I can’t overstate the affection and respect we infantrymen had for the pilots and crews of the UH-1 Bell Huey choppers.
A Charlie Alpha in progress
They would transport us from site to site, 4 or more choppers at a time in maneuvers called Combat Assaults, CAs, or Charlie Alphas. Sometimes this placed us in less than pleasant situations, but we knew they could be relied upon to get us back out when necessary. They would resupply us with ammunition, rations, and occasionally bring us a hot meal and mail. Many times we had to have casualties lifted out when a chopper was in real danger of taking fire, but they were always there. They were literally our lifeline.
One such helicopter unit was Company A, 227th Assault Helicopter Battalion with the callsign Chickenman. Howard Burbank who was in the unit in 1968-69 was kind enough to give us the following information about them.
To confirm a couple of things – “Chickenman” was the callsign unique to A/227 – a slick company flying UH-1H’s in the time period you were in-country. The Chickenman call sign is a corruption from Drumstick.
I arrived with A/227 shortly after the “change” was made. HQ had recently assigned new call signs to the 227 AvnBn – I don’t remember (CRS) C/227 – but B/227 was potato masher (Masher) and A/227 was officially assigned “Drumstick”. Must have had something to do with Thanksgiving? Anyway those there said EVERYONE hated drumstick. At that time a popular radio serial was The ‘Further’ Adventures of Chickenman – the great white winged warrior – Benton Harbor’s alter ego – etc. etc. etc. — Bawk, Bawk ,Bawk, Baaaaawwk! [hear it] and the change was inevitable. Who started it no one knows (or admits) but when the CG 1CAV heard pilots using the unauthorized call sign the rumor is he went ballistic – (we were officially told to use Drumstick or else – which we dutifully ignored) – then after a tense couple of weeks, better sense prevailed and the CG realized the positive morale involved (and that we weren’t changing anyway). I don’t think Chickenman was ever made “Official”. While flying as Chickenman, we all prided ourselves on living up to the image (?) – and had a lot of fun parroting the familiar Chickenman sayings in radio transmissions. “Bawk, bawk, bawk, baaawwk!” being a common acknowledgment of a message.
Chickenman 102 would refer to the specific aircraft – not pilot. When we flew individual aircraft missions we used the last three digits of the aircraft tail number to identify ourselves – thus Chickenman 102 was used by any pilots flying that individual aircraft.
My tour with the CAV matched yours – from the summer of 68 through the summer of 1969 – and if you were involved in any combat assaults led by “Chickenman Yellow One” then it is about certain that we flew together.
My tour with the CAV took me first to Camp Evans up in I Corps from July 68 – October 68 when we moved the CAV south to III Corps. I led the first aviation units south – spent a week sitting on the ramp at Bien Hoa waiting for orders then flew into Quan Loi north of Lai Khe for a couple of weeks flying CA south of the fishhook – then Lai Khe was ready for us to move into new revetments there. We also had D/227 (Lobo) (with brand new cobra gunships at that time) with us at Lai Khe. I flew CA into the area north and west from there until I was reassigned to HHQ (Lightning Bolt 4) at Phouc Vinh around February 69 – June 69.
