FOX FAX

FOX&nb= sp;<= ![endif]> FAX

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Journal of the 199^th Recon Airplane Comp= any RVN 1967-70 Vol. 3 , Issue 5 = ;May 06

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Swamp Fox Coordinator 2004-6 Bob Woolley - Fox 26 &n= bsp; bjdubu@ao= l.com

Reunion Coordinator C&C &nb= sp; &nb= sp; Don Nicholson - Fox ?? &n= bsp; lontri= ps0@aol.com

Unit Historian = &nb= sp; Charley Baker - Fox 46 cbkbwdb@starpower.net

Treasurer = &nb= sp; = Dan Aldridge - Fox 56 = ; &n= bsp; Deepsea3= @aol.com

Patch and Shirt Project &n= bsp; Gary Simon - Fox 16 GaryLBB@aol.com

Web Master / Commo Chief= &= nbsp; Ray "Doc" Jennings - Fox 032A r.jennings14@verizon.net

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WEB SITE = www .SwampFox199thRAC.co= m

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What ar= e they doing now?

Fellow Foxes,

Just a quick note to let you all k= now that you are still actively represented in the fight by Fox 25/36.

I'm based at Mosul Airfield, Iraq, flying souped-up, sensore-equipped 0-2's for AirScan on a DoD contract. I= t's really more fun than should be legal for a 60-year-old Bird Dog pilot.

Just working with these terrific troops is a privilege= .

My two tours, with the 199th and 74th gave me the expe= rience and confidence that underlies every flight I make here.

After leaving the Army in '75, I was lucky enough to continue flying with the Rhodesian Air Force and later with the US Coast Gu= ard until I retired in '94 with 25 years active duty.

I was lucky again to sign on with AirScan the day I retired and have been with them ever since.

I have flown Skymasters in= Angola, Ma= laysia, Colombia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Guinea, Sierra Leone and now in Iraq.

I would like to thank all those who helped me, bailed = me out, covered for me, forgave my ignorance, arrogance an= d/ or stupidity during my time with the 199th. Some names I remember:

Ralph McRae- Taught me to hit the broadside of a barn = with my rockets.

Maj. Robert King- Tolerated my you= thful indiscretion and low-level flying.

Maj. Robert Leitze- Duc Ton District Senior Advisor, who provided unlimit= ed oppotunities to excel. I think he really believed I c= ould do all the stuff Army Aviators say they can do. That gave me incredible confidence.

Maj. Jackie D. Catt- One of the finest gentlemen I've = ever known. Had the faith in me to take over 3rd Plt. at Cao Lanh.<= /p>

Spec 4 Rex Izumi- My first crew ch= ief at Ben Tre. He egg'd me on to outrageous feats such as low-level strafing of VC bunkers and sampans= in Tan Phu Prov= ince. I just did the flying. Rex hung the upper half of his skinny frame and M-60= out the rear window and ruined lots and lots of sampans while we were getting h= osed from the beach.

Spec 4 Jim Smith- Smitty took superb care of my plane = in Cao Lanh. He was tireless in making sure it was alw= ays ready to go and to bring me home.

There's no way I can thank all those who helped and supported me along my way. I just wish they could all know what a positive influence they were in getting me home in one piece, so that I can continue doing what we all did so long ago.

All the very best to all of you,

Roger Bowers

www.airscan.com

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from: www.spyflight.co.uk/C337.htm<= /a>

<= /span>

Cessna 337

AirScan Inc is a company based in Florida which specialises in providing air to ground surveillance using a variety of aircraft and frequently operate on contract= to the US government. AirScan Inc use specially adapted civilian aircraft to enable them to maintain a 'low-profile' whilst engaged= in operations, frequently from civil airports.

AirScan Inc were awarded a contract to conduct surveillance operations in Macedonia, operating from Petrovec Airport, near Skopje in support of NATO peacekeeping operations. To conduct these operations, AirScan operated a Cessna 337H, registered N729AS (c/n33802938) fitted with a FLIR-= type ball under the port wing and a podded weather r= adar under the starboard wing.

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from: Swamp Fox 6, Charles Hutchins

Hello Fox fans,=

Yo= u can thank then Captain Larry E. Joyce for initiating the contact with the Sweetwater Junior Chamber of Commerce that led to their sponsorship of= the 199th Aviation Company (Lt) just before we deployed to RVN July 4, 1967. This was Larry's second tour in RVN. Larry lost his son i= n Mogodishu, Somalia in an unnecessary att= ack on Idi Amin's villa or= dered by Bill Clinton. He split with his wife after his son Sergeant James Joy= ce was killed. Colonel Larry E. Joyce, USA, &nbs= p;died in April 1999.

I = enjoyed reading about Captain James C. McKee's exploits as the Section Leader based= in Rach Gia. Jim was a= ctually the first commander of the 199th at Fort Hood for a few weeks before I got there from Germany. He wrote me a letter dated 15 February 1967 briefing me on the Company stat= us. The 199th was activated 1 February 1967. He had 10 vehicles and no ai= rplanes. He had three Lieutenants (Lts. Aberle, Collins and Sheaffer and three Privates; A. DeHoog, R.E. Lee and G.C. Wilcox, present for duty. I reported for duty 27 February 1967.

Charles F. Hutchins, LTC, USA, RET

Fox 6, Delta 3 and Phantom= 6

13^=
th CAB Reunion

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Hello, everyone. = ;

I have put tog= ether some notes and thoughts to share with attendees and those who could not make the recent
13 CAB reunion held in Fort Ru= cker, AL.

This was the third reunion of the Battalion, and the schedule remained basically the same with a couple of items that made the gathering even more meaningful.

Friday Night, 31 Mar 06, we had our usual gathering in Dothan at the Quality Inn. With snacks provided and some anonymous person picking up the bar tab, we got right to = the business at hand of drinking and telling tall tales.

The group staying at the Quality Inn consisted of approximately 35 people w= hich included a mix of 162 AHC, 199 RAC, 221 RAC, and assorted visitors. Attende= es from the RAC units were:

          199th RAC "Swampfoxes"     221st RAC "Shotguns"
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         Donald Nicholson           =          Robert "Bob" Preble
         Woody Barnes           &nb= sp;            Fredric"Fritz" Guenther
         Sam Givhan           &nb= sp;            =    Gary Varner
         Rober= t"Bob" King (SF-6)        = Richard"Hank" Collins
            &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp;            =       Tauno Wirkki
            &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp;            =       W.C."Bill" McCoy

   The reunion date coincided with a f= ly in of the IBDA on their way to SUN-FUN in Florida. The group flew into the Enterp= rise airport with 20+ aircraft and planned to visit the museum on Sunday afterno= on.

Saturday morning, many of our group drove to the Enterprise airport to look at the aircr= aft and take some pictures. As expected, all were impressed with the aircraft. =

The reunion cookout at Yano Hall was as always well organized with plenty of eats for all. The afternoon consisted of speeches and viewing the helicopter displays that had been flown in for that purpose. The evening dinner was we= ll attended and was enjoyed by all.

Sunday morning, there was a memorial service at the Museum prior to departu= re. Thanks to Sam Givhans coordination, the IBDA provided the attendees with = a fly over followed by a missing man pass to close out the ceremony. This was as = one person commented, "The icing on the cake." The sight of four well trained dogs passing over the post at 500' in a good formation was tru= ly a page from the past.

Skelly Stage Field: I remember Skelly as being the place where, during the final phase of training, we honed our skills at dropping bundles, low level navigation, and landings on gra= ss strips that never seemed long enough. On my way to Rucker, I decided = to try and locate the field. With little difficulty, I found it just outside <= span class=3DSpellE>Opp a mile or so off the main road. There have = been some changes from the way I remembered it. The field now has paved landing zones with a control tower to monitor the helicop= ter activity that has replaced the fixed wing strip. I remembered there being an old farm house across the road where we would go to buy a drink and sandwic= h. All who passed thru were asked to sign a guest book kept by the family livi= ng there. The old house is in disrepair and vacant. I stopped at a house down = the road to inquire about the couple that use to live there and what happened to the guest book. I was told the folks that lived = in the house had passed away and they remembered the book but were not sure wh= at became of it.

If you noticed, the attendees list, has a former Commander of the 199 listed. It was great having the opportunity to meet wi= th Bob and his wife. Bob recalls a lot of details about the unit and should be= a big help in completing a unit history.

I think the reunion was well worth the time and effort to attend and= am now looking forward to the next opportunity to meet with the group.

            &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp; Regards,
            &nb= sp;            =            Don Nicholson=

Sam Givhan, Don Nicholson

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WEB SIT= ES of INTEREST

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From: www.ov-10bronco.net/index.cfm

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FAC Mus= eum Scores a Direct Hit =
Sponsors to ensure successful start for FACM =
By Jim Hodgson

Folks,

I just returned from a FAC Association reunion in San= Antonio. Many of you and other OBA members were in attendance. I had the opportunity= to make presentations regarding our FACM concept on several occasions. As a result, the FAC Association agreed to a $1,000 sponsorship. In addit= ion, we received a private sponsorship of another $1,000 and a $500 sponsorsh= ip from the NAIL FAC Association. A truck load, literally, of memorabil= ia was also donated and we gained a few new members.

This, combined with your individual donations and a sponsorship by the = International Bird Dog Association will assure that we have a place for a year to move forward with this concept. The next step now will be to sign the lease= and form

Coming = Events

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183^rd RAC SeaHorse Gr= and Reunion Sept 2006 Washington D.C.<= /b>

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ATTENTION!!!!!!! The 183rd is inviting all Bird= dog Companies to its September 7th through the 10th 2006 Reunion in Washington DC. We had a great time with the Aloft (74th) and the Swamp Fox (199th) group at our la= st reunion and hope to see them and other birddoggies at this one. At this reunion, all birddog members are welcome: The Shotguns (221st); Petrodactyls (185th); Non Stop (184th)= ; Catkillers (220th); Headhunters (219th); Hawkeyes (203rd); Warriors (73rd); Night Hawks (131st= ) and Black Aces (21st).

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SEAHORSE NEWSLETTER = =

February, 2006 =

2006 183^{rd RAC SEAHORSE REUNION}

The third, and indeed the biggest, reunion is now officially contracted with the hotel and you need to mark yo= ur calendars. The reunion is going to be in Washington, D. C. = at the Crystal Gateway Marriott located at 1700 Jefferson Davis Highway, in Arlington, Virginia. The official reunion activities will begin on Thursday, September 7th and end on Sunday, September 10^th. &n= bsp; If you would like to see more about the hotel, the hotel website is www.crystalgatewaymarriott.com. We have very speci= al room rates, of $109 per night, well below what it normally charged. For those of you who wish to come early or stay longer, the = rate will apply three days before and three days after the reunion. The ho= tel is very conveniently located in an area that is on the Metro System, close = to shopping and a wide variety of restaurants, and very near most of the main attractions in Washington, D. C. There is complementary shuttle servi= ce to and from Reagan National Airport which is a short five minutes from the hotel.

Instructions on how to register with the hotel and receive the discounted room rate will follow in next month’s Newsletter. You will also need to register for the reunion activities with the Seahorses. That information will also fol= low in next month’s newsletter.

This is= partial information from the 183^rd web site.       www.183seahorse.org

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2= 19^th RAC HeadHunters Reunion Sept. 2007 Atlanta Georgia

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9/17/2005  = HEADHUNTERS decide to hold their NEXT REUNION scheduled for SEPTEMBER 2007 in= ATLANTA, GEORGIA. The hosts will be Steve Butler (RVN 1/68-1/69 P= leiku) and Tom Morris (RVN 7/65-7/66 Nha Trang, Tuy Hoa, Phan Thiet & NonCo). The host location will be Peachtree City Sout= h of Atlanta. MARK YOUR CALENDARS!

=

www.219headhunters.com/Reunions.htm

=

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220th Reconnaissance Airplane Comp= any (RAC) "Catkillers" Reunion

Friday, October 6, 2006 until Sunday, October 8,= 2006

Mark Your Calendars!

South<= span style=3D'font-size:12.0pt'> Shore Harbour Resort & Conference Center
2500 South Shore Blvd.
League City, TX 77573
Phone: 281.334.1000
Fax: 281.334.1157

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=

Carl Drechsel

Catkiller 30

Reunion C= hairman

sdrexel@yahoo.com

=

=

EAA cal= endar

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http://www.eaa.org/events

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IBDA

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Contact Rob for back iss= ues of the BowWow.

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www.ibdaweb.com=

Rob Ro= binson

Membersh= ip Director, IBDA

200 Sugar Hollow Road

Hendersonville, North Carolina 28739 U.S.A.

828 696 8414

828 606 7440

saltire@bellsouth.net

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FOX HUN= T

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Status quo

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SWAMP F= OX NETWORK

=

Status quo

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Soldier= s Angels

Do check out this web site if you are looking for char= ity to support our troops.

www.soldiersangels.com<= /o:p>

=

Site Ne= ws

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SBC (now att&t) has upgraded their server to provide a change from 200MB of disc space to 7= 00MB at no additional charge.

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If you have something to add to the Fox Fax, I need= it before the fifth of the month.

Cheers Y'all - Editor r.jennings14@verizon.net

=

(EOM)