What is Dustoff?
I was an
"ARMY DUSTOFF MEDIC!"
The 45th Medical Company
Air Ambulance
"Dustoff" is the epitome of Helicopter
Aeromedical Evacuation.
One of the Vietnam War's most dangerous jobs.
Recipients of the Congressional Gold Medal.
On Thursday, September 26, 2024,
the President signed into law: S.
2825, the "Dustoff Crews of the
Vietnam War Congressional Gold
Medal Act," which provides for the
award of a Congressional Gold Medal
to the United States Army Dustoff
Crews of the Vietnam War, collectively,
in recognition of their extraordinary
heroism and life-saving actions in
Vietnam.
Thank you to Senators Cornyn and
Warren, and Representatives Kilmer
and McMorris Rodgers for their leadership.
Bill Signed: S. 2825
"Dustoff"
- Acronym Definition -
Dedicated
Unhesitating
Service
To
Our
Fighting
Forces.
The terms "medevac" and
"casevac" were used
synonymously for Army
"Aeromedical evacuation"
or "Dustoff" (Dust Off).
There was no more welcome
sound to a wounded soldier
in Vietnam than the whop-
whop-whop of the "Dustoff
Huey" coming to get them
out of hell.
Anyone that has ever
flown in a "Dustoff Huey"
will never forget that
heavenly sound.
"When I have your wounded"
is a battle cry and credo
of the
U.S. Army's Dustoff crews."
Youtube Video about the most dangerous missions
in all of Vietnam and the brave men that flew them.
Dustoff in Vietnam was a crew of four dedicated
(and most people would likely say, "certifiably
insane") men that flew unarmed helicopters to
the front line and beyond to rescue wounded
soldiers. The mission for Dustoff was to get
the wounded soldiers out of harm's way, save
their life by providing basic medical care,
and get them to the nearest or best hospital
to treat their wounds.
Life as we know it could have been a lot
different for the casualties of the Vietnam War
had it not been for the outstanding bravery and
dedication of Dustoff crews.
One of my favorite standbys was with the Aussies
at Nui Dat. Nui Dat was the Australian base in
the middle of Viet Cong territory in Phuoc Tuy
province. The nearby villages of Long Tan and Long
Phuoc were both considered Viet Cong strongholds.
I was a Dustoff Medic.
Without a doubt the Dustoff Medic
witnessed more of the brutality of war than anyone.
It took a man with incredible intestinal fortitude to face the
type and quantity of wounds and injuries he faced many times every
day. Anything and everything imaginable to mutilate the human body
were the types of challenges he faced each and every day.
As I stated above, Dustoff in Vietnam was a crew of
four dedicated men. Each Dustoff Crew consisted of
two Pilots, a Flight Medic, and a Crewchief. The Pilots
were responsible for flying our unarmed helicopter, the Medic
cared for the wounded, and the Crewchief maintained the
helicopter. We all depended on each other, and we trusted
each other with our lives.
This trust was never more apparent than when we flew a "Night
Hoist Mission" to rescue a wounded "American GI" or a wounded
"Australian Baggy". Everyone on the crew had their own job to
do PLUS watch and make sure we did not hit anything with the
main rotor or especially the tail rotor. It was quite common
for the Crewchief and Medic to stand out on the skids and
lean out so we could see the tail rotor and watch the jungle
penetrator or the "Stokes Litter" spinning from the downdraft
from the rotating helicopter blades as we hoisted the wounded
up through the trees as the bullets whizzed by our heads and
made Swiss Cheese out of our helicopter.
"Si" Simmons summed it all up from a Pilots point of view with
what I think is the most beautiful heartfelt tribute to the
Dustoff Medic and Crewchief ever written. With special permission
from "Si" here is that tribute:
The
"MEDIC" & "CREWCHIEF"
Dustoff Personified
It's been said that when Dustoff pilots are flying, they talk about
women --- and when they're with women, they talk about flying ---
But when they tell war stories of the "You Had To Be There"
calibre, the subject usually locks in on the feats of their grungy
MEDIC and CREWCHIEF.
As Dustoff pilots in Vietnam, our task was to insure that timely
medical care was delivered to the wounded; a job that was
probably helped along by having a bent for foxy flying and
being a button short ---
The "medical care" we "delivered" was a different story ---
Our "Medic and Crewchief team" aboard was the precious cargo
for whom the wounded watched and prayed --
Through the plexiglass we've watched them ---- and we've
watched the wounded watch them --- with litter and weapon in
hand, trudge through waist-deep rice paddies, through tangled
jungle growth, up rocky mountainsides, hang from skids with
outstretched hand, jump to watery depths, tear into burning
cockpits, hug a jungle penetrator as it takes them through
triple canopy -- all too often under withering enemy fire.
We've watched both as they've emptied clips into treelines,
bunkers and jungled hideouts -- buying altitude -- before
turning to continue tending the wounded, halt hemorrhage,
close a sucking chest, start fluids, calm hysteria, breath life,
cuddle babies maimed.
As their wounded were off-loaded to definitive care-- we've
watched the "thumbs up" as their tired eyes and muddy faces
grin at a life given -- and too often we've watched a sudden
stiffness -- a desperation -- as they carefully -- almost
reverently -- slide a lifeless litter from the hold --- then
resignation -- then --"clear on the right"! -- and back to the job --
Leaving the flightline at mission's end, we've turned and
watched both - in searing heat or monsoon storms and dead of
night -- tie the blade, check the damage, hose the red from
their rotten smelling station -- refit gear and ammo, and begin
the tedious and demanding postflight or the too-often twenty
five hour inspection. -- And we get the "high sign" as we yell,
"We'll save chow!"
Then as we trot back to the flight line as quickly as we'd left, we
watched their fatigue unveil as we yelled, "Wind'er up! - got C's on
board?" -- and we watched them suck-it-up -- again -- and scurry to
lift off -- again --
to save a poor soul --
again -- again -- and again ----
As a Dustoff pilot, it has been my greatest honor
to serve with this awe-inspiring team and be a part of it.
SiSimmons
"DUSTOFF"
THE CALL SIGN
As told by SiSimmons
The DUSTOFF call sign was acquired by the 57th Medical
Detachment (Helicopter Ambulance)in January, 1964, ironically and
quite appropriately/proudly, by way of medical necessity.
The occasion was a bloody two-day operation, West of Saigon, near the
Cambodian border in early Jan 1964 that churned out many casualties
throughout a day and night of battle.
I was a newly arrived peter pilot flying with a seasoned pilot,
(NAME - wish I knew), as he handled the call sign problem with all
concerned in the emergency with great skill as I sat in the co-pilot
seat attempting to determine who in the hell was who on the ground,
in the air and back at DUSTOFF Operations.
At the time, all combat units utilized randomly selected call signs
controlled by the Navy Support Activity, Vietnam and were changed
periodically in accordance with Signal Operating Instructions (SOI) in
the interest of security. The call sign of 57th Med Det
(HA) on that day and at that time, per the SOI, happened to be
"DUSTOFF".
Fighting was heavy, casualties were mounting, evacs were continuous
and communication between the evac helicopters and ground
commanders was ever-running. At the time that the code changeover
was ordered to occur in accordance the SOI, the major ground commander
as well as the medevac aircrews became concerned that due to the
battlefield chaos that included some loss of communications between
units, switching to a new call sign may jeopardize evacuation. At
the request of the ground commander, the 57th Med Det
commander, MAJ Lloyd Spencer, agreed immediately to delay the call
sign changeover while also requesting a temporary exception to the
SOI from the approving headquarters. The exception was approved for
a specified period (probably for 24 hours or possibly until the time
of the next call sign change, per the SOI).
After the operation, MAJ Lloyd Spencer and MAJ Charles Kelly
discussed the call sign dilemma and determined that a permanent
aeromedical evacuation call sign would help avoid possible future
mission impairment and more closely conform to the spirit of the
Geneva Convention. (At the time, MAJ Spencer was outgoing commander
- MAJ Kelly, incoming commander, assuming command on 11 Jan 64)
Within a few days, in concert with ground unit commanders, MAJ Spencer
requested and received official approval for the permanent call sign
change to "DUSTOFF".
The permanent, dedicated DUSTOFF call sign was placed into the SOI
on a permanent basis and published within a few weeks. Soon afterward,
DUSTOFFers discontined carrying personal SOI's on board.
(The above is based on my recollection of the circumstances which
necessitated the first use of "DUSTOFF" as a call sign in nonconformance
with an SOI -- which precipitated it's adoption on a permanent basis.
At the time, I was the detachment 2nd Lieutenant who was "detailed" to
manage the aircrew "SOIs".)
More than 900,000 soldiers survived their injuries and owe their lives
to the outstanding bravery and dedication of Dustoff crews.
The average time from when the soldier was wounded to the time he
was on the surgical table was under an hour and
97% of all soldiers who reached the hospital
alive SURVIVED
All of the Brave Medics, Crew Chiefs, and Pilots that
flew "Dustoff" in the Vietnam War were volunteers
and many served more than one tour.
Most people that served in Vietnam will tell you that "Dustoff" was
one of the most dangerous jobs of the war. It has been said that the
life expectancy of a Dustoff crew in a hot LZ was 30 seconds, BUT if
you hear a mortar round explode that time drops to about eight seconds.
I can't begin to tell you how any of us ever lived to talk about it.
We went rain or shine in the light of day and the dead of night. We
never turned down a mission and quite often we didn't have gunship support.
I served with the 45th Medical Company Air Ambulance from
October 1968 - October 1969.
Major General Patrick Henry Brady served two tours in Vietnam
and is only one of two living Army Veterans of the Vietnam War
to hold both a Medal of Honor and the Distinguished Service
Cross. Dustoff, because of the nature of the missions a Dustoff Crew
Member could just quit and walk away without any consequences.
Other Dustoff units included the 54th Medical Detachment, the 57th
Medical Detachment, the 159th Medical Detachment, the 236th
Medical Company, the 247th Medical Detachment, the 498 th
Medical Company, and the 571st Medical Detachment.
In the ten year war, those who actively flew Dustoff missions on a
24/7 basis numbered less than 3400. Our casualty rate was 33%.
All Dustoff crews flew with the same spirit and dedication as the
legendary MEDEVAC pilot Major Charles "Combat" Kelly, who died
while flying a Dustoff mission in Vietnam in 1964. Major Charles
Kelly coined what is now the motto for all MEDEVAC crews:
"No compromise. No
rationalization.
No hesitation. Fly the mission. Now!"
Unsung Hero
Main Entry: unsung hero
Part of Speech: noun
Definition: a person who makes a substantive yet
unrecognized contribution; a person whose bravery is
unknown or unacknowledged.
On a daily basis these dedicated Dustoff crews performed their
mission with conspicuous gallantry and with great risk to their
lives as a part of the call of duty while engaging in selfless
actions supporting the
United States of America.
I'd like to offer up the following poignant poem to
the dedicated 33% who gave their all in support of this
great nation.
JUST A COMMON SOLDIER
The infantry grunts saw Dustoff crews as the most selfless men
of the war and considered them as Angels and Heros.
Visitors to this page
© All pictures and data on this site are the
personal property of
Chuck Emerson and may not be used in any form without express
written permission.
© 2008 Chuck Emerson