A formation of
CH-47s airlifts
105mm howitzers
for a 1984 live-fi re
exercise conducted
on Nightmare
Range, a training
ground in South
Korea. During the
Vietnam War,
moving howitzers
was a daily mission
for Chinook pilots.THROUGH MORE THAN 58 YEARS of peace
and war, the Boeing Vertol CH-47 Chinook has
performed as a modern army’s lifeline, a status
even its builders couldn’t have envisioned when
it first took to the sky in 1961. The helicopter’s
first combat experience came in 1965, when the
aircraft carrier USS Boxer arrived in Vietnam with
57 CH-47As below its deck, and wherever U.S.
(and many foreign) armies have been since, the
Chinook has followed. With powerful engines and
tandem rotors, the Chinook has hauled everything
from combat troops to heavy artillery to boats, and
has flown rescue as well as transport missions.
These stories, told by the people who flew and
crewed them and by those they served, illustrate
why the U.S. Army plans to employ the Chinook
until 2060, making it an airframe that will have
lasted for nearly a century of service.
MEDEVAC IN THE MIST
Gary Roush, Pilot, CH-47A
You could see Nui Ba Den [Black Virgin Mountain]
for over 100 miles from every direction. It was the
most prominent feature in the III Corps [Mekong
Delta] region. The U.S. owned the top of it, and the
Viet Cong owned the rest of it—so the only way to
get supplies up to the troops on the summit was to
bringtheminonChinooks,whichcouldlifta lot
moreandflyathighaltitudefarbetterthanany
otherhelicopter.Oneofthegreatestchallenges
ofthemission—outsideofthealtitude—wasthe
small landing zone with radio towers near it. The
other was the weather, particularly in August and
September, during the monsoon. Despite the risks,
I liked the mission to Nui Ba Den, so I always vol-
unteered to go. My unit flew supplies to the top of
the mountain nearly every day. None of the flights
were really routine, but one was a real standout.
In the early morning hours of August 18, 1968,
hundreds of Viet Cong attacked the American base
at the summit of Nui Ba Den and overran the wire,
with the goal of destroying the vital communica-
tions equipment atop the mountain. A few hours
later, 15 dead enemy fighters littered the small
base, and the rest of the force was in retreat. The
Viet Cong attack had killed eight Americans and
wounded 23. With the monsoon in full swing, the
upper part of the mountain was shrouded in mist.
Dustoff [medical evacuation] Hueys tried to get
to the wounded, but failed due to the conditions.
The ground commander was begging us to make
an attempt—unlike the Hueys, a single Chinook
could transport all 23 wounded.
Aftera numberofattempts,wealsowereready
togiveup—thevisibilitywaspracticallyzero.Then
oneofthecrewcameupwiththeideaofflying
downtothebaseofthecloudsand“hoveringup,”42 AIR & SPACE airspacemag.com
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