4 1 AVIATION BATTALION HISTORICAL RECORD OPS

File: 090496_jul96_decls33_0009.txt
Page: 0009
Total Pages: 17
Subject: 4 1 AVIATION BATTALION HISTORICAL RECORD OPS                    

Box  ID: BX001066

Document Number:          9

Folder Title: MERITORIOUS UNIT COMMENDATION-4TH BN-1ST AVN REGIMENT                                           

Folder Seq #:         11

Unit: 1ST ID      

Parent Organzation: VII  CORPS  






                        The rear element prepared to leave at 1530 in order to make the trip to Kuwait One during
                daylight hours. The four vehicle convoy turned into a ten vehicle convoy with a 1600 hours
                departure. After traveling for two miles, one vehicle broke down, and the convoy had to stop
                while the vehicle was prepared for towing. The convoy resumed the trip, and after forty five
                minutes UH-60 143 called over FM, asking for fuel. The aircraft FM homed to the convoy, and
                one of the tankers pulled off to the side of the road to refuel it. The convoy started out again, and
                at 1730 linked up with 701st MSB, which provided an excellent opportunity to refuel all of the
                vehicles with diesel and to top off the four tankers with Jet A. The convoy left 701st MSB at dusk
                to travel the remaining thirty miles to Kuwait One. After another hour, the cloud cover had
                reduced the illumination to the point where the NVG's'were only good to distance of ten feet. At
                1900, the personnel in the lead vehicle (ILT Strahl and 2LT Jaynes) and CW3 McCauley in the rear
                vehicle began to see vehicles moving around and green lights in the distance. Not knowing who
                was ahead, the convoy prudently turned around and spent the night at 701 st MSB. 'ne convoy
                left at dawn the following day, and it became apparent that the area the convoy had been prepared
                to move through the night before was a battlefield. The area was littered with destroyed ranks,
                smoking bunkers, and unexploded ordnance, including a very large amount of cluster bombs. The
                convoy stayed on the main trail and passed many Marine units moving east. The convoy reached
                FAA Kuwait One at 0800, just in time to move forward to Kuwait Two.
l Brigade Command Post to facilitate a
                deep recon. COL Mowery was the Air Mission Commander directing all activities. The single
                ship mission was flown well behind the enemy lines along the Kuwait City-Basrah road.
                Enroute, the aircraft encountered air def@nse artillery fire from an enemy armored brigade and
                performed evasive maneuvers to avoid being shot down. The weather also deteriorated rapidly,
                limiting the support of the attack helicopters. Due to the high risk of being shot down, COL
                Mowery ordered the AH-64's to remain behind friendly lines. The OH-58D continued the deep
                reconnaissance mission from the northern edge of the British sector to the northern edge of the Ist
                Infantry Division's sector, covering over seventi, kilometers of enemy territory. The OH-58D flew
                a different route back to the division in order to gather more information. Considering a low fuel
                warning light, the aircraft was flown to the Division Commander's location. The information
                greatly enhanced the Division Commandees decision to rapidly push the I st Infantry Division east
                to stop the Iraqi armored vehicles fleeing north
                        UH-60 aircraft 015, with Pilot-in-Command WOI Swartzendruber and pilot WOI Plasch,
                took off at 1230 along with UH-60 aircraft 338 as a flight of two on an EPW mission. At 1730,
                Blackhawk 015 separated from Blackhawk 338 in order to pick up passengers waiting at Iraq One.
                        The next morning CPT Smith had just landed at Kuwait Two when, while in the Brigade
                TOC, he heard on the radio that an aircraft was found crashed, with bodies on board wearing I II)
                patches. He took a UH-60, aircraft 17 1, to the crash site, with the 4-1 Safety Officer, CW3
                Gendjar.
n a heading of 340 degrees. Wreckage downwind of the
                crashsite indicated the aircraft had started breaking up in flight. This information, along with the
                shrapnel damage to the internal components of the aircraft, indicated that the aircraft had been shot
                down. All nine of the personnel on board - SGT Jason Carr, WOI George Swartzendruber, WOI
                David Plasch, ILT Donaldson Tillar, WOI John Morgan, SFC Gary Streeter, SGT Lee Belass,
                SSG Jonathan Kamm, and SGT Cheryl O'Brian - were killed.
                        SPC Trautman also died from the previous day's accident.

                                                                (;+4

                28 February 1991
                        At 0900 4-1 Avn Bn left Kuwait One to convoy to Kuwait Two, located at QU5005, sixty
                kilometers northwest of Kuwait City, leaving a rear detachment at Kuwait One. A temporary cease
                fire was declared by allied forces at 0800.