What kind of training did the helicopter pilots sent to Vietnam receive?

Military planners in charge of military equipment worked hard to ensure that the helicopters destined for Vietnam were in the army's inventory and that they would arrive in Vietnam. Military planners in charge of the human resources of the army, on the other hand, were trying to encourage helicopter piloting by recruiting a large number of young people into helicopter pilot training programs to support the US Army, which needed a large number of pilots to fly helicopters during the Vietnam War. Naturally, in those years, the US Army did not have the large pool of helicopter pilots needed for the war in Vietnam, so it made efforts to train large numbers of prospective pilots in flight schools. In fact, more than 40,000 pilots were trained during the Vietnam War. This was certainly not a small number.

Military Training of Pilot Candidates

Helicopter pilot candidates would learn to behave and look like a soldier for a period of 8-10 weeks. They were taught the rules of military behavior and were shown what awaited them if they violated these rules. They learned to cope with physical and psychological difficulties. They learned how to walk, how to salute, how to shoot and clean a rifle, how to disassemble and reassemble it. They learned to crawl on the ground as if their lives really depended on crawling on the ground.

Photo shows a Hiller OH-23D Raven 95% of all helicopter pilots in Vietnam trained at Fort Wolters helicopter school in Texas.

Training of Pilot Candidates at the Flight School

Pilot candidates were trained in stages. First, they received one month of pre-flight training, followed by four months of basic flight training and then four months of advanced flight and ground training. Pilots going to Vietnam. If they met the age (18-28) and health criteria and successfully completed their flight training, they became UH-1 pilots at the end of 9 months. They served on the US mainland for a short period of time and then headed to Vietnam.

The academic stress in flight school was quite high. If you failed any written exam, you could retake it after a detailed review of the exam. If you failed a second time, you were dismissed from the program. In basic flight training, you would fly with an instructor pilot for 9 hours and if the instructor pilot found you successful, you would make your first flight in a helicopter alone at the 10th hour. In addition to the UH-1 helicopter, the flight school also used Bell OH-13, Hughes TH-55 and Hiller OH-23D helicopters for training. The training was rigorous, because at the end of the day, a hard fight awaited the pilot candidates.

How long did the pilots sent to Vietnam stay in Vietnam?

It is a common phrase for those who watch documentaries, movies or read about the Vietnam War: "He didn't complete his first tour."

What was this rotational tour?

Americans who were sent to Vietnam, whether they volunteered for the US Army or were conscripted, were obliged to complete a 365-day tour of duty. Soldiers who completed 365 days of duty were considered to have completed the first tour. Helicopter pilots were not given any privileges in this regard. The standard tour of duty for helicopter pilots in the Vietnam War was 12 months or 365 days. During their tours, they had to fly a total of 1,800 hours, an average of 150 hours per month. When we examine the memories of pilots who served in Vietnam, we come across the fact that the 150 hours per month quota could be easily exceeded. 

Helicopter pilots who flew sanitary or medical evacuation missions often flew more hours than pilots who flew transport or combat helicopter missions. And pilots who flew in the early years of the war often flew more hours than pilots who flew later in the war, when helicopter casualties declined.

Did helicopter pilots in the Vietnam War have to do a second tour after completing the first?

In the Vietnam War, it was not mandatory to fly a second tour of duty after completing the first tour. However, there were some exceptions to this rule. For example, soldiers in high-demand specialties, such as pilots or intelligence officers, were more likely to be called back for a second tour. In addition, soldiers who had been wounded or captured on their first tour could be recalled when they were needed again.

The decision on whether a soldier would be called up for a second tour was made by the Selective Service System. The system took into account a number of factors, including soldiers' military records, skills and qualifications, and the needs of the army.

The policy of requiring soldiers to serve more than one tour of duty was controversial. Some military planners argued that it was unfair to ask soldiers to risk their lives for their country a second time by asking them to serve another tour in Vietnam after completing the first. Some military planners argued that it was necessary to maintain a strong military presence in Vietnam.

Eventually, the policy of multiple tours of duty was abandoned with the end of the Vietnam War in 1971, in part because it was no longer needed. In addition, a number of factors were taken into account in making this decision, including growing anti-war sentiment, rising casualties and growing opposition to conscription.

Helicopter pilots were the main candidates for a second deployment to Vietnam. Because this war was a helicopter war and helicopter pilots were needed the most.

The American army felt the need to use many different types of helicopters during this war. The American defense industry reacted swiftly, racing to produce the helicopters the Army needed and deliver them to Vietnam. 

Some of the helicopter types used in the Vietnam War

1)Bell UH-1 Iroquois 'Huey' (General purpose helicopter)

2) Bell AH-1G Huey Cobra Gunship (Snake) (Attack helicopter)

3) Hughes OH-6 Cayuse, 'Loach' (Light Reconnaissance helicopter)

4) Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight (Cargo Helicopter)

5) Boeing CH-47 Chinook (Cargo Helicopter)

6) Sikorsky HH-3E, 'Jolly Green Giant' (CSAR / Combat search and rescue helicopter)

7) Sikorsky S-64 'Skycrane' (Cargo and rescue helicopter)

8) Sikorsky CH-54A Tarhe (Cargo and rescue helicopter)

9)Sikorsky CH-37 Mojave (Kargo ve kurtarma helicopter)

10) Sikorsky CH-53 Sea Stallion (Kargo ve kurtarma helicopter)

11) Sikorsky HH-53 Super Jolly Green Giant (SAR/ Arama short-range helicopter)

12) Piasecki H-21 Workhorse/Shawnee (SAR/ Arama short-rotation helicopter)

13) Bell OH-58 Kiowa (Keşif helicopters)

14) Hiller OH-23D Raven (Hafif Keşif helicopter)

The photo shows the Bell AH-1G Huey Cobra Gunship (Snake) (Attack helicopter) and the Hughes OH-6 Cayuse, 'Loach' (Light Reconnaissance helicopter).

Hughes OH-6 Cayuse (nicknamed 'Loach') 842 of the 1,419 OH-6 helicopters built never returned from Vietnam. Most were shot down and many more succumbed to accidents caused by low-altitude flights.