I had the distinct honor of serving under then Col. Robin Olds from March 23, 1967 to his departure in September of 1967. I got to Ubon two months after "Operation Bolo", but the Intel folks to which I was assigned were still talking about the success of that mission. I also had the honor of briefing and debriefing Col. Olds and his flight on a few occassions. I hold in my hand the "flak" from an 85MM AAA that he gave me on one debriefing session when I asked how accurate the AAA was. He tossed the pieces on the table in front of me and asked the question, " Is that f***ing close enough Airman?" I answered in a quivering voice, "Yes, Sir, that is close enough for me." He had picked the flak out of the wing of his F-4. He was the blueprint of what all fighter pilots should be. He had no regard for superior officers who had not had the experience of combat. He was a renegade whose only mission was to fly and fight. I got to reunite with him at the TLC Brotherhood meeting in Colorado Springs in the fall of 2000. I met him at the hotel and carried his bags to his room. At that time he still looked 20 years younger than he was. He said he remembered that debriefing. I don't know whether he did or not, but I hope so. After his speech, we retired to the bar, Robin Olds' favorite place to be. We listened to him tell war stories from WWII and Southeast Asia until the wee hours of the morning. I will never forget this hero, this All-American, this true warrior. His kind will never come around again.
Fighter ace Olds dies at 84
I had the distinct honor of serving under then Col. Robin Olds from March 23, 1967 to his departure in September of 1967. I got to Ubon two months after "Operation Bolo", but the Intel folks to which I was assigned were still talking about the success of that mission.
I also had the honor of briefing and debriefing Col. Olds and his flight on a few occassions. I hold in my hand the "flak" from an 85MM AAA that he gave me on one debriefing session when I asked how accurate the AAA was. He tossed the pieces on the table in front of me and asked the question, " Is that f***ing close enough Airman?" I answered in a quivering voice, "Yes, Sir, that is close enough for me." He had picked the flak out of the wing of his F-4.
He was the blueprint of what all fighter pilots should be. He had no regard for superior officers who had not had the experience of combat. He was a renegade whose only mission was to fly and fight.
I got to reunite with him at the TLC Brotherhood meeting in Colorado Springs in the fall of 2000. I met him at the hotel and carried his bags to his room. At that time he still looked 20 years younger than he was. He said he remembered that debriefing. I don't know whether he did or not, but I hope so. After his speech, we retired to the bar, Robin Olds' favorite place to be. We listened to him tell war stories from WWII and Southeast Asia until the wee hours of the morning.
I will never forget this hero, this All-American, this true warrior. His kind will never come around again.
Larry Clum
Maize, KS
8th TFW Intell
1967-1968
August 26, 2007 at 4:39 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )