1 - The Black Vault

PRAETORIAN STARSHIP
and fall on top of each other, thus causing failure
of the parachute system and the destruction of
the blivets. Some of the loadmasters had been in
Talons since the Vietnam era and were familiar
with MACVSOG’s “no questions asked” policy for
their loads. After many debates, and some reservations,
the blivets were accepted by the loadmasters
and were rigged according to US Army
specifications, then readied for the nighttime
mission. 31
The night was clear and crisp, with nearly 100
percent moon illumination, when Brenci and Uttaro
departed Davis-Monthan AFB. A route was
planned that mirrored the one to be flown into
Iran to give the crew experience in low-level operations
flying one minute in trail with another
Combat Talon. The Talon had been designed as a
single-ship penetrator aircraft, so low-level formation
in the terrain-following mode was not a normal
procedure. The 8th SOS crews flew many sorties
to develop procedures and skills to perform
this maneuver. As the Talons traveled low over
the desert floor, their shadows on the ground from
the bright moon were clearly visible to the crew.
Everyone on board was aware of the importance
of the drop but was a bit apprehensive about the
heavy 25,000-pound load and its unproven rigging
procedures. About six minutes out from the drop,
pilots from Benci’s crew wearing NVGs spotted
light patterns on the ground resembling the
Yuma DZ. After quickly determining the position
of the aircraft, the left navigator assured the crew
that the aircraft was still a significant distance
from the DZ, so the crew continued to press on.
Later debriefing by the crew determined that the
lights were probably small campfires not visible
to the naked eye, yet easily seen by the NVGs.
The crew was thankful that they had not convinced
themselves that the lights were on the DZ
and dropped the load on unsuspecting campers.
As the two aircraft lined up for the drop, the
combat controller on the DZ called to confirm the
run-in heading—a strange call since the whole operation
was scheduled to be conducted radio-out.
There had apparently been a question concerning
the orientation of the helicopters in relation to the
Talon’s inbound drop heading. With the question
answered, the formation continued towards the
DZ. Brenci was in the lead with Uttaro one
m inute in trail, and everything looked good for a
successful drop. As the left navigator called
“green light,” the blivets began to move. From
the cockpit the shadows of the blivets were easily
visible on the ground as they exited the aircraft.
So, too, were the RH-53D helicopters lined up on
the right side of the DZ. As the last blivet left the
aircraft, the loadmaster called the load clear but
relayed that a malfunction had occurred. Just as
the Talon loadmasters had predicted, all five
blivets accelerated out the aft end of the aircraft
and literally fell on top of each other. As they left
the aircraft, the force exerted on the aft anchorcable
assembly caused it to fail and tear loose
from the aft bulkhead. The cable shot forward
and nearly beheaded Brenci’s radio operator,
MSgt Andy Chitwood, who was untouched but
shaken by the near miss. The incident reinforced
the need for everyone in the cargo compartment
to wear a helmet when air-dropping loads with
static lines attached to the anchor cables.
With the cable torn loose, the five blivets from
Brenci’s aircraft streamed into the DZ, destroying
them when they hit the ground. Uttaro was one
minute behind Brenci and was not notified to
abort his drop before two of his five blivets had
pancaked onto the DZ. His aircraft experienced
less damage than had Brenci’s, but seven of the
10 blivets dropped were destroyed on the DZ. The
short flight back to Davis-Monthan AFB was sobering
to all, especially for Chitwood.
Inspection of the anchor cables revealed that
the damage could be repaired, and by the next
afternoon, the two aircraft were again mission
ready for another attempt at the multiple CDS
airdrop. The Combat Talon loadmasters devised
a gate system whereby each blivet, as it moved
towards the ramp of the aircraft by means of
gravity, would cut the restraining cord for the
following blivet. Thus, all five blivets would exit
the aircraft with adequate spacing to allow each
parachute to open without interfering with the
one behind it. The two aircraft took off and flew
their low-level routes as they had done the previous
night. The airdrop went flawlessly, with all
10 blivets safely landing on the DZ. By utilizing
the gate system, however, the dispersion pattern
on the ground was not as concentrated as was
hoped, and efforts to move the blivets into position
on the ground to refuel the helicopters took
more time than was planned.
Beckwith and his Delta Force had moved by
way of the RH-53D helicopters to the DZ and
had witnessed both nights’ operations along
with Vaught and Kyle and the JTF planning
staff. With the failure of the blivet drop on the
first night, and the dispersion pattern of the
second night’s drop, the consensus was that a
better way had to be found to get fuel to the
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