unit history information
for 283 MED DET
498 MED CO
44 MED GRP
604 TC CO
For date 690501
283 MED DET was a US Army unit
498 MED CO was a US Army unit
44 MED GRP was a US Army unit
604 TC CO was a US Army unit
Primary service involved, US Army
Pleiku Province, II Corps, South Vietnam
Location, Pleiku DUSTOFF
Description: At time time, the 283d Med Det lived on a small separate compound about a mile from the 71st Evac compound. We just called the place the DUSTOFF Compound and we used the call sign PLEIKU DUSTOFF. Our higher headquarters was the 498th Med Co at Qui Nhon and then the 44th Med Group. We had six UH-1Hs and 12 pilots. If we needed maintenance support, we used the 604th TC CO at Camp Holloway.
We lived in a two story barracks but we had a huge club. Everyone came to our club because we provided the booze, the nurses, the bands. It was common to find sleeping dunks in our helicopters in the morning.
We maintained two field sites. One was at LZ MARY LOU southwest of Kontum. Depending on the time of the year and the activity, we'd keep two ships there. The other was at the Ban Me Thuot City field where the 155th AHC lived.
Things weren't very formal there. We learned by going on missions. We had First Stand-by and Second Stand-by where ever we had aircraft. One day, I attended a 'meeting' with the CO, XO and some other pilots. They gave me a mission some place near Kontum and said I should take this other pilot along. They joked that if I didn't get lost and if I returned with the Huey, that would be good enough. A few days later I received my AC orders! I don't ever remember any check rides.
We flew some unusual missions by anyone's standards. For example, I remember once near Pleiku the NVA calls us on a captured American radio. They said words to the effect that they had a badly wounded officer that would certainly die if he didn't get medical help, that this was no trick or trap and asked us to come get him because he was well liked by the men in his unit. We went to the grid coordinates given and picked him up without a problem. For example, one time a USAF Covey FAC, who used to frequent our Club, called to say he had a team west of Dak Pek and couldn't get any helicopters to go get it. We did it as a favor for him, but we rarely went 'over the fence.'
Since we lived with the 155th guys at Ban Me Thuot, we had a special friendship with them. When you operated in the Duc Lap and Bu Prang area when things are hot, you 'NEEDED FRIENDS' and gunships!
Comments: MAJ Spruell, Jerry; CO; ;
CPT Cavis, Chuck; XO; ;
WO1 Bennett, David A.; pilot; ;
The source for this information was Dave Bennett at 1998 VHPA Reunion
Additional information is available on CD-ROM.
Please send additions or corrections to: Gary Roush Email address: webmaster@vhpa.org
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Date posted on this site:
05/13/2023