Welcome to the 174th AHC
The 174th Assault Helicopter Company formed at Ft. Benning, GA in 1965. It deployed to Vietnam by U.S. Navy ships in 1966. Our three homes in Vietnam were Lane Army Heliport near Qui Nhon (1966; II-Corps), Duc Pho in Quang Ngai Province (1967-1970; I-Corps), and Chu Lai, basecamp for the Americal Division (1971; also I-Corps).
The 174th flew various models of the UH-1 "Huey" helicopter. We served long and proud in Vietnam and saw much combat action in the rice paddies and mountains in the northern half of South Vietnam from 1966 until 1971, and in Laos during Operation Lam Son 719 in 1971. We have here pictures, stories, and information about the 174th's experiences. This site is dedicated to those Dolphins and Sharks, both pilots and enlisted crewmembers -- brave men all -- who did not return.
News and Announcements
- 2012 Reunion Information
- The 174th's 2012 Reunion information is scheduled for 4-6 May at the Best Western Beachfront Hotel in Ft. Walton Beach, FL. See details.
- 174th Website's New Look
- You'll note the website has a new look. The front page has undergone a facelift, and with time many sub-pages will also be converted to the new format. Note all major "Contents" items are now contained on the left Navigation Bar. Hover over each bar to display a "flyout" for any subpages each may contain.
- Operation Re-enlist: 174th AHC Association Membership Application
- Click to go to the membership renewal form.
- The 174th AHC Association Store is now open!
- You can now order patches, t-shirts, and more. See what's available now.
- Join the 174th AHC Listserv
- Our email list has about 350 former members on it now. It is a low-volume (low bandwidth) list to reconnect friends, share information from "back in the day," coordinate information like reunions, and answer questions about other former members and events.
Pictures
"Sharks on standby at the Gia Vuc Special Forces Camp. Gunships Shark #161 'Surfer' and #140 'Hooded Cobra'. We actually had a heavy fire team of three gunships heading back for fuel after a combat assault, when we happened upon a group of 'un-uniformed' regulars. We opened up on them as they scrambled for their weapons. No enemy survived. As close to 'face to face' with the enemy I saw and participated in. L-R: Jarvis Gambrill, Sgt. Ronald Grothe, Budd Vann, Bob Millius (tall guy, with dark hair), John Moore, Gary Harter (seated) and Lt. Bob Hackett's back"- Fred Thompson (Photo by Fred Thompson)
Crew chiefs and mechanics, the backbone of any helicopter unit. (Photo by Fred Thompson)
A combat assault (CA), taken on short-final to the landing zone (LZ), with infantry troops jumping from a UH-1 "Huey." This photo was taken in the Americal area of operations between Duc Pho and Chu Lai. The lead helicopter has just taken off; chalk-2 is unloading (note the right skid hasn't even touched down yet and one troop's already out of the helicopter and has reached the rice paddy dike); chalk-3 is on short-final just before touching down; and the rest of the flight is barreling down on Chalk-3 from the rear. Chalk-2 will probably be on the ground for less than five seconds. (Photo by Jim "Chalk-3" McDaniel)