It was during the last half of 1969, in Vietnam, that we became brothers. He was a very good Scout Pilot, I was a Cobra Aircraft Commander. He had the dark black, killer mustache that I envied. He would sometimes come to my room at night and ask to play my 12 string guitar. Times were good…Edd was easy to fly into combat with. He was predictable, solid under fire, and highly dependable. He was at the top of his art… We were both the offspring of military fathers…. we both were moved all over the country growing up, in short, we had a shopping list of mutual experiences. On December 30th, 1969 I was flying my Cobra, with Scout Pilot Bob Forsyth flying his Scout bird, about 75 miles away from Edd and his High Bird Cobra, conducting a separate hunter-killer mission. We got the call on the radio that Edd had been shot down. We flew immediately to the area and began looking for Edd in the jungle. There was an “L” shaped area carved out of the jungle that immediately drew my attention. It was an ideal enemy trap… it couldn’t be designed better. Bob and I both went nap of the earth, on top of the trees surrounding this cleared area. I lucked out and spotted a piece of his aircraft. The enemy was closing in on it. Bob and I attacked…. Knowing our Sky Troopers, the Blues, were enroute, I asked Bob to help clear the area, while I “prepared” the landing zone for our three Hueys and Blues. My front seat Pilot-gunner Steve Beene spotted an enemy crew setting up a .51 caliber machine gun along a bamboo fence. We climbed, put the sun at our back and attacked the machine gun. In the process, we were caught in the feared trap… at 90 degrees to us another .51 machine gun put 6 each, one half inch projectiles into our aircraft, punching the engine and transmission. We proceeded to put the aircraft down… we had cheated death again. Within minutes Rhett Lewis and his crew picked us up and flew Steve and I to Phouc Vinh. Steve and I returned to the battle in a different Cobra aircraft. In the meantime, our Troopers were all fully engaging the enemy, and trying desperately to get to Edd’s aircraft. Joseph “Gordon” Kappel hovered his Scout bird over Edd’s downed bird. His crew chief jumped out of the aircraft and made it to Edd’s crash site. That’s when we learned that Tom Soma, the Observer, and Jim Dean, the crew chief were both killed, and that Edd was wounded. As noted by Steve at our Troop Reunion in 2000 in Washington DC: in the ensuing battle Steve and I managed to get bullet holes in that Cobra also. It was a bad day all around! About 10 months later, back in the United States, I was helping fly cobras from Texas up to Savannah, Georgia. One of our fuel stops was Ft. Rucker, Alabama. Yep… there was Edd Hogeboom! There are emotional reunions, and then there are reunions that defy description! This was huge, heartwarming, and impossible to describe. My brother was alive, and well. Over the past 50 years I have been blessed with my combat brother’s care and love. No longer will I be able to hear his calm, relaxing voice; nor of his immense belief in Our Lord.His last words to me, just days before his passing, shall forever remain in my heart, and be etched into my soul: “I love you my brother.” Well, “Cavalier 16,” please save me a spot under an oak tree on Fiddler’s Green. I’ll bring a canteen of whiskey, and we will all make a toast…Tom Soma, Jim Dean, you, and me. I love you bro… till then, you are both loved, and missed… this really hurts bro.
This post tells it all. My wife, Carol, always tell the Troopers “You don’t leave here with a handshake. You leave here with a hug and a “I Love You, Brother”. This may be the last time you see each other. At our last reunion in Pigeon Forge, TN, Frank Turned and George Van Sant took a helicopter ride together. Three months later George passed away. Frank said “at least we took our last Helicopter ride together”.
Not long ago i had called the medic I served with, Percy Hipple” and at the end of the conversation I said I Love ya Brother and he said I love you too. The following week, Doc passed away. I can say the same for my last conversations with Billie Williams, Dorris Williams and Don Coshey all ended the same way.
Charlie Troop 1st Squadron 9th Cavalry Regiment 
michael kelley
January 6, 2022
Pat, Well done my man. Grover Wright is a good guy. A few years ago he did a big favor for me. My old Nam crewmate, SP5 Robert Tommy Warner, who was a UH-1B Gunship crew chief-gunner (Weapons Plt) in 66-67, was killed in a crop duster crash a few months after army discharge west of Salinas, California. I found out about it when I wrote to him to see how he was adjusting to civilian life in October of 1967, and his step mom wrote back to me and gave me the sad news. I always wanted to pay a visit to his grave in his little town of Gonzales, south of Salinas, off of Highway 101, but never was able to travel out west and now in old age, my health restricts travel afar. So on Memorial Day a few years back, Grover and his wonderful wife Stephanie, drove their Corvette all the way from Northern California down to the little town of Gonzales to visit my old friend Tommy Warner’s gravesite and he read a letter to Tommy that I had written for him, and left a Cav patch on the veterans marker and a yellow rose. That meant a lot to me. And I am sure Tommy was smiling down on him. Grover is not only a brave & highly decorated Cobra pilot (The Alaskan), but he is also a wonderful, compassionate person and he did not hesitate to drop what he was doing at home and drive 600 miles round trip to honor my old army friend Tommy. I talk about Tommy in my book, The Gunner and the Grunt, as we went to helicopter school at Rucker together, were stationed at Ft Belvoir Army Airfield together, and later, with Troop C in 1966. I think our fellow Bull Whip Family should know about what Grover did for me and my friend Tommy Warner and it would be nice if you put this story in your next Troop C newsletter. Thanks Pat. Best wishes for 2022. Mike Kelley Real Cav 65-66
George Kelley
January 6, 2022
The guy told it like it was – very good story telling. Bro. Sonny
dave.davidson@yahoo.com
January 7, 2022
I love you too, Pat and Carol!
Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android
John Minasian
January 7, 2022
Thank you for protecting your brothers in combat. ,Thank you for your service and welcome home !
unkjohn
January 7, 2022
Grover took me on my last outing, I don’t travel well anymore. They call it peripheral neuropathy; it is not a killer but is a pain in the feet and later my hands, but I never was better than a two finger typer. Ed and Grover were between my tours, but both became Great Good Friends and Brothers. Unk’
John Mackel
January 9, 2022
I remember that day in December of 1969 very well. I was Cavilier Blue and along with about 16 of my Blues it was quiet for about 30 seconds after we unloaded in the LZ close to Hogeboom’s crash site! As we started to move into the jungle an NVA soldier rose up not more than 60 feet from us in the thicker bush along the edge of the LZ. A couple troopers shot at him and he went down ! Then the Party started ! AK’s & a couple of 50’s opened up. We returned fire and if it wasn’t for our brave buddies in the Cobra’s and Scouts laying down a wall of fire for us we would have ended up like Soma & Dean ! I remember running out and throwing a smoke grenade into the jungle and Ed McDerby put 30mm not 20 yards from me from where most of the enemy fire was coming from ! Why the NVA let our three lift birds land and drop us off i’ll never know ! I suspect they were waiting to ambush us as we moved to the crash site cause we were dropped off at the northern end of a large field surrounded by thick jungle and the downed LOH was in the jungle on the South side a good distance away. Your story brings back a lit of memories Grover, I think about that day a lot ! It wasn’t my first firefight but it came close to being me and my fellow Blues last . That was 51 years ago ! It’s hard to believe it was 1/2 a Century ago . We were so young but when i talk about my time in VN i tell anybody that will listen, the guys I served with C Troop 1/9 were the bravest guys i have even known ! God Bless the Troopers of C Troop 1/9 Cav !