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Frances Cammack-Family
to remember
Cammack, Luther S., Jr., Col.
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Contact Info
Home Town Smackover
Last Address Abilene, TX
Date of Passing May 16, 2010
Official Badges
Unofficial Badges
Additional Information
Last Known Activity:
From Patriot Guard Riders:
Confirmed Mission
Col. Luther Cammack, USAF (RET)
Friday May 21, 2010
The family of Col. Cammack has requested the Patriot Guard Riders to Stand in Honor of their American hero.
Col. Cammack had a long and distinguished career with the Air Force. He had the distinction of being one of few men who came up through the enlisted ranks, attended Officer Candidate School, finally achieving the rank of full colonel, all without the benefit of a college education. His decorations included Distinguished Flying Cross, the Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal with Two Oak Leaf Clusters, Air Medal with Three Oak Leaf Clusters, Longevity Service Ribbon with Seven Oak Leaf Clusters, National Defense Medal with One Oak Leaf Cluster, Vietnam Service Medal with Three Bronze Service Stars, Army Meritorious Unit Commendation, Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with V Device, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, and at the end of his 34 years of service he received the Legion of Merit.
Col. Cammack will be interred at the Fayetteville National Cemetery. He will be buried at the National Cemetery in Fayetteville, Arkansas, on Friday, May 21, alongside his father, Luther Cammack, a World War I veteran, and his brother, James Cammack, an Air Force instructor pilot.
Mission Details:
Patriot Guard Riders will stand a flag line during the service.
Staging:PGR will stage at the National Cemetery at 12:30 PM.
Luther "Luke" S. Cammack, Jr. (Col. Retired USAF) died at home, surrounded by his family, on the morning of May 16, 2010, after a courageous battle with cancer. His funeral will be at Minter Lane Church of Christ on Wednesday, May 19 at 11:00 a.m. There will be a visitation at North�??s Funeral Home between 6:00 and 7:30 on May 18. He will be buried at the National Cemetery in Fayetteville, Arkansas, on Friday, May 21, alongside his father, Luther Cammack, a World War I veteran, and his brother, James Cammack, an Air Force instructor pilot. Donations to Sears Hospice Care in Abilene or flowers will be appreciated.
Luke Cammack was born June 13, 1928 in Smackover, Arkansas. The backdrop of the Great Depression instilled in him the values of hard work and resiliency that remained a bedrock of his character. His first job at age thirteen was as night watchman in an icehouse, which he took over from his father who had become too ill from his experiences in World War I to continue. When he was eighteen he joined the Air Force and for many years sent his entire paycheck back home to support his family.
He had the distinction of being one of few men who came up through the enlisted ranks, attended Officer Candidate School, finally achieving the rank of full colonel, all without the benefit of a college education. He always said that he was as proud of the promotion to staff sergeant as he was his promotion to full colonel.
In the summer of 1955 he enrolled in flying school in Greenville, Mississippi, where he met his future bride, Frances Bethany. They were married in 1956. Luke spent most of his career in the Air Defense Command flying T-33s, T-39s, F85s and F89Js. He spent four years in Tucson in a fighter squadron, four years in Europe during the Cold War flying high altitude RV-57s over the Soviet border, seven years in Colorado Springs at the Air Defense Command, and a year in Vietnam where he served with distinction flying the OV-10 over enemy territory engaging in psychological warfare and forward air control. He served four years at the Pentagon as Division Chief of Support Services in Manpower and Organization, and then served a second tour in Germany as head of Manpower for all of Europe at Headquarters USAF. But flying always remained a love of his life.
His decorations included Distinguished Flying Cross, the Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal with Two Oak Leaf Clusters, Air Medal with Three Oak Leaf Clusters, Longevity Service Ribbon with Seven Oak Leaf Clusters, National Defense Medal with One Oak Leaf Cluster, Vietnam Service Medal with Three Bronze Service Stars, Army Meritorious Unit Commendation, Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with V Device, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, and at the end of his 34 years of service he received the Legion of Merit.
Luke and Fran had a life of travel and adventure, eventually having four children. They adopted their grandson, Devin, in 1986, who became the joy of their later years. Retiring to Abilene, Texas in 1980, Luke and Fran continued to have very active and service-oriented lives as both small business owners and volunteers. They were embraced by the Minter Lane Church of Christ where they served on the Mission Committee. Luke also was a volunteer with Meals on Wheels, The Literacy Council, the Republican Party, and was active in several military organizations at Dyess AFB.
Luke Cammack will leave a hole in many lives, but most especially those of his family: his mother, Virginia Cammack, a noted artist in Arkansas; his sister, Ayleen Bequette, and her family; his cherished wife, Frances; his adoring children, Luke III, Tom, Bethany, Tamara and Devin; his seven beloved grandchildren, and his nephews, nieces and cousins. He will be deeply missed by us all.
Online condolences may be made at www.northsfuneralhome.com
Vietnam War/Cease-Fire Campaign (1972-73)
From Month/Year
March / 1972
To Month/Year
January / 1973
Description
0n March 30, 1972, the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong opened a 3-pronged offensive, with the intention of defeating the Republic of Vietnam and reuniting Vietnam under a Communist regime, in a conventional attack supported with artillery and tarnks, the North Vietnamese crossed the DMZ into Quang Tri Province, occupying Quang Tri, the provincial capital, on May 1 and attacking Hue. In a second thrust, the Communists invaded the Central Highlands from Laos, isolating Kontum and cutting the highway between Pleiku and Qui Nhon. On April 5 North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces crossed the border from Cambodia in the third phase of the offensive, capturing Loc Ninh on April 6 and besieging An Loc. By May 8, however, the enemy offensive had stalled; on June 10 the Communists withdrew from Kontum and on the 26th from An Loc. Two days later the Nonh Vietnamese retreated from Quang Tri, and on June 30 the South Vietnamese reopened the road to Pleiku.
U.S. air power contributed significantly to the battle. Although the USAF had reduced its forces in Southeast Asia to half of those present in mid-1968, it moved quickly to augment them. U.S. Navy. Marine. and Army aviation elements joined the USAF to provide airlift. interdiction. tactical reconnaissance, and close air support for the South Vietnamese. A week after the Communist offensive began. on April 6. the United States resumed systematic, sustained bombing of military and industrial targets in North Vietnam as far north as the 20th parallel. The next day Gen. John W. Vogt. Jr., USAF, became the Seventh Air Force Commander. On May 4 South Vietnamese and U.S. leaders suspended peace negotiations in Paris, and 4 days later, the United States imposed a naval blockade of North Vietnam, mining harbors at Haiphong, Vinh, and elsewhere along the coast. The United States also initiated LINEBACKER on May 8 - 1 of the largest air campaigns of the war. Targets included the rebuilt Paul Dourner Bridge in Hanoi, the Thanh Hoa Bridge, rail lines, a petroleum pipeline from China to Hanoi. power plants. marshaling yards, and other strategic and tactical objectives throughout North Vietnam. During Linebacker, on June 28. Gen. Frederick C. Weyand. USA, became the Commander of MACV.
Peace negotiations, suspended for two weeks, resurned in Paris on July 13, Anticipating a successful conclusion to the renewed peace talks. the United States halted the bombing of North Vietnsn above the 20th parallel as of October 23. But when negotiations stalled, the United States conducted an intensive aerial offensive, LINEBACKER ll, from December 18 to 30, against North Vietnam. B-52s and USAF and Navy tactical aircraft bombed Hanoi and Haiphong and their environs around the clock, concentrating on such targets as railyards, power plants, communication facilities, air defense radars, SAM and antiaircraft gun sites, petroleum tank farms, shipping facilities, ammunition dumps, and
MiG bases. On December 30, after peace talks resumed, the United States again ceased bombing north of the 20th parallel.
On January 23, 1973, North Vietnam and the United States agreed to a cease-fire, effective within 5 days. Part of the agreement called for the
North Vietnamese to release prisoners of war while the United States withdrew completely from South Vietnam. From February 12 to March 29, following the Vietnam Ceasefire, North Vietnam released 565 American POWs. ln OPERATION HOMECOMING, the 9th Aeromedical
Evacuation Group flew the POWs from Hanoi to Clark Air Base in the Philippines.
After the Vietnam Ceasefire Campaign, the Royal Laotian government signed a cease-fire agreement with the Pathet Lao on February 21, 1973.
USAF B-52s. nevertheless, flew missions against Communist forces in Cambodia until August 15, 1973, when the U.S. Congress mandated an
end to U.S. bombing in Southeast Asia.
The fighting had ended for American forces, but the Communists, resupplied and reequipped, soon escalated the ground war throughout
Southeast Asia. Within 2 years, on April 17. 1975. the Khmer Rougeoccupied all of Cambodia. On April 30 North Vietnam conquered South
Vietnam and unified the country. And on December 3, 1975, the Pathet Lao seized power in Laos, marking an end to an era of U.S. influence
in Southeast Asia.
