Information on U.S. Army helicopter CH-47B tail number 67-18445
The Army purchased this helicopter 1067
Total flight hours at this point: 00001088
Date: 08/26/1970
Incident number: 70082622.KIA
Unit: 178 ASHC
This was a Combat incident. This helicopter was LOSS TO INVENTORY
for Air/land Assault , Hot Area.
While on Landing Zone this helicopter was Landing at 0100 feet and 010 knots.
South Vietnam
UTM grid coordinates: AT851009 (To see this location on a map, go to https://legallandconverter.com/p50.html and search on Grid Reference 49PAT851009)
Count of hits was not possible because the helicopter burned or exploded.
Explosive Weapon; Non-Artillery launched or static weapons containing explosive charges. (RPG, 12.7MM)
causing a Fire.
Systems damaged were: FUEL SYS, PERSONNEL
Casualties = 29 DOI, 02 INJ . .
The helicopter Crashed. Aircraft Destroyed.
Both mission and flight capability were terminated.
Burned
Original source(s) and document(s) from which the incident was created or updated: Defense
Intelligence Agency Helicopter Loss database. Survivability/Vulnerability Information Analysis
Center Helicopter database. Also: OPERA, LNNF, JSIDR, CASRP, CH47 (Operations Report.
Lindenmuth New Format Data Base. Joint Services Incident Damage Report. Casualty Report. )
Loss to Inventory
Crew Members:
AC CW2 YORK DANIEL WEBSTER KIA
CE SP4 TEFFT GEORGE EDWARD KIA
FE SP4 YORK JOEL CRAIG KIA
G PFC MCDOUGALL HIMA DUNCAN JR KIA
P REID ERIC P RES
Passengers and/or other participants:
SP4 ANDERSON WILLIAM JR, AR, PX, KIA
SP4 BARNETT STUART LEE, AR, PX, KIA
SP4 BATESEL DENNIS GORDON, AR, PX, KIA
PFC BEDRA THEODORE FRANK, AR, PX, KIA
PFC BRIDGETT PAUL EDWARD, AR, PX, KIA
PFC CODY WESLEY OTERIA, AR, PX, KIA
SGT DUNCAN ONNIE DAVID, AR, PX, KIA
SP4 ESTRIDGE CURTISS, AR, PX, KIA
PFC FLORES FLORENTINO, AR, PX, KIA
SP4 GARNETT ISIAH CALVIN, AR, PX, KIA
SP4 GINN JAMES MICHAEL, AR, PX, KIA
PFC HICKMAN THOMAS STEVEN, AR, PX, KIA
1SG JOHNSON ALBERT LEE, AR, PX, KIA
SGT KRAEMER FRED CHRIS, AR, PX, KIA
PFC MANRING CURTIS JOHNSON, AR, PX, KIA
PFC MARTINEZ-ZAYAS RUBEN, AR, PX, KIA
SGT MCMASTER ROBERT PAUL, AR, PX, KIA
PFC MORGAN MICHAEL LYNN, AR, OG, KIA
SP4 OBRIEN DWIGHT PRESTON, OG, PX, KIA
PFC PIERSOL JOHN LAURENCE JR, AR, PX, KIA
SP4 REESE DAVID PHILLIP, AR, PX, KIA
SP4 ROSE DAVID EARL, AR, PX, KIA
SP4 SALTERS LEE EARNEST, AR, PX, KIA
SP4 SANDOVAL HECTOR MONTALVO, AR, OG, KIA
SP4 THORPE WILLIAM DAVID, AR, PX, KIA
PFC WEHRHEIM CHARLES GEORGE, AR, PX, KIA
PV1 WIDDOWS JOHN WILLIAM, AR, PX, KIA
War Story:
Hit by enemy fire on final. Pilot heard an explosion. Aircraft crashed into trees and burned. Internal load of 105 mm ammo began exploding. Of the crew of five and 20 PAX aboard, the pilot was sole survivor.
My recollection may be a bit hazy after 36 years. I was filling sandbags with Hugh O'Connor. Watched the RPG actual hit the left jet pod on final approach to what we affectionately called LZ Judy. Couple of things need corrected. There was no 51 cal. machine gun fire. The bird was loaded with white phosphorous for 81 mm mortars, not 105mm. The flight was from Kham Duc. A platoon from 4/31 was pulled off the bird, replaced by a platoon from Delta of the 2/1, along with the Delta 1SG. Don't remember any detonations like 105mm's, just a huge white smoke cloud after skidding down the mountain. Three days later we had to police the body bags of those poor souls.
From: SGT Allen, HHC 2/1
I was a direct observer of the downing of the Chinook at LZ Judy on 8/26/70. I totally disagree with any statements made about an RPG. I heard a burst of what could have been AK fire and the ship started going down. The pilot was able to bring the nose up temporarily and then down it went nose first. The door gunner did return fire as soon as they took fire. I agree with the internal weapons being 81MM WP rounds. From: Ken Ruesch, LTC U.S.Army(RET)
I was in Co. E attached to Co. D and we were told to start loading the CH47 with all the ammo and mortar boxes on the LZ at Kham Duc. While loading, the CO grabbed four of us and told us to load our gear and a radar unit onto a Huey and meet up with everyone at the next LZ which at that time we didn't have a clue where we were going. We had been blowing everything we weren't going to haul out up and there was a lot going on. We heard that intel had it that we were going to get hit again like in 68. Anyway, we beat the CH47's to LZ Judy and unloaded our gear and started hauling it up the hill. The LZ was in a saddle below the hill. I remember a CH47 land and off load a platoon and another CH47 was in a holding pattern, waiting for everyone to clear the LZ. I was resting, looking across at the CH47 which was hovering about straight across from me when I heard AK 47 fire and it appeared to be hitting the chopper right below the from rotors. I heard maybe tens rounds. There's no mistaking AK fire when you're on the ground. I would have been on the right side of the chopper to the front and I could see the right side pilot looking out and down for a place to land. I could see that the saddle had not cleared out and the only place the chopper could go down was in the draw below the saddle. If he would have landed on the LZ he would have killed a lot of ground troops. I lost sight of the chopper when he went into the trees and could see debris flying including tree branches. I heard that two guys were killed from pieces off the blades but this was never confirmed. I remember looking at the guys on the LZ and they were all looking down into the draw and were heading down that way. After I heard the chopper hit, I don't remember how much time went by before the explosions started. I know that it burned for a couple of days. We heard a couple of stories. One the transmission had come through and killed the pilot, another that a medic had made it out but had a hole in his head and died later, another that someone made it out and clear but had been burned. I know that someone was medivacted and it's good to hear the co pilot made it. I think it was him who I saw looking out the right side. I know from experience (35 years in law enforcement as an investigator) that everyone sees things different and hears things different even though they experience the same event. i don't remember ever hearing anyone say anything about a RPG, only AK fire. I've seen the reports about the RPG bu;t didn't know where they came from. I know I'll never forget that day & the friends that I lost. The day we had to go down to the crash and start hauling the body bags back up the hill was not a good one either. With each bag we passed up the hill, you could see it in everyones eye's wondering which friend this one was. We heard that all the troops ended up in a pile in back and were burned. The condition of the body bags only confirmed this. This information came from the co pilot Eric "Ric" Reid.
From: Dan Hodge
I to was at LZ Judy when the CH-47 tail #18445 went down. I had just got off the CH-47 in front of the fatal bird. They were waiting to clear the LZ. We were encouraged to clear the LZ swiftly as there were a line of helicopters to land and unload. I moved up the hill and turned to look for the rest of our guys. We were C 2/1 196 lib. Dwight O’Brien was standing to my left. I heard AK fire in the direction off the hovering schnook. I seen it dip the nose and start forward. It then started to bank to the right from where we were standing, and headed down the side of the hill. The rear blade hit a dead tree standing high in the air. One section of the blade flew up hill and hit Dwight in the head flinging him in the air and continued up the hill hitting a guy name John “Plowboy” Brown, from North Carolina. He was not injured seriously. Someone yelled for us to get down the hill and look for survivors. That’s when we seen the aircrew member, we now know was Co-pilot Reid walking up the hill repeating “I’ll never fly again” I think he was in shock. We went down to the bottom by two boulders when someone yelled they found 2 guys. One was still alive, leaning up against the one boulder and burned badly. All his clothes were burned off, and he was moaning. He was obviously in shock. They passed it up the hill to get a stretcher down there. I don’t know what happened to him, we never heard. Someone said he went to Japan. I can remember it like it was yesterday. For me everything looked slow motion.
From: Louis C LaParl
I was there when the Chinook went down. No RPG that I saw. Machine gun or AK47 is what I heard. I was with E 2/1 196 81 mm squad. We had 5 guys on board with 4.2 mortar and ammo. Commander turned a 105 at the hill the fire came from and direct fired about 75 or more rounds until barrel was smoking. 3/82 arty. Police up bodies was horrible. Never forget it. I think another guy stepped on a land mine on the landing zone getting off the Huey behind me. BAD day !!
From: Bob
I concur with the eyewitnesses that state there was no RPG fired. I was on the chopper pad standing to the left of O'Brien when the Chinook went down. We had just gotten off the previous helicopter and waiting for the next one to land. Everyone milling around the pad dropped down behind a low berm when the AK went off. I glanced to my right and Obie was still standing up taking pictures. I yelled at him to get down when the blade hit him in the head and killed him. It was a totally unnecessary death. I still remember the blade swirling up the hill as if in slow motion. I was E/2/1 81mm mortar FO attached to Charlie company during Kham Duc operation. 52 years later I still relive that day. Sgt Greg Daniels. September 2022
This record was last updated on 07/22/2016
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Date posted on this site:
11/13/2023
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