From February 1967 to April 1968, David Vaughan flew the Lockheed C-130 Hercules in Southeast Asia. Initially a co-pilot, he moved up to aircraft commander and then instructor pilot as he mastered the challenges of landing on very short, unimproved airstrips in difficult terrain and bad weather. He describes his progression from inexperienced novice to veteran flyer as he learned his trade under combat conditions.
Vaughan’s airlift missions took him to more than 50 fields in South Vietnam, from the Delta in the south to the DMZ in the north, carrying supplies, mail, food, ammunition, and soldiers alive, wounded, and dead. Among his most harrowing flights were resupply missions into the U. S. Marine base at Khe Sanh during the most intensive days of the 1968 Tet offensive. This expanded and revised edition includes several new episodes, supplemented by more than 40 illustrations, twice as many as appeared in the original edition.

David Kirk Vaughan is a retired Air Force officer and educator. He lives in San Antonio, Texas.

David Kirk Vaughan
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages:
Bibliographic Info: ca. 40 photos, 3 maps, glossary, index
Copyright Date: 2024
pISBN: 978-1-4766-9468-9
eISBN: 978-1-4766-5271-9
Imprint: McFarland

From the previous edition:

• “A fascinating book about a little-known aspect of the Southeast Asian conflict”—Flight Journal

• “Nails the Vietnam War airlift experience with the precision of a perfect assault landing…straightforward…selfless accuracy”—Air Power History