Through the Mang
Yang Pass
Dec 1968
This
flight was a low level Visual reconnaissance/Convoy Cover heading West into the
Pass. On the south side of this road lay the rusted hulks of the French debacle
of June 1954. The French Group Mobile 100 abandoned An
Khe and tried to retreat to the safe haven fortress
of Pleiku. Only a few soldiers and none of their
vehicles made it past here. The trees look like trees that have shed their
leaves for winter but these trees have been defoliated by agent
orange to deny the enemy cover if they should try to ambush a convoy.
At
altitude now, looking North. I believe that this is
where all those grave sites are located, containing the remains of the French
Group Mobile 100, ambushed by the Viet Minh on June 24, 1954. I flew many
"sniffer" missions in those hills North of
the Mang Yang.
A
few "clicks" West of the Mang Yang.
Blackhawk Firebase was just off the left side of the photo just past where the
road, QL19 disappears.
The
Blackhawk Firebase refuel operation and helipad. That
"tan" line is the fuel line from the 10,000 gal. bladder
tank of JP-4 fuel located behind the pile of red dirt. The pump and
filter-separator are located in the small sand-bagged structure. The artillery
has just fired a salvo, kicking up that cloud of dust. The soil was extremely
fine and when churned up by the Armored Personnel Carriers (APC) and tanks, it
assumed the same consistency as talcum powder. It was 8-12 inches deep in places
and was omnipresent and inescapable.
Entrance
to the Firebase.
While
the terrain was very open, even in daylight you were never "safe". 1st
Lieutenant Haygood and I were forced to "zig-zag" into the gate of the Firebase a few days
after this photo was taken, when we were fired at by a distant sniper. When we
told the Captain in the TOC about the close encounter, he replied; "Oh,
him again." He told his Sergeant, reading the latest issue of Playboy
Magazine, to have the 4.2 mortar crew send a few rounds down into the ravine
from which this guy always shot at the GI's.
Blackhawk Firebase left of center
and the "Sniper" ravine to the right.
Debris
stuck in the defensive wire of the Firebase. The road is QL-19 which runs from
the coast through An Khe to Pleiku. I spent many nights hunkered down in a bunker there
while our Huey was parked in a revetment in the middle of the Firebase. Massive
8 inch artillery kept us awake half the night, producing large bags under my
eyes that sometimes seemed rival the size of the 10,000 gal. fuel
bladder at the Firebase.
Don
Wright, Crewchief, performs maintenance on his M-60
at Blackhawk Firebase while waiting for the next mission. Whenever there was a
lull in the missions, our dedicated crewmembers would take care of their
helicopter, their guns, then their physiological
needs...in that order.
A
soft-spoken and thoughtful individual, Don is now a Pastor, taking care of
spiritual needs.
On
the other side of the UH-1, door gunner SP/4 Ray Marple also takes time out to
go over his gun. A street tough, scrappy individual from
South of the Detroit area. Quick on the trigger, he never missed. He was
a real asset when the chips were down. Ray works for the automaker Ford
near Detroit Michigan
Notice
the smoke grenades stored in the beer cans wired to the bulkhead. His
"Chicken Plate" or body armor is under the seat in the extreme lower
right corner of the picture. Notice also his rifle stowed behind his seat
(footlocker).
Heading
East, back to An Khe.
Highway QL-19 is directly below. This shot is East of
the Mang Yang Pass in the vicinty
of LZ Action and LZ Schuller.
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Copyright
İFred Lohr 1997
Last revised: December 27, 2007.