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.
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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.”