Even though I had yet to fly my first hour of combat, I had already done many incredible things that my high school and college friends could not even dream of. 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. We lost a lot of Pilots but we also lost a lot of Crew Chiefs and Door Gunners. There was a down side to the over-sized appendages, however. However, these same 18-year-old young men attended flight school and were given responsibility to operate a multi million dollar helicopter. "The aviation units were the sole combat element of the U.S. Army that did not come. The last American troops departed in their entirety 29 March 1973. Servicemen who went to Vietnam from well-to-do areas had a slightly elevated risk of dying because they were more likely to be pilots or infantry officers. Scared that maybe, just maybe, youll fail your mission where someone else just like you would have succeeded. 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. You can only download this statistic as a Premium user. Terry Clark? Thanks for the memories. As MedEvac helicopter pilots, we flew the only Army Hueys equipped with the electric hoist/winch. Refining close formation skills was an immediate requirement, as airborne assaults could involve a tight gaggle of up to 40 helicopters, including ten gunships. I did well enough to make the school, along with about 25 of my classmates. 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. In fact, we all did well. My father mentioned a pilot and I was curious if this was one of the same. Age 60 to 64 --------$350.00 Age 65 to 69 --------$250.00 reunion. I then realized that ole PP back there was just sitting in the hell hole taking it all in, not doing a thing! We grabbed some unsuspecting Schmuck and told him to get his weapon and some ammo and run with us to the aircraft. It was a "civilian" (Air America) Huey not Army or Marines. All through flight school, we were taught by gun pilots, slick drivers, scout pilots (although not as many of the scout pilots, they had a high loss ratio), and oh, yes, ONE Dustoff pilot. Please support The Veterans Site by adding us to your ad blockers whitelist ads help us to provide food and supplies to veterans. Uh, thats a can opener for those of you who arent military. Annual car sales worldwide 2010-2022, with a forecast for 2023, Number of cars sold in the U.S. 1951-2021, Battery electric vehicles in use worldwide 2016-2021, Annual gas prices in the United States 1990-2021, Automotive industry worldwide - statistics & facts, Motorcycle industry in the United States - statistics & facts, Profit from additional features with an Employee Account. The DA-4733-DSC should not be confused with the much more common DA-4734-GSTT (Gunship Sized Tiny Testicles), where other pilots made up for their lack of size with big guns and big wrist watches. 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. who is now retired in Arizona. 66 founding members. Nighttime was even worse. I have no idea who he was, but we logged his flight time as PP: Patient Protector.. . Most Agent Orange contained .0002 of 1 percent of dioxin. member. May 18, 2021. Helicopters were used in more than 850,000 medical evacuation missions and were responsible for boosting survival rates for the wounded. As a Premium user you get access to the detailed source references and background information about this statistic. All of these, however, are better than extraction by Medavac, even if it is technically, a form of flying. Wainwright Station
When the Army decided to use helicopters as the Eyes, Protection and Horses of the 1st Cavalry Division, men both young and older were chosen to become pilots. Is this the Steve DaCosta who was friend of my brother W.O. survive the 365 days in Southeast Asia was to be a gunship pilot, blazing my way back to the states, defending myself with mini-guns, rockets, and grenade launchers. Sometimes, being good and lucky still is not enough. Those Hueys were their horses and they rode into battle en masse, to deliver their troops and evacuate the wounded. It is a bad thing to run out of airspeed, altitude, and ideas all at the same time. . The domino theory was accurate. (the herbicide was called "orange" in Vietnam, not Agent Orange. I would NOT fly unarmed helicopters! 79% had a high school education or better. Being scared in the sense of risking ones life for others, for sure, but also a sense of being scared that you will not be up to the standards of your fellow pilots. dont care. They were the ones who flew the troops into and out of battle. As soon as this statistic is updated, you will immediately be notified via e-mail. I and many more just like me can only say Thank You for all that you did. e.. Cover your Buddy, so he can be around to cover for you. We dont have any place for you to land, so just hang your butts out in the open sky for several minutes so any kid with a bow and arrow can shoot you down, and Gee, those red crosses on your helicopter sure make great aiming points, dont they? [CACF]. It was misreported then, and it is misremembered now. [VHPA databases], Army AH-1G's totaled more than 1,166,344 flight hours in Vietnam. Most were 19 or 20 years old, with a few experienced old men per platoon in their late twenties. The total of non-pilot crewmembers killed was 2,704, according to records of the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots' Association. Joe Treen, People.com, 21 April 2000. This included Basic Combat Training and Flight Training. . They were heavily armed with mini-guns, machine guns, and various kinds of rockets. And two are in Africa: Tanzania (October 1995) and Guinea (June 1995). The American military was not defeated in Vietnam. The average age of an employed helicopter pilot is 45 years old. It was called "shell shock" and other names in previous wars. Federal Aviation Administration. I am so very proud to have served with them. You were way more mature for your age than 99% of the young men today. to Europe and both have since died. EVERYTHING I NEEDED TO KNOW IN LIFE I LEARNED AS A HELICOPTER PILOT IN VIETNAM. Helicopters needed far more hands on piloting than fixed wing types. Parameters for authorizing operating a US Navy submarine reactor plant above practicable design limits is Read More, Additionally, 1.3 million of those five million flight hours were accomplished during combat. When they saw one flying balls out, they knew it was a Dustoff on an urgent mission. . U.S. active certificated pilots - number 1990-2020, Worldwide aircraft fleet age by region 2020-2030, Air traffic - passenger growth rates forecast 2019-2040. Hot garrison chow is better than hot C-rations which, in turn, is better than cold C-rations which, in turn, is better than no food at all. See also The History of the Ranch Hand Epidemiologic Investigation. one of 42 pictures of this helicopter that UPI photographer, Hubert Van Es took Have you ever heard the expression, He was flying the aircraft balls out? That was us. x.. Medals are OK, but having your body and all your friends in one piece at the end of the day is better. . Funds are paid by Greater Good Charities to benefiting organizations as a grant. Every helicopter flying in Vietnam had one real purpose: To help the grunt. The gunships that were escorting him told Al to put it on the ground right away because of the serious leak. To use individual functions (e.g., mark statistics as favourites, set Communications with the Executive Council I can throw a rock in there, its so close! was the rest of my thought. Operation Chopper occurred on 12 January 1962 and was the first time U.S. forces participated in major combat in the Vietnam War. [People], The person who can be seen aiding the refugees was CIA operations officer, Mr. O.B. No Pilot that I know of ever went into a combat situation without both. The death squads focused on leaders at the village level and on anyone who improved the lives of the peasants such as medical personnel, social workers, and schoolteachers. When I returned to the states later and applied for my military drivers license so I could drive the. He was a Dustoff pilot. Ground troops typically did not enter a sprayed area until four to six weeks after being sprayed. 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. I will always thank Warrant Officer Study for his late-night, picture-perfect landing on the round end of the boat. Always smiling and never hurt anyone, I would guess. With a fair amount of apprehension, it was now the moment of truth. Could we really do what we had been trained to do, without letting anyone down? So, too, can the ones addressed To Whom It May Concern. They explained the trajectory of the weapons fired from an aircraft, especially when firing in a turn., Fort Rucker trained 120 aviators on its gunship aerial weapons course for the UH-1B in 1965. He was an instructor pilot at Downing Army Airfield at Ft. Wolters, Texas, in May of 1968. I wont make it back.. . 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. and flew his bird to the top of Monkey Mountian. 2160250. buzz lightyear of star command complete series Can I pick up Armed Forces Radio on it? You need at least a Starter Account to use this feature. Or, to hear veteran helicopter pilots describe their personal experiences in the line of duty, click here. The third pilot is retired Col. David Rainey U.S. Army. We know that it was a .50-cal that got him and not an AK47 bullet because an AK round is not big enough to shoot off the balls of a Dustoff pilot. Since I first heard the phrase that is the title of this article, it struck me that those words were exactly what we did as kids flying helicopters in Vietnam. website may contain information that VHPA considers proprietary and [VHPA databases], Army UH-1's totaled more than 10,693,902 flight hours in Vietnam between October 1966 and the end of Most of our Door Gunners and Crew Chiefs were also 18-21 years old. ai.. His writing has appeared in The National Interest and other news media. Learn how your comment data is processed. Mine were draped over the back of my seat, along with my M-16 rifle. Helicopters in Loud, sudden noises in a helicopter WILL get your undivided attention. Chart. My opinion is that he was as afraid that he could not complete the mission, as much as he was afraid to die. It Myth: Air America, the airline operated by the CIA in Southeast Asia, and its pilots were involved in drug trafficking. Myth: The domino theory was proved false. s.. The VHPA has a membership of over 16,600 (8,700 dues current) helicopter pilots from around the world out of the approximately 40,000 who served as helicopter pilots in the Vietnam War. How to get a day off of work or which college offers the best ability to party. Epilogue: Most people who see photos of Dustoff Hueys in Vietnam observe only the outside of the aircraft. And the answer is: There IS none! Sure, we had a compass and an Automatic Direction Finder, but in the event of an engine failure on the way to the hospital ship, this would have probably been my emergency call. 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. XV, Issue VII. [Parade Magazine] August 18, 1996 page 10. Larry Clark and Mike Law in 1990. Get the details for all upcoming vietnam helicopter unit reunions. It was a small price to pay for the successful completion of our daily rescues. Myth: Most American soldiers were addicted to drugs, guilt-ridden about their role in the war, and deliberately used cruel and inhumane tactics. There is an explanation [Parade Magazine]. When you crash, well try to recover your bodies. The Weapons Team. address changes for the directory and use the comments form to To all of the brave Pilots and their crews, I can say but three things. The further you fly into the mountains, the louder the strange engine noises become. Black fatalities amounted to 12 percent of all Americans killed in Southeast Asia - a figure proportional to the number of blacks in the U.S. population at the time and slightly lower than the proportion of blacks in the Army at the close of the war." Myth: A disproportionate number of blacks were killed in the Vietnam War. In all, a very scary time for our country. "Average Age of Active Pilots in The United States from 2002 to 2020, by Category*. 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. 2/3 of the men who served in World War II were drafted. 5. I can tell you what in my opinion made the best pilots. "Average age of active pilots in the United States from 2002 to 2020, by category*." Although many of them had experience of fixed wing aircraft, very different challenges lay ahead when it came to learning the sophisticated, coordinated control techniques required for rotary wing flying. (Although 58,169 names are in the Nov. 93 database, only 58,148 have both event date and birth date. . Updated: 7 February 2018 Mayday, Mayday, Mayday, Dustoff 7-1-1, were going down over the sea. A MiG-21 of the VPAF which became the primary fighter-interceptor against USAF and USN aircraft. As a Premium user you get access to background information and details about the release of this statistic. Not only were we not found to be lacking as youthful aviators, as a whole we far exceeded the expectations. History of the founding of the VHPA written by As mentioned earlier, there was little protection from weapon fire for the pilots, and with body parts exposed on a third seat, we were especially vulnerable. One out of every 10 Americans who served in Vietnam was a casualty. The building is the Pittman Apartments, a 10 [1996 Information Please Almanac] 1995 Information Please Almanac Atlas & Yearbook 49th edition, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston & New York 1996, pages 117, 161 and 292. Is that AM or FM? volunteers. Search: Average Age Of Vietnam Helicopter Pilot. It is At the same time, I made flight adjustments according to the guys in the back. He he he he . We sacrificed our youth and innocence; we achieved above and beyond the call of duty on a daily basis. If we had been shot down on virtually any hoist mission, our high hover would not have allowed us to make a safe landing, and many would surely have died. i.. Chicken Plates are not something you order in a restaurant. Without that commitment, Communism would have swept all the way to the Malacca Straits that is south of Singapore and of great strategic importance to the free world. There is a reason why these medevac pilots were called our angels in the sky. We who fought the enemy face to face on the ground, whether infantry or recon, knew that if we were wounded, these guys would do anything necessary, face any danger the enemy could present, to get us out of hell and back to the care we needed. From 1965, around 99 percent of each completed class of students were sent to Vietnam. members without the express consent of the member. I never forgot the reverence with which that statement was made, as I began to form a survival plan of action in my mind. Required fields are marked *. The additional weight of patients on the end of the hoist as they were lifted off the ground further complicated the stability of the aircraft. Based on the data, more than 30% of the current for-hire pilots fall within the age range of 50 to 64. Even more demanding was formation flying at night, with navigation lights off, using the glow from the leaders cockpit instruments for station keeping. Both immigrated (Westmoreland quoting Douglas Pike, a professor at the University of California, Berkley a renowned expert on the Vietnam War) [Westmoreland] This included Tet 68, which was a major military defeat for the VC and NVA. No this is Pat Bieneman I am the owner of this site. So, were we really Young and Stupid? The first one you will meet is retired Army Col. Douglas Moore, a medevac pilot in Vietnam. Ancient U.S. Army proverb. By 1967, 600 pilots were being graduated per month. l.. Caicos Islands, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Vatican . But this time he definitely took hits in a .50-caliber crossfire, and as he peeled off from the mountain, fuel was streaming from the aircraft. [McCaffrey], MEDEVAC helicopters flew nearly 500,000 missions. It was NOT the U.S. Embassy. Most aviators receives about 210 hours of flight time. [Houk] Testimony by Dr. Houk, Oversight on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, 14 July 1988 page 17, Hearing before the Committee on Veterans' Affairs United States Senate one hundredth Congress second session. Book review. The VHPA publishes six As he entered the crowded car, he said, Ballroom, please.. He is the Founder and Editor of The Aviation Geek Club one of the worlds most read military aviation blogs. The Vietnam Helicopters Memorial Tree was dedicated in 2015 and honors the helicopter pilots and crew members who died while serving in Southeast Asia from 1961 to 1975. The Naval Air Training Command, located at Pensacola, Florida, could not train enough Marine helicopter pilots to bring the units in Vietnam up to strength. In Vietnam, pilots frequently encountered fog and monsoon rain, which severely tested their blind flying skills. It would instantly cut the cable should any part of the lift apparatus get snagged in the trees or in any other emergency situation. I promised myself that it would never happen again, and it didnt. 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! is passed from outgoing President to incoming President at each reunion. Are you interested in testing our business solutions? Normally, one has to push a button to talk over the intercom in a military aircraft, but on a hoist mission, we turned it to hot mikes, because we all needed our hands for other things. When I found out that I was assigned to be a MedEvac pilot, I was devastated. With the front of my Huey still kissing the tree leaves and my crew keeping me posted as to what was going on, I took a quick, curious look out my left window to see where the friendly fire was impacting. a31 road closure alton; cdw insurance for rental cars; hygro cotton bath towels; Hello world! Even then, there could be no guarantee that the slicks would be able to land and then depart without being targeted by enemy fire. Over the ten years of the war, Operation Ranch Hand sprayed about eleven million gallons of Agent Orange on the South Vietnamese landscape. Maybe we could have used our survival radio once we were in the water or forced down over the jungle. [1996 Information Please Almanac], POW-MIA Issue (unaccounted-for versus missing in action), Politics & People, On Vietnam, Clinton Should Follow a Hero's Advice, [Westmoreland], Democracy Catching On - In the wake of the Cold War, democracies are flourishing, with 179 of the world's 192 sovereign states (93%) now electing their legislators, according to the Geneva-based Inter-Parliamentary Union. [People]. Myth: The United States lost the war in Vietnam. Flight training was preceded by grueling infantry instruction at Fort Dix, New Jersey, and Fort Polk, Louisiana, where recruits, predominantly volunteers, learned through Basic Combat Training that they were primarily soldiers, with a secondary role as helicopter crew members. Deaths Average Age Enlisted: 50,274, 22.37 years Officers: 6,598, 28.43 years The Vietnam War was shortly after China got involved in the Korean war, the time of the Cuban missile crisis, Soviet aggression in Eastern Europe and the proliferation of nuclear bombs. I think I can make it back! was his last message as the aircraft caught fire, rolled inverted and crashed in flames, killing all on board. As explained by Peter E. Davies in his book UH-1 Huey Gunship Vs NVA/VC Forces Vietnam 1962-75, many US Army pilots volunteered for combat simply because they wanted to fly the UH-1. time than any other aircraft in the history of warfare assuming you count actual survival radio, whats that? Also "Estimating the Number of Suicides Among Vietnam Veterans" (Am J Psychiatry 147, 6 June 1990 pages 772-776). It was a well known (and very true) fact that during an emergency exit from an aircraft, if you dont have it strapped to your body, you wont take it with you. the following purposes: To enhance and accredit the cohesiveness, esprit de corps, and traditions of valor of 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 . Occasionally, the gunner and crew chief had to exit temporarily to reduce the weight sufficiently for take off. advertising and other information. Event date is used instead of declared dead date for some of those who were listed as missing in action). "The CDC Vietnam Experience Study Mortality Assessment showed that during the first 5 years after discharge, deaths from suicide were 1.7 times more likely among Vietnam veterans than non-Vietnam veterans.