I'm thinking Vietnam...
Getting Warm.
If I recall, wasn't Orange Anchor the callsign for KC-135's in Vietnam?
You're on the right track, but on the wrong train.
I'm thinking Vietnam...
If I recall, wasn't Orange Anchor the callsign for KC-135's in Vietnam?
You're on the right track, but on the wrong train.
KC-97's or KC-130's? I thought it was KC-135's since John flew those...
Area between the Laos/Thailand border?
Northern Laos area and Thailand, for planes heading into Route Pack 6A portion of North Vietnam and the Barrel Roll portion of Laos
The plane is correct, but OA doesn't refer to the plane.
In Vietnam, the refueling orbits where the tankers hung out were known as anchors and were denoted by color.......tan, white, etc. Akin to aerial gas stations, they were located in different parts of Vietnam and Thailand and especially off the coast. Orange Anchor was one of the more busy ones for aircraft heading into and out of targets in Vietnam. John spent many hours of his life orbiting within the confines of Orange Anchor during his time in the KC-135A.
You know, that's actually quite telling about his character- the original 'Orange Anchor' was a place of refuge. It was a place where fellow aviators bruised by their battles and running short of fuel to sustain them could seek refuge. John was really like that here- I don't ever recall him uttering an unkind word. He could have easily rested on the laurels of an obviously highly successful career. Yet here he was- offering ideas, help, and direction to those he might need it. He could have been anywhere doing anything.. and yet he remained here, in orbit in a tanker track in a sense.. passing on the lessons and ideas that he garnered over decades of successful aviation. In his way, he actually exemplified the concept of 'Orange Anchor'.
It's been suggested that we memorialize our departed fellow aviators. I'm not exactly sure how we might do that.. but perhaps we might come to think of the times when someone exhibits such honorable qualities as an 'Orange Anchor' moment.
RIP John. You were most certainly an 'Orange Anchor'.