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Bell UH-1B, 62-4567
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This B Model Huey flew over 2400 flight hours in Vietnam
Built in July 1963, by the Bell Helicopter Co. of Ft. Worth,
Texas, for the United States Army, this aircraft was originally
assigned stateside to the 4th Aviation Company. In February of
1966 it was shipped to Vietnam, where it became part of the 611TH
Transportation Company, serving until June of 1967 when it was
returned to the United States for Gunship Conversion.
Shipped again to Vietnam, in January 1968, it was assigned to the
Gunship Platoon of the 120TH Aviation Company based at Tan Son Nhut
Air Base near Saigon. During the first hours of the 1968 “Tet
Offensive” it was one of 8 helicopters that defended the Air Base
and the City, taking small arms hits on 1/31/68 and 2/2/68. This
platoon, “The Razorbacks”, was credited by the Mayor of Saigon, with
the saving of the City. “4567” continued service until February 1971
when it was transferred to the Navy.
Accepted by U.S. Navy Attack Helicopter Squadron 3, HAL-3, at
Binh Thuy in February 1971, it was cleaned, necessary repairs made,
and new markings were applied. This squadron, “The Seawolves” was
tasked with naval close air support for River Patrol Forces in
Vietnam, Task Force 116, including PBR and Swift Boat fire support,
Seal Team insertions and extractions as well as joint operations
with Army units. Serving first, with Detachment 1 at “Solid Anchor”
and then with Detachment 7 in Dong Tam, this Gunship flew hundreds
of combat missions over the Mekong Delta supplying firepower for the
Navy. In October of 1971, it was deemed that this aircraft,
approaching its 9TH year of service, was in need of a major
overhaul. It then left Vietnam and was returned to the Bell
Helicopter Co.
By the time the rebuild was completed in the summer of 1972,
there was no further need of additional aircraft in Vietnam, as the
war was winding down. It served as a training aircraft at Ft.
Rucker, Alabama until 1975, was then transferred to St. Paul,
Minnesota and then Wisconsin as part of the Army National Guard. It
last flight was in January 1984, after which it was cannibalized for
parts and later sold for surplus/scrap. Severely vandalized while in
storage, it was sold in 1997 to John Kessler of Florida who began
the long restoration process, which continues to this day through
present owner, Scott Kraska of Naples, Florida.
The Aircraft Today
“The Emblem of the Vietnam War”
This aircraft is thought to be 1 of only 2 known Seawolf Gunship
still in existence. There are UH-1s painted to look like aircraft
from this unit at places like the Pensacola Naval Air Museum, The
SEAL-UDT Museum and at Patriots Point in South Carolina, however
these are not ACTUAL veterans of HA(L)-3, but commemorative
representations of what they looked like.
When received from the Army in 1971 the Navy was more concerned
with mechanical function than appearance. The Army markings were
sprayed over and Navy markings were stenciled in their place. 4567
appears much today as it did during the summer of 1971. The
magnesium fuselage does not hold paint as well as steel, and with
all the hard use it needed to be constantly “touched up”. This was
done in the field with spray guns and even spray cans. Bullet holes
were simply hammered flat and small patch panels were riveted in
place. There are at least 6 patched bullet holes, which still
remain. At one time there were many more but the 1972 rebuild
replaced sections of the floor and fuselage skin.
One important piece of information has just been discovered, the “modex” number.
This number was assigned to all Huey Helicopters while with the
Navy. This 3-digit code would have been on both sides of the upper
tail surface and in small numbers above the Seawolf nose art. In
this case the number was "301". While
we can document the participation of this particular helicopter with
the Seawolves through official Army equipment records as well as
Pilot and Gunner log books, the modex numbers would only be recorded
by the squadron. With this number we can now seek out original
photos of this Gunship in combat.
The armament long removed, will be replaced as it is found. This
will be a difficult task as most obsolete weapons systems are
scrapped instead of sold and are rare to find. The restoration
process will eventually include new paint, as the paint from the
1970s will continue to chip and deteriorate.
Crew, Armament and Tactics
The Men and Their Machines
A UH-1B Huey Gunship was manned by a crew of 4. The pilot, who
sat on the Starboard side of the aircraft, performed the main flight
functions and controlled the firing of outboard rocket pods. The
Co-pilot, in addition to sharing flight controls, also controlled
the exterior guns. The gunners were enlisted men, and one manned
each door. Flight clothing by 1971 was varied and in addition to
flight suits, two-piece garments both camouflage and olive green
were worn. All crewmembers wore body armor for protection from small
arms fire, as well as a flight helmet for crash protection and
communication. Enlisted crewmen frequently sat on panels of salvaged
armor plate. Flame retardant gloves were used for hand protection
and a special asbestos mitt was carried to change M60 barrels during
flight, if needed.
The armament, not present, would have included 2.75” rocket
tubes, 7 per side as well as dual remote aimed M134 Miniguns, one
per side. Often one minigun would be removed if a door-mounted
minigun was used on that side. The rear doors would also be manned
by extensive firepower. The Port (left) side would have a door
mounted M134 Minigun and the Starboard (right) side a door mounted
50 Cal Heavy Machine Gun. Supplemental weapons carried on board
would have included M60 machine guns, as backups for the door guns,
as well as M16s, an M79 hand held grenade launcher, and personal
side arms. Firepower was essential, as these aircraft would usually
attack at speeds of less than 100 MPH.
Each flight consisted of 2 aircraft, called a Fire Team. The Lead
Ship would initiate the attack and instruct the other (Trail Bird)
on the nature and direction of the attack, when to engage and when
to break contact. As one helicopter would engage the other
helicopter would come in behind the first, just as it was finishing
a firing run, providing cover for the exiting aircraft and then
beginning its own attack, in turn being covered by the first ship
that had now turned to attack again. This would continue until the
threat was dispatched or until the helicopters needed to refuel and
re arm.
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