Page 12 - Aerotech News and Review, Jan. 19 2018

Legendary pilot inspires new generation of air warriors
by Senior Airman Ridge Shan
Luke AFB, Ariz.
In March of 1967, a flight of F-4 Phantom IIs from the 433rd Tactical Fighter Squadron based out of Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand, flew through clear skies for a bombing run on a steel mill in North Vietnam.
The excellent visibility gave the Phantom pilots a clear line of sight to the mill. In return, enemy forces on the ground had a clear line of sight to the fighters. Anti-aircraft fire quickly rose into the sky and struck both aircraft. One was hit in the fuel tank, its contents quickly pouring out.
In the other, Capt. Bob Pardo and his weapons system officer watched. They knew their wingmen, Capt. Earl Aman and 1st Lt. Robert Houghton, were in trouble. They had already lost so much fuel that they would not be able to reach the safety of Laotian airspace or the KC-135 refueling tanker waiting for them there.
Looking below, Pardo saw miles and miles of rice pad- dies. Ejecting over this area of North Vietnam all but guaranteed capture. Pardo acted quickly. Lining his plane up with the other Phantom’s tailhook, he rose up slowly until the hook made contact with his cockpit canopy, which cracked slightly. Pardo then went full throttle.
In this extraordinarily dangerous position, Pardo used his Phantom to push his wingmen almost 90 miles, just across the border of Laos. Pardo’s own aircraft caught fire, and both aircrews ejected into the coverage of the jungle below. They were rescued less than two hours later.
“I’m just like any other fighter pilot,” said Pardo, now a retired lieutenant colonel. “I just got lucky for a day and did something that hadn’t been done.”
For his act, now known as “Pardo’s Push,” Pardo and his weapons system officer were awarded the Silver Star. More than four decades later, his name and his maneuver still have meaning to those who serve and fly today.
See PILOT, Page 13
Air Force photograph by Senior Airman Ridge Shan
Retired Air Force pilot Lt. Col. Bob Pardo poses in front of a static display model of an F-4 Phantom II, one of the many fighter aircraft he has flown, at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., Dec. 12, 2017. During the Vietnam War, Pardo saved the lives of a fellow Phantom aircrew when he used his own aircraft to push their battle-damaged jet almost 90 miles into friendly airspace. This act came to be known as “Pardo’s Push.”
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January 19, 2018