"THE SWAMP RATS"
MAINTENANCE
As the 119th Aviation Company is busy,so are the supporting units and the Service Platoon. The year 1965 was a time of great change from a relatively static situation to a highly mobile one in which movement of the company from one location to another required espedicious maintenance support. The heavy mission requirements necessitated close Coordination among all maintenance personnel, and this is the outstanding feature of the units supporting this company. The 545th Transportation Detachment (CHFM) and the 70th Signal Detachment (Avionics) have done outstanding work with the aircraft of this company, and the average availability of aircraft for the year has been 83 percent.
Personnel arriving fresh from maintenance school required training, and the Service Plattoon provided a sound program of on the job training from these young, inexperienced, but highly motivated men. Through a program of training in the maintenance hangar, these men learned enough to be selected as senior helicopter mechanics and crew chiefs. Attesting to their fine work is the fact that there have been no accidents or incidents attributable to faulty or negligent maintenance through this year.
In aircraft, vehicle, and communications maintenance, the 119th has been able to maintain its mission ready posture even though long hours of work were required on the part of each man in each section. Working both night and day during periods of heavy maintenance requirements demonstrated the "can do" spirit which marks the excellence of these supporting units and the Service Platoon!
At the close of the year, the Service Platoon, in conjunction with the 545th and 70th Detachments helped the 119th to sponser a Christmas Program and party for 120 underprivileged war refugees from Pleiku Province! The sucess of this party could best be measured by the smiles on the faces of the children and the fine young men of the unit.
Taken from the 1965 History
1970
The Swamp Rats . That is what everyone in maintance was refered to. For the GATORS parked in the swamp and that is where we would work. Each night we would do are best to repair the choppers. And if we did are job ,by morning the BIRDS would be ready to take flight. It seems like we would do the impossible. For we were very young. Most of us were between eithteen and twenty years old. We had very little to work with. Blades were changed by hand. It would take five or six people. Then we would track the blades at night. All we would use was the landing light. Maintance worked a 12 hour shift. We were close. You would work ,eat ,and sleep . Then get up and go again.
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