Hercules Saga

I can't remember who wrote this, but it was sent to me by Brendan Lynch, Secretary VVAA of Victoria RAAF Sub Branch. So if anybody can enlighten me as to the Author, I will give full credit.

Strategic airlift

In no other conflict has strategic airlift using long range transport aircraft played such a significant role as in the Vietnam War. A massive airlift from the United States to Vietnam using both service and civil aircraft provided the great bulk of this effort and the RAAF, using two squadrons of Hercules and sup-ported by Qantas and domestic charter aircraft supplied Australia's needs.

The Hercules of the RAAF and the men who flew and maintained them performed a vital service for the Australian national effort by providing a continuous and highly reliable strategic airlift which supported all three armed services as well as Australian civil aid projects and the New Zealand Army. At times the RAAF Hercules squadrons were forced to work three shifts a day in order to keep their aircraft serviceable for the task. Their responsibilities included not only the fast overseas airlift of priority cargoes and passengers to Vietnam, but the maintenance at the same time of fixed services within Australia; a fixed service in addition to many special flights to Butterworth, Malaysia, to support the RAAF Base; periodic assistance to the Malaysian Government in the form of flights between Malaysia and Borneo and support for the RAAF No.79 Sabre squadron in Thailand.

Among cargoes airlifted to Vietnam for the Australian army were Cessna aircraft, Sioux helicopters, howitzers, armour plating for armoured personnel carriers, ammunition, medical supplies, tractors, communications equipment and motor transport spares.

Lockheed Hercules air transports first went into service with the RAAF in 1958 when No.36 Squadron was re-equipped with 12 of the C13OA model. This squadron substantially improved the air strategic mobility of the Austra-lian forces. However it became clear in the early nineteen-sixties that Aus-tralia's air strategic mobility and capacity fell short of that needed to meet likely military situations and the decision was taken to add another squadron of Hercules aircraft to RAAF strength. The model selected in 1964, the Cl 30E, was at that time the latest version of the Lockheed Hercules family with extended range and increased payload compared with the earlier Cl 30A.

The later model Cl 30E Hercules aircraft were assigned to No.37 Squadron based at RAAF Base Richmond alongside No.36 Squadron and a Hercules maintenance squadron. No.36 Squadron was commanded by Wing Commander David Hitchens and Wing Commander Ron McKimm was appointed to command the reactivated No.37 Squadron. No.37 Squadron's aircraft were used more to meet the strategic transport demands of moving personnel and equipment to and from South-east Asia including the aero-medical evacuation of sick and wounded who were flown back to service hospitals in Australia through Richmond. Richmond was thus directly involved with the Vietnam conflict. The two Hercules squadrons, in addition to No.38 Caribou Transport Squadron which was based at Richmond, made this base near Sydney a key service supply point and main base for the biggest Australian air freight operation. All priority cargoes to be air freighted to Vietnam had to go first to Richmond where Load Co-ordinator (an organisa-tion later restructured as the RAAF Movements Co-ordination Centre) was the nerve Centre which controlled the airlift operation.

Hercules missions supported the RAAF Caribou Flight at Vung Tau in the early stages of Australian involvement in Vietnam and later airlifts were undertaken for the 1st Battalion RAR at Bien Hoa. During the turbulent times of 1965 the Hercules crews found that congestion in the air and on the ground created serious problems at Bien Hoa, Vung Tau and Tan Son Nhut. By 30 November 1965 the first scheduled fortnightly Hercules service from Rich-mond to Bien Hoa left Richmond. This fortnightly service operated continu-ously through to 1972 carrying priority cargo and passengers on a 'space available' basis. Top priority was given to the replacement of operational air-crew, mail, official and first class mail for the troops. High priority air freight included essential operational spares, telecommunications equipment, equip-ment to maintain guns, aircraft spares and medical supplies for the armed forces. Medical evacuation aircraft had a dual role. They carried freight northwards and patients back borne to Australia.

When the Australian Task Force was established at Nui Dat in Phuoc Tuy province, with a logistic support group (1 ALS6) at Vung Tau, the task of the Hercules increased. In May 1966, six sorties to South Vietnam were carried out in addition to two to Ubon, Thailand, in support of No.79 Squadron. In September 1966, seven aircraft operated into South Vietnam and four more sorties were flown into Malaya and Borneo. In December 1966-January 1967 operations in Vietnam were complicated by the closure for repairs of Vung Tau airfield where the runway surface had become very rough. Three RAAF Hercules had been damaged while taking off there through deep pools of water. But 'to the great relief of all concerned', normal operations from Vung Tau resumed on 31 January 1967.

Praising the effort of his crews Wing Commander Hitchins said: 'Many air and ground crew people worked their insides out, particularly during the early part of the Vietnam war and before things became as orderly and routine as in the later stages . . . unlike crews of other squadrons which operate together, the Hercules have been required almost always to operate singly; to overcome their difficulties in the field with a minimum of assistance; and to get the job done in the best way possible using their own initiative. The burden of responsibility placed on the shoulders of many young officers and NCOs during these operations was, in my opinion, considerable.'

One of the problems encountered in the early stages was the lack of adequate handling equipment to load and unload freight. When speed pallets and fork lifts became available they made possible the handling of cargoes in a matter of minutes. It was not unusual in the later stages of RAAF participation in Vietnam for an RAAF Hercules to be in and out of a Vietnam airfield in 20 minutes. Using the special pallets in conjunction with its dual rail and roller conveyer system, the CI 30E was carrying up to 40,000 lb of cargo per flight.

On the arrival of No.2 Canberra Squadron in Vietnam the Hercules extended their operations to the squadron's base at Phan Rang and provided a flow of spares, vehicles, mail and passengers. in its first 1 8 months of operations the air movements section at Phan Rang assisted both Hercules and Caribou aircraft to maintain their schedules by handling over 1,000 tons of palletized cargo and 3,560 passengers.

Between April and June 1967, a detachment of three Hercules of No. 36 Squadron, operating from Darwin, flew 2,400 soldiers of the Australian Task Force between Darwin and Vung Tau. This was 'Operation Winter Grip' during which two battalions of the Task Force at Nui Dat were relieved by two battalions from Australia. The three Hercules of No.36 Squadron flew a total of 37 flights carrying 65 troops on each flight. 'Operation Winter Grip' provided for domestic airline companies using Electra and DC6B charter aircraft to move the troops north and south between Darwin and other cities within Australia. From Darwin the Hercules airlifted the soldiers north and south between Vung Tau and Darwin. The operation was completed smoothly, efficiently, and on schedule.

The many-sided air transport activities of the RAAF Hercules aircraft during the Vietnam conflict included flying arms and ammunition into war- torn Cambodia. The arms and ammunition had been donated to the hard- pressed Cambodians by the Australian Government and the Hercules were called on to deliver them. The Hercules flew two sorties to Phnom Penh airport on 25 January and two on 26 January 1971, immediately after heavy Viet Cong raids on the airport. An aircraft piloted by Hercules captain, Squadron Leader David Marland flew in on 26 January. Squadron Leader Marland, describing the operation said: 'Flying Officer M. Berry went in there immedi-ately after the Viet Cong attack on the airfield. We went in 24 hours later carrying Thompson sub machine guns and ammunition. We flew in from Vung Tau. There was no gunfire at the time but we had serious communication difficulties. Nobody knew what was going on. There were many aircraft in the target area trying to get in and land, including a continuous stream of Viet-namese aircraft. As soon as we landed we got our load off as quickly as possible and flew out again. The place was very battered with many airport buildings burnt out. The airfield runways and aprons were all right but satchel charges had been used on aircraft and the control tower. The prime damage was to the Cambodian Air Force which suffered heavily.'

Hercules and Qantas Charter aircraft were heavily involved in the with-drawal phase of Australian forces from Vietnam. The last charter flew into Sydney on Christmas Eve, 1971. But the Hercules continued operating into the New Year. They carried 68 personnel on each flight. The aircraft flew first to Darwin where the troops were cleared by the customs authorities and then to various capital cities. The last Hercules out of Vietnam took off from Tan Son Nhut on 1 March 1972 bringing back to Australia the rear party of the Army and the RAAF. Thus ended the Hercules Vietnam saga.

Flying home the wounded

RAAF flying and medical skills were combined in one of the finest Austra-lian service achievements of the Vietnam conflict. This was the flying borne of sick and wounded servicemen in Hercules aircraft specially manned and medically equipped for the task.

Except for a few patients in the early stages of Australian involvement in Vietnam, the RAAF handled all Australian sick and wounded from Vietnam; not only soldiers, but members of the RAN and some civilians as well as RAAF casualties. The Royal New Zealand Air Force and New Zealand Army also took advantage of the RAAF service as far as Richmond, N.S.W., from where the casualties were taken over by the New Zealand authorities. More than three thousand casualties all told were flown in safety and comfort under the expert care of dedicated medical and nursing staff specially trained in the aero-medical evacuation task.

The RAAF has a distinguished history of involvement in aero-medical evacuation ranging over almost half a century. Between 1928 and 1933, RAAF medical officers conducted experiments in the carrying of casualties both inside and outside the fuselage of early combat aircraft including the Westland Wapiti general purpose aircraft. During the Second World War in the Middle

East the RAAF No. I Air Ambulance Unit conveyed 9,000 patients, some-times under hostile ground fire. However, it took the war in New Guinea to really draw attention to the potential of medical air evacuation. There were vast numbers of sick and wounded in the early New Guinea fighting and because the enemy controlled adjacent sea areas and carriage through the jungle in stretchers on the shoulders of Papuans was too rigorous, medical air evacuation was used extensively and the technique entered a new and vital phase. Later in the Pacific War, the RAAF formed Medical Air Evacuation Transport units and using Dakota aircraft, evacuated thousands of casualties from the New Guinea and Borneo operational theatres. When peace came the units were used to handle the air lift of thousands of Australian prisoners of war from South East Asia. Many of the ex-prisoners were ill and medical care was needed in the air as well as on the ground.

In the Korean War, the RAAF undertook the evacuation of all British Commonwealth casualties from Korea to Japan and between January 1951 and January 1954 a total of 13,000 casualties were evacuated in RAAF air-craft under RAAF medical care. The RAAF also evacuated approximately 700 from Japan to Australia. Thus when Australia entered the Vietnam conflict, the RAAF had accumu-lated a vast store of knowledge and expertise which could be called upon when the service undertook aero-medical evacuation of casualties from Vietnam to Australia.

Australian service policy places on the RAAF responsibility for aero-medical evacuation of casualties in overseas theatres. Consequently with the commitment of Australian combat troops to Vietnam in June 1965, the RAAF stationed a senior medical orderly in Saigon to co-ordinate the evacuation of casualties and regular Cl 30A Hercules courier aircraft were used to fly the wounded home from Tan Son Nhut to RAAF Base Richmond from where army wounded were transferred to the care of the army medical authorities. The first group of Australian wounded cared for by RAAF medical staff arrived at Richmond by Hercules late in July 1965.

During the period mid-1965 to mid-1966 Australian casualties were, in the main, treated at the United States Army 3rd Field Hospital at Tan Son Nhut from which they were transferred as necessary for evacuation. A total of 1 55 Australian patients were moved between 10 September 1965 and 27 June 1966 using 29 Hercules couriers, five special Dakotas and one Boeing 707 which carried six patients on 7 May 1966.

The possibility of using chartered Boeing 707 aircraft to transport patients from Vietnam was studied in detail by the RAAF in an effort to provide a shorter and more comfortable flight from Vietnam to Australia. But apart from technical problems of fitting litter racks and loading litter patients into the aircraft a major reason these aircraft were not used was that from long experience it had been found essential that patients being moved soon after injury should be staged through a nearby medical facility away from the operational theatre, where the condition of patients could be reviewed prior the movement on a long overseas flight. Another reason was that the Australian Army had moved its area of operations from Bien Hoa to Phuoc Tuy province and Vung Tau had replaced Tan Son Nhut as the departure airfield for casual-ties. In March 1966 following the build-up of Australian strength in Vietnam the Army established a field ambulance at Vung Tau to provide a higher level of medical facilities for Australian casualties within Vietnam. The airfield at Vung Tau was too small to permit Boeing 707 operations and it was con-sidered unjustified to submit patients to the extra handling involved in moving them from Vung Tau to Tan Son Nhut from where they could be evacuated in 707 aircraft.

An RAAF medical officer (Flight Lieutenant Ian Favilla of Adelaide, S.A.) arrived at Vung Tau on 12 June 1966 to take over the appointment of Senior Medical Officer, RAAF Vietnam. This officer also had the appointment of Aeromedical Evacuation Co-ordination Officer with the responsibility for co-ordinating the evacuation of casualties and ensuring that all patients who were to be sent home were fit to travel in the aircraft. The majority of patients were in hospital at the United States Army 36th Evacuation hospital located on the Vung Tau airfield or at the Australian 2nd Field Ambulance about two miles away. The RAAF medical officer, after receiving requests for the movement of patients was conducted on a ward round by the attending physician or surgeon. Details were given of each patient; X-rays and pathology results were available and examination of the patient could be made if necessary. When satisfied that the patient was fit to travel by air the RAAF medical officer in consultation with the attending medical officer gave orders for their in-flight treatment.

The largest number of casualties-52-to be flown to Australia in one aircraft were flown home in one of the new type Cl 30E Hercules then coming into service with No.37 Squadron at Richmond. The flight left Vung Tau for Australia on 27 February 1967.

Battle casualties in Phuoc Tuy province amongst Australian forces and a high number of American patients in the Vung Tau area had filled all available space in the hospitals. Many of the Australian casualties were in need of treat-ment not available to them and consequently an urgent request was sent to Australia for a special aero-medical evacuation flight. A Hercules of No.37 Squadron was sent from Richmond, staying overnight at Darwin en route, where arrangements were made for the possible diversion of the aircraft should it become necessary when returning to Australia with the patients. In addition to nine air crew the aircraft carried four medical officers, five sisters and four medical orderlies to attend to the needs of patients together with all necessary medical equipment. Most of the casualties were conveyed to the aircraft by road ambulance but fourteen of the more seriously ill patients were flown from 2 Field Ambu-lance by helicopters of No.9 Squadron because the road to the airfield was too bumpy and it was feared the condition of the patients would probably deteriorate in a rough ambulance ride. The last four patients all of whom were listed as seriously ill were retained in an airconditioned mobile operating room and carried into the Hercules shortly before the aircraft was ready for take off.

In the air the large medical team gave full medical and nursing care to patients continuously. The air crew were briefed to enable slow alteration in cabin pressure during the cruise climb, variations in cabin temperature, lighting and warning of turbulence ahead.

Every patient in that historic flight was handed over in Australia in as good a condition and in some cases better condition than when they entered the Hercules in Vietnam. It was a fine example of the devotion and dedicated effort the RAAF medical service provided.

Shortly after this flight, wide publicity was given in Australia to criticisms of aero-medical evacuation. Some of the points of criticism were justified (e.g. the noise level in Hercules Cl 30A aircraft is unpleasantly high) but most of it was not true.

By this stage the RAAF was, in any case, using only the newer more com-fortable Cl3OE aircraft which had just come into service with the force. In replying to criticism in the House of Representatives, the then Defense Minister, Mr. Fairhall, pointed out that the Cl 30E aircraft was 'still accepted by com-petent and responsible medical service opinion as the most suitable aircraft reasonably available for aero-medical evacuation'.

The noise level in the Cl 30E was lower making conversation between patients and medical staff easier. Heating was an improvement on the older A model Cl 30 and its range was greater.

After a study of all possible alternative aircraft, the decision was made that the Hercules would continue to be used. However the decision was taken to use only the improved Cl 30E Hercules and a regular service every two weeks between Vietnam and Australia solely for aero-medical evacuation began in May 1967 using these aircraft. From that time on the RAAF provided a Cl 30E Hercules for the aero-medical evacuation service every second Monday. In addition 18 special flights were undertaken, 12 of these being to relieve the critical bed state at 1st Australian Field Hospital, Vung Tau.

Every effort was made to ensure the comfort of casualties and the effective-ness of the aero-medical evacuation system by the introduction of refinements. So that nursing officers and medical orderlies who attended the patients in the aircraft would be familiar with the most up-to-date methods, a number were attached to the USAF 902nd Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron in Vietnam for additional training and experience. From July 1966 until April 1971 more than 30 RAAF medical personnel were attached to this American squadron.

While the inside of a Hercules was bare of airliner luxury there was ample room for the medical staff to move around freely and so minister to patients as the need arose.

Galley units were obtained and carried by the Hercules to provide hot meals in flight. Toilet units were also provided for the patients.

Specially equipped ambulance buses were manufactured in Australia and one was flown to Vung Tau. Air-conditioned and carrying medical equipment they were capable of transporting 1 8 litter patients or a combination of sitting and stretcher patients. The bus used in Vietnam had the distinct advantage of being able to carry most or all the patients in one group. It was first used there in April 1968.

Another refinement was the provision of air-conditioning units to cool the aircraft while the patients were being loaded. Great grey hoses fed in cool air so that from the moment the patients were aboard they were cool. If he required it, the patient could have in-flight music simply by fitting a headset and adjusting the volume. Some of the severest critics of RAAF aero-medical evacuation never flew in an RAAF Hercules used in this role. But Major Hal Richardson, Editor of Army, flew not once but twice (1968 and 1971) in a Hercules bringing home sick and wounded Diggers and after close observation of the whole operation he had this to say:
'More than two years ago ARMY traveled on an RAAF C130 medieval from Vung Tau and we repeated the trip about one month ago. We are happy to once again hand to the RAAF medieval flight the "Oscar" for an outstanding performance on the ground and in the air, also top award for efficiency on the patient's behalf.
'Most Diggers agree-and they're not referring to the 4,200 BHP power plant-that the silver medevac "Herc" is all heart.

'The RAAF medical team makes sure the Diggers are fit for the long flight home. The big silver RAAF bus that picks up the patients from the hospital is air-conditioned and it backs up to the air-conditioned Herc that stands cool on the tarmac when the sun bounces off a 95 degree heat.

"All systems are go to give passengers a gentle ride. Some doze, but wake for the chilled pineapple juice. Some watch the sunbeams move slowly over plaster casts and bandages but most of them rise to the occasion when the boxed lunch is served . . . on the medevac "Herc" the boxed lunch looks like something out of the boot of a Rolls Royce in the members' enclosure on Melbourne Cup day.'

RAAF aero-medical evacuation was well organised, efficient, human. As Major Richardson said to the RAAF, patients are not passengers; patients are not freight; patients are patients.

The 3,164 patients evacuated through the RAAF system from Vietnam to Australia were from the following:

[ Sign my Guestbook] - [Read my Guestbook ]
[Guestbook by TheGuestBook.com]

HOME PAGE