10 June 1969: The U.S. Air Force donated the first North American Aviation X-15, serial number 56-6670, to the Smithsonian Institution for display at the National Air and Space Museum. The first of three X-15A hypersonic research rocketplanes built by North American for the Air Force and the National Advisory Committee (NACA, the predecessor of NASA), 56-6670 made the first glide flight and
Jon P. Haddock was an Instructor Pilot with the 185th Tactical Fighter Group. In May 1968, the 174th Tactical Fighter Squadron, part of the 185th, deployed to Phu Cat Air Base in South Vietnam with 25 F-100 fighter jets and aircraft and 375 personnel. The remainder of the 185th’s members were deployed to air bases in South Korea and across the United States as “backfill,” replacements for other personnel who had been deployed to Vietnam.
The activation came in response to the “Pueblo Crisis,” in which the North Korean military seized the Navy intelligence ship USS Pueblo and its crew on Jan. 23, 1968. News of the activation wasn’t completely unexpected but still came as a surprise. During their year in Vietnam, 174th Tactical Fighter Squadron pilots flew 6,539 combat sorties totaling 11,359 hours.
Jon was not deployed to Vietnam but remained at Cannon. He had been the Instructor Pilot for the fleet of 25 F-100 Super Sabres that were sent to Phu Cat.
In his 30 years of military aviation, his favorite aircraft were the F-100 Fighter Jet and the Blackhawk Helicopter. Jon was known for his sense of humor and his pride for his four girls.
