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On August 24, 1967, pilot WO Dayton Witherall, aircraft commander WO Richard N. Morrison, gunner SP4 Richard L. Holtzman, crew chief SP4 Richard M. Allard, and passengers 2LT Kenneth B. Goff, 2LT Richard J. Schell, SMAJ John R. Ulp, 1LT Sterling A. Wall, and Miss Cynthia Colburn were aboard a UH-1C helicopter (serial #66-12526) which departed Polei Kleng, South Vietnam to Plei Krong, South Vietnam on a combat support liaison mission. The 4th Infantry, with the assistance of the 25th Infantry Division and 1st Cavalry (Airmobile), was at that time conducting an operation called Paul Revere IV, a continuing effort near the Cambodian border of Pleiku Province. The UH1H flying over Pleiku Province that day in August 1966 was flying out of Pleiku, where its crew and passengers were stationed. (NOTE: While the U.S. Army and describes the flight mission as combat-related, it also acknowledges that Ms. Colburn was on the aircraft, a situation which was "illegal", as women serving in Vietnam were not supposed to be placed in combat situations. It is not clear in public record why she was on the aircraft, although Phyllis Allard, Richard Allard's mother, has said that the aircraft was carrying passengers enroute from a hospital and that Colburn was a Red Cross worker.) During the flight, the pilot elected to fly low-level along the Dak Bla River. While attempting a 180 degree turn, the aircraft failed to recover and was caught in a severe downdraft and crashed into the Krong Bo Lah River in about 10 feet of water at a point where the current was swift and the water was deep. (NOTE: loss coordinates place the site of loss unquestionably on the Se San River about 15 miles southwest of the city of Kontum, and about 28 miles due south of the city of Dak To. Just south of Dak To is the juncture of the Se San and another river. Whether at this juncture the two rivers have other names cannot be determined with materials on hand at the time of this writing. Information provided by family members states that the aircraft landed in the "bottomless, rapid Boc River called Dak Bla".) Rescue helicopters arrived 10 - 45 minutes after the crash and rescued WO Morrison, WO Witherall, Ms. Colburn and SMAJ Ulp, after their having been swept several hundred feet downstream. 2LT Goff, SP4 Allard and 2LT Schell were not seen by any of the survivors after the crash. SP4 Holtzman was seen by WO Morrison, who stated that Holtzman was wearing a flight jacket, armor plate, and a flak jacket, and called out to Morrison that he could not swim. WO Morrison stated that Holtzman drifted away in the swift current before he could help him. Later searches of the area revealed several pieces of debris, but the aircraft itself was not found. In September, Lt. Wall's body was retrieved from the river. Searches were conducted through December 26, but neither the aircraft nor the four missing men aboard it were found. [Narrative taken from pownetwork.org; image from wikipedia.org]
SFC Allard served as the crew chief of a UH-1C helicopter (serial #66-12526) that crashed into a river. He was dropped from the Rolls in 1978, but he remains MIA. Duty status Unknown.
Vietnam War/Counteroffensive Phase III Campaign (1967-68)
From Month/Year
June / 1967
To Month/Year
January / 1968
Description This campaign was from 1 June 1967 to 29 January 1968.The conflict in South Vietnam remains basically unchanged. As Operation JUNCTION CITY ended, elements of the U.S. 1st and 25th Infantry Divisions, the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, and the forces of the Army of the Republic of Vietnam swung back toward Saigon to conduct another clearing operation, MANHATTAN. This took peace in the Long Nguyen base area just north of the previously cleared "Iron Triangle."
South Vietnamese Armed Forces became more active and capable under U.S. advisors. During the year the Vietnamese Special Forces assumed responsibility for several Special Forces camps and for the CIDG companies manning them. In each case all of the U.S. advisors withdrew, leaving the Vietnamese in full command.
With an increased delegation of responsibility to them, the South Vietnamese conducted major operations during 1967, and, in spite of VC attempts to avoid battle, achieved a number of contacts.
Despite the success of U.S. and South Vietnamese Army operations, there were indications in the fall of 1967 of another enemy build-up, particularly in areas close to Laos and Cambodia. In late October, the VC struck again at the Special Forces Camp at Loc Ninh. Fortunately Vietnamese reinforcements saved the camp. At the same time, approximately 12,000 VC troops converged on a Special Forces camp at Dak To. This camp was located in northern Kontum Province, where the borders of Laos, Cambodia, and South Vietnam meet. In response to this potential threat, the U.S. and South Vietnam committed a total of sixteen battalions to the region to counter a disturbing enemy resurgence at Kontum and Loc Ninh.
