UH-1 Iroquois - How The Huey Changed EVERYTHING

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The Huey is, well... the Huey. Officially known as the "Iroquois", the UH-1 series of utility helicopters soon became the backbone of the US Army's offensive operations as they smashed their way through Vietnam. Upgraded many times through the years, from the prototype XH-40 to the iconic UH-1D and, finally, the UH-1Y Venom, the Huey is probably the most famous helicopter of all time. Just a shame I couldn't license "Fortunate Son".

SOURCES:
"Bell UH-1 Huey "Slicks" 1962-75" - Chris Bishop

Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:30 Sponsor Message
01:47 The New Breed
02:56 An Impossible Task
04:18 XH-40
05:14 HU-1A
05:39 HU-1B
06:40 The (Air) Cavalry
07:47 Welcome To The Jungle
09:10 A Worthy Foe?
09:46 UH-1C
10:16 The Ia Drang Valley
11:20 UH-1D
11:52 Slicks, Gunships and Dustoffs
12:44 Tet and the AH-1G
13:10 A Fragile Machine
13:58 The Last Chopper...
14:30 UH-1H, E, F, P, K and L
15:31 UH-1N Twin Huey
16:33 UH-1Y Venom
17:08 Vipers and Cobras!
17:27 Outro

All content is presented in historical context for educational purposes. All footage is owned by it's copyright holder and is used in this channel under "fair use".

Music by Epidemic Sound

[RedWrenchFilms]

Thank you World of Tanks for sponsoring this video.
During registration use the code COMBAT to get for free:
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250k credits
Cromwell B (tier 6) British premium medium tank
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The promo code is only for new players during registration.

[mapletreepower]

100% would like to see the history of the AH1

[TMR]

As a disabled Nam vet, I really appreciate your fine efforts. Without the Huey, we never would have had a chance. Thank you very much.

[raywhitehead]

I was a door gunner on a single engine Huey in Vietnam, later I became a pilot and flew single and twin engine Hueys. I few them in the US, Africa, Asia, and Antarctica. It was a revolutionary machine, it was cost effective, versatile beyond compare, easy to repair and maintain it was dependable. Easy to fly, but to fly it well took lots of practice and a studious attention to detail. Still flying in many countries. It wasn't the only chopper or plane I ever flew, so I have means to compare it.

[FullcircleZA]

True helicopter, mobile for the time, good amount of troop capacity good visibility from cockpit and versatile, the real grandad of helicopters like the Blackhawk in my opinion

[MichaelSSmith-hspw]

I am one of the lucky Huey door gunners who survived Vietnam & came home. The Wop, Wop, Wop of the helicopter blades was the song of my youth. Those Hueys were either taking us into hell, or bringing us out of it. Sometimes the deck of the Huey was so covered in blood that we’d have to land in a shallow river just to wash it out. I am a Vietnam veteran, fighter by day, lover by night, drunkard by choice and a soldier by mistake. (drafted)
SGT E-5, M.S. “Gunslinger” Smith
UH-1B (Huey) M-60, Door Gunner
A Troop
1 Squadron, 9th Cavalry Regiment
1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile)
An Khe, Vietnam, 1969
“Get Some!”
🎖💜♠️🪖🇺🇸

[joeblow]

I'd be interested in a video on the Cobra. Also, for context, a lot of those Hues thrown off the decks of US carriers during the fall of Saigon were South Vietnamese Hueys that were trying to escape the fall of South Vietnam rather than their US counterparts.

[SimonLe]

After the Vietnam war there was like thousands of Hueys left in stock from the ARVN, so the Vietnamese utilized them in the next war against the Cambodian in the south and border clashes with the Chinese, employing ex ARVN pilots using the US's tactics. The Hueys was well liked among the soldiers, but another 15 years of war after the VN War pretty much used up all of the Huey's service life hour and spare parts so we retired them all in the mid 2000s

[choprjock]

I didn't fly the Cobra in combat, but I did fly the UH-1B & C gunships. The Cobra certainly had its advantages, but the B & C (and later the M model) had two door gunners to protect the aircraft from attacks from the sides.

[verdiss]

We all know that the UH-1P's psychological warfare role was to circle around enemy positions playing 80's pop music

[screamingnighthog]

I have a friend whose job in Viet Nam was to recover downed helicopters. He said if the Huey was not badly damaged they repaired it and flew it out. If it was not repairable on site they called in a Chinook helicopter and air lifted it out with a belly sling. If the helicopter was too badly damaged to be salvaged they removed the radios and weapons and blew it up. At a really "hot" crash site the Army would call upon the Marines to secure them a perimeter. He said the Marines were "hard core". God bless them.

[PacoOtis]

Minor Correction: Thanks for the video! The first thing you say about the aircraft is the sound is from the "twin rotor" which is not how this rotor system is described. The Huey has two blades, but is a single rotor. Best of luck!

[hawker]

When the last Black Hawk is retired, it will be flown to the Boneyard slung under a Huey...

[clearsmashdrop]

Around 1985 or so I got a book about US ARMY equipment. It talked about the Blackhawk coming online to replace the Huey. It noted, however, that there were so many Hueys in US service that they'd like be around into the 2000s (even if in small numbers). Here we are and its 2023 and the Huey has yet to be completely replaced.

[monsieurduquack]

Not only that I can hear the rotors, I immediately hear the intro guitar riff of a certain song play in my head

[BVonBuescher]

I grew up in aviation, and I remember, anytime a Huey flew in, the old timers at the FBO would always tell me that noise was from the blades beating the air into submission

[jackaubrey]

Nice, informative video! As a Brit infantryman on exercise with the Florida National Guard got o fly in a few Hueys - couldn't believe how the mostly ex-vietnam vet pilots could get those things into tiny clearings and then out again so quickly:) Much kudos to them!

[theonlymadmac]

My favorite Helicopter, as I flew more than 200 hours in it as a flight surgeon and SAR crew member in the German Air Force 1987/8

[troywiltshire]

I spent 20 years in the Marine Corps working on UH-1N, AH-1W, and a couple years with the UH-1Y. I love these aircraft and would love to see a video on the AH-1!

[deckpogi]

The iconic "Wop Wop Wop" sound to many whom serve and ride/flown it knows dearly that when shit hit the fan, the huey's will be there first to rush to provide ground fire cover or can be your ride out of hell hole.