Chinook stories from Vietnam days....
Brand new UH-1H, Command and Control aircraft with the wonderful rack of radios installed....24 hours on the clock total time. Blown hydraulic line....Battalion Commander would not be convinced to have a new line flown up to the U/S aircraft. No...by Gawd....you'll sling it back to Chu Lai. In those days when making the transit to Chu Lai from up north....we went three miles out to sea as it was much safer for us than flying over the bad guys. As luck would have it....about half way home with the Huey on a sling....noticeable jolt in the airframe....too much power applied for cruise suddenly....and an audible "Aw ****!" from the FE who was working the load in back. When he confirmed my worst fears....I echoed his comment. Fortunately for us....the strop broke...and the strope belonged to the Huey guys.
Hauling guard towers for the Aussies down at Nui Dat. Pre-constructed at a secure site then flown out to where they were needed. On the third haul....we found the load to be really....really heavy compared to the first two. It became really light all of a sudden when we pulled it apart.....as two of the anchor bolts had not been undone and it was still bolted to Vietnam.
Hauling a Pig Pen (old truck bed rigged for hauling loose items of food or ammo)....happened to look in the rear view mirror and noticed a Chinese Parliament going on over the cargo hook hatch in the floor of the cabin. Wondering what was going on.....and about to ask the FE to explain.....I saw the Crew Chief pulling in a rope.....and a big white cardboard box appear in the cargo hook hatch which the FE then shoved behind a troop seat. The Gunner was down in the Pig Pen passing up boxes of Steak and Chicken.
Hauling 3/4 Ton Weapon Carriers.....one internal....one on a sling. Trick is the combination was too heavy to make a hover departure. Our solution....running takeoff with a guy steering the slung WC until it began to lift off the ground then he jumped off. The trick was landing as usually the steering wheels would drift to some sort of left turn enroute. Timing was of the essence....cutting the load off just as it touched....and watching about half of them run off the landing area into the bush or simply roll over.
Youth.....unhampered by commonsense!