Miss Clawd IV OH-6A Loach

Miss Clawd IV is a Hughes OH-6A Cayuse flown in Vietnam in 1972 by Capt Hugh Mills. The OH-6A was nicknamed the Loach from the initials LOH of Light... more

by Arthur Eggers

Title

Miss Clawd IV OH-6A Loach

Artist

Arthur Eggers

Medium

Digital Art - Color Print

Description

"Miss Clawd IV" is a Hughes OH-6A Cayuse flown in Vietnam in 1972 by Capt Hugh Mills. The OH-6A was nicknamed the "Loach" from the initials LOH of Light Observation Helicopter. It was the principal scout helicopter used by the U.S. Army in Vietnam. The Loach was armed with the XM-27 Armament Subsystem comprising an M-134 mini-gun mounted on the left side of the aircraft with 2,000 rounds of ammunition. The crew normally consisted of a pilot and a crew chief who sat in the right rear seat armed with a M-60 machine gun on a bungee cord with 3,000 rounds of ammunition. In addition to this, assorted armament was carried by the crew depending upon their personal preferences. Doors were removed from the aircraft since they obstructed vision and made it difficult to get out in the event of a crash. Flying in the Aero Scouts was one of the most dangerous of all flying duties in Vietnam, only equaled by that of Dust Off pilots. In 1969 the Scout Platoon had 10 pilots at any one time. Eighty percent of that first 10 were wounded or killed. That rate remained fairly consistent. Many pilots did not stay in the unit long because it wasn't for everyone. In a 12 month period, there were approximately 20 different pilots. Lt Col Mills retired from the U.S. Army in 1993 with 26 years of service. Miss Clawd IV is now on display in the U.S. Army Aviation Museum at Fort Rucker, Alabama.

Uploaded

April 17th, 2011