24th Special Tactical Zone: Mar 20, 2012

The 24th Special Tactical Zone (24STZ) comprised Pleiku and Kontum provinces (in II corps), Athwart the tri-border area of South Vietnam. Our U.S. Air Force and Army units supported South Vietnamese forces in opposing both local Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army infiltration via the Ho Chi Minh Trail to our west. 1Lt. Arthur J. Abramoff joined us at Kontum, capital city of the largest province in South Vietnam, in November 1966. His Forward Air Controller Callsign was Cagey 86.

   On his last mission, Art was marking a target for an air strike in the Dak Na Valley (north of Dak To) when he was hit by ground fire and crashed. A lot of people converged on the area to attempt rescue. A Vietnamese CH-34 helicopter was driven off by ground fire. 1Lt. E. DeVere Henderson took over as FAC on-the-scene, Lt. Cols. Gibson and Bradbury (in another 0-1) flew backup, Cpt. Kobylarz (in an Army 0-1) flew high to provide radio relay; I was in our FAC radio shack back at our military compound, coordinating fighter support with headquarters at Pleiku.

   An Army UH-1 "Huey" helicopter, Black Cat 606 (piloted by Lt. "Hank" Rost and WO-1 Tom Woehl) picked up Arts injured Army observer (1Lt G.D. Hull) who was medivacked to Pleiku (and soon back to the U.S.). Another "Huey", Mardi Gras 730 (piloted by Cpt Robert "Tom" Hooker and WO-1 Ken Wilson), carried FAC Maj. Vance Leuthold to the crashed 0-1G, where he confirmed Art was dead. An Air Force H-43 "Dust Off" rescue chopper (supported by gunships) retrieved Art's body later that day.

   The above summary combines recollections primarly from DeVere Henderson, three of the four named Army "Huey" pilots (located during the past few years), the combat journal of Vance Leuthold(d.1994), plus my oun letters home at that time.

   January 20th of 1967 was the saddest day of my Vietnam tour. I commemorated Art's tragic loss and its aftermath in a 1999 ballad entitled "A Death in the Dak Na Valley." When our memorial to the (now) 220 FACs KIA in the Southeast Asia War was dedicated at Hurlburt AFB, Florida at our first Slow FACs' Reunion in Sept. 2000, "Arthur J Abramoff" was the first name read.

             From a fellow F A C,
                 Jonathan Myer
              0-1 "Bird Dog" FAC,
          Cagey 82 (and covey 75)
    Kontum Province (and the DMZ)
         April 1966 thur Feb. 1967
     j-bmyer-alexva@aerols.com

Abramoff, Arthur John (Cagey 86), 1st Lt