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Told through the eyes of a Marine Lieutenant who dropped out of college, this autobiography recounts the Vietnam tour of Joseph L. Hutton, Jr., in his own words. Joining the Marine Corps, and then working his way up, Hutton provides an "inside the wire" and sometimes humorous, often exciting, look at the life and daily routine of a Marine Aviation Lieutenant flying the UH-1E Helicopter. As he and his friends fought an unpopular war, these young men fought hard, played hard, suffered personal losses, and enjoyed successes together while suffering the hardship of separation from their loved ones. As members of Marine Light Helicopter Squadron 167, the only Marine Helicopter squadron ever formed in combat, and at one time the largest helicopter squadron in the Marine Corps, they faced difficult conditions and accomplished significant missions while working short-handed and under the pressure of adverse weather and significant enemy resistance. They performed the unlikely and accomplished the near impossible, developing their own tactics and procedures while receiving conflicting guidance from the ever-changing leadership, all done without recognition or reward. Illustrated throughout with images from the author's private collection, this autobiography presents the story of Hutton and the brave young men with whom he served.
List of contents
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments
Preface
Prologue: Republic of Vietnam, Midsummer 1970
¿1.¿Moberly Junior College: Moberly, Missouri, 1966
¿2.¿Boot Camp, Marine Corps Recruit Depot: San Diego, California, 1966
¿3.¿Naval Air Station, Memphis: Millington, Tennessee, Fall 1966
¿4.¿Keesler Air Force Base: Biloxi, Mississippi, 1966-1967
¿5.¿Marine Corps Air Station: Beaufort, South Carolina, 1967
¿6.¿OCS, Marine Corps Base: Quantico, Virginia, 1968
¿7.¿The Basic School, MCB: Quantico, Virginia, Summer 1968
¿8.¿U.S. Army Primary Flight Training: Ft. Wolters, Texas, Fall 1968
¿9.¿Advanced Flight Training, Hunter Army Airfield and Ft. Stewart: Savannah, Georgia, Early 1969
10.¿Final Qualification, MCAS(H) Santa Ana: Tustin, California, 1969
11.¿Moberly, Missouri: Fall 1969
12.¿En Route to Vietnam: Fall 1969
13.¿South Vietnam: October 21, 1969-September 30, 1970
14.¿First Flight
15.¿Qualifications and Designations
16.¿Experiments with Weapons
17.¿Intramural and Social Activities
18.¿Bob Hope Entertains the Troops
19.¿Rest and Relaxation: Sydney, Australia, January 1970
20.¿Control Problems
21.¿Lost Camera
22.¿Dings on the Tail Rotor
23.¿Night Fright or Which Way Is Up?
24.¿Eagle Claw or What Country Is This?
25.¿April Fools
26.¿Sniffing Out the Enemy
27.¿Rockets Across the Demilitarized Zone
28.¿Magnet Ass
29.¿Reviewing the Troops
30.¿Hogs and Napalm
31.¿Crew Rest
32.¿Meritorious Copilot
33.¿Troop Insert
34.¿A Flight Demonstration
35.¿Rocket Practice
36.¿Night Medevac: June 10 and 11, 1970
37.¿Section Lead
38.¿Cold Cokes Served on a Mountaintop
39.¿Recon Rescue
40.¿Recon and Tigers-Oh My!
41.¿How to Become the O Club Officer in Two Easy Steps
42.¿Guns, Guns, More Guns and Some Slick Hops
43.¿The Squadron Duty Officer
44.¿Twenty-Four Coke Grenades
45.¿Oil Can Bombs
46.¿III Marine Amphibious Force
47.¿Fishing the Explosive Way
48.¿Orange Basketballs
49.¿The Miss America USO Show
50.¿Overloaded Medevac
51.¿Returning the Navy
52.¿How High Can You Go?
53.¿Another Painful Loss
54.¿Winning the Hearts and Minds
55.¿Farewell Dinner
56.¿Home at Last: October 1970
57.¿Semper Fidelis
Appendix A: Numbered Call Signs, After April 9, 1970
Appendix B: III MAF Command Chronology Civic Action, August 1970
Appendix C: III MAF Command Chronology Civic Action, September 1970
Appendix D: Monthly Flight Time
Bibliography
Index
About the author
Lieutenant Colonel Joseph L. Hutton, Jr. served his country in the United States Marine Corps for 25 years. He has followed his military service with a variety of occupations, including airport manager, math teacher, soccer referee, and is currently working as a substitute teacher in Onslow County, North Carolina.
