In 1947, the U.S Air Force was created and Army Aviation finally could have its own unquestioned identity. In the Korean War, the army used the Bell H-13 for Medical Evacuation, Observation, Command and Control and Transport.
Thanks in part to the show MASH, the H-13 became an icon of the Korean War.
In addition to the H-13, the Army utilized the larger Sikorsky H-5 and later the Sikorsky H-19 Chickasaw in the Korean War. It was during the Korean war that the Army Aviation School was established, ensuring that the Army would have an adequate supply of air crews.
A H-5 (top) and a H-19 did much of the grunt work in Korea. The H-19 could carry a much larger load than its predecessors.
The Army continued its use of fixed wing aircraft to complete many of the same roles it undertook in the World War Two, primarily using the Cessna L-19 (later O-1) Bird Dog.
The Bird Dog was a simple aircraft that provided for excellent visibility.
In 1962, the Tactical Mobility Requirements Board, aka "Howze Board," recommended that the Army use helicopters and fixed wing aircraft for air assault, which were tested with the 11th Air Assault Division (Test) starting in 1963. During the Vietnam War, the recommendations became a reality and when in 1965 the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) was sent to partake in the conflict. The Army's aircraft of choice would be the Bell UH-1 Iroquois, and by the end of the Vietnam War, over 5,000 of them would be used there.
The Huey could transport troops, as well as provide supporting fire for them.
At the start of the Vietnam War, the Army used some fixed wing aircraft, such as the de Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou (US Army designation CV-2 then C-7) primarily for transport, but the Johnson-McConnell agreement of 1966 limited the Army's use of fixed wing aircraft to "administrative mission support" roles. This agreement was reached after disagreement over the role of aircraft and helicopter use by the Army and Air Force.
The Caribou started off as an Army aircraft in Vietnam, but were then transferred to the Air Force.
Besides the Huey, several other helicopters were used by the Army in Vietnam. The AH-1 Cobra was introduced in 1967 as a dedicated attack gunship, a role it was efficient at. Other helicopters were used for transport in Vietnam, including the Boeing CH-47 Chinook, the Hughes OH-6 Cayuse and the Sikorsky CH-54 Tarhe.
The AH-1 Cobra, could carry an assortment of ordinance, including guns and rockets.
This CH-47 is showing off how much it could lift.
The OH-6 performed many of the same missions as the "Grasshoppers" did in the Second World War.
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