Of helicopters and lawnmowers

The day that I found out how much rotor blades cost I destroyed two of them. I could have bought two new automobiles with that money. Well, the way I talk you'd think I actually paid for them. I didn't. I did carry a little guilt from it for a time. Connie Graff had something to do with maintenance back then and let me know that I could have still flown back to Eagle. I guess maybe it was a bad day or something.

It didn't start out that way. It was actually kind of fun that day except we had to go into the A Shau again. Something about dropping off some of our Blues into the east side. I think we put them all in there, although I don't remember the details too much any more. All I really remember were those no-man land trees in that blasted out area.

We flew in formation into the landing zone so picking out a spot was limited to this tree or that tree, and then settling down nicely with a loaded helicopter for ballast. We were about fourth or fifth slick back. As we came in we prepped the landing zone. All that shooting around the LZ put other sounds out of normal hearing range. Hitting a tree sounds just like a round going off anyway. Maybe a few of them as you settle down. I didn't see this of course because I was a pretty good pilot in those days.

It would have become apparent to me if we'd have picked up some vibrations but when you slice equal amounts out of honey comb it all balances out. Didn't feel a thing. Didn't see it. Had no reason to know that I blew it. Except - those two guys in the gunners seats kidded me on the way back to Camp Evans. I was deadly with those blades. I may even have been on the edge of picking up a nickname.

It wasn't like they were actually shorter or anything. I looked at that track real close. No, they tracked normal... and besides there was no vibration at all. I couldn't even see a color variation to tell I'd scored the skin, yet they said I took the top right off that dead tree. Disintegrated it... mowed it down.

About the time we were half way back I'm thinking maybe they knew more about this and began to think it more serious. I began to visualize blades tearing up and flinging themselves off at any moment. (cut it out guys. this is not funny.) I never red x'd an aircraft in Nam up till that time. Could a person do that in Vietnam? We were suppose to be on standby when we got back to Evans. What if my aircraft missing in formation caused the whole operation to come unglued... what if... could I?

"Look guys! If this is as bad as you say it is then we'll know when I shut down. Right?" (I still don't believe you) "If it's that bad I'll Red X it and we'll just get another Huey. ...and Stop making a big deal of it. It was Your fault I hit it in the first place! You were suppose to warn me..." (ha. that told em.) "Look. If I do red X this ship then there are no nicknames - right!?" (ok.)

So it had two big gouges right there about a foot in from the tips. I'd never seen the honey comb up close like that before. They were a matched set and it could have been worse. The leading edge still looked good. Still a deals a deal. I red x'd it. We really expected to get another Huey but were told that another ship would come from Camp Eagle and a maintenance ship would come to assess what we had done. That's how Connie came into it. I heard he flew it back and we could have done it too. He never mentioned it though and for a long time the guilt did me more grief than he did. Good man Connie.

He went on to fly Dust Off and probably trimmed more trees than I ever dreamed of. Much later after reading Robert Mason's 'Chicken Hawk' I found out that it was not so uncommon to mow trees.

I still enjoy mowing the lawn to this day and suffer no ill effects. I get special delight in mowing over sticks and I sharpen my own blades. Once in awhile I dream of a new automobile though.