Welcome To "The Original D Troop"
This site is "Base Camp" for contact and communications between veterans who served with The Original D Troop, 1st Squadron/10th Cavalry, between 1965-1967. Our site remembers and celebrates The Original D Troop, which formed, trained, deployed, and served as a "unit", resulting in a unique brotherhood between its members.
The Original D Troop served as the airmobile reconnaissance and fire support arm of the armored 1st Squadron, 10th Cavalry, from 1965-1967. The unit formed in 1965-1966, in Fort Lewis, Washington, and deployed to Vietnam in September, 1966, part of the 4th Infantry Division. In Vietnam, The Original D Troop was based at Dragon Mountain Base Camp (later known as Camp Enari), about 12 miles outside Pleiku in the Central Highlands.
Equipped with nine OH-23's and eighteen "Hueys" (Bell UH-1B "Guns" and UH-lD "Slicks"), D Troop's aircrews flew thousands of sortees between arriving in-country and DEROS (return from overseas) of the last Original D Troopers in the early Fall of 1967. The soldiers of D Troop distinguishing themselves with bravery and commitment to duty and mission. The airfield at Dragon Mountain (Camp Enari) was named for WO Ernest Hensel, a D Troop pilot shot down in action against the enemy in February, 1967. The Original D Troop's infantry platoon, operating from a forward fire base, secured LZ's (Landing Zones) and provided support to the 10th Cavalry and other 4th Infantry Division units. For more on The Original D Troop, click on History.
In 2003, several D Troop veterans found each other on the internet and by phone. In June, 2004, Marty Contreras (Crew Chief in Scouts Section), Paul Hradil (Scouts Crew Chief), Manuel Maldonado (Door Gunner/Armorer), Steve Moreno (Door Gunner), and Doug Donnell (Troop Clerk) met together in Las Vegas, where they shared war stories, recalled ancient history, consumed adult beverages, and began the process of re-assembling the unit. An expanded reunion of eleven D Troopers (and spouses) took place in April, 2005, also in Las Vegas, and our 2006 Reunion took place in Gig Harbor, Washington. Washington was chosen as the site because 2006 was the 40th Anniverary of the deployment of The Original D Troop from nearby Fort Lewis. Our 2007 reunion was back in Las Vegas.
Since the first contact, our Active Roster has expanded to include veterans representing every stage of D Troop 1/10th Cavalry's formation and involvement in the Vietnam War, 1965-1971, and virtually every MOS, from helicopter pilot to infantryman.
For more information about The Original D Troop, contact Doug Donnell at dwdreps@yahoo.com; or Marty Contreras at oh23scout@yahoo.com. If you or someone you know was with The Original D Troop, please email us and let us know how to contact you so we can add you to our "Active Roster" and let you know about upcoming events and other news. Due to privacy issues on the internet, no personal information, other than names, will be published on this site. With your approval, however, we will furnish your contact information to other D Troop "Active Roster" personnel so they may contact you, and you may contact them.
Once more, "Welcome" to all. We hope you will visit often and help us make "The Original D Troop" a definitive website for what was a unique and incredible experience. This site is dedicated to all the Army Air Crews who flew in Vietnam, regardless of unit, in recognition of their largely unacknowledged skill, courage and commitment to duty.
(Photos and other material on this site are property of The Original D Troop and/or individual photographers and contributors as credited and may not be used without permission.)
