Huey Hog

The name is derived from its appearance. A large rockets pod on each side gives it a fat low to the ground look. Then add the cannon on the nose and you have a pig’ snout. Hog sounds better than pig so if there has to be a nickname I choose hog.

Getting that hog off the ground on a hot summer day with high humidity and no wind was an art form.

We usually took off with at least 1000 pounds over the gross maximum weight the ship was designed to carry. This was due to the armament we carried. We would sacrifice fuel for weaponry and were still overweight. It was a common sight to bounce the ship 2-3 times on the ground and then slide along until it would decide to fly when you reached 70 miles per hour. All of this is completed sliding along a short dirt runway. This was known to give the pilot an increased pucker factor. That is interpreted to mean your ass hole has such a tight grip on the seat that you need a crowbar to pry you out of the seat.

Crude, yes but true.