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LEE WATERS

Dudley F. Waters Collection - 
For those of you who may be 
interested in a part of the 
actual historical record, 
Texas Tech has built the 
second largest collection 
of memorabilia about the 
Vietnam wars.  So far I 
have donated about 170 of 
my personal items for their 
entry into the virtual record.  

All of my donated slides 
were taken by me or of me 
during my time (March 1967 - 
March 1968) flying the C-7A 
Caribou performing combat 
support missions over there. 
To check it out, go to 
Texas Tech Vietnam Archives,
then click on The Virtual 
Vietnam Archive, then click 
on "Search the Virtual 
Archive".  

Then type in 
"Dudley F. Waters Collection".  
That should get you to my 
donated slides.  You will 
even be able to see some 
pictures of the python I 
had as my pet while 
I was over there!  

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Based in Tokyo
The ONA crews were temporarily based in Japan for the
Vietnam round trip flights out of Tokyo.
 READ MORE

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LEO SKELLY
ONA STATION MANAGER TOKYO

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VIETNAM History/Politics
The Vietnamese are descendants of 
nomadic Mongols from China and 
migrants from Indonesia. According 
to mythology, the first ruler of 
Vietnam was Hung Vuong, who founded
the nation in BC 2879. China ruled 
the nation, then known as Nam Viet, 
as a vassal state from BC 111 until 
the 15th century AD. 

A century later, the Portuguese were 
the first Europeans to enter the 
area. France established its 
influence early in the 19th century, 
and within eighty years conquered 
the three regions in which the 
country was then divided into: 
Cochin-China, Annam, and Tonkin. 

Japan took over military bases in 
Vietnam in 1940, and a pro-Vichy 
French administration remained 
until 1945.

Ho Chi Minh's declaration of 
Vietnamese independence after World 
War II sparked violent 
confrontations with the French, 
culminating in the French military 
defeat at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. 

At the 1954 Geneva Conference the 
country was divided along the 17th 
parallel of latitude into Communist 
North Vietnam, led by Ho Chi Minh, 
with its capital at Hanoi, and pro-
Western South Vietnam, led by Ngo 
Dinh Diem, with its capital at 
Saigon. Political and ideological 
opposition quickly turned to armed 
struggle, prompting the USA and 
other countries to commit combat 
troops in 1965. The Paris Peace 
Agreements, signed in 1973, 
provided an immediate cease-fire 
and signalled the withdrawal of 
US troops. 

Saigon eventually capitulated to 
the Communist forces on 30 April 
1975. In April 2001 reform-minded 
Nong Duc Manh was appointed 
general secretary of the ruling 
Communist Party, succeeding 
Le Kha Phieu.

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I had a flight once from Honolulu
/Wake/Okinawa and from there ferry 
to Tokyo. Mostly I was assigned to 
the flight route McGuire/Anchorage
/Tokyo roundtrip and some time to 
Guam. I had one Vietnam trip from 
Tokyo to Vietnam. I think it was 
Da Nang. The cabin crew wasnt 
allowed to leave the aircraft but 
had to stay on board. Me being male 
was allowed to deplane to clear 
paperwork before departure. I know 
there was talk about bulletholes on 
the fuselage, but cant say whether 
it was on our plane or someone 
elses - everybody were very quiet 
and serious. It was very nervous. 
Anyway we left very soon and went 
back to Tachikawa AFB Tokyo. 
Dispatch after that didnt want me 
on any more Vietnam flights since 
they rather assigned beautiful 
ladies on these flights! I was put 
purser on DC-7B to transport 
homecoming deserting / delinquent 
GIs, flying Oakland / Corpus 
Christi and Fort Smith. Those were 
horrible flights. The MP werent 
allowed any weapons in the cabin 
and the delinquents were loosened 
from their handcuffs. They were 
served box lunches. The only cabin 
crew assigned on those flights were 
me, being the purser and another 
steward Jurand, I think he was 
Russian. I dont remember the Vietnam 
flights very much but these other 
flights I remember well since they 
were really rough and from what I 
understand dangerous and risky. 
Captain Billy Tedder told me that 
the cockpit got extra money for 
performing these flights, but cabin
crew had no extra money! I have 
kept my cabin-checkout for DC-7B 
among my memorabilia. 

JACQUIE LAW
BAY CITY MICHIGAN

I remember the Viet Nam flights.  
I tried to take pictures from the 
ramp of the aircraft as the attendants 
weren't allowed to go into the terminal.  
The pilots told me to get inside 
immediately as a bomb went off in the 
distance.  I also remember seeing 
helicopters flying over the terrain 
as we landed watching for snipers. 
The most moving thing to see were the 
troops joking and laughing, probably 
nervous anxiety as to what lay 
ahead.  On the return trip, the 
troops were solemn and just looked 
out the window. 

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NETTIE MILLER

I was on the first crew flying 
into Viet Nam in 1966 and was 
based in Tokyo for 2 months flying 
back and forth into Da Nang and 
Bien Hoa. 

Fifi LaBine flew from McGuire AFB 
and Teddy Pakosta was based in Alaska. 
Teddy of course was number 1 on the 
seniority list but wanted to go to 
Alaska and said Nettie, you go first 
to Tokyo so I was very lucky to have 
had that experience. More to come as 
soon as I get my act together!
I am also anxious to hear about other 
ONA crew experiences! 

CAMH RANH BAY, VIETNAM, SPRING 1967

On the photo I am standing right 
by the plane and was off the aircraft 
only minutes since we were ushered 
onboard again, just so that we could 
say we had touched Vietnamese soil! 
It was very hot and we had the thick 
new uniforms on. In my hand I have 
a small roll of paper that a GI gave 
me and asked me to phone the person 
he had noted on the paper, I got 
several pieces of paper after the 
first one, I also got dollar bills 
to cover the phone call cost once 
I got back to the States. 



I was in Vietnam with Fifi LaBine 
as chief stew, Johanna Heinrich, 
Margarita Ortiz, and one more 
which I forgot the name of. 
Male crew was Bob Houlihan 
(ONAīs answer to Tom Cruise, 
Brad Pitt AND Richard Geere!) 
and Bill Whitesell, which I have 
on photos from that very trip, 
unfortunately I forget the rest 
of the names of cockpit crew. 

Flights to Vietnam originated 
from McGuire AFB New Jersey with 
first leg to Anchorage Alaska, 
that time. Then on to Tachikawa 
AFB, Japan and then finally to 
Camh Ranh Bay. 

From Camh Ranh Bay we ferried 
the plane, a DC-8, to Frankfurt 
Germany, to pick up next flight. 
I dont remember where the 
intermediate landing was from 
Camh Ranh, first Bombay and then 
probably Abu Dhabi or Kuweit. 
Some adventure! It was so weird 
having that big DC-8 to ourselves 
empty without pax as we ferried 
to Frankfurt, contrasting the 
crammed flight we had from 
Tachikawa to Camh Ranh. 

In Tachikawa outside Tokyo Japan, 
we stayed at the Hotel Korakuen 
in Tachikawa, a real Japanese 
hotel. In the room was the 
bathroom with the Japanese 
bathtub kind of cubicle tub 
where you sit and bathe. 
The matresses were rolled out on 
the floor to sleep, there were 
small partitions between 
different spaces in the room 
and the partitions were dressed 
in rice paper, which made you 
feel you slept with seethro 
walls. 
In the room was a guest service 
pink kimono that I wore in the 
hotel garden! 

Returning from Vietnam to Tokyo, 
we stayed in the Tokyo Hilton in 
town.

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After another ONA flight to Honolulu Hawaii in 1967 - 
New York - Los Angeles - Honolulu, I was on layover in 
Honolulu. The crew stayed a whole glorious week each time 
we took tourists to Hawaii.

I sat with F/A senior Marianne Meissner at a bar close to the Waikiki Beach. 
I was 20 years old and having a ball! The bar was kind of darkish tho it was afternoon 
and full sunshine outside. I came right out of the boondocks in Sweden a little earlier 
and life was thrilling and fast and I had to try everything! Beside me sat a nicelooking 
guy and we started  talking. He said he was on short leave from Vietnam for a couple of days 
and I was thrilled to pieces and couldnt quite grasp that one day you were in a war and 
then you got leave to have holidays. I dont remember where he said he had been to fight but 
after a while he hauled a jar with some liquid in it from his pocket and sat it on the bardesk. 
As I recall it the jar still had a brandname on it, a label, like a jar of peanutbutter would 
have.
- Do you know what this is, he asked. 
I looked and since it was rather dark in the room I couldnt make out what was 
floating in the jar.
- This here is a Viet Cong ear, he said.
He explained he had been in combat and had killed a Viet Cong gerilla soldier 
and had taken one ear as a kind of souvenir. I dont recall the guyīs name but 
the story stuck forever in my mind and I thought a lot about how he actually 
got that ear and still think about it often. The fear of dying that makes you 
go almost insane I can imagine, being in combat and waiting to get killed yourself, 
or kill someone. It really had impact on me, this happening in sunny Honolulu, 
sunshine paradise with leis and maitais, far away from the war scene.
 
These are my Vietnam memories. 

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I was in Vietnam around the end of February in 1967. 
I remember so well since we celebrated my birthday there!
We were stationed for one month in Tokyo and had layovers both at 
Tachikawa AFB as well as in Tokyo proper, at the Hilton and another hotel 
called the New Hotel, that I heard has now burnt down. 
I remember walking in a beautiful hotel garden.

Senior stewardess on the Vietnam flights originating from Tokyo first to 
Danang, was Teddy Pakosta, junior stews were beside myself Eivor Johansson 
Hedin, Marie Warberg Curman and Ayla van Mynden, donīt remember male crew! 
As I recall it we only had one flight into Danang, since the situation got 
dangerous there and next flights we made went to Cam Ranh Bay, I think. 

I remember at Tachikawa AFB at layover I had photographed on the base 
(which of course was prohibited!) and an official came and took my film away!
But I had already at an earlier time taken photos which I will search for ..... 
I remember when at Camh Ranh we were not allowed to stand in the airplane doors 
due to risk of shooting - we examined gunshots on the airplane tail after 
returning to Tachikawa at one time.

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