Lockheed P-2 Neptune —

Wow, interesting history.

This has been a mystery P-2V7 since I took this photo at the Nakhon Phanom airbase in Thailand in 1967. My squadron, VP-2, were flying Operation Market Time missions in Viet-Nam from '66 to '68 and were diverted to this field when things got a little hot on the ground. I think the US Army deployed this aircraft. As you can see, it had FLIR equipment in the nose and all of the engine exhaust were shielded. There no numbers on the aircraft and no markings at all.

Check out N4988N, the last K model (Nimrod) from NKP.

96flstc 55 minutes ago
Check out N4988N, the last K model (Nimrod) from NKP.

Nope, that's not the same aircraft. This is definitely a retro-fited P2V Neptune that was at the CIA base in Thailand when we landed there. Completely free of any identifying markings but we could tell that it was equipped with the initial version of FLIR so assumed someone was using it to fly the Trail looking for NVA movements into South Viet-Nam. I've tried for years to find out more about this aircraft but have had zero luck.

These images and the stories behind them are fantastic. There must be museums clamouring for these images. I hope your Father-in-law wrote down his stories. Kids these days know nothing and are taught nothing. It's images like this and the stories that go with them that hopefully prevent future conflicts on the scale of WWII and Vietnam! Thank you for sharing them!

I just looked up N4988N and that aircraft is a Douglas A-26 Invader, later redesignated a B-26 by the Air Force. I guess the didn't think it would create any confusion with the Maurader. The plane in the photo is definitely a P2V-7 Neptune. I used to fly on DP-2E Buno. 128347 while attached tto Fleet Composite Squadron Five at Naha, Okinawa in the early 70s.