Nat'l Geographic special

[troy2k]

http://www.tvthrong.co.uk/vietnam/series-premiere-episode-14

"With little consideration for their own safety, Tom and Larry flew their unarmed chopper straight into enemy territory. Upon arrival at the landing zone, they realised that they would have to perform a tricky, dangerous manoeuvre to touch down amidst the thick undergrowth. As they lowered the Huey, the pilots used the rotor blades to chop through the bamboo to clear the area. “We were like a lawnmower,” says Tom. Despite damage to the blades, the plan worked and Tom and Larry were able to rescue the soldiers."

I have never even HEARD of anything close to this craziness, and they made 5 LIFTS from the HLZ back to the Firebase. Evac'd an entire SF team and a COMPANY of SVN Rangers. These fellas have balls the size of church bells! An awesome show, but I don't know if it will only be on UK NG.

[RGR.Montcalm]

http://www.tvthrong.co.uk/vietnam/series-premiere-episode-14

"With little consideration for their own safety, Tom and Larry flew their unarmed chopper straight into enemy territory. Upon arrival at the landing zone, they realised that they would have to perform a tricky, dangerous manoeuvre to touch down amidst the thick undergrowth. As they lowered the Huey, the pilots used the rotor blades to chop through the bamboo to clear the area. “We were like a lawnmower,” says Tom. Despite damage to the blades, the plan worked and Tom and Larry were able to rescue the soldiers."

I have never even HEARD of anything close to this craziness, and they made 5 LIFTS from the HLZ back to the Firebase. Evac'd an entire SF team and a COMPANY of SVN Rangers. These fellas have balls the size of church bells! An awesome show, but I don't know if it will only be on UK NG.

I didn't see any mention of any medals for valor for those guys- any idea what they were awarded?

Overall, sounds like they would have earned a DFC and either a SS, DSM or possibly been recommended for the MOH...

[SOTB]

I remember hearing stories of Vietnam helo pilots using their blades to chop down growth so they could get low enough to pick guys up -- fantastic amount of balls, there.

The closest I ever got to helo pilots doing anything "cool" with regards to trees, was a '46 pilot putting a pine tree through the floor of the bird on entering the LZ. OK, I guess that wasn't so cool....:eek::tongue:

[KidA]

The closest I ever got to helo pilots doing anything "cool" with regards to trees, was a '46 pilot putting a pine tree through the floor of the bird on entering the LZ. OK, I guess that wasn't so cool....:eek::tongue:

There was that video/thread here recently of the Blackhawk driver coming in hot on that LZ and whacking the top off a pine tree or two at a demonstration at a school...also not so cool...

[Outofcontrol]

Saw that NG Special...A...f-ing...mazing. The computer animation was telling. They just lowered right down into the bamboo.

I'd say the cost of a couple of huey blades was well worth the rescue!

We had a rotor strike on one of our JH-65's during a Boarding dog and pony show and it only whacked an inch or two off the end cap of one of the blades. The brass shit themselves, called an emergency cancellation to the exercise, the whole unit was in safety stand-down for a week, and ALL of the pilots were grounded/had their flight status pulled for a month pending investigation. (plus they had the bejeezus scared out of them with threats of all sorts of hellfire an damnation to fall upon them)

They were eventually cleared, btw.

Oh how times have changed.

OOC, out

[CB]

Deliberately putting rotor blades in contact with anything other that air is a recipe for disaster.

Not that pilots don't have balls of steel.

I remember my team daddy describing a training mission with 10th Group and SAS guys vicinity Ft. Devens, MA with an USAF Special Operation HH-53. The chopper came to a high hover, then lowered with the tail boom and tail rotor in a gap between trees, then pivoted under the tree branches, then the aircraft landed on the wheels. Like a key going into a lock.
When it was time for take off, the aircraft pulled up, twisted to allow the tail boom to realign with the gap, then pulled pitch and went straight up.

He said "I landed and took off in that chopper, but if you asked me today could a helicopter land in that clearing, I would tell you no."

[SOTB]

He said "I landed and took off in that chopper, but if you asked me today could a helicopter land in that clearing, I would tell you no."I think it was Sardinia, or maybe Corsica, but our rigger got beaned in the noggin by a pretty decent-sized rock while we were doing some climbing stuff. After we got him into a stretcher and ran him across a rope to a better location, a Marine Huey dropped in to pull him out. Dude drops the bird in this small draw, keeping the main rotors from dinging the cliffs on both sides and the tail rotor (somehow) from contacting the same. I don't think the rock cliffs would have reacted as generously as trees in this thread have.

We loaded the rigger in the bird and he flew off to the ship. I was pretty amazed at that aviator's flying abilities.

When we got back, we reminded the rigger of what you are supposed to do when someone yells "rock!":rolleyes:

[Just Another Guy]

Larry is a great guy. He graduated from Pennsylvania Military College just before I started. His brother was a senior cadet cadre during my "Rook" year. It is truly an amazing story and, I understand, it took a lot of persuasion for Larry to consent to this.

[Justaclerk]

Just a reminder, and probably an uneeded reminder, read "Horse Soldiers" to get an idea about big, brass ones and flying in rising terrain at night in horrendous weather conditions.

[Copecwby20]

The closest I ever got to helo pilots doing anything "cool" with regards to trees, was a '46 pilot putting a pine tree through the floor of the bird on entering the LZ. OK, I guess that wasn't so cool....:eek::tongue:

My buddy works on the flightline at Miramar and was showing me pictures a couple weeks ago of a "shitter on a stick" Apparently 53's don't like it all that much when you land them on a tree. When I get back from leave I'll see if I can get the picture to post.

[Cayenne6]

The best non combat extract I was on was a tailgate off the side of a mountain. We had to crawl under the rear blades then throw ouselves on the Hell gate. Pilot did a good job but had a couple of problems. Just as the radioman jumped the bird lurched forward. Lantzer missed the gate landing on his side. Bird came back with the wing pinning the PRC-25 to the side of the mountain. Crew chief was on the ball and got the pilot to move forward.

Other problem was just as the tail end landed on the gate the bird moved off causing the dude to slide backwards. He ended up hanging half off the gate. We had to drag is ass on.

A year or two earlier a dude from 1st Recon was decapitated during a tailgate extract.