A Brief History

            One of the major problems for all fighting forces has always been providing injured fighters the best possible medical care at the earliest possible moment.  It can be stated unequivocally that no method for providing care has ever even begun to rival that which DUSTOFF has.  DUSTOFF is, as will be explained here, the now-generic name for helicopter medevac, the removal of injured persons from the field of battle by helicopter ambulance, with trained medical personnel aboard to treat them in flight.

            The effort that has become known as DUSTOFF was perfected during the Vietnam War, although its genesis can be found in earlier conflict.  During the World Wars and all pre-1950 conflicts, the helicopter simply did not exist for military purposes.  However, during the Korean War, the Army discovered the strategic value of the helicopter not only as a fighting tool, but also as a means of transporting wounded soldiers from the field of battle to surgical facilities in record time.  Those transports, however, differed substantially from the DUSTOFF medevacs in that they did not have any medical care providers aboard; they transported only.

            During the Vietnam War, however, the helicopters available to the Army were bigger and faster, much more technologically advanced than anything previous.  As a result, the concept of not only having the wounded plucked from the battlefield and transported by helicopter, but also being treated by highly-trained medics as they were in transport, was developed.  The results were staggering:

The name DUSTOFF comes from the radio call sign that was assigned to the first aeromedical helicopter evacuation unit to arrive in Vietnam, the 57^th Medical Detachment (HA).  The “HA” is an abbreviation for “Helicopter Ambulance”.  The 57^th arrived in Vietnam in 1962.  All radio call signs were frequently (usually daily) changed for security purposes; however, it was discovered that a certain amount of confusion could also occur as a result of this, so the 57^th asked to be allowed to keep a permanent call sign.  At the time of the request, which was granted, the 57^th was using the call sign DUSTOFF, so it became permanent not only to the 57^th, but to all subsequent HA units to operate in Vietnam, with the notable exception of the HA’s of the 1^st Cavalry, which used the call sign “Medevac”.  By the end of the war it was more than just a call sign, having become a permanent part of the military lexicon, and rapidly on its way to becoming legend.

            It has been said that the call sign DUSTOFF not only provided uniformity for troops in the field, who knew the call “DUSTOFF” would get the desired response anytime and anywhere, but also was an appropriate description of their work, because the dry dust of the countryside, as well as any object not fastened to the ground, was thrown about violently by the blades of the Huey helicopters used when they came close to the ground to extract their patients.

            The individual heroes of DUSTOFF are too numerous to even list here, but a few must be recognized.

Major Charles L. “Combat” Kelly was one of the first great DUSTOFF pilots, a key player in the development of DUSTOFF after he arrived in Vietnam in 1964.  He was commander of the 57^th.  On July 1, 1964, he arrived at a very hot area to pick up the injured when he was met with a massive barrage of fire.  Despite being told repeatedly to withdraw, he refused, calmly stating several times that he would depart “when I have your wounded.”  As the last of the wounded were brought aboard his aircraft, and he started to lift away, a single shot took his life.  His crew was able to complete the evacuation, and many lives were saved.  His declaration, “When I have your wounded” became the motto of many of his successors and their units.

CWO4 Michael J. Novosel is a legendary Army aviator who piloted bombers in World War II and flew as a Warrant Officer during the Korean War before arriving in Vietnam to fly DUSTOFF with the 82^nd Medical Detachment.  Paraphrasing from his Medal of Honor citation tells much of the story: On October 2, 1969, flying without cover and exposed to intense fire he maneuvered his helicopter into an area where Vietnamese soldiers were pinned down.  He was able to extract first one, then, by continuously circling and repeatedly exposing himself, more of the trapped fighters.  Near the end of the mission he spotted a wounded soldier near an enemy bunker and brought his chopper in backwards to give some cover.  As the last man was brought aboard, the heavy fire damaged the aircraft and wounded Novosel.  His actions saved 29 South Vietnamese soldiers from near-certain death.  He was 47 years old at the time.  When he retired at age 62, the main street of Ft. Rucker, AL, the “Home of Army Aviation,” was renamed after him.

Major Patrick Henry Brady flew with the 54th Medical Detachment.  His Medal of Honor citation is paraphrased as follows:  On January 6, 1968, he volunteered to rescue wounded men in enemy territory.  He found the area in heavy fog and flew his ship sideways to use the rotor blades to blow away the fog.  He rescued two men despite heavy fire.  He then went to another area, where American casualties lay only 50 meters from the enemy.  Other crews had been unable to rescue them.  It took four flights into this landing zone, all under intense fire, to rescue all the wounded.  On the third mission of the day he flew into a heavily defended zone and rescued more injured; during this mission the Huey he was piloting was badly shot up and he had leave without all the wounded to secure a replacement aircraft.  He then returned and picked up the remaining soldiers.  He then was requested to land in an enemy minefield where a platoon of American soldiers was trapped. A mine detonated near his helicopter, wounding 2 crewmembers and damaging his ship. In spite of this, he managed to fly 6 severely injured patients to medical aid. Throughout that day Maj. Brady utilized 3 helicopters to evacuate a total of 51 seriously wounded men.

            The efforts of DUSTOFF do not end there; at the present time there are DUSTOFF crews, successors of those brave men from the Vietnam War, flying active and dangerous missions in Afganistan and Iraq, just as they did in the Gulf War.  Their efforts ensure that the legend of DUSTOFF not only lives, but also prospers and grows.