TREETOP WARFARE

A Bird Dog FAC in Raven territory

- BY KARL POLIFKA

Minutes after sunrise, with small patches of fog still sticking like dirty cotton to deep green-black mountains, the howl of an Air America Pilatus Porter turboprop signals the start of another day in the “secret” war fought so bitterly in the mountains of Northern Laos. This “non-war” raged throughout the country whose neutrality had been agreed to a few years earlier.

CIA case officers and logistics specialists are “the customer.” Air America and Continental Air Services haul cargo and troops. Gen. Vang Pao's outnumbered Meo guerrillas fight for their mountains and their way of life against an invading army. United States airpower and the little-known Royal Lao Air Force (RLAF) and its U.S. advisors provide the margin of survival—if not victory—for the Meo (also known as the Hmong). The direction of airpower falls to a handful of volunteer USAF Forward Air Controllers (FAC) living with Lao forces. Their call sign was Raven, and none of the survivors will ever forget their experience.

Staying cool

The FAC was the key to most airpower use in Southeast Asia because he found and marked targets and then controlled the tremendous firepower that was at his disposal. He had to know the area, interpret available intelligence (easy in Vietnam, where most of it stuck like glue to the Saigon area), understand the strengths and weaknesses of the various fighter/attack aircraft and units, and maintain situational awareness of the air and ground tactical situation. In addition, he had to keep track of the weather and be adept in working strike aircraft through it, keep track of friendly and hostile forces, mark desired ordnance delivery points as accurately as possible, control each strike aircraft pass by pass, conduct bomb damage assessment (BDA) and stay cool. All of the above might be occurring simultaneously, using all three radios. Staying cool was perhaps the toughest role.

A wearing and hazardous job