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Dolphin logo that appeared on noses of 174th slicks beginning in the summer of 1967

155th Assault Helicopter Company

Lift Platoon "Stagecoach"

Gunship Platoon "Falcons"

Company A, 1st Aviation Battalion, 1st Infantry Division was based at Fort Riley, KS when it was ordered to Vietnam in 1965. The unit departed the west coast on 17 April 1965, on board the USS Iwo Jima. The Iwo arrived at Vung Tau on 1 May 65; the helos flew off the carrier the same day. (Side note: Company A brought the first UH-1D Hueys to Vietnam.) Company A was assigned to Ban Me Thuot in the central highlands region (II Corps) of Vietnam.
On 20 Nov 65, Company A was redesignated the 155th. The unit was based at Ban Me Thuot during its entire time in-country, but especially during the first several months, Stagecoaches and Falcons flew in every sector of the country (largely because they had D model slicks, which could carry more troops/heavier loads). The company ceased operations during December 1970, and left BMT soon thereafter. (My thanks to Les Davison for this brief history of the 155th. Les flew with the 155th in 1969-1970)

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1965 - Lift Platoon UH-1D In late 1965 the 155th's Hueys flew with high visibility, stateside color markings. The legend "ARMY" was prominently marked in large, capital letters on the rear cargo doors. The tail boom had a full color national insignia and a wide, yellow warning stripe behind the sync elevators. The word "ARMY" was painted in yellow on the upper tail, and a five-digit tail number painted in yellow on the lower tail. The unit designation "155" was painted in flat black on the pilots' doors.

1965 - Lift Platoon UH-1D This Huey is marked similarly to the one above. However, vertical white stripes have been added to the nose, and to the tail boom just behind the national insignia. A black diamond pattern has been painted up and down these stripes. This appears to have been tactical command and control markings used by the 52nd Aviation Battalion during the Plei Me/Ia Drang battles in October-November 1965. Both the 155th and the 119th AHC were part of the 52nd Av Bn during this campaign and photos show Hueys from both units wearing these diamond & stripe markings. Aviation units of the 1st Cav also participated in the Plei Me/Ia Drang fighting, so unique markings such as this would have made identification of helicopters from the 52nd Av Bn easier. The 52nd Aviation Battalion was awarded the Army's Valorous Unit Award for their participation in this campaign.