Information on U.S. Army helicopter UH-1H tail number 67-17821
The Army purchased this helicopter 1068
Total flight hours at this point: 00000706
Date: 09/17/1969
Incident number: 690917261ACD Accident case number: 690917261 Total loss or fatality Accident
Unit: 3 BDE 9 INF
The station for this helicopter was Tan An in South Vietnam
Number killed in accident = 10 . . Injured = 0 . . Passengers = 6
costing 882208
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:
P 1LT SNOWDON RICHARD ATWOOD KIA
AC WO1 MAYER ROBERT P KIA
CE SP5 FITCH WILLIAM ANDREW KIA
G SP5 HAUGHT GARY LEE KIA
Passengers and/or other participants:
CPT DIETZ DONALD WILLIAM, AR, PX, KIA
MAJ MITCHELL DANA WESSON, AR, PX, KIA
LTC SIKORSKI LEO PETER, AR, PX, KIA
MAJ MACKEY DAVID RANDELL, AR, PX, KIA
MAJ MCNAIR WILLIAM TERREL, AR, PX, KIA
COL CRITTENBERGER DALE J, AR, PX, KIA
Accident Summary:
ON 17 SEPTEMBER, 1969, "B" TROOP, 3RD SQUADRON, 17TH AIR CAVALRY WAS IN SUPPORT OF THE 3RD BRIGADE, 9TH INFANTRY DIVISION, PROVIDING THEM WITH THREE HUNTER-KILLER TEAMS, CONSISTING OF ONE AH-1G AND ONE OH-6A EACH. THE 3RD BRIGADE AVIATION SECTION WAS PROVIDING ONE UH-1H AS A COMMAND AND CONTROL AIRCRAFT. THIS COMMAND AND CONTROL AIRCRAFT AND ONE OF "B" TROOPS AH-1G AIRCRAFT WERE INVOLVED IN THE ACCIDENT. THE OH-6A IN THE HUNTER-KILLER TEAM WAS AT TREE TOP LEVEL OVER THE ELEMENT IN CONTACT. THE AH-1G WAS COVERING HIM WITH LEFT HAND ORBITS AT AN ALTITUDE OF APPROXIMATELY 800 FEET. THE AH-1G WAS SOUTH OF THE TARGET AREA AND STARTING A TURN TO THE NORTH. HE WAS PREPARING TO SET UP HIS N - S ROCKET RUN FROM ALTITUDE OF APPROXIMATELY 800 FEET. THE OH-6A STARTED TO DEPART THE TARGET AREA. THE COMMAND AND CONTROL AIRCRAFT DEPARTED FROM OVERHEAD THE ADJACENT GROUND ELEMENT USING APPROXIMATELY THE SAME ORBIT PATTERN AS THE AH-1G, ONLY HE WAS MUCH LOWER. THE COMMAND AND CONTROL SHIP CAME INSIDE THE ORBIT OF THE AH-1G, AND WHILE CLIMBING STRUCK THE AH-1G IN THE UNDERNEATH LEFT SIDE WITH HIS MAIN ROTOR BLADE.\\
This record was last updated on 09/20/1998
This information is available on CD-ROM.
Additional information is available on KIAs at http://www.coffeltdatabase.org
Please send additions or corrections to: The VHPA Webmaster Gary Roush.
KIA statistics
Return to the KIA panel date index
Date posted on this site: 11/13/2023
Copyright © 1998 - 2023 Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association