Scope and Contents

Two patches document Rickie G. Reynolds' career in the United States Navy.

Biographical / Historical

Rickie G. Reynolds was born in Tulsa Oklahoma on 11 April 1947. On 01 April 1967, he volunteered as an Aviation Reserve Officer Candidate (AVROC) while a Sophomore at Texas A&M University. He was then commissioned an Ensign in the Navy on 14 November 1969 and designated a Naval Helicopter Pilot and Naval Aviator on 24 March 1971. On 8 September 1971, Reynolds was also designated a Distinguished Naval Graduate, which included an automatic transfer from the Naval Reserve to the Regular Navy, beginning his twenty-seven-year career with the Navy. From December 1971 through August 1974, Reynolds completed three deployments to Southeast Asia and was assigned to Helicopter Combat Support Squadron Seven (HC-7). This was the Navy's only search and rescue squadron during these years of the war. They were assigned to the Commander, Seventh Fleet and were launched for all combat-related rescue missions, whether the survivors were Navy, Marine Corps or Air Force pilots and/or aircrew. HC-7 flew the Sikorsky H-3 Sea King helicopter, modified with armor plating, self-sealing fuel cells, M-60 machine guns and a 7.62, 6 barrel mini-gun capable of firing up to 4000 rounds per minute. HC-7 was home-ported in Imperial Beach, California with detachments in Cubi Point, Philippines an on Yankee Station in the South China Sea. The detachment stationed there, commonly referred to as the ^D<'Big Mothers^D>', was a permanent detachment commissioned from 1969 through 1975. On Yankee Station, the detachment cross-decked from carrier to carrier with the Seventh Fleet staff every 2-3 weeks as the carriers rotated in and out of the war zone. Daily ^D<'Big Mother^D>' helicopters rotated between the host carrier to the cruiser/destroyer picket ships pre-positioned 10 - 15 miles off the coast of North Vietnam. While on these picket ships, the ^D<'Big Mother^D>' crews were on 5 minute alert at night and airborne, pre-positioned 3 miles off the coast of North Vietnam during air attacks, during the day. In total, Reynolds was on 10 different carriers and 27 different cruisers/destroyers, most several times, during his time with HC-7. Initially, Reynolds was ranked as a Lieutenant Junior Grade (LTjg) and held the position of co-pilot. During his second cruise, Reynolds was promoted to Lieutenant and became a plane commander and mission commander for combat missions. When not flying, he was a Personnel Officer when not on cruise and an Operations Officer when on cruise. He successfully made three rescues of Naval Aviators shot down during air attacks over North Vietnam and was in the South China Sea during the Tet Offensive in 1972. While with HC-7 in Southeast Asia, Reynolds earned a Strike/Flight Air Medal for completion of two rescue flights and forty-five direct combat support missions, the Vietnam Service Medal, the Vietnam Campaign Medal, and was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation. After his service in Vietnam, Reynolds served with the following units and at the following places: Pacific Missile Range Facility, Hawaii, Helicopter Anti-submarine Squadron Ten (HS-10), Twelve (HS-12), and Fourteen (HS-14), the USS Okinawa (LPH-3), the USS New Orleans (LPH-11), and the U.S. Naval Air Station in Agana, Guam. During this time, he received various medals and citations and when he retired on 01 January 1996, he had been promoted to the rank of Navy Captain, serving as the Chief of Staff, Commander Naval Air Forces, U.S. Pacific Fleet (COMNAVAIRPAC). As such, Reynolds was the first helicopter pilot to hold that position in the history of COMNAVAIRPAC.