August-September-October 1971-page 18,19,20,21

“Southeast Asia”

RAGING INFERNO OF JP-4

PEDRO FIREMEN COOL IT!

USAF Photos By Sgt C. M. Boprie 

PHU CAT AB, RVN (7AF) - Imagine a raging inferno caused by 500 gallons of burning aviation fuel. Then visualize cutting a path through the flames, to rescue trapped aircrew members. Time is an important factor!

Rescuing crewmembers from burning aircraft is the job of the men of Det 13, 38th ARRSq. It's a big job for the men who man the HH-43 "Pedro" helicopters. Rescue crews are on 24-hour alert. In addition to their crash rescue mission they also perform local base rescues.

A gas turbine T-53 engine provides the "go power" for fast Pedro rescues. The majority of the missions involve standby for inflight emergencies. "Three or four scrambles a day is average," according to Capt Joseph Coffman Jr., an HH-43 pilot. 

The rescue crews maintain 100% operational response around the clock and regularly practice their techniques. A fire pit on the south end of the runway is filled with 500 gallons of aviation fuel and ignited. The chopper crew responds to the simulated emergency as though it were an actual crash. When the horn sounds at the detachment area, five men race to a waiting chopper. Two are pilots, two are firemen and one is a medical technician.

The helicopter hovers over the pad while a fire suppression kit is hooked to the underside of the aircraft. At the "crashsite," the helicopter crew sets the firemen and fire suppression kit on the ground and hovers nearby, directing rotor wash on the firemen. This blows the flames away and directs cool air on the crash scene.

The firemen spray the fire with nearly 700 gallons of flame smothering foam. "This is enough," said one of the firemen, "to lay down a 10 by 30-foot path to a downed aircrew."

The firemen rush into the base of the flames, safe inside their protective suits. The chopper continues to direct the rotor wash on the savage flames, blowing the inferno away for the firefighters. Soon the foam has smothered the base of the fire and the sky darkens as another practice exercise comes to a smoking finish at this central highlands air base. 

NIGHT FIRE PRACTICE - In top photo, flames serve as a backdrop for "pit supervisor" as he uses gestures to indicate where he wants firefighters positioned. Night practice fires such as this are held periodically to keep HH-43 crews from Det 13 at top profficiency. In second photograph, a Pedro pilot uses the rotor wash to blow flames back from the firemen working below.

READY AND WAITING - An HH-43 Pedro rescue helicopter and crash fireman's asbestos suit and boots await Det 13 crew members scrambling in response to simulated alert. The pilot, Capt Joseph Coffman Jr., leads his copilot, two firemen and a medical technician to the waiting chopper. 

FSK DELIVERY - After picking up the fire suppression kit, the HH-43 hovers near the just-ignited practice fire pit. 

TEAMWORK - Airborne firemen from the 12th Civil Engineering Squadron, aided by the Pedro hovering overhead, hose a path through the flames. The helicopter delivered FSK, barely visible at lower left, supplies the protective foam used on the fire. The rotor wash from the HH-43 aids firemen in clearing a path and also supplies them with cooling air. 

IN CLOSE - The firefighters in their protective asbestos suits move in close to the base of the fire to lay down the firesnuffing foam. 

HAPPY SIGHT - A survivor's-eye view of a fireman coming to his rescue.   

IT'S ALL OVER - Practice exercise completed, firemen gather up hose as the HH-43 hovers overhead preparing to pick up the FSK. Photos below typify a mission's end. Sgt Michael W. Back signals to the pilot that the droop stops on the rotor blades are in preparitory to shut­down. The sergeant, a crew chief with Det 13, is another member of the rescue team. In right photo, a Pedro crew after disembarkation. Left to right are, Sgt Stephen K. Kane, SSgt Robert E. Morris, Sergeant Back, Captain Coffman and Capt Edward W. Gmyrek.

Medevac Made By Det 14 Despite Obstacles

Flying at dusk over hostile territory and with limited navigational aids, an HH-43 crew from Det 14, 38th ARRSq, Tan Son Nhut AB, successfully medevaced a seriously injured Vietnamese sailor from an isolated fire support base.

The mission began for Capt Cole E. Walker and his crew after a call for assistance was received by the detachment. The sailor was in need of immediate medevac. Surface transportation was impossible due to an absence of roads in the area and evacuation by river gun boat could not be effected until the following day due to approaching darkness.

After takeoff, Pedro headed for the fire base, located in a hostile area on the Plain of Reeds 32 miles from Saigon and five miles from the Cambodian border. The Plain, an area of swamp lands expanding westward from Saigon into Cambodia, is noted for its lack of roads and hamlets. The flight path crossed a major north-south infiltration route into the Saigon area.

Due to a lack of radar coverage and the fact the Saigon ADF was off the air, navigation across this terrain was accomplished by dead reckoning and "pilotage." Navigation was further complicated by the absence of landmarks - the setting sun reflecting off a low haze layer made visibility in the direction of flight extremely limited - and by the knowledge that a slight degree of error would put the aircraft into Cambodian airspace. The border shape varied to within 25 miles of Saigon at one point just north of the flight path. In spite of all these factors, the crew navigated the aircraft to the Tuyen Nhon village without incident.

When Pedro arrived at the fire base, an attempt was made to make radio contact with the ground via a Navy FM freq. No radio contact was established, but on the second orbit of the camp visual contact was established with American personnel inside the wire. By visual signs, the Pedro was directed to land on a rutted abandoned dirt strip outside the perimeter and near the only path through a mine field. A low recon was initiated into the last known wind to check a suitable final approach route. Due to the location of the base mine field and the high gusty winds, an over-water approach was made from across the river to the strip.

The landing was made with a minimum of hovering due to the high winds, and the amount of sand and dirt kicked up from the rotors. Efforts were made to keep the ground time at the forward base to a minimum, so the medic and the flight mechanic were dispatched into the camp to locate and litter-load the injured Vietnamese. On the return flight, the Saigon radio beacon was back on the air and the crew utilized it for navigation. The Vietnamese was turned over to an ambulance crew at the 3rd Field Hospital heli­pad, Saigon. He was listed in fair condition.

With Captain Walker on the flight were Maj Louis C. Lewis, copilot; Sgt Albert P. Hoffend, medical technician; and Sgt Charles D. Smith, helicopter mechanic.

Life Saved By Det 7 Night Flight

An HH-43 Pedro crew from Det 7, 38th ARRSq, DaNang AB, was credited with a non-combat save after a night medevac during which a seriously-ill airman was airlifted from a USAF dispensary to an Army hospital.

Pedro took off shortly after the call was received, picked up the patient five minutes later and landed at the hospital five minutes after that. Manning the HH-43 on the flight were Capt Kenneth R. Bissett, Jr., pilot; 1stLt John N. Drexler, copilot; TSgt William N. Brooks, helicopter mechanic; and Alc Donald J. Pecoraro, pararescueman.

In another Det 7 mission, an HH-43 crew on a training flight quickly responded when a real emergency arose.
Capt Alvin J. Machtmes immediately headed for the distress area after receiving a radio call from Marble Mountain control tower that two swimmers in the vicinity were in danger of drowning. Pedro was approximately half-a-mile from the scene when the call was received. The swimmers were sighted almost immediately in moderate surf almost one-quarter mile from shore. The rescue seat was used to hoist both men aboard and they were taken to the beach. Det 7 was credited with two non-combat saves.
Other members of the HH-43 crew were Maj Stanley O. Schaetzle, copilot; Sgt John W. Bryant and SSgt Louis J. Maloney, crewmen.  

last update : 28/09/2007