26 June 1969 – Capt John Casper was serving with the 413th TFS out of Phan Rang AB, Vietnam. On a mission to detect VietCong...
Read MoreI was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, in 1944. I remember attending air shows at Barksdale AFB and always wanted to fly. I graduated with a degree in Electrical Engineering from Louisiana Tech University where I was a member of the ROTC Unit and obtained my private pilot license through the Cadet Flight Indoctrination Program.
In 1968 I entered Undergraduate Pilot Training at Reese AFB, TX. After UPT, I followed the standard Pipeline route to SEA. I completed F-100 gunnery at Luke AFB and then off for my year at Bien Hoa. As the war wound down, I rotated back to CONUS with the Tuy Hoa Wing to reform the unit at England AFB, LA.
After a year, the senior pilots were pulled out to fly Gen Momyers Edsel the F-111. I spent five years at Mtn Home AFB with a TDY in 72 to Takhli RTAFB during Linebacker II. In 75, I was selected to do an exchange tour with the RAAF and enjoyed two years drinking Australian beer. In 78 I was required to pay back for the Oz assignment with a tour at Hq TAC.
After three years in purgatory, I went to the AFSC at Norfolk followed by a year and a half at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, CA. With great stealth technique, I escaped MPC assignments and returned to Australia as the Asst Air Attach for the remainder of my 20-year military career flying the C-12 around the South Pacific.
I retired from the USAF in 1988.
After serving with the USAF, Bill Baker worked as a Project Engineer at General Dynamics in Ft. Worth, TX from 1988-1989. He then became a pilot for Northwest Airlines where he flew the B-727, DC-9, DC-10 and B-747 until his retirement in 2004.
Units Assigned
- 1968 – 1969 UPT Reese AFB, TX (T-37/38)
- 1969 (APR-AUG) 4511 CCTS Luke AFB, AZ (F-100D/F)
- 1969 – 1970 531st TFS Bien Hoa AFB, Vietnam (F-100D/F)
- 1970 (JUL-SEP) 614th TFS Phan Rang AFB, Vietnam (F-100D/F)
- 1970 – 1971 416th TFS England AFB, LA (F-100D/F)
- 1971 F-111 Transition (F-111A/E)
- 1971 – 1972 391st TFS Mt Home AFB, ID (F-111F)
- 1972 – 1973 428th TFS Takhli RTAB, Thailand (F-111A)
- 1973 – 1975 391st TFS Mt Home AFB, ID (F-111F)
- 1976 – 1978 #6 Squadron, RAAF Base Amberley, Australia (F-111C)
- 1978 – 1981 HQ TAC Langley, VA (CT-39)
- 1981 AFSC Norfolk, VA
- 1981 – 1982 Naval Postgraduate School Monterey, CA (T-34)
- 1982 – 1988 Asst Air Attaché US Embassy, Canberra, Australia (C-12)
Awards & Decorations
Flight Info
T-37
T-38
F-100 D/F
F-111 A/C/E/F
CT-39
T-34
C-12
Wall of Honor Location: Foil: 10 Panel: 2 Column: 3 Line: 39
Military & Civilian Education
Military Education:
- BSOS
- AFSC
Civilian Education:
- BS/Electrical Engineering, LA Tech University
- MA, Naval Postgraduate School