Comms & Bombs, Vietnam F-4 Pilot Tell-All (ep. 195)

Jim "Reaper" Dunlap was a #usmc #f4phantom #pilot who flew nearly 200 missions during his year in Vietnam.

...But it wasn't all flying--Reaper earned his callsign while spending three months on the ground with his fellow Marines, patrolling with them as an imbedded FAC or forward air controller coordinating air power for his ground unit.

#fighterpilot Podcast

[benjaminperez]

Thank you so much, Jell-O, Nack, and Reaper!
As a History major, there is nothing better than primary-source documents like these videos.
Keep going & Fly NAVY & MARINES!

[zaphodwashere]

Lost an uncle in Laos on 22 DEC 1967, he was an F4B pilot with VMF-122 flying from Da Nang. Daytime two ship to attack a 37mm gun emplacement near Xepon. They were hit on their 2nd pass, two good chutes. RIO was rescued 30 min later. No radio contact from the pilot. CPT Gary Fors MIA - DPAA case # 0947

[joeo]

Enjoyed this. I was in hydraulic shop VMFA-115 1968/69. I checked my cruise book and sure enough, there was a picture of Jim.

[mattg]

Very informative. Love the F-4 Phantom stories THX!!

[johnbrewer]

Nach/Reaper….Jeff and I cleaned it off before we ejected…that it retained a cpl mk82’s is news to me..about Rissell, I was in Lobo’s backseat and saw Exactly what happened..they fragged themselves…we followed Rich till they ejected..I was the one on guard telling the world we have an F4b w/ no crew…it slowly, finally rolled over from abt 1000 and went into a rice paddy…no ex-plosion/no fire, , just GONE

[johnb]

I'm just amazed how humble these guys are considering what they did under the conditions rhey did it in. Great job Jell-O and guests. You gotta have him back again. Bravo zulu.

[leelogan]

Thanks yet again to the Fighter Pilot Podcast for another great interview, this time talking with and about many guys I knew. It's particularly interesting to me how different everyone's experiences were. I think it must have made a big difference as to when exactly you were there and maybe even which squadron you were in. I heard a lot that I was familiar with and a lot that I know happened but that I had not experienced directly. Great to hear and really fascinating! Keep up the great work.

[bukstopshere]

After BASIC and flight school it seems like Reaper was moving assignments every 3 months.

[ShadesOClarity]

I used to see Maj. Gen. Mike Sullivan around town here in Cherry Point. His son Byron is now a full Colonel flying F-18s. I am not sure how much flying he's doing now that he's in command, but I remember when he was in catholic school. It appears from Google Earth that RWY 23 has an area for FCLP. This is a really good podcast, Jello.

[RCAvhstape]

Great interview. Semper Fidelis, and Eph Phours Phorever.

[The_ZeroLine]

Something about the Phantom always brings out the kid in me. It looks like a big toy that I really, really want to fly. Sadly, I’ll have to settle for flying a model with my hand.

[AgentPepsi]

My father was a Phantom driver for the USAF in Vietnam (1968-1971)

[troyledbetter]

Outstanding interview gents! Loved the Vietnam era content!

[colonelkurtz]

If you haven't seen BOTTOM GUN, a 3 minute Canadian spoof, it's worth a look. 😊

[michaelharper]

Koreans!!! My brother in law drove a Swiftboat offshore and he told me that he patrolled far offshore near a Korean sector. They shot first and asked questions later.

[antoniog]

At first I thought the stripe on the F-4s in the thumbnail was wrong, but after the intro, realized they weren't from VF-84, 😎👍

[The_ZeroLine]

Maybe I am totally misremembering. I thought there were multiple pilots taken down by SAMs during the war. Anyway, I was thinking that maybe you’d lose the “intimidation factor” since there is no cause and effect chain if GBUs are being dropped nonstop for them to recognize.

Watched every last minute. Great episode.

[MarkJones-skvk]

Great show. Always wanted to be a fighter pilot.

[merrittorius]

Nothings changed in the Corps, everything revolves around the party 😉 duty stations close to some action, good friends who can still drive to make sure we get a good aircraft selection, the important stuff 😂 Semper Fi and Welcome Home gents!

[carlfischer]

Really enjoyed this podcast, thanks. 👍 Always did like the looks of the F4. Used to have to hot pit fuel them at Cecil Field. That was an experience. Where did all that fuel go.