This was my eight car. Got this after I came back to the US after being overseas for a few years. This is a 1965 Mercury Montclair. Notice the rear window. It could be opened by a switch mounted on the dash. It was a cool (kewl) car also. When I returned from overseas which included time spent in Japan, Philippines and Viet Nam I got this car from my dad and traveled from Georgia to New Jersey. Was assigned to McGuire Air Force Base which was in the middle of Fort Dix Army Base just outside of Browns Mills, New Jersey.
But I am getting ahead of myself. If you remember I was at Forbes Air Force base in Kansas. The reason I went overseas happened like this. I went to work one day on the flight line while I was at Forbes and my supervisor, First Sargent, told me to go back home and pack a bag and come back. I asked him what was up and he said he could not tell me. So being the loyal airman that I was I followed orders and did as he requested. When I returned to the base he told me to go out and get on a certain aircraft, a C130 Hercules set up for troop transport. He told me I would have time to take care of my affairs when I arrived at my new destination. So dutifully I boarded the aircraft. We took off and I was in the air for 12 hours...longgggggggggg flight on a C130. When we landed I realized I was in Japan. Southern Japan to be more precise. We got on an Air Force bus and was moved to a headquarters building seven miles away. You can imagine my surprise and wonder as we traveled the narrow roads and on the wrong side,. It was something like the old south Georgia boy had never seen or experienced. Anyway I should come to the point and tell you why this was so much a secret in the first place.
This all happened in 1968, just after he Pueblo Incident.
Pueblo Incident, 
capture of the USS “Pueblo,” a Navy intelligence ship, and its 83 crewmen by
North Korean patrol boats off the coast of
North Korea on Jan. 23, 1968. The United States, maintaining that the “Pueblo” had been in international waters, began a military buildup in the area. It also initiated negotiations that resulted in an agreement that secured the release of the 82 surviving crewmen (one died from wounds suffered during the capture) on Dec. 23, 1968.
I was among only 12 regular Air Force personell that was sent to Itazuki Japan. We were assigned to an old WWII Air Force base we used during our occupation of Japaon right afer the war. It was called
Itazuke Air Base, Fukuoka, Kyushu Japan 1952-1972 . We were there to support an Air Force Reseve Squadron of F-101 aircraft outfitted of ariel photo missions. Their mission was to fly over North Korea and gater infomation.
It was a great time and could go on forever about how life was there but it all came to an end when I was transferred to the Phillipines. I knew this was not a good sign because I was moving ever slow closer to Viet Nam on the map. Almost as soon as I was processed at Clark Air Force in the Phillipines I was moved to Viet Nam...was moved from base to base there,. Without going into detail, some of which you would not want the details anyway, I finally got out of there but not before I re-enlisted for another term in the Air Force. I did so becuase I was not sure what I wanted to do back home yet plus the bonus was a nice one and it was TAX FREE by doing it in Viet Nam.
Now I have you up to date. Hope you enjoyed my boring story and thanks for you patience. The old Merc served me well but this story does have a twist which will come in my next post...dont you just love these cliff hangers ...hehe...yall have a good day now...ya heah...GOD Bless.
