THE WALL OF FACES

Spent many hours talking about the future. We made some great plans .

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.

I was there that morning and saw the first rocket hit where I had just been. That memory is forever embedded in my mind. R.I.P. Bill Follon.

Phu Cat Air Base was a U.S. Air Force and Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF) facility located north of the city of Qui Nhon in Binh Dinh Province, RVN. At 6:37 AM on February 2, 1970, Phu Cat received ten rounds of 122mm Soviet rocket fire. The early morning assault, which was not during the usual 11:00 PM to 3:00 AM time frame that stand-off attacks against the base generally occurred, happened while a group of U.S. airmen were awaiting a shuttle to an outbound aircraft. A fragment from one of the projectiles reportedly went through the roof of the terminal and critically injured SGT William E. Follon. He was taken to the 37th USAF Dispensary on base where a medic and physician immediately began treating him. Follon, suffering serious head trauma, began having trouble breathing, and, despite their best efforts to revive him, expired. Fifteen other USAF and four U.S. Army personnel were also injured during the attack. The barrage caused minor damage to two buildings; however, no aircraft were reported hit. It was the first indication that 122mm Soviet rockets were being employed by the enemy in Binh Dinh Province. Republic of Korea (ROK) crater analysis personnel established a probable launch site, and a company of ROK infantry set out to the area with gunship support. The unit discovered the actual launch site and sighted six North Vietnamese Army soldiers, killing one and capturing one AK-47 rifle. [Taken from coffeltdatabase.org and “Project CHECO Southeast Asia Report: Local Base Defense in RVN, January 1969 – June 1971” at vietnamwar50th.com; also, information provided by Brian Hopfinger (2021)]

We had a lot of good times together. Lots of laughs and work. Think of Bill often.