Helicopter CH-47C 68-15835


Information on U.S. Army helicopter CH-47C tail number 68-15835
The Army purchased this helicopter 1168
Total flight hours at this point: 00001138
Date: 02/15/1971
Incident number: 710215191ACD Accident case number: 710215191 Total loss or fatality Accident
Unit: A/159 AVN
This was a Accident incident.
The station for this helicopter was Phu Bai in South Vietnam
Number killed in accident = 5 . . Injured = 0 . . Passengers = 1
costing 1931161
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 CPT WICK GERALD PAUL KIA
P CW2 SAPP WILLIAM DANIEL KIA
CE SFC TAKEHARA YOSHIO KIA
G CPL OTT LARRY FREEMAN KIA
C SP6 BRUSO RICHARD NORMAN KIA

Passengers and/or other participants:
LC LOCAL, LCO, G


Accident Summary:

 ON 15 FEBRUARY 1971 1955 HOURS US ARMY ^68-15835^ TRANSMITTED A MESSAGE TO ITS OPERATIONS THAT IT HAD JUST PICKED UP TO GO OUT FOR A HOVER CHECK. ACCORDING TO TESTIMONY, US ARMY '^68-1535^ MOVED FROM THE ALPHA COMPANY AREA TO AN OPEN FIELD NEXT TO THE MAINTENANCE AREA WHERE HOVER TESTS ARE ARE NORMALLY PERFORMED. AFTER APPROXIMATLY 15 MINUTES OF HOVERING, THE AIRCRAFT TURNED TO AN APPROMIXATE HEADING OF 090 AND STARTED BACK TOWARD THE ALHPHA COMPANY AREA. AT THIS POINT WITNESSES LOST SIGHT OF THE AIRCRAFT AS IT CLIMBED INTO A HEAVY MIST; HOWEVER, THE LANDING LIGHT COULD STILL BE SEEN, THUS PROVIDING THE OBSERVERS A MEANS OF TRACKING THE AIRCRAFT. NOW IN THE HEAVY MIST THE AIRCRAFT WAS OBVIOUSLY IFR. UNDER THESE CONDITIONS, IT TURNED TO A HEADING OF APPROXMATLY 020 AND MOVED ACROSS THE PHU BAI BURM LINE AT A HIGH RATE OF SPEED. MEN OCCUPYING POSITIONS IN BUNKERS ALONG THE NORTH SIDE OF PHU BAI CLAIM TO HAVE SEEN THE LIGHT, BUT NOT THE AIRCRAFT, AS IT PASSED OVER THEIR POSITIONS HEADED IN A NORTH EASTERLY DIRECTION. WITNESSES SAY THAT IT WAS ONLY A MATTER OF SECONDS FROM THIS TIME, THAT THE AIRCRAFT CAME OUT OF THE MIST AND STRUCK THE GROUND. JUST PRIOR TO IMPACT, WITNESSES CLAIM TO HAVE NOTICED THAT THE LIGHT TUMBLED OR TURNED IN SUCH A MANNER AS TO INDICATE THE AIRCRAFT PLUNGE ITSELF INTO THE GROUND NOSE FIRST. JUDGING FROM THE WRECKAGE THE AIRCRAFT DID STRIKE THE GROUND AT AN EXTREMELY HIGH RATE OF VERTICAL DESCENT, NOSE LOW AND ALMOST COMPLETELY INVERTED.\\

This record was last updated on 09/20/1998


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Date posted on this site: 11/13/2023


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