Huey Been Around a Long Time

It was once the workhorse of the Vietnam War, a helicopter with a distinct thwap, thwap, thwap that for some came to symbolize that conflict.

The Huey, reliable and solid, is being phased out -- though some say it's premature to write its obituary because it is still in use by some units. But the event held yesterday by the D.C. National Guard amounted to a retirement ceremony for its fleet of Hueys, which are being replaced by a more modern and nimble chopper known as the UH-72A Lakota.

Pilots stood around a parking lot near RFK Stadium that served as a temporary landing zone, admiring the old helicopters as if having a hard time saying goodbye. They talked about how the aircraft, some of which date to the late 1960s and early 1970s, were over the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001, and responded to Hurricanes Katrina and Ike.

For the Vietnam generation, the Huey is an "icon," said Lt. Col. Maureen Bellamy, who has been flying the helicopter for 25 years. And when she goes to aviation shows, Vietnam veterans "come up with tears in their eyes" and recall how, when wounded, the sight of a Huey on the horizon meant safety.

"The Huey is a legend," said Tim Smith, the aircraft maintenance officer for the Army Aviation Museum in Fort Rucker, Ala. "It's been the standard of Army aviation for many, many years." ...read more here...