page_title: Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base
section_title: F-105 Thunderchief operations
hierarchical_section_title: Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base / History / 388th Tactical Fighter Wing / F-105 Thunderchief operations
caption_attribution_description: English: 34th Tactical Fighter Squadron - Republic F-105D-10-RE Thunderchief - 60-0518
context_page_description: Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base is a base of the Royal Thai Air Force in northeast Thailand, approximately 250 km northeast of Bangkok and about 8 km south of the centre of Nakhon Ratchasima Province, the largest province in Thailand.
  During the Vietnam War, from 1962 to 1975, Korat RTAFB was a front-line facility of the United States Air Force in Thailand.
  During the 1980s and early-1990s, the airfield was jointly operated as a civil airport for Nakhon Ratchasima. This ended with the opening of Nakhon Ratchasima Airport in the early-1990s.
context_section_description: The 388th TFW initially consisted of two F-105 Thunderchief squadrons, the 421st Tactical Fighter Squadron and the 469th Tactical Fighter Squadron. On 15 May 1966 the 44th Tactical Fighter Squadron was permanently attached to the 388th. The 421st and 469th Tactical Fighter Squadrons flew single-seat F-105Ds, while the 44th flew the two-seat F-105F.
  Also on 15 May, an F-4C Phantom II squadron, the 34th Tactical Fighter Squadron and an F-105F squadron, the 13th Tactical Fighter Squadron were deployed and permanently attached to the 388th from the 347th TFW, Yokota AB, Japan and Kadena AB, Okinawa.
  The 388th TFW lost 48 aircraft in combat during 1967. Seven others were lost due to non-combat reasons. Forty-three pilots and electronic warfare officers (EWO) were listed as killed (KIA) or missing in action (MIA). Fifteen were rescued.
  In March 1967 F-105s from the 388th TFW carried out the first attacks on North Vietnam's Thái Nguyên ironworks, destroying its power plant on 16 March. On 11 August 1967 388th TFW F-105s participated in the first attack on the Paul Doumer Bridge in Hanoi which successfully destroyed one span of the bridge.
  The high attrition rate of F-105Ds in Southeast Asian operations soon became a problem. The conversion of USAFE units to the F-4D Phantom enabled some of the European-based F-105Ds to be transferred to Southeast Asia, but this was not sufficient to offset the heavy attrition rate. On 23 April 1967, the 421st TFS was re-designated the 44th Tactical Fighter Squadron. In October 1967 the 44th TFS absorbed the mission and makeup of 13th TFS. The 13th was transferred to Udorn RTAFB to become an F-4D Phantom unit. Its aircraft and personnel were absorbed by the 44th TFS. With these re-organizations, the 44th TFS possessed both D and F model Thunderchiefs. The squadron's primary mission became one of flying escort to the wing's regular strike force to suppress anti-aircraft artillery (AAA) and surface-to-air missile (SAM).
  On 22 December 1967 President Lyndon Johnson visited Korat RTAFB, spending the night at the base.
caption: 34th TFS F-105D 60-0518
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