Vietnam claims MiG pilot downed US bomber during war

U.S. airmen claimed they shot down two Vietnamese MiG-21 jets with tailguns during the operation—the last recorded instance of bombers shooting fighters with machine guns before these were removed from current B-52 fleets.

The Vietnamese account suggests that on December 27–28, pilot Pham Tuan allegedly shot down a B-52 using his MiG-21MF after taking off from Noi Bai airfield and engaging three bombers at high altitude. He recounted launching two K-13 heat-seeking missiles: “I launched two [K-13] heat-seeking missiles from a distance of 2 kilometers... When escaping, I clearly saw the moment when both missiles exploded upon hitting the target.”

Pham Tuan claimed he witnessed the B-52 burning and reported all crew members perished. History.net states that two U.S. Air Force B-52s were lost that night; crews attributed their loss to SAM attacks rather than aerial combat.

Pham Tuan was honored as Hero of the People's Armed Forces in Vietnam for his alleged actions and later became the first Vietnamese astronaut aboard Soviet Soyuz 37 mission.

Today, Pham Tuan's MiG-21MF is displayed outside Hanoi's Vietnam Military History Museum. Whether it truly brought down a B-52 remains debated amidst wartime confusion—though belief persists among many in Vietnam.

B-52 Superfortresses are known to have been largely taken out by S-75 SAM systems throughout their service history in Vietnam. These aircraft continue as integral parts of U.S strategic capabilities even expected beyond successors like the B1 Lancer and potentially into service until mid-century.