Unit: DIR SUP / TRAN For other AH-6 and MH-6 variants, see MH-6 Little Bird and Boeing AH-6. Systems damaged were: COMM SYS, STRUCTURE, INSTRUMENTS, PERSONNEL The Little Birds weaponry is a far cry from the M60 machine gun carried aboard a Loach in Vietnam: AH-6s can carry miniguns, rocket pods, grenade launchers, Hellfire missiles, and air-to-air Stinger missiles. Pilot sold separately. But the Hueys proved too slow to do the job properly, and the need to replace both scouts and protectors was immediately evident. Both Loach and Cobra have been in production, on and off, in one form or another ever since. The back plate was often not used owing to the weight, and even the chest plate was deleted. Home | The Chickasaw was a multi-purpose helicopter designed for both the US Army and Air Force. [22] The remaining H-13s were promptly withdrawn in favour of the OH-6s. https://warandlifediscussions.weebly.com/Any veteran who served in any combat zone in any capacity is invited to contact Preston Jones: [email protected] / (479) 524-7488 Armed with guns, Hellfire missiles, and 2.75-inch FFAR, it provides armed helicopter support to both ground and air special operations. They could also use grenades and on occasion even homebuilt explosives; more aggressive units mounted forward-firing miniguns. Scout pilots were a different breed of cat, says Cobra pilot Jim Kane, who likens his former colleagues to the airborne equivalent of the Tunnel Rats, soldiers who crawled head-first into Viet Cong-built tunnels without any idea what awaited them there. To this day I am closer to those guys I flew with in Vietnam than my own brothers, says Mills. Unit: 173 ABN 608th Transportation Company (Aircraft Direct Support): Mar 72 The Army purchased this helicopter 0968 At peak production, during the Vietnam War, as many as 100 OH-6As were built a month. In her spare time, Samantha enjoys reading, knitting, and hanging out with her dog, Chowder! While Enroute this helicopter was at Level Flight at 0020 feet and 050 knots. But the Vietnam War was unlike any previous American conflict; there were few real definable frontlines, and combatants needed to know what was happening all around them, all the time. As the reserve units have continued to move away from the OH-6 as their primary scout aircraft, military technical support of the aircraft has dwindled. The prototype first flew in early 1963, and production began two years later. Hughes developed the Model 369 as a prototype for the U.S. Army in the early 1960s. To this day I am closer to those guys I flew with in Vietnam than my own brothers, says Mills. So I engaged the enemy, but didnt make it out of that one. 2023 Smithsonian Magazine The Bell H-13 Sioux was developed as a light-weight single-engine and single-rotor helicopter. The Hughes OH-6 Cayuse (nicknamed "Loach", after the requirement acronym LOHLight Observation Helicopter) is a single-engine light helicopter with a four-bladed main rotor used for personnel transport, escort and attack missions, and observation. The Cayuse was publicly introduced in 1966 and set several records, including record for endurance, speed and rate of climb. Unknown as to mission impact. It had no hydraulic system and its electrical setup was used primarily to start up the enginesimple even by 1960s standards, which for practical purposes meant it was easier to maintain and harder to shoot down than other helicopters. Cobra Gunship, Huey and Loach OH-6 Members of C Troop, 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry dedicated an OH-6 Loach Scout helicopter flown by their unit during the Vietnam War Las mejores ofertas para Cartas de Lee: La historia de un hombre de Vietnam por Larayne M. Topp (ingls) Paperb estn en eBay Compara precios y caractersticas de productos nuevos y usados Muchos artculos con envo gratis! Kane was dispatched to the crash site in another Cobra with copilot Jim Casher. An Army article written after Johns seventh crash credited it with surviving 61 hits from enemy fire and seven crashes without losing a single crew member. It was also the right size to fit the necessary avionics and fuel stores, all while keeping the structure nimble and agile. It was mostly used to transport troops and cargo during the Vietnam war. Read the harrowing story of what happened on that tragic mission. The Sea Stallion is a line of heavy-lift transport helicopters. Shortly thereafter, the aircraft were returned to the U.S., where they were dismantled and converted back to a standard configuration; they continued to be operated as such for a time. [22], It became common for OH-6s to operate in teams with other rotorcraft, particularly the Bell AH-1 Cobra attack helicopter. The type was born from the US Army Light Observation Helicopter (LOH) program (which provided its "Loach" nickname) and ultimately proved an excellent helicopter system seeing only limited service in the inventories of several American allies worldwide. Total flight hours at this point: 00000265 Your email address will not be published. History | The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. They chose the OH-6A scout helicopter to fill that role, and it became known as the Little Bird compared to the other aircraft in the task force, the MH-60 and the MH-47. When the Loach debuted in 1966, it broke records for speed, endurance, and rate of climb, all important attributes for a scout helicopter. One time we ran into hundreds of enemy troops. Despite Being Prone to Crashing, the Loach Helicopter Was Favored By Pilots In Vietnam The Hughes OH-6 Cayuse was a revolutionary rotorcraft operated during the Vietnam War. Although most combat aircraft in Vietnam aimed for altitudes and speeds that helped them avoid anti-aircraft weapons, U.S. Army crews flying Hughes OH-6A Cayuse helicopters flew low and drew fireto set up the shots for the Bell AH-1G Cobras circling above. A saying among Army aviators was, If you have to crash, do it in a Loach.. Search and Rescue Helicopters 5. But even that armament combined with the Cobra escort couldnt keep them safe. The Loach-derived MD-500 and other civilian variants still roll off the assembly lines at MD Helicopters, Inc., while Boeing produces an upgraded variant, the AH-6 Little Bird, for military forces (including an autonomous drone version). The Marine Corp used it for the sea-based interdiction of the Ho Chi Minh Trail in 1972. 2 Stinger AAM. Hughes 500M: Military export version of OH-6 in mid-1970s with upgraded 278-shp Allison 250-C18 turboshaft engine, "V" tail. President As we navigate rapidly evolving military culture and Like any deployed troops, Russian soldiers make calls Sign up for our newsletter and receive the mighty updates! Warrant officer John Shafer was 21 when he arrived on October 16, 1970, to fly Loaches. The "loach" was the LOH (Light Observation Helicopter) or OH-6A. During the Vietnam War, it was exclusively used by North Vietnam for reconnaissance and VIP transport. In the end, Hughes lost its contract to Bell, who was deemed to have the superior design. Some of them were able to tell how large a force was and how recently it had passed. Advertising Notice The Raven was used as a scouting helicopter during the early phases of the war, before it was eventually replaced by the Cayuse in early 1986. Each could be equipped with any number of armaments, including grenade launchers, 7.62 mm miniguns, Hydra 70 mm unguided rockets, and TOW and Hellfire anti-tank guided missiles. Vietnam Veteran and his Helicopter Reunited. [7] The Hiller design, designated OH-5A,[7] had featured a boosted control system, while the Hughes design did not, a difference that accounted for some of the price increase. Reportedly, 964 out of the 1,422 OH-6As produced for the U.S. Army were destroyed in Vietnam alone. During the testing phase, it became clear the Bell prototype was underpowered, so it was dropped. You had a couple of flights in the Huey, then you rode front seat in a Cobra, scout pilot Allan Krausz recounts. I had another lead that went through 150 feet of trees, and they survived., Shafer himself had brushes with disaster, and his luck nearly ran out on a mission west of Dak To, near the border with Laos. Systems damaged were: FUEL SYS [8][9] It was reported that Howard Hughes had directed his company to submit a bid at a price beneath the actual production cost of the helicopter in order to secure this order. In 1961, twelve companies submitted proposals to meet U.S.Army requirements for a four-seat turbine-powered light observation helicopter (LOH). It was the same for Jim. Moses, a 19-year-old draftee, arrived in Vietnam in July 1970 for the first of two year-long tours, and later worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs as a therapist and administrator. A.J. The small "egg-shaped" design and simplified rotorhead incorporated four rotor blades of constant chord, made of bonded light alloy. [22][23] Prior to the arrival of the AH-1, "hunter-killer" teams often relied on the firepower from armed models of the Bell UH-1 Iroquois utility helicopter. The Seasprite was an anti-submarine and anti-surface helicopter that had over-the-horizon targeting facilities. Hughes Model OH-6A "Cayuse" or "LOACH". It was used prolifically because of its unique hovering abilities. Operation Honey Badger was canceled after the hostages were released on 20 January 1981, and for a short while, it looked as if the task force would be disbanded and the personnel returned to their former units. Two (2) Crew: one Pilot, one Observer/Doorgunner. Rattler One-Seven puts you in the helicopter seat, to see the war in Vietnam through the eyes of an inexperienced pilot as he transforms himself into a seasoned combat veteran. Helicopter Pilots Who Died in the Vietnam War . More from us: The US Air Force Panicked When Its Top-Secret Stealth Fighter Crashed Into the California Wilderness. We operated from fixed bases that were islands, if you will, of allied control, says Hugh Mills, who flew both Loaches and Cobras in Vietnam from 1968 to 1972, and went on to fly helicopters for the Kansas City Police Department. Cobras rolled in and blew the downed aircraft uptaking with it about 15 bad guys standing around it.. Some crews argued that the Kiowa was nowhere near as nimble as the OH-6, however, the transition proceeded while scouting doctrine was changed to emphasis operations from greater distances. We got hit by incendiary .51-caliber rounds, and the phosphorus ignited the Cobras hydraulic fluid. Under enemy fire this nimble machine had to fly low to the ground, just above the jungle canopy. After evaluation, three designs were selected and 5 of each: the Bell OH-4A; the Hiller OH-5 and the Hughes OH-6, were ordered for trials by the U.S.Army Aviation Board. Due to its unique shape, the Loach was given the nickname . Lt. Col. Hughes developed the Model 369 as a prototype for the U.S. Army in the early 1960s. Nate Shaffer has restored a Hughes OH-6A Cayuse helicopter. In the Vietnam War, these choppers were used to recover downed aircraft. Click on the hotlinks for more information. Unfortunately, the weight of the armament kept the little bird from taking off. Also: LNOF, 90119, JSIDR (Lindenmuth Old Format Data Base. Shop | Ace Cozzalio was among the most colorful characters of the Vietnam War. In this theatre, it was commonly operated in teams with other rotorcraft, such as the Bell AH-1 Cobra attack helicopter, using so-called "hunter-killer" tactics to flush out and eliminate hostile ground targets; the OH-6 would act as bait to draw enemy fire and mark targets for other platforms such as the AH-1 to attack. The Loach's main role was reconnaisance and observation. It can cruise at speeds of 150 mph. On 1 October 1986, to help meet the increasing demands for support, the 1-245th Aviation Battalion from the Oklahoma National Guard, which had 25 AH-6 and 23 UH-1 helicopters, was placed under the operational control of the 160th. Kanes commanding officer flew his command-and-control Huey to the ravine where Kane and Casher huddled. OH-58 "Kiowa" light observation / scout platform. These helicopters were mostly used for observation, reconnaissance, utility, and for providing combat support. Built by Hughes Tool Company, it was designed to be a scout helicopter during the Vietnam war. The Cobra is a single-engine attack helicopter produced by Bell Helicopter as a primary attack helicopter in the Vietnam War for aerial assaults or as air cavalry. article/image or apply full credit information. I was used to getting up close and personal with the enemy.. Stanley Hiller complained to the U.S. Army that Hughes had used unethical procedures; therefore, the Army opened the contract for rebidding by all parties. The Hughes OH-6 Cayuse is a light helicopter with a single engine and a four-bladed main rotor. Following the lead, we got peppered with rounds. The Loach had a bad vibration, but he made it about half a mile before he had to land. Following a contentious selection process that included allegations of industrial espionage and political favoritism, the first Hughes OH-6A observation helicopters arrived in Vietnam in December 1967. To remedy this shortcoming, the Army began developing a special aviation task force to prepare for the next attempt to rescue the hostages: Operation Honey Badger. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Here are the 24 helicopters used in Vietnam. The "OH-6C" was the creation of the Maintenance Section of The Real Cav, B Troop 7/17th Air Cavalry Squadron, which was stationed near Pleiku in early 1972. The light observation helicopter OH-6 Cayuse, or Loach (based on the LOH acronym), was a Vietnam-era helicopter designed with speed and maneuverability in mind. MD-500E/MD-500MG/Defender II: Had a more elongated nose for streamlining, and an optional 4x blade tail rotor for reduced acoustic signatures. It was barely used in the Vietnam War because it was replaced by the more advanced Sikorsky H-34 Choctaw. The mission training consisted of loading onto C-130 Hercules transport aircraft which would then transport them to forward staging areas over routes as long as 1,000 nautical miles (1,900km). The helicopter made a Forced Landing. Required fields are marked *. They were employed in hunter-killer tactics, wherein they flew low over the jungle as bait to draw enemy fire. contact us here and we will remove the The US Army subsequently reopened the LOH program to engineering companies, offering a new contract for 2,700 additional airframes. I tried to move the stuck controls and prayed for a place to set down. It took all of Kanes strength to pull out of a steep dive, and they crash-landed with a horrific thud. One of the most dangerous helicopter assignments was a tiny scout helicopter known as the Loach. Officially designated the OH-6 Cayuse, these things were made of thin plexiglass and metal but were expected to fly low over the jungles and grass, looking for enemy forces hiding in the foliage. [28][29], The pilots selected to fly the OH-6A helicopters came from the 229th Attack Helicopter Battalion and were sent to the Mississippi Army National Guard's Army Aviation Support Facility (AASF) at Gulfport, Mississippi, for two weeks of qualification training in the rotorcraft. Army troops called the OH-6As Loaches, a contraction of light observation helicopters. The ship was unusually light and had plenty of power, perfect for flying nap-of-the-earth missions, and its 26-foot-diameter main rotor made getting into tight landing zones a snap. Its first overseas deployment, as well as into frontline combat, was the Vietnam War. The OH-6A was powered by a single Allison T63-A-5A 285 shp turboshaft engine, and had a cruising speed of 144 mph (125 knots). SA-7 Grail heat-seeking missiles could down a Loach before its crew even realized they were under fire.