15 July 1967 – T.H. Herndon was flying F-100D #563275. Enroute to a target of 150 Vietcong in a treeline, he was hit by 57mm AAA during a climb. He ejected and was recovered by USAF Helo. Herndon was serving with the 531st TFS out of Bien Hoa AB.
Everyone in the Service called him “Harry”. His family, wife, friends, & preacher called him “Glenn”.
Harry had a job as a school bus driver at age 16. A lot of responsibility for a 16 yr old.
The latter half of Harry’s assignment to VN is a little murky. His personal log (as interpreted by Joyce ) shows him at Bien Hua from 6/69 to 3/70 with time at Tuy Hua from 9/69-10/69. He obviously got credit toward one year from the 613th deployment to Danang and Tahkli from 11/64-3/65. The 613th was heavily involved in combat in both N. & S. Vietnam with the loss of 3 a/c. (Sq. Co & Stan Eval KIA and one POW during that time) Harry’s personal log shows assignment to the 510th TFS, however, according to Wikipedia, the 510th disbanded in 11/69.
He could have been transferred to the 531st or 90th still at Bien Hoa or the 308th, 309th, 355th or 416th at Tuy Hua. He could have been assigned to combat support and not flying though I suspect not. Harry was NOT a HQ type but a highly experienced tactical pilot with over 6000 hrs of F-100 time, IP, etc. I suspect that pilots with much F-100 time were scarce by the latter half of 1969.
After military retirement, Harry went to work for FAA at the Atlanta Air Traffic Control Center where he worked until just a few years ago when he retired retired.
