Scope and Contents

Approximately 12 linear feet of photographs, negatives, slides, artifacts, articles, clippings, correspondence, military administrative documents, certificates, flight records, and postcards document the career of Farley E. Peebles in the United States Air Force, particularly his service in Vietnam as the Commanding Officer at Tan Son Nhut Air Base, July 1967 to July 1968. The photographs in the collection include pictures of notables such as Lyndon B. Johnson, Lady Bird Johnson, Douglas MacArthur, Jimmy Doolittle, Creighton Abrams, John Tower, and Martha Raye.

Biographical / Historical

A veteran with 27 years active military service, Colonel Farley E. Peebles was the American most decorated by the government of the Republic of Vietnam, receiving six awards during his year of in-country service. Before going to Vietnam in July 1967, he had been commander of San Antonio's Kelly AFB. When he returned stateside in July 1968, Colonel Peebles was Chief of Personnel for the Fourth Air Force Reserve Region headquartered at Randolph AFB at Universal City, Texas. On 6 August 1969 he assumed command of Bergstrom AFB at Austin, Texas, where he was also Commander of the 75th Combat Support Group.

During his Vietnam service, July 1967 to July 1968, Colonel Peebles was commander of the Tan Son Nhut Air Base near Saigon. He was decorated six times by the government of the Republic of Vietnam, receiving: Order of Merit First Class, Choung My Medal First Class, Air Force Distinguished Order Second Class, Police Medal of Feat of Arms Second Class, Gallantry Cross with Silver Star, and Air Service Medal. Peebles' American awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster, Air Medal, Air Force Commendation Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, and Army Commendation Medal.

Colonel Peebles was commander of Tan Son Nhut Air Base during both the 1968 Tet Offensive and the 1968 May Offensive when the base was attacked and mortared by Viet Cong. During the May Offensive the Vietnamese base commander, Colonel Luu Kim Cuong, was killed, and Colonel Peebles was commended by Vice President Nguyen Cao Ky for directing U.S. defense forces and for having “obstructed and repelled many violent waves of VC attacks against the base.”

Colonel Peebles is a 1939 graduate of Brackenridge High School in San Antonio, Texas. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in education at Southwest Texas State Teachers College in San Marcos and his master's degree in administrative education at the University of Texas. Peebles was commissioned a pilot in October 1942 following aviation cadet training at Garner, Goodfellow and Moore Fields, all in Texas. A command pilot with more than 5000 hours of flying time, Colonel Peebles completed 34 combat missions flying F-51 Mustang fighters
during the Korean conflict.