Vince Small
Born 1947 in Fairmont, MN
United
States Air Force Vietnam-Era Veteran
The
Vietnam War was the lead story on the nightly TV news and in the daily newspaper
headlines when Vince Small graduated from Fairmont High School in 1965. After a
couple years of college education under his belt, Small made the decision to
enlist in the United States Air Force to help the war effort.
Once
through basic training, the Fairmont native was assigned work in accounts
control at Nellis Air Force Base near Las Vegas, Nevada. “It was basically an
office job,” he admitted.
But
Small’s duties weren’t limited to desk work. He also worked on the flight line
with the new F-111A swing wing fighter aircraft with the 474th
Tactical Fighter Wing. At the time, the swept winged jet had experienced
several crashes during sorties over North Vietnam, not due to enemy action but caused
by wing and tail structural defects. The aircraft losses caused a storm of criticism
in the U.S. over the safety of the fighter plane. Small recalls the Air Force
was still testing the airplane and making modifications to improve its reliability
when he was stationed at Nellis AFB.
One
of his most memorable jobs was working the flight line. “One of the jobs we did
was to clean any radioactivity from the wings of the F-111As after they returned
to base following a mission.” The Air Force was working with the aircraft’s
manufacturer to replace parts and improve the reliability of the cutting-edge
moveable wing airplane. “We were trying to do something to help make that plane
better and possibly help save lives of the servicemen flying them,” Small said.
“Our function on the ground was to be part of a team to get those aircraft back
up and in the air again.”
Following
his honorable discharge from the Air Force, Small joined the Air Force Reserves
and returned to Southern Minnesota before heading to Big Rapids, Michigan to
earn an accounting degree at Ferris State University. He was given his final
discharge from military service in 1971. Small became a certified Public
Accountant and runs a CPA practice in Mankato.
Story and Image © 2017 Joseph Kreiss Photography
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