Part 3
RVN arrival and other units on the Airfield
We off loaded the Chinooks, walked to the billeting area being constructed,
chose a bunk and crashed for the night. The equipment had arrived a week
or two before we did.
Our area had been the same area that the 1st Cav. Division occupied until about
6 months before we arrived. The 1st Cav. had worked in the I Corps area
for a year or two, then was replaced, or was being replaced, by the 101st
Airborne Division. The Cav. had been moved south to II Corps where it
would remain until it was rotated back to the states in 1973.
Viet Nam was divided into 4 military "zones". I Corps was from
the DMZ in the north to Danang, with II Corps from Danang south to just north
of Saigon. The Saigon area was III Corps, and IV Corps was the southern
part of Vietnam and the delta area. These Zones ran from the China Sea to
the west boundary for the country. Units normally did not work outside
their Corps Zone. Army and Marine units would work in different areas of
the "Corps"; however, sometimes they overlapped and / or supported
each other.
In the I corps area, the Marines worked the areas around Da Nang to the SE part
of the Zone. They also worked the DMZ border area between N and S
Vietnam. The Army's 101st Div. worked from the Marines in the North to Da
Nang in the south. The 101st Div. was divided into three Brigades.
1st Brigade worked the East part of I Corps from the ocean to the city of
Hue. From Hue to the Ashau Valley was the Second Brigade, and from Hue, North
to the Marines was the 3rd Brigade of the 101st. With the Marines and the
101st division, the 1st Arvn or 1st Army of the Republic of Viet Nam (South Vietnamese
Army) worked from Hue to the DMZ in support of the US Marines.
The Chinooks of the 101st Div. (our unit of 48 Chinooks in the entire 101st
Div) supported all three units in I corps, ARVNS, US Army, US Marines. This
covered an area 70 X 40 miles and approximately 100,000 troops.
The 101st Airborne Division was being installed in the area. The majority
of the division was in place, with the exception of our Chinook unit, rounding
out the 101st Aviation Group with Hueys for lifts, and Chinooks for resupply.
Also enroute was the balance of the Cobra Gun Ships, for the ARA, Aerial Rocket
Artillery, Battalion. These were the new Cobra Gunships, equipped with
rockets instead of mini guns. They were designed to do the same as heavy
artillery, but on a smaller, more precise target. A battery of ARA
gunships would occupy the same airfield as us and a lift company of Hueys that
was also enroute to Viet Nam. This unit of Hueys would arrive from Ft.
Riley, Kansas and other locations where they formed and trained. They
would be the last aviation units assigned to the 101st Division and the 101st
Aviation Group.
The Cobras would arrive within weeks of our unit. They too had been
forming at Fort Sill at the same time we were. Although we did not
intermingle with their pilots, we would fly missions at the same time and would
hear other units on the radios.
Promotions
Just after we arrived in country and started to get established, it was time
for my promotion to Captain. With all the shortages, a year in grade as
2Lt, a year as 1LT, and bingo, it was Captain time. My orders were a week
late. I was getting antsy! A week
was a long time when it was YOUR promotion.
The one thing I was noticing, and more so after promotion to Captain
was as a 2LT, you explained everything to everybody. If you wanted
to go to the bathroom, you had to explain why it was a good idea. The
explanations usually ran in great detail and usually didn't mean much.
As a 1LT, the explanations were a little less detailed, and sometimes
acceptable.
As a Captain, no explanation was needed, just tell them what you were going to
do, if you talked about it at all.
There was no reason for the sudden change of explanations; it was just the way
it was. Captains and higher explained very little. Therefore, when
you got the chance, you wanted Captain as soon as possible.
It was pretty much the same way with the Warrants. W1 was explaining
everything, W2, almost nothing, and W3 or W4 explained nothing.
Dozer and Seabees building quarters
The US Navy Seabees, a construction branch, was assigned to have our buildings
ready. The Dozer had been used to clear the land, or at least level it
for the new buildings. The Seabees had finished the building shells for
all but one building in our area. They left as soon as we arrived and we
were responsible for finishing the building. They also took our Dozer.
We would not need it, and they would.
We immediately began unpacking personnel items, arranging who would bunk where
and with whom. Our unit was built in a large T formation. Sitting North
and South, The Orderly Room, Supply, and Flight Operations were the first
buildings. Each about 25' wide by 50 ' long, with about 25 foot between
each building. Next to them, also running north and south came the
enlisted barracks. Their size was about 25 foot wide and 100 foot long,
with rows of bunks down each side. The men would later build walls
between the bunks for a little privacy and quiet. There were about 6 of
these buildings. At the end of the last Enlisted barracks, the road bent
and ran to the mess hall, which was behind the last enlisted barrack.
Across the road and making the top of the "T" was a row of 5 officer
barracks running east and west, 25 by 50 foot. The senior officers,
Commissioned, as well as a few of the senior Warrant Officers lived here with 4
officers to a building. Behind this row
were two long buildings, again, running north and south. These two
buildings 25' X 100 ' would house the balance of the junior Warrant Officers.
The last building would have the end converted to a company officer's
club for social gathering.
Behind the last building, a water tower was built for a large rubber blivet to
hold water for showers and washing clothes. The shower was installed, and
hot water heaters unpacked and put to work. Behind each of the enlisted
barracks a shower was built and hot water was supplied. Inside each of
the barracks, enlisted and officer, sinks were installed and running water
provided from the blivets on the towers. The stuff from the trips to
Oklahoma and Texas was being used to our comfort.
It was winter and the monsoon season made for cool weather. The hot water
from the heaters was a nice relief. At the same time, out toilet
facilities were modern primitive. Small buildings were constructed with
bench seats. 55 gallon barrels were cut in half and placed under each
seat. These were removed each day,
diesel fuel added and the contents burned. At any time of the day you could see
columns of black smoke where latrines were being cleaned. Crude, but very
effective. Latrines of this type were built anywhere GIs lived, even on
the firebases in the jungle.
The washing machines were set up in a separate building and connected to the
water supply. We hired local women to come in and clean the barracks, and
do wash. They really liked the washing machines for the clothes.
The alternative was take them home and do them in open washtubs over open
fires.
Because the aircraft have not arrived from the Navy yet, the aircraft enlisted
crews are put to filling sand bags for the area. Between each of the
barracks a bomb shelter would be constructed to house everyone in each of the
barracks. We used large culvert pipe 3 - 4 foot across, and then build
sandbag walls and covers around each. The ends were also sandbagged and
an L shape was made to prevent shrapnel from entering.
Filling the sandbags was done among the local graves that dotted the area.
Graves were just placed anywhere a family wanted to put one. Nothing like
the system used in the US. Almost all graves in South Vietnam were very
ornate and large. We were finally beginning to look like a military
operation.
While the bunkers were being built, a couple of the warrant officers decided to
build a club for the company. In addition to subdividing the long
barracks into individual rooms, they started the club construction.
Another group took donations and a 2 1/5-ton truck to Da Nang (75 miles
by road) and bought a stock of booze for the new club.
I began an interior defense by stringing concertina wire around the entire
barracks area. With stakes to hold it, we ran three rolls wide at the
bottom and three rolls high. Once tied down and staked, it would be real
bloody attempting to enter our camp without using the front door.
When we left Fort Sill, the Unit Supply NCO was "short", meaning he
had very little time left in the Army. Why he was assigned to a unit
reporting to Viet Nam, and that allowed no transfers I will never know.
Anyway, he arrived in country with two weeks left on his enlistment.
I assume the Army thought they could entice him to re-enlist for 6 years
by showing him South East Asia in time of war. It didn't work. He
went home as civilian. However, before leaving, he did the impossible.
Upon arrival, and the finishing of the shell for the barracks, we all wanted
wood for the interiors, sub walls, dividers, subceilings, etc. The
response was NO, we don't have the wood. We could see pallets of mahogany
plywood, 2 X 4s, etc., just laying in the sand yards from the back of our
buildings and being rained on. Our request fell on deaf ears.
The supply sergeant, the night before he left, asked to borrow the rough
terrain forklift from the motor pool. The next morning it was back in the
motor pool. Although we had part of the back barbed wire fence to mend,
our camp area was filled with pallets of wood. Seems the last
"official" requisition from the supply sergeant was to steal the
entire lot of wood from the engineers and move it to our barracks area.
We promptly put the wire back up and denied the engineers entry through
the main gate.
Unpacking the Motor Pool
Immediately upon arrival, unpacking began in earnest. While we waited on
the aircraft to be put back into flying condition from the move overseas, we
unpacked the different sections of the company and maintenance detachment.
All the tools and parts had to be unpacked, organized and readied for use in
the motor pool. I was still the motor officer and all the vehicles were
needed immediately. The jeeps for administrative runs, the larger trucks
for hauling our equipment from the ships.
Inside the area designated as the motor pool we built a steel ramp over a pit
dug into the ground. This allowed the servicing of all the vehicles
without the mechanic having to lie in the dirt. Drive the truck on the
ramp, walk under it, grease, oil, change parts, etc. Same procedure and
set up as the "quick oil change" operations in use today.
Worked great.
Because of the dust and mud we decided that washing the vehicles on a weekly
basis would help with the maintenance. I arranged for a dragline to come
in and dig us a pit in what would be a very small lake and give us a water
source when we needed it. By using a small portable pump, we had water
pressure and clean vehicles.
The assistant motor officer, Mr. Layne, I believe, was standing by me watching
the dragline dig the hole. The bucket managed to snag some old barbwire
surrounding the area. As it tore loose from the mounting poles it cut
across the area we were standing like a large knife. Mr. Layne and I hit
the ground but not before the wire tore into Mr. Layne's arm. Our first
battle casualty of the conflict.
Old timers, training us new guys
Because we were a brand new unit
and all arriving at once, if left alone we would all rotate home together and
the unit would collapse. Within a couple of weeks of arrival, selected
individuals were picked for transfer to another unit. They were moved to
A and B companies which had been in country for 6 months or a year. From
each of these companies we received a like number of individuals.
This meant, some of our people would now rotate home and
replacements would filter in to the unit so a constant flow of new pilots and
crew would be available.
Of the first group we received were both good and bad. The first two were
senior Warrants. Both had over 20 years of Army flying experience.
Both were W-4s, the highest Warrant Rank. Mr. Becker was the
Senior, and also held the distinction of being the 101st Division Senior
Advisor to the Commander. He thought nothing of waking the two star
general in the middle of the night and telling him how to use the Chinooks.
He was also on the original test board when the Army bought the Chinooks
from Boeing aircraft company. Rumor had it that he also landed one
without hydraulics, which is impossible. However, knowing Becker, I
wouldn't argue with him, or the rumor. 30 years later at Fort Rucker,
they were still talking about him.
The second old timer was Mr. Miles, another W-4. Miles just flew, and
flew, and flew. He was the initial PIC or Pilot In Command for the unit.
He took all of us new guys out into the area to show us where all the
firebases were and how to get to them. Miles would fly 8 - 12 hours a
day, walk by the mess hall, shower, fall into bed and sleep for 12 hours, then
do it all over again, day after day.
By the end of the first three months in country, the infused pilots we received
were within 3 - 4 weeks of rotating back to the US. The pilots from our
unit were infused once more, and with the new pilots we were all flying day and
night and progressing to the point that some of the older pilots could be given
rest. I took the oldest of the group, Miles, and Becker and gave them the
option. Continue flying or do some construction supervising around the
company area. They chose the construction. They went to the Navy
Seabees and Army engineers and swapped helicopter rides for cement and mixers
and wood. With work details from the company area, sidewalks were formed
and poured throughout the entire compound area. In their last month in
country, they probably supervised and poured 1 mile of concrete sidewalks in
the area.
With the new sidewalks, someone found pink paint for the company color. All
Enlisted troop buildings in the company area were promptly painted Pink.
The Officer and Warrant Officer buildings were painted a light green.
Before we left Fort Sill, we had requested the Army give us a "unit Call
Sign". We requested "mother trucker". The Pentagon
thought it was too "suggestive" and denied the request. We then
asked for "Playtex" with the justification that "we
Supported". To our amazement, the Army agreed. Our unit was
designated "Playtex" and the company decided on Pink for its color.
(The official name was changed to "Haulmark" and then “Outlaws”
in the 1980s when Playtex wasn't considered Politically Correct.) We had
a lot of fun with the name and the color.
At one point a large Bra was painted on the bottom of one of the Chinooks for a
publicity stunt.
Buildings painted pink and new sidewalks in, we were ready for war!