I took advantage when my dad, Larry Murphy, visited Bonnie and me in Albuquerque on May 16, 2019 to have him sit down and talk me through a home movie reel he filmed and edited together back in the early 1970s. Afterward, we spent some time for him to recall some of his experiences during Vietnam. He had used a Yachica 8mm movie camera to film outside and inside the cockpit of the F-4 Phantom II; a plane he navigated as the ‘GIB’ (guy-in-the-back) or more appropriately, the ‘Navigator’. Enjoy!
Timestamps:
0:00 – Introduction and first comments at Kunsan, Korea
1:00 – The smoky J79 engines on the F-4
2:30 – George AFB training
4:06 – Spread formation and lookout formation
4:34 – Landing the F-4 at George AFB
5:32 – Dumping fuel form the F-4
6:30 – Talking about ‘taking the hook’ in an F-4
7:25 – Aileron rolls and flying inverted
8:46 – USAF Thunderbirds flying F-4’s at Warner Robins, GA
10:33 – Recalling where he was during the 1969 moon landing
11:12 – Aerial refueling on the KC-135 tanker
13:37 – Back at George AFB
14:05 – Avoiding cumulus clouds
14:57 – High altitude flight and pressure breathing
16:50 – Going Mach 2 from 50,000 feet
18:47 – Kunsan Korea
19:38 – Flying low over water and disorientation
21:48 – How to land the F-4
23:33 – That’s not Larry!
24:11 – George Barr last flight
24:38 – When exactly were you in Vietnam, Larry?
26:16 – Living and working conditions in Thailand
28:30 – Rice bugs
30:35 – B-52 missions
32:15 – Flying out of Guam, Anderson AFB
36:55 – Larry’s dissatisfaction with the B-52
39:00 – The B-52’s uncomfortable seat
43:14 – The F-4 Phantom 2-seater
46:10 – Paul Dombrowski the Polish Eagle
52:40 – The Black Sheep squadron
53:59 – Colonel Don Hobart – The Big Yellow Pumpkin
55:40 – Larry’s 2nd tour to Vietnam
57:05 – Bomb damage assessments
1:00:13 – Carpet bombing in the B-52
1:01:30 – A memorable F-4 run
3 Comments
Wow Larry…this was incredibly interesting and I really enjoyed watching the whole thing. Great job describing everything; you should consider being a public speaker. After knowing you for 40 years and hearing lots of stories, I haven't heard these. Thank you for sharing.
His description of taking off in a B-52 out of Guam, and being in the airplane in general, was really a kick.
So, Larry, you may have missed your calling as a photojournalist, among your other accomplishments. I thoroughly enjoyed the personal insight you provided re your time as navigator on both B-52s and F4s during the Vietnam "conflict". As you know, I was a squid (1967-1969) and I've always had a special interest in the Vietnam era. It was a truly unique time in American history. David – I've known your dad since 1957 when we were on the 7th grade basketball team. We graduated from high school together in 1962. Thanks for sharing.