Stinson L5 - Vietnam war?

[menef]

Can someone please tell me if the L5 was used during the Vietnam conflict? I don't think so coz no informaton about this are available,
but the product page at Justflight states :

"Seeing service in WWII and the Korean and Vietnam conflicts, to name but three, Sentinels have flown across deserts, operated from dense jungle airstrips and in freezing conditions of snow and ice."

On the web I've only found some pics taken during the Korean war but not in Vietnam,

Just to know it !
Thanks in advance

[ian elliot]

Im guessing they were operated by the French and passed on to the South Vietnamese airforce when the French pulled out in 1956, I think also there were a few supporting the OSS and Viet Min fighting the Japanese in Indochina during WW2

[fsafranek]

From looking at wikipedia there is no military mention beyond Korea era. Also no mention of France or South Vietnam using them.
But wiki is not the last word on the subject of course.
:ernaehrung004:

[gaucho_59]

FYI:

Il fut utilisé aussi bien par l'USAAF que par l'US Navy et l'US Marine Corps, et ce aussi bien sur le théâtre européen que dans le Pacifique. C'est ainsi qu'il reçut son surnom de "Flying Jeep". Il reprit également du service lors de la guerre de Corée et fut utilisé, du moins en première ligne, jusqu'en 1955. La RAF reçut 40 L-5 Sentinel I et 60 L-5B Sentinel II, qui furent utilisés en Inde et en Birmanie. L'Australie loua un exemplaire de 1944 à 1946.

Après la guerre, les surplus furent revendus aux forces aériennes de Grèce, d'Inde (environ 200 exemplaires), d'Italie (environ 100 exemplaires utilisés de 1946 jusque dans les années 1950), du Japon (armée de terre), de Corée du Sud, des Philippines (armée de terre de 1945 à 1947, et force aérienne), du Pakistan (reçus en 1948, après la partition avec l'Inde), de Pologne (un seul exemplaire, désormais exposé), de Taïwan, de Chine et de Thaïlande.

According to this source... it was used by USAAF, USN and USMC and surely more in the ETO than the PTO.... kept in service in Korean War and retired in 1955. The RAF received 40 Sentinels and 60 Sentinels II which saw use in Burma and India.
Australia used one from 1944 to 1946. Surplus examples were sold to the Greek, India (about 200), Italy (100 in service from 1946 until 1950), Japanese Army, South Korea, the Philippines (Army 1945-47), Pakistan (got them in 1948 after partition of India), Poland (only 1), Taiwan and Thailand. The French Armee de L'Air never got any...

G.

[fsafranek]

"Seeing service in WWII and the Korean and Vietnam conflicts, to name but three, Sentinels have flown across deserts, operated from dense jungle airstrips and in freezing conditions of snow and ice."
That's straight from the Aeroplane Heaven manual. I would imagine the idea of any use in Vietnam would have come from a photo of some private aircraft painted to resemble something from the USAF in the 1960's.

I did find an article (https://warontherocks.com/2019/08/airpower-orphans-part-ii-whatever-happened-to-liaison-aircraft/) talking about the use of liaison aircraft for battlefield observation purposes.

The U.S. Army then purchased thousands of military variants of the J.3 Piper Cub (called L-4 Grasshoppers) and Stinson’s L-5 Sentinel, and used them extensively in every theater of war. That capability lasted through Korea, waned afterwards, and came back with a vengeance in Vietnam.
That "vengence in Vietman" was fulfilled by the O-1 and O-2, not the L-5.

Hope this helps.
:ernaehrung004:

[jmbiii]

FWIW - My father flew L-4s as an artillery spotter during WWII. We lived in Bad Hersfeld, Germany, US sector, from 1947 to 1959 where he flew the L-5 for the US Army Constabulary on border patrols along the US and Russian sectors. From 1952 through 1954 he flew the L-5 in an advisory position with the US Army MAAG in Formosa (Taiwan).

Germany
https://i.imgur.com/70dfjMv.jpg

Formosa
https://i.imgur.com/nwx4PEF.jpg

[srgalahad]

Im guessing they were operated by the French and passed on to the South Vietnamese airforce when the French pulled out in 1956, I think also there were a few supporting the OSS and Viet Min fighting the Japanese in Indochina during WW2

https://forums.armchairgeneral.com/forum/historical-events-eras/vietnam-war/indochina-1945-1954/21215-indochina-1945-1954/page9

The discussion above indicates the L-5 was used (with some detail and some questions) by the US military/OSS at the end of WWII in Vietnam. Nothing I have found indicates the disposition of these aircraft (scrapped transferred, abandoned?) at the end of the War in 1945 so it is entirely possible some were flown in the "Vietnam conflict" between 1945 and the 1960's before direct US involvement but by whom is open to conjecture.

Reading back and forth in the above discussion, it can be found that many captured/loaned/assigned aircraft were operated, including ex-Japanese AF aircraft by the French, so it's an open point whether the L-5 operated there, but not necessarily by the USAAC/USAF as some might want to believe.

[menef]

FWIW - My father flew L-4s as an artillery spotter during WWII. We lived in Bad Hersfeld, Germany, US sector, from 1947 to 1959 where he flew the L-5 for the US Army Constabulary on border patrols along the US and Russian sectors. From 1952 through 1954 he flew the L-5 in an advisory position with the US Army MAAG in Formosa (Taiwan).

Germany
https://i.imgur.com/70dfjMv.jpg

Formosa
https://i.imgur.com/nwx4PEF.jpg

Nice pics and interesting comments, thanks to all:very_drunk:

[awstub]

https://forums.armchairgeneral.com/forum/historical-events-eras/vietnam-war/indochina-1945-1954/21215-indochina-1945-1954/page9

The discussion above indicates the L-5 was used (with some detail and some questions) by the US military/OSS at the end of WWII in Vietnam. Nothing I have found indicates the disposition of these aircraft (scrapped transferred, abandoned?) at the end of the War in 1945 so it is entirely possible some were flown in the "Vietnam conflict" between 1945 and the 1960's before direct US involvement but by whom is open to conjecture.

Reading back and forth in the above discussion, it can be found that many captured/loaned/assigned aircraft were operated, including ex-Japanese AF aircraft by the French, so it's an open point whether the L-5 operated there, but not necessarily by the USAAC/USAF as some might want to believe.

I think you are pretty much correct. Over the years, I have done quite a lot of research on the post-WW2 Southeast Asia conflicts and I haven't yet seen anything regarding the L-5.
That being said, South Korea and Thailand were L-5 operators and it could be possible that they may have been in service with them during the wars.