Helicopter AH-1G 67-15676

Information on U.S. Army helicopter AH-1G tail number 67-15676
The Army purchased this helicopter 0768
Total flight hours at this point: 00002093
Date: 03/17/1971
Incident number: 710317181ACD Accident case number: 710317181 Total loss or fatality Accident
Unit: C/16 CAV
This was an Operational Loss caused by an accident by Mid-Air Collision with the mission function of Training
The station for this helicopter was Can-Tho in South Vietnam
UTM grid coordinates: WS840091 (To see this location on a map, go to https://legallandconverter.com/p50.html and search on Grid Reference 48PWS840091)
Casualties = YES . . Number killed in accident = 2 . . Injured = 0 . . Passengers = 0
Search and rescue operations were Not Required
costing 631433
Original source(s) and document(s) from which the incident was created or updated: Survivability/Vulnerability Information Analysis Center AVDAC database. Defense Intelligence Agency Helicopter Loss database. Army Aviation Safety Center database. Also: OPERA (Operations Report. )
Summary: Mid-air with an Air America fixed wing that hit the Cobra from above and behind.
Loss to Inventory and Helicopter was not recovered

Crew Members:
P CPT GREEN ROBERT CARRELL KIA
IP CW2 DEPAUL MICHAEL JOSEPH S KIA

Accident Summary:

DARKHORSE 32 ^(CW2 MICHAEL J. S. DEPAUL^, IP IN ^AH1G 67-15676)^ HAD BEEN WORKING IN THE TRAFFIC PATTERN AT ^CAN THO^ LANDING TO THE EAST WITH CLOSED RIGHT HAND. HE WAS 0.8 HRS (ESTIMATED) INTO THE AC CHECK RIDE WITH ^LT. GREEN^. THE ^AIR AMERICA PORTOR CALL SIGN^ 93R HAD CALLED IN TO ^CAN THO^ TOWER FOR LANDING INSTRUCTIONS 6 MILES WEST ON VHF. THE TOWER STATED "93R STRAIGHT IN RUNWAY 08 WINDS 090/15 ALTIMETER 29.83 REPORT 2 MILE FINAL". THIS WAS ACKNOWLEDGED BY 93R. AT THIS POINT, FOR CLARIFICATION SAKE, IT IS STATED THAT THE AH-1G WAS TRANSMITTING AND RECEIVING TO THE TOWER ON UHF. HIS VHF WAS NOT BEING UTILIZED. THE ^PORTOR^ HAS ONLY VHF THEREFORE NEITHER AIRCRAFT COULD HEAR THE OTHERS TRANSMISSIONS ALTHOUGH THEY COULD HEAR ALL THE TOWER TRANSMISSION. DARKHORSE 32 (DH32) CALLED ON DOWN WIND FOR AN AUTOROTATION TO THE ACTIVE. DH 32 WAS CLEARED NO 2 FOR AN AUTOROTATION ON THE ACTIVE. NO 1 IN THE TRAFFIC WAS AN OH-58 JUST TOUCHING DOWN ON B ROW HELIPAD. DH 32 ENTERED THE MANEUVER ON FINAL WHEN THE TOWER SAW A FIXED WING ON FINAL LESS THAN A MILE FROM THE AIRFIELD BOUNDARY. THE TOWER ASKED THE FIXED WING FOR HIS I.D. RESPONSE WAS "93R ONE MILE OUT HERE." THE TOWER THEN INSTRUCTED 93R TO SLOW HIS APPROACH. FLAPS WERE APPLIED TO AN INTERMEDIATE SETTING (EXAMINATION OF WRECKAGE); AIRSPEED OF 70 TO 80 KNOTS WAS THEN ATTAINED (80 KNOTS BEING MAXIMUM FLAP SPEED). THE COBRAS AIRSPEED AT THIS POINT IN A STRAIGHT IN AUTOROTATION WOULD BE 60 TO 70 KNOTS INDICATED. THE TOWER THEN REALIZED THAT THE TWO AIRCRAFT WERE DANGEROUSLY CLOSE. DH 32 WAS INSTRUCTED TO "GO AROUND" REPLY WAS "THIS IS DH" THE TOWER IMMEDIATELY, REPEATED "DH 32 GO AROUND" REPLY "DH 32 ON THE GO" IMMEDIATELY, FOLLOWING THAT LAST REPLY BY DH 32, 93R WAS ASKED IF HE SAW THE COBRA REPLY "NEGATIVE" CALL IMMEDIATELY REPEATED "93R DO YOU SEE THE COBRA" REPLY "NEGATIVE GOING AROUND 93R". THE TOWER THEN CALLED "93R MAKE A --OH''" IMPACT OCCURRED AT THAT TIME. THE COBRA FELL FORWARD AND TO THE NORTH SIDE OF THE ACTIVE. THE LEFT SKID CONTACTING A SEVEN FOOT HIGH PILE OF PSP (REMAINS OF THE OLD RUNWAY WHICH HAD BEEN BULL DOZED INTO A PILE). THE COBRA AT THIS POINT WAS IN A LEFT BANK. IT THEN SLID FORWARD OFF THE PSP PILE AND CAME TO REST ON ITS LEFT SIDE. THE ^PORTER^ AFTER IMPACT WITH THE COBRA ROLLED TO THE LEFT TO AN INVERTED POSITION NOSE LOW AND IMPACTED INTO AN EMPTY REVETMENT 50 METERS EAST OF THE COBRA.\\

War Story:
Lloyd Newell was the on duty ATC in Can Tho Tower when the mid-air between Darkhorse 32 and an AA Porter occurred, 17-Mar-71. Newell kept a diary while in Vietnam. From what I was later to learn...after I got out of the service, there were 7 people killed in the PC-6, the Air America. First off the Porter was on VHF and DH 32 was on UHF. Though both could not hear each other, both could hear all the transmissions from the tower since we broadcasted on FM,VHF and UHF on every transmission sent from the tower. However, I have seen and read a few other accident reports and this problem of different radio freq. was a safety issue problem. I should also point out that at the time of the accident the runway at Can Tho was torn up. As you might remember the runway was metal matting and the taxiways were PSP. Begining with the western end of the runway the metal runway was removed and blacktop was put down and the rest of the runway remained metal. Once this first section was completed the middle part of the runway was then ripped up to be replaced with blacktop, leaving the eastern part still intacted with its metal runway. When this was first told to we controllers,before building began on the runway, we were instructed that we could land aircraft to both the black top part and the metal part of the runway. We told the powers to be that this was setting up an accident to happen, but what did we know, we only worked traffic every day so what did we know. In my mind and in all the other controllers mind's this was a factor in the accident along with the different radio freq. One last thing. I was pulled in for deposition about three years after leaving the service. The relatives, both Vietnamese and American were sueing Air American since they could not sue the US Gov't. From: Lloyd Newell

The Air America Porter 93R pilot was Kenneth A. Houp.

This record was last updated on 03/25/2016

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Date posted on this site: 11/13/2023