Vietnam veteran followed father’s footsteps to become decorated Army pilot

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — Rick Scrugham followed in his father’s footsteps. They were U.S. Army pilots and both received the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Scrugham’s aviation unit, the 158th Assault Helicopter Group was based at Camp Evans, near the DMZ in Vietnam. Rick flew Huey helicopters under the call sign “Phoenix.”

Glenn Williams’s book, A Pilot’s Legacy, tells the story of Rick and his dad, Hal Scrugham, who as a C-47 pilot during WWII.

“I’m pretty much a chip off the old block,” said Scrugham.

He and his son, Richard Jr., grew up listening to Hal’s stories of flying. He passed away in 2011 at 92.

A standard C-47 used in World War II did not have guns. They were troop transports and cargo planes. As a Captain flying in India, Hal had the distinction of downing an enemy aircraft during an intentional mid-flight collision.

“The flight comes up on two Japanese Zeros, it is a hunter-killer team. They’re just looking for flights of C-47s,” said Scrugham. “He was making a run on Dad and Dad pulled up in to him.”

Captain Scrugham’s cargo plane was the only C-47 to down an enemy fighter in the war.

Rick fulfilled his dream of flying when he graduated from Army flight school in 1970. Commissioned a Warrant Officer 1, he was sent to Vietnam within months.

“One of the first movements we had was the evacuations of a firebase called Rip Cord,” said Scrugham.

His chopper was not hit, but half a dozen were shot down during that mission and Scrugham wondered.

“I was, like, three weeks in country and I thought, ‘how in the world am I ever going to get home if everyday is like this?'” said Scrugham.

He flew in the largest airborne assault since D-Day, a force of over 100 helicopters attacking the enemy along the Ho Chi Minh trail into Laos in February 1971.

“It was pretty much hot every day. We were airlifting South Vietnamese soldiers,” he said.

In a different mission, Scrugham received the Distinguished Flying Cross for returning to retrieve a stranded crew of a downed chopper after successfully pulling out a six-man reconnaissance team in enemy territory.

“We hovered above the location. We dropped 150-foot ropes down and pulled out three at a time,” said Scrugham.

Scrugham joined the Tennessee Army National Guard after returning from Vietnam. He retired as a Chief Warrant Officer 5, the highest rank for a warrant officer. He summed up his experience in Vietnam as “the best year” of his life.

If you know a Veteran who could be recognized, send Don Dare an email at ddare@wate.com or give him a call at 865-633-6923.

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