WWII fighter ace and ‘Wolf Pack’ founder Robin Olds dead at 84

http://stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=46782

WWII fighter ace and ‘Wolf Pack’ founder Robin Olds dead at 84

By Franklin Fisher, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Wednesday, June 20, 2007


PYEONGTAEK, South Korea — Retired Brig. Gen. Robin Olds, the go-get-’em fighter ace and venerated founder of the “Wolf Pack” fighter wing died June 14 of congestive heart failure, the Air Force said Monday.

He was 84 and had been regarded by many in the Air Force as a living legend.

During World War II, Olds shot down 12 German planes and was credited with crippling another 11½ on the ground. In Vietnam he shot down four North Vietnamese MiG fighters.

After leaving Vietnam in December 1967, Olds served as commandant of cadets at the U.S. Air Force Academy through 1971 and retired in 1973 as a brigadier general.

He is perhaps best known for his Vietnam War service as the first commander of what was then the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing in Thailand — now the 8th Fighter Wing based at Kunsan Air Base in South Korea.

“He was our founder,” wing spokeswoman Capt. Tiffany G. Payette said Monday.

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I was in the 281st Assault Helicopter Company, Gun ship Platoon which was named "Wolf Pack". We operated solely with 5th Special Forces out of Nha Trang Vietnam. We wore civilian clothing because of the type of operations we were involved in. By civilian clothing I mean not US government issue. They were still fatigues only manufactured in Vietnam and called Tiger stripe fatigues and all ARVN Rangers wore the same clothing as did all Special Forces in the field. Our motto was "Death on Call" I have covered a lot of territory since those days, figuratively speaking that is.