A Douglas A-1E Skyraider of the 1st Special Operations Squadron sits loaded on the ramp at Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Force Base, 29 September 1968. Slung beneath its wing is a BLU-72/B fuel-air explosive bomb, an experimental 2,500-pound weapon developed under the Pave Pat I program and combat-tested in Southeast Asia. Rugged and heavily armed, the propeller-driven Skyraider was prized by Air Commando units for its long loiter time and devastating ordnance load in support of special operations and search-and-rescue missions over Laos and Vietnam. Project: 218822