to rely almost exclusively on all-weather bombing techniques in North Vietnam; nevertheless. the Paul Doumer Bridge remained unusable most of the time. While overland routes might be interdicted. Haiphong harbor and docks still remained off limits to U.S.
pilots. A continuous flow of supplies moved through the port from the People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union, which largely
offset North Vietnam's losses.
U.S. aircraft used electronic countermeasures and other techniques to limit the effectiveness of North Vietnam's antiaircraft defenses. North Vietnamese forces fired 55 SAM: on the average for each U.S. aircraft destroyed. To reduce the threat of a resurgent North Vietnamese Air Force. in April 1967 the United States bombed MiG bases. destroying several jet aircraft on the ground. In aerial combat during the first 6 months of 1967 (primarily in April. May. and June). U.S. pilots destroyed 54 MiGs while losing ll aircraft. But between August 1967 and February 1968. the United States lost l8 aircraft to MiGs while destroying only 5 enemy aircraft. On January 14, 1968. two MiGs shot down an EB-66 that was jamming enemy radars from an orbit 90 miles from Hanoi. The USAF subsequently used the vulnerable EB-66s in already established orbits over Laos and the Gulf of Tonkin. accepting degradation of jamming to lessen the risks of aerial interception.
On April 6, 1967. the North Vietnam Anny and Viet Cong forces attacked Quang Tri. the northemmost provincial capital. 20 miles south of the demilitarized zone. To counter the offensive. on May 18 South Vietnamese and U.S. troops entered the DMZ for the first time. USAF B-52s. tactical air forces. and naval and army artillery strikes combined with Allied ground forces to destroy temporarily NVA strength in the zone. The NVA then shifted its artillery positions north of the DMZ. rebuilt its forces in the area. and on September l renewed attacks on the U.S. Marine base at Con 11tien. Immediately South of the DMZ. With forward air controllers pinpointing artillery and other targets, the USAF began an aerial attempt to destroy enemy positions. and by October 4 the North Vietnam Anny had been forced to withdraw once again.
Shortly afterward. in November 1967, U.S. forces conducting search and destroy operations in the Central Highlands encountered strong Viet Cong resistance near Dalt To. I5 miles east of the border junction between Laos. Cambodia. and the Republic of Vietnam. Tactical aircraft and B-52s provided close air support while USAF C-130s flew supplies and reinforcements to the Dak To airstrip. U.S. air-power inflicted heavy casualties. and the enemy withdrew on November 24.
In the Laotian part of the conflict. during the summer of 1967, Seventh Air Force provided extensive air support to Laotian troops battling the Pathet Lao and North Vietnamese forces on the Plain of Jars near Luang Prabang. The I-lo Chi Minh Trail in the Laotian panhandle also came under constant attack. Between December 1967 and February 1968. Seventh Air Force pilots flew over 20.000 sorties against transportation lines in Laos and claimed destruction of more than 3.000 trucks. But the Communists continued to build up forces in Laos and Cambodia in preparation for a major offensive that began on January 21. 1968. when the NVA surrounded and laid siege to Khe Sanh. a U.S. Marine base in a valley 7 miles east of the Laotian border and 15 miles south of the demilitarized zone.
