Document Type
Oral History
Interviewer
Stephen D. Rees, Jr.
Interview date
6-30-1999
Interview location
Lewiston, Maine
Time
00:46:07
Files
Download Transcript (387 KB)
Streaming Media
Abstract
Capt. Richard T. “Dick” Cross, interviewed by Stephen D. Rees, Jr. on June 30, 1999, at the Muskie Archives, Bates College, in Lewiston, Maine. Cross discusses dropping out of college in 1965 and being drafted the following year; having no concerns about being drafted or deployment to Vietnam; volunteering for Officer Candidate School in 1967; being accepted to computer repair school but turning down the opportunity to “be a grunt” then volunteering for flight training because it paid $110 more per month; and training to become a helicopter pilot. Cross tells of arriving in Vietnam in September 1968, post Tet; arriving in Cam Ranh Bay and being assigned to the 1st Aviation Brigade, B Troop, 7th Squadron, 17th Cavalry; his first impressions getting off the plane in Vietnam; his first impressions of Pleiku and Phan Thiet. He describes the makeup of the squadron, typical duties; attitudes among non-commissioned officers toward commissioned officers and enlisted men; and relates a story about his first combat mission. Cross talks about returning to the states in September 1969 and being assigned to do helicopter pilot training at Fort Walters, Texas where he scheduled and set up training cycles and producing training materials; flying Scouts and OH-6s; getting married and returning to Vietnam for a second tour of duty in 1970 where he was assigned to 1st Cavalry Division, 227th Assault Helicopter Battalion stationed in Phu Vinh where he was put into B Company flying Slicks; going on Night Hawk missions. He relates a story about coming under heavy fire during one mission only later finding a bullet hole in his cap; describes going on R&R. Cross provides his perspective on the perception of the media’s role in shaping public perception of the war; his frustration over how the war was managed by American leaders; the impact of post-traumatic stress; attempting to use his GI Bill to attend the University of Texas before taking a series of pilot and instructor jobs before going back into the Army and flying until retiring in 1991. Text: 39 pp. transcript. Audio: mfc_na4500_01A (note: first few minutes is recorded at wrong speed). Time: 02:07:59.
Listen
Part 1. mfc_na4500_01A
Part 2. mfc_na4500_01B
Part 3. mfc_na4500_02A
Disciplines
Military History | Oral History | United States History
Birth date
1945
Location
Pennsylvania
Nation of origin
United States
Home state/Territory
Maine
Gender
Male
Ethnicity
European-American
Branch of service
U.S. Army
Service Unit
1st Aviation Brigade, B Troop, 7th Squadron, 17th Cavalry (first tour); 1st Cavalry Division 227th Assault Helicopter Battalion, B Company (second tour)
Dates of service
1966 - 1975, 1980-1991, Vietnam September 1968 - September 1969; September 1970 - September 1971
Date of entry
June 1966
Service entry
Commissioned
Location of Service
Pleiku, Vietnam (first tour); Phu Vinh (second tour)
Awards & Ribbons
Purple Heart
Wars & Conflicts
Vietnam War
Entry Rank
O-1 2nd Lieutenant
Highest Rank
O-3 Captain
Exit Rank
O-3 Captain
Names
Roger Cox
Locations
Fort Gordon, Georgia; Fort McClellan, Alabama; Fort Knox, Kentucky; Fort Walters, Texas; Cam Ranh Bay; Pleiku; South China Sea; Phan Thiet; Fort Walters, Texas; Bien Hòa; Phu Vinh; Hong Kong; Singapore; Germany; Austin, Texas; Corpus Christi, Texas; Honduras
Headings
Vietnam War, 1961-1975; Military helicopters; Bell H-13 Sioux (Helicopter); Hughes TH-55 (Helicopter); OH-23 Raven (Helicopter); Huey Cobra (Helicopter); OH-6 Cayuse (Helicopter); Kit Carson; Bell UH-1H Iroquois (Helicopter); Bell AH-1 Cobra (Helicopter); Rest and Recreation (R&R)
Collection name
Maine Vietnam Veterans Oral History
Collection number
MF224
Item number
NA4500
Recommended Citation
Cross, Richard T., "Dick Cross, interviewed by Stephen D. Rees, Jr., Part 2" (2023). MF087 Vietnam Veterans Oral History. 40.
https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/ne_vietnam_vets/40
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