Tompkins, Gary R.

Gary R. Tompkins, Colonel USAF (ret.)
Brief Autobiography for Super Sabre Society.

Approaching my 85th birthday, I am writing a short autobiography, something I have neglected to finish even after many years of membership in the SSS and attendance of many reunions along with my many ( though decreasing number!) F-100 pilot friends.

As a young person, although I lived through WW II, the start of the Cold War, and the Korean War, I had no interest in flying or in the military. After graduating from High School in 1955, I spent a year with my parents driving and camping in our VW bus through all of Western Europe, the Middle East (Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan), North Africa (Egypt-drove up the Nile to Luxor), across North Africa littered with WWII armor and aircraft, Libya, (8 years before many trips to Wheelus AB and El Uotia for gunnery practice in the F-100), and Tunisia then across the Med to Italy and Europe again. This experience focused my interests and led to academic achievement at college and the Air Force. At age 18, as required I registered for the draft at the US Embassy in Madrid, Spain. Then on return to the US I took my delayed admission to UCLA in 1956.

UCLA, as a land-grant university, at that time had to require two years of ROTC for all male students. After registering for classes I had to pass between Army and an Air Force NCO’s and was told I had to pick either Army or Air Force (The Navy’s Holloway NROTC plan was by invitation). The AF NCO was clever and said, “They march with rifles and we don’t.” Thus began my AF career. In ROTC I was exposed to flying military and private-and fell in love with it. I even visited the North American factory and watched the Super Sabres – possibly one I later flew- being built. I was convinced! I joined the upper division AFROTC, graduated in 1960 as a Phi Betta Kappa, went to summer camp, was made the cadet CO, and was commissioned (in the reserves, later to be augmented as a regular), but I had to wait for a pilot training spot until the Air Force converted to the T-37 as the primary trainer. The good news: Patricia and I were married while waiting for pilot training to open up; we got a slot at Craig AFB, Selma on March 6, 1961… and the USAF paid for our son’s birth two months later! After the tweet, the T-bird (T-33) was next and was the precursor of many more times in that aircraft over the years between fighter assignments. My final instrument check was at night, in the thick weather (no hood needed!) and landing “at” minimums from procedure turns and ADF/ GCA approach. A great confidence builder for my tour in Germany.

In March of ’62, I graduated UPT first in my class (62f) and got one of two F-100 assignments- at Luke AFB yet. Wow, what a joy that was! Except perhaps for a reality check of rescue and survival training at Stead AFB! But then came daughter number 1 (Eve) as an enhancement! In the first six months of flying gunnery, academics was nearly all about nuclear weapons… this was the cold war… and my first F-100 assignment was to Hahn AB, Germany where we spent many days on nuclear alert and flying a zillion low-level routes – and up to the East German border (before the Buffer Zone) in the then “uncontrolled” air space.

Fortunately (for us heading to Germany) instrument flying was also a big deal at Luke. I was top instrument grad and thankful for the training! BUT… there was a “wrinkle”, the Cuban Missile Crisis! What a way to get serious! All of Luke’s D and F models and the instructors went to Florida and the 115 C models which we had trained on up to then were loaded with real (though conventional) weapons alongside B-47’s loaded with nukes, Eye-opening. Several of us listened to President Kennedy’s message to Khrushchev in flight suits at the “training” squadron. But after the Cuban situation, I was graduated without any refueling, or penetration missions, and with only one flight in the F-100 D model.

And off to the 81st TFS at Hahn AB in the German winter. I got really good at landing in the soup (our DO often “held up” the ceiling to keep the birds on the ramp available for follow-on alert. BTW, our birds did not have refueling booms installed…that’s another story. What magnificent flying for all aspects of the F-100! And the skies were “open” (except for controlled airspace between FL 200 and 250) and trips to Wheelus AB in Libya were frequent, the flight was a bit of a stretch from Germany but what a sight. In USAFE a sense of real training was constantly at play… low-level navigation, both conventional and nuclear weapon focus, and practice deliveries, millions of rounds of 20mm, and frequent tours on Victor alert “sitting on” real Warsaw Pact targets with real high yield weapons. . At first the assignment was a bit traumatic for my wife since we attended missing wingman formations nearly every week of her first months at Hahn. The Hun was a widow-maker indeed at that point.

After four years there and with Hahn converting to the F-4, it was time for assignment. Vietnam of course. Direct from Germany to Bien Hoa AB with a month to settle my family in California. I was SO fortunate not to get assigned to an 0-2 as others with fighter experience did.

Arriving at Bien Hoa, I was a captain with 1,000 hours in the Hun and ready to roll… but without any experience in dropping live weapons. That came quickly! In the Dice -90th TFS. Getting used to the sounds of incoming and outgoing, and the trips to the bunkers took some doing in the first few days, then I was off and running… and loving our F-100 and its capabilities. Lots of CAS in 3 and 4 Corps, times on alert with many night Close Air Support missions with napalm, and 20 MM along the fences within feet of the Special Forces under our own flares. Amazing way to test one’s training. There were also SkySpot, RanchHand (Agent Orange), and other “issues” – and many are the stories of those missions- but overall, there was a strong sense of making a difference in support of our troops.

In May of ’67, I was in the sack after night alert flying when the 90th Commander and the Ops officer woke me up to ask if I would be willing to go TDY to a new F-100 unit that would fly over North Vietnam. I agreed and was on a C-47 that afternoon to Phu Cat AB via a briefing at Da Nang by a 7AF major who had an idea to test out. The plan was to use the F-100 F to recce the area that had become too hot for the O-2s and to lead other Fighters (normally F-105s and F-4s) , particularly ones that diverted from RP 6 targets into RP-1.

We would be stationed at the new base -Phu Cat- under the command of Major Bud Day and his Ops Officer, Major Bill Douglass. We became the MISTY squadron (and became a detachment of the 416rh TFS). I was Misty four of the 155 who eventually flew with Misty, including two future USAF Chiefs of Staff, and other general officers. Several O-2 pilots were recruited to work with us and fly in the rear cockpit. All of our flights were single F-100Fs until our discoveries or circumstance allowed Hillsboro (the C-130 Airborne Command and Control -ABCCC or circumstance) brought us attack aircraft to lead in to targets. Later, the role included help with rescue of downed airmen or hot targets on the Ho Chi Minh trail or elsewhere. We would be on “station” anywhere we suspected NVN. We searched for hours for evidence of military activity from the night before. We refueled on the KC 135 initially off the coast of North Vietnam and later over Laos. Great, but one problem for me; even with all of my F-100 time, I had missed Air Refueling training. Most F-100 guys had extensive experience flying from TAC to USAFE AND PACAF bases. So, on one of our first orientation missions up north over the Gulf of Tonkin, I got my first refueling; I figured it couldn’t be too difficult; fortunately, the GIB was not aware! It was the start of MANY probe and drogue refuelings – normally two to four but up to 6 per mission… many “on fumes” and several with no JP-4 left on the gauge. What an amazing experience that Misty was… A long story. Bud Day (the magnificent) was shot down, and evaded, but captured and spent the rest of the war in the Hanoi Hilton… and received the Medal of Honor. So much more can be and should be said about Misty, so go to our website.

After 115 SuperFac “missions” (actually flights into North Vietnam), I went back to Bien Hoa, wrote a lot to 7AF and USAF about the use of the F-100 and other fast FACs in that role, and got back to CAS-day and night. Then came the TET offensive. On alert, I got off on the first night (without runway lights and with shells on the runway) to attack the invaders. In the ensuing times when not in the bunker we flew attack missions against the NVA everywhere, on our base perimeter, throughout three and four corps and even into downtown Saigon itself. Our base was attacked and invaded. For a few days we were the ground force manning machine guns on the roof of the O’club, while Army helicopters and Air Force Security Police (really brave guys!) attacked the NVN invaders.

There of course were tragedies with combat losses of friends, but my time in the F-100 in the 90th TFS and in Misty was amazing and its memory kept me in the USAF for a career. I have had the great pleasure of attending numerous SSS and Misty reunions for us Hun pilots and have been kept informed about the inevitable passing of these good guys (all guys then) now over a half-century later. My time in the F-100 was life-changing and preserving even in combat and many near misses in USAFE.

After Vietnam, my career was also fantastic. I was assigned to the USAF Academy as an Air Officer Commanding Cadet Squadron 02 for some or all of the classes of 1968-1973. AND our amazing daughter #2, Larisa, now 53 was born at the Academy much to the delight of the cadets. I flew cadets and others in the T-33, (over a wide part of the Rockies to “motivate” them for UPT), trained cadets in the T-41 to get their pilot licenses as well. I did lots of soaring from the academy airport, flew cadets in Cessna’s for orientation flights, went through the Academy jump school to get parachute wings (all free fall) and basically had a blast. I had the pleasure of working closely (and lots of squash) with Robin Olds. Since then I’ve joined my former cadets to throw a nickel on his grass at the Academy cemetery.

I have stayed in contact with the Academy grads and gone to reunions with several classes – now retired themselves) recently for the 50th anniversary of the class of 1971. While at the Academy, and out of the blue I was three years early promoted to Major (and later two early to LTC).

Though I had “missed” Squadron Officer School, I was assigned to Air Command and Staff College and was a Distinguished Graduate in the class of ’72. Like many others, after ACSC I “did” a Masters’s degree with Auburn University of Montgomery (AUM). I had an assignment to the Royal Air Force Academy to train British cadets but got into the A-7D world after a call from an old F-100 friend at USAF personnel instead. There my Air to Ground background was important. After A-7 RTU at Myrtle Beach, I went to England AFB and the 75 TFS as Assistant Operations officer (and IP’ed for A-7 Search and Rescue training- a reminder of RanchHand using hi-G escort), then to the 76 TFS as Ops officer and finally to 23 TFW ops.

While at England AFB, I was called to take command of the 353 TFS at Myrtle Beach AFB: A7D ground attack!!! Many flights to Nellis for Red Flag, to the Canal Zone, and other ops ensued. After two years as 353rd commander, I ran Stan Eval for the 354th Tactical Fighter wing and “did” Air War College at night.

Then I went to Norton AFB in CA to oversee IG inspections of the TAC, PACAF, USAFE IG teams, get promoted to Colonel and do special “functional” investigations (e.g. Nuclear Weapon Issues) around the world.

I turned down an assignment to the Pentagon and retired after 21 wonderful years in the USAF. I went on to other pursuits- including 25 years as a high school AP teacher and numerous volunteer community jobs (including President of Arrowhead Lake Association, Chair of the Dam Commission, and in church leadership roles) from our now 45-year home in Lake Arrowhead, CA.

In my time in the USAF, I was honored to receive two Silver Stars, one over North Vietnam and one over the south, a Distinguished Flying Cross, a Meritorious Service Medal, sixteen Air Medals, and a number of related medals. I had over 1,600 hours in the F-100, about the same in the A-7D, and many more USAF hours in the T-37, T-33, T-41, gliders plus lots of civilian light aircraft time- all now well in the past.

Blessings to the SSS for its support of the people who flew it, maintained it, and loved it- an airframe that made a difference in this world.