AIRLIFT: VIET NAM

this is Bob Considine reporting from Vietnam reporting on a war perhaps the most difficult ever fought by Americans it takes it bewildering a mountain variety of equipment of supplies to fight this kind of a war now a vital portion of retro material must be airlifted get across the analyst stuff does it get feed just under the speed of sound and once here dispersed by air throughout this land which is 9,000 miles from home to tell the story properly however we've got to see more than what we're seeing right now we've got to go back to the United States to see where it all began and to talk to some of the men there and over on this side to make the whole thing tick I am down here on the flight line of some of their 4th baseman captain's Wayne Bennett captain you're the aircraft commander it is very nice yes you must be mystified by some of the stuff you find in your cargo hold here right as I didn't have a pipe into Benoit with it just Saigon and we had 40,000 pounds of the safety wire you know we thought could have been shipped by a surface it turned out the birth their handle it was completely out of Thank You wiring was wrecked project this massive battle of logistics of the facet of the vietnam war that has not been told this is the vital merchandise of war the stuff that cannot wait because it's needed right now a request from the field is delivered in as little as five days some 70,000 pounds of vital material is also the troops to Vietnam we're at the nerve center of the heart or the command post of the military airlift command and here's the commander himself general hallam st jr. mission of our command is to procure whatever commercial aviation is required on contract to support our military airlift force I'd like to tell you Bob that it's been an extremely heartening thing to me to see the wonderful response we've received from all of the airlines it's been a rough road for them I captain on Bob Considine on i'm john jones american airlines had to see you you'll tell us have been helping out the airports in general for a long time haven't you this has become a pretty familiar ocean to you particularly yes yes Bob we're in the Korean lift it took approximately 68 hours from this very airport from Travis fields to Tokyo today we carry 73 thousand pounds from here to Danang and back in 32 hours that's amazing and you play every day every day every day seven days a week actually this aircraft is equivalent to 15 DC for the partners in airlift of Vietnam America's commercial airline supplements a splendid job being done by the military airlift command at Travis Air Force Base in California planes come in are loaded and out because speed may mean live Saigon dumps in this airfield get them in get them unloaded and get them out the 707 will spend as little as an hour here then begins the long long trip back home for more cargo the markings of America's major airlines term memories of home and every day their jobs completed men do go home as much as two million pounds of valuable virgin cargo wings into Vietnam every day a mac plane lands at Cam Ranh Bay and is unloaded by military personnel but the big airports in Vietnam are not the end of the line out of one plane and into another into aircraft capable of getting up to the front where men know the things they need will be coming in no one knows more about the impact of the airlift and the commander united states military assistance command vietnam General William C Westmoreland the military airlift command known as machs is vital to the success of our efforts in South Vietnam Mac provides the vital and highly important air evacuation service for our wounded men they contributed measurably through the high quality of all medical care for these wounded troops this is sergeant Jimmy Mars from Brooklyn of all places sergeant what is the year that brought you that has helped you in your job all is it is brought brought me minute supplies and allows the fly that I need especially me being the weapons man out here on the a site and my weapon pots are real important when I get a pot then I can keep all of my weapons functioning properly what would you like it to bring you without so lifelike the brightening my wife with your wing do about that Jim thank you these men are some of the component parts of the airlift supporting heroic men in a most complex type of war this is Bob Considine reporting from Vietnam