Vietnam

Mended Wings: The Vietnam War Experience through the Eyes of Ten American Purple Heart Pilots is a compelling collection of stories of heroism. Author Colin P. Cahoon served as an Army helicopter pilot himself and the book is his homage to the generation that came before. Colin didn’t set out to be a helicopter pilot, but started in Air Assault School. After being dropped off in the woods and having to trudge back to base, he realized that the helicopter [...]

“The League of Wives; The Untold Story of the Women Who Took on the U.S. Government to Bring Their Husbands Home” is Heath Hardage Lee’s homage to this very inspirational group of women.  Heath has worked in the women’s history space for twenty years and was horrified that this narrative had never been told. In addition to the tragedy of having their husbands as prisoners of war or missing in action, perhaps the most heartbreaking aspect of this story is [...]

“Unforgotten in the Gulf of Tonkin; A Story of the US Military’s Commitment to Leave No One Behind” is a superbly researched book.  “We will leave no person behind” is an ethos of our military dating as far back as before the Revolutionary War. Author Eileen Bjorkman served 30 years in the Air Force, much of it as a flight test engineer. She has experience with more than 25 different military aircraft. Flight Test Engineers are behind the scenes personnel [...]

Glyn Haynie turned 19 years old one month after he set foot in Vietnam. Military service was in his family blood; a Haynie from every generation has served going back to the American Revolution.  Still, it was disconcerting that despite an Army policy against brothers serving together in combat, Glyn and his brother were shipped to Vietnam together. Literally on the same flight. Glyn Haynie has published seven books, three related to his experiences in Vietnam and the years that [...]

The siege of Khe Sahn was one of the most ferocious and epic battles of the Vietnam War. Ken Rodgers was there and has produced a compelling documentary that everyone should watch: “Bravo! Common Men, Uncommon Valor". Ken’s documentary features interviews and first-hand accounts with 15 Marines and a Navy Corpsman who survived the battle. Khe Sahn pitted 6,000 Marines and our Vietnamese allies against 20,000 or more communist North Vietnamese troops. 274 US personnel were killed and another 2,541 [...]

Navy Pilot Charlie Plumb had complete 74 combat missions over Vietnam and was five days away from completing his tour of duty when a surface to air missile brought down his F-4 Phantom near Hanoi. He would endure 2,103 days as a POW and recounts these experiences – and lessons learned – in his book “I’m No Hero”.  The book is now in its 33rd publication and is filled with stories of resilience, inventiveness and the power of the human [...]

(L-R) Jack Bewly, Dan Pederson, BBG, Scott Bader Top Gun founder Dan Pederson began his Navy career as a mechanic. Thanks to a great mentor, he would become a pilot and play a critical role in creating one of the most storied Fighter Weapons Schools in the world.  He wrote “Top Gun: An American Story” to celebrate its 50th anniversary. Despite dominating air to air combat in World War II and Korea, the Navy kill ratio early in [...]

War correspondents have been covering human conflict for centuries.  Some civilian correspondents are well known like Ernie Pyle, who was in the trenches with soldiers during World War II and Joe Galloway, who famously picked up a rifle to fight off the enemy at the Battle of La Drang Valley. Military war correspondents are the focus of Marc Phillip Yablonka’s latest book “Vietnam Bao Chi: Warriors of World and Film”. The book shares the stories of over 30 military war [...]

National Vietnam War Veteran’s Day is an appropriate time to bring back in one of my favorite guests.  Captain Dale Dye served two tours of duty in Vietnam and was awarded three Purple Heart Medals and a Bronze Star with Valor. Following his career with the Marine Corps, Dale went on to build a very successful Hollywood career. His latest mission is the production of a new World War II film called “No Better Place to Die”. The film will [...]