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Navy Helo MEDEVAC Update 2515th Navy Air Ambulance Deatchment
- Thread starter ChuckMK23
- Start date
No sweat. I could bet money that this site is perused for foreign intel. Military members posting about numbers, models, capabilities, etc. are a boon of information for these creeps and alot more credible than on the shelf periodicals.
Firehawk
New Member
True...seems that off the shelf periodicals have a difficult time getting the facts right.
Guess it's been a hard road to hoe for those of us that served with the two units in the last few years. It's been a catch-22 of sorts. In order to be utilized correctly and gain fleet support, the brass needs to know you even exist and what capabilities you have. Because of the SOF role, our accomplishments have been kept on the DQ. That allowed people that had past preconceptions about us to continue having those opinions. The helo master plan dictated our demise years ago, but that was before we got the call to go to work. We proved what we could do, and that there was a need for our existence. However, because of the nature of the mission and the need to stay on the DQ, we weren't publicized or well known, no one changed the destiny of the master plan, and the Reserve stigma continued to stick with us. Reguardless, doing away with a very capable unit performing a vital mission in the middle of an unresolved conflict doesn't make any sense to me. Guess I didn't have all the facts or info.
I'm very proud of what we accomplished, and tend to get a bit passionate about it. It kills me to hear statements like "glad that Navy helos are finally in Iraq". The nature of our mission and the need for OPSEC was absolutely necessary....but was our undoing. Glad 84 was retained, but with an uncertain future, as well.
Navy needs to decide at some point if dedicated rotary SOF/NSW is something they want to do. In the age of multi-mission capabilities, I really wonder if we'll see it again. HA(L)-3 disestablished at the end of operations in Vietnam, but two reserve HA(L) squadrons were established 4 years later when it was realized that the skill sets needed to be retained and honed. Who knows; maybe the expeditionary HSC squadrons will move towards that mission.
I'll shut up now. :tongue2_1
Really sorry to threadjack, fellas. Glad the Air Ambulance detachments have been providing such an awesome service. Kudos!
phrogpilot73
Well-Known Member
I remember one dark night in Iraq flying into TQ, and having an H-60 (looked Navy to me) go head to head with me, inside tower's airspace. I wish I'd have known you guys were reservists. That way I could have bitched about the god damn reservists trying to kill me! 
Firehawk
New Member
I remember one dark night in Iraq flying into TQ, and having an H-60 (looked Navy to me) go head to head with me, inside tower's airspace. I wish I'd have known you guys were reservists. That way I could have bitched about the god damn reservists trying to kill me!
Damned log runs...
Don't worry...we were probably lost.
torpedo0126
Member
so does some of the above mean Navy helo pilots are eligble to earn Air Medal Awards?