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Joe Ponds

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Departing for Vietnam for the first time, Joe Ponds received his orders over the Mekong Delta in 4 Corps. Being prepared for any sort of combat environment was always essential for his company due to the surprise nature of the conflict. (8:32)

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While flying a Huey over the Mekong Delta, Joe Ponds was called into reinforce the ground troops who had come across a large group of VC. Facing heavy fire, he had to work hard to maintain a level head and make sure his guys got out alive. (8:28)

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After getting new orders to fly a combat helicopter designed to draw enemy fire, Joe Ponds started to patrol the Vietnam-Cambodia border. Later in life, he found out that his patrols may have led to intel that resulted in the invasion of Cambodia. (5:40)

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After returning home, Joe Ponds found a pretty hostile response for his fellow soldiers. They even had to deal with some increased problems because American politicians took actions that harmed their position. The purpose of a war needed to be a devoted commitment to something, which he feels was not in place during the Vietnam War. (6:39)

Joe Richardson

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His father had been wounded on Tulagi, so he never got to be the Marine aviator he intended to be, but he did teach his son to fly. Joe Richardson soloed at fifteen and went on to become a fighter pilot. (4:35)

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Joe Richardson was three years into the Air Force Academy when he decided to quit. He didn't care that he would be exposed to the draft. When he brought recruiters into the Explorer group he was mentoring, he was so impressed with the film the Air Force recruiter showed, he joined up. (6:25)

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The three companions were flying down to Webb Air Force Base to check it out. Joe Richardson was piloting the Beechcraft and while they were all going to be at flight school there, this was just a little pleasure trip. It nearly ended in disaster. (4:16)

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Just as he was finishing flight school, Joe Richardson contracted Valley Fever, a respiratory illness connected to fungus in the soil in that part of Texas. It set him back because it took a while for the doctors to figure out what he had. He recovered and continued in his training as a fighter pilot. Finally, he was headed to Southeast Asia. (5:52)

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Before he got to Thailand, fighter pilot Joe Richardson went through survival school in the Philippines as well as a little extra-curricular activity. When he did get to the air base at Ubon, he ran into a buddy who was in a squadron known as the Night Owls. (5:22)

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Fighter pilot Joe Richardson was apprehensive about night missions over Vietnam but the tracers and the missiles were unmistakable. He had to learn how to out maneuver the surface-to-air missiles, which wasn't easy but it was doable. (4:04)