A good friend of mine served in that unit at that exact time, he passed away in May 2013. I am much younger having served as an Infantryman from 2000 to 2008. We met at the VA. He was a crew chief and door gunner on a Charlie model HU1 gun ship. He was shot down twice in 1969 and nearly died on the 2nd incident when he was pinned under water in a rice field by the downed helocopter. One of the guys used a hose from the helocopter so that he could breath until help could arrive. He told me that he kept thinking "I'm never going to play baseball again". He loved fly fishing and playing pool. I miss his sense of humor. He had the best Columbo impersonation! He could tell amazing stories as well. Afternoons spent with him was one of the best times I have ever had. I truly do miss him. His name is Michael D'Angelis. RIP Brother!

@LuvBorderCollies

3 жыл бұрын

Every person in every war has their own book of history within them. Books of which only a tiny fraction will be published to be shared with the rest of us who don't have that experience. That said I never liked helicopters as they crash too often.

@bradley-eblesisor

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for sharing his story !

@ChrisHolman

3 жыл бұрын

@@bradley-eblesisor It's my pleasure. God bless you!

@katmanluke7187

3 жыл бұрын

@@LuvBorderCollies not sure what your definition of "crash too often" is(whatever that means), but thanks to the marvelous invention the helicopter many more lives have been saved than lost to it. In fact, thanks to the heli many that simply could not have been rescued without it lived another day. Like pioneer Sikorsky was quoted....the airplane can fly farther and faster, but the helicopter can do things an airplane will never do. Like rescue victims of an airline crash from a frozen lake. No offense, but clearly your disdain for the heli is a bit childish or ignorant...

@davidfuggums9029

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you..........

Being a Vietnam vet from the mid '60's you have not idea what your stories mean to me. Thank you form the bottom of my heart.

@walterclough8692

2 жыл бұрын

Sir I know it's probably far late but I just wanted to say, welcome home sir I'm glad you made it home and hopefully in one piece.

@fltrucker4933

2 жыл бұрын

God Bless all our Heroes and thank you.

@JG54206

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for your service. My father was close to being drafted when the US stopped sending troops. I’m told that if it had gone on another year he would’ve been drafted. He passed away a year ago.

@danimal0921

Жыл бұрын

Thank you, Sir, for your service and WELCOME HOME!!!!!!! May God bless you and your family!!!!!!!

@Johnson-vd4ed

11 ай бұрын

Thank you for your service

In an earlier episode you mentioned that your farther worked for the U.S. Forest Service. I worked with a Forest Service archeologist who was a Vietnam veteran. After the war he volunteered and returned to the jungles to search for and recover American remains. I sensed that he felt that this was an obligation to his brothers, to bring them home.

When I heard you say that almost half of the Hueys that served in Vietnam were shot down, I was shocked. I never realized that so many pilots, crewman, and aircraft were lost. Kudos for shedding light on the brave helicopter crews that served during the War.

@bradleystach6275

3 жыл бұрын

My father survived 7 crashes in the Huey while in Vietnam, walked away from every one with nothing more than a back ache the next day. He is a walking testament to how tough they were. He has been paying for those crashes most of his life though. Scar tissue from stress fractures in the vertebrae pinching the nerves in the spine. He can barely walk these days.

@yurypozdnyakov5177

3 жыл бұрын

UH-1 was not armored (!) at all , so any bullet might do the the damage. So AH-1 Cobra was born. Soviet response was Mi--24, having attack AND troops delivery capabilities in one design.

@roadscholar05

3 жыл бұрын

We had more "crashes" then shot down. My first unit, the 195th AHC, lost five aircraft in two months and not one was a combat loss. Bad weather, aircraft not rated by the FAA, etc. The T-53 L-13 engines in the late model Hueys and Cobras had a high failure rate. They were replaced by the L-13B (FAA certified) if the Huey did not crash rist, then it was too late. The engine drive shafts also had a high failure rate (same as if the engine had failed) which were not replace with the K-flex shafts until after Vietnam.

@roadscholar05

3 жыл бұрын

@Tom Garbo Yep, the 187th AHC "Crusaders" had the same thing happen to them at Tay Ninh West in May 1971 and they regrouped at Plantation. You were at Dian (Zion) with the 11th ACR? I knew BG Schweitzer was a family friend.

@wcate8301

3 жыл бұрын

One of the guys from my freshman ROTC company became a Huey driver and was shot down 4 times in 'Nam. Years later, while commanding an Army NG helo outfit, he was transiting a Native American reservation under a low overcast on a civilian emergency medevac when his Huey took a 30-30 round in the transmission, and he autorotated into the tribal marijuana patch. When he and his crew and chopper were Chinooked back to base, his troops presented him a plaque honoring him as a "Viet Cong Ace" for having downed 5 "enemy" aircraft! A lot of beer was drunk that day.

My Uncle came back from Vietnam permanently disabled from wounds in combat and a decade after the war ended died from them. They are heroes and we need to remember their sacrifice, thank you for this tribute.

This reminded me of my favorite history teacher from high school. He was an army veteran and I blame him for my love of history. Our class took a field trip to the museum of flight and it absolutely broke my heart when the sight of a helicopter in the museum sent him into a PTSD episode. I learned that day that there were some pieces of history that were too painful for him to teach us. The sacrifices that these brave soldiers made did not end with the war. Thank you for remembering them!

@rondyechannel1399

3 жыл бұрын

Helicopter maintenance platoon, MACV Red Beach Da Nang 1970/71 got there at the tail end of Lamson 719. Have only recently been able to view any of these kind of videos and it is overwhelming the amount of grief we all survived, many of my buddys in combat assault and gun platoons survived the war and succumbed to the grief after they got home. Sadly my best survived two trips to Japan and was sent back for his last ride. (seriously injured were sent to Japanese hospitals but your time in country was not counted off and you returned to complete your tour) Hope this finds others out there surviving and well wishes to you.

To all Vietnam Veterans, THANK YOU! From a retired Navy Sailor; Gulf War and Global War On Terrorism veteran.

@whiterabbit-wo7hw

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your service.

@luciusvorenus9445

3 жыл бұрын

Amen. Bless them all. 🇺🇸

@nedludd7622

3 жыл бұрын

How is that going, your "war on terrorism"?

@mjvjohnson

2 жыл бұрын

@@nedludd7622 🙄 There is always fucking one….

@mjvjohnson

2 жыл бұрын

Navy huh? Should have joined the Marines my dude. The Navy’s men’s department ;) Just fuckin with ya bud. I was Air Force 99-04. So yeah lol, navy and Air Force have it way way better than the army and marines

I got to show this to my dad. He has 31 air medals from Vietnam. Thanks so much for covering this!

@darkhorse9785

Жыл бұрын

A pilot received one air medal for every 25 hours of combat air time.

@andyhutch1947

Жыл бұрын

@@darkhorse9785 PART I: I was a Warrant Officer on my 1st Tour. 1 Air Medal for every 25 Combat Assaults (CA) or missions involving a combat mission.. We, as the pilot, recorded the number of CA’s in the aircraft log book as CA-1, CA-2, CA-5, etc. It was sometimes very close to the hourly mark and my unit, the 334th Armed Helicopter Company out of Bien Hoa, South Viet Nam used the CA method. I was with the 3rd Platoon of the 334th Armed Helicopter Company and our platoon was called the Dragons and I was the first pilot to use Dragon 39. I was with the 334th from 8/31/1967 to 2/28/1969 (I voluntarily extended for an an additional 6 months of combat duty).. There were pilots who flew missions like dropping off supplies and their missions were classified DCS or something similar and they had to acquire 50 non-combat assault missions and if you flew VIP’s around all day you had to acquire 100 missions to qualify for an Air Medal. The real Combat Assault missions could occur every 20-30 minutes or 1-5/hour like some of the 1st Cav Missions so it was really a unit preference as to how you calculated the statistics. I flew mainly Night Combat "Search & Destroy" Missions called “Firefly” Missions. On my First Tour I acquired these stats: Viet Nam 1st tour: 08/31/67-03/28/1969 Combat Night Time: 1,300 Hours Total Combat Time: 1,500 Hours Total Combat Missions: 1,675 67 Air Medals, DFC, Bronze Star, Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry, and others Our time was certified by our Commanding Officer. Upon arriving at my stateside duty station upon returning home from my 1st Tour in Viet Nam I was offered a Direct Commission to 1Lt in Field Artillery and I accepted it and a year later I was promoted to Captain which was the norm. I became a flight instructor at Ft. Rucker, Alabama and taught Army Fixed Wing (Airplane) pilots how to fly Huey helicopters. I went through the Instrument Examiner’s Course which made me an elite member of helicopter pilots who could give pilots Instrument Check-Rides. On my 2nd tour in Viet Nam that was from 3/1/1972 to 2/28/1973 I started flying with the 1st Cavalry Division Airmobile conducting training and weather checks up at An Loc, South Viet Nam for that big operation when the North Vietnamese Army was attempting to get through the Army of South Viet Nam or ARVN unit that was in control of Highway 13 and were the only thing between the enemy and the Capitol of South Viet Nam or Saigon as it was known then and the enemy was driving T-54 Russian made tanks from Cambodia down to Saigon. The 1st Cavalry supported the South Vietnamese soldiers and American Advisors at An Loc with AH-1G Cobra Helicopters that had Anti-Tank TOW Rockets, or “Tank Killer Rockets" on board and actually killed a fairly large number of T-54 Tanks along with our U.S. Air Force with A-37’s and B-52 strikes. My roommate was flying an AH-1G Cobra in a Heavy Fire Team of three Cobras and had his tailbone severed by what was thought to be a shoulder launched Surface To Air Missile aka, SA-7. I was in the Cav Headquarters when it happened. I spoke to the pilots of the other two Cobras who witnessed my roommate’s AH-1G crash land just South of the city of An Loc and observed dust being kicked up when the Cobra crash landed. No fire. All surviving Cobra pilots told me they observed one pilot run away from the downed Cobra but the enemy fire was too intense for them to try to land and pickup any survivors. My roommate was listed as Missing In Action, MIA for many years and both pilots status was changed to KIA and Presumed Dead. When the two surviving AH-1G Cobras returned to Bien Hoa, I met with all four pilots who gave the exact point of the crash sight on my combat map which I still have in my possession today. I have been in contact with Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) in Hawaii but neither pilot’s body has been recovered. During my weather checks over An Loc I would come up on Emergency Guard frequency and try to contact either pilot with negative results.

@andyhutch1947

Жыл бұрын

SORRY I HAD TO WRITE IN 2 PARTS. PART II: The 1st Cavalry left Viet Nam in June 1972 as the last American Combat Unit in Viet Nam. I could have left with the Cav when they stood down and returned to the States but I felt like I still had fight left in my blood. I was single and began looking for a new home in Viet Nam. I heard that there may be a job for me at Vietnamese Air Force (VNAF) Headquarters, which is a part of Military Assistance Viet Nam, or at MACV Headquarters in Saigon. The person had to have a lot of helicopter gunship experience. That sounded like the job I needed. I called the person I would be working for, an U.S. Army Major and Aviator. My job was to travel all over Viet Nam from Danang South to Saigon to teach Vietnamese gunship pilots how to kill more enemy. When the American Government gave the VNAF helicopters and outfitted some of the UH-1H slick helicopters with two 19 round Rocket Pods and mini-guns we outfitted the Rocket Sight that American Pilots could see out of. The Vietnamese Helicopter Pilot could be 6” or more shorter and we didn’t take this important factor into consideration when we gave it ti the VNAF Pilots. The sight is mounted overhead on the ceiling and when used the pilot would push a button and the sight would swing down in front of the right seat pilot and in the sight was a special lit circle with a cross mark in the middle. How it works is fairly simple. You maneuver the aircraft around and place the cross mark on the target and when you are ready the pilot pushed the left button on the cyclic and the rocket should hit the target. Early on when the Vietnamese received these modified UH-1H Gunships they flew out on a mission, told where the enemy was located and you placed the cross hair on that spot but…WHAT CROSS-HAIR IN THE ROCKET SIGHT? The sight was about 6: above the VNAF Pilots head and he couldn’t get his seat high enough to see the cross-hairs. So in frustration the VNAF Pilot left the sight up in the stowed position and the Vietnamese pilot took out their trusty grease pencil and drew an arbitrary “X” on the windshield and when they rolled in on a target they just placed this arbitrary “X” on the target and pushed the FIRE Button and who knew where the rocket was going to go. It could hit the target and kill the enemy and kill him or it could hit their friendly Vietnamese soldier, the ARVN, on the ground. The ARVN’s did not want VNAF Helicopter Gunships anywhere in the area! Maybe someone complained about the inaccurate VNAF Helicopter Gunship Pilots or maybe no one complained by the killing stats of the VNAF Helicopter Pilots SUCKED and my predecessor found out about the sight problem and decided on trying to fix the problem. He guessed that the Rocket Sight had to be extended about 6” so that VNAF Pilots could see the cross-hairs and then each Helicopter Gunship Pilot had to be trained on how to use the sight and kill more enemy soldiers. Well the sights were modified and installed in the VNAF Helicopter Gunships and it was my job to teach these pilots how to use them to their top most ability. The only problem was that there was no gunnery school in the Viet Nam War! I had to teach these VNAF Helicopter Pilots how to kill the enemy and it had to be done using OJT. Yep! I flew actual combat missions with these brave pilots and I had to teach them how to use the sight. I flew on VNAF C-130’s all over Viet Nam to different VNAF Helicopter Squadrons and I conducted ground school before we ever took off on a mission. The senior pilots didn’t want to use the new sight. They continued doing it their way and I kept marching on teaching the younger VNAF Pilots how to kill the enemy and the results showed them the satisfactory results the ARVN Soldiers needed. I had to learn the Vietnamese Combat language so that I could communicate with the second or third gunship in our flight. I had to communicate with ARVN’s on the ground and VNAF FAC Airplanes. I did this for about 4-5 straight months and continued my work moving South towards Saigon. When I finished my OJT with units at Bien Hoa I found out that my boss had left and returned home. I never saw or spoke to an English speaking military person until I arrived at Bien Hoa Air Force Base. I found out that I was the only American Combat Helicopter Pilot still flying in Viet Nam and I would sometimes wonder who would rescue me and my VNAF Gunship Crew if we were shot down. The answer was short and sweet. I was it! I was truly flying around in this War as the last American Combat Helicopter Pilot. I honestly tried not to think about it. Eventually I was asked to be a part of the U.S. Air Force Advisory Team 3 at Bien Hoa. This unit was a member of MACV and no one knew of us. The only Advisors anyone associated with the War was the U.S. Army and Marine Advisors on the ground. If I told someone I was a VNAF Advisor and that I flew with the VNAF on Combat Missions they would have thought I was some kind of War Torn Nut! At Bien Hoa’s AFAT-3 I was the only U.S. Army person there. There were a handful of Air Force Jet Jock pilots who were LtC in rank and I needeth say more. My boss was an Air Force LtC and our head boss was an Air Force Full Bird Colonel. I broke the boredom and flew with Vietnamese Airplane pilots who flew A1-E’s, A-37’s, T-28’s and finally the VNAF received F-5 jets. I wanted to fly on this aircraft but the end of February 1973 came too quickly. When I flew with the VNAF on any of their fixed wing aircraft they would always allow me to takeover the controls. I flew Helicopter Gunship Combat Missions up until February 1973 when I was ordered to stop flying by my U.S. Air Force Full Bird Col. I was always invited to the homes of my VNAF Counter-parts where I was invited to sit and share a meal. I would get down on the floor and play with their children. The Vietnamese were a very proud people and didn’t deserve our run-a-way treatment. We were so dam close to being on the winning side but our government wasn’t there to WIN THAT WAR! The more I write the more pissed off I become about our government’s poor policy on running that War! I was and will always be the last American Combat Helicopter Pilot to fight and fly in that War! Flying to the top of the American Embassy is not a Combat Mission. It was a Rescue Mission!

@barsoom43

9 ай бұрын

@@darkhorse9785 1 Air Medal for 25 hours of combat assault flight time.. 1 AM for 50 hours of DCS flight time.. 1 AM for 100 hours of any other kind of time such as maintenance test flights or pilot checkrides. In 11 months, I accumulated 38 AM's- I did a lot of CA time.

Thanks for the history lesson on a very controversial war. While I was too young for the war, I lost friends due to it. Some not for many years later. These men served and died for a country that did not welcome them back. It is History that deserved to be remembered...

@TerrellThomas1971

3 жыл бұрын

sell it to the Vietnamese

@1pcfred

3 жыл бұрын

Vietnam was not a war. It was a peacekeeping mission. It was retroactively declared a war decades later to shut up some whining vets. The event is officially the Vietnam Conflict.

@tonyfletcher2541

3 жыл бұрын

@@1pcfred And Korea was just a "Conflict".

@1pcfred

3 жыл бұрын

@@tonyfletcher2541 Korea was a war. The Chosin reservoir is way the hell up there. That's where 150 thousand screaming Chinese got involved. That put us on the back foot.

@1pcfred

3 жыл бұрын

@Duffy Bordeaux there was no where for me to serve when it was my time. So I worked in the private sector. Saw my fair share of action there too.

I became the legacy of those Vietnam Army helicopter units when I enlisted in 1980. I started as a AH-1 Cobra mechanic and 3 years later went with the UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters. Those veterans of that war were still very promenade still in the Army helicopter units during the first part of my time in. Those Hueys still patches in in their skins from battle damage from that war. Their legacy still continues to this day in the helicopter units of the US Army. Thanks THG for another history lesson and remembering these great men who have been through hell over there.

@whiterabbit-wo7hw

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your service.

@andrewostrelczuk406

3 жыл бұрын

Amen Paul! Bet we both served in some of the same Mud and Dirt!

@AV5Z4

3 жыл бұрын

They were still flying some of those old birds out at Hickam field in 87-89 when I was in the 25th ID (Light) I asked a pilot about the patches once when they were shut down in an PZ in the Kahukus and he responded that the helicopter we were looking at was older than either of us.

@yeahitskimmel

3 жыл бұрын

AH-1 Cobra, now that's a badass chopper

@marksmith7054

3 жыл бұрын

the War that should Never have happened, to many good men lost for nothing.

Just buried my BIL the other day. A Tunnel Rat in the 60s in the Nam. RIP Joe Woodard.

@whiterabbit-wo7hw

3 жыл бұрын

So sorry for your lost. Welcome home sir. Thank you for your service.

@simonmcnicholas

3 жыл бұрын

He must’ve been a very special kinda guy, those tunnel rats had to be brave and hard as nails... RIP Joe 🇺🇸

@rodneywhitfield5754

3 жыл бұрын

I had a friend who was a Tunnel Rat he passed about ten years ago now, he was a red headed 5’2” sob when he had to be and one of the funniest friends I had.

@BradiKal61

3 жыл бұрын

Tunnel Rat was a balls of steel job.

@Boomboom1001

3 жыл бұрын

Nik Burton Sorry for your lost i my self am 71 years old and still have flash backs

Thank you for covering this. Their story deserves to be remembered.

My father worked for Bell Helicopter during the Vietnam War. He was a master painter there.

@johnpearson492

3 жыл бұрын

I've been to Bell Helicopter's paint shop in Tennessee, they do stunning work. Almost all the the livery painted on their aircraft are done by hand, no vinyls.

@sparks2spare782

3 жыл бұрын

Was it in Texas? My grandpa worked at Bell while my dad was in the war with the 1st/9th Air Cav.

@williamsanders5066

3 жыл бұрын

@@sparks2spare782 Yes, my father worked at the Bell Helicopter plants in Hurst and Blue Mound in his 30+ years employment.

I lived near a helicopter test flight path, as they flew over my pool as I was swimming, I stopping and saluted the guys in the craft.

@jaicanfield5328

3 жыл бұрын

Same here!! UH-60s and AH-64s from Ft. Bragg fly along the wood line in front of my house. Always an amazing sight

@BIGBLOCK5022006

3 жыл бұрын

When I lived in Amarillo I would sit in the back yard and watch Bell test the Osprey at their plant that they have on the property of Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport.

@2jay490

3 жыл бұрын

Me too, once a month on weekends the Army NG would fly over my house, during the summer's hot humid days and the distinctive rotor noise would bring back memories that I had buried...so it goes

@Matthew_Eitzman

3 жыл бұрын

Tina, you should have gone to the base and given them hand jobs. It would have boosted morale. Much better than saluting.

My father in law "drove slicks" til one day he wasnt. He's one of those 3300 plus frames that bought it in country. He doesnt talk about it muck other than to say "The cause was worth it, the cost wasnt." His left seater didnt come home that day, neither did his crew chief. The door gunner saved my father in laws life by literally pulling a "hulk" and tearing out part of the lower windscreen that had hin pinned against the instrument console. After my father in law was freed, then the suffering started. He was driving a "grocery run" when a call came in for an EVAC for a LERP. Troops on the ground pinned in on an extended patrol. The thing about a "grocery run" is that it is configured for just that, hauling the grocerie, getting the mail. When your unit is forward deployed in a foreign theater, somebody has to keep the supply lines open. It is a revolving duty that gets passed around. Just his lucky day. So, he draws grocery detail, its a fixed route over safe skies. Anything that is NOT needed for a holiday run is stripped. It left the bird with no armor inserts, no 2nd door gun. and an extra crewman called a Load Master. My father in law says he started hearing chatter on the radio about a patrol needing an evac. He wasnt in rotation for evac duty so he let it slide as he heard air control detail another pair of slicks to make the run. Plus he had an axtra bladder of fuel loaded so he could make the run nonstop. After about 5 minutes of chatter, he realizes that the two units assigned evac were more than 20 minutes away from the position of the evac and that he was literally less than a minute away. And then the ground unit started calling for air support. IOW, shit was starting to get real and they realized they were in over their head. The evac now became a matter of mercy instead of a mere matter of inconvenience or logistics. People were about to die if they didnt leave. My father in law asked if any of the crew had a problem with a mission redesignation. Dumb question. Only protocol and respect for his crew made him ask. They asked why he wasnt already en route. He tells me he though the area looked tenable. No firefight, big enough landing area. There were some procedures changed after this day. He sees their smoke, puts down. The "platoon" is on the edge of the tiny clearing. Then things get hazy. "THWUMP THWUMP tik tik snik zing" all around the airframe. They have wounded so they are first. Now everyone knows that the slicks were designed to carry on 13 men, withOUT gear, in the proper weather. Quick inventory. This slick has four crewman of its own. Half a tonne of fuel in a plastic bladder, one door gun. So, the load master says that they can only load up five or sin NO GEAR. Those "THWUMPs" hit the edge of the clearing. My father in law orders a pull back for the remainder of the unit so he can lift off. As soon as his skids clear the ground the incoming fire starts striking. And members of the remainder of the "platoon" grab onto the skids to, as if begging for some papal dispensation on the laws of physics and gravity, think they will ALL be lifted to their salvation. The left side struck first. The copilot was not killed instantly but pinned against the instrument by collapsed fuselage. The wounded men flopped around inside, the load master and gunner were unknown, presumed either dead or thrown free. The situation is smelly from all the hydrocarbons a jet engine powered helicopter has to keep it aloft, now flowing about the cabin and ground outside. Everyone knows the danger, so everyone needs to get the hell away from the aircraft ASAP. Except only one crewman is free. My father in law gets freed by a superhuman act of strength. He has injuries but to this day cant remember which were first from the "landing." There are men still inside the bird and MY father in law goes back for them. Just then that half a tonne of jet fuel ignites. Remember, the stuff is kerosene so it doesn't explode like the gas in your car. It just burns about a thousand degrees hotter. The after action report cant accredit my father in law with any more than two lives pulled from the wreckage before he was pulled back by others on the ground. He was on fire him self. flesh on his hands and arms no longer there. They say the "philia fraterna armis" (sic) transcends even the love for ones own life. I tend to agree. As my father in law was being pinned down by three or four enlisted men he said he could hear his co-pilot screaming to be shot. THG needs a Pulitzer every time he reminds us of what true courage and sacrifice is.

@tomst9417

3 жыл бұрын

Hats off to your FIL for his courage and unselfish dedication to his brothers. We need more men like him.

@lisahinton9682

3 жыл бұрын

Kasual Steel,I don't even have any words. Your relaying of that day has me stunned. My thanks to your brave and kind father-in-law.

@TheWilabeast

3 жыл бұрын

I salute your father in law. Your telling of his story has me on the edge of tears. How many of these stories dont get told or are lost with the brave when they pass due to age. Thanks for sharing.

@Boomboom1001

3 жыл бұрын

Only thing I can say is no body knows. What kind of hell. Young. Men. Went. Tru. And. Think of the ones. Who died. Thay want tru. Real. Hell

@philgiglio7922

2 жыл бұрын

There are more stories like this out there, I know of several, relayed to me by the participants. What these men did on a daily basis rivals anything the 8th AF did in Europe. And their loss rate was just as high. About 5 million men cycled through Vietnam: 58000+ died for a rate of 1.16%: almost 55000 chopper pilots were trained and about 5500 of those names are on the wall for a rate of 10%. monthsautobiography would have been a great read. MD through 3 wars, WW2, Korea, Vietnam. 2 Silver Stars, research at Aberdeen Proving grounds.

A lot of facts here and I found no errors. In 1970 the 1st Aviation Brigade had almost 5,000 aircraft which was about a quarter of ALL U.S. Army at the time. And my late father was the G-3 from Jun. 1970 until Jun. 1971. Me, well, I was one of those 19 y/o Warrant Officer Huey pilots you may have heard about!

@d.m.8175

3 жыл бұрын

Adventure Inc, lol that's right! Love THG!

@johnaustin704

3 жыл бұрын

@Adventure Inc LOL. He and his crew, especially his wife are indeed GREAT!

@Iceberg86300

3 жыл бұрын

@Adventure Inc I just spent a good 20 minutes searching for various permutations of "army aviation thg call sign" If only I hadn't skipped over your last sentence. In all caps no less!!! Even read the couple replies, which just made it worse. "...... and his wife...." made me _really_ want to know. I mean, a call sign 3 people agree upon, in quick succession, that also brings the guy's wife into it!? Must be a real piece of work & also very plentiful in the military! Nope. I'm just a &$@)!&$ idiot!!! (I was looking for FNG, BCG's, or any other derogatory abbreviation)

@harshbansal7982

3 жыл бұрын

Wasn’t it because they had to support operations for the whole 3 Corps AOI in South Vietnam ? Correct me if I’m wrong pls .

@roadscholar05

3 жыл бұрын

@@harshbansal7982 Actually the 1st Avn Bde had six groups. One Aviation Group for each Corps area and the 5th was the Air Traffic Control for all S. Vietnam and the 6th was an Aviation Maintenance Group. In all they had about 27,000 men (the equivalent to two divisions but in stead of being commanded by a Major General, they had a Brigadier General. .

Here's to my friend Col. John Ghere, Huey gunship driver who reconed and set up LZ Xray at the battle of the Ia Drang. Member of the Michigan Aviation Hall of Fame.

@christopherlane5238

3 жыл бұрын

R.I.P., Mr Ghere.

My father was the First Sargent of A/501 AHC in 1966 and it changed to the 71st AHC during his tenure. When he returned home he brought the old Guidon (unit flag) with him It was displayed proudly in our home for years. Before he passed in 2002 he returned the Guidon to the 501/71st association. I attended a few of the reunions with him. My father maintained lifelong friendships with several unit members. Thank you for this episode.

This was a moving episode. Your mention of the 1st two helicopter units into SVN was based of my father’s articulated requirement for the 3rd ARVN Division’s requirement to place troops into Mekong Delta locations more rapidly than their trucks, elephants and water buffalo could. He also watched from the air when the first helicopter was lost, the crews eschewed his pleas to ditch their orange flight suits...he watched as the survivors popped out and attempted to elude the fellas in black. The guys in orange lost. You then concluded with the final operation that he planned, Lam Son 719. As part of the prep, he contracted for several half million gallon aviation fuel barge placed as far up the rivers as possible so the helicopters could refuel closer to the battle. He also, prepositioned an additional 20% overage of helicopters, because airframes were lost but not necessarily the crews. I think a piece of history worth telling is about the men who kept getting shot out of the sky, but would get right back into a new helicopter and go right back into the SAME areas they had just been shot down, because that was where they were needed. Those men were heroes worthy of Valhalla. Thank you.

I’m still alive. 9th Infantry, April 67 to April 68. We had lots of choppers. You neglected to mention that all chopper pilots were crazy, and I say that with the utmost respect. Thanks for the video.

@rpm12091

2 жыл бұрын

God loves fools, crazy men and PARATROOPERS! “STRIKE HOLD”

Nice respectful. Thank you to all who have served 🇦🇺 🇺🇲

As a 2+ year US ARMY Veteran of the war in Vietnam I want to thank you for your accuracy in this reporting. I was with the 114th AHC when I first arrived in 1965. We were the "Knights of the air". Although there were many other types of Rotary wing aircraft in use over there, The HUEY Was the workhorse. BTW Bien Hoa is pronounced BEN WAH. Thank you for all of your great episodes. I enjoy all of them.

@Romans--bo7br

3 жыл бұрын

burrdog..... I was in Vinh Long as well... from Feb. 69 til Nov. 70. I was a gunner (& CC for a while... preferred being a gunner) and had recorded 37.4 hours of "stick time". I flew with the Outlaws (the "slicks") & the Maverick Gun Team and was the Only gunner in the history of the company while in VN that was Not assigned to just one "ship" and crew, but was a "floater" as needed on any slick or "charlie model" gunship. What was your position with the Knights?... Gunner, Crew Chief, Left seat / right seat??..... or, something other?? One of the "Knights" (114th AHC) AC's took me up in one of their Cobra's one Saturday morning... was doing a "check flight" after coming out of the maintenance hanger... loved it! Glad you made it back home. I did a previous 13 months up in I Corps (A-Shau Valley & based at Camp Eagle at Phu Bai... about 8 mi. from Hue.) before coming down to fly with the Outlaws (175th AHC) & the Mavericks. I developed some Very close friendships with several Vietnamese families while in Vinh Long..... have always missed them and still wonder if any of them are still living and how they are. I was engaged to a gal there, who worked as a part time bartender, evenings at the "officers club", but was a school teacher by day... to the west of us in Cao Lanh. She was killed just a few months after I had left, during a nighttime rocket attack at Cao Lanh about 2:30 in the morning. Her father was the Liaison between So. Vietnam & China... it was he, through the VN Ambassador to Washington, who notified me of her death... broke my heart for many years... still think of her, and miss her. Thanks for the video and glad you made it home safely.

The Huey, tough, mean, and ugly, like the men who flew them! The firebird emblem actually originated from the firebird gasoline company. My father was a member of the rattlers in 1965, and he said that while he was there, the firebird gasoline company sent over a bunch of stickers. If you were lucky, (or unlucky), you would covertly get a sticker placed somewhere prominently. This was referred to as being “zapped”. My father related a story of a high ranking official (a visiting general or politician, I can’t remember who) getting “zapped” on their official government vehicle. Thank you THG for telling the story of these brave men. Edit: The unit patch uses a different picture of a firebird. You can find out more about the Rattlers/Firebirds on their website rattler-firebird.org. If you served with them and are not aware of the organization, check them out, they are trying to locate everyone and help their fellow brothers get in touch with one another.

@olliefoxx7165

3 жыл бұрын

Lol. "Zapping" the big dogs vehicle is funny stuff.

@sandradunn7547

3 жыл бұрын

When I saw the firebird on the coin it reminded me of the Pure Oil Company and their Firebird gasoline, a premium grade gasoline.

@hardlyb

3 жыл бұрын

I was a little dubious that the name came from a Stravinsky composition. My older brother was in the Army during that war, and was training to be a helicopter pilot, but washed out due to illness - given the horrendous casualty rates, I'm selfish enough to be glad that happened.

@roadscholar05

3 жыл бұрын

My Huey got tagged by the USAF at Pang Rang, They painted a hornet on either side of the tail.

@hardlyb

3 жыл бұрын

@Uncle Ho Well, perhaps they were Stravinsky fans after all.

I was stationed at Bien Hoa Air Base 68-69 with the 1st Platoon (Playboys) 334th AHC (Sabres, motto "First With Guns"), 145 Aviation Regiment (Old Warriors), 1st Aviation Brigade (Golden Hawks). Crew chief on a AH1 Cobra. The 334th was the first organic gun ship company in Viet Nam (originally the 68th Armed Helicopter company, then the 197th), thus the motto "First With Guns". Originally using UH-1 B and C models, we were the first company to fly Cobras (1967). Usually supported LRRP and special forces units. Its where I learned war is obscene.

@whiterabbit-wo7hw

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your service and welcome home.

@larry_9982

3 жыл бұрын

Bien Hoa/Long Binh was as close to being stateside as you could get. I bet you flew out past Long Than North often when leaving base? We were a few miles out. I am sure you loved going back to base at the end of the day? No cut intended, I envy you, like I would've then also. Maybe we stole your AC's on one of our "raids? we made for supplies? LOL Welcome Home Bro.

@ribbitgoesthedoglastnamehe4681

3 жыл бұрын

Thats funny. Ive never visited Bien Hoa, but ive visited a village close to it, though mostly near Tan An. Also, my grandmother was born close to a village and year as a boy who did LRRP and probably visited Bien Hoa who went with the name Thorne.

@ralphcraig5816

3 жыл бұрын

@@larry_9982 Long Binh was the largest foreign military compound in the history of the US military. The bunker line was almost 29 miles. 6 of those miles were miles, I was NCOIC of detail that manned the towers and bunkers. When someone arrive, they were given a map!

@ralphcraig5816

3 жыл бұрын

MINE! The miles were mine!!!

Oh yeah I went to air assault school when I was in the Army, 10 days of actually pretty hard physical training. One of the most challenging was learning how to sling load equipment. But I still have my air assault wings and I'm very proud of that accomplishment. We were one of the last Air Assault classes at Fort Hood before they closed the school there.

@roadscholar05

3 жыл бұрын

Salute!

@bepbep7418

3 жыл бұрын

Hooah!

@13bgunbunny46

3 жыл бұрын

I salute you, Sir. US Army Artillery B Btry 4th BN 4th FA Ft. Sill, OK '84-'86

@RuminatingWizard

3 жыл бұрын

Got mine at Schofield Barracks in '87. Good times.

@roadscholar05

3 жыл бұрын

@@13bgunbunny46 I was flying Chinooks at Fort Sill, 1982-1985. The 178 ASHC was under III Corps Arty.

As a retired U.S.Army helicopter pilot, you did a great job, preserving and describing what these brave warriors did.

Hueys never actually flew, they just beat the air into submission

@LuvBorderCollies

3 жыл бұрын

A collection of vital parts all clinging desperately to one another to stay off the ground.

@surlyogre1476

3 жыл бұрын

"A bunch of aircraft parts flying in loose formation."

@MalHanson

3 жыл бұрын

Just like all helicopters they don't actually fly - they're so ugly the earth repels them :)

@peterhaan9068

3 жыл бұрын

Best comments ever! Still chuckling.

@markpaul8178

3 жыл бұрын

@@peterhaan9068 My thoughts presicially .

I was a grunt in Nam, my neighbor was a door-gunner. He can’t talk about it. I give him his space on it.

@whiterabbit-wo7hw

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your service and welcome home.

@dbeaus

3 жыл бұрын

As a grunt, you most probably had the talks every time you went to the firebase or rear. You know, what a great life you could have as a door gunner, showers, beer, every night off, sleep in a bed. I spent some time as a grunt and heard these pitches a few times. I never gave it a thought and I don't know of a single guy I knew who took the offer. The idea of floating around up there, unable to move and with little protection was more than I wanted to deal with. We loved those pilots and door gunners. Never had a doubt they would be there if needed. I flunked the eye exam for helicopter school, probably saved my life.

Very impressive. Your historic accuracy and technical knowledge is, without a doubt, the best I've ever seen on KZread. Well Done! Hornet - 44 116th AHC

@whiterabbit-wo7hw

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your service. Semper Fi

@LolUGotBusted

3 жыл бұрын

@@whiterabbit-wo7hw he's Army. semper fi is a Marine thing. ;)

@skeeterhoney

3 жыл бұрын

He sure does his homework!

@davidlogansr8007

3 жыл бұрын

Thank You for your service!

@leoashrae4199

3 жыл бұрын

@@davidlogansr8007 Today's perspective of we Vietnam veterans is so refreshingly different from what it was 50 years ago. Seems that this "baby killer" persona might have been a figment of one of Nancy's bad LSD trips. So, to all you folks who have taken the time to thank me for my service... You are welcome.

I have a recommendation for an episode (or several, in fact) -- In all my years as a submariner, I have never seen a KZread historian do an episode about *Lawson P "Red" Ramage.* His experience in WWII (specifically the action that earned him the Medal of Honor) is definitely history that deserves to be remembered. For that matter, *Howard W. Gilmore* is another whose story has never been told. Gilmore received the MOH posthumously after giving the order that he knew meant sacrificing his life in order to save his entire crew. *Captain John P Cromwell,* did likewise; keeping the Japanese from taking him hostage, which would give them the opportunity to torture him for the strategic information he knew about the U.S. plan of attack. Cromwell took his sub to its grave (and his own) after bravely surfacing long enough to allow his crew to escape. *Commander Sam D Dealey* earned his in an incredible action that sank 5 destroyers in mere minutes at incredible risk to himself (Sam Dealey was also the nephew of George Dealey, for whom the infamous "Dealey Plaza" is named). *Commanded Eugene B Fluckey* likewise risked the destruction of his boat in order to attack a large convoy. *Commander George L Street* rounds out the submariner skippers who received the Medal of Honor, his action equally earned him the distinction through action that placed himself and his boat at great risk in order to attack the enemy. And, with the exception of *Commander Richard H O'Kane,* who has numerous historical accounts of his actions, and whom I think you yourself have already covered (which is why I didn't mention him above), virtually none of these other very brave and honorable men, have even received even a mention by any historian. Beyond the brief paragraphs that make up their MOH citations, their incredible stories are slowly being lost to time, and each one of them most definitely deserves to be remembered.

@opeth1429

3 жыл бұрын

Nice choices. I am a US Naval Academy grad who happened to meet RADM Fluckey in his later years and it was a tremendous honor. He told me that he was most proud that none of the sailors in his charge had ever been seriously injured in combat, and he chalked it up to solid training, and healthy dose of luck. I know who all of these officers are, but I used to have a mural in my room my plebe year that was dedicated to CDR Gilmore's memory. As plebes, we were compelled to make these sorts of motivational displays for company areas as a way to blow off steam (no TV, radio, etc. allowed). Best to you-

@thebonesaw..4634

3 жыл бұрын

@@opeth1429 -- I first learned of each of these men when I was at Sub School in Groton. There was a memorial in one of the main buildings there. Gilmore's was the one that touched me the deepest. I was glad that I was completely alone when I read it, because I couldn't stop myself from crying. There was something deeply moving, thinking of him lying wounded waiting for the last man to clear the bridge, and then once they had yelling through the hatch for his men to "take her down"... and then closing that hatch from the outside. Sacrificing his own life in order to secure the life of every single man on that boat for whom he was responsible. It still gets to me.

@chrissherer2047

3 жыл бұрын

I would like to hear more about these men.

@opeth1429

3 жыл бұрын

@@thebonesaw..4634 First off, thank you for serving our country. I agree with your sentiment about Howard Gilmore. His sense of responsibility for his shipmates has also brought me to tears more than once. I do hope THG follows up on your suggestions, and I wish you the best.

@laurenceelisha689

3 жыл бұрын

THG Did do an episode on Lucky Flucky and the Barb. I had read about him in my teens, as well as Gilmore and O’Kane. Your mention of these men reminded me of what I read. Mush Morten was another great Sub skipper.

I personally think that the Huey is the quintessential helicopter: totally iconic and, to me anyway, a beautiful design. The US Marines are still using the latest member of the Huey family, the UH-1Y Venom, which has 2 engines and a four-bladed rotor. Cool that the Huey is still around, but it doesn't sound the same without that big 2-bladed thump.

@DrunkTalk

3 жыл бұрын

An absolute icon

@ABonRMS

3 жыл бұрын

Still get excited If I hear that Fwap Fwap sound over head. Still watch in awe & with respect the new Blackhawks as they fly over from the nearby Army Guard unit nearby, much different sound.

@RCAvhstape

3 жыл бұрын

@DrakeIsSix Interesting info. I like the sound of older Hueys and Jet Rangers.

@steveskouson9620

3 жыл бұрын

@DrakeIsSix, nailed it! That is exactly what the sound is. And, I can still remember it today. Funny thing about the Huey, the anti torque pedals say "Bell" on the left one, and "Huey" on the right one. (Anti torque pedals, same as rudder pedals on an airplane.) steve

@richbrockmeier3922

3 жыл бұрын

The Philippine military still uses UH1 Hueys

I'm a Vietnam veteran and was there in 68 and 69. Thanks for sharing the memories. Most of us were treated badly when we came back from Vietnam. It's good that you didn't focus on the bad information but stayed on the service aspect.

Mr. History Guy, Thank you for all the stories that should be remembered. My Uncle served in the 92nd AHC "Pussy Galore's Flying Circus". He was a right side machine gunner. He completed his service in 1970, with 1103 combat flight hours. He has many stories that he has shared, and some that will never be. For all of our family, he continues to be a hero every day. Today he volunteers with hospice, particularly working with Veterans. Thank you for telling the story of the Vietnam AHC.

What I'm about to say, they didn't say back then, so I'm gonna say it now: To all Vietnam Veterans... Welcome Home!

@nuduce123

3 жыл бұрын

Well said. These men were just doing their job. Some of these guys also fought in world War 2. they got a good home coming then nothing at all. All vets hold a place in my heart but vietnam vets seem to have it a little more. My dad served in Vietnam and I am so proud of him.

@colinp2238

3 жыл бұрын

@@nuduce123 As they were conscripted (drafted) many were not doing their chosen jobs but those foisted on them by the US Government.

@jeffbeutel5764

3 жыл бұрын

Tears...

@lisahinton9682

3 жыл бұрын

@Gerald Spessard Mr Spessard, I am sincerely sorry you went through such a horrible homecoming. You deserved a parade and cheers and thanks, and I'm so sorry you were deprived of such. Please know I appreciate you, and am thankful for what you went through, and the sacrifice you made.

@rudolphferdinand3634

3 жыл бұрын

Gerald Spessard, I too am a Vietnam veteran, but my return to the states delay by 25 months, a stop over in Korea then to the states in December 1973; left Vietnam in November 12, 1971, Mekong Delta region. I did 13 years Army but because no therapy, I called, I’m out.

I just wanted to say thanks for the shot out to the Vietnam Veterans. I served two combat tours with the Marine Corps. 1st. tour as a machine gun team leader, 2nd. tour as a platoon commander with the Combined Action Program (CAP). Tom Boyte, Gy.Sgt. USMC,retired Vietnam 1965-66/1970-71 Bronze Star, Purple Heart

I served with a unique unit of UH-1B/C helicopters used in the artillery role supporting the 1st Cav. Div. in 1967. This role was little recognized amid the much larger and more publicly exposed Assault Helicopter and Air Cav. units. Our primary weapon was the 2.75" rocket which we carried 48 to each aircraft. Suppressive fire was provided by door gunners/crewchiefs with bungee mounted M60 machine guns. We were under the command of the Division Artillery and could put very direct fire support on target on call. Also, you noted that the Marines used S 34 aircraft. Minor error here, they were H-34s. The Army and Marines both used them and the S designation is used by the Sikorsky company to designate their aircraft. The H-34's were Sikorsky S-58 models. Example today we have the UH-60 Blackhawk, which is the S-70 factory model.

@Zorglub1966

3 жыл бұрын

How far from the targets did you usually fire the rockets? I have no clue.

@dorightal4965

3 жыл бұрын

Zorg I really don’t remember. I was on the M60 in the back, not at the controls. It was only 53 years ago ;-)

@Zorglub1966

3 жыл бұрын

@@dorightal4965 My apologies. I didn't mean to be disrespectful. I didn't realize that in any case, in these moments, you must have had other more immediate concerns.

@MrMattumbo

3 жыл бұрын

I imagine the role of ariel forward observer and rocket gunship combined made y'all a potent weapon, God help anyone who exposed their position to you guys and then stuck around for the fireworks. It might be a tired and empty thing to hear, I know to some veterans it is, but thank you for your service.

@whiterabbit-wo7hw

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your service and welcome home.

My father served in Vietnam during the same two years that my mom served in the Peace Corps in South America. He was a helicopter mechanic near the front lines, early in the war before the most horrible events took place. His experience was better than most, though he gets choked up talking about it sometimes. Thank you for acknowledging their sacrifices, and for helping us to remember.

Excellent... 3 months before HS graduation I started the process for Warrant Officer Flight Training. I graduated the evening of June 1, 1970. 12 hours later I raised my right hand and 26 hours after graduation I was at Fort Polk LA for Basic Training. 14 months after graduating from High School I was flying Huey "Gunships" with the 176th AHC "Muskets". The 71st AHC was "just down the flight line" from us. In September I was transferred to Company A "Black Bandits" 229th Assault Helicopter Battalion, 3rd Brigade 1st Calvary Division. The only unit who had two MOH awarded to separate individuals that participated on the same mission (way before I got there). I stayed in the Army after Vietnam and later served in the 71st Aviation Company when it was in the Federal Republic of Germany. I served 14 years on Active Duty followed by 27+ years in the Army Reserve, that's 41 years, 6 months and 12 days of continuous service from June 2, 1970 until I turned 60. I flew the Huey for 26 years and 8500+ hours, mostly the H model but was qualified in the BCD and M models. After my active duty I was employed as a Department of the Army Civilian, or "DAC" Flight Instructor at Fort Rucker Alabama. I primarily flew the Huey along with the Army's TH67 and various fixed wing aircraft. My younger brother and my recently retired son are both Army Aviators and flew the venerable Huey. Thank you again for your excellent history lesson

@scottolman4436

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks for your service. ! was a Warrant Officer in the 176th at Ft Hood in 1987-88.

@victorhopper6774

3 жыл бұрын

the igloos are still there -google earth them. i was in the 71st the same time you were there. were you still there when the cyclone hit?

These guys deserve to be honored and respected. I joined the Army in 1979 and many of the folks in our company had returned from Vietnam. We were still flying the UH-1H & M Huey’s. At the time, these men received little to no recognition for their service and many were treated very poorly. The country seemed to want to forget about Vietnam. Thank you for telling a small piece of their story, truly this is History that Deserves to Be Remembered.

My grandfather was a Army Helicopter Pilot in Vietnam. I've received multiple pieces of his flight equipment as gifts over the years. Some of my most prized possessions, in particular, are his helmets. Thankfully, he's still around to share his love of life. Great video and channel, sir.

From a young war vet to the old, much respect for the Vietnam vets.

@whiterabbit-wo7hw

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your service. Semper Fi.

@Rubenbauer80

3 жыл бұрын

Same goes for you sir thank you.

@peternorton5648

3 жыл бұрын

I’m not so young of a veteran but sincerely agreed. Salute

I was 18 y/o in the Spring of 67. My highschool best friend was killed in Vietnam before Christmas of 67. Please don't forget, the majority of those "men" were 18 to 21 years old. My military years were spent in the Air Force, from 69 to 77.

@joeyjamison5772

3 жыл бұрын

I was enlisted USAF too, 68-73. We lost a guy who transferred out from our unit in Georgia, 3 weeks after he arrived in 'nam. KIA, rocket attack.

@forwardplans8168

3 жыл бұрын

While there in 1968, I still remember being amazed at the number of people who would comment: "you know the guys flying this thing are only 19", all the while totally focused on dropping troops off, picking them up, plus the wounded and dead, slightly rushed by bullets / tracers whizzing through the windshield.

When my Dad passed, my Mom was insistent that it was noted that he served "In Country" for both the Korean and Vietnam war. When I asked her why, she made note that far too many officers from Japan, Okinawa, and the Philippines would fly in for one day, get their orders stamped, and catch the next flight back to home station. She said this was for combat records, kind of like an ummph for their resume, and so they got the month tax free.

@burtvincent1278

3 жыл бұрын

Tax amnesty is exactly why it was done. I made sure I flew at least one B52 mission a month out of U Tapao, Thailand but generally flew much more as a maintenance "hard hat". Senior N.C.O.s and some officers flew their once a month only, others not at all. All personnel on flying status had to be trained and qualified. Not everybody could get a ride. Also we recieved hostile fire pay an additional $70.00 per month. I wanted to fly and was glad I had the opportunity. Most jobs even in the Air Force don't involve flying.

@douglasearnest4381

3 жыл бұрын

It wasn't just for tax purposes, it was for the advancement of the careers of those thousands of bureaucrats in uniform who constantly hamper our ability to fight and win wars. And don't get me started on all the awards they write themselves and each other up for ...

@daguard411

3 жыл бұрын

@@douglasearnest4381 Occasionally I point out that at the end of WW2, there were 10 million men and women on active duty. We have more Generals today than then.

@douglasearnest4381

3 жыл бұрын

@@daguard411 Wow, I never realized that. Consider my mind blown yet again.

@daguard411

3 жыл бұрын

@@burtvincent1278 During the war my Dad served in Thailand, and the only thing he said of that time was that he was furious over the fact that the Air Force didn't consider it a combat zone, even though they were sending him in areas close to Vietnam, and he had to buy his own rifle.

I was Huey engineman 68B20 I was there 69-70 with the 135AHC at Bear Cat and the 117AHC at Long Bein I was 19 . It was good and bad but would go again in a heartbeat . Welcome home to all my brothers in arms. This episode was great and very well done. Thanks History Man. SGT. Tom Hammond

Call Sign T H G You watch, You learn.

@cwo8771

3 жыл бұрын

That’s cool!

@michaelwalton4017

3 жыл бұрын

Call sign: Bow tie 1 History Remembered

@motorcop505

3 жыл бұрын

Michael Walton His is Bow Tie 6, since he is the commander!

@larry_9982

3 жыл бұрын

Call Sign GodDoom 3. I was "the guy" at "GodDoom Control" Long Than North 71-72. 1st Signal and 1st AIRCAV

@joeyjamison5772

3 жыл бұрын

@Harold Slick At least The History Guy doesn't belt you across your teeth with a hockey stick!

I would like to thank EVERY man and woman who has served their nation (no matter the nation) with honor and dignity. And who were willing or did give the ultimate sacrifice when asked. I hope a special respect for Vietnam Gets and you did you duty and came home and didn't get the recognition you deserved. But like true soldiers we did our duty and carried on with the mission of life. But know I appreciate your sacrifice As a Canadian. As a former member of the RCAF. I was apart of a mobile RADAR unit as a tech. We had 2 call signs in our unit. Our ATC (Air Traffic Controllers) were call sign "glow worm" ( as we light the night like the glow worm doll) and our techs were call sign "Gypsy" as we always roamed to service the RADAR and we were on call to deploy anywhere the Canadian military needed us. We have an entire Sat and multi range comms section as well. This unit is still active and is the most specialized but diverse unit in the RCAF As techs and atc it is the "cream of the cream" units. It had 40members in that unit when I served. I'm proud to say I was a GYPSY with 8ACCS (8 Air Communications Controls Squadron)

@land7776

3 жыл бұрын

unless it's a commie nation. More US troops have died fighting commie aggression post WWll than anytime since...

A very special thank you History Guy. I was a Army designation “U.S.”. Which means I was a draftee . I served with the 1St Calvary Division Field Artillery. Many of us were harassed and even spit on at airports. We were fighting an unpopular war but just doing what our country ask us to do. I am your fan from Collinsville. I am proud of my service and the Army. Thanks for remembering us.

@richardtroell6407

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your service.

I just came across this a couple of days ago, and I was most surprised to see that you chose the 71st Assault Helicopter Company. I was a crew chief in the 2nd platoon at the 71st in 1966-1967 (slicks). We served at Bien Hoa and then moved up to Chu Lai while I was there. I still have Rattler patches, a hat, etc. Thank you for your depiction of our role in this terrible war. We are all getting old now, so this will preserve our place in history.

@TheHistoryGuyChannel

24 күн бұрын

Thank you for your service.

The first minute and a half of this video is worthy of a thumbs-up all by itself.

The UH-1 was a revolutionary helicopter. Its turbine power meant enough power to carry a squad in a compact airframe. It enabled the tactic of vertical envelopment to become a reality, but this also meant that the higher-ups over relied on the helicopter and had too much reliance on helicopter tactics. The Viet Cong when surrounded could just go into tunnels and wait out the assault. I highly recommend the autobiographical account of a Vietnam War Huey pilot in the book "Chickenhawk".

@ratagris21

3 жыл бұрын

Good book.

@andrewostrelczuk406

3 жыл бұрын

I was just about to mention Chicken Hawk ... a old Crusty CW5 one day hands me this paperback book the front cover half torn off the rear cover and 3 end pages torn off. He said Here Read this, You'll either like it or hate it but read it all the way through... I've read it at least 4 times now, in the years since I received it. GUESS IT'S TIME TO FIND IT AND READ IT AGAIN!

@roadscholar05

3 жыл бұрын

The original Lycoming T-53 engines started with about 860 HP and the current version s rated at 1,800 HP. The late Vietnam War T-53 L13's had 1,400 HP but had a high failure rate. They came out with the improved L13B, which was FAA certified, which solved most of the issues. Nothing like flying aircraft that the FAA will not certify.

My Dad, Lt. Col. Alva E. Beers, USAF, flew the F4 Phantom II during two tours in Vietnam in ‘65 and 69-70. He passed in 2015, at the age of 81, of Parkinson’s Disease, which was determined to stem from agent orange exposure. As a career officer, the VA did very well by him and my mother, who survives him. Others were not treated as well and their sacrifices deserve our honor. Thank you for bringing these stories to a new generation which, hopefully, will not have to relive history in order to learn it’s lessons. I tell my friends you’re “The Postmodern Paul Harvey.”

I served with the 190th Aviation Company Ash after the Vietnam war ended. Most of the pilots and senior NCO's were Vietnam vets. I moved up to crew chief and flew with several of our pilots. To me best of the best pilots in the world. Some of my favorite memories were flying what we called NOE flights which stands for Navigation of the Earth where you fly extremely low in and out of tree lines,etc. The expertise of these pilots amazed me while at the same time an adrenaline rush that does not compare.

Thank you for this episode. These brave men didn't get the honor and respect they deserved during their service and after they returned. I go out of my to thank a Vietnam vet now. Thank you for helping remember those that we can no longer thank in person.

THG a "9" in radio lingo is pronounced "NINER" to help differentiate between 9 and 5 (pronounced fife). This brought back memories, but I didn't join until '76, after the war, but we trained with the same tactics.

My dad passed away in 1996, but he would have been a fan of you, History Guy. He served aboard the USS Essex in 1962 during the blocade of Cuba. God bless America.

Excellent video. My Father in Law served in Vietnam. He was driving fuel trucks along some road where the enemy would make themselves known. Driving a truck full of fuel and shooting an M16 out the door made him rethink his time in country. He heard of the need for volunteers to serve as door gunners in Hueys. He took that job, and somehow survived his time in Vietnam. A few years a ago I turned on the recorder on our iPhone and had him tell his story. Thank You Vietnam Veterans!

Why in earth has it taken so long to remember and support these veterans, whether in country or in the world. It was and is a total shame on how these men were treated and we shoild resolve ro never do that to our armed forces again. God bless them all

@dosmundos3830

3 жыл бұрын

lol

Thank you for this THG. A dear friend of mine died a few years ago. He was a decorated pilot in the 170th AHC, DJ, callsign, bikini 25. It was only in the last few years of his life that he began talking about his experiences, and oh my, what experiences that were. After suffering with PTSD for decades, he finally went to one of his unit's reunions. That was the catalyst that started him on his road to acceptance and peace with his actions.

1st LT FRANK S REASONER, COMPANY A, 3rd Reconnesence Battalion USMC 1965 Purple Heart and Medal of Honor recipient posthumously for his bravery above and beyond the call of duty Dal Loc district, Quang Nam. Actions so gallant that they named a ship after you.. Cousin, your history deserves to be remembered.

Thank you for this important video. Vietnam was the first war I was aware of and I remember the end of it. My dad served during Korea and was so angry with the way the Vietnam Vets were treated when they returned. To all who served in Vietnam thank you and a much belated Welcome Home.

I think your channel is one of the best on the net! A few years ago, when my sons were in middle school, my wife and I looked through one of their school history texts to see what it said about the Vietnam war. There was a one short paragraph that referred to a "conflict" in southeast Asia. Later that year our oldest (12 years) son's grade sank and sank until he brought home a final grade of F in social studies. My wife, who was a teacher, assigned him to do a research paper over the summer on the Vietnam war. He hated it at first, but the more he learned the more intrigued he became. Now, at the age of 35 he looks back at that summer as a life changing experience. I'm concerned now that many members of our government had the same grade school education that was offered to Caleb and they lack the depth of knowledge of American Military history to make informed choices. Thanks for doing what you do and doing it so well.

@lauraainslie6725

3 жыл бұрын

My high school history teacher in '81-82 barely made a start on WW2 before the end of the year. Vietnam? Forget it; he had, and the kids remembered just enough to know not to broach that subject. We live, and some of us learn.

"A burning Loach marks the target." was an old saying.

@larry_9982

3 жыл бұрын

Sadly, I remember that actually being called out. "GodDoom Control, GodDoom Control, the target is marked by the burning loach at.... Not a good day, or memory.

@ronmarkiewicz1990

3 жыл бұрын

We used burnt out "Shithooks" to navigate by. Firebird 97

Sir: I served in Vietnam January 1971-72, total of 8 years USAF. Thank you for this and all your videos. One of my favorite channels.

I'm a 32 year old United States born citizen, and I have never been shown a more humbling, accurate, and honor demanding glimpse of what the heroes that served in the Vietnam War faced for me and every other American that came after them. Any after-the-fact explanation or teaching of what happened and why leaves a very incomplete understanding of this war (and is often the only angle someone born after such an event can view from without any remarkable juxtaposing vantage point offered elsewhere, like in this THG gift). This lesson has given me a more complete understanding and appreciation of what truly matters regarding the Vietnam War. I believe what matters most (and stands tall above any hindsight justification, reasoning, acceptability, or palatability of any facet of it) is that: Those who served were called. They answered that call. They faced unbearable demands. And they were not found lacking. I have no doubt that if I was a 32 year old Vietnamese born citizen I could hold the same belief. THG, you have made more whole an understanding of this piece of history for this American. I am very grateful for it.

My God ! As a Navy Vet ( 88-96) that's a Helluva lot of abbreviations and acronyms to spill on our Civilian audience ! Lol

@bradbutcher3984

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you.

@emmanuelgoldstein2558

3 жыл бұрын

NDP's LP's AO's CIDG's FOB's & FNG's... I think I'll be alright...

@emmanuelgoldstein2558

3 жыл бұрын

@LTrain 45 well... To be fair... A lot of them are...

@land7776

3 жыл бұрын

The Navy has tons of acronyms, but they also chop the words and string them together, like Amstrostragulfst or some shit like that. More acronyms and strung words than they have uniform types, and that's in the k's..

@cpprcrk1833

3 жыл бұрын

@@land7776 as a former member of NAVAIRSEALANTGRU ( ?, it's been 30 yrs ) , I can confirm . lol .

Thank you Very Much For This Episode and Thanks To All Who Served and Fought in Vietnam. Our Soldiers, Sailors, Marines and Airmen deserve our utmost respect!

The pilots (mostly chief warrant officers) of the 155 Atk Hel Co adopted this young 2LT in my first assignment in 1976 with the Combat Developments & Experimentation Command at Ft. Hunter Liggett, CA. The lessons, good & bad, I learned from them informed the rest of my career. I was proud to be among them then, and the memories warm me today.

@timcooke9933

3 жыл бұрын

www.ljmilitaria.com/armypatches/army_avn_one_hundred_through_one_hundred_and_sixty_ninth.htm

In 1965 to 1968, I was USN and assigned to Helicopter Combat Support Squadron 2. Our base was Lakehurst NJ. We flew off of the USS America aircraft carrier. I am a Viet Nam era veteran. Although I trained to deploy I never did. My best friend W.O. Bobby McCain was an Army Helicopter pilot and was killed in action his first day in Viet Nam. I do appreciate all that you do for our country.

@glyphics1943

3 жыл бұрын

Jack Moler - I believe that I was in flight school with Bobby McCain. WORWAC 65-19; graduated/appointed February, 1966.

@jackmoler9271

3 жыл бұрын

@@glyphics1943 wow. Thank you. Bobby was a good friend from elementary school thru high school.

It was possibly my greatest honor in life to have met Hal Moore well into his retirement. Have you ever made a History Guy presentation on the renamed , 7th Cavalry, (gee! thanks!) in Vietnam? He was a delightful and humble man. Thank you for your channel.

@whiterabbit-wo7hw

3 жыл бұрын

Great man. Great soldier.

@francisbusa1074

3 жыл бұрын

Wow. What an honor!

@muchelleeaton6131

3 жыл бұрын

My father served with the 5/7 Cavalry (Gary Owen) Regiment, I believe '68 to '69. He was a gunner. He goes to the reunions, and I hope to go with him to one of them before more of these guys pass away. He has many stories, and I never tire of hearing them. I have his Class A coat jacket with all of his accomodations in a glass case. I'm very proud of his service.

Something seared into my memory was in 1966 while my father was serving in the Navy we lived in San Ramon/Dublin area in the San Francisco bay area. What I remember as a boy was the endless amount of flatbed trucks hauling Huey helicopters to the port of Oakland for shipment to Vietnam.

@LuvBorderCollies

3 жыл бұрын

Amazing sight for sure. I've seen a number of Army convoys and long railroad trains prior to Desert Storm and the Iraq invasion. Seeing a seemingly endless line of trucks, humvees, Abram tanks, Bradleys, artillery of all kinds, rocket launchers etc etc x 1,000 gives you a different perspective of the US military's power. Watching Air Guard units come together at an airfield, seeing rows upon rows and rows of F-16s/F-15s is another memorable sight. Watching them all takeoff is even more impressive.

@gyrene_asea4133

3 жыл бұрын

Kind of a reverse move, as a kid @ 1968-69 I remember all the torn up equipment being stored near Port Hueneme, CA (Sea Bee facility and Military Sea-lift Command Base) that had been deemed "salvageable" and shipped back to U.S. from Vietnam. I vividly recall recall the two halves of CH-46 in the beds of two wrecked 6-bys. Whenever I visited my dad on his ship, I could get a picture of the ebb and flow of what was happening where my two older brothers (one Marine, one Army Air - yes Air Assault) were serving. Strange world then, as now.

The older brother of our friends, work on the helicopters when they came back to base. When he came back, it was like he didn't speak to us anymore. Twenty years later, I visited and was almost shocked to tears when he spoke to me, three whole sentences. A paragraph...time did heal a lot of wounds. Thank you to those who were in this fight. Welcome Home.

A friend of mine was a door gunner and often had episodes of hysteria,,had he not gotten the help he needed,he said no doubt he couldn't have gone on,,,,,, debilitating p.t.s.d. is a horrible thing to see,,and I would say even worse to experience,GOD BLESS the men and women that served and still serve to keep us safe and free,And may a I say,,, WELCOME HOME❤

A video on the A-10 would be interesting if you haven't already done one.

When I was in the Army in the '80's, we changed the call signs pretty often, and they were 3 character alphanumeric, like, "Whisky Eight Tango, this is Kilo Six Alpha, request permission to enter the net" I was Signal Corps, so it may have been different in armor or aviation units.

@minuteman4199

3 жыл бұрын

We in Canada didn't use call signs the same way as you Americans. As a lieutenant armoured troop leader my call sign was 12 - "A" squadron, second troop. My "junior call signs were 12A, 12B and 12C. If we had infantry on our net, their callsigns would be proceeded by the word "india", If we were on their net, we became "tango". We used the same fixed callsign system throughout the army. There were no self assigned call signs used.

@sparky6086

3 жыл бұрын

@@flyo7789 I can see how changing call signs as often as we did, would be quite unwieldy for units who worked together all the time and might get good enough to read one another's mind, like members of a basketball team, especially at the tactical or battlefield level, that's why I thought, that maybe standard "RTO" (Radio Telephone Operator) procedures may not have applied to all units, even in the '80's, but as you point out, it was all OPSEC in those days.In the Signal Corps, we often worked with other units, who we'd never met or worked with before, sometimes even from other countries, so having the same call sign everytime didn't give us as much of the benefit, as it wouod have in many other types of units and their specific situations. I can't quite remember the name of the little code books. They'd usually be an NCO, who was tasked to go around and load the new codes into the equipment for the normal 2 way FM radios. For the digital telephone system, we'd have a strip of paper with the code on it,, which we used to program into the cypher equipment, kind of a modern "Enigma" machine for digital telephone systems, each week, then we'd burn it in the ashtray, "Tray, Ash, 1-each" (something like that). On the equipment list, even back then, people would wonder why an ashtray was included, since the Army was begining to discourage smoking, since they no longer included cigarettes in the C-Rations, even before the transition to MRE's, but what they didn't know was the ashtray was included specifically to burn the paper strip of code.

@Hovercraftltd

3 жыл бұрын

@@flyo7789 Telling comment 'by the time iraq and Afghanistan were well underway .....individualized call signs were back' - Shows the difference between the bureaucratic prorities of peace time and the practicalities needed in war time - The gap between the two always expensive.

@shawnr771

3 жыл бұрын

@@sparky6086 CEOI

@sparky6086

3 жыл бұрын

@@flyo7789 OPSEC almost got us in trouble in the '80's. Although digital telephone was around in the 1960's in the Army, it was kind of hit or miss, whether the equipment was working properly and there was a hodgepodge of some new & some old digital PCM equipment and even older tech analog FDM equipment for some of the higher capacity carriers or National Guard units, which had older equipment, so there were always times, which certain units had to operate "in the green" or "in the clear", where transmissions weren't in code, so the Soviets always had something, which they could monitor, to give them that warm, fuzzy feeling, that they knew what the US was up to, but in the early '80's, the key command units in Europe got brand new gear around the same time, so although the method of coding digital telephone had not changed, suddenly, everyone's equipment worked, largely just because it was new, so hadn't had time to break, plus the newer models were more reliable than the old ones. We had our Signal Corps field problem, Able Archer, in West Germany, and from the Soviet perspective, suddenly, they weren't able to understand any US Army digital telephone communication, so the Soviet leadership freaked out, wondering why the US Army had suddenly gotten so serious? Maybe, they are about to attack, etc? ...At the time, we were oblivious to that, and were just happy that our equipment was working without having to constantly fiddle with it, like hitting an old TV on the side, to clear up the picture, etc. Anyway, I don't remember excactly what happened, but cooler heads prevailed over on the Soviet side. I think it had something to do with a double agent, but anyhow, nuclear holocaust was averted.

I flew two tours in RVN. 1st tour I was a crewchief/gunner on a UH-1D model, later converted to an H model. 2nd tour, in an OH-6A, (LOH), as a scout. Both tours were in Air Cav Troops. 1st tour in II corps, Central Highlands, 2nd tour, up on the DMZ. What a long strange trip it's been...

My father was a helicopter mechanic during the Vietnam war. He is no longer with us but I have 4 photo albums full of pictures that he took during the war. I enjoy watching your channel.

It deals with an Air Cav pilot rather than an Assault pilot, but I read a very engrossing and detailed autobiographical account of a Vietnam War Huey pilot some years ago. The book is called "Chickenhawk" and was written by Robert Mason; if by some chance you haven't come across it yourself I'd highly recommend giving it a read.

@choprjock

3 жыл бұрын

Within the Vietnam era Army aviation community, I've never heard of anyone described as an "assault pilot". In general, if you flew Hueys, you were either a gunship pilot, a slick pilot, or a medevac pilot. ARA (Aerial Rocket Artillery) pilots also flew Hueys. Army gunship and ARA units began trading in their Hueys for AH-1 Cobras in 1967. Slick pilots flew a multitude of missions, i.e. extractions, insertions, combat assaults, resupply, Command and Control, VIP, spray missions, flare missions, and medevacs. You name it, if the Huey could lift it, they'd do it. Scout pilots normally flew H-23s, H-13s, OH-6s. or OH-58s. Pilots that flew the Medium and Heavy Lift helicopters flew the CH-47, or the CH-53.

@williamgill_esq.6487

2 жыл бұрын

@@choprjock Thanks for that post. It was needed.

Realizing that I am a part of this history. I served with B Co./3rd/503rd Infantry, 173rd Airborne (Separate) . Riding a "Slick" on a combat air assault was part and parcel of the job. Shout out to Casper Aviation Platoon.

@whiterabbit-wo7hw

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your service and welcome home.

@stephenemerson9890

3 жыл бұрын

@@whiterabbit-wo7hw Thank you

I have heard a good many orators proclaim their gratitude for the VietNam vets over the years, but this program is one of the most heart felt of them all. The other was a chance meeting with another vet at the Marine Corps Museum in Quantico, VA a couple of years ago. Upon entering the museum I was overcome with a life size diorama of a squad of Marines disembarking a H-34 while under fire. In my mind I was transported over time and space to that place and my emotions took over. It was at that time that I felt a hand on my shoulder, it was a tour guide and fellow vet. We spent the remainder of the entire day walking and talking of our experiences in country. At the end of the day all of the anxiety that I had felt over the years was gone and I was ready to go home to my wife again. You see, I had taken a month out of my life to ride around the country, on my motorcycle, by myself, to come to grips with my ghosts. As we were parting he gave me a challenge coin to commemorate our day together, one get to another, out of brotherly love. Thank you so much.

Thank you so much for sharing this history of the 71st Assault Helicopter Company. It's my brother, Captain Crosby who you mention in the video. He and his crew were listed Missing in Action January 10, 1970. I was blown away not only for the 71st, but when you talked about my brother and the website I created so his name, his sacrifice is never forgotten. I still receive contact from people who have a POW/MIA bracelet with his name on it. Their stories are awesome too, and the many divine appointments about them. The Rattler Firebird Association, especially the Summer of '69 comrades (who I first met at Herby's funeral in Arlington National Cemetery) have taken me under their wings, becoming my brothers too. I lost my brother, but gained a whole Assault Helicopter Company of brothers...what a beautiful gift Herby left me in these men, his comrades. Now a member of their Association I have learned so much, seen videos of my brother, and heard the stories of him and his gunners. But seeing this video was so touching. Thank you The History Channel Guy...I'm sharing this on his website that you mentioned (firebird91.org) and thank you for your fine words about it also. His comrades are all a buzz sharing and commenting on your video.

@TheHistoryGuyChannel

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you. I was very touched when I came upon your website dedicated to your brother, and felt I had to mention it. I am honored that you are sharing the video on your site.

@marylouwade7453

3 жыл бұрын

@@TheHistoryGuyChannel You made my day! Just before I learned of your video story I received a notice from Wordpress noting Firebird91.org was getting a lot of traffic. I couldn't imagine what it was about, then once I got news of your video I knew! The site got over 1700 views last week. Makes me smile as it keeps that "never forget" alive which is my mission.

History guy and gal...much love!and thank you for helping me. Helping me feel.

Good presentation, thank you. I was there as an OH-6 scout pilot with the 11th ACR (Thunder Horse), Scout callsigns were white, Cobras red and areo-rifles .blue. Cav units as you said did the traditional cavalry jobs. It is clear now that it was a foolish war for many reasons, a waste of lives. However, we did the jobs the nation asked us to do, many did them well and many did them bravely.. There is pride in that, though scant thanks at the time. I am proud to call all those who were there brothers.

When I was a kid, I worked for a guy who was in either the Air Cav, or Air Assault. He had alot of stories about jumping out of a helicopter and falling 8ft because the grass was that tall. He would tape three of his magazine's together, only loading about half the mags because of how often he had jams. He said it was easier to let the gun stop itself from being out of ammo instead of having a jam in a firefight. Before he had his M16, he carried an M79, and used only buckshot. I was at a shooting match last week and was listening to the Vietnam vets talk. I love hearing their stories, and I think they are to this generation what WW2 vets were to mine. One guy I was talking to was reassigned from Korea to Vietnam. He thought it was going to be a fairly smooth deployment. Then Ia Drang happened.

History Guy, you honor the veterans with real stories of their struggles and bravery. You honor and remember them more faithfully then any politician ever does. Thank you for reminding us of our history.

Warlord17, 117th AHC Plantation Air Field, Long Binh, S. Vietnam, 1971. The 117th AHC was originally the 8th Trans. Company (CH-21)

I am always impressed with your videos, sir. Thanks you. My grandfather served ww2 and I support my nations troops

The more I read of thee history of the Vietnam War the more I appreciate our Vietnam Veterans. I never served in that war but I am so grateful for your service to our nation.

Your heartfelt recognition of the veterans, in this episode, was a thing of beauty. Keep up the good work.

Thank you for the respectful portrayal of my former unit. Firebird 92 1966-67. Your description of the Firebird origin is correct. The coin does show the Pure Oil logo adopted unofficially by us after an article on the unit was written in the Pure Oil company’s magazine and the company sent those stickers. They ended up stuck on equipment nearly everywhere we went. I doubt there was a fuel truck in III Corps that did not have one.

@glyphics1943

3 жыл бұрын

William Burgner - Hey Bill! WORWAC 65-19. Rattler 29. How goes it?

@williamburgner

3 жыл бұрын

George Bailey Hi George! All is well here. Retired in Florida. Looking for direct way to reach you.

You’re such a classy guy. If i see a new history guy episode it makes my day

Dear History Guy, please look up the gallant service of a helicopter assault unit by the designation Serpent 6. In the Battle of on An Loc they lost @ half their helicopters stopping an NVA tank attack that may well have conquered the city in April 1972. They were from F battery 79th ARA, 9th Cav & F Troop, 9th Cavalry. My memory is fading fast from 48 years & a TBI, but I will never forget what they did for us.

My uncle, who reached the rank of sergeant, was part of 1st Air Calvary during Vietnam. During his service, he received several medals which included a Bronze Star, and two Purple Hearts. From the stories I've heard, one of the Purple Hearts was from when his helicopter was shot down, and one of his medals (likely, the Bronze Star) was obtained when he selflessly defended the retreat of his unit during an ambush. My uncle passed in 2003, but at his funeral (which came with full military honors,) I was privileged to meet my uncle's unit captain, who told me of a training anecdote involving himself, my uncle, and a scared private, who froze up at the end of the rope, during a hoovering aircraft repel exercise.

Thank you for your service to all Vietnam veterans and their families. Something too often left unsaid, for way too long!

My great uncle passed 2 yrs ago he was 1st cav 1/7 Gary Owens He was one of the 1st units in Cambodia rip bobby 🇺🇲

@JR1300r

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for your service Bobby R.I.P.

@muchelleeaton6131

3 жыл бұрын

My father served with 5/7 Gary Owens as a gunner. I have his coin, and his class A coat jacket with his accomodations in a glass case.

@spoton6906

3 жыл бұрын

Garryowen it is spelled. Nickname of the 7th Cavalry Regiment. Garryowen is also the 1st Cavalry Division's official March. kzread.info/dash/bejne/hHWNxK6doMrOgqQ.html

@muchelleeaton6131

3 жыл бұрын

@@spoton6906 yes, I'm sorry I didn't catch that before I pressed send. My phone's spell check is very sensitive, and it likes to "correct" me right as I'm sending a comment. It can be a pain, but I do appreciate your interest and knowledge.

@spoton6906

3 жыл бұрын

@@muchelleeaton6131 It's all good! Was just pointing that out for everyone to check out. My Dad was a Cavalryman, too. Forgot to mention that all 1st Cavalry troopers can use "Garryowen" as a form of acknowledgement/ respect. Also, as a greeting/ farewell. Garryowen! kzread.info/dash/bejne/d5qfytOnkpW0mZs.html

My father was 1/9th air cavalry 1st team 1965 formerly the 11 air assault, co pilot/ weapons chief. He and his buddies built the “golf course” at An Khe. 300 guys shoulder to shoulder with machetes. Was at the Ia drang fight, rotated home shortly after. He always said he was glad he volunteered and was there when we still had the upper hand. He was and is a hero to me

I only clicked "Like" because there isn't a "LOVE THIS " and a "THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH FOR YOUR SERVICE TO OUR COUNTRY, and ME PERSONALLY, WELCOME HOME TO A COMPLETELY GRATEFUL MAJORITY OF THIS GREAT COUNTRY" buttons. With the UTMOST RESPECT AND THANKFULNESS, Danimal

*Ride of the Valkyries starts playing*

@conradinhawaii7856

3 жыл бұрын

THE worst, most phony, contrived mess of a movie about that war ever made. I've seen more reality in a Road Runner cartoon. Crew chief/door gunner, 25th Aviation Bn., "Little Bears" A.H.C.

Our young men, just as bright, just as brave and just as vulnerable to the politics of their time. We weep for their loss and salute their service.

@roadscholar05

3 жыл бұрын

When politicians FAIL at their job, the military (or police) is called in to restore the peace.

I have two brothers who fought in Vietnam. One Air Force the other was in The Big Red One. THANK YOU, THANK YOU History Guy for your kind words for all of these men and women who served in that war.

Well done HG. These guys fought hard and you have paid them a great tribute with another excellent video. Next time I watch this video it will be on .75 speed so maybe I can soak up the incredible amount of information you have gifted us with..."History that deserves to be remembered" indeed. They deserve your recognition and our gratitude. Thank you.