Victor Vizcarra
Preferred Name: Vic
Nickname/Call Sign:
Date of Birth: October 13, 1936
Highest Military Grade Held: Colonel
Hometown:
Biography
Colonel Vic Vizcarra (USAF, Ret.), a 24-year Air Force veteran, was commissioned through the ROTC program upon graduation from Loyola University of Los Angeles in 1960. A high ranking in his pilot training class allowed him to choose the F-100 from the list of available assignments. After completing F-100 training, he was assigned to the 31st TFW, 309th TFS at Homestead AFB, FL where he flew the “Hun” for 16 months.
In 1963, he transitioned to the F-105 and served in Japan from where he participated in three deployments to Southeast Asia and flew 59 combat missions in the F-105D. During his third deployment, he was forced to eject from his disabled F-105D over North Vietnam and spent two hours on the ground evading capture before being rescued by a U.S. Navy helicopter.
He later returned to fly 120 combat missions in the F-100D/F with the 35th TFW, 352nd Tactical Fighter Squadron, at Phan Rang AB, Republic of Vietnam. In addition to the F-100 and F-105, Col. Vizcarra flew the F-5E and F-4E in follow-on assignments. Promoted to Colonel in 1981, he served as the 35th TFW Deputy Commander of Maintenance in his final assignment.
Vizcarra is the author of 2 books; HUN PILOT: A PILOT’S ACCOUNT OF THE FIRST USAF SUPERSONIC FIGHTER and “THUD PILOT: A PILOT’S ACCOUNT OF EARLY F-105 COMBAT IN VIETNAM”, see his “Books” tab for additional information.
(source: https://www.amazon.com/Victor-Vizcarra/e/B01MSRGQHZ)
Units Assigned
- 1960 Commissioned by ROTC at Loyola University
- 1962-1963 309th & 307th Tactical Fighter Squadron/31st Tactical Fighter Wing, Homestead AFB, FL (F-100)
- 1970 352nd Tactical Fighter Squadron, Phang Rang AB, Vietnam (F-100 D/F, F-105D)
- 35th Tactical Fighter Wing, Deputy Commander Maintenance
Awards & Decorations
Distinguished Flying Cross (with Oak Leaf Cluster)
Meritorious Service Medal (with Oak Leaf Cluster)
Air Medal (with 9 Oak Leaf Clusters)
Purple Heart
Combat Readiness Medal
National Defense Service Medal
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
Vietnam Service Medal (with Silver Star)
Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross w Palm
Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal
Presidential Unit Citation
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award (with Silver Oak Leaf and Oak Leaf Cluster)
Flight Info
T-33 – 732 hours
T-37 – 110 hours
T-34 – 30 hours
F-100 D/F – 663 hours
F-105 D- 1120 hours
F-5 E – 791 hours
F-4 E – 120 hours
Total Hours – 3590
Military Education
Air War College (seminar)
Air Command and Staff College of the Armed Forces (correspondence)
Civilian Education
Bachelor of Science/Mechanical Engineering
Master of Science/Aerospace Operations Management
Hun Pilot examines the first of the “Century Series” of new fighters of the mid-’50s from a young fighter pilot’s perspective. The North American Aviation F-100 Super Sabre was the first U.S. fighter capable of exceeding the speed of sound in level flight. Designed as a day superiority fighter, it quickly morphed into the Air Force’s mainstay fighter-bomber. The F-100 design and its Pratt and Whitney J-57 engine were a quantum leap in aeronautics and engine technology that expanded the day-to-day operational flight envelope into the aeronautical flight regime previously flown only by the X-series of specialized experimental test aircraft. Pioneering supersonic operations opened previously unknown aeronautical phenomenon that challenged new piloting skills. Over its quarter of a century operational career, the F-100 suffered one of the highest accident rates in the fighter inventory, with 38.75% of the fleet destroyed in aircraft accidents and killing 324 pilots. Yet, with properly trained pilots at its controls, the aircraft fulfilled the requirement for a worldwide deployable deterrent against the growing nuclear Communist threat. In its latter years of operation, the Hun remained an effective weapon system, flying 360,283 combat sorties in Southeast Asia, more than any other fighter.
Thud Pilot is the personal account of a combat fighter pilot who flew the Air Force’s premier fighter-bomber in the most dangerous skies over North Vietnam. In the first five years of the Vietnam War, the F-105 Thunderchief conducted 75 percent of the Air Force bombing missions over North Vietnam. Thud Pilot tells the story of the courageous men who flew the F-105 from its earliest combat deployment in 1964, and on through 1966, the year of its heaviest losses. The author’s more significant missions, including his ejection and rescue over North Vietnam, are described in detail and are accompanied by map drawings depicting the mission routes from take-off to refueling orbits, the target, and return. The book is full of several ‘firsts’ in the expanding air war over North Vietnam, including ‘Operation Spring High,’ the first counter Surface-to-Air-Missile (SAM) strike in the history of aerial warfare. The personal perspective from years of combat experience reveals just how the political mismanagement and inane Rules of Engagement made them as much the hunted as they were the hunters. Thud Pilot goes beyond the battle airspace and shares the emotional impact on the families left behind.
Both books are available on Amazon.com https://www.amazon.com/Victor-Vizcarra/e/B01MSRGQHZ
- Biography
-
Biography
Colonel Vic Vizcarra (USAF, Ret.), a 24-year Air Force veteran, was commissioned through the ROTC program upon graduation from Loyola University of Los Angeles in 1960. A high ranking in his pilot training class allowed him to choose the F-100 from the list of available assignments. After completing F-100 training, he was assigned to the 31st TFW, 309th TFS at Homestead AFB, FL where he flew the “Hun” for 16 months.
In 1963, he transitioned to the F-105 and served in Japan from where he participated in three deployments to Southeast Asia and flew 59 combat missions in the F-105D. During his third deployment, he was forced to eject from his disabled F-105D over North Vietnam and spent two hours on the ground evading capture before being rescued by a U.S. Navy helicopter.
He later returned to fly 120 combat missions in the F-100D/F with the 35th TFW, 352nd Tactical Fighter Squadron, at Phan Rang AB, Republic of Vietnam. In addition to the F-100 and F-105, Col. Vizcarra flew the F-5E and F-4E in follow-on assignments. Promoted to Colonel in 1981, he served as the 35th TFW Deputy Commander of Maintenance in his final assignment.
Vizcarra is the author of 2 books; HUN PILOT: A PILOT’S ACCOUNT OF THE FIRST USAF SUPERSONIC FIGHTER and “THUD PILOT: A PILOT’S ACCOUNT OF EARLY F-105 COMBAT IN VIETNAM”, see his “Books” tab for additional information.
(source: https://www.amazon.com/Victor-Vizcarra/e/B01MSRGQHZ) - Units - Education - Awards - Flight Info
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Units Assigned
- 1960 Commissioned by ROTC at Loyola University
- 1962-1963 309th & 307th Tactical Fighter Squadron/31st Tactical Fighter Wing, Homestead AFB, FL (F-100)
- 1970 352nd Tactical Fighter Squadron, Phang Rang AB, Vietnam (F-100 D/F, F-105D)
- 35th Tactical Fighter Wing, Deputy Commander Maintenance
Awards & Decorations
Distinguished Flying Cross (with Oak Leaf Cluster)
Meritorious Service Medal (with Oak Leaf Cluster)
Air Medal (with 9 Oak Leaf Clusters)
Purple Heart
Combat Readiness Medal
National Defense Service Medal
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
Vietnam Service Medal (with Silver Star)
Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross w Palm
Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal
Presidential Unit Citation
Air Force Outstanding Unit Award (with Silver Oak Leaf and Oak Leaf Cluster)Flight Info
T-33 – 732 hours
T-37 – 110 hours
T-34 – 30 hours
F-100 D/F – 663 hours
F-105 D- 1120 hours
F-5 E – 791 hours
F-4 E – 120 hours
Total Hours – 3590Military Education
Air War College (seminar)
Air Command and Staff College of the Armed Forces (correspondence)Civilian Education
Bachelor of Science/Mechanical Engineering
Master of Science/Aerospace Operations Management - Photos
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- Books by Victor Vizcarra
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Hun Pilot examines the first of the “Century Series” of new fighters of the mid-’50s from a young fighter pilot’s perspective. The North American Aviation F-100 Super Sabre was the first U.S. fighter capable of exceeding the speed of sound in level flight. Designed as a day superiority fighter, it quickly morphed into the Air Force’s mainstay fighter-bomber. The F-100 design and its Pratt and Whitney J-57 engine were a quantum leap in aeronautics and engine technology that expanded the day-to-day operational flight envelope into the aeronautical flight regime previously flown only by the X-series of specialized experimental test aircraft. Pioneering supersonic operations opened previously unknown aeronautical phenomenon that challenged new piloting skills. Over its quarter of a century operational career, the F-100 suffered one of the highest accident rates in the fighter inventory, with 38.75% of the fleet destroyed in aircraft accidents and killing 324 pilots. Yet, with properly trained pilots at its controls, the aircraft fulfilled the requirement for a worldwide deployable deterrent against the growing nuclear Communist threat. In its latter years of operation, the Hun remained an effective weapon system, flying 360,283 combat sorties in Southeast Asia, more than any other fighter.
Thud Pilot is the personal account of a combat fighter pilot who flew the Air Force’s premier fighter-bomber in the most dangerous skies over North Vietnam. In the first five years of the Vietnam War, the F-105 Thunderchief conducted 75 percent of the Air Force bombing missions over North Vietnam. Thud Pilot tells the story of the courageous men who flew the F-105 from its earliest combat deployment in 1964, and on through 1966, the year of its heaviest losses. The author’s more significant missions, including his ejection and rescue over North Vietnam, are described in detail and are accompanied by map drawings depicting the mission routes from take-off to refueling orbits, the target, and return. The book is full of several ‘firsts’ in the expanding air war over North Vietnam, including ‘Operation Spring High,’ the first counter Surface-to-Air-Missile (SAM) strike in the history of aerial warfare. The personal perspective from years of combat experience reveals just how the political mismanagement and inane Rules of Engagement made them as much the hunted as they were the hunters. Thud Pilot goes beyond the battle airspace and shares the emotional impact on the families left behind.
Both books are available on Amazon.com https://www.amazon.com/Victor-Vizcarra/e/B01MSRGQHZ