Back in the pilot's seat: Army pilot reunites with fighter copter in Dixon

DIXON – A blackhawk reunited with his cobra after more than 45 years Thursday.

Vietnam War pilot Dayne Smith climbed into the back seat of the Cobra AH-1F fighter helicopter, a bird with more than 3,000 combat hours under its blades, at Veterans Memorial Park.

His helmet from the 7th Squadron in the 1st Air Cavalry – the Blackhawks they were called – sat just a couple feet away.

It was the first time the 70-year-old from Monroeville, Alabama, had been in the cockpit of a Cobra since March 1972 at the tail end of his service in the U.S. Army, which began in May 1971 as a first lieutenant.

"It's beautiful," he said of the helicopter, which the park commission has maintained for the past dozen years.

It was his first visit to the city – he came up with his wife, Dee, following the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association reunion in Indianapolis – but he and a handful of others with ties to the Cobra have provided the commission with photos and accounts of its history.

"He’s given us more pictures and more history on this helicopter that we never would have known," commission member Al Wikoff said.

Smith also gave them a diary he kept during his service detailing his 824 combat hours in the air.

"Probably 820 of them were in a Cobra," he said. "Most of that is boredom broken up by moments of stark terror."

The Cobra was equipped with a combination of artillery, including a machine gun and 40mm grenade launcher.

"They were some of the first helicopters to arrive in Vietnam," Wykoff said. "Everyone wanted snake protection."

The chopper has 27 purple hearts painted onto its side, a tally of the number of bullet holes patched up by Crew Chief Mike Peterson, of Eugene, Oregon.

"We really felt invisible and invincible; you never think about getting shot," he said.

Smith said he never took a hit while in the Cobra, but he had had his fair share of close calls while piloting other choppers.

Not long after his arrival in Vietnam, he had a shot go through his boot, just missing his foot.

"It's really loud when the cockpit is hit, like a firecracker in your ears," he said.

In September 1971, he received a rotor chain bracelet, given to helicopter pilots shot down in combat. He still wears it today.

"I wasn't shot down; I was just shot up all to hell and couldn’t go anymore," he said.

Other pilots were Jim Drury, Wayne "Tuna" Fisher and Ricky Holder, all from southern states.

The Smiths have been married for nearly 50 years.

"So many times, veterans are the last ones to get noticed," Dee Smith said. "If not for veterans, we might not have a country."

COBRA HISTORY

The following timeline of the Cobra helicopter 67-15475 was gathered by Tom Whelan, who served with the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Vietnam and was a member of Dixon Veterans Memorial Park Commission. He died in May 2016.

March 1967

Arrived in Vietnam

July 27, 1969

Damaged due to weapon malfunction

1,142 hours combat flown

Feb. 6, 1970

Shot down by heavy enemy ground fire while providing armed escort to medivac helicopters: both crewmen wounded.

1,792 hours combat flown

April 15, 1970

Damaged while providing direct fire support to infantry

July 13, 1970

Shot down by heavy small arms fire while providing support for heavily armed escort mission

2,092 hours combat flown

Jan. 19, 1971

Severely damaged by hostile fire while providing direct escort protection to ground troops

2,471 hours combat flown

July 6, 1971

Damaged by heavy ground fire on a heavily armed escort mission

2,745 hours combat flown

July – December 1971

Flew with 3/17 Cavalry “C” troop

3,127 hours combat flown

December 1971

Acquired by U.S. Navy maintenance group, taken to Naval Air Station in St. Louis

1972

Taken to Hawaii and issued to 25th Infantry Division barracks

1987

Decommissioned

1972-2005

History is unclear.  The helicopter was in the United States, and its tail stencils indicate that it was issued to the Tennessee National Guard.

Aug. 2, 2005

The helicopter, bought 6 months earlier for $6,000, arrives at the Dixon Veterans Memorial Park, from Fort Drum, New York.

COBRA SPECS

Length: 53.1 feet with rotors

Wingspan: 10.8 feet

Width: 3.3 feet

Height: 13.4 feet

Weight: 5 tons

Speed: 195 mph

Range: 315 miles

Crew: 2 (1 pilot and a weapons officer)

Armament: various combinations of Tow Missiles, Hydra 70 Rockets, 20 mm Cannon