All escaped the aircraft before it was consumed in flames except the engineer, who became Spectre's second combat fatality. A skeleton crew brought the aircraft back to Ubon where it crash landed. Most of the crew bailed out over Thailand and were recovered. At the very moment the aircraft was hit, the 16 SOS sustained its first KIA-the illuminator operator, who died from exploding AAA rounds, but not before he had warned the pilot and crew of the approaching deadly rounds. On, Spectre lost its first gunship and two crew members. Thus began another working relationship that is still in existence. The first escort was flown by the "Night Owls" of the 497th Tactical Fighter Squadron (TFS) also stationed at Ubon. December 1968 saw Spectre fly its first mission with F-4 escorts, a tactic implemented to protect the gunship against heavy and concentrated AAA.
#Spectre gunship Patch
On 26 September 1968, Spectre took its first hit from an antiaircraft artillery (AAA) emplacement near a Special Forces camp-Spectre had a new patch and was now battle damaged qualified. The early years of Spectre yielded many firsts. So began the close working relationship with Special Forces that Spectre enjoys to this day. The ground commander quickly assessed the accurate fire and capabilities of this weapon system and called for fire on his own perimeter when the Viet Cong attempted to bridge the wire on the west side of his position. On 18 August 1968, a gunship flying an armed reconnaissance mission in Vietnam's III Corps was diverted to support a Special Forces base at Katum. Even before Spectre was a squadron, it was utilized by Special Forces in Vietnam. The unit was equipped first with the AC-l30A gunship and later with the more advanced AC-l30E/H model. On 30 October 1968, the 16 SOS "Spectre" was activated at Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base (RTAFB), Thailand. It was at this time that the C-130A gunship was designated the AC-130A. While there, Detachment 2, 14th Air Commando Wing, was assigned to the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing and became the 16th Special Operations Squadron. In June 1968, Spectre was deployed to Tan Son Nhut AB near Saigon for support against the TET Offensive. This task force became Detachment 2, 14th Air Commando Wing. The first truck busting mission was flown on 9 November 1967. The first AC-130 gunship was known as "Super Spook" during those first few days of operation. The first combat mission was flown shortly thereafter on 27 September 1967. The bird saw its first combat when a C-130A Task Force was deployed to Nha Trang, Republic of Vietnam, on 20 September 1967. Spectre had its beginning when operational testing of a C-130 as a gunship was conducted at Eglin AFB FL from June through September of 1967.
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