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Lieutenant Colonel Hugh L. Mills, Jr., Retired
May 21, 2011
The Army Aviation Association of America (AAAA) and the Jackson County Sheriff’s office announce the induction of Colonel Hugh L. Mills Jr. into the United States Army Aviation Hall of Fame in ceremonies at Nashville Tennessee on 19 April 2011.
Brigadier General Rodney Wolfe, President of AAAA and Major General Ben Harrison, president of the board of directors announced the inductees and each new inductee assisted in unveiling a print of them which will hang in the Hall of Fame at Ft. Rucker Alabama home of Army Aviation. In a rare coincidence, CSM Buford Thomas, also a 2011 inductee, worked for Col Mills as his crew chief on his attack helicopter in Germany in 1978-80.
Hugh Mills retired from the Army in 1993 as US Army Representative to the Federal Aviation Administration and served for fifteen years as Director of General Services for the Cedar Fair Corporation which operates Worlds of Fun and oceans of Fun in Kansas City Missouri. Col Mills is Undersheriff of Jackson County Missouri and a 30 year veteran of law enforcement. He is a dual rated, master Army aviator and is rated in over forty types of aircraft including helicopters, fixed wing, and is a veteran free fall parachutist. He has 3300 combat flying hours and eight thousand flying hours as a pilot in command.
Mills is a 1966 graduate of Hot Springs High School in Arkansas, a 1975 graduate of Embry Riddle University in Daytona Beach Fl with a BA In Aeronautical Studies and a 1980 graduate of Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant MI with a MA in Public Administration. He is the son of Dr. & Mrs. Hugh L. Mills Sr. of Fayetteville AR and the grandson of the late William T. and Bess Mills of Marshall AR. He is married to the former Sharyn Lee Sapp of Hialeah Fl.
Hugh L. Mills, Jr. was one of the most decorated pilots during the Vietnam War. During his two tours in Vietnam as an aero scout and one as a cobra pilot, he flew more than 3,300 combat hours and developed many of the U.S. Army's air cavalry aero scout tactics. He was shot down 16 times and wounded three times, earning numerous decorations for valor, including three Silver Stars, the Legion of Merit, four Distinguished Flying Crosses and three Bronze Stars, one for valor in ground combat. The government of Vietnam awarded him the Cross of Gallantry with Silver Star and Palm, the Vietnamese Honor Medal First Class and the Civic Action Honor Medal First Class.
Mills, who commanded the aero scout platoon of the 4th Cavalry, was described by Major General A.E. Milloy, 1st Infantry Division commanding general, as "the most courageous small unit leader in the First Division with the highest kill ratio of any combat in the Big Red One."
Among his accomplishments, were developing a pilot technique to correct the OH-6 Cayuse "Hughes Tail Spin," which had killed numerous aviators; leading air cavalry raids into Laos, Cambodia and North Vietnam; commanding the Army's first night-attack helicopter unit with crude night vision systems; and he was the first Army pilot to test the XM-8 40mm grenade launcher in combat.
Mills co-authored a book about his experiences in Vietnam, "Low Level Hell: A Scout Pilot in the Big Red One." He retired in 1993 after 26 years of service.
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Lee's Summit Tiger Skyler Arbuckle
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Congratulations! When I was a Staff Sergeant at Fort Hood in 1977/78, you were my Troop Commander and inspired me to go to Flight School. I finished my career as a Scout Pilot/Instrutor Pilot when I retired in 1992. Thank you for being such an inspiration and role model for me and so many others.
Bob Bruce, CW3 Retired