God’s own lunatic

The Poplar Bluff Museum has tales of us, our family, and our history. I want to tell you some of those tales found within the museum walls.

The Army helicopter pilots from the Vietnam War have a reputation beyond legend. The infantryman idolized them. War Correspondent Joseph Galloway wrote “You seemed brave and fearless. You come to us in the middle of battle in those flimsy skinned crates in the storm of fire. You would sit up there behind that plexiglass seeming so patient and so calm and so vulnerable waiting for us. The sound of those Huey blades meant that someone was coming to help, to get our wounded, to bring us water and ammo, to take our dead brothers home and to give us a ride out of Hell. We thought you were God’s own lunatics.”

One of those lunatics was from Poplar Bluff. Warrant Officer Charles “Phil” Seawright was flying a Huey helicopter in A Company, 101st Aviation Battalion. He was with the famous air assault unit called the “Comancheros.” On March 3, 1971, the Comancheros were flying a group of South Vietnamese soldiers into Laos. Upon arrival, the landing zone {LZ) was “hot.” Enemy forces poured small arms fire into the flight of helicopters. The first two aircraft were shot down and crashed in the LZ. The insertion was aborted. WO1 Seawright continued to the LZ in an attempt to rescue the downed aircrew. Under heavy fire, he remained in the LZ waiting for the men. His door gunners provided covering fire for the rescue. Unfortunately, the downed aircrew were pinned down and couldn’t reach Seawright’s helicopter. With his helicopter riddled with bullet holes and his door gunner wounded, WO1 Seawright was forced to depart. WO1 Charles Seawright was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his actions that day.

WO1 Seawright’s flight suit with it’s famous “Comanchero” patch, and his Distinguished Service Cross citation is proudly on display in Kanell Hall Veterans Museum, located in the Poplar Bluff Museum. The Museum is open every Sunday free of charge from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at 1010 Main Street, Poplar Bluff (formerly the Old Mark Twain School). Tell them Mike sent you!

Mike Shane is a veteran, Poplar Bluff resident and board member for the Poplar Bluff Museum.