We're So Alone

Company A

227th Assault Helicopter Battalion

1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile)

We're So Alone!
by UH-1D AC/IP, WO-1 John L. Keller, 1st Flt Plt, A/227

A Company had been at OASIS since 1 November, 1966 and it looked like we were going to get a chance to head back to the Golf Course and enjoy some company area living for a time. Boy! Was I ever wrong, again! It seems they didn't consult me when Division decisions were made, but in my mind I knew I could count on a few nights in our old, patched, leaky, rat-infested GP Medium that housed the First Flight Platoon. What was I thinking??
Christmas time was a special time for all of us in the Company area, since the PSY-OPS loudspeakers flew overhead with Christmas music to ease our burden and our minds. Who were they trying to kid? We were combat veterans with only one thing in mind: serve our tours, get home, get drunk, and get ____! Not all necessarily in that order. The Helio-Courier blaring out the music must have been a real nice target for "Charles" to home in on? Back and forth over the camp it flew with, "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas," "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus," and all of the other usual Holiday songs. We did see snow in an area northwest of Dak To when placing a mortar section onto a high, knob in the mountains overlooking the Cambodia and Laos border area. Our OAT verified that it was 33 cold and wet degrees! Army "long johns" were on and a medium weight flight jacket was the apparel of the day.
On Christmas Day, I had flown 63-08797 over to An Khe via Pleiku. We were taking "stuff" back to the Golf Course because the Company had been notified of a shift to LZ Hammond. I was to return #797 to Oasis later that afternoon, so my crew and I didn't even get to partake of the super-duper Christmas diner from Mermite cans. Weather was always a factor during any flight this time of the year. Based on the aircraft instruments, it was a toss-up to determine if it was safer in the clouds or scud-running along the roads.
Our flight back to the Company area at Oasis was only 50 minutes and we shut down in the usual area with the other birds. Our mess tent had already been broken down for convoy transport, so it was C-RATS for my crew and others. By the way, heat them up any way you can! Jet fuel mixed with sand in a can worked very well and the fat from the Ham and Lima Beans meal didn’t taste so bad when it was LIQUID instead of congealed. After "dinner" we were ready to settle in when Platoon Leader Captain Primm notified us that we would stay at Oasis overnight and fly into Hammond the next day. They were taking #797 and I was to fly 63-12961 over on the 26th. Comforting, just plain comforting! The convoys were loading our unit gear and the C-130's and C-123's were taking all of the troops to Hammond. Nice ride, you guys! About 2200, our ships left for the "flight of a lifetime," in the clouds over all of Central South Viet Nam. My, My, How lucky they were! NOT!! The later told stories of that night enroute to Hammond; with some stopping at the Golf Course, will cause a chill down your spine to this day! BONZAI was a word I heard WO-1 Dick Lamonica say several times when he retold the tales. To listen to him tell it, you'll "bust a gut!" One flight of four came out of the clouds (not together) near An Khe and landed while the other flight (mid-air, IMC breakup) made it almost to Hammond, but not without damage.
Two of us slept in the "Bell Hotel" while the other two crew for #961 slept in a sandbag bunker that had a half-roof over the top. The M-60's were readied along with M-16's. We were assured that U.S. Troops or ARVN would be in the area till late the next day (26th). Imagine when I awoke at sunlight that morning and there wasn’t a perimeter, anywhere! I looked to the former perimeter that surrounded the A Company area and there were Vietnamese civilians or maybe VC searching through our old garbage pits and the perimeter bunkers to salvage anything of value. Where in the hell were the troops?? I looked over at the runway and ALL of the aircraft were gone! ALL of the U.S. Troops were gone and the few ARVN troops in the area were scrounging throughout the camp to salvage whatever they could. What happened to the plan? The crew and I were the only Americans in the area. Our weapons at the ready, we ate a cold, C-RAT meal and saddled-up for our own cloud flight into Hammond. We perfected our IMC skills by contacting PEACOCK CONTROL at Pleiku and requesting IFR to Hammond. Based on the reported weather, we would have to perform a "down to minimums" GCA/PAR at Hammond. Whew! I hadn't done one of those forever. It was kind of peaceful in the clouds and all of the flight instruments actually worked! Our descent into Hammond was terminated at a hover at the touchdown spot; without seeing the ground. As we hover-taxied off the runway, I called Company Operations to get an idea where we should shut down. It was raining heavy again within ten minutes of touchdown and refueling in the rain would be our usual over the next few weeks. We had an additional mission to LZ Uplift and then came back to Hammond for the night, or so we thought? It had been seven days since a shower, shave, or change of fatigues. At least we were able to shave, cleanup with hot water from the steel pot, and have a change of jungle fatigues.
We were not through with Oasis. The same day, after cleaning up, we were informed that we had to go back to Oasis with two ships to perform some "hash and trash" missions. Well, #961 was ready, but the weather wasn't! Again, it was into the clouds for the 40 minute flight across the Central Highlands. After 30 minutes of IMC, we were in the clear and cancelled IFR with PEACOCK CONTROL. Hey, I like this IMC flying! We had to stay at Oasis again, but this time inside a different perimeter with U.S. and ARVN troops guarding the area. Later on the next day (27th) we were able to head back to An Khe and the Company area. Picking up some pieces and parts (supplies) we flew back to Hammond and then onto LZ Uplift. It seems that Hammond was being taken over by a Brigade and 11th Group, so A Company was headed to Uplift for the duration. After building a new platform bunk area out of ammo boxes, I was able to keep my gear dry in our hex tent. We celebrated the New Year 1967 at Uplift with a "MAD MINUTE" that lasted for five and had many cluster flares shot from the perimeter. Oh well, another year, but still wet! Little did we know we would soon become "The Beach Boys of Phan Thiet?"