The Freedom Shield
eBook - ePub

The Freedom Shield

The 191st Assault Helicopter Company in Vietnam

  1. 345 pages
  2. English
  3. ePUB (mobile friendly)
  4. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub

The Freedom Shield

The 191st Assault Helicopter Company in Vietnam

About this book

A Vietnam War helicopter pilot shares arresting accounts of flying troops into hot LZs and medevacking the wounded under fire.
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The Freedom ShieldĀ brings together stories of veterans of the 191st Assault Helicopter Company, who were tasked with carrying troops into battle, attacking enemy positions, and evacuating the wounded in their UH-1 Iroquois "Huey" helicopters. The unit was assembled from a hodgepodge of hand-me-down aircraft, used equipment, and overlooked personnel—its appearance belied the invaluable work the crews of the 191st would undertake during the Vietnam War. This narrative of the Company, told through collected stories of veterans, defines a breed of soldier newly minted in Vietnam: the combat assault-helicopter crewman.
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The 191st pilots, crews, and support personnel vividly share the details of what it was like to be at war and forced to rely on your fellow crewmembers for your own survival. Their accounts of helicopter combat at the height of the Vietnam conflict accurately recreate the sights and sounds of the battlefields, the fear and horror of watching close friends torn to pieces, and their feelings on returning to base. Their message is infinitely clear: "The price of freedom is painful."
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Praise for The Freedom Shield
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"The story of the 191st Assault Helicopter Company's combat actions in Vietnam is one of heroism and dedication to duty. It is a vivid picture of young American soldiers full of P and V and the "want to" needed to get the job done with bullets flying in all directions. An adrenaline rush is the order of the day. Read this book to gain new respect and admiration for the Vietnam-era veterans who fought in this unpopular war—they were truly magnificent!" —Brigadier General John C. "Doc" Bahnsen, author of American Warrior: A Combat Memoir of Vietnam
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"An amazing story of perseverance and will. The author accurately chronicles how the 191st Assault Helicopter Company was assembled, during the haste of the Vietnam buildup, with secondhand equipment and filler personnel to become a crown jewel among aviation units in battle. A true testament of American mettle that we all still admire and envy." —Col. Alan B. Renshaw

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Yes, you can access The Freedom Shield by John D. Falcon in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in History & Military Biographies. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Information

Publisher
Casemate
Year
2021
Print ISBN
9781612008608
eBook ISBN
9781612008615

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title
  3. Copyright
  4. Contents
  5. Foreword
  6. Acknowledgements
  7. 1 Ben Tre—A Bloody Fight
  8. 2 Birth of the Assault Helicopter Company
  9. 3 Patnode Commanding
  10. 4 Combat Ready
  11. 5 Airmobile Schemes
  12. 6 The Load Bearers
  13. 7 A Combat Assault from Lead’s Cockpit
  14. 8 Lethal Climate
  15. 9 Night Sampan Ambush
  16. 10 Human Wave VC Attack
  17. 11 Tet Offensive: The Communist Buildup
  18. 12 The Tet Offensive Begins
  19. 13 New Bounty Hunter Six Enters the Fight
  20. 14 Griggs Commanding
  21. 15 Crew Trust
  22. 16 Maintenance Crew Crash
  23. 17 Petric Commanding
  24. 18 Quiet but Deadly
  25. 19 The Hardest Blow
  26. 20 Schmidt Commanding
  27. 21 Battle at Ap My Thuan
  28. 22 The Natural
  29. 23 Mental Impacts of War
  30. 24 Conner Commanding with Bearden as Top
  31. 25 Nighthawk Down
  32. 26 The Final Call
  33. Killed in Action
  34. Glossary
  35. Plate section