Information on U.S. Army helicopter UH-1H tail number 68-16399
The Army purchased this helicopter 1069
Total flight hours at this point: 00000974
Date: 07/26/1970
Incident number: 700726101ACD Accident case number: 700726101 Total loss or fatality Accident
Unit: D/3/5 CAV
South Vietnam
Number killed in accident = 3 . . Injured = 1 . . Passengers = 12
costing 289345
Original source(s) and document(s) from which the incident was created or updated: Defense Intelligence Agency Helicopter Loss database. Army Aviation Safety Center database. Also: OPERA (Operations Report. )
Loss to Inventory
Crew Members:
AC W1 GL CLARK
P W1 RC SMITH
CE SP4 RODGERS MARTIN LEROY KIA
G E4 SK WASSON
Passengers and/or other participants:
, FCO, G
, PAX, G
, PAX, G
, PAX, G
, PAX, G
, PAX, G
, PAX, G
, PAX, G
, PAX, G
, PAX, G
X2 UNK, PAX, A
X2 , PAX, A
Accident Summary:
ON 26 JULY 1970, AFTER A DELAY DUE TO COMPLETION OF TAIL ROTOR TRACKING, AIRCRAFT ^68-16399^ TOOK OFF TO THE AREA OF OPERATIONS. AFTER DROPPING FOUR PASSENGERS OFF AT THE CHI LANG B-41 PAD, THE AIRCRAFT PROCEEDED TO JOIN UP WITH THE OTHER MEMBERS OF THE LIFT SECTION. AFTER MARRYING UP WITH THE REST OF THE FLIGHT, THEY PROCEEDED TO INSERT TROOPS INTO AN ISLAND AT COORDINATES WT 210050. AFTER THE INSERTION THEY SHUT DOWN WITHOUT HAVING NOTICED ANY DEVIATION FROM NORMAL INSTRUMENT READINGS. DURING SHUTDOWN, ^WARRANT OFFICER RONALD C SMITH^ NOTICED THAT THE ENGINE OIL LEVEL WAS LOW, BUT NOT SUFFICIENT ENOUGH TO WARRENT THE ADDITION OF SOME OIL.\\ NOTIFIED OF THE EXTRACTION OF THE PREVIOUSLY INSERTED TROOPS, ^WARRANT OFFICER^^CLARK AND WARRANT OFFICER SMITH^ CRANKED THE AIRCRAFT SMITH^ CRANKED THE AIRCRAFT AND ASSUMED THE POSITION OF CHALK TWO IN THE THREE SHIP FLIGHT. AFTER THE FIRST TWO LIFTS WERE EXTRACTED ^WARRANT OFFICER CLARK AND WARRANT OFFICER SMITH^ ENCOUNTERED NO PROBLEMS IN HANDLING THE AIRCRAFT, BUT BOTH EXPRESSED CONCERN OVER THE HIGH EGT READING WITH TEN ARVN SOLDIERS ON BOARD. THE SHIP HAD BEEN INDICATING 630 TO 640 DEGREEES EGT WITH 38 POUNDS OF TORQUE AND 98 PERCENT N1. IT WAS DURING THE THIRD AND LAST LIFT FROM THE ISLAND THAT THE ACCIDENT ACCURED. ^WARRANT OFFICER CLARK^ WAS AT THE CONTROLS AND WAS HEADING INTO THE WIND, INDICATING AN AIRSPEED OF 80 KNOTS WITH APPROXIMATELY 50 FEET OF ALTITUDE OVER THE RIVER WITH TEN ARVN SOLDIERS. THE AIRCRAFT FLYING CHALK THREE POSITION NOTED BALLS OF FLAME SHOOTING OUT OF THE REAR OF AIRCRAFT ^16399^ AND CALLED "FLAMEOUT, FLAMEOUT". IMMEDIATELY AFTER HEARING THIS THE PILOT AND COPILOT OF ^399^ BOTH NOTICED THE BLEEDING OFF OF RPM AND ENTERED AUTOROTATION INSTANTLY. ^WARRANT OFFICER SMITH^ PLACED BOTH SHOULDER HARNESSES IN THE LOCK POSITION AND PUT ^WARRANT OFFICER CLARK'S^ RADIO SELECTOR UP UHF. NOTIFYING HIS CREW OF THE PROBLEM ^WO1 CLARK^ ATTEMPTED TO EXTEND HIS GLIDE IN ORDER TO REACH A NAVY BOAT IN THE RIVER. THE AIRCRAFT ENTERED THE WATER IN A LEVEL ATTITUDE WITH NO FORWARD AIRSPEED. BY EXTENDING HIS GLIDE, THE PILOT WAS ABLE TO GET CLOSER TO THE NAVY SHIP BUT WAS NOT ABLE TO REACH IT. TOUCHDOWN WAS ACCOMPLISHED IN THE NORMAL MANNER AFTER ^WO1 CLARK^ SAW HE WAS NOT GOING TO MAKE IT THAT FAR. AFTER HITTING THE WATER THE AIRCRAFT INSTANTLY ROLLED TO THE RIGHT SINKING BELOW THE SURFACE. ^WARRANT OFFICER SMITH^ WHO JETTISONED HIS DOOR AT SURFACE LEVEL SWAM AWAY SAFELY, ALONG WITH DOOR GUNNER ^SP4 WASSON^. ^WARRANT OFFICER CLARK^ TRIED TO GET OUT OF HIS DOOR BUT IT WAS JAMMED SO HE EXTRACTED HIMSELF FROM THE SHIP BY MEANS OF THE CARGO DOOR AFTER CRAWLING INTO THE REAR OF THE HELICOPTER. ^WARRANT OFFICER CLARK^ SURFACED AND NOTICED ^SP4 RODGERS^ SITTING ON THE SKID OF THE SINKING AIRCRAFT AND AFTER BEING ASSURED THAT HE WAS ALRIGHT BY VERBAL CONFIRMATION, 'WARRANT OFFICER CLARK^ STRUGGLED TO STAY AFLOAT BY HIMSELF. THE NAVY BOAT WHICH WAS IN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THE AIRCRAFT ARRIVED AND EXTRACTED THE PEOPLE. IT WAS NOT UNTIL ALL WERE ABOARD THE BOAT THAT ^SP4 RODGERS^ AND THE TWO ARVN SOLDIERS WERE NOTICED AS MISSING.\\
This record was last updated on 09/20/1998
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