[ladtx]

Good morning all. Good to be back from the holidays, even glad to be back at work. In lieu of the usual memorial to my fallen comrades today I'll post some of the pictures I took at the Army Aviation Museum at Fort Rucker, Alabama over the holidays. If anyone is in the area in LA (Lower Alabama) I would highly recommend a visit. We didn't get to see everything however. The second floor was closed due to some rain damage but most of the good stuff is on the first floor anyway. The memorial room with the names on the wall of the aviators KIA is especially moving.

The museum maintains a collection of over 160 military aircraft including one of the largest collections of military helicopters in the world. They are open everyday except Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve/Day, and New Year's Eve/Day.

Ladtx and #1 and #3 sons

Statues in the foyer. (The old guy is ladx not Santa on vacation.)

Display showing an air assault landing of the "Bravo Blues" 1st of the 9th Cavalry.

Tail #340, "Miss Claud IV", is one of the aircraft on display that has an actual, documented combat history in Vietnam. It bears the same paint scheme as it wore the day it was shot down.

A not too clear shot of the interior, but shows a portion of the aircraft.

[The Mayor]

Welcome back.

Thankyou for the pics, they are fantastic!

[FreeTheHostages]

Wow, thanks for sharing. Those are interesting shots.

[leadpenny]

Thanks for the ping, ladtx. I know the feeling of taking your sons to Ft. Rucker.

A year ago September I visited my middle son at Ft. Benning who was in Jump School. We did a day trip to the old stomping grounds. For me it was my "Trip to Bountiful." It had been 33 years since I left there for my second tour in Nam. Many things had changed but the BOQ was still there and Hanchey, where I taught intruments in those TH-13T's, brought the flood of memories. A trip around Lowe AHP, the O club, Lake Thalocco and of course that wonderful museum, and we were on our way back to the Home of the Infantry.

Thanks for the pics, and again, welcome home.

WORWAC 66-11

[Aquamarine]

Hi Ladtx. The "Miss Claud IV" photo brings to life the many stories you bring to us every week of downed helicopter's and the men that were lost on them in Viet Nam.

[Billie]

WONDERFUL pics, ladtx! Thank you very much for posting them here! (Santa, indeed! LOL)

[dixie sass]

Okay, now I can type. I looked at pictures of the whirly birds and saw the faces of the guys that I knew who trained at Hunter Army Airfield and of course the couple that I dated. It brought back the sights and sounds from the late sixties and early seventies.

I can hear the sound of Tom buzzing the house with one of his students. The news that another chopper had gone down in training. The first Viet-namese pilots coming to and training in Savannah at Hunter. It always seemed that it was then we started having a lot of "incidents".

Thank you for showing the pictures.