A Cobra Flew Over Our House

I was out in the backyard when a Cobra flew over our house in Valley Park, Missouri.  Instinctively, I cringed and hunched over, to make myself a smaller target.

The incident made me remember a class when I was a soldier at the United States Army Aviation School.  The class taught me that there are three types of military helicopters:

1.     Helicopters designed to observe

2.     Helicopters designed to transport

3.     Helicopters designed to kill people

I am comfortable with observation helicopters because they are used by television stations for traffic reports. 

I am comfortable with transportation helicopters because the Army trained me to repair UH-1’s.  These were better known as Hueys, and they were the workhorse of the Vietnam War.  Today they are used by air medical services to transport people to hospitals.

Because I cringed and hunched over, I am obviously not comfortable with helicopters designed to kill people.  The Cobra (an Army attack helicopter) that flew over me was being transported in the flyway from a large Army base to the west of our house to a large Air Force base to the east of our house.

After the Cobra passed over our house without strafing the backyard, I straightened up.  I was surprised that 40 years after I was in the Army, the sight of an attack helicopter could shake me up.

Shortly after the Cobra incident, the Marine Corps announced that they would be setting up helicopters on display at the Gateway Arch as part of Marine Week in St. Louis.

I was curious to see how helicopters had improved in the 40 years since I was in the Army.  

I went down to the Arch and walked up to the first display.  I stood still.  Really?  Were the Marines playing a joke on me?  With the exception of the radio mounts on the front, this helicopter looked exactly like a UH-1.

I was incredulous and turned to a Marine standing by the display.  “This helicopter looks just like the UH-1’s I was trained to repair 40 years ago.”  The Marine responded with politeness: “Yes, Sir, this is a UH-1, and it hasn’t changed in 40 years because if something works, you shouldn’t tamper with it.”

My incredulity turned to a bit of pride.  In 40 years, no one could improve the helicopter that was the workhorse of the Vietnam War, the helicopter I was trained to repair.

I walked to the next Marine helicopter.  It was a Cayuse, an observation helicopter, and it looked like it was unchanged in 40 years.  

Then I walked to the centerpiece helicopter --- a Chinook, a troop carrying helicopter, which looked like it was unchanged.

I realized I should not be surprised that I cringed when a Cobra flew over our house.  That Cobra, whose purpose was to kill people during the Vietnam War, also looked like it was unchanged in 40 years.

- . - .- . - . - . 

To evoke the Vietnam era, the Rolling Stones sing Gimme Shelter while Hueys fill the sky in Southeast Asia.  A 4.5 minute video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QNlebUDb8U

- . - .- . - . - . 

NOTE: Doug's best stories have been collected into a book: Puppy Out Of Breath.  Price = $11.  You can purchase a copy at  http://www.puppyoutofbreath.com