On 24 August, 1969, Biddle returned to SSAR duties after spending a few days as PIRAZ. And I was given a helicopter ride. I’d been on the helo several times, but this one was a little special.
I brought ENS Curran’s camera along on the flight to USS Chicago. The pilots took a couple of turns around the Biddle to give me a chance to get some good pics of her. One is above, one below.
Arriving at the Chicago, we were told to stand off for a while. LTJG Jaeger, one of the helo pilots, thought this would be a good time to show me some of what a helicopter could do. I remember sitting alongside one of the helo’s walls, facing a large open space where the machine-gunner was.
According to my journal, “Jaeger decided to put on a show. He’d go about 90 knots, then climb until he was turning only 10, then turn and fall. Nice.”
“Nice” was what it was not, except in retrospect. The turn was usually to port, which meant I was staring out that open space across from me and seeing only water thousands of feet down. I remember straining the safety harness and shivering. I was wearing a short-sleeve khaki shirt. No jacket.
They did this several times and occasionally Jaeger would sneak a peek from the pilot’s chair to see if I had given up my breakfast yet. I hadn’t, but I was very happy when I heard we had been cleared to land.