of 21 year old Scotch purchased in 1971 by Brian Novak one of the original solicitation purposes, or any correspondence related thereto. The most common ethnicity of helicopter pilots is White (82.0%), followed by Hispanic or Latino (6.8%), Unknown (5.5%) and Asian (2.7%). [McCaffrey] Speech by Lt. Gen. Barry R. McCaffrey, (reproduced in the Pentagram, June 4, 1993) assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to Vietnam veterans and visitors gathered at "The Wall", Memorial Day 1993. Congress while the North Vietnamese were very well supplied by China and the Loud, sudden noises in a helicopter WILL get your undivided attention. Tran Van Don and the head of the secret police Tran Kim Tuyen. Many times when either our troopers on the ground or another unit was facing enemy fire these brave men would come in with weapons blazing either destroying the enemy or allowing the ground troops to attain and then maintain superior fire power. No matter what the enemy threw at them, they never backed down. For the latter, a specially equipped H-13 had optional blanked out external vision. Drinking and how not to get caught. The first one you will meet is retired Army Col. Douglas Moore, a medevac pilot in Vietnam. average age of vietnam helicopter pilot We took no hits on that mission, and as we lifted out of the landing zone, the fact that we cheated death again left me with all the exciting feelings I mentioned at the beginning of this article. Refining close formation skills was an immediate requirement, as airborne assaults could involve a tight gaggle of up to 40 helicopters, including ten gunships. Are you interested in testing our business solutions? keep your tail straight . The fall of Saigon happened 30 April 1975, two years AFTER the American military left Vietnam. Fast Contour flying as close to the ground as possible to avoid ground fire was also mastered. average age of vietnam helicopter pilot. VHPA Aviator (big file). The tactical situation is such that the ground troops cannot get the dead or wounded to a secure open area for evacuation. I will always thank Warrant Officer Study for his late-night, picture-perfect landing on the round end of the boat. Its just what they do. Get the details for all upcoming vietnam helicopter unit reunions. It happened many times, and their names are on The Wall in Washington, D.C. One particular mission I recall was a day hoist. At least, I believe that is how I would have felt had it been me. [The Wall Street Journal]. Warrant Officer Candidates (WOCs) then progressed to Fort Rucker, Alabama, or, from 1967, Hunter Army Airfield at Fort Stewart, Georgia, for advanced flight training and instrument flight instruction. Obviously, I was wrong, but I did not know it then. If so glad to know youre well. ), Once out to sea, landing on the ships was an interesting experience, especially when the decks were bouncing up and down like a fishing bobber with a carp under it. 86% of the men who died in Vietnam were Caucasians, 12.5% were black, 1.2% were other races. Occasionally, the gunner and crew chief had to exit temporarily to reduce the weight sufficiently for take off. [2]:3, The helicopters transported over 1,000 Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) paratroopers for an assault on a suspected Viet Cong (VC) stronghold 10 miles (16km) west of Saigon. (One has to realize that there was virtually no protection for the pilots from the front and little from the sides or underneath.) nfl open tryouts 2022 dates; liste des parc de maison mobile en floride; running 5k everyday for a month before and after; girls who code summer immersion program 2/3 of the men who served in Vietnam were volunteers. It has been said many times by Navy and Marine jet pilots that landing on an aircraft carrier is like landing on a postage stamp. During his two tours in Vietnam, Col. Moore flew 2,752 combat medevac mission and transported 2,952 wounded men back to the medical help they needed. "Pogo" Hunter who died in 1995. Or, to hear veteran helicopter pilots describe their personal experiences in the line of duty, click here. As well as prepping an LZ ahead of the slicks, gunship pilots could also warn crews flying troop carriers of threat areas, and advise them of enemy guns to avoid as they lifted out of the LZ. It was a "civilian" (Air America) Huey not Army or Marines. Flying is better than walking. As one of those troopers on the ground, I can honestly say how proud I am to have served with Brave men. Most of our Door Gunners and Crew Chiefs were also 18-21 years old. This included Basic Combat Training and Flight Training. All of these, however, are preferable to cold rice balls, even if they do have the little pieces of fish in them. Business Solutions including all features. Event date is used instead of declared dead date for some of those who were listed as missing in action). The early (65-68) Weapons Team was made up of two pilots, crew chief and a door gunner. k.. The Weapons Team. It turned out to be the best thing that happened to me, even though I was wounded before the year was out and sent home before my tour was over. Would love to chat with Bruce Huffman. It I can personally remember one time when we were pinned down due to superior enemy fire from a tree line and a weapons platoon helicopter (Cobra) sat just off to our right and lit up the tree line with such superior fire that the enemy was destroyed. I wonder how many grunts would have gotten on the hoist had they known that. Your email address will not be published. This famous picture is the property of UPI Corbus-Bettman Photo Agency. Always make sure someone has a P-38. No Pilot that I know of ever went into a combat situation without both. o.. [Nixon] No More Vietnams by Richard Nixon. Myth: The United States lost the war in Vietnam. it will be forwarded to the appropriate VHPA representative. Most were 19 or 20 years old, with a few experienced old men per platoon in their late twenties. [Home] [ReunionInformation] [Donations] [OurLegacy] [MembershipServices] [RelatedWebSites] Member Login. [McCaffrey], 87% of the American people hold Vietnam Vets in high esteem. Operation Chopper occurred on 12 January 1962 and was the first time U.S. forces participated in major combat in the Vietnam War. Traditions: The VHPA has developed some traditions over the The second pilot you will meet is retired CWO2 Allan Potter. Epilogue: Most people who see photos of Dustoff Hueys in Vietnam observe only the outside of the aircraft. Americans who deliberately killed civilians received prison sentences while Communists who did so received commendations. Please do not hesitate to contact me. Dustoff pilots with their unique seating arrangement is where that statement originated. See an example of our magazine, The I used to laugh at the occasional Huey slick driver who flew out to let guys from his unit use the shopping facilities on the ships. The last American troops departed in their entirety 29 March 1973. They were the ones who flew the troops into and out of battle. The biggest responsibility of a helicopter pilot was to fly that helicopter in such a manner as to provide support for the men on the ground. Section 501(c)(19) of the Internal Revenue Service. I can tell you what in my opinion made the best pilots. Ancient U.S. Army proverb. The UH-1 evolved from a 1955 US Army competition for a new utility helicopter. It was NOT the U.S. Embassy. bombers and were always exposed to hostile fire even in their base camps. It called for release of all U.S. prisoners, withdrawal of U.S. forces, limitation of both sides' forces inside South Vietnam and a commitment to peaceful reunification. Ground troops typically did not enter a sprayed area until four to six weeks after being sprayed. During a hoist mission, we flew with one finger on a button on the cyclic stick that operated an electric solenoid. The South Vietnamese ran out As soon as he stepped from the left side to the right, the aircraft tipped. Over the ten years of the war, Operation Ranch Hand sprayed about eleven million gallons of Agent Orange on the South Vietnamese landscape. The average infantryman in the South Pacific during World War II saw about 40 days of combat in four years. The U.S. Embassy and its helipad were much larger. (Although 58,169 names are in the Nov. 93 database, only 58,148 have both event date and birth date. Online membership advertising and other information. The others on board simply assumed he was also headed for dinner, but I knew the true meaning of his statement. War is brutal and not fair. More realities about war: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) - it was not invented or unique to Vietnam Veterans. The emotions are almost indescribable, but there was one more feeling: relief from being so scared! Those Hueys were their horses and they rode into battle en masse, to deliver their troops and evacuate the wounded. On one particularly difficult night MedEvac in the mountains, all our windows fogged up as we dropped from 7,000 feet through a hole in the clouds to pick up a Soldier with a head wound. Here is an example done at the 2005 Overview and forecasts on trending topics, Industry and market insights and forecasts, Key figures and rankings about companies and products, Consumer and brand insights and preferences in various industries, Detailed information about political and social topics, All key figures about countries and regions, Market forecast and expert KPIs for 600+ segments in 150+ countries, Insights on consumer attitudes and behavior worldwide, Business information on 60m+ public and private companies, Detailed information for 35,000+ online stores and marketplaces. ab.. Thousands of Vietnam Veterans earned medals for bravery every day. i.. Chicken Plates are not something you order in a restaurant. Average age of 58,148 killed in Vietnam was 23.11 years. One pilot lost a testicle to a .50-caliber round and was able to father only 44 children (at last count) after returning from overseas. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for NEW 2008 HASBRO GI Joe Helicopter Pilot Wild Bill 25th Anniversary FREE SHIPPING at the best online prices at eBay! First of all, there was landing on the Navy Hospital ships, USS Repose and USS Sanctuary, in the South China Sea, very near the Demilitarized Zone. When sprayed on dense jungle foliage, less that 6 percent ever reached the ground. The pilots who were flying this helicopter, (CACF and Westmoreland), Sociologists Charles C. Moskos and John Sibley Butler, in their recently published book "All That We Can Be," said they analyzed the claim that blacks were used like cannon fodder during Vietnam "and can report definitely that this charge is untrue. Larry Clark and Mike Law in 1990. As soon as this statistic is updated, you will immediately be notified via e-mail. was several blocks from the Pittman Apartments. Later, the crew became a two-man pilot team. In the last decade, 69 nations have held multi-party elections for the first time in their histories. Back home in the real world, my buddies were at the drive-in, drinking beer and looking for a carload of girls to flirt with, just as I had been doing a year or two before. years. In reference to Mr. Walker, would he also be the same pilot that was nick named, Baby Huey in Vietnam? of what you can do online at https://www.vhpa.org/memhelp.htm#ODA, To preserve the legacy of all Vietnam Helicopter Pilots, an endowment Myth: The American military was running for their lives during the fall of Saigon in April 1975. an.. A grunt is the true reason for the existence of the helicopter. Information contained herein shall not be used for commercial confidential. Dario Leone is an aviation, defense and military writer. The VHPA is a social organization only and If we waited for gunship support, it may be too late for the wounded, so most times we tried to sneak in and sneak out (if thats possible in a clattering helicopter) and complete the rescue before the enemy had TOO much time to shoot us up . As an elevator at the reunion hotel was transporting me and other attendees to the Saturday night banquet, another Dustoff pilot stepped on from his floor. Even then, there could be no guarantee that the slicks would be able to land and then depart without being targeted by enemy fire. I then realized that ole PP back there was just sitting in the hell hole taking it all in, not doing a thing! looking good. Five minutes or more seemed like hours while we sat in the air over the ground troops, taxing every bit of professionalism we hadand the reader better believe we had the utmost professionalism. time than any other aircraft in the history of warfare assuming you count actual The crewmen I flew with on hoist missions (like me, in their teens and early 20s) were absolutely the best, and I wish I could shake every one of their hands and hug them today. Add to that, it is also the most unforgiving mission flown in a helicopter. On what turned out to be his final mission, they were to pick up wounded on a mountain top, but got caught in heavy fire while making their approach. When I found out that I was assigned to be a MedEvac pilot, I was devastated. plaque made from the mold for the AH-1G prototype collective grip. to incorporate the statistic into your presentation at any time. A third tradition is a bottle 79% had a high school education or better. The third pilot is retired Col. David Rainey U.S. Army. sent to webmaster@vhpa.org whereupon A hoist mission was just the opposite. [1996 Information Please Almanac] 1995 Information Please Almanac Atlas & Yearbook 49th edition, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston & New York 1996, pages 117, 161 and 292. The average age of an employed helicopter pilot is 44 years old.