Light Attack Squadron Four (VAL-4)
"Black Ponies"
Vung Tau & Binh Thuy, South Vietnam
January 1969 ~ April 1972

     As 1968 Drew To A Close It Was Apparent That An Increased Naval Presence In The Mekong Delta Was Necessary. After Launching Operation SEALORD (South East Asia Lake Ocean River Delta Strategy) In October, Admiral Zumwalt (COMNAVFORV) Took Steps To Improve The Air Coverage That HAL-3 Was Providing Flying UH-1B 'Huey' Helicopters From Detachments In The Delta. Since No Other Helicopters Were Available, Focus Switched To Finding A Fixed Wing Aircraft That Would Meet The Requirements. The Mission To Provide Air Support To River Patrol Forces In The Mekong Delta And The Rung Sat Special Zone Required An Airframe That Could Respond Quickly, Loiter In The Target Area, And Provide An Assortment Of Firepower.

PC-6      After Congress Balked At A "Sole Source" Contract That Would Allow The Navy To Purchase A Fairchild-Hiller Version Of The "Platypus Porter" Aircraft, It Was Decided To Borrow OV-10's From The Marine Corps.

     North American Rockwell Had Developed The OV-10A "Bronco" In Response To The Defense Departments Request For A Light Armed Reconnnaissance / Counter Insurgency Aircraft (LARA /COIN) In 1965. The Marines Were the First To Take Delivery Of The Final Production Version Of The OV-10 In 1968, Followed Soon By The Air Force. Both Services Used The "Bronco" Primarily For Reconnaissance And Forward-Air-Control.

     The Black Ponies Of Light Attack Squadron Four (VAL-4) Came Into Being On January 3, 1969 When The Squadron Was Commissioned At Naval Air Station North Island Located Across The Bay From San Diego, California.

     The Black Ponies Established Two In-Country Detachments In March, 1969; Detachment Alpha Conducted Flight Operations From The US/VN Air Force Base At Binh Thuy On The Hau Giang (Bassac) River North West Of The Mekong Delta's Largest City - Can Tho. Detachment Bravo Was Located On The Army Airfield Near The In-Country Beach Town Of Vung Tau On The South China Sea.

NSA Binh Thuy     The Squadron's Headquarters Were Located At The Naval Support Activity Detachment At Binh Thuy That Was Also The Home Of The Task Force 116 'Game Warden' Operation.

     Flying Operations Began At Both Detachments In April; Initially The Black Ponies Flew Four Types Of Missions - Armed Patrols, Overhead Air Cover, Naval Gunfire/Artillery Spotting, And Quick Reaction 'Scramble' Alerts. By Utilizing An External Fuel Tank, Black Pony Bronco's Were Capable Of Providing Four To Five Hours Of On-Station Air Coverage To Army Mobile Riverine Forces And Brown Water Navy Sailors Deployed Around The Mekong Delta. The Vung Tau Detachment Was Also Assigned The Additional Duties Of Providing Air Protection Along The Main Shipping Channel Going To Saigon And Patrolling The Rung Sat Special Zone With A Marine Observer. (What Was The Rung Sat - It's An Interesting Read, Wish I had Read It Before Jumping Out Of A Helicopter At The Crash Site - But "Higher Authority" Deemed We Didn't Need To Know)

     The Ability To Carry An Abundance Of Ordnance Farther And Faster Than A Helicopter Quickly Made The Black Ponies A Popular Choice Of The Ground Troops. In 1970 The Black Ponies Expended 5,450,383 Rounds Of 7.62mm Ammunition; 75,616 Rounds Of 20mm Ammunition; 68,849 2.75 Inch Rockets; 10,436 Flares; And 35,824 Five Inch "Zuni" Rockets. In Addition To The Number Of Confirmed Kills-By-Air And The Number Of Structures, Bunkers, And Sampans Destroyed, The Black Ponies Were Credited With Destroying Thirty-Six Enemy .51 Cal. Gun Sites.

     04/69-12/69   01/70-12/70   01/71-12/71   01/72-04/72   Total 
 Sorties Flown   5,395   7,354   7,004   2,049   21,802 
 Flight Hours   9,613   15,268   14,250   3,731   42,862 
 Confirmed Enemy Kills   751   1,090   2,425   221   4,487 
 Structures Destroyed   897   1,248   959   184   3,288 
 Bunkers Destroyed   239   504   1,010   366   2,119 
 Sampans Destroyed   307   311   347   71   1,036 

     The 7th Air Force Controlled All Air Operations In Vietnam And Their "Rules Of Engagement" Limited The Black Ponies To "Forward Firing Ordnance". After A Fire On The USS Forrestal In 1967 And On The USS Enterprise In 1969, The Navy Transfered It's Inventory Of 5" Zuni Rockets To VAL-4. Eventually The Black Ponies Would Be Given The CBU-55 FAE (Fuel-Air-Explosive) Parachute Retarded Bomb As The Bronco Was The Only Aircraft The Navy Had That Could Deploy It Efficiently. By The Time The Squadron Was Decommissioned On April 10, 1972 The Black Ponies Had Dropped Over 11,000 Pounds Of Ordnance Costing More Than $22,500,000. In April 1971, VAL-4 Black Ponies Were Scrambled And Engaged An SL-8 Enemy Trawler And Were Credited With Assisting In The Sinking Of A Steel Hulled Enemy Vessel Capable Of Carrying 250 Tons Of Arms And Supplies.

     By The End Of Their Three Years Of Flying Missions In Vietnam Approximately 650 Men Had Served In VAL-4; 123 Of Them Were Pilots. Seven Aircraft Were Lost; Six Pilots And One Observer Were Killed In Action; And Eight Pilots And One Observer Were Wounded In Action.

CHRONOLOGY OF SIGNIFICANT EVENTS

  • September 1968: VS-41 At NAS North Island Was Assigned The Responsibility Of Training Personnel Scheduled For Assignment To VAL-4.
  • October 1968: The First OV-10A Broncos Were Delivered To NAS North Island.
  • January 1969: VAL-4 Was Established With The Mission Of Conducting Surveillance And Offensive Operations In Support Of River Patrol Craft As Well As Providing Air Support For SEALs And Combined U.S. Navy, Army, Marine And South Vietnamese Operations.
  • March 1969: VAL-4 Was Deployed To Vietnam And Set-Up Operations At Binh Thuy And Vung Tau.
  • April 1969: The Squadron Began Flying Combat Operations From Both Locations.
  • April ~ May 1970: VAL-4's OV10 Broncos Participated In Combined U.S. And South Vietnamese Riverine Force Operations Designed To Neutralize Sanctuary Bases In The Mekong River Corridor In Support Of U.S And South Vietnamese Strikes Against Enemy Sanctuaries In Cambodia.
  • July 21, 1970: With The Completion Of It's New Facilities The Squadron's Bravo Detacchment At Vung Tau Was Dis-Established And Flight Operations Were Consolidated At Binh Thuy.
  • March 31, 1972: The Squadron Conducted Its Last Combat Mission Prior To It Being Disestablished In The Phillipines On April 10, 1972.

Commanding Officers And Date Assigned

  • Commander Gilbert L. Winans  ~  03 Jan 1969
  • Commander Martin S. Schuman  ~  06 Sep 1969
  • Commander Verle S. Klein  ~  05 Mar 1970
  • Commander Leonard M. Rausch  ~  03 Sep 1970
  • Commander Robert W. Porter  ~  03 Mar 1971

Unit Awards for VAL-4

  • Navy Unit Citation  ~  1 APR 71 - 31 Oct 71
  • Meritorious Unit Citation  ~  26 Mar 69 - 03 Sep 69
  • Republic Of Vietnam Meritorious Unit Citation With Gallantry Cross  ~  21 Nov 68 - 21 Nov 70

Unit Awards for Det. "B"

  • Navy Unit Citation  ~  14 June 69 - 12 Aug 69
  • Presidential Unit Citation  ~  24 June 69  - 28 Feb 70
Revised: March 2009