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HAWK EYE: Several Navy pilots flew with RAAF’s No. 9 SQN during operations in Vietnam. |
Volume
49, No. 15, August 24, 2006
Early in 1966 the Australian Government decided to increase the Royal Australian Air Force’s (RAAF) active commitment in Vietnam.
Later that year on June 12, No. 9 Squadron RAAF arrived in Vung Tau equipped with eight Iroquois UH-1B helicopters.
The squadron was posted to Vietnam with the specific task of operating in direct support of the 1st Australian Task Force which was based at Nui Dat, a rubber plantation situated in the centre of Phuoc Tuy Province, about 18 miles due north of the Vung Tau air base.
In the later part of 1967, the RAAF began to replace 9 Squadron’s UH-1B aircraft with the larger and more powerful UH-1H variant. At the same time the squadron’s strength was to be doubled from eight to 16 helicopters.
Due to the RAAF’s other commitments in Vietnam, Malaysia and within Australia, this decision resulted in a severe shortage of airforce pilots and the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) was asked to fill the gap temporarily. Consequently eight RAN Fleet Air Arm pilots were assigned for duties with 9 Squadron in 1968.
LEUT A.A. Hill, the first of the RAN pilots, joined 9 Squadron in February. He was followed a month later by SBLTs G.E.S Vidal and M.J. Ward.
The remaining pilots joined in May, with LCDR R.A. Waddell-Wood being appointed officer-in-charge of the detachment.
With nearly all of the 1st Australian Task Force operations being air-mobile in concept, the first major role of 9 Squadron was to provide troop-lift capacity for the Army. The Squadron’s second major task was re-supplying troops in the field with food, ammunition, clean clothing and stores.
An equally important role was aerial fire support.
On July 28, 1968 LCDR Waddell-Wood and his RAAF crew were tasked with one such mission that called for a ‘hot’ extraction of an SAS patrol in a jungle-clad area of Phuoc Tuy Province. Due to the presence of thick vegetation, the crew had no choice but to adopt a winch extraction even though the Viet Cong were firing automatic weapons at the Iroquois from a range of just 30 metres. Ignoring this fire, the Navy pilot held his helicopter in the hover until all the troops had been winched aboard and then returned them to Nui Dat without further incident.
The RAN Detachment played a significant part in enabling 9 Squadron to meet its army support role in Phuoc Tuy Province during 1968 and into 1969 when the detachment returned to Australia.
Most of the RAN pilots also flew missions with the RAN Helicopter Flight Vietnam attached to the 135th Assault Helicopter Company.
9 Squadron remained in Phuoc Tuy Province where it continued to support the 1st Australian Task Force up until the time of its withdrawal from Vietnam.
The unit’s last operation was flown on November 19, 1971, and its personnel and helicopters returned to Australia the following months.
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