“Aviation Story” opens with narration by Sp4 Mike Baker describing 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) helicopter assault tactics. This accompanies raw footage of 1st Air Cavalry (in UH-1 Hueys and CH-47 Chinooks) in combat near the seashore in Bình Định or Quảng Ngãi Province on February 26-28 1967 during Operation Pershing.
After the narration ends, there is additional raw combat footage with live sound. Although it appears that the sound and pictures were both recorded on the same sorties, they do not appear to be synchronized. Still it gives a vivid impression of actual combat conditions. Cameraman: SFC B. McBride.
The original of this film had the narration recorded in pieces over a blank picture (for later editing).
1st Air Cavalry Division
In Vietnam the 1st Cavalry Division was longer a conventional infantry unit, the division had become an air assault division. The use of helicopters on such large scale as troop carriers, cargo lift ships, medevacs, and as aerial rocket artillery, was never before implemented, but by doing so it freed the infantry from the tyranny of terrain to attack the enemy at the time and place of its choosing.
In 1965, the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) began deploying to Camp Radcliff, An Khe, Vietnam, in the Central Highlands and was equipped with the new M16 rifle, the UH-1 troop carrier helicopter, UH-1-C gunships, the CH-47 Chinook cargo helicopter, and the massive CH-54 Skycrane cargo helicopter.
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