The 602nd Special Operations Squadron was a United States Air Force squadron that operated in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War.
The 602nd Fighter Squadron (Commando) was activated in May 1964 for the Vietnam War, and along with the 1st Air Commando Squadron, was a part of the 34th Tactical Group. The squadron became operational at Bien Hoa Air Base on 15 October 1964. By 1966 the squadron had been renamed the 602nd Air Commando Squadron and moved, fi rst to Nha Trang Air Base in South Vietnam, and then to Udorn Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand. In March 1968 it moved again to Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Navy Base. On 1 August 1968 it was redesignated the 602nd Special Operations Squadron, and was inactivated on 31 December 1970 at Nakhon Phanom. The original Squadron patch was drawn by Walt Disney in 1944. The sky was blue with a wisp of cloud behind the left wing of the eagle. No call sign was mounted above the patch.
The squadron operated A-1 Skyraiders under the call sign โFireflyโ. Their daylight task was the primary one of combat search and rescue of air crew downed in the Kingdom of Laos. A secondary task was night operations as fl areships supporting the Hmong guerrillas of General Vang Paoโs Clandestine Army in the Operation Barrel Roll area. At times, the squadron fl ew single ship sorties; they would also sometimes mark their own targets for their air strikes. [1]
This Firefly Funny Book chronicles a series of unofficial accounts recorded by multiple pilots between September 26, 1969, and February 11, 1970 while stationed in Nakhon Phanom Thailand. Special thanks to Art Bishop, Doug Carmichel, and to those men from the 602nd.