George:
I did not mean to suggest the story was without merit, I just questioned the CWO pilot post someone made.
It sure sounds like the Corps has had CWO's fly choppers from time to time over the past 40 years or so. I am surprised I never saw or heard of one in 4 years, especially being a rigger.
Amigo Will:
Yes, it was MAG 16 and I was in HMM 263. I had to pull my records to figure that all out. By the time I got there what I gather was the POW camp had become a South Vietnamese base. If memory serves me we had the South Vietnamese on the side closest to Marble Mountain and the Army on the other side of us. Across the airfield we had some Army observation planes and South Koreans. Maybe re-con was there to?
I flew many re-con insertions and with drawls along with re-supplies and Medi-vacs. Some without incident and others a little more interesting.
One thing I remember is reporting after nearly every flight that I was seeing troops on Marble Mountain and I was always told I was seeing ghosts. Long after the war ended they discovered that below Marble Mountain was a huge Viet Cong facility, I believe one of the largest including a full service hospital.
Strange times
Semper Fi
