Photo #15
YT-14
The is a photo of YT-14 in a pineapple field in Okinawa after losing an engine and making an emergency landing. The barracks reeked of pineapple. Additionally, this is the aircraft the Captain Nystul, Lieutenant Shea, Cpl Wells and Cpl Scott crashed in off the starboard side of the USS Hancock (CV-19) on April 29, 1975. My name is Earl Burks.This is my photo of a emergency landing with Captain Roy Newman and William Nystul and Myself. Cpl. Earl Burks. A month later we were headed to Saigon for Operation Frequent Wind. I took over as crew chief of YT-00 154812 and in this picture is the plane that killed the last two americans in Vietnam Capt. Nystul & Lt Shea, they were my pilots in YT-00 until the night before "Operation Frequent Wind" when they were drawn from a hat as pilots protessted that some crew chiefs were more experienced than others. The months of training with Nystul & Shea were gone and as I flew back from Saigon trying to ditch as no radio contact or visiblity with the USS Hancock as incliment weather prevailed. Cpl. Rick Gavin and myself heard the on the Radio 'Pull up pull up" and then static. It was Nystul & Shea crashing into the South China Sea. As they died suddenly about ten feet from ditching in the pitch black the mist of water came up into the aircraft and as the pilot started to ease into the water we suddenly broke out of the weather as if we walked through a door. There was the Hancock. Not only did we pick up and head for the ship but we risked all as we were out of fuel. When Nystul and Shea died the 23 children in my helo came out of the fog and life began for them as in there is always life. The reality is that this plane killed Nystul and Shea and Captain Newman also died before he rotated after flying in Frequent Wind in another plane. These three pilots I trained with for Frequent Wind all died except for me. I was wondering if you would be interested in the real story of the last combat mission of the Vietnam war flown by two A/C not one solo helo. Chris Woods was the one that made it to the embassy but YT-20 154812 was probably the last helo to leave Vietnam. I wrote & published a diary called. "The Diary: The Last Combat Mission of the Vietnam War" It is in the Carllile Barracks in the Army Military History Museum. If you are interested I would appreciate a chance to tell the entire story not just one side. Earl Burks
Hello gentlemen, My father was Capt. Roy Newman who apparently was the pilot when this plane made the emergency landing. He died shortly after Op. FW and before I got to hear any/all of his stories. If you have any other information, I'd love to hear it. Thanks, Russell D. Newman Web Strategist Course Development & Web Services University of Central Florida http://webstrategy.cdws.ucf.edu
More about Roy Newman and contact form for his son: http://okie.rdnewman.com. Thanks for any information and contact. // Russell Newman [newman@mail.ucf.edu]
Comment by: Bruce L. Collison on Mar 12, 2006 02:21 PM
Does anyone have e-mail address for the Cpl Earl Burks noted above? Would like to e-comm with him.
Bruce "Doc" Collison, H&S 1/9 aboard USS HANCOCK during EAGLE PULL & FREQUENT WIND
|
|
|
|
Size: 103.05 KB, Dimensions: 751x617
Categories: Vietnam, Marine Squadrons, HMM-164
Average Picture Rating: 7.90 (10 Votes)
|
