On 10 February 1967, the 57th AHC was
reorganized from an Airmobile Fixed Wing Company to an Assault Helicopter
Company. October 1967 saw the 57th deployed to Vietnam and by the end
of December it was operating from its new home at Kontum in Northwest
II Corps. The 57th's primary mission was to provide tactical air mobility
of combat troops, supplies, equipment, and aerial fire support within
the II Corps area.
During the seige of Dak To, in November 1967, the 57th proved
itself to be combat ready and capable of handling any mission assigned
to it. 1968 saw the Tet offensive hit Kontum. Other than suffering an
initial sapper attack on 10 January the 57th AHC kept the compound secured
from all ground attacks. During the remainder of the year normal missions
were carried out in such a manner which gave recognition to the 57th as
a highly professional unit ready to take any task. The units motto of
"Try Us" came into being with everybody giving their utmost for any unit
supported by the 57th. 1969 saw the 57th flying FOB II in support of the
5th Special Forces Group (ABN), out of Kontum. This is a highly classified
mission with a normal rotation of four months for each unit assigned to
it, but the 57th AHC did such an outstanding job with a minimal loss of
personnel and equipment that it was put on an indefinite status. The seige
of Ben Het began in June with the 57th playing a significant role in supplying
the battered camp and bravely making dustoffs under intensive ground and
motar fire. March 1970 saw the 57th pack it's bags and move to An Khe
with it's new primary mission to support the 4th Infantry Division. In
April the 57th was once again flying up near the tri-border area as the
Special Forces camp of Dak Seang was under seige. After a month of fierce
fighting the NVA retreated back into Laos. Thanks to emergency resupply
by the 57th AHC and other aviation units in the 52nd Battalion, the camp
repelled all the ground attacks.
May
1970, saw the invasion of Cambodia. By early June all the U.S. forces
that the 57th were supporting had been withdrawn, and An Khe became the
primary area of operation. From 10 to 15 November 1970, the 57th Aviation
Company redeployed to Camp Holloway in Pleiku. The II Corps VIP mission
was taken over when the 189th stood down in 16 November. In January 1971,
the 57th took over the FOB II mission from the 170th when it completed
it's stand down. On 8 January, the Nighthawk was officially christened
"Cougar's Revenge".
A
Tac-E was declared on March 16, with an enemy ground attack threating
Phu Nhon, a village south of Pleiku. The 57th lifted men and emergency
supplies into the besieged compound. Two Gladiators were shot down in
seperate actions on 29 March with no casualties. Just as Dak To was cooling
down, Firebases 5 and 6 exploded their niche into history. On 31 March,
two aircraft from A/227 known as "Chickenman" were shot down
while resupplying FB 6. The eight crewmembers had to E&E as FB 6 was
overrun. As soon as the bad weather lifted, the Gladiators extracted the
downed Chickenmen. The Cougars were highly instrumental in the defeat
of the enemy during this period. May through September. typically the
rainy season, experienced very little enemy activity. The units the Gladiators
have most often supported within the Pleiku/Kontum area are the Ranger
Command, 222nd FW, 3rd Armored Cav, the 2nd Ranger Group, the 42 &
47 th ARVN Regiments, and FOB II.
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