I fish, hunt deer and turkey and camp whenever possible. I am currently working on my families genealogy.
Other Comments:
I retired from the AF in 1981, then went to work at Monarch Machine Tool Co. in Sidney, Ohio as a Field Service Rep. I worked my way up to Assistant Service Mgr. In 1995 I then accepted a position at Makino Inc. in Mason, OH as a Field Service Engineer. I retired from Makino in 2006. If there was a place I did not see while in the Air Force I saw it while working for the machine tool business. I met lots of interesting people, saw lots of interesting things, and visited many interesting places. In my civilian occupation, I traveled to Canada, Mexico, Turkey, Singapore, Japan, Denmark, and the Netherlands. My military travels took me to Panama, Venezuela, Costa Rico, Vietnam, England, Germany, Belgium, and Spain.
In the COIN role, T-28s saw extensive service during the Vietnam War in VNAF hands, as well as the Secret War in Laos. They were also supplied to Congo by the CIA to support Moise Tshombe's regime. France used locally remanufactured T-28s in close-support and patrol roles in Algeria. In the Philippines, T-28s, known locally as "Tora-toras", figured prominently in a series of coup de etats in the 1980s and were employed as dive bombers by rebel military forces. The T-28 Trojan was the first US attack fixed wing aircraft (non-transport type) lost in SOUTH Vietnam, during the Vietnam War. Capt. Robert L. Simpson, USAF, Detachment 2A, lst Air Commando Group, and Lt. Hoa, SVNAF, were shot down by ground fire on 28 August 1962 while flying Close Air Support (CAS). Neither crewman survived. The USAF lost 23 T-28s to all causes during the war, with the last two losses occurring in 1968. [2]
General characteristics
* Crew: Two * Length: 33 ft 0 in (10.06 m) * Wingspan: 40 ft 1 in (12.22 m) * Height: 12 ft 8 in (3.86 m) * Wing area: 268 ft� (24.9 m�) * Empty weight: 6,424 lb (2,914 kg) * Max takeoff weight: 8,500 lb (3,856 kg) * Powerplant: 1� Wright R-1820-86 Cyclone radial engine, 1,425 hp (1,063 kW)
Performance
* Maximum speed: 343 mph (552 km/h) * Service ceiling 35,500 ft (10,820 m)
