The Factor

By Walter J. Boyne

Col. Robin Olds in Southeast Asia, circa 1967. USAF photo

4444 AIRAIR FORCEFORCE MagazineMagazine // JuneJune 20082008 The famous ace influenced generations of pilots, and he always led from the front.

ew American airmen have was a period in which his effect was Olds was the son of Olds, a had the kind of dazzling tal- chiefly localized. He was achieving in and later ent and charisma possessed notable combat successes, influencing an aide to . Eloise, Olds’ Fby Robin Olds. His persona loomed his peers and subordinates, and often mother, died when he was four, and he equally large whether from the cock- antagonizing his superiors. was brought up by his father, who gave pit, the lectern, or in face-to-face In the second, postretirement era him his first flight at the age of eight, encounters. his effect spread, and Olds became in an open-cockpit . In his later Olds was big, tough, smart, and almost universally embraced, even years, Robin Olds would speak with swaggering, not to mention brave and by those who previously had taken admiration of the great leaders—Ira highly skilled. Even Hollywood would exception to his views. C. Eaker, Carl A. Spaatz, and oth- have had a hard time portraying the Olds had great stories to tell, and he ers—who met often at his home, as genuine article on the big screen. He polished them over the years, weaving his father eventually rose to the rank was a truly dynamic force, one who them into his presentations with the of general. had a positive impact on the Air Force wit and the timing of a professional Robin began to gain prominence for more than 60 years. actor. He didn’t mind exaggerating while a cadet at West Point, where “His influence upon who we are the humorous aspects in some of his he played tackle on both offense as an Air Force today can hardly be stories, but he never exaggerated what and defense and was named an All overstated,” Gen. T. Michael Moseley, he accomplished. American. (Olds was so proficient on Chief of Staff, remarked on the death of the football field that he was inducted the retired brigadier general last June. On the Field into the Hall of Fame Olds was “a staunch advocate for better His many devoted fans have fur- in 1985.) fighters, better pilot training,” and the ther embroidered Olds’ stories, with In later years, Olds told of being innovative tactics that the Air Force the result that some have become deliberately struck by an opponent’s still uses today, Moseley said. inconsistent over time. One thing is forearm in a game against archrival Olds’ effect on USAF varied both constant: This man was a warrior who Navy. The blow knocked out two up- in content and in timing. His career led from the front, who cared for his per front teeth and sidelined him for can easily be divided into two eras. troops, and who never hesitated to say a few plays as his bleeding mouth was In general terms, the first era, which exactly what he thought. packed with cotton. Back in the game, ran from West Point to his retirement, Born on July 14, 1922 in , he smashed into the man who had hit him, knocking his opponent flat on his back. Olds stood over him, grinning, pointing to his bleeding mouth and then down to the fallen foe. He graduated from West Point in 1943—the year of his father’s early death—and months later graduated from pilot training, with his wings being pinned on by Gen. Henry H. “Hap” Arnold himself.

Photo by David Born viaWarren Thompson Young Lieutenant Olds was well- trained, with more than 650 hours in aircraft, including the Lockheed P-38 Lightning, when he entered World War II combat. He flew with the abandon of a man who knows he is invulner- able and for whom the enemy is only a target. Olds began his sensational rise as a fighter pilot in Europe, where he flew 107 missions, scored 12 aerial victories, and destroyed another 11- and-one-half enemy aircraft on the ground. His knowledge of air combat Olds (pictured here in 1944) flew with the 479th Fighter Group in Europe during grew with his victories and so did his World War II. He was given command of a squadron at the age of 22. willingness to speak out about his AIR FORCE Magazine / June 2008 AIR FORCE Magazine / June 2008 45 USAF photo

Olds runs a munitions check on his F-4 before a mission during the . He was stationed at Ubon AB, .

beliefs—no matter how contrary they as a 22-year-old major. In later life, very first Lockheed P-80 jet aircraft were to current doctrine. It was a trait he sometimes remarked on the strange squadron. This was a desirable assign- that would work more often against “disconnect” between the increase of ment, as well as a dangerous one, for him than for him. his responsibility on one hand, and the the loss rate in the early jet aircraft rejection of his ideas on the other. was high. He also flew with the Aerial From P-51s to P-80s After the war, Olds was placed in the Aerobatic Demonstration Team, the At the peak of the air war against Germany, Olds saw how heavy bomb- ers’ precision attacks were being

converted into area bombing by wind, USAF photo weather, and enemy opposition. He put forth the idea that 70 P-51s armed with 500-pound bombs could do more damage to a target requiring precise accuracy than a formation of 1,000 B-17s. As an idea, it was 20 years ahead of its time—and it ran directly contrary to USAAF philosophy. It was the first of many of Olds’ ideas whose time had not yet come, a condition that would frustrate him over the years, and helped induce in him flamboyant behavior that worked against both his acceptance and his advancement. The refusal to accept his idea about precision bombing was puzzling to him because he was awarded many Col. Daniel James Jr. (right) served as Olds’ deputy commander for operations at decorations. Most satisfying of all, he the 81st Tactical Fighter Wing at RAF Bentwaters, , and teamed up with him was given command of his squadron again during the Vietnam War. 46 AIR FORCE Magazine / June 2008 forerunner of the Thunderbirds, the first American jet aircraft aerobatic team. For good measure, he also placed USAF photo second in the jet aircraft division of the 1946 Thompson Trophy Race. He added to his high visibility level by marrying movie star . He and Raines separated in 1975, but remained married until her death in 1988. Also of note was his assignment to an exchange program with the where he flew the jet fighter and then served in the prestigious position of commander of No. 1 Squadron, RAF. However, when the came, Olds was unable, despite consid- erable effort, to get back into combat. In private conversations, he would attribute this directly to one of his superiors who told him in essence, Olds is congratulated by members of his wing, including Maj. William Kirk (second from left), after his last flight at Ubon. He flew 105 missions over North Vietnam, “If I cannot get there to fight, you are and shot down four MiGs. certainly not going to get there.” After Korea, Olds became deeply the acknowledgement that he was a he needed the wing. He introduced discontented with the direction he saw thinker as well as a doer. himself to his largely dispirited and being taken by tactical airpower: Tacti- Unfortunately, his ideas on a return tired pilots in his usual fashion, with cal Air Command became increasingly to training geared to fighting a con- a challenge: Olds was going to fly as a focused on the nuclear mission. ventional air war were rebuffed. new guy until he learned his job—and Olds continued to distinguish himself His desire to remain in an active flying then he was going to lead the wing by brilliant flying and the ability to job was more important to him than his into combat from the front. ruffle his superior’s feathers. At a time imminent promotion to brigadier gen- There was suspicion that this World when TAC was oriented to the delivery eral. As commander of the 81st, flying War II retread was just talking a good of nuclear weapons, Olds, through a McDonnell F-101 Voodoo fighter-bomb- game, but Olds soon proved himself series of papers, continually called for ers, Olds formed an aerial demonstration to be a master of the F-4 and an in- intensive training in air-to-air combat, team and performed an unauthorized spiring leader. close air support, and development of low-level aerobatic display. The stories of his methods are le- new tactics. He also sought better pilot His boss reprimanded him, and as gion. He shook up the base’s support training, better fighters, and surgical punishment, ripped up Olds’ promo- staff, putting it on the same 24-hour precision in bombing, just as he had tion papers. His next assignment was clock as his combat crews. He con- done during World War II. to Shaw AFB, S.C., where it seemed tinually visited the support groups, his career had reached a dead end. finding out what their problems were Something Missing In fact the opposite was true: He in an effort to get them solved. And Olds became dissatisfied with his had crafted a situation where he could he was not above tipping a bottle of career, despite assignments that most return to combat and achieve his beer with his airmen as they discussed fighter pilots would have coveted. greatest fame. how to improve operations. These included the command of a wing For the first time since his combat He led his wing as he had promised, in Europe, the 81st Tactical Fighter in Europe, time and events were on from the front, with flair and aggressive- Wing at RAF Bentwaters, England, Olds’ side. The was ness. Olds ultimately flew 152 missions where Col. Daniel “Chappie” James becoming increasingly involved in the in Southeast Asia, 105 of them over Jr. was his deputy commander for Vietnam War and in 1966, Olds was North Vietnam. He encouraged cama- operations. assigned to the 4453rd Combat Crew raderie at the bar, grew an unauthorized The two men would team up again Training Wing at Davis-Monthan Air mustache, and demonstrated at the age later, becoming famous as “Black- Force Base in . His old friend of 44 that he was the physical, mental, man and Robin” in the Vietnam War. Chappie James was there, as was then- and flying equal—or superior—of any In between these assignments, Olds Maj. William L. Kirk. man in his unit. worked at and gradu- There followed the decisive event Olds had always had good effect ated from the . that would foster Olds’ ascent from on the morale of the units he led. He His promotions came in good order, simply being a hero to a few and a was gregarious, was always concerned yet despite his satisfaction in leading troublemaker to many. On Sept. 30, about the welfare of his people, and first-class flying units—and despite 1966, he became commander of the like many of his contemporaries he the admiration in which he was held by 8th Tactical Fighter Wing, based at drank too much for his own good. his officers and enlisted men—there Ubon AB, Thailand. His prescient view of the types of was something missing. Olds wanted The wing needed Olds as badly as training required for air combat was AIR FORCE Magazine / June 2008 47 report that impugned USAF’s contem- porary training. He offered to accept a reduction in rank to so that he could go back and personally inculcate the necessary fighting techniques, but this proposal was refused. Olds elected to retire in 1973. By this time, Olds’ influence was Olds recorded the first already growing. He continued to put of his Vietnam War kills during Opera- forth his ideas, addressing countless tion Bolo in January groups around the country, often 1967. His victory beginning his talks with four words made him the first and that truly characterized him. only USAF ace with victories in both World Olds would stand before the group— War II and Vietnam. He sometimes military people, sometimes finished with a grand a Rotary Club, it didn’t matter. He total of 16 kills. would square his shoulders, wait for a few tension-filled seconds, then shout, “I AM A WARRIOR.” No one ever doubted him. Though he never seemed to seek it out, his popularity continually in- creased. Olds continued to write influential papers on his ideas about aerial war- fare. It is the mark of the man that when technology at last reached a point where his ideas on training and far in advance of most of his superiors. leading members of his wing, Olds tactics no longer applied, he welcomed It was ignored for many years because created . The plan the change. it was contrary to contemporary doc- was elegantly simple: Modern F-4s Olds realized that the advent of trine—and, in truth, partly because of would imitate the call signs, routes, stealth, precision guided weapons, and his flamboyant nature. and flight profiles of more-vulner- sophisticated command and control Unfortunately, prior to the Vietnam able F-105s in a bid to coax North forever changed the dynamics of air War, he was never able to impose his Vietnamese fighters into a trap. The combat, and he said so. ideas with the same elegance that he tactics worked and induced the North He also labored over an autobiography used in leading the 8th TFW. Vietnamese Air Force to believe that that was not completed by the time of First and foremost, Olds wanted to a Phantom formation was indeed a his death, but that would be massively kill MiGs, but the North Vietnamese formation of Thunderchiefs. welcomed by his legion of fans. were canny. Few in number, they In the ensuing battle, seven MiG- After a long fight, Robin Olds suc- husbanded their resources, striking 21s were shot down, the biggest score cumbed to congestive heart failure against Republic F-105 formations of the war. on June 14, 2007, surrounded by his when they could do so safely. The Olds shot down the first of his four family and friends. He was interred North Vietnamese were content, if MiGs in this battle, raising his total at the Acad- necessary, with a preservationist strat- number of victories to 13 on the way emy Cemetery with full honors and a egy of just making the Thunderchiefs to a career total of 16. unique missing man formation. Four drop their bombs before they reached Phantoms roared over, and instead of the target area. A Promotion Long Overdue the customary pull up by the lead’s It was deeply satisfying for Olds to After his stint in the war, his Air wingman, in this instance, the lead see over Vietnam that all the ideas that Force career was distinguished by himself pulled up. It was an appropri- he had advocated—better airplanes, the popularity he enjoyed as a strict ate salute to the one, the only, Robin more training in air-to-air combat, but caring commandant of cadets at Olds, a leader all his life. ■ bombing, and close air support—had the Air Force Academy. He finally been correct all along. For Robin Olds, became a brigadier general in 1968 (a it was vindication. promotion long overdue in the minds Walter J. Boyne, former director of the Impatient with the reluctant enemy, of many), but subsequently was as- National Air and Space Museum in Olds conceived a plan that became signed to positions that did not lend Washington, D.C., is a retired Air Force the single most important air-to-air themselves to more promotions. colonel, author, and member of the engagement of the war, and which Yet promotions were the furthest thing National Aviation Hall of Fame. He has written more than 600 articles about started him into the second era of his from Olds’ mind. Asked by Air Force aviation topics and 50 books, the most career—the period in which he had Chief of Staff Gen. John D. Ryan in 1972 recent of which is Soaring to Glory. His immense effect on virtually everyone to investigate why the Air Force kill most recent article for Air Force Maga- in the Air Force. ratio had plummeted late in the Vietnam zine, “A Study in Stripes,” appeared in Calling on the skill and guile of the War, Olds came back with a blistering the March issue. 48 AIR FORCE Magazine / June 2008 AIR FORCE Magazine / June 2008 49