This page is dedicated to the memory of

 30 September 1944 - 28 May 1971 

   
Pilot - OH6A 'Loach' Helicopter
Listed as M.I.A. / Body Not Recovered

TRP B, 2ND SQDN, 17th CAV
101ST ABN DIV

Vietnam Memorial Wall
on Panel 3W, Row 57

 December 27, 2005
Email from a high school friend of Paul's...

I have a great perspective on Paul as I grew up with him from kindergarten through graduation.  We were from a small town in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.  The name was Negaunee.  Paul played football the whole time we were in junior high and high school.  He played offensive guard and in the defensive line.  He was a good, solid football player, approaching football like he did with everything else, as a good student of the game.  He was one of the top students in our class.  He was the only one from the Class of '62 at our school to lose his life in Vietnam.  He also was in the minority in going to college.  We are from a mining community (iron ore), and most of the high school's graduates just went straight into the mines upon graduation.  I would say that back then less than 1/4 of the male graduates went on to college.  I think Paul and I were the only ones to leave the state of Michigan to go to college.  We always remember him when we have class reunions.  He is also memorialized in our town square where there is a WWI, WWII, Korea, and Vietnam memorial.  I think we only had one other graduate of our high school killed in Vietnam and he was killed in a mid-air collision on his way to Saigon to catch his flight home after his year in Vietnam.
Dean Delongchamp

 September 30, 2005

Washington, PA - On what would be Paul Urquhart's 61st birthday, Paul was remembered with the dedication of a POW-MIA Flag at his alma mater, during W&J College's annual Veteran's Memorial Service. VFW Memorial Park Post 764 of McMurray, PA (Paul's Home of Record) donated the flag and their Color Guard presented the colors during the ceremony.
Keynote speaker Vice Admiral Wally Massenburg memorialized Paul during his remarks. "If Paul were with us today, he'd be celebrating his 61st birthday. Instead, we're celebrating Paul's gift to us, one of service, courage and sacrifice. Like the Washington & Jefferson patriots who came before him, Paul proudly answered the call to duty when his country needed him most. It is now our duty to remember him and the nearly 200 other Washington & Jefferson graduates who by their ultimate sacrifice sanctioned the safe and productive lives we enjoy today."
   

VFW Memorial Park Post 764 Color Guard
   

Newly dedicated flag on South Campus
  

 August 2004

During the regular membership meeting of VFW Post 764 in McMurray, PA on August 19, 2004, the VFW membership voted unanimously to dedicate National POW-MIA Day to Paul Urquhart every year, at least until his MIA status changes. Canteen visitors will notice a plaque honoring Paul Urquhart hanging on the wall beside the Wall of Valor. You are not forgotten Paul.

Memorial Day 1971 - Republic of South Vietnam

On 28 May 1971, CPT Paul D. Urquhart, pilot, and SP5 Stephen Chavira, gunner, comprised the crew of an OH6A helicopter on a visual reconnaissance mission. Their area of operation included the extremely rugged jungle covered mountains between the South Vietnamese/Lao border and the northern most portion of the infamous A Shau Valley, Thua Thien Province, South Vietnam. This area also included a primary gateway from the equally notorious Ho Chi Minh Trail into strategic sections of northern South Vietnam. When North Vietnam began to increase its military strength in South Vietnam, NVA and Viet Cong troops again intruded on neutral Laos for sanctuary, as the Viet Minh had done during the war with the French some years before. This border road was used by the Communists to transport weapons, supplies and troops from North Vietnam into South Vietnam, and was frequently no more than a path cut through the jungle covered mountains. US forces used all assets available to them to stop this flow of men and supplies from moving south into the war zone.

Cobra and Loach Hunter-Killer Team
Photo: Vietnam Studies

The Loach and a UH1A Huey helicopter were operating as a two-aircraft "Hunter" team for a pair of UH1C Huey gunships operating as the "Killer" team conducting a "Hunter-Killer" mission against communist activity in the area. The hunter aircraft were flying at an altitude of approximately 30 feet when one of the killer gunship aircraft commanders saw an enemy rocket propelled grenade (RPG) round strike the Loach. The shell exploded causing the tail boom to bend in half and the helicopter to go out of control. It then exploded into flames, crashed and continued to burn on the top of a small knoll located in the rugged jungle covered mountains approximately 2 miles northeast of the South Vietnamese/Lao border and the same distance southwest of a primary road leading from the Ho Chi Minh Trail. This road ran east/west from the border eastward to a point near the northern tip of the A Shau Valley. It then turned south-southeast running along the full length of the east side of the dense jungle covered valley.

Loss Coordinates: 162100N 1070818E (YD284087)

The burning wreckage cleared an area about 25 meters around the crash site thus permitting a clear view of the downed aircraft by other aircrews. Witnesses reported seeing no one thrown clear of the wreckage and saw no survivors on the ground after the crash. Because of the extreme hostile threat in the area, no ground search was possible. Likewise, because of the circumstances surrounding this loss, and at the time the visual search conducted by the other aircraft on this mission was terminated, Paul Urquhart and Stephen Chavira were immediately listed Killed in Action/Body Not Recovered.

On 7 June 1971, another aerial reconnaissance of the crash site and surrounding area was conducted in the hope that some trace of CPT Urquhart and SP5 Chavira could be found. Unfortunately, no sign of survivors or the bodies of the two missing crewmen were seen from the air. Continuous enemy activity in the area once again prevented a ground team from being inserted into the crash site to investigate it more thoroughly.

While CPT Paul Urquhart and SP5 Stephen Chavira probably perished in the crash of their helicopter, no one knows for sure.

STEPHEN CHAVIRA

STEPHEN CHAVIRA was born on March 10, 1943 and joined the Armed Forces while in WASCO, CA.

He served as a 67V20 in the Army, CO B 2 SQD 17 CAV 101 ABN DIV, and attained the rank of SP5/E5.

STEPHEN CHAVIRA is listed as Missing in Action.

OH6A 'Loach' helicopter

The Hughes OH6A Cayuse was known by the troops by its nickname "Loach" - a derivative of "light observation helicopter." The armed OH6A was the primary scout helicopter used in Vietnam and usually carried a crew of two. The pilot controlled a mini-gun and a gunner/crew chief handled a "free 60" machine gun, among other weapons, which was attached to the aircraft by a strap. The Loach crews flew the most dangerous missions assigned to Army aviators because they flew low and usually slow enough to get a good look at the ground making them easy targets for the enemy.
   

SPECIFICATIONS:
Crew: Pilot and Observer
Engine: Allison T–63 Turbine
Speed: 161 MPH (maximum)
Range: 300 miles
Armament:
Pilot – 1 XM27E1 7.62 mm Mini–Gun System
Observer – 1 M–60 Machine Gun (hand-held) or other hand-held weapons

The LOH or "Loach" won an Army competition in 1965 for a new, turbine powered light observation scout helicopter. In October 1967, the 7/17th Cavalry was the first unit to introduce the LOACH into the Vietnam combat environment where it quickly proved it’s capabilities and survivability. By late 1968, the LOACH was the primary scout/ observation helicopter used throughout Vietnam. Often teamed with an AH–1G Cobra attack helicopter, called a Pink Team, these Hunter–Killer teams were very effective in fulfilling their mission.

The LOACH was phased out of Army/National Guard service in the early 1990’s with many aircraft being turned over to Law Enforcement Agencies where the aircraft continues it’s service today.

Data: Army Aviation Heritage Foundation

2008 National POW/MIA Recognition Day is
September 19, 2008
[2008 Poster - PDF offsite]

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