This piece originally ran in the March 2021 issue of EAA Sport Aviation magazine.
This piece of protective headgear is an APH-5 helmet manufactured by the Sierra Engineering Co., and it’s currently on display inside our Bell UH-1B Huey gunship, The Good Widow Mrs. Jones, in the EAA Aviation Museum. The helmet, which is on loan from the Pima Air & Space Museum, was worn by one of the Huey’s original pilots, Brian Siplon, during his service with the 121st Assault Helicopter Company in the Vietnam War. The helicopter’s nose art was re-created on the helmet by a local artist in the town of Sóc Trăng.