Proud Ships:  Aircraft of The Original D Troop                                                  For a new person coming into D Troop, retribution was swift and pointed if they referred to the unit's helicopters as "Choppers", "Eggbeaters", or, the very worst, "Whirlybirds".  Very early on, D Troopers of all stripes were made aware that helicopters were to be generically referred to as "aircraft" or "ships". Some Army aviators even preferred that they be referred to as "airplanes", though this was not widely accepted. Technically, they are "rotary wing aircraft" to differentiate from the more ubiquitous "fixed wing" variety.  The Original D Troop was equipped with two primary aircraft, the Bell UH-1 Iroquois, known more readily by its fabled moniker "Huey", and the Hiller OH-23G .  There were multiple variants of the UH-1 in service at any given time, including the UH-1B, UH-lC,  and UH-1D.  Later in the tour of The Original D Troop, some surviving D's were retrofitted with new rotors and powerplant modifications and redesignated UH-1H's. (Top:  UH-1B equipped with grenade launcher - M. Maldonado) The first helictoper in the D Troop inventory was the Hiller OH-23G, simply referred to as the "23" by D Troop personnel (Scouts Out:  23 in flight - Photo by Phil Passmore).  The 23 was originally adopted to perform "light scout" duties for the Cav.  In this role, they would observe and direct fire from air and ground forces.  Two-seater 23's were designed to carry a pilot and an 'observer'.  Since TO&E did not provide for observers, the crew chiefs flew in that capacity.  Though designated as the "Leprechauns" of D Troop's Shamrock organization (Lower Left:  "Shamrock" noseart on 23 - Passmore), they were more readily known in operations as the "Scouts", and by their crews as "Tree Top Airlines".  Feeling the need for additional armaments, Scout crews quickly adapted additional equipment to the standard layout (Right - 23 Cockpit - Phil Passmore).  Crew chiefs installed an array of grenades for both marking and explosive use.  Throughout The Original D Troop's deployment, the mission of the 23 was to fly low and slow and attempt to draw fire from the ground.  Once fire was drawn, the gunships would move in on the attack.  A command and control aircraft coordinated operations.  Though slow and vulnerable, the 23's inspired fierce loyalty among their crews. Perhaps no aircraft is more identifiable with a conflict than the UH-1 "Huey" is identified with the Vietnam War.  There is a proverb amongst Vietnam Veterans that none of us can hear the familiar "Whop, Whop" sound of a Huey and not look up.  That "whop whop" sound resulted from the leading edges of the large main rotor repeatedly breaking the sound barrier during flight.  Built at Bell Helicopter's Saginaw plant in Texas, the Hueys deserve their reputation for durability and performance under fire.  D Troop's Hueys were divided into the guns and the slicks.  Short fuselage UH-1B/C models were designated as "gunships".  They were first equipped with rocket launchers and M-60 machine guns at the crew chief and door gunner's positions.  Armament was considerably enhanced with the addition of grenade launchers and mini-guns, extremely high fire rate electronically controlled 7.62 cal machine guns in multi-barrel "Gatling gun" configuration.  Fully equipped, Huey gunships were formidable and durable weapons that served their missions and crews well. (Left:   Gunship nose art, traditional crossed sabre cavalry insignia with red and white 1/10 unit designation - Dennis Jorgensen; Right:  Maintenance on late model gunship armament, showing rocket tubes, mini-guns, M-60 7.62mm machine gun at crew chief's position - M. Maldonado). The UH-1D Slicks had a longer, larger cabin than their B/C brethren.  The basic cabin dimensions of the Huey were defined by the Army specification of being able to carry a casualty bearing stretcher completely within the aircraft, and UH-1D's of D Troop flew many medevac missions.  "Slicks" carried only M-60 machine guns for armament at the Crew Chief and the Door Gunner positions.  The primary purpose of these weapons was to provide defense for the aircraft while approaching, leaving, and on the landing zone (LZ) in hostile territory.  Slicks could officially carry up to 12 combat ready troops, and D Troop's aircraft did so often as they transported the unit's Aero-Rifle platoon.  (Right:  D Troop Slick on LZ to pick up Long Range Reconnaisance Patrol; Note LRRP personnel sprinting from cover to board - M. Maldonado).  Slicks also provided immeasureable, if unofficial, support for scrounging missions, carrying water for use in showers, building materials, and a multitude of other "non-combat" roles.  One bright day in 1967, the airfield at Dragon Mountain thundered with the sound of over 60 Huey's winding up for an airmobile assualt.  It is difficult for an individual today, who sees a single helicopter occasionally, to imagine such a display of noise and power. Later in the war, the OH-23's were replaced with turbine powered Hughes OH-6's, which were faster and able to carry heavier armament.  Hueys flew throughout the war and well into the next several generations.  The AH-1 "Cobra" variation of the Huey, readily identifiable by it's narrow fuselage and rakish fighter like appearance, was also added to D Troop's arsenal.  The Cobras were manned by a pilot and a gunnery officer, who was also the co-pilot, but carried no enlisted crew members.  Some twin engine models of the Cobra built for the marines have been upgraded and refitted for modern use by that branch of the service.  The Huey still flies for many foreign military forces, and continues in extensive civilian use for everything from offshore oil well platform servicing, to firefighting, to search and rescue missions. A documentary feature on the Huey called "In The Shadow of the Blade" is available from Arrowhead Films in Austin, Texas.  The title comes from a saying that, if you served in Vietnam, at one time or another you were "In The Shadow" of a Huey main rotor.  Vintage Army air crews are proud to let everyone know that "when the last Blackhawk (the Army's current utility helicopter) goes to the junkyard, a Huey will carry it there."  Such is the unique loyalty to a legend paid by its former crews. Epilogue Service records show that 7,013 Hueys (Left:  UH-1B in full D Troop livery - Maldonado) served in the Vietnam War.  Almost all were Army.  3,305 were destroyed with the loss of 1.074 pilots and 1,103 enlisted crewmembers.  Army UH-1's totaled 7,532,955 flight hours in the Vietnam War between October 1966 (when D Troop 1/10th Cav went into combat) and the end of 1975.  The Huey Cobra (AH-1G) had 1,038,969 flight hours in Vietnam.  Combined, Hueys have more combat flight time than any other aircraft in the history of warfare.  93 OH-23G's were destroyed in Vietnam.  (Statistics compiled by Gary Roush, http://www.vhfcn.org/stat.htm. MEDEVAC helicopters flew nearly 500,000 missions in Vietnam. Over 900,000 patients were airlifted (nearly half were American). The average time lapse between wounding to hospitalization was less than one hour. As a result, less than one percent of all Americans wounded who survived the first 24 hours died. The average infantryman in the South Pacific during World War II saw about 40 days of combat in four years. The average infantryman in Vietnam saw about 240 days of combat in one year thanks (sic) to the mobility of the helicopter. (op cit).