16 Nov 2007 Johnny Mack was my Uncle, we shared a birthday six years apart. We were close and spent much time together. He loved horses and being outdoors, hunting and fishing. He always had time for family. Johnny Mack has two older brothers, two older sisters, and one younger brother. He was the glue that held it all together, he was always there to help my grandparents. The whole family structure changed when he left for Viet Nam, not nearly as drastically as it did when he was killed. We were told he was killed in a Non Combat helicopter crash, when the chopper he was on got too low and the blades hit a tree. I hope he was the kind of soldier that I imagine him to have been, always there for his brothers, always doing his very best. I am not sure what he would have done if he had made it back to the world, but I do know the world would have been a better place with him in it. I know that I miss him. From his nephew, James (Jimmy) Alexander 2356 Earle St, Port Neches, Texas 77651 james.alexander@dars.state.tx.us

 

A Note from The Virtual Wall The Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association database contains the following accident summary: "The aircraft was on a combat assault at the time of the accident. UH-1H, SN 66-16781, was number three of five aircraft on the mission. These aircraft were going into the LZ, single ship, landing from west to east. The first two aircraft had completed their troop drop off and had departed the LZ, when a popping noise was heard. At this time both crew members unfastened their seat belts and looked toward the rear of the aircraft seeing smoke and some sparks coming from around the rear engine cowling. The tail rotor started slowing down at this time. "The aircraft commander tried to regain translational lift by nosing the aircraft over to regain airspeed. The aircraft started turning to the right and did several 360 degree turns. At this time the two crew members tried to refasten their seat belts but were unable to due to the turning of the aircraft. The aircraft commander moved the aircraft away from the LZ over the trees because of the troops on the ground around the LZ. The aircraft commander initiated an autorotation into the trees by his airspeed and entering the trees in a tail low attitude. The aircraft settled into the trees, the tail boom struck a tree approximately 80 feet above the ground and lodged there. The fuselage then broke away and fell to the ground spinning and landing upright at the base of the same tree the tail boom was lodged in. The aircraft impacted the ground on the lower right side and in a pitch level attitude. "The one man killed was to the best of everyones' knowledge struck by a tree limb as the aircraft fell to the ground. The crew members of the aircraft helped evacuate the other injured passengers after impact. The injured personnel were medivaced to FSB MACE for first aid and then to 93rd Evac Hospital at Long Binh. The aircraft was a total loss." The landing zone was located in the jungles along the Song Phan River, about 16 kilometers southeast of Tanh Linh Airfield.

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