By Major William Carraway
Historian, Georgia Army National Guard
Sixty-seven years of Georgia Army National Guard rotary wing aviation are represented in this collage. |
The Georgia
Army National Guard has one of the largest non-attack rotary aircraft
inventories in the entire National Guard. The Marietta-based 78th Aviation
Troop Command flies helicopters from support facilities in Marietta, Winder and
Hunter Army Airfield and has supported combat operations in Iraq and
Afghanistan as well as peace keeping missions in Kosovo. Georgia National Guard
helicopters have also provided critical support to emergency response
operations ranging from hurricanes to wildfires. But how long has the Georgia
Guard flown helicopters?
The first
helicopter assigned to the Georgia National Guard was delivered to Fort Bragg
for assembly in March 1953 and was delivered to the state shortly thereafter.
The helicopter was a single-engine H-13 and was assigned to the Division
Artillery of the 48th Infantry Division. Lieutenant James H.
Strickland, aviation officer of the 48th Infantry Division, put the
new aircraft through its acceptance tests. It was one of 88 helicopters
delivered to the Guard in 1953 with H-13 helicopters assigned to the First,
Second and Third Army areas.[1]
The H-13 joined the fixed-wing complement of aircraft assigned to the 48th Division which included L-20 Beavers and L-19 Bird Dog observation aircraft.
The Army Aviation Section of the 48th Infantry Division based at Cochran Field in Macon, Ga. in November 1950. Georgia National Guard Archives. |
Strickland
debuted the H-13 at the 1954 annual training of the 48th Division at
Fort McClellan, Ala. Taking a photographer aloft, Strickland collected aerial
imagery of the training area. The following year, the H-13 flew missions as
part of Operation Minuteman, a nationwide rapid alert exercise that placed more
than 318,000 National Guardsmen on mobilization alert April 21, 1955.[2]
FORT MCCLELLAN, ALA – An H-13 helicopter of the Georgia National Guard’s 48th Infantry Division Artillery sweeps in low over field lodging during annual training. Georgia National Guard Archives |
Strickland
and the H-13 were called to respond to state emergencies beginning with the
search for a missing hunter in Effingham County in 1956.[3]
In March, Maj. Gen. Georgia Hearn became the first Adjutant General of Georgia
to visit units by helicopter as he travelled about the state as part of Muster
Day recruiting efforts.
The H-13
became a staple of Georgia National Guard aviation in the 1950s as other units,
such as the 48th Reconnaissance Squadron, fielded the aircraft. By
the end of the decade, the Georgia Army National Guard had four H-13
helicopters assigned. First Lieutenant Robert Sprayberry, future state aviation
officer, completed rotary-wing training December 21, 1957 and was assigned to
the state headquarters detachment. Sprayberry flew senior leaders of the
Georgia National Guard and provided aerial assistance to the governor’s
Operation Deathless, a Labor Day weekend safety mission in 1958.[4]
In November 1962, Major Sprayberry flew Governor Ernest Vandiver to Marietta,
Calhoun, Lavonia and Hartwell for armory dedication ceremonies.[5]
The H-13
remained in service through 1965 and was phased out in favor of the H-23. By
1967, all H-13 in service with the 48th Armor Division had been
replaced.
FORT STEWART, GA, July 1967 – H-23 helicopters assigned to the 48th Armor Division participate in Governor’s Day activities at Fort Stewart, Ga. Georgia National Guard Archives. |
[1]
“First Helicopter for Georgia NG Delivered for Assembly at Bragg.” The
Georgia Guardsman, March 1954, 1.
[2]
“Operation Minuteman.” The Georgia Guardsman, March, April, May 1955,
8-10.
[3]
“Springfield Battery Hunts Lost Hunter. The Georgia Guardsman, January
February 1956, 15.
[4]
“Operation Deathless Holds Ga. Fatalities to 8 as Guard Patrols Hwys. Labor
Day.” The Georgia Guardsman. September October 1958, 8=9.
[5]
“Four New Armories Dedicated in Marietta, Calhoun, Lavonia and Hartwell.” The
Georgia Guardsman, September December 1962.
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