Spur 38 Gets an Opportunity to Get Back in the Saddle
Eat your hearts out fellow Spurs!
I wanted to share this short story about being able to be on the ground floor of an AH-1G, 5 year restoration project that is just about to take flight!
Rick Clemons, HMFIC of “Cactus Aviation”, Carson City Nevada, who, besides being an avid aviation warbird collector and aviator, hasn’t quit his day job as President, Specline Manufacturing www.specline.com .
Somehow Rick has time to scour the internet for interesting aircraft projects. Like all fixed wing pilots, he started thinking about “Real” aircraft and in addition to being intrigued with the Vietnam era efforts of Army Aviation; Rick decided to pick up some helicopters to add to his stable of amazing air machines.
He certainly picked the right one, the AH-1 Cobra.
I’ve known of Rick’s passion for aircraft for some time and he found out that I was in the area, called me to ask what I thought about helping to get the project going. I was obviously ecstatic about the prospect and told him that I’d come down to his Carson City (CXP) hangar and take a look.
When I first saw her, I recognized the Cobra airframe but I was doubtful that it would ever fly again. It was in really rough shape and missing a lot of very essential things like: an engine and main rotor blades plus about a million other parts. But Rick is a very tenacious guy with a crew of aircraft mechanics that really have their hearts in these projects. Not to mention a terrific track record of turning one man’s junk into awesomely beautiful objects of flying art! www.specline.com
Rick, through his unwavering late night internet capabilities, found major components and spare parts from all over the world. Transmission from Germany; a sundry of locations for other components, parts and pieces, from people and manufacturers.
The best history that we can reconstruct so far is that the aircraft was stationed at Ft. Campbell (1980s) and eventually was made part of the Cobra inventory for the Texas Army National Guard. After production as a “G” model it was converted to “Q”, “S” and finally as an “F” model. The Cobra ended up in Florida with an enthusiast who couldn’t do much with it and finally sold it to Rick.
I contacted Dave Adams, an old 2nd ACR, and Germany Cobra buddy of mine. Dave is now editor of the VHPA magazine. Dave and I corresponded with the king of all Army Helicopter Vietnam era VHPA data Gary Roush. Gary told us that the Cobra was never assigned to a Vietnam unit. Incidentally, if there are still Silver Spurs out there who are not members of VHPA, you need to get with it and join! www.VHPA.com Like Bear and other great Spurs, they have done a terrific job keeping the memories, history and information available to us procrastinators. They are all special folks!
So, I was in! What a pleasure two weeks ago when I received the call that 70-15945 was ready for an initial engine run!
I am very fortunate to have continued flying after A Troop. I have spent 40+ combined years of Active and National Guard service retiring in 2009 as a CW5, as well as flying commercially; surpassing 15,000 hours of flying helicopters and airplanes. The last time I flew a Cobra was in 2006 for the movies “Courage Under Fire” and Con-Air (Andy Warhol’s “15 minutes of fame”). But when I strapped into this baby to start it up for the first checks, I was transformed. My 60 year old body, with its 19 year old mind was right back in Quan Loi! It is truly an amazing feeling and experience. “Riding a bicycle” comes to mind! But you all know what I mean!
Currently we are working with the FAA FSDO in Reno and are about to obtain certification as “Experimental/Exhibition”. After we complete the test flight phases, we will proudly fly her to the Reno Air Races this year (Sept 14-18 www.airrace.org ) and will have a static spot in the “Heritage Classic Warbirds” section. The 250,000 annual Air Race spectators will have an opportunity to get close, remember and enjoy the helicopter while on display.
So enjoy the pictures Bear has posted, I’ll send some additional information after the races. In the mean time, if you have ever run across 70-15945 and can help fill in the blanks, I’d appreciate it. Certainly not least, thanks for allowing me to share this great experience with my brothers! I certainly owe you all for being an essential part of my conscious and subconscious world and will be thinking about my fellow Spurs while I’m out yanking and banking!
Best Regards,
Mike
Spur 38, CW5, AV (Ret)
Cell: 775.720.8417
Photos Courtesy of Spur 38, Mike Billow:
Mike, please thank Rick for me for the investment in making this Cobra flyable again possible! And to all the mechanics for their personal dedication and devotion to make the bird airworthy!!!
And my personal thanks to you for sharing this story with all of us!
Mike,
You Da Man !!!!
THAT! Is ultra cool.
Well done Mike. What do you think, set her up as a heavy hog?
Having flown ‘Front Seat’ in a Cobra, (OK!!! It was only once, flying from Soc Trang to Dian, but it counts! I was the only one with a helmet, waiting to fly back on a fixed-wing [Beaver???] when the pilot came over and pulled me out to fly front seat. I don’t remember who the pilot was.) she looks great. Too bad she ain’t OD Green. American Huey 369 and 803 are in original color. 369 a Viet Nam “Dustoff” and 803 a Viet Nam combat chopper.
Gary, you got a ride in the front seat of one of our Cobra’s while the rest of us hitched a ride in a Chinook back from SocTrang with our 3/4 truck! The Chinook, “Good Vibrations” had a vertical that would damage your fillings!
The Cobra had a REALLY bad ‘one-fer’. Not so much as noticed at a slow speed but increased with speed. Front seat felt it the worst. I commented, as I was up and down, to the pilot, who said it wasn’t as bad back seat, and he slowed her down. Then he told me that she was headed back for maintenance for that reason.
Mike, I am so grateful to you and Rick for this huge effort. Congratulations….it looks wonderful and your story brings back so many memories.
Great restoration. While I am appreciative of what was done, the paint job is disappointing. A warbird should look like a warbird.
I remember you, maybe.
I was a second tour FNG who complained about the sore butt I got from all those sweaty hours in that damned cobra. Your recommendation was to do like you — skip the underwear and be cool. I tried it once and decided I preferred pimples on my ass more than being sandblasted there every time a ship hovered by.
You might have been off-target on the underwear subject, but you were dead-on when it came to gunship tactics. You showed me how to attack 50 CALs, something that was a lifesaver when I went to Cambodia later in my tour.
Thanks again for that, and God Bless
I never got to ride in a cobra,but I remember them next to us going into an LZ.Its
something you cant forget…..Nice job Mike….GET ER DONE!
Thanks for all the replies guys! Initially I felt the same way Paul Renschen feels when I first saw the intended paint scheme. “A warbird should look like a warbird”
The chosen paint job is a replica of “G” models that were first delivered to Alaska in the 1970’s. If you think about it, and it now makes good sense to me, this aircraft will be doing a lot of airshows and public demonstrations. It’s deffinately an “eye” catcher and will generate a lot of interest. So that’s the primary reason. From the inside, and that’s where I’ll be, I don’t care if its Baby S*** yellow! The only thing I’m sort of bothered by is that its been de-militarized and I can’t shoot anything!
Mike, I checked out Rick’s site and he has a wonderful collection of planes! Isn’t the one an F-86 Super Saber??? Correct me if I’m wrong.
You are correct Bear…F-86
As ex-NCOIC of the engine shop, that engine looks so familiar to me… I yearn to do a hot end inspection and adjust the linear actuator… And, hell, I wouldn’t mind doing a vibe test while sitting in the front seat during a gun run…
Looks great, Mike!
Where do I sign up to fly it?
Hey Chuck,
Your name sounds very familiar. Were you at Lai Khe 71-72? I’ve got a “yearbook” from then and I tried to find you. There’s a picture with the caption “Chuck’s brothel” and another picture just above that one that I identify with you.
I think I was in the hooch next to you. I flew guns first as Spur 39 then 36 after Hansen left.
It’s been a long time, my friend. I wish you well.
Check out the video of Mike Billow with the Cobra at:
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