OH-23 Shot down 8/18/68

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G'Day Folks,
For many years we have been looking for the pilot of thhis observation helicopter. It was shot down in Long An Province at about 1630h on Sunday 18 August 1968. The crew were the 3rd Brigade ALO Flt. Lt. Garry Cooper, 3rd. Brigade CO Colonel Bob Archer. (died in 1975) and a WO pilot. On this day the 1st Brigade was under attack in Long An Province coords. 8267, map 6330 sheet 3. The helicopted crashed into a rice paddy by the Song Rach Cac at coords.809673 as a result of SMF. The pilot looked dead. Colonel Archer was hit by the same bullet and knocked out. Cooper was conscious and managed to rescue the Colonel. There were six helicopters shot down in this area around the same time. After about 20 minutes a gunship hovered over the crashed Raven and was taking fire. Cooper and Archer were too far away to see what happened. However, since there are no deaths recorded on this day for pilots it was assumed that the badly wounded pilot was pulled to saftey and somehow survived his horrific injuries. We have been looking for him for 38 years. Maybe he has passed on. However, we can't find any details. I absolutely know that this incident is legitmate because I have researched it for 5 years. General Julian Ewell who is still alive at 90 and who was the CO of the 9th Inf. Div. will verify my story. If anyone wants his telephone number I can probably supply it. The next morning at sunrise Cooper and colonel Archer were rescued by a Huey gunship. If anyone remembers this incident I would appreciate knowing about it please.

[Peter Condon]

There is no evidence to prove that this incident happenned. There are no witnesses. There were no OH-23 helicopters shot down in the area on that day. There were no Oh-23 pilots killed on that day. And most importantly, it seems that the OH-23 helicopter from which Garry Cooper was controlling some F-4 aircraft by UHF radio when he was shot down was NOT equipped with UHF radio.

Also, other FACs based at Dong Tam at the time are not aware that their peer, Garry Cooper, was shot down on 18 August 1968. They first heard about it many years later via the internet.

Garry Cooper did not know the name of the Brigade Commander he is supposed to have saved until many years later. It could not have been the Commanders of the 1st and 2nd Brigades because they were still alive to deny it. Colonel Archer passed away in the 1970s so it must have been him. Unbelievable! A 3rd Bde FAC crashes in a helicopter with the 2nd BDE Commander. Again, quite a story.

There are many other holes in the 18 August 1969 story but I do not have the time to set them all out here. I type with only two fingers.

I was a FAC in Dong Tam in 1969. My callsign was Tamale 15. I am Australian.