The ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand stayed free of Communism because of the U.S. commitment to Vietnam. . Restraining the military in Vietnam in hindsight probably prevented a nuclear war with China or Russia. [VHPA 1993] Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association 1993 Membership Directory page 130. There are over 4,945 helicopter pilots currently employed in the United States. story building where the CIA station chief and many of his officers lived, located at 22 Ly Tu Trong St. The great majority of these efforts have erroneously portrayed many myths about the Vietnam War as being facts. They were Kim's cousins not her brothers. Oh, Sugar! (Not my exact word.) At least, I believe that is how I would have felt had it been me. sent to. We sacrificed our youth and innocence; we achieved above and beyond the call of duty on a daily basis. Others flew fixed wing and some were already in the Army but applied for and were chosen to attend flight school. Operation Chopper occurred on 12 January 1962 and was the first time U.S. forces participated in major combat in the Vietnam War. [Nixon] Atrocities - every war has atrocities. ai.. It was a "civilian" (Air America) Huey not Army or Marines. ?any tips. Otherwise, if we got tangled up, it could cause the aircraft to crash. In other words, it took a man with a huge pair of Brass Balls but with the ability to know when to use them but with the brains to know when to hold them. [3], Battlefield Viet Nam Episode 5 "The Undeclared War", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Operation_Chopper_(Vietnam)&oldid=1133354489, This page was last edited on 13 January 2023, at 10:36. solicitation purposes, or any correspondence related thereto. Age 75 to 79 --------$100.00 The engine RPM and the rotor RPM must BOTH be kept in the GREEN. Myth: Air America, the airline operated by the CIA in Southeast Asia, and its pilots were involved in drug trafficking. The Vietnam War was the turning point for Communism. We must now hover over the trees or rocky terrain, while we let out up to 150 feet of quarter-inch cable with a jungle penetrator or a Stokes litter attached to it. The Pilots of 1st of the 9th Cav were and yes still are the best. He dropped to the deck a couple miles out and then screamed up the hill at 120 knots and tree top level, trying to sneak in past the enemy. Most 18 year olds only think about girls and what they can get from them. 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. I will always thank Warrant Officer Study for his late-night, picture-perfect landing on the round end of the boat. When I read the quickly handwritten sheet for this particular mission, I knew before we left that it was going to be an insecure hoist. I just tapped him gently on the shoulder and whispered, Hey, Buddy, Im as far back in the elevator as I can get now. I knew what he was really saying. I cannot talk about how tough flight school was, nor can I state what the washout rate was because I did not go myself. Or, to hear veteran helicopter pilots describe their personal experiences in the line of duty, click here. z.. Pucker Factor is the formal name of the equation that states the more hairy the situation is, the more of the seat cushion will be sucked up your ass. ", Federal Aviation Administration, Average age of active pilots in the United States from 2002 to 2020, by category* Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/919100/aviation-industry-average-age-of-active-pilots-in-the-united-states-by-category/ (last visited March 04, 2023), Average age of active pilots in the United States from 2002 to 2020, by category* [Graph], Federal Aviation Administration, May 18, 2021. We lost a lot of Pilots but we also lost a lot of Crew Chiefs and Door Gunners. or down. Isolated atrocities committed by American soldiers produced torrents of outrage from antiwar critics and the news media while Communist atrocities were so common that they received hardly any attention at all. 2/3 of the men who served in World War II were drafted. af.. When I returned to the states later and applied for my military drivers license so I could drive the. w.. By the end of the war half of them had been lost. Most were 19 or 20 years old, with a few experienced old men per platoon in their late twenties. tail number N4 7004, were Bob Caron who lives in Florida and Jack 2/3 of the men who served in Vietnam were volunteers. 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 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. They were immensely important to the troops on the ground as aerial fire power. The planes doing the bombing near the village were VNAF (Vietnam Air Force) and were being flown by Vietnamese pilots in support of South Vietnamese troops on the ground. My opinion is that he was as afraid that he could not complete the mission, as much as he was afraid to die. 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. 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. Many times these brave men had to deliver or retrieve the troopers into or out of areas where enemy fire was heavy. (So I guess that makes three Young and Stupids. There is an explanation It was called "shell shock" and other names in previous wars. The peace settlement was signed in Paris on 27 January 1973. Search: Average Age Of Vietnam Helicopter Pilot. submit other directory changes and updates. Funds are paid by Greater Good Charities to benefiting organizations as a grant. to Europe and both have since died. . In closing, I would merely like to state that I am able to write this today in large part because of luck whole lot of GOOD luck and a little bit of good humor. website may contain information that VHPA considers proprietary and Required fields are marked *. I can tell you what in my opinion made the best pilots. 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. By the end of the war half of them had been lost. Information contained herein shall not be used for commercial Myth: Kim Phuc, the little nine year old Vietnamese girl running naked from the napalm strike near Trang Bang on 8 June 1972, was burned by Americans bombing Trang Bang. Traditions: The VHPA has developed some traditions over the It wasnt easy, and I will now confess that my depth perception almost was not good enough to pass my initial flight physical, but I made it. 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. It is a fact that helicopter tail rotors are instinctively drawn toward trees, stumps, rocks, etc. These new battalions eventually formed a sort of modern-day cavalry for the Army. to incorporate the statistic into your presentation at any time. Click here to view the US Army educational video, "A Day in the Life of a Helicopter Pilot," circa 1967. Those trainers were so small you could lean in them to make the thing turn. Publi le 12 juin 2022 par . Average age of active pilots in the United States from 2002 to 2020, by category* [Graph]. The VHPA publishes six Over the course of the war, some 12,000 helicopters of various kinds saw service in Vietnam. https://www.vhpa.org. Okay, so the Hueys were extremely reliable, and I still love those incredible machines, but for the moment let us discuss navigation equipment on a Huey. Most aviators receives about 210 hours of flight time. "No event in American history is more misunderstood than the Vietnam War. 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. Further proof of these facts can be found at a recent Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association (VHPA) reunion. ag.. [Parade Magazine] August 18, 1996 page 10. We were an easier target during the day, but unlike at night when we kept all the lights off, we could see what we were doing! After training, they entered transport or gunship platoons referred to simply as slicks or guns. Most would complete at least two combat tours. Section 501(c)(19) of the Internal Revenue Service. 86% of the men who died in Vietnam were Caucasians, 12.5% were black, 1.2% were other races. First, one has to understand what a hoist mission is and why we did them. As the Aircraft Commander in control of the helicopter, my eyes never left the tree branches that were touching the nose of my aircraft. And what was even stupider, I suppose, was the fact that if the doors were closed when we reached the water, we opened them so we could get out easier if we did go down. Myth: Agent Orange poisoned millions of Vietnam veterans. [Burkett] Stolen Valor: How the Vietnam Generation was Robbed of its Heroes and its History by B.G. American involvement in February 1973. . Statista. Most of the Commissioned Officers were older. The United States sought to minimize and prevent attacks on civilians while North Vietnam made attacks on civilians a centerpiece of its strategy. Walking is better than running. 20002023 The Veterans Site and GreaterGood. It is unfortunate that many helicopters never had the opportunity to fulfill their one true mission in life, simply because someone forgot this fact. There were no Americans involved in any capacity. Provide food and supplies to veterans at The Veterans Site for free! . webmaster@vhpa.org . ac.. Running out of pedal, fore or aft cyclic, or collective are all bad ideas. ah.. Nobody cares what you did yesterday or what you are going to do tomorrow. Profit from the additional features of your individual account. The Veterans Site honors the helicopter pilots and crews who fought so hard for us on the ground throughout the Vietnam War. As a Premium user you get access to the detailed source references and background information about this statistic. One guy was 19, while the oldest (not counting our Commanding Officer) was the 28-year-old XO, Army slang for the second in command, Executive Officer. If the rear echelon troops are really happy, the front line troops probably do not have what they need. I never forgot the reverence with which that statement was made, as I began to form a survival plan of action in my mind. Also "Estimating the Number of Suicides Among Vietnam Veterans" (Am J Psychiatry 147, 6 June 1990 pages 772-776). Its just what they do. It was a fact that Dustoff crews had three times the casualty rate of other helicopter crews. 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 In reference to Mr. Walker, would he also be the same pilot that was nick named, Baby Huey in Vietnam? 5.5% of all helicopter pilots are women, while 94.5% are men. In addition to an annual reunion held around July 4th, members keep in touch informally While in themselves those landings were not stupid, the way we got there was! Burkett and Glenna Whitley, Verity Press, Inc., Dallas, TX, 1998. member. The pilots and crews of these helicopters were heroes, one and all. To retrieve the data click on 2020 Active Civil Airmen Statistics. He was an instructor pilot at Downing Army Airfield at Ft. Wolters, Texas, in May of 1968. confidential. who is now retired in Arizona. No matter what the make up of the team was they flew in helicopters that were made with the intention of dispensing a superior amount of fire power on the enemy. Whether they took hits at this time or not is speculation, but he tried another tactic. Those Hueys were their horses and they rode into battle en masse, to deliver their troops and evacuate the wounded. In 2009, the US Congress changed the mandatory age of retirement of airline pilots from 60 to 65 in a bid to solve the pilot shortage problem. 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 UNITED STATES DID NOT LOSE THE WAR IN VIETNAM, THE SOUTH VIETNAMESE (Three years for For the latter, a specially equipped H-13 had optional blanked out external vision. Many of these brave men went from High School to Flight School. However, these same 18-year-old young men attended flight school and were given responsibility to operate a multi million dollar helicopter. Later, the crew became a two-man pilot team. [McCaffrey], MEDEVAC helicopters flew nearly 500,000 missions. There was a down side to the over-sized appendages, however. 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. 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. Myth: The war was fought largely by the poor and uneducated. The movie and a book the movie was based on contend that the CIA condoned a drug trade conducted by a Laotian client; both agree that Air America provided the essential transportation for the trade; and both view the pilots with sympathetic understanding. "The aviation units were the sole combat element of the U.S. Army that did not come. The tactical situation is such that the ground troops cannot get the dead or wounded to a secure open area for evacuation. Here is an example done at the 2005 average age of vietnam helicopter pilot. . . You can only download this statistic as a Premium user. Oh, were we Young and Stupid on hoist missions, too; the second Y & S thing we did! Whether their responsibility was to fly the troops into and out of battle, become the Medical Evacuation bird when required, be the forward eyes of the ground troopers or provide them fire support when needed. Don S. the last (in-country) Masher33, 1971, It is not easy to read this stuff. The longer you stare at the gauges the less time it takes them to move from green to red. historical reference directories, CD-ROMs and DVDs. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. If you have not been there and done that you probably will not understand most of this. 79% had a high school education or better. The Indonesians threw the Soviets out in 1966 because of America's commitment in Vietnam. . Scared that maybe, just maybe, youll fail your mission where someone else just like you would have succeeded. Please create an employee account to be able to mark statistics as favorites. "The problem is that those who think the Vietnamese haven't cooperated sufficiently think there is some central repository with answers to all the lingering questions," notes Gen. John Vessey, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Reagan and Bush administration's designated representative in MIA negotiations. o.. Two high ranking Without the helicopter it would have taken three times as many troops to secure the 800 mile border with Cambodia and Laos (the politicians thought the Geneva Conventions of 1954 and the Geneva Accords or 1962 would secure the border) [Westmoreland], Approximately 12,000 helicopters saw action in Vietnam (all services). You only have access to basic statistics. With the patient finally on board, the Radio Operator with the ground unit Rogered our departure message with a Thanks a HELL of a lot, Dustoff!. I suppose that is what kept most of us going in the daily risk of flying helicopters in combat in Vietnam. 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. [VHPA 1993], The helicopter provided unprecedented mobility. . These three represent all of out Vietnam War helicopter pilots. That was us giving you covering fire! he replied. We HAD no survival radios in those aircraft. rules. [Parade Magazine]. The BSR (Bang Stare Red) Theory states that the louder the sudden bang in the helicopter, the quicker your eyes will be drawn to the gauges. The early (65-68) Weapons Team was made up of two pilots, crew chief and a door gunner. Obviously, I was wrong, but I did not know it then. If you win the battle you are entitled to the spoils. Mailing Address:
When they saw one flying balls out, they knew it was a Dustoff on an urgent mission. [The Wall Street Journal] The Wall Street Journal, 1 June 1996 page A15. Ground troops typically did not enter a sprayed area until four to six weeks after being sprayed. it will be forwarded to the appropriate VHPA representative. Drinking and how not to get caught. Myth: The American military was running for their lives during the fall of Saigon in April 1975. As a result, less than one percent of all Americans wounded who survived the first 24 hours died. Accessed March 04, 2023. https://www.statista.com/statistics/919100/aviation-industry-average-age-of-active-pilots-in-the-united-states-by-category/, Federal Aviation Administration. Uh, thats a can opener for those of you who arent military. 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. If so glad to know youre well. If you are an admin, please authenticate by logging in again. applies to subscribers): Age 80 and above ---$75.00 If I had gone down over water, I would not have grabbed the wings either, because not only had I never tried to inflate them, I had never even tried to put them on. The Air Cav was just what the name implies. While there are still officially more than 2,200 cases, there now are only 55 incidents of American servicemen who were last seen alive but aren't accounted for. After the first of the two injured soldiers was hoisted on board, the din of the covering fire began to register in my head. theyre on the penetrator . He was an Air Cav pilot, delivering and evacuating troops into and out of battlefields. Event date is used instead of declared dead date for some of those who were listed as missing in action). [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. You will get a clear sense of what they were up against and how they conducted themselves. See an example of our magazine, The He has reported from Europe and flown Super Puma and Cougar helicopters with the Swiss Air Force. The emotions are almost indescribable, but there was one more feeling: relief from being so scared! x.. Medals are OK, but having your body and all your friends in one piece at the end of the day is better. They were utterly selfless and courageous warriors on our behalf. I have no idea who he was, but we logged his flight time as PP: Patient Protector.. That sinister-sounding term was coined after the war) Orange was sprayed at three gallons per acre that was the equivalent of .009 of an ounce per square foot. Age 65 to 69 --------$250.00 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. aircraft in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam era and inform them of the existence of the The UH-1 evolved from a 1955 US Army competition for a new utility helicopter. Vietnamese where among those taken that day to Tan Son Nhut airport, General The 1990 unsuccessful movie "Air America" helped to establish the myth of a connection between Air America, the CIA, and the Laotian drug trade. In all, a very scary time for our country. 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. an.. A grunt is the true reason for the existence of the helicopter. "We (Americans) had nothing to do with controlling VNAF," according to Lieutenant General (Ret) James F. Hollingsworth, the Commanding General of TRAC at that time. To seek out, using whatever means available, individuals who piloted rotary wing May 18, 2021. One guy was 19, while the oldest (not counting our Commanding Officer) was the 28-year-old XO, Army slang for the second in command, Executive Officer. UH-1 Huey Gunship Vs NVA/VC Forces Vietnam 1962-75 is published by Osprey and is available to order here. Never have the consequences of their misunderstanding been so tragic." Topics cover the entire spectrum from Vietnam to . Thank you for your Service and Insight! u.. Everybodys a hero on the ground in the club after the fourth drink. The average age of the 58,148 killed in Vietnam was 23.11 years (Although 58,169 names are in the Nov. 93 database, only 58,148 have both event date and birth date. The first one you will meet is retired Army Col. Douglas Moore, a medevac pilot in Vietnam. 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. Search: Average Age Of Vietnam Helicopter Pilot. It was the Pilots mission to fly as low and as slow as he could allowing the observer and the Door Gunner to watch for signs of the enemy or to allow the enemy to fire at them. They also acted as the means of supply of ammunitions, equipment and food. Even then, there could be no guarantee that the slicks would be able to land and then depart without being targeted by enemy fire. The building is the Pittman Apartments, a 10 As soon as he stepped from the left side to the right, the aircraft tipped. .j.. As they entered a one year combat tour, many pilots heard the ominous rumor that the average life expectancy of a US Army Aviator helicopter pilot in combat was only 19 minutes. Communications with the Executive Council I wont make it back.. [1996 Information Please Almanac], POW-MIA Issue (unaccounted-for versus missing in action), Politics & People, On Vietnam, Clinton Should Follow a Hero's Advice, h.. 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. I would NOT fly unarmed helicopters! reunion. Donations can be made here https://www.vhpa.org/donate.htm, The VHPA has a membership of over 16,600 (8,700 dues current) helicopter pilots from around the world out of the It is a bad thing to run out of airspeed, altitude, and ideas all at the same time. As a Premium user you get access to background information and details about the release of this statistic. [CACF] (Combat Area Casualty File) November 1993. The Wall), Center for Electronic Records, National Archives, Washington, DC, [All That We Can Be] All That We Can Be by Charles C. Moskos and John Sibley Butler, [Westmoreland] Speech by General William C. Westmoreland before the Third Annual Reunion of the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association (VHPA) at the Washington, DC Hilton Hotel on July 5th, 1986 (reproduced in a Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association Historical Reference Directory Volume 2A). I wonder how many grunts would have gotten on the hoist had they known that. [McCaffrey], Vietnam veterans have a lower unemployment rate than our non-vet age group. [1996 Information Please Almanac], The 140,000 evacuees in April 1975 during the fall of Saigon consisted almost entirely of civilians and Vietnamese military, NOT American military running for their lives. 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. on 29 April 1975 from UPI's offices on the top floor of the Saigon Hotel which It took all of our skill and luck to avoid flying into the valley walls as we stuck our heads out the windows to find our way to the LZ without balling up the helicopter. There was an adrenaline high, too, and a tremendous sense of accomplishment that I have yet to experience since flying my last mission in Vietnam. [Nixon] No More Vietnams by Richard Nixon. He he he he . An automobile accident or other traumatic event also can cause it. I logged 205 hours in Flight Training. I can throw a rock in there, its so close! was the rest of my thought. Terry Clark? The early (65-68) Weapons Team was made up of two pilots, crew chief and a door gunner. I am so very proud to have served with them. Myth: The domino theory was proved false. e.. Cover your Buddy, so he can be around to cover for you. I was okay to fly helicopters in the Army, but not to drive a jeep! 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. From a military standpoint, it was almost an unprecedented performance. I enlisted in the (WOFT) Warrant Officer Flight Training. His writing has appeared in The National Interest and other news media. . contained this quote about Vietnam, there has been "the most extensive accounting in the history of human warfare" of those missing in action. (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. We still got there in a hurry, but once there, we hovered over the trees like a target at the County Fair 25-cent target-shooting booth. U.S. active certificated pilots - number 1990-2020, Worldwide aircraft fleet age by region 2020-2030, Air traffic - passenger growth rates forecast 2019-2040.