"BOMB RECOVERY"
Flew a mission into Laos on an emergency basis one afternoon. We went to an" old Japanese Landing Strip" because an A-1E had made an emergency landing.
Only one small problem - there were weapons including a BLU-76B still loaded.
We needed to fly troops out, download the bomb and fly the weapons back while maintenance troops fixed the aircraft. They unloaded the 20mm cannons and downloaded the bomb. We then picked up the bomb with the external hoist and flew it home. I was on the escort CH-3 and watched this white weapon swing under the other helicopter without having a clue as to what it was...ignorance was certainly bliss as I would have been much more concerned about it had I known what it was.
All this because we were not supposed to have an armed aircraft in Laos overnight...
We'd have been a "bomber" if they needed to punch it off...
(Jim Henthorn)
Only one small problem - there were weapons including a BLU-76B still loaded.
We needed to fly troops out, download the bomb and fly the weapons back while maintenance troops fixed the aircraft. They unloaded the 20mm cannons and downloaded the bomb. We then picked up the bomb with the external hoist and flew it home. I was on the escort CH-3 and watched this white weapon swing under the other helicopter without having a clue as to what it was...ignorance was certainly bliss as I would have been much more concerned about it had I known what it was.
All this because we were not supposed to have an armed aircraft in Laos overnight...
We'd have been a "bomber" if they needed to punch it off...
posted by Jim Moore at 11:21 AM
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