During America's involvement in the Vietnam War, from the administration of President Truman to President Ford, a wide variety of aircraft flew the skies of North and South Vietnam. This page is an attempt to recognize some of those aircraft that played such a pivotal role in fighting the war. If you have a picture or a gif of an aircraft that took part in the Vietnam War and it is not displayed at present, send it to us and we will put it on this page. What would the Vietnam War had been like without the ubiquitous UH-1 Iroquois Helicopter, forever known as the Huey, flying the skies of South Vietnam? Here is an H Model Huey and it has the tailboom markings of a 240th AHC helicopter when the company was part of the 222nd Aviation Battalion. When the 240th AHC landed in South Vietnam and flew its first operational combat mission on 28 June 1967, the company was a part of the 214th Combat Aviation Battalion, The Cougars. The Huey above has the tailboom markings of the 240th when it was part of the 214th CAB, a white pentagon with a green stripe. The 240th remained part of the 214th until early 1969 when the company became part of the 222nd CAB, The SkyMasters. The Cessna O-1 "Bird Dog" was a two seater observation aircraft and used in Vietnam as a forward air controller (FACS). The Bird Dog Pilot would mark enemy targets on the ground with smoke rockets, mounted under the wings, for the fighter-bombers of the US Air Force. The C-130 Hercules of the USAF made it first flight in 1954 and it still plays an important role in the defense of America today. C-130's were originally designed for combat troop transport capable of operating from dirt and hastily constructed airstrips. During Vietnam, some of these C-130's were converted for use as gunships and carried a multitude of weapons for close air support of ground troops. Some of the weapons installed were 20 mm cannons and 7.62 mm mini-guns. The CH-46 Sea Knight helicopter is used to move cargo and troops. The Navy uses the CH-46D for delivering cargo and personnel aboard ships. The USMC uses the CH-46E in the role of an all-weather, day or night assault helicopter for the transport of troops, equipment and supplies. The F4 Phantom was retired from the US military forces in 1996. The US Air Force, Marines and Navy flew this jet for 38 years. The F4 Phantom was the first fighter to be flown by the Air Force, Navy and Marines concurrently. This famous aircraft holds the distinction of being the first and only jet fighter to be used by the Blue Angels and the Thunderbirds at the same time. These two helicopters, the Hughes H-6 Cayuse and the Bell AH-1 Huey Cobra, made up the famous and hard fighting Hunter/Killer Teams used by the Air Cav Units in South Vietnam. The H-6 Cayuse, also known as a "Loach" was a small, agile chopper which had a distinctive teardrop shape. The "Loach" would skim the tree tops looking for signs of the enemy while his wingman, the AH-1 Huey Cobra, would circle above ready to provide heavy firepower if needed. The Loach crew could consist of a pilot, observer, and doorgunner or a pilot and observer or doorgunner. The "Loach" is still used on a limited basis today by special units of the American Military. Developed from the UH-1 Huey, the Bell HueyCobra was the first helicopter designed especially as an attack helicopter. The tandem cockpit consisted of an Aircraft Commander in back and copilot in front. The HueyCobra is still used today as a gunship and remains a highly effective weapon. By redesigning the Fairchild C-82, the company produced the C-119 which was also called the "Flying Boxcar." The C-119 was designed to carry cargo, mechanized equipment and to drop paratroopers and their equipment ready to fight. Production of this aircraft started in 1947 and ended in 1955. In the mid 60's during Vietnam the Air Force started to replace the aging C-47 Spooky Gunship with a modified C-119 to serve as the next generation gunship. Many of the missions for the C-119 during the Vietnam War was to attack targets on the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The last active duty "Flying Boxcar" was retired in 1975. The maiden flight of the first production B52 was in August of 1954. From 1954 to 1964, the B-52 operated in cold weather climates. In 1965, the Stratofortress was used for the first time in Vietnam in support of American ground troops. Many credit the B-52 strikes over North Vietnam during Christmas 1972 with bringing the North Vietnamese to the negotiation table at the Paris Peace Talks. There were A, B, C, D, E, F, G and H model versions of the B-52 manufactured. Only the B-52H model remains on active duty today.