37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron

The 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron was a United States Air Force rescue unit whose best-known service took place during the Vietnam War. Its lineage began with the 37th Air Rescue Squadron, constituted in 1952 and activated in Japan, before the unit was later redesignated and reactivated as the 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron in January 1966. The squadron operated from Da Nang Air Base, South Vietnam, with detachments in Thailand, and was responsible for recovering aircrews and other personnel in dangerous areas over North Vietnam, Laos, the Gulf of Tonkin, and South Vietnam. The squadron formed part of the Air Force rescue system commonly associated with the Jolly Green Giant callsign. Its missions included combat search and rescue, casualty evacuation, personnel recovery, and support for downed-aircrew recovery operations. The unit initially employed HU-16 Albatross amphibious aircraft, while its detachments operated HC-130 support aircraft and HH-3E and HH-53 helicopters as the war progressed. These aircraft enabled crews to locate survivors, coordinate rescue packages, deploy pararescuemen, provide aerial refueling and command support, and extract personnel under hostile fire. The squadron's wartime record included numerous high-risk recoveries and several severe losses. It participated in the rescue of pilots and reconnaissance personnel in Laos and Vietnam, helped recover personnel during the 1972 Easter Offensive, and contributed to large-scale rescue efforts such as the recovery attempt associated with the Bat 21 Bravo incident. Several of its aircraft were destroyed or shot down, and many airmen were killed or listed as missing during rescue missions. Individual members received major decorations, including the Medal of Honor, the Air Force Cross, and the Silver Star. The 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron was inactivated at the end of 1972. It was activated again in October 1973 at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base in Wyoming, where its mission shifted from Southeast Asian combat rescue to support of the base's intercontinental ballistic missile complex, nuclear convoy security, local search and rescue, and casualty evacuation. The unit underwent several later redesignations, becoming the 37th Air Rescue Squadron in 1989, the 37th Rescue Squadron and then 37th Rescue Flight in 1993, the 37th Helicopter Flight in 1998, and ultimately the 37th Helicopter Squadron in 2005. The later organization operates in support of the 90th Missile Wing under the 582d Helicopter Group and flies UH-1N helicopters. Accordingly, the aerospace rescue and recovery squadron is a historical designation within the lineage of a continuing Air Force helicopter and rescue unit rather than a current commercial brand.

The unit's lineage began when the 37th Air Rescue Squadron was constituted on 17 October 1952 and activated on 14 November of that year. It was assigned first to the 3d Air Rescue Group and stationed at Komaki Air Base, Japan. The squadron later moved to Yokota Air Base and was inactivated on 8 May 1955. The rescue organization was redesignated the 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron in December 1965 and organized at Da Nang Air Base on 8 January 1966. It began operations with five HU-16 aircraft temporarily obtained from other rescue squadrons and maintained a detachment at Udorn Royal Thai Air Force Base. Its geographic responsibility covered aircrew recovery over North Vietnam, Laos, and the Gulf of Tonkin. During 1966 and 1967, the unit's aircraft and detachments changed as the Air Force reorganized its Southeast Asian rescue structure. HC-130 aircraft were delivered to Udorn, later transferring to the newly formed 39th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron, while HH-3 rescue helicopters and eventually HH-53B aircraft became central to the 37th's combat rescue role. The squadron's operations involved long-range searches, rescue escort, pararescue insertion, hoist extraction, and recovery of personnel from areas defended by hostile ground forces. Its crews supported rescues of downed fighter pilots, special operations reconnaissance teams, military advisers, and other isolated personnel. The operating environment exposed rescue aircraft to small-arms, automatic-weapons, artillery, and other ground fire. Several operations became defining episodes in Air Force rescue history. In October 1966, an HU-16 disappeared during a rescue orbit north of the Demilitarized Zone, with its seven-person crew never recovered. In November 1967, an HH-3 involved in the extraction of a MACV-SOG team was shot down in Laos; Captain Gerald O. Young survived and evaded capture before being rescued, while several other crew members and rescued personnel died. Young later received the Medal of Honor. The squadron and associated Jolly Green crews also carried out successful rescues under extreme conditions. In February 1968, the Air Force rescue service recorded its 1,000th combat save since 1964 when a badly injured F-105 pilot was recovered despite difficult terrain and approaching ground fire. In July of that year, a multi-aircraft effort rescued Lieutenant Colonel Jack Modica after repeated attempts had been repelled by enemy fire. The operation resulted in a Silver Star for the pilot and an Air Force Cross for the pararescueman. Other missions in 1968, 1969, and 1970 resulted in aircraft losses and deaths while crews attempted to reach isolated personnel. The squadron participated in Operation Ivory Coast, the November 1970 attempt to recover prisoners of war from the Son Tay camp in North Vietnam. In 1971, one of its HH-53 aircraft crashed during a combat search-and-rescue mission in South Vietnam, killing all four crew members. During the 1972 Easter Offensive, the squadron's Jolly Green aircraft attempted repeatedly to recover Lieutenant Colonel Iceal Hambleton, the isolated navigator associated with the Bat 21 Bravo incident. On 6 April, an HH-53 was struck by intense ground fire and crashed while attempting the rescue; all six crew members were killed. In May 1972, the unit also helped evacuate 132 United States advisers from Quang Tri as the city came under pressure from advancing North Vietnamese forces. The squadron remained at Da Nang until it was inactivated on 29 December 1972. Its remaining HH-53 aircraft were transferred to other rescue organizations, while local base-rescue assets continued under a different organizational arrangement. The lineage was revived on 1 October 1973 at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming. The reactivated organization no longer conducted the same Southeast Asian combat-rescue mission. Instead, it supported operations and security for the base's intercontinental ballistic missile complex, provided nuclear convoy security, and conducted search-and-rescue and casualty-evacuation missions. It subsequently passed through a series of organizational and name changes: 37th Air Rescue Squadron in 1989, 37th Rescue Squadron and 37th Rescue Flight in 1993, 37th Helicopter Flight in 1998, and 37th Helicopter Squadron in 2005. The later unit was assigned to the 582d Helicopter Group and operated UH-1N Huey helicopters in support of the 90th Missile Wing. The historical 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron designation therefore ended in 1972, but its lineage continued through successor rescue and helicopter organizations.

1. 2005Lineage continues as the 37th Helicopter Squadron

   The unit was redesignated the 37th Helicopter Squadron on 21 October 2005.

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2. 1993Further rescue and flight redesignations

   It became the 37th Rescue Squadron on 1 February and the 37th Rescue Flight on 1 May.

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3. 1989Redesignated as the 37th Air Rescue Squadron

   The unit received the 37th Air Rescue Squadron designation on 1 June.

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4. 1973Reactivated in Wyoming

   The lineage was reactivated on 1 October at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base to support missile-field operations and local rescue missions.

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5. 1972Final Vietnam-era operations and inactivation

   The squadron supported rescue and evacuation operations during the Easter Offensive and was inactivated at Da Nang on 29 December.

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6. 1970Participation in Operation Ivory Coast

   The squadron participated in the attempted prisoner-of-war recovery operation at Son Tay in North Vietnam.

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7. 19681,000th combat save milestone

   Associated Jolly Green crews completed the rescue counted as the Air Force rescue service's 1,000th combat save since 1964.

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8. 1967Transition to helicopter-centered combat rescue

   The squadron's Southeast Asian detachments shifted from HU-16 and HC-130 arrangements toward HH-3 and HH-53 combat-rescue operations.

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9. 1966Vietnam-era organization begins at Da Nang

   The squadron was organized at Da Nang Air Base on 8 January and began aircrew-recovery operations over North Vietnam, Laos, and the Gulf of Tonkin.

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10. 1965Redesignated as the 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron

    The unit was redesignated in December 1965 in preparation for renewed rescue operations in Southeast Asia.

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11. 1955First inactivation

    The original 37th Air Rescue Squadron was inactivated on 8 May after operating in Japan.

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12. 195237th Air Rescue Squadron constituted

    The unit was constituted on 17 October 1952 as the 37th Air Rescue Squadron.

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13. 1952Initial activation in Japan

    The squadron was activated on 14 November at Komaki Air Base, Japan, under the 3d Air Rescue Group.

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A military search-and-rescue and personnel-recovery organization rather than a commercial brand. During the Vietnam War, it was positioned within the United States Air Force's forward combat rescue network; after reactivation in Wyoming, its successor lineage supported missile-field security, nuclear convoy operations, local rescue, and medical evacuation.

• 1972Bat 21 Bravo recovery effort

  South Vietnam

  Jolly Green aircraft made repeated attempts to recover Lieutenant Colonel Iceal Hambleton near Quang Tri during the Easter Offensive.

  Outcome. The effort involved severe enemy fire and the loss of an HH-53 and its six-person crew; Hambleton was ultimately recovered through the wider rescue operation.

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• 1972Quang Tri evacuation

  South Vietnam

  The squadron's rescue helicopters helped evacuate 132 United States advisers as Quang Tri came under pressure during the North Vietnamese Easter Offensive.

  Outcome. The evacuation removed the advisers from an increasingly untenable combat area.

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• 1970Operation Ivory Coast

  North Vietnam

  The squadron supported the joint rescue attempt at the Son Tay prisoner-of-war camp.

  Outcome. The camp was found empty, but the operation demonstrated the role of Air Force rescue forces in deep-penetration personnel recovery.

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• 1966Vietnam War combat search and rescue

  North Vietnam · Laos · Gulf of Tonkin · South Vietnam

  The squadron conducted aircrew recovery, combat search and rescue, and related personnel-recovery missions from Da Nang and regional detachments.

  Outcome. The unit completed numerous rescues but also suffered aircraft losses and fatalities during hostile-fire missions.

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• 1973Reactivation for missile-field support and local rescueStrategy

  After the Vietnam-era squadron was inactivated, its lineage was restored at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base in a different operational environment.

  What changed. The reactivated unit assumed helicopter support for the base's intercontinental ballistic missile complex, nuclear convoy security, search and rescue, and casualty evacuation.

  Aftermath. The organization continued through later redesignations and became the 37th Helicopter Squadron in 2005.

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• 1967Shift toward dedicated helicopter combat rescueStrategy

  The changing rescue mission in Southeast Asia required aircraft capable of reaching isolated personnel in contested terrain and extracting them under fire.

  What changed. The squadron transitioned from its initial HU-16 and detachment structure toward HH-3E and HH-53 helicopter operations, supported by command-and-control and refueling aircraft elsewhere in the rescue network.

  Aftermath. The helicopter-centered model became the squadron's characteristic Vietnam-era operating pattern, although it exposed crews to significant combat risk.

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1. 37th Helicopter Squadron