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In
Jan, l970 I came to HHC 123 AVN BN. In Feb. I was transferred to F troop
8th Cav. While at Blueghost I worked as a clerk in flight operations &
got to know several of the pilots and crew members. These people who
flew combat assault, recon, first and late light, Nighthawk,etc. were very brave
people and were my heroes then and still are today.
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Americal
Division Headquarters |
A closer
view of the sign in front of division headquarters |
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Wes Moss
in the middle with Doc Aldrich on his left and Tim Henry on right. |
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This is
the dispensary after being hit by a rocket on Nov. 30 1970.
I
left VN in Dec. l970 from E. Co. 723 Maint. Bn. and was on an extension
to get the 6 month early out. A short time into the extension,
Nov. 30, we had a rocket attack and the l6th CAG dispensary got
hit. Seven people died, I was there & I'll never
forget it. My good friend Kenneth "Beetle" Robertson and I
were going to get a seat together on the "freedom bird"
leaving VN but he didn't make it.
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(Click to enlarge)
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Summer
of 1970 LZ Kham Duc |
Island
off Chu Lai across from An Ton |
Main air
strip in Chu Lai 1970 |
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I did
get to fly on some of the different missions. One night I got to
fly on the chase ship for the night hawk and that was exciting.
One
time I was on board a slick during a late light mission and the loach
was taking fire below us. I went on the ground with 2 of the Blues
to blow up a rocket and shortly after we got on the ground the mission
was aborted because a radio call from division informed us that this
area in "rocket pocket" was a mine field. That incident
almost scarred the- - - - out of me! The scout loach
protected us by flying low over the top of us. We were then
extracted and a cobra rolled in and we could see it work out in the
distance -- what a sight! Especially seeing the secondary
explosions going off!
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Mr.
Hotelling took me out in a UH-1H and gave me some "stick" time. That
was one of the most exciting events in my life. Thanks, Jim!
Mr. Norton
took me for a maintenance check ride in an OH-6A and boy, did I get sick!
I begged to get back on the ground and he brought me back immediately. I
was sick for a few hours. Thanks for that ride, Mr. Norton, wherever you
are!
I also got a
ride in a huey doing auto-rotations. I think Capt. Owens was getting
checked-out and the "old man" Maj. Ivey was flying IP.
What a thrill!
Viet Nam has
certainly had an impact on my life. While at F troop 8th Cav., friends were
injured and some were killed; it was devastating. Thanks to all
who have been involved with the reunions, I've enjoyed them immensely and
made some new friends.
God Bless.
Wes Moss
Photos
courtesy of Wes Moss (Flight Operations 1970)
Wes now resides in
Illinois with his wife Joanie. He is an antique dealer and partcipates in other
Vietnam activities in addition to "BlueGhosts".
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