Operation FARM GATE
October 1, 1961 - November 30, 1961
As part of Operation FARM GATE, the 4400th “Jungle Jim” Combat Crew Training Squadron, a U.S. Air Force counterinsurgency unit, arrives at Bien Hoa Air Base. Its mission is to train South Vietnamese pilots to fly older, propeller-driven aircraft for combat support and reconnaissance. The American pilots, however, also begin flying combat missions themselves. They disguise the missions as training by flying with South Vietnamese personnel on board their aircraft.1